Concierge Polynesian

[Altymark]

I'm considering booking a concierge room at the Poly next summer. How well does this work for UK visitors? Do they send the itinerary planner to the UK and are there any limits to the types of dining reservations you can make? I'm a bit concerned that booking through Virgin, Thomas Cook etc may mean that my details don't get passed to the concierge service. I'd love to hear of any experiences anyone has.

Thanks in advance

 

[Claire L]

For the price you are paying at the Poly I would personally book direct with Disney and maybe get a flydrive or flights and car hire seperate. If you book direct with Disney you can either do it yourself or go through a WDW specialist agent. It may even work out wise to buy an annual pass to get the discounts that may be available.

Claire

 

[Frances999]

Welcome to the DIS!

You made a great choice! In my opinion absolutely nothing beats concierge at The Polynesian

We booked with Dreams Unlimited using an AAA discount. I contacted the concierge about 120 days before our trip, using their e-mail address which was provided to me by Dreams Unlimited. They were extremely helpful and sent me an Itinerary Planning Form to fill in via e-mail. I don't think they mail them internationally, but if you specifically asked I am sure they would do so - but I was happy just filling it in on the computer and then e-mailing it back to them.

There are no limits to the type of dining reservations you can make. The concierge CMs really know how to work their magic, and can secure some incredible reservations. We needed to change the date for our Illuminations Cruise something like 30 days out - and they did it with no trouble. There is no way I could have done that myself. They also often arrange little surprises and extras ~ we had a cake on our cruise and lots of in-room gifts. If you are celebrating a special occasion whilst you are there make sure you let them know.

Personally I would be concerned booking with a UK travel agent such as Virgin Holidays. I don't feel I would receive such a good service, and I don't think the concierge CMs would be able to help as the reservation may not be uploaded to them until you arrive. I found booking through Dreams was very easy, simple and they got an excellent price.

If you have any other questions just let me know. I have a link to our Polynesian Concierge trip report in my signature.

 

[Amyrlin]

You can do it by e-mail from the UK, but you will have to make first contact.

 

[Miffy2003]

Hi Altymark and welcome to the Dis

I can't think of a better way to enjoy Walt Disney World than at the Polynesian. What a fantastic choice!

We always book direct with Disney now, or through a US travel agent as we find this provides better service, choice and saves money for onsite Disney hotels

 

[mattnkatsmum]

Count me in as one who likes to book through US Disney. I would never book through a UK travel agent / tour operator again for the following reasons:

1. I get the feeling that Disney don't reduce their rooms to the tour operators so they are having to build in a profit margin, making the trip much more expensive.

2. Higher deposit / tougher cancellation policies. To book accommodation through Disney US involves a $200 deposit which is fully refundable until very close to your stay (can't remember the exact terms).

3. If any special offers come out, they can be applied to your booking (free dining being an excellent example of this). A good travel agent will monitor the deals and apply them to your booking.

We booked our last holiday through UK Disney but found them quite inflexible ie the cancellation policies were not so good, we could only buy certain passes and could not apply any discount codes. We couldn't even pay with American Express (the reward points will more than pay for the transatlantic call!).

I'd be interested to hear if anyone has had a bad experience booking through Disney in the US, as I'm not sure why anyone would book any other way.

 

[Altymark]

Thanks for all your suggestions.
Last went to Disney in 04 and stayed at the Contemporary. Had a fantastic time, we planned well before we left and everything ran smoothly. Only problem was we struggled to find places to eat in the evening as we hadn't pre-booked and it was Easter.
For our next trip we intend to see a bit more of Florida our plan is:
7 nights Disney, Polynesian
4 nights Hard Rock, Universal
7 nights Villa in Naples
3 nights resort in the Keys
2 nights in Miami
last night at airport hotel, Orlando
Since our last adventure, we have had another addition to our family, so there will be five of us for our next trip. Having a family of five apears to confuse some on-line booking sites. For example I'm informed on-line that our requirements exceed the maximum occupancy at the Hard Rock Hotel, although the literature says that some rooms will accomadate five.
So i'll probably book some elements (eg Disney) independantly and other parts through a travel agency.
Again thanks for all your help
Mark