Disney's Polynesian Village Resort Progress

[SpaceMountain77]

Over the past few weeks, have you seen any photos or read reports of the resort's progress? If so, what are your thoughts, so far, on the reimagined areas?

We were at Captain Cook's a few days after it reopened. Although it was refreshed and clean, I was surprised to see that the design accents and elements are more modern than tropical. Admittedly, I was expecting the reimagined location to be akin to Tangaroa Terrace at the Disneyland Hotel. Regarding the menu, there did not seem to be much inspiration from the offerings of Tangaroa Terrace.

Also, I do not want to believe that the photos of the Pineapple Lanai showcase a finished product. Given the popularity of the Dole Whips, I envisioned the Lanai to be much more inviting and exciting. Right now, to me, it simply appears as a window cutout with a soft serve counter behind it. Jambo House and Kidani Village are often criticized for their dark colors and perceived lack of warmth. The Lanai is dark. Unless additional elements are added, it does not strike me as a social gathering spot.

With this thread, it is my intent to spark an active discussion of individuals' reaction to recently completed projects and, specifically, Disney's design and execution. It is my hope that this will not be a discussion focused on DVC variety and the notion, "this is why there are so many DVC resorts, to accommodate various tastes" or "different strokes for different folks."

Thanks,
Jim

 

[Andrew015]

Thus far, I am rather unimpressed with the majority of the visible work. I think the Pineapple Lanai looks about as bland as you could possibly imagine it. It's basically a plain concrete pad w/ a walk up service window. I've seen fast food restaurants that look more welcoming. My thoughts about Trader Jack's (or now, the Moana Mercantile) are very similar. I miss the King Kamehameha Mickey, and feel that it is just another gift shop now.

I do, however, like the new Polynesian Village sign, and can't wait to see it fired up with the waterfall effect. I'm hopeful that the rest of the resort has more character than what we've seen thus far.

 

[beer dave]

So we were there over labor day weekend. We did a walk through of the Poly. Are you telling me that the little window tucked under the second floor is the finished product? I thought it was a temporary set up.

We also felt really bad for anyone staying there during construction. It may be worse than DTD is.... they should be renting at half price.

The cabanas look cool.... I hope they are going to be one bedroom units...

I'm anxiously optimistic for Trader Sams---- looks like it could have some Adventurers club type features.

Right now the whole place is trashed. At least they are doing it all at one time to get it finished.

 

[SpaceMountain77]

Thus far, I am rather unimpressed with the majority of the visible work. I think the Pineapple Lanai looks about as bland as you could possibly imagine it. It's basically a plain concrete pad w/ a walk up service window. I've seen fast food restaurants that look more welcoming. My thoughts about Trader Jack's (or now, the Moana Mercantile) are very similar. I miss the King Kamehameha Mickey, and feel that it is just another gift shop now.

Agreed. Some of our ice cream and soft serve shops, in central New Jersey and along the Jersey shore, have significantly more theming and design elements than the Pineapple Lanai. To me, it simply seems like it is there because it needs to be, like a resort refillable mug station.

I do, however, like the new Polynesian Village sign, and can't wait to see it fired up with the waterfall effect. I'm hopeful that the rest of the resort has more character than what we've seen thus far.

The sign is certainly an exciting improvement; it better defines the entrance.

 

[SpaceMountain77]

So we were there over labor day weekend. We did a walk through of the Poly. Are you telling me that the little window tucked under the second floor is the finished product? I thought it was a temporary set up.

No, it appears to be the finished design. Although the tables and chairs will be replaced, it seems as though the location is complete. Also surprising to me, it opened without much fanfare. I did not see anything about its opening on the Disney Parks Blog or Facebook pages. Dole Whips are regularly pictured and captioned on the various official Facebook pages, such as Disneyland Today.

 

[DebbieB]

The cabanas look cool.... I hope they are going to be one bedroom units...

They are going to be 2 bedrooms. Rumor is the longhouses will be all large studios (465 square feet).

 

[bobbiwoz]

They are going to be 2 bedrooms. Rumor is the longhouses will be all large studios (465 square feet).

So at the Poly DVC, you can only stay in a 2 bedroom or a studio? Is that what you are saying? Or are the 2 bedrooms lock offs?

 

[Tikiman]

So at the Poly DVC, you can only stay in a 2 bedroom or a studio? Is that what you are saying? Or are the 2 bedrooms lock offs?

The 2 bedroom bungalows are not lock-offs. I posted photos from inside them on my DVC album.

https://www.flickr.com/photos/68472970@N00/sets/72157637650176246/

 

[bobbiwoz]

The 2 bedroom bungalows are not lock-offs. I posted photos from inside them on my DVC album.

https://www.flickr.com/photos/68472970@N00/sets/72157637650176246/

Wow, thanks!

 

[Dean]

I'm betting they're not typical DVC studios and have a King plus a more robust mini kitchen, things they should do with all studios anyway.

 

[bobbiwoz]

I'm betting they're not typical DVC studios and have a King plus a more robust mini kitchen, things they should do with all studios anyway.

Yes! Sure hope are right! We nearly fainted when we saw the amenities at one of Hilton's timeshares. It was not enough for us to buy, but it sure opened our eyes at how DVC was behind that brand.

 

[Dean]

Yes! Sure hope are right! We nearly fainted when we saw the amenities at one of Hilton's timeshares. It was not enough for us to buy, but it sure opened our eyes at how DVC was behind that brand.

DVC studios are sorely limited. Our other main travel companies are Bluegreen, Wyndham and Marriott. We do normally travel to the higher end options with each and we normally stay in 1 or 2 BR villas. However, we generally try to see multiple other unit types when we can and many of the one's we use are lockoff's as well. We also have been to the Caribbean, HI and MX a number of times where efficiency kitchens are more common. I feel safe in saying that the DVC studios is the least of any we've seen from a kitchen standpoint and otherwise. I have seen reports of studios that only sleep 2 and are even smaller (like in NO) but I have not experienced these. Here are a few examples.

Marriott for their newer properties (say last 10-12 yrs) have consistently had a studio that has some similarities to a standard DVC studio. The exceptions are King bed and utensils, plates and the like. A couple of their hotel conversions (Kauai and Maui) have a kitchen similar to their studios I mentioned even for larger units.

Bluegreen often doesn't do studios. For lockoff's they tend to have a larger and smaller 1 BR villa. For hotel conversions they tend to have an efficiency kitchen but more than what I described above with Marriott. This can be an issue if trading in since it's difficult to know if you're trading for the larger or smaller villa side. Sometimes you can tell if you know what to look for so be careful exchanging. The standard 1 BR usually has a queen compared to a king on the larger side.

Wyndham sometimes does the Deluxe/standard lockoff as well but we stayed at the PCB Wyndham a few months ago in a studio and I must say it could have easily been called a sleep two 1 BR. It had a much larger efficiency kitchen with a full stove IIRC. It did have a 4.5 cuff fridge but it did have an ice maker in it.

For only 2 BR dedicated and studios, they really have to upgrade them in several ways, it's really only common sense and I don't believe they're foolish. Now the question is whether they're going to list them as super studios or limited 1BR villas and how are they going to price them. If they upgrade them from the traditional DVC studio, they'll likely also be more points even than VGF studios. So my predictions are king, larger and more functional efficiency kitchen with utensils, etc, sleep 5 or 6 and a price about half way in between the VGF studio and 1 BR. The other question is going to be the long term fees since the upkeep on the 2 BR units is going to be very high.

 

[TheDisneyFour]

Does anyone know the impact, if any, to Ohana? I have reservation in early January but don't want to go if the vibe is different.

 

[DenLo]

Does anyone know the impact, if any, to Ohana? I have reservation in early January but don't want to go if the vibe is different.

Here is what Tikiman says in his September Update on the changes and construction at the Poly. http://www.tikimanpages.com/poly/news/item/215-news-and-observations-sep

There are some parts of the resort that remain unaffected. While I still believe that the longhouses over near the East pool provide a convenient location to the pool, Great Ceremonial House and transportation options, the longhouses over on the west side are out of the construction. Even the Spirit of Aloha show is unaffected and can still be enjoyed. Also the food options at the Polynesian in my opinion are still some of the best in Walt Disney World. Kona may have more of a direct view of the construction but it is still one of my favorite places and ‘Ohana has had some mixed reviews on the new menu and service but some have told me that they had a great time recently at ‘Ohana.

I am seriously considering eating at Ohana's for dinner one evening during our December trip. It seems like we always do breakfast here and it's time we tried out the new dinner menu. Here is a link to the new dinner menu. http://allears.net/dining/menu/ohana/dinner