Just Back From The Poly! Any Questions???

[TiggerPiglet]

We just returned from a wonderful stay at the Polynesian. We absolutely loved it. Just wondering if anyone has any questions about the room or the hotel itself, I'd be happy to answer them

 

[lizmc]

Hi .
Glad you enjoyed your trip!!
Which building did you stay in? Did you like the location?
Did you eat at Ohana's and Kona cafe? Did you like the food?
How long did it take to get to MGM by bus?
What was your favorite thng about the Poly, and your least favorite thing?

Thank you in advance!! I will be staying at the Poly in November.

 

[MJwritestuff]

Hi!
Like lizmc, we'll also be staying there in November with our three young kids. I have wanted to stay here ever since visiting last year and eating at O'Hana's (don't miss this lizmc - it was a highlight for my kids with the coconut races and hula hoops!)
I have no clue yet where our room is, only that it is garden view.
I'm also curious if you like Kona.
Can you relax on the beach itself? I understand it's wading only, but we're real beach bums. Do they have hammocks or play toys for kids (our ages are 7 and twins, 8)?
Thank you - it's nice to find out a little more about this beautiful place in advance!
MJ

 

[TiggerPiglet]

Hi Lizmc,

We stayed in the Tokelau building on the third floor, Room 3907. It was a garden view room, but if you walked onto the balcony and turned to your right you could see a little portion of the lagoon through the palm trees. It wasn't a great view of the lagoon, but considering it was a garden view room, it was a nice surprise to even get to see a little of it.
I thought the Tokelau building was a great location. It was centrally located to everything.
I did not eat in their restaurants, so I can't comment on their food. Also we had our car (we actually drove down from NJ) so when we went to MGM we drove, so I can't comment on the bus service either. Sorry about that
My favorite thing about the Poly was their relaxed atmosphere. After a long day at the parks it was nice to walk through their paths lined with flowers and tropical plants. It really made me feel like I was on a tropical island instead of WDW
My least favorite thing about the Poly were the cast members zipping around the paths on their golf cars. A couple of times I thought they were going to take my kids out, but I'm sure this is a problem at all resorts that use golf cars to get around.
I'm sorry again that I wasn't able to answer all your questions.
Have a great trip

 

[TiggerPiglet]

Hi MJwritestuff, it looks like you asked your question right before I gave my answer to Lizmc.
Well, as you can see from my post I did not go to Kona's.
You can relax at the beach. They have chairs and also those shade things that go over the chairs. They have hammocks and swinging benches. They did not have play toys for the kids (at least that I saw), but people did bring their own beach toys and made sand castles.
At night you can watch the fireworks at MK and the Electric Water Pageant from their beach. It was very relaxing doing that. Just remember the bug spray if you do that, it gets a little buggy at night. That goes for all of WDW.
Have a great trip

 

[drusso]

I too just returned from a split stay - Poly & YC. First time at the Poly for us and we just loved it. I know what you mean with all the golf carts zipping about - at least they were screaming 'aloha' has the went by. I thought if one more person said aloha I would scream - then I got to the YC (our usual hotel) - here everyone seemed to be in a constant bad mood - something must be going on here - first time in 10 yrs. I was sorry to be there and would have gladly gone back to all the alohas in a second.

We ate at Kona for both breakfast and dinner - both very good - food and service always excellent here and a very good value for the quality you get. Our first time at O'hana - and again we all loved it - will be added to our must do list for future trips.

Hope you have a wonderful time and enjoy it as much as we did.

 

[lowkat]

We just got back Sat from the Poly. we did a rushed last minute decision to leave BWI, so we moved rather quickly. We ended up at the Samoa on the 3rd floor with balconey, and pool view. We loved it.

Also ate at O'Hara's and Kona's, all I know is I gained 10 pounds,both were excellent. We will not ever hesitate to go back again.

We had a great trip but now the unpacking and washing and ... the wishing and saving for next year

 

[ohMom]

the comfort of your beds?? did you notice a musty smell??

Our TA noted a Toukelau request on our ressie, but I plan to fax it in just before our Dec trip as well. Any rooms that you thought were in a great spot in that bldg?

Did you go to storytelling or torch lighting ceremony?

Did the resort seem "noisy" in your room?

thanks for making yourself available for questions!!

 

[luvmarypoppins]

Just wondering if you were chosen to do the survey?

 

[TiggerPiglet]

OhMom, I felt the beds were comfortable, I had no problems sleeping. I did not feel the room had a musty odor. In fact, the bell hop (I guess you would call him) told us to keep the air conditioner on, otherwise you might get the musty smell.
We did not do the storytelling or the torch lighting ceremony, we were pretty much at the parks from the time they opened to the time they closed. We pretty much just slept at the hotel and maybe used their pool once or twice.
Where we were located, Room 3907, did not seem to get noisy. I don't know if it had anything to do with the fact we were on the third floor. Maybe if we were on the first floor, we might have gotten noise from people walking by on the paths.
Probably rooms that would be in a great spot would be rooms a couple of doors down from us, like 3910, 3911. I mentioned before that we could see the lagoon a little bit through some palm trees, eventhough it was a GV room, so I would think if you go down the hall a little more to the right, your view of the lagoon would be a little better. Also I think the third floor would give you a better view too, being that it's higher up. There are also balconies on the second and third floors, the first floor only has a patio.
Have a great trip


LuvMaryPoppins, no I was not chosen to do any survey.

 

[uncle_dude69]

Hey, thanks for sharing your trip info with us. I do have a few questions for you.

1) What night(s) did the fireworks show run at MK?
2) Did you watch the Water Pagent?
3) Where did you sit for these events?
4) Did you rent any of the water mice? How much was it?
5) Did you rent any of the bikes (surrey bikes I think they are called)?



TIA! I'm glad you guys had a wonderful trip!!!

Uncle

 

[TiggerPiglet]

Hi Uncle Dude,

They ran the fireworks on Saturday, Monday and Wednesday night while we were there. The fireworks on Saturday we watched from MK because we were there for Spectro.
We watched the Monday and Wednesday fireworks from Poly's beach. My kids actually preferred watching the fireworks from the beach than MK, because it wasn't as loud, being the beach is further away.
We saw the water pageant also. I chose to sit on a lounge chair on the beach, while my DH and kids chose to sit on a hammock. They also have a swinging bench you can sit on. There's plenty of seating to watch the fireworks and water pageant. So, even if you get there five minutes before, you won't have a problem getting a seat.
We did not rent the water mice or the surrey bikes. We had wanted to, but we just didn't get the time to do it, but I think it was $18 for a half hour to rent the water mice, but don't quote me on that

 

[flora fauna meriweth]

Thanks for the great info about the POLY

This is my first time on a post -so hope Im doing it right!!

My family-DH and DS-8 are going to POLY in October for the first time. Our last trip was October '00 at WL and prior to that May'95 BC. We have a garden room and also requested the Tokelau building. Have they changed the location of the bus stop?? Also, how did you find the Dsiney bus transportation to MGM/AK

THANKS AGAIN!!

 

[TiggerPiglet]

Welcome to the boards, Flora,fauna,meriweth
I have no idea if they changed the location of the bus stop, as this was my first trip to the Poly. The bus stop is to the right of the Grand Ceremonial House as you look at the GCH.
I'm sorry, but I can't comment on the bus transportation, as we had our own car.
Have a great trip

 

[Ciavobella]

We are driving from NJ in Oct. for our stay at the Poly. How was the drive? How old are your kids? Any tips?

Thanks for posting!
Karen

 

[TiggerPiglet]

ciavobella, our kids are 7 and 4, both girls. The drive was okay. We took three days to get down and two to get back. We didn't rent a TV for the car, we just had coloring books and a magna doodle to keep them busy and they seemed fine with that. I was actually amazed how good they were. I don't think I have any good tips for you, other than we left on a Wednesday at about 8 a.m. and we did not hit any of the D.C. traffic.
Have a great trip.

 

[ohMom]

Tiggerpiglet for your willingness to answer and share your wisdom!! much appreciated

 

[PiperG]

Originally posted by TiggerPiglet
We stayed in the Tokelau building on the third floor, Room 3907. It was a garden view room, but if you walked onto the balcony and turned to your right you could see a little portion of the lagoon through the palm trees. It wasn't a great view of the lagoon, but considering it was a garden view room, it was a nice surprise to even get to see a little of it.

Hi TiggerPiglet,

It was fun to read your post. We stayed in the same location, but on the 2nd floor. It was a nice treat to be able to see some of the water parade. However, the best part was really the balcony. DH and I sat out there for hours drinking wine and talking while DS slept.

This building is a great location, and we are hoping to get the same general area for our Feb trip. It was close to the beach but close to the GCH too. Perfect.

For everyone else, we thought the food was superb. We mostly used room service, so I don't know if the food comes from O'hana or Kona. Everything we had was great. DS ordered standard kids fare, but they really did up his plate nicely and his milk came with a Mickey straw. A small detail. . . but he loved it!!

We rented a fridge for $10/day and stocked it with milk, juice etc. We then bought cereal and fruit from Captain Cooks and had breakfast in the room. Cheaper than anything else, and it got us off to an easy, healthy start.

Can't wait to go back

 

[trustyputter]

Planning a stay in Oct. for 17 family members. Is it feasible to plan a character breakfast for the last day of stay considering our flight out is around 11:00AM?

 

[*123JOANNA123*]

We did a 7.30 Ohana's character breakfast this year and were out of there by 8.15, so depending on how much interaction you want and how 'packed and ready to go' you are, it might be feasible.

Mobilising 17 people, getting them all sitting down, fed, check paid etc might be a problem. Perhaps if you split into two groups? The service is quick enough and the food comes out on a platter (served 'family style') so technically, I would say you could do it, but it might be a little rushed.