Official Poly construction update thread **updated video page 103(2/17/15)**

[Tikiman]

There are guests that have reservations in April and even out to August of next year that are being told the pool will be closed and they will have to shuttle over to the Grand Floridian pool.

 

[Mousemommy1]

There are guests that have reservations in April and even out to August of next year that are being told the pool will be closed and they will have to shuttle over to the Grand Floridian pool.

Well, that solidifies the fact that I have made the right choice in not booking for next August.

 

[starousse]

Well, that solidifies the fact that I have made the right choice in not booking for next August.

Yes. I booked at WL for May and was thinking of changing to the Poly. I'll be staying where I am.

 

[Masonmj84]

There are guests that have reservations in April and even out to August of next year that are being told the pool will be closed and they will have to shuttle over to the Grand Floridian pool.

I switched our May 2014 ressies over to CR garden wing a month or so ago in view of this (and the GCH construction).

I'm still planning ADRs for 'Ohana and Kona (crossing fingers these will be open) but am feeling like that might not be quite enough of a Poly fix. So, I'm thinking about splitting off a couple of nights for a GV room at the Poly, especially if I can score a 35% discount (haven't been since they redid the rooms and have always wanted to check that out).

Would also provide an opportunity to check out the GF pools without too much inconvenience (since we'd probably only go over there once).

Just hoping if I do this, the construction walls around the pool, GCH (and in-between) won't be too much of an ambinance detractor and that there will still be somewhere along the beach where we can get a relatively unobstructed view of Wishes.

 

[Disney84]

We just stayed in 3914!

When we got there, only the short fencing was up, but by the time we left, the chainlink temporary fencing was up, and it was blocked with cover-up. Being up on the third floor, we could still see everything just fine; there were no obstructed views from the fencing. If you're on the second floor, you would definitely have problems.

Wow, thank you for the heads up!! Do you have any pictures from the balcony showing the fencing and construction?? I may think about requesting another bldg. Hmmmm.

PS: Did you request that room or did you get it by potluck? Just curious.

 

[maiapapaya]

I thought it was odd also but it may be that they have to be in compliance with the law by the begining of the year. Im sure they will have to extend the fence for the new pool deck when they do that.

When you said fences up I thought that meant construction fences.

 

[Disaholic73]

There are guests that have reservations in April and even out to August of next year that are being told the pool will be closed and they will have to shuttle over to the Grand Floridian pool.

Tiki - follow you constantly as the Poly is the only place I ever stay. However I have made reservations for the marathon weekend from Jan 8-14 at the wilderness lodge due to the pool resurfacing speculation and that I really don't want to spend what I would spend if I cannot use the Volcano Pool. Also, I always request Samoa first floor Volcano facing as I absolutely love walking out of my room and seeing that beautiful pool. Anyway, have any possible dates been rumored as to when the resurfacing will take place? Or at the very least which part of the month of January it will begin? I will switch from WL to Poly if I know that the pool will be open during that time. Thanks

 

[Tikiman]

Tiki - follow you constantly as the Poly is the only place I ever stay. However I have made reservations for the marathon weekend from Jan 8-14 at the wilderness lodge due to the pool resurfacing speculation and that I really don't want to spend what I would spend if I cannot use the Volcano Pool. Also, I always request Samoa first floor Volcano facing as I absolutely love walking out of my room and seeing that beautiful pool. Anyway, have any possible dates been rumored as to when the resurfacing will take place? Or at the very least which part of the month of January it will begin? I will switch from WL to Poly if I know that the pool will be open during that time. Thanks

No dates but it seems to me in conversations it sounds like beginning of January but that is a guess on my part. Also you never know when they are going to change dates even when they have dates. It seems like there is a break between the two activities going on at the pool in February but if dates for the January stuff get pushed out than you never know about February. If I had to place money down on when the pool will be open I don’t know that I would feel comfortable with that until late next year…like after September. No one at the resort seems to be being told much, in fact I had someone there tell me I know more than they are being told (not what I wanted to hear). Seems like the part of Disney planning this work is not sharing much with the Polynesian or Disney Travel. Even I am only getting bits and pieces so I am trying to put the puzzle together also.

 

[Disaholic73]

No dates but it seems to me in conversations it sounds like beginning of January but that is a guess on my part. Also you never know when they are going to change dates even when they have dates. It seems like there is a break between the two activities going on at the pool in February but if dates for the January stuff get pushed out than you never know about February. If I had to place money down on when the pool will be open I don’t know that I would feel comfortable with that until late next year…like after September. No one at the resort seems to be being told much, in fact I had someone there tell me I know more than they are being told (not what I wanted to hear). Seems like the part of Disney planning this work is not sharing much with the Polynesian or Disney Travel. Even I am only getting bits and pieces so I am trying to put the puzzle together also.

I was afraid there was going to still be a crystal ball answer and nothing hard and fast as of yet. I will continue to mull it over. I know I will regret it if I don't end of staying there, as much as I love the WL as my second choice resort at Disney World.

 

[huntconn]

Well, that solidifies the fact that I have made the right choice in not booking for next August.

Yep. Same here. We are Poly peeps through and through but we will be at the WL this August. Won't be back to the Poly until all of the construction is finished. It really is exciting following all of the changes coming to our favorite resort though.

 

[maiapapaya]

Yep. Same here. We are Poly peeps through and through but we will be at the WL this August. Won't be back to the Poly until all of the construction is finished. It really is exciting following all of the changes coming to our favorite resort though.

ITA It sounds like at times it's going to be a bit of a grind though (with construction going on at multiple locations) but I have to be optimistic that it will be great in the end! Now if I could just figure out a way to afford that Poly DVC!

 

[goofy Jr. 88]

I have to be optimistic that it will be great in the end! Now if I could just figure out a way to afford that Poly DVC!

true that

 

[Disneyducks]

Hi all we are planning on poly for upcoming nov vacation. We have a toddler who will be taking a nap during the day ( not the only one i am sure) and we have grandparents that one requires a scooter but can walk short distances. We requested a third floor as well as joining rooms if possible. Any suggestions for what building we should request? Thanks!!

 

[jennifaerie]

Wow, thank you for the heads up!! Do you have any pictures from the balcony showing the fencing and construction?? I may think about requesting another bldg. Hmmmm.

PS: Did you request that room or did you get it by potluck? Just curious.

I haven't uploaded the pictures to my website yet, but to get them up ASAP for you to look at, I made them public on my Google+ account. Try this. If it doesn't work, I could email them to you.

I called and faxed, explaining that it was our five-year wedding anniversary, and we spent our honeymoon in Tokelau and wanted to again. I also asked if we could have a view of the construction. We had a standard view booked, and we got 3914! We felt like we won the lottery.

 

[karriealex]

I haven't uploaded the pictures to my website yet, but to get them up ASAP for you to look at, I made them public on my Google+ account. Try this. If it doesn't work, I could email them to you.

I called and faxed, explaining that it was our five-year wedding anniversary, and we spent our honeymoon in Tokelau and wanted to again. I also asked if we could have a view of the construction. We had a standard view booked, and we got 3914! We felt like we won the lottery.

GREAT pictures. Doesnt look like the construction is too bad yet. What a beautiful view even with the fences. I am so glad that you got what you wanted for your special day. Did they do anything else to make it even more special? Sometimes they do.

 

[karriealex]

Hi all we are planning on poly for upcoming nov vacation. We have a toddler who will be taking a nap during the day ( not the only one i am sure) and we have grandparents that one requires a scooter but can walk short distances. We requested a third floor as well as joining rooms if possible. Any suggestions for what building we should request? Thanks!!

Depending on how far they are in the construction the west side of Tokelau is nice. Nuei is nice. On the other side of the resort Fiji is nice. If you want the chance for a monorail view something a little one may love and it's pretty quiet when it goes by then Areotoa or Raratoga are nice. One side is garden view I believe pretty much and the other side is facing the front of the resort with a possible glimpse of the parking lot but a monorail view on the upper floors. Just please watch the balcony with the little one. Hope that helps a little. Oh and the entire resort is scooter friendly. I use a wheelchair and I have no problems whatsoever getting around there. It is one of the more friendly scooter/wheelchair resorts I have found. Went to POP last week and thought I would shake my kidneys out with all the cobblestone. My youngest (15) cracked me up when he said " Mom doesn't your wheelchair have shocks????" After I stopped laughing I said "No honey it doesn't"

 

[karriealex]

ITA It sounds like at times it's going to be a bit of a grind though (with construction going on at multiple locations) but I have to be optimistic that it will be great in the end! Now if I could just figure out a way to afford that Poly DVC!

Very true. The way we vacation the amount of points we would nead was astronomical and way out of our price league. I am thinking about possibly looking at a resale though. We figured we would need at least 300 points and through resale it is MUCH less than going through DVC itself. Have to figure out their financing policies though. Just a thought for you.

 

[jennifaerie]

GREAT pictures. Doesnt look like the construction is too bad yet. What a beautiful view even with the fences. I am so glad that you got what you wanted for your special day. Did they do anything else to make it even more special? Sometimes they do.

It's hard to tell because the Polynesian did wonderful things for us both times. So is it their standard or was it because we were celebrating?

But we received special, fresh handmade leis and a blessing (we didn't get those on our honeymoon), congratulatory pictures from Mickey a couple times, towel animals galore. The leis were the icing, though. We have them in our freezer now.

I think the view, though, really did it for us. We were never expecting that!

What was even more amazing is what happened at check-in, or I should say afterward. We went to get our refillable mugs before we went to the room (it was actually ready before noon!), and as we were walking to the longhouse, the cast member who checked us in was chasing after us. She was concerned that our MagicBands might not be working right (they worked with the mugs, but she thought they might not work in the parks), and she brought us back to the check-in desk to reset them.

The fact that she raced all over property to find us (she was coming from Tokelau as we were walking there) meant a lot to us. I'm not sure if the MagicBands needed it (and she wasn't 100% sure either), but she wanted to prevent us from having a rude awakening elsewhere, and that was very sweet.

I already wrote a long letter (and filled out the survey from) to Disney. We had a few cast members that really made it special.

Edit: Ack! Those pictures look terrible on a laptop! I wish Google hadn't spread to fit. They look a LOT better when they're normal size or on a mobile device. If you squint a lot, they look okay.

 

[Disneyducks]

k

 

[Disneyducks]

Depending on how far they are in the construction the west side of Tokelau is nice. Nuei is nice. On the other side of the resort Fiji is nice. If you want the chance for a monorail view something a little one may love and it's pretty quiet when it goes by then Areotoa or Raratoga are nice. One side is garden view I believe pretty much and the other side is facing the front of the resort with a possible glimpse of the parking lot but a monorail view on the upper floors. Just please watch the balcony with the little one. Hope that helps a little. Oh and the entire resort is scooter friendly. I use a wheelchair and I have no problems whatsoever getting around there. It is one of the more friendly scooter/wheelchair resorts I have found. Went to POP last week and thought I would shake my kidneys out with all the cobblestone. My youngest (15) cracked me up when he said " Mom doesn't your wheelchair have shocks????" After I stopped laughing I said "No honey it doesn't"

SOrry I keep forgetting to quote - thank you so much for the reservation advice all these choices are so confusion!!!