Disney's POLYNESIAN VILLAGE RESORT Information & Questions

[mickeynut1]

Thanks! Is the construction going to alter a lot of the current views? I've taken notes on pics I've seen and current suggestions but I suppose they will be null once all is said and done? This is my second visit overall and will be the first to Poly (we stayed at CR 8/14).

With the quiet pool being closed for refurb, the surrounding long houses aren't going to have very pretty views . I always suggest Samoa as it's very convenient to everything and we loved it, but with the pool being closed, some might not want to take the change of getting that view.

I took these pictures two weeks ago of the new water / play area near the Volcano pool. The lifeguard said everyone can play there, but only guests under 48 inches can use the slides. It was fun. I hope I'm posting the photos correctly.View attachment 110396

Love the pics, thanks for sharing .

What I really wanted to share were pictures from our room. We stayed in Moorea, Deluxe lagoon view studio. The view was not as impressive as we hoped. We were overlooking the bungalows. We watched the WISHES fireworks from our first floor room almost every night and enjoyed the leisurely pace. But the view was in between the bungalows. We requested a higher floor, but it was not available at check in. We had a great time and liked the resort. Just the view was unexpected. Feel free to ask any questions. I'll try to answer. Everyone was so helpful before we left.

I'm sorry your room view wasn't great, but I'm glad you enjoyed the resort .

 

[SeaSpray]

.

I saw that too. If there's a way to get to the Boardwalk by boat I'd like to know. I don't think there is though. Our plan was monorail to MK then bus to BW or maybe just take a cab or do Uber.

I am confused...is there an easy way to get to the Boardwalk from Poly?? (had planned on taking the Monorail to MK and catching the Boardwalk bus there...) Kindest Thanks!

I'm afraid that Disney1975 was making a Polynesian resort joke! Rarotonga's second floor doesn't have balconies; the view of the east pool no longer exists due to the current construction; while there is a Private Dining menu, you can't order typical room service from the Kona Café, and lastly there is no way to get from the Polynesian to the Boardwalk via direct waterway.

 

[jhaig]

I am sad and full of shame that I missed that....

 

[runnerchick]

Got it now - guess I need to increase my coffee intake...thanks!

 

[AngiTN]

I'm afraid that Disney1975 was making a Polynesian resort joke! Rarotonga's second floor doesn't have balconies; the view of the east pool no longer exists due to the current construction; while there is a Private Dining menu, you can't order typical room service from the Kona Café, and lastly there is no way to get from the Polynesian to the Boardwalk via direct waterway.

Thank you spelling it out. I was wondering how anyone could have so much wrong

 

[jdd]

I can't remember if we were 1503 during our last Poly stay, but if we weren't it was close. These are the views from our patio in December 2010 (apologies for the pretty lousy photos). And I agree, the people upstairs sounded like elephants when they came in at night. The sound only lasted about twenty minutes, but wow, was it loud. I don't think it was them so much as poor sound insulation between floors.

Gorgeous pictures! Wish it still looked like that!

 

[johnsonet]

could anyone tell me how far is the villas from the polynesion main resort? as i understand the villas & bunglows are on the lagoon directly behind the resort.

There are studio villas in Moorea and Pago Pago, and then there are the bungalows. Nothing at the Polynesian is very far from the Great Ceremonial House - about a 5 minute walk.

so I am following up on my early post and now looking for some recommendations on which longhouse would work for us. This is our first time at the poly- we are 8 people 4 adults 4 kids, we want to be close to transportation to Magic Kingdom (by boat and monorail if possible)-that's first priority since we have some younger kids, but would like to consider a view and close proximity to a pool if possible. We are traveling in April 2016, with the rates now, we are looking at the standard view, looking for any opinions. thank you

All rooms would work for you. You might consider requesting Rarotonga, Ground floor. You'd have a patio and children would have a bit of space to play. One side of Rarotonga will face the new pool that is beginning construction right now. The other side faces the monorail track (and parking lot). Rarotonga is large, so you have a good chance of being placed there. Any room would be 5 min. or so at most from monorail and boat. Boat is one direction, bus is another, monorail is another. Samoa, Niue would also be great locations, for standard view. Very close to pools and Great Ceremonial House. You really cannot go wrong.

I'm home from Florida and just wanted to say the the Polynesian was a real treat. We cannot wait to return and I was so impressed by the look and feel of the resort. Once all the major work is completed, I think it will be the greatest resort on property.

I wanted to clarify that when we took the monorail from the Polynesian Friday morning, it didn't take but 5 minutes or so to arrive, but the CMs held all the early breakfast people until 7:45am to enter the park. It didn't take us 15 minutes to get to the park

If you are going soon, I would recommend trying to avoid the East Pool area (pool-facing sides of Hawaii, Samoa, Niue, Rarotonga, Tokelau). Just talk to the CM when you check in. They will work with you.
They have put up tropical-designed mesh over the chain link fence now and it looks very nice.
Understand that you can request buildings and room numbers but you will not necessarily get anything close to what you ask for. It will completely depend on what is available for your exact dates. I do not envy room assignors!

We were thrilled with Fiji.

I will post more pics in a bit.
It was a magical vacation

 

[johnsonet]

Monorail over to MK Friday morning...




So much seating in the lobby now. Very nice.


This would basically be the view from Fiji on other side (not Marina side)

 

[johnsonet]

new resort map


Captain Cook's is so nice, especially first thing in the morning. Sit on the side closest to Trader Sam's.


Walking from parking lot toward Niue and Lava Pool. GCH is directly to the left.


Cutie.

 

[duck_adoo]

Great pics! 9 more days for us!!

 

[johnsonet]

Great pics! 9 more days for us!!

You are in for a treat! Have a great time

 

[Southernswthrt]

Hi everyone! I've finally made it through the thread We have a 5 night stay scheduled for Labor Day week, and we are beyond excited as Poly has always been our dream resort. Since we will likely be driving, we will not arrive until 6 pm so I am a little worried about the room assignment so I'm expecting a room overlooking the construction. I'd love to hear from any of you that have rooms facing the construction area - how bad is it really?

 

[jerseygal]

Johnsonet...THANKS for the great pics! BEAUTIFUL!
Seems to be a lot of ongoing chatter about some overcrowding at Volcano Pool...Some are suggesting that there should be daily wristbands given to identify Poly guests....Curious to hear about your experience with the Volcano Pool and available seating?
TIA!

 

[johnsonet]

Thank you, jerseygal.

I actually never made it to the pool, but my daughter and niece did. They had fun but it is crowded. Undoubtedly more so since the East Pool is closed.

I watched once from my balcony as some girls leaving the pool held the door for two men who had bags and were fully dressed, LOL. There's no way to stop pool hoppers unless they have CMs at the entrances, as at BC.

 

[jerseygal]

Thank you, jerseygal.

I actually never made it to the pool, but my daughter and niece did. They had fun but it is crowded. Undoubtedly more so since the East Pool is closed.

I watched once from my balcony as some girls leaving the pool held the door for two men who had bags and were fully dressed, LOL. There's no way to stop pool hoppers unless they have CMs at the entrances, as at BC.

Okay, I just had a great laugh! Fully dressed; crazy!You are right..only real control would be monitoring at gate by CM like at SAB!

 

[TJA]

I watched once from my balcony as some girls leaving the pool held the door for two men who had bags and were fully dressed, LOL. There's no way to stop pool hoppers unless they have CMs at the entrances, as at BC.

I totally agree with this as we witnessed many "acts" like this during our July 4 week. To be honest, I actually held the door for fully dressed people and then afterward I thought OH NO I just fell into the trap of being kind and helpful to people with their hands full but probably just let in some pool hoppers! I didn't think about it until after we found a seat and then I couldn't locate the family once I was seated so who knows if they actually stayed inside.

 

[tarak]

Great photos, johnsonet! Even though we're staying at the WL now instead of the Poly, we do have an ADR for 'Ohana, so I'm looking forward to seeing how the resort looks. I'm especially curious about the lobby. I was really disappointed when I heard about the changes, but seeing the pictures makes me think it will be beautiful.

 

[DisneyDmbNut]

Only y'all could appreciate this:

My DD and I are sitting by our pool, listening to Hawaiian music on Pandora, pretending we are still at the Poly like this time last week!

 

[johnsonet]

I was too, tarak - but I think it was just a gut reaction to change.
I am confident you will like the new lobby. Still feels like home - but improved!

P.S. Thank you

 

[PrincessRileysMom]

Be honest- am I over thinking this? ha ha (I usually am!)
We have a standard room booked for mid-August. From day one, I wanted proximity to transportation/TTC. So I always thought Rarotonga or Samoa were the way to go.

But with that updated monorail schedule, what the heck is the point now? Won't we be taking the boat launch to get to MK for rope drop? Which boat launch would be taking anyway? The one at the TTC or the one from the Poly docks? And from what I see on the schedule, the monorail to Epcot won't be running until 9am on our Epcot day. (ARGH one of the biggest reasons I wanted to stay at the Poly was monorail to Epcot!!!!). I guess in a way it's still good to be near the TTC when coming back from Epcot...sigh.

So with those two longhouses, you run the risk of construction view. I would presume I have a better shot getting the room I want at Rarontonga since Samoa is more popular, do you agree? I am blown away by the 3rd floor views of the Lava Pool at Samoa, but I would imagine those would get gobbled up fast (albeit noisy?). The monorail view from Rarontonga looks great though, and probably more private. And from what I read on tikiman's site, balcony views aren't all they are cracked up to be since the rail is so high and blocks your view when sitting.

So...what would you do if you were me? haha. Should I just avoid these two buildings and go with Fiji or that other longhouse that I can't spell that starts with an A? heehee. Does that make "that" much of a difference of a walk to transportation?

THANK YOU!!