luvavacation
DIS Veteran
- Joined
- Nov 23, 2006
- Messages
- 913
We just returned from 2 nights at AKL-Concierge, Arusha Savannah, Kudu Trail, 4th floor, and Polynesian, Tahiti building, 2nd floor garden view.
AKL was great! The people in concierge were wonderful, pleasant always and willing to get something for you if it was not available at the time you arrived. One afternoon, my youngest daughter and husband were taking a 2 hour nap and my eldest and I were not sure if they would be up for the evening snack offerings (with as much as we spend for food in the parks, we like to take advantage of what concierge food offerings are available if we are at the resort when the food is out). One of the women at concierge said that if they were not up by the time the snack offerings were removed (peanut butter and jelly sandwiches were available at this time, as were other tasty items), she would package up some pb&j sandwiches for my daughter. Sure enough, by the time the DD and DH woke up from their nap, it was evening cordials time, but true to their word, concierge brought out the sandwiches for my daughter! Just an example of how wonderful they were in AKL concierge, I felt they were worth the price we paid, and though the room was smaller than other deluxe resort rooms, we were given a bunk bed room and so my daughters were thrilled, and of course the savannah view is always a plus for us, as we do spend lots of time on the balcony watching the animals. I highly recommend AKL!
The Poly was ok. Check-in was a little disappointing, we did receive the building requested, but not the 1st floor request, instead we had 2nd floor. We were told the resort was completely sold out due to AKL overflow. Oh well, a request is just a request, I was still happy to receive the building I requested. The castmember checking us in was not appearing too thrilled to be at work; we have had more pleasant front desk experiences at Days Inn than at the Poly. He must have missed the training day when they were taught how to smile at guests.
We walked to the Ticket and Transportation Center, since our building was closer to that than the resort monorail, but even after 4 nights there, my DH was always getting lost on the winding paths. It is really confusing after dark, so if you have a bad sense of direction, always carry the map with you!
I really liked the grounds at Poly, very pretty and lush, and our last night there we sat at the beach and watched the Electrical Parade (or whatever it is called!) on the lake, and soaked up some of the evening atmosphere of the Poly. I enjoyed that aspect of my stay there.
The room at the Poly was disappointing. Sure, it is big, and the bathroom is nice and spacious, but we had a few issues that were never resolved, even after I spoke to someone at the front desk. We had a patio door that required superhuman strength to open and close, and even then it would not close completely since the door jam was bent! There was no way to lock it, as the lock would not reach the catch. The walls are paper thin, and the family next door had no problem letting their children bang on the walls at 5:00 a.m. and scream at all hours of the day and night, and every noise outside was heard in our room (could be because the patio door didn't shut!). There were bees, possibly wood bees according to the guy at the front desk ("we don't think they bite, it should be ok") nesting on the one corner banister of our balcony, and a wasp nest just off the balcony in a tree (thus we were not on the balcony much). Also, the left sink's cold water handle was on wrong, it was against the water faucet, not sticking out to the side (how could housekeeping miss this and not have a plumber come fix it?). We called for help with the air conditioner, as it would not stay running, and they sent someone to check on the fridge (?), which was working fine. I figured out how to make the air conditioner work on my own (turn it off and hold it when turning on, then pick a temp).
I did ask to speak to a manager when I initially approached the front desk on our 2nd day there with my concerns, but the manager was not available, yet I was assured that I would be contacted and everything would be looked at and taken care of. Nothing was taken care of, and I was never contacted. I did mention the same concerns again when we checked out, and again the manager was not available, but my concerns about the room were noted, or so I was told.
Of our two hotels stays, and taking into account the other hotels we have stayed at on Disney (Beach Club, Contemporary, Grand Floridian-conc., and Caribbean Beach) our Poly stay was the most disappointing. Of course, this could be because we kept saying that for the money we paid to stay there, we expected more. Our AKL Concierge stay cost less per night than Poly garden, and we felt our AKL stay was still a better experience than the Poly. It just seemed as if the castmembers at AKL, even the ones we met just walking the resort, were friendlier and had more of the Disney spirit than the ones at the Polynesian. Sure, the monorail access was nice, but when we are on vacation and someone else is driving, we don't mind the long bus ride from AKL!
For us, the Poly was not the stellar resort others have experienced, but that is just our opinion, others will differ I am sure!
AKL was great! The people in concierge were wonderful, pleasant always and willing to get something for you if it was not available at the time you arrived. One afternoon, my youngest daughter and husband were taking a 2 hour nap and my eldest and I were not sure if they would be up for the evening snack offerings (with as much as we spend for food in the parks, we like to take advantage of what concierge food offerings are available if we are at the resort when the food is out). One of the women at concierge said that if they were not up by the time the snack offerings were removed (peanut butter and jelly sandwiches were available at this time, as were other tasty items), she would package up some pb&j sandwiches for my daughter. Sure enough, by the time the DD and DH woke up from their nap, it was evening cordials time, but true to their word, concierge brought out the sandwiches for my daughter! Just an example of how wonderful they were in AKL concierge, I felt they were worth the price we paid, and though the room was smaller than other deluxe resort rooms, we were given a bunk bed room and so my daughters were thrilled, and of course the savannah view is always a plus for us, as we do spend lots of time on the balcony watching the animals. I highly recommend AKL!
The Poly was ok. Check-in was a little disappointing, we did receive the building requested, but not the 1st floor request, instead we had 2nd floor. We were told the resort was completely sold out due to AKL overflow. Oh well, a request is just a request, I was still happy to receive the building I requested. The castmember checking us in was not appearing too thrilled to be at work; we have had more pleasant front desk experiences at Days Inn than at the Poly. He must have missed the training day when they were taught how to smile at guests.
We walked to the Ticket and Transportation Center, since our building was closer to that than the resort monorail, but even after 4 nights there, my DH was always getting lost on the winding paths. It is really confusing after dark, so if you have a bad sense of direction, always carry the map with you!
I really liked the grounds at Poly, very pretty and lush, and our last night there we sat at the beach and watched the Electrical Parade (or whatever it is called!) on the lake, and soaked up some of the evening atmosphere of the Poly. I enjoyed that aspect of my stay there.
The room at the Poly was disappointing. Sure, it is big, and the bathroom is nice and spacious, but we had a few issues that were never resolved, even after I spoke to someone at the front desk. We had a patio door that required superhuman strength to open and close, and even then it would not close completely since the door jam was bent! There was no way to lock it, as the lock would not reach the catch. The walls are paper thin, and the family next door had no problem letting their children bang on the walls at 5:00 a.m. and scream at all hours of the day and night, and every noise outside was heard in our room (could be because the patio door didn't shut!). There were bees, possibly wood bees according to the guy at the front desk ("we don't think they bite, it should be ok") nesting on the one corner banister of our balcony, and a wasp nest just off the balcony in a tree (thus we were not on the balcony much). Also, the left sink's cold water handle was on wrong, it was against the water faucet, not sticking out to the side (how could housekeeping miss this and not have a plumber come fix it?). We called for help with the air conditioner, as it would not stay running, and they sent someone to check on the fridge (?), which was working fine. I figured out how to make the air conditioner work on my own (turn it off and hold it when turning on, then pick a temp).
I did ask to speak to a manager when I initially approached the front desk on our 2nd day there with my concerns, but the manager was not available, yet I was assured that I would be contacted and everything would be looked at and taken care of. Nothing was taken care of, and I was never contacted. I did mention the same concerns again when we checked out, and again the manager was not available, but my concerns about the room were noted, or so I was told.
Of our two hotels stays, and taking into account the other hotels we have stayed at on Disney (Beach Club, Contemporary, Grand Floridian-conc., and Caribbean Beach) our Poly stay was the most disappointing. Of course, this could be because we kept saying that for the money we paid to stay there, we expected more. Our AKL Concierge stay cost less per night than Poly garden, and we felt our AKL stay was still a better experience than the Poly. It just seemed as if the castmembers at AKL, even the ones we met just walking the resort, were friendlier and had more of the Disney spirit than the ones at the Polynesian. Sure, the monorail access was nice, but when we are on vacation and someone else is driving, we don't mind the long bus ride from AKL!
For us, the Poly was not the stellar resort others have experienced, but that is just our opinion, others will differ I am sure!
