Tess
DIS Veteran - 1997
- Joined
- Aug 19, 1999
- Messages
- 5,607
What a spectacular vacation we had and I must admit I'm not happy to be home. No really, I'd rather be back in Florida on vacation. I met only one fellow DISer on this trip, JC&Ali'sMom.
The Polynesian was in great shape. Everything was neat, tidy, and colorful. Trees are blooming and many of the flowering beds have been trimmed way down.
We were housed in room 1512 and it had a lovely view of Cindy's house. Our mousekeeping was wonderful and we had no complaints whatsoever in that area. For those concerned about the duck doo on the patio--yeah, it could be a nuisance, but was cleaned off daily and we didn't find it a problem. We watched the duck parade every morning--single file line parading in front of Hawaii's patios and toward Tokelau.
The lounge food was excellent as always although the menu is being tweaked just a bit as most of you know. There were a couple of evenings that the desserts were practically nonexistent (only 4 pieces of a chocolate concoction) by 9:15 p.m. and another evening when there were only a couple of beers remaining. I don't mean a couple in the trough, I mean only two beers left in the kitchen. The lounge staff were wonderful as always and it was really great to see them all again. For anyone who knows Ku'ulei, she has moved up front. She was there part-time last year, but is now up front on a regular basis. You may get lucky and see her delivering packages or otherwise wandering around Hawaii. If not, and you want to say hi, catch her in the GCH.
The front desk staff could not have been more hospitable and professional. They were always readily accessible, friendly, and warmly greeting the guests. Special thanks to David for his assistance.
Hawaii was very busy when we were there and another guest indicated she had spoken to many folks who were upgraded to concierge. Lucky them! The resort in general was very busy.
The pools were exceedingly crowded. We like to swim after lunch and have done this each and every trip. This has never been a problem for us during our June visits and we've always been able to secure seats. July must be much busier than June because we had a terrible time getting chairs at the quiet pool. You could forget the volcano pool. One day we opted to sleep in and have a pool morning. It seemed the pool was constantly being closed due to lightning around 2-4 p.m. and so crowded it was not pleasant. We hoped to enjoy a little time in the sun without the interruption from closures and a more peaceful experience. My husband and I got up at 6:30 a.m. headed up to the lounge for breakfast at 7:00 a.m. and to the pool by 7:30 a.m. By 10-11 a.m. it was packed. We were very surprised how early the pools filled and had not experienced this on any of our many prior visits. I have no idea if this is a July phenomenon or one that we will be seeing again next June.
I do have one tiny complaint with our stay. While strolling the grounds at the Polynesian, the resort loop was barely audible. There were a few spots where it could be heard clearly (e.g. in front of Hawaii, at the beach end of the volcano pool, and the marina), but the sound was nearly nonexistent at the quiet pool, the volcano pool, or around the walkways of the resort. For us, the loop is the ambiance to the pool time and the resort itself. Without it, the pool time was a bit lacking and the ambiance while strolling around the resort was diminished. I did ask about the sound quality and was told the music now starts later in the morning and ends in the evening because guests complained it was too loud and they couldn't sleep. I know you can't please everyone, but bring back the sound at the pools and adjust the volume so it can be heard! I know, not much of a complaint--more of a minor annoyance.
We used Captain Cook's a couple of times and did not find the new process a problem and it was fairly busy. It seemed a shorter wait for us this year than in years past.
I've uploaded my pictures and they can be found at: http://www.imagestation.com/album/pictures.html?id=2089473445 if anyone is interested.
For those heading out soon--I wish I could go back, but then again--someone has to start saving for next year!
The Polynesian was in great shape. Everything was neat, tidy, and colorful. Trees are blooming and many of the flowering beds have been trimmed way down.
We were housed in room 1512 and it had a lovely view of Cindy's house. Our mousekeeping was wonderful and we had no complaints whatsoever in that area. For those concerned about the duck doo on the patio--yeah, it could be a nuisance, but was cleaned off daily and we didn't find it a problem. We watched the duck parade every morning--single file line parading in front of Hawaii's patios and toward Tokelau.
The lounge food was excellent as always although the menu is being tweaked just a bit as most of you know. There were a couple of evenings that the desserts were practically nonexistent (only 4 pieces of a chocolate concoction) by 9:15 p.m. and another evening when there were only a couple of beers remaining. I don't mean a couple in the trough, I mean only two beers left in the kitchen. The lounge staff were wonderful as always and it was really great to see them all again. For anyone who knows Ku'ulei, she has moved up front. She was there part-time last year, but is now up front on a regular basis. You may get lucky and see her delivering packages or otherwise wandering around Hawaii. If not, and you want to say hi, catch her in the GCH.
The front desk staff could not have been more hospitable and professional. They were always readily accessible, friendly, and warmly greeting the guests. Special thanks to David for his assistance.
Hawaii was very busy when we were there and another guest indicated she had spoken to many folks who were upgraded to concierge. Lucky them! The resort in general was very busy.
The pools were exceedingly crowded. We like to swim after lunch and have done this each and every trip. This has never been a problem for us during our June visits and we've always been able to secure seats. July must be much busier than June because we had a terrible time getting chairs at the quiet pool. You could forget the volcano pool. One day we opted to sleep in and have a pool morning. It seemed the pool was constantly being closed due to lightning around 2-4 p.m. and so crowded it was not pleasant. We hoped to enjoy a little time in the sun without the interruption from closures and a more peaceful experience. My husband and I got up at 6:30 a.m. headed up to the lounge for breakfast at 7:00 a.m. and to the pool by 7:30 a.m. By 10-11 a.m. it was packed. We were very surprised how early the pools filled and had not experienced this on any of our many prior visits. I have no idea if this is a July phenomenon or one that we will be seeing again next June.
I do have one tiny complaint with our stay. While strolling the grounds at the Polynesian, the resort loop was barely audible. There were a few spots where it could be heard clearly (e.g. in front of Hawaii, at the beach end of the volcano pool, and the marina), but the sound was nearly nonexistent at the quiet pool, the volcano pool, or around the walkways of the resort. For us, the loop is the ambiance to the pool time and the resort itself. Without it, the pool time was a bit lacking and the ambiance while strolling around the resort was diminished. I did ask about the sound quality and was told the music now starts later in the morning and ends in the evening because guests complained it was too loud and they couldn't sleep. I know you can't please everyone, but bring back the sound at the pools and adjust the volume so it can be heard! I know, not much of a complaint--more of a minor annoyance.
We used Captain Cook's a couple of times and did not find the new process a problem and it was fairly busy. It seemed a shorter wait for us this year than in years past.
I've uploaded my pictures and they can be found at: http://www.imagestation.com/album/pictures.html?id=2089473445 if anyone is interested.
For those heading out soon--I wish I could go back, but then again--someone has to start saving for next year!
