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

[CaptainKat]

thank you so , so much. Tikiman has reported that the pool closure is not until May sometime. Based on your reply, do you have different/updated information to the contrary?

I think I may have just missed Tikiman's post about that. I know at one point the rumored plan was resurfacing in Jan, then open until march when the main work would begin, which was followed by the rumor that it would remain closed from January on. I think I was assuming they had just pushed the larger refurb til May and were keeping the resurface in January? Not sure, it is rather confusing. If they've pushed the start of the big project to May, I would think that they would open it after the January work, if that is still happening. If that's the case, then it would be open during your trip. Here's to hoping!

 

[horse11]

We leave Tuesday. First time staying at poly or a deluxe resort. Think we will be affected by much. Lots of saving went in to be able to stay here

I completely understand. We were in the same boat. We have been planning and saving for our vacation in May for three years now. There is not much you can do at this point but go in with an open mind. It sounds like a good part of the construction may not happen until well after your trip. Has Disney informed you ahead of time of any of this? At the very least you can tell them how upset you are they may be able to do something for you and your family. It is at least worth a try. Good Luck and try to enjoy your trip. When you come back be sure to post and let everone know Poly's status. It could help others that are in the same boat.

 

[mommy2twocuties]

Where can I find information on this? Is the pool/ beach going to be closed in june of 2014?

 

[mommy2twocuties]

What is your next choice for a resort? I think all this construction just booted us out. I am heart broken over this, I LOVE the poly. I need another resort asap, I need to get this booked

 

[rymahoney]

I completely understand. We were in the same boat. We have been planning and saving for our vacation in May for three years now. There is not much you can do at this point but go in with an open mind. It sounds like a good part of the construction may not happen until well after your trip. Has Disney informed you ahead of time of any of this? At the very least you can tell them how upset you are they may be able to do something for you and your family. It is at least worth a try. Good Luck and try to enjoy your trip. When you come back be sure to post and let everone know Poly's status. It could help others that are in the same boat.

I will give an update every few days and talk to some cm's or workers and report back

 

[bookwormde]

I know everyone is focused on the bungalows and the pool, but any reports on the 2 longhouse conversions to DVC.

There were reports back at the end of the summer that they had taken one of them out if service, can not remember if it was Rapa Nui or Tahiti.

Are people still booking both?

If conversion started back then they should be though interior demo and have the MEPs roughed in and ready for drywall by now.

Any reports of activity, or is this being delayed also?

 

[Ferrentinos]

Is there an anticipated date when the Poly DVC will be available for purchase? DH and I are contemplating the idea...

 

[bonjovi]

I think I may have just missed Tikiman's post about that. I know at one point the rumored plan was resurfacing in Jan, then open until march when the main work would begin, which was followed by the rumor that it would remain closed from January on. I think I was assuming they had just pushed the larger refurb til May and were keeping the resurface in January? Not sure, it is rather confusing. If they've pushed the start of the big project to May, I would think that they would open it after the January work, if that is still happening. If that's the case, then it would be open during your trip. Here's to hoping!

yes, it looks to be clear for end of feb/mar. I'm just so scared about the monorail interruption + construction on beaches+ construction on GCH.

it's our first time taking twin babies plus our older 2. 4 kids, 2 parents, nap times for babies, one huge double stroller.......we love the poly though and easy access to the TTC would help but the only thing left for our dates is club level. to splurge for that this trip, and run such a huge risk of disappointment scares me.

the way it stands now, my husband had the idea to keep our ressie at the grand floridian. he said we could do epcot on sat/sun, when the monorail to GF will be running all day. then, we just do MK and HS on our other days. we can still use the boats to MK and we knew we would need bus anyway to HS. I sort of like his idea.......

 

[tecdavidt]

We checked out today. We were in Hawaii, 1st floor theme park view so we looked at the "boardwalk". DH researched what was going on. We had no idea of the changes. We knew a DVC was announced and we new Sunset Point had been closed.

The first floor of Hawaii will lose the Theme Park view category. Second floor has the lack of balconies and is classified as Theme Park view, that needs to be fixed. The third floor probably will end up the only Concierge level with true Theme Park views.

Tahiti looks like a ghost of a building. DH walked by it at night and only a couple token lights were on. You can not walk north of Tokalau (sp?) at all, in fact he looked and he said the walk way was torn up. Yesterday we walked past Tahiti on our way to TTC to go to EPCOT. It appears as no construction has taken place on the south side of the bldg. There are no patio chairs but the patio tables are at each room. You can see into the rooms and the rooms look exactly as the Poly rooms did prior to the new rehab. The building south, Raip Nui? is in use, or at least it appeared so.

We did learn from the Chef at Kona that it is not closing but there will be a lot of changes for the resort. The Art gallery is now gone. Their last night was Dec. 31.

The big mistake Disney is making is doing this rehab of the two bldgs. into DVC rooms. This resort needs a better pool area. The pools needs to compete with the renovation of the GF pools and there is no way the Poly main pool can do that. Bay Lake has a great pool and so does the CR. The Poly should have a modern pool area. I know they are suppose to be doing a hot tub but to honest, hot tubs are not as popular as kid play areas. Do the hot tub but do an awesome water kid zone.

As DVC members we thought, wow, Poly DVC interesting now not so much. The two bldgs. should have been torn down, a nice high rise built with an awesome pool. There is room. They did that at the CR. Bay Lake Tower sits where the North Tower rooms were located and they have a fantastic pool.
It could have been marketed as old Polynesian meets new Polynesian. Just think if that high rise would have looked like the DVC in Hawaii. A parking garage could have been added for the extra rooms.

Oh well, they are taking the cheap route, the Poly is being stuck with the small main pool. The Chef thought the Volcano was staying, the construction keeps changing but even he said, who knows what we will see in the end. He was told there will be a boardwalk area built. Now is this the bungalow area or a boardwalk along the sand? If he meant boardwalk as in Eastern Seaboard boardwalk, don't we already have that over at the Boardwalk Resort? He also said the Spirit of Aloha is now staying put.

I know I read Disney wanted the pool visible from the main lobby like other hotels. What other hotels can you see the pool from the lobby?

The whole rehab sounds like a mess. It sounds nice to have bungalows on the water until the winter temps dip as they are doing right now. We are boaters, being on the water or even walking on a dock type boardwalk to get to your room is not something I will do in the winter months at Disney. People will be walking north and a north wind with temps in the 30's and 40's, it will be nasty cold. The noise in those rooms, they may try to bring Tahiti to Florida but when the transportation vessels sound their horns late at night and early morning, it will not be Tahiti. My DH and I did notice the birds were enjoying the boardwalk walkway, lots of evidence of their "calling card" as we called it. It was easy to see from our first floor room.

The other issue is insurance. I can only imagine what happens when the first drunk ends up in the Seven Seas Lagoon when he/she does something stupid or those Food and Wine people over do it which we have seen a few in bad shape over the years. The other issue is families staying in a room. I can picture a child/teen doing something they should not be doing and end up in the lagoon. Considering the problems of Next Gen and the thread of Disney corporate stopping projects world wide (read that on the DIS threads a month ago) I should not be surprised at all.

My thoughts are this, if you have a trip planned for now go and enjoy the resort. The resort will lose the charm we Poly lovers love. This trip was the first our 21 yr old daughter saw the new room rehab. Here comment was, "the bathroom feels like I am at the CR." I have a feeling the true Poly feel is going to be a thing of the past.
Dave and Kathy

 

[rymahoney]

We checked out today. We were in Hawaii, 1st floor theme park view so we looked at the "boardwalk". DH researched what was going on. We had no idea of the changes. We knew a DVC was announced and we new Sunset Point had been closed. The first floor of Hawaii will lose the Theme Park view category. Second floor has the lack of balconies and is classified as Theme Park view, that needs to be fixed. The third floor probably will end up the only Concierge level with true Theme Park views. Tahiti looks like a ghost of a building. DH walked by it at night and only a couple token lights were on. You can not walk north of Tokalau (sp?) at all, in fact he looked and he said the walk way was torn up. Yesterday we walked past Tahiti on our way to TTC to go to EPCOT. It appears as no construction has taken place on the south side of the bldg. There are no patio chairs but the patio tables are at each room. You can see into the rooms and the rooms look exactly as the Poly rooms did prior to the new rehab. The building south, Raip Nui? is in use, or at least it appeared so. We did learn from the Chef at Kona that it is not closing but there will be a lot of changes for the resort. The Art gallery is now gone. Their last night was Dec. 31. The big mistake Disney is making is doing this rehab of the two bldgs. into DVC rooms. This resort needs a better pool area. The pools needs to compete with the renovation of the GF pools and there is no way the Poly main pool can do that. Bay Lake has a great pool and so does the CR. The Poly should have a modern pool area. I know they are suppose to be doing a hot tub but to honest, hot tubs are not as popular as kid play areas. Do the hot tub but do an awesome water kid zone. As DVC members we thought, wow, Poly DVC interesting now not so much. The two bldgs. should have been torn down, a nice high rise built with an awesome pool. There is room. They did that at the CR. Bay Lake Tower sits where the North Tower rooms were located and they have a fantastic pool. It could have been marketed as old Polynesian meets new Polynesian. Just think if that high rise would have looked like the DVC in Hawaii. A parking garage could have been added for the extra rooms. Oh well, they are taking the cheap route, the Poly is being stuck with the small main pool. The Chef thought the Volcano was staying, the construction keeps changing but even he said, who knows what we will see in the end. He was told there will be a boardwalk area built. Now is this the bungalow area or a boardwalk along the sand? If he meant boardwalk as in Eastern Seaboard boardwalk, don't we already have that over at the Boardwalk Resort? He also said the Spirit of Aloha is now staying put. I know I read Disney wanted the pool visible from the main lobby like other hotels. What other hotels can you see the pool from the lobby? The whole rehab sounds like a mess. It sounds nice to have bungalows on the water until the winter temps dip as they are doing right now. We are boaters, being on the water or even walking on a dock type boardwalk to get to your room is not something I will do in the winter months at Disney. People will be walking north and a north wind with temps in the 30's and 40's, it will be nasty cold. The noise in those rooms, they may try to bring Tahiti to Florida but when the transportation vessels sound their horns late at night and early morning, it will not be Tahiti. My DH and I did notice the birds were enjoying the boardwalk walkway, lots of evidence of their "calling card" as we called it. It was easy to see from our first floor room. The other issue is insurance. I can only imagine what happens when the first drunk ends up in the Seven Seas Lagoon when he/she does something stupid or those Food and Wine people over do it which we have seen a few in bad shape over the years. The other issue is families staying in a room. I can picture a child/teen doing something they should not be doing and end up in the lagoon. Considering the problems of Next Gen and the thread of Disney corporate stopping projects world wide (read that on the DIS threads a month ago) I should not be surprised at all. My thoughts are this, if you have a trip planned for now go and enjoy the resort. The resort will lose the charm we Poly lovers love. This trip was the first our 21 yr old daughter saw the new room rehab. Here comment was, "the bathroom feels like I am at the CR." I have a feeling the true Poly feel is going to be a thing of the past. Dave and Kathy

So for those headed there in the next few days you think we will unaffected or notice construction? It's our first stay at the poly.

 

[horse11]

What is your next choice for a resort? I think all this construction just booted us out. I am heart broken over this, I LOVE the poly. I need another resort asap, I need to get this booked

We were looking into BC but decided to upgrade our DD to DDD instead so we choose CBR. You may want to look into BC. It still has a tropical feel, what looks like an outstanding pool, waking distance to Epcot, and great dining options. I thought you could also catch the Monorail from Epcot to get to MK as well. Good luck with you decision. Trust me I feel your pain.

 

[erieckers]

So how long is the construction expected to last? We are staying at the Poly December 8th- 14th, should I be concerned ? This is our first time staying at the Poly

 

[nh grandma]

Per, Tikiman, I've heard that they plan to close down the GCH restaurants during the refurb but have not heard anything regarding the timing. If I were to wager a guess, I'd say that Captain Cook's will be worked on before Kona or 'Ohana because I'm sort of getting the impression that they're going to work on the lower floor areas of the GCH first. Purely speculating, I'd guess that Captain Cooks will end up getting closed for an extended period sometime in 2014 and Kona and 'Ohana won't be closed until 2015 ('Ohana is supposed to reopen under the same name after the refurb but I'm not sure about Kona).

It's possible that they'll open some sort of temporary/limited CS option during the closure of Captain Cooks.

Last week I spoke to reservations, as we are trying to plan for our dining. I was told that they have the permission to book Ohana and the Luau through August 2014. The girl I spoke with was surprised I thought they might not be and took some time looking this up on her computer links. So as of now, you can make reservations for both of those places. I sure do hope the CC does not close since we eat breakfast there most every morning!

 

[2DisPrincesses]

What is your next choice for a resort? I think all this construction just booted us out. I am heart broken over this, I LOVE the poly. I need another resort asap, I need to get this booked

We went with Beach Club- I'm heart broken as well. I spoke with someone pretty high up in management at the Polynesian (called on her direct line). She could not guarantee that the feature pool would be open in April while we are there. Sounds like dates/plans are still moving/changing quite a bit. Having the pool open is very important to us this trip so we moved, per her recommendation, to Beach Club.

 

[bama belle]

We went with Beach Club- I'm heart broken as well. I spoke with someone pretty high up in management at the Polynesian (called on her direct line). She could not guarantee that the feature pool would be open in April while we are there. Sounds like dates/plans are still moving/changing quite a bit. Having the pool open is very important to us this trip so we moved, per her recommendation, to Beach Club.

While I've never stayed at the Poly (visited many times and hope to stay some day), we stayed at the Beach Club this past summer and absolutely fell in love with it!! The kids LOVED the pool and the resort and all of it's surroundings are really beautiful! The short walk to Epcot is fabulous! You will have a great time!!

 

[2DisPrincesses]

While I've never stayed at the Poly (visited many times and hope to stay some day), we stayed at the Beach Club this past summer and absolutely fell in love with it!! The kids LOVED the pool and the resort and all of it's surroundings are really beautiful! The short walk to Epcot is fabulous! You will have a great time!!

Thanks for the reassurance...I've been sitting here feeling sorry for myself. It's ridiculous to be moping over which deluxe Disney Resort I'm staying at- first-world problems.

 

[bama belle]

Thanks for the reassurance...I've been sitting here feeling sorry for myself. It's ridiculous to be moping over which deluxe Disney Resort I'm staying at- first-world problems.

I understand-- the Poly was our first choice for our trip this summer, but there are nine of us going and 5 are kids so the pool and access to MK were very important. I'm hoping to stay at the Poly in the future when all of the great renovations are finished

 

[PolyAddict]

We went with Beach Club- I'm heart broken as well. I spoke with someone pretty high up in management at the Polynesian (called on her direct line). She could not guarantee that the feature pool would be open in April while we are there. Sounds like dates/plans are still moving/changing quite a bit. Having the pool open is very important to us this trip so we moved, per her recommendation, to Beach Club.

Any other tidbits she offer? We are staying YC in May but really miss my Poly. We would be staying club level garden view. I can almost deal without the pool if the Mk and Epcot monorails are ok.

 

[2DisPrincesses]

Any other tidbits she offer? We are staying YC in May but really miss my Poly. We would be staying club level garden view. I can almost deal without the pool if the Mk and Epcot monorails are ok.

Nothing concrete on the construction/pool. I believe the monorail was to be down from 11-7 in April when we were booked to stay at the Poly...not sure about May.

 

[cafemom316]

After an hour on the phone with a CM (actually 3 diff ones ) One told me construction will not start until this September 2014. I said no that's not right. he puts me on hold. I get another CM.. ugh! Then he proceeds to tell me that no pools will close, no restaraunts will close and so on.. I still have doubts on what they are telling me so I continue to question his answers he is giving me and he puts me on hold AGAIN!! I then talk to a lady who called the Poly its self and got some info. Yes there is construction, yes there is some noise, but no serious complaints yet. She didn't deny that the pool would close and she didn't deny the possibility of the monorail being down again when we go ( May 14, 2014 to May 21 2014) And then she tells me she can put me in a standard Poly room and save some money, but the lady i booked with 5 days ago said there were no standard available!! Got so frustrated!!! In the end I switched to CR. I saved $500 still on the monorail, close to MK and access to a POOL no doubt!! I think that if Disney is going to have to big of a deal going on they need to be better prepared and have the staff at disney better informed! I so had my heart on the POLY.. but its so much money to spend and have something so important go wrong. She advised me tho that if I had any doubts about being able to enjoy my vacation to switch resorts. That right there told me that more "unpredictable" changes would occur. After a phone call that lasted more than and HOUR! I'm excited to get to Disney and stay the CR again!!