just returned...quick things before trip report...

[handsfull]

hey guys...

we have returned from our 11 night stay at the Polynesian....
it was 15 of us in 3 hotel rooms in the Rarotonga (spelling) longhouse...on the ground floor...which was fantastic...we had a garden view room that over looked the quiet pool...and two of our rooms were adjoining...
our group included...
myself and husband (early 40s)
grandma (??)
Colby (15)
Maddy and Sydney (4)
Adrian, Christian, Brant (2)
and 5 friends, roughly the same ages...
as well as 15+ family members scattered through out the resorts...

-The resort was great! They helped us with every request...we require a microwave for medical reasons for one of my sons, and it was not a problem, and was given at no charge...

- the food at the resort was fantastic...we were close enough to the 24 hour place that it was no hastle to get anything...and we got the refilable mugs which were a life saver....

- we stoped at a publix on the way to the resort and got a cooler as well as ice, and stocked up on milk, cereal, breads, snacks, and juices...ice was availbe 24/7 at the resort...so when the ice melted in the cooler, we dumped in down the bath tub, and just refiled it....

- When we got to the room we were suprised with a cake, and birthday decorations, as well as an autographed card by Pluto, my son was totally suprised and it made a great start for our vacation....

- the Pack and Plays were fine, we did bring down our own bedding, which fit well, they were easy to assemble, and some afternoons it was quiet enough where we set them up on the patio for the boys to sleep...they loved it!

ok on to the parks...

- Our strollers worked fine, although heavy, they were easy to get on to the monorail, and the boys loved the steering wheel on the jeep...I'm regretting not going with two side by sides....but the Jeep "piggy-back" worked great...although it was big

- we rented strollers for the girls...which was another life saver, as there little legs could not keep up...
the strollers at the parks, with exception to MGM were quite hard...and we picked up some cheep pillows and layed them on the seat...it worked out great....

- I never saw my older son and his friend in any of the parks...he always went off and did his own thing...which I was happy about, I did give him orders that some of the days we were going to spend together, and it worked out great, he knew his boundries, and left his "2-way" on when he wasn't with us...he spent most of the time on the thrill rides, and even got to ride that space one with my husband and BIL....They said it was so much fun!

- The girls were maniacs...they did everything from Fantasyland to the Haunted Mansion....
They just barely made the height requirement for Space Mountain...and both of them loved the ride!
they hated being pasengers in the speedway cars, but still enjoyed the ride...
they loved all the parades, and even Fantasmic, they're faces lighting up was truly amazing...Illuminations was another story, for some reason they thought we were under attack, no lie, I don't know whether it was the lazers, or fireworks, but they would not let go of us!

- It was the same with the toodlers, they wanted to do everything, but it was harder for them when they couldn't do everything, they didn't understand why, and would sometimes cry when they're big sisters got to go and not them...
they did all the Fantasyland rides, and wasn't scared on snow white, this was somewhat shocking to us, as I heard the good and bad about this, they loved dumbo, and pirates of the carribean, and enjoyed playing in Toon Town!
They usually missed the parades due to naps, but managed to see all of them, and enjoyed Fantasmic just as much as the girls...but it was the same thing with illuminations!

- They loved the play Place at MGM! and thats where we spent the majority of our time, the girls did Tower of Terror and Star Tours, but that was a little to bumpy for both of them...

- One of the biggest melt downs came with the Magic Kingdom parade!! the opening with Finding Nemo did not go over well with my kids, they all thought he was going to die because he was out of the water, or that they were going to die because they were under the water....I was stumped on what to do...and had to tell the truth that it wasn't him...they were relieved...lol..

Now for Dinning...

-Dinning with a large group (15+) was nightmare, and every meal had an arguement...I felt bad for the kids, but when you get a large group of family members together, you never know what can happen...
we did character meals at O'hanas, Chef Mickey's, the castle, and Crystal Palace, they were all great! We mainly snacked, but also ate at the Sci-Fi cafe..which was challenging in cars, but turned out to be one of our greatest meals, we also enjoyed the 50's prime time cafe, and the Rainforest cafe...

- Food was also was good, and we alwasy had great service...


Well that about sums it up...I'm in the process of making a trip report, but I'll be happy to reply to any questions....

 

[momofdbsdc]

Sounds like a fabulous time! Thanks for sharing!!!!

 

[Hillbeans]

Handsfull - Thanks so much for your Trip report. I think my DH's family wants to go down to WDW next year and it'll be 13 of us ranging from 2 yo thru 56 yo. I worry about going with a group that size, however I know it can be done with advance planning and a varied itinerary.

Besides dinner, what was the hardest part going with a group that size? My DH's family always thinks we can just walk into any restaurant and get a table for 13. I imagine we'll break up the family so 13 of us won't be wandering around clueless. My DH and I are Disney experts and none of his family has gone down. They litsen to our trip reports and are now expecting the same excitement when they go.

How did you decide to stay at the Poly?
How did you decide what parks to go when?

Any hints or tips would be greatly appreciated.

 

[tink2]

Thanks for the mini-report! I have a question.... we are traveling in Nov. with a family of 15. Did you get the breakfast at Cindy's castle? We got our whole family of 11 in two years ago, but I was wondering about 15 people- that is a lot for this hard to get meal! Did you call the regular number or group dining? Thanks for the info!

 

[boston-yachter]

great to hear you had a fantastic trip~

 

[handsfull]

Dinning was frustrating...as everyone would disagree...
the main thing is to do what the kids want...if they can't agree...compromise...from there ask the rest of the family what they want to do...if they don't want to eat there...then tell them you'll meet up with them after lunch...
and if you manage to find a place where everyone would like to eat...you should call the restaurant...or disney dinning...as a group of 15+ is sometimes hard to accomadate!
we had PS for 13 at nearly every character breakfast (except at the castle) and at most of the park restaurants...
You really can't walk in and ask for a table for 13....lol....but usually you can stop by and ask for when the next table for 13 is....usually they laugh at first...lol...but then they reply with a time...usually and hour, sometimes 2 or 3...and if you stop at your front desk on the way out of the resort you can make PS as well...
Everynight we sat down togehter and talked about what to do the next day...we made sure everyone spoke...and that we got what the kids wanted to do....from there we talked about dinning...its hard to plan around toddlers....so we usually made reservations for the group around early evening....
Its hards to go down with a plan for the parks...we agreed that the first day would be MK...the second MGM...and the rest was up to the kids...
if the rest of the family wanted to come with us they were certainly welcomed to come...and usually we had most of us at one park...

tink2....
We made reservations for only 5 of us at the castle...myself, 2 daughters, best friend, best friend's 2 daughters, one being under 2....we had made PS 2 months before....I orignally asked for a table for 15, they said they could accomadate...but was wondering if we could break the group up...I was confused...and she went on to say that if we could make it 8 and 7...one later than the other...that it would be easier and allow for more families in the dinning area....I was somewhat frustrated...but she did say she could accomadate us...I said never mind....as I knew the girls would be the only ones "really" intrested in the characters....so I asked for a table for 5...it turned out to be better....Make sure to take along the family members that really want the experience! I saw so many kids that truly didn't want to be there!! My daughters absolutely loved this!! and I highly recommend it!
several of our family members did the breakfast at EPCOT with the princesses....they had a group of 10....and they said that it was fantastic as well...

Hillbeans...
like I said...it was all about the kids...the teens went off on there own...with Walkie Talkies....girls stuck together and went off with the dads....while the toddlers stayed with the moms....the grandparents would stay with the little ones....or hang out at the resort....
It was a challenge...especially since none of us were disney experts!!! You should be fine!! be sure to know what everyone would like to do...and involve them in decisions...
As for the Polynesian...this trip was 5 years in the making...we knew we wanted a resort close to the MK for the kids...then it came down to what the parents wanted...we were originally booked at the Contemperary...but when we noticed that the Polynesian had a zero entry pool...we changed over...plus we enjoyed the Hawaiin theming rather then the A-frame-hotel feel the contemperary gave off....we then read more into it...and thought that the kids club was a great plus as well as the beach...the kids loved making sand castles...and the teens enjoyed taking out the water boats...I was not dissapointed at all!
As for the parks...like I said we had to talk to the kids...we did early entry for Epcot and the Magic Kingdom as well as MGM...and would usually stay at the park till around 11....then head back to the resort for a swim and nap...the dads were usually the first to crash...lol...we would eat lunch in the room...then head back to the park around 3 or 4...then dinner in the park around 5 or 6...then the evening shows....
parades were hard to plan around....but we managed to see all of them!

Some quick tips...
1) remember you are on vacation...thats easy to forget when in Disney World...
2) take walkie talkies! these cam in handy! Especially when the group splits up!
3) don't be affraid to stand your ground...if you know whats best...follow through with it! I'm regretting several actions because my family members second guessed me!
4) bring snacks and water....this will hold the group over so you all can eat together...if not the group will get hungry at different times...which can really cause agruments...especially if you have PS....
5) don't be affraid to seperate from the family...go back to the resort for that afternoon swim, you can always meet up later...
and finally...
just because you travel down as a group...that doesn't mean you have to be constantly in a group! make certain plans to be all together...for instance...meet up for the parade...or a dinner but you don't have to be together 24/7....

feel free to ask anymore questions..hope I was of some help!

 

[Hillbeans]

Thanks for the advice handsfull. It's very hard to forget you're on vacation in WDW when you've paid hard earned money and you want to see 20 different things.

My MIL wants to plan the whole thing, however if I don't put in my 2 cents I'm afraid we'll stay somewhere undesirable. I guess i'm going to try and come up with a "Tactful" way to tell her that I want to be very involved and help lay the groundwork for a schedule only because i've been there so many times. I'd be heartbroken if we came home and didn't see or do the things we should have only because I didn't want to hurt feelings.

Was there anyone in your group with mobility issues or VERY different ideas for a budget???? Some of the relatives who are going can barely pay the bills so I just don't know how this is all going to end up.

I want to do this for my DH but i'm just very nervous about starting a family fight.

 

[njdizneygal]

Wow!! What a report. Glad you had a great time. I just have a quick question about the cooler you bought at publix. We were thinking about doing the same thing, since it would cost us over 100 + tx for ten nights of renting a fridge. Did you buy a styrophone type or a rubbermaid one? I really don't want to have styrophone type that may leak. I's rather pay 20 dollars for a heavy duty one, buy some bags of ice and just replenish as needed.
Does anyone know if you can have an empty cooler as part of your luggage?? We are flying in.

Thanks

 

[BevS97]

njdizneygal - we used a styrofoam one for 2 weeks and it didn't leak, we kept it in the bath cause I was concerned that it might, but we had no problems with it at all. I have heard that you can fill a cooler with clothes or soft toys, wrap some tape around it, and check it on an airline, but I've never tried it. The styrofoam one worked really well for us,

Hillbeans - if there are lots of family groups going, all with different budgets, then I would suggest letting each group book their own accomodation, and arranging a number of get-togethers for the entire party. If you try and pick one hotel, and make one plan for a large group of people, then inevitably you will end up upsetting someone.
We are travelling with 5 familys in December, we are all staying at different accomodation (some onsite, some offsite) and we are just planning a number of get-togethers while we are all there, the rest of the time will be our own independent time, I think this is more practical than trying to please everyone all the time, which is always going ot be tricky.

Bev

 

[BibbidyBobbidyBoo]

Wow, great report and what an informative thread about going with large groups! Thanks!

 

[BibbidyBobbidyBoo]

Oh and btw tink2- we're going around Thanksgiving also.... what day are you going to try for CRT? Because I might as well avoid trying that day..... LOL... with 15 people in your group it's sure to be booked solid (even more so than it already is). I might as well not get up early that morning to try to get a PS.
hahaha

 

[tink2]

BibbidyBobbidyBo-
LOL! Sorry to tell you- but we are going to try for Mon-Fri until we get in! Our preferred days are Monday and Thursday, but we will take what we can get!!! Also, we may not all 15 get in, we will also take as many seatings as we can get- even if it's 4. The only problem will be who will get to go...THAT will be interesting! We are traveling with girls the ages of 4,7, and 10 who all love the princesses- so this is a must in their books!!!!
Good Luck- we'll have to keep each other posted during the 60-day week!!!

 

[dana99]

Glad to hear you had a great trip! I was wondering if I could ask you a quick question. When you went to CRT, did you have a PS for the 2 year old? I have ours next week for myself and my oldest daughter but would like to take my youngest (she just turned 2). I am trying to figure out if will they let me bring her in if I only have PS for 2?

Dana

 

[plutospup]

Handsfull...did I understand you correctly that your 4 yr olds went on Space Mt? My DD5 really wants to go on this ride, but I'm somewhat hesitant (Oh no, I really am Marlin!!). OK, I'm the overprotective father. Please convince me DD5 will be ok on Space Mt.

Thanx for the great report!

 

[bridgettesmom]

plutospup


Just an FYI....The first time I rode Space Mountain I was 5 yrs old. I rode it with my father, he told me to close my eyes If I got scared. I have been to Disney many times (20 plus) after that and even though I'm not a Space Mountain Fan ,riding Space Mountain with my father is my most precious memory .