POLY Again or Different Deluxe for a Family of 5???

[Maukey]

The age of my children are in my sig.

Okay, in May my family and I stayed at the POLY and had one of the best vacations we ever had. We were in Tokelau 1915 and I can't even begin to describe the awesome feeling we got when we stepped out our room and saw the Castle across the water. Simply magical!!! Add that to the beautiful lobby, peaceful feel, amazing sounds, wonderful smells, convenient location, and fireworks from the beach. Just awesome. Not to mention that my then 2 year old fell in love with the monorail and we ended up spending about an hour each day on it .

Here's the thing, we're planning on going again in March and were wondering if there's another resort that will give us a different yet still magical feeling. I first want to say that the CR, GF, and WL are out of the question. We didn't like the feeling/theming of the CR and GF at all, and after visiting the WL, we only found it possibly appealing to us for a Christmas trip.

When we visited the AKL we thought that it was breathtaking but our only concern is transportation since most of our time is at MK for rides and EP for meals. POLY was great in that regard with direct monorails to MK or EP. We will however have our car . The EP resorts seem nice just not sure about the magic there since we didn't have a chance to visit.

I'm saying all of this to say would you recommend going with what we know again in the POLY, or trying AKL, BC, BWI, or YC. Please explain why you made the choice you did.

Thanks!!!

 

[KatMark]

The age of my children are in my sig.

Okay, in May my family and I stayed at the POLY and had one of the best vacations we ever had. We were in Tokelau 1915 and I can't even begin to describe the awesome feeling we got when we stepped out our room and saw the Castle across the water. Simply magical!!! Add that to the beautiful lobby, peaceful feel, amazing sounds, wonderful smells, convenient location, and fireworks from the beach. Just awesome. Not to mention that my then 2 year old fell in love with the monorail and we ended up spending about an hour each day on it .

Here's the thing, we're planning on going again in March and were wondering if there's another resort that will give us a different yet still magical feeling. I first want to say that the CR, GF, and WL are out of the question. We didn't like the feeling/theming of the CR and GF at all, and after visiting the WL, we only found it possibly appealing to us for a Christmas trip.

When we visited the AKL we thought that it was breathtaking but our only concern is transportation since most of our time is at MK for rides and EP for meals. POLY was great in that regard with direct monorails to MK or EP. We will however have our car . The EP resorts seem nice just not sure about the magic there since we didn't have a chance to visit.

I'm saying all of this to say would you recommend going with what we know again in the POLY, or trying AKL, BC, BWI, or YC. Please explain why you made the choice you did.

Thanks!!!

We too love the Poly for many of the reasons you pointed out. However, with two boys in college, we no longer can justify the cost of the Poly and have chosen to stay moderate on all of our trips now and we still have just as magical of a time. That being said, our next visit, DH and I are going to do a split stay with the AKL and the CSR as we fell in love with the theme of the AKL (we also hope one day to try the BC, but that will be down the road; and I agree with you on the GF--my DH won't even walk in the resort and the WL holds no appeal to us at all). I would suggest the AKL or the BC.

 

[kaffinito]

Stay at the Poly again. If you enjoyed the magic and part of the magic was walking out the door and seeing the Castle, the best place to see it is at the Poly, KWIM?

 

[dizfan]

I would stay at the Polynesian again.

My parents took the family to the Poly back in the early 80's. I've stayed at many WDW resorts (no monorail resorts) since then. I enjoyed them all for various reasons.

A few weeks ago, we stayed at BLT and it brought back those memories and then some. I can't imagine staying at a non-monorail resort ever again.

It's hard to beat the monorail, lake activity, Electric Water Pageant, castle, watching fireworks from your resort, etc.

 

[Native NYer]

We love the Poly too and have booked our third stay there. I would stay there again. With a 3 yr old, the monorail and being near the TTC makes things easier. Plus, watching Wishes from the beach is just magical

 

[yellowlabforever]

I loved the Poly. Everything about it was peaceful, like it didn't seem part of WDW but yet it was on the monorail line and I could see the castle from the beach. We had five people in our party, and we loved it. Plus there is so much space in the room


I would definately choose the Poly.

 

[jemgumby]

I voted for Beach Club because of its proximity to Epcot and DHS. Looking at the ages of your children I think they would LOVE the pool!

 

[Planogirl]

I thought about the pool at the BC but I picked the Polynesian for all the reasons you mentioned. There's nothing quite like being on the monorail and seeing the castle from the beach.

AKL is wonderful too but you might want to wait until MK isn't as big a deal. AKL is its own little attraction in my eyes and I would say that it has to be experienced.

 

[abubu919]

I voted for Beach Club because of its proximity to Epcot and DHS. Looking at the ages of your children I think they would LOVE the pool!

Exactly why I picked the BC! Love this resort and with the ages of the kids it is a great place to stay

 

[shellybaxter]

AKL would only be an option if you got a one or two bedroom villa - the regular rooms don't hold 5 (same or WL). If you want a different, but just as wonderful experience, I would try the beach club. The Epcot resort area is a lot of fun and two theme parks are "right outside your door". The pool is awesome and the restaurants are great

 

[amccu18007]

I would say Poly as you still have a little one and after fireworks are over it is right to bed . I think that your 3yo might find SAB a little scary yet. Maybe try there in a few years? Besides, why mess with a good thing?

 

[CR Resort Fan 4 Life]

I would say you should return to the Polynesian.

 

[Sue M]

As another post said, AKL (same with WL) rooms don't have day beds, so 5 is not an option unless you stay in a villa. Great resort though!
Poly has the largest rooms, and conv. of monorail and walk to TTC can't be beat.
My second choice if you are wanting a new experience would be BC/YC. For walk to Epcot, and stormalong bay!

 

[mmmears]

I voted for the Poly since you said that you just loved it there. It really is a great choice for a family who likes to go between MK and Epcot.

We've enjoyed Poly, but also liked AKL and BC/YC.

AKL, as others have posted, doesn't have regular rooms for 5. It really is an amazing place, and the bus service isn't all that bad, but I like to stay there and split the time with another resort, too (like Poly). The activities, theming, and animals really make it special.

BC/YC is really fun, too. The pool there is the best on property -- no contest there. And it's so convenient getting in and out of Epcot, especially at night for dinner. Just a 5-10 min walk, and so easy to slip out the back exit after Illuminations and avoid all the crowds!

My recommendation is to stick with the Poly, or if you are more adventurous, maybe do a split like AKL/Poly or BC/Poly. That way you can try something new and still end up at your "old favorite."

Good luck choosing -- they are all really special resorts!

 

[cbg1027]

I was going to suggest BC because of the pool complex and Epcot proximity. It's so close to the WS restaurants! You could probably see Illuminations fireworks from the little beach area at the BC.

But then I had another idea - why not do a split stay with the BC and the Poly? Stay at the BC first and then in the event you don't like it, you'll still have half your vacation at the Poly to look forward to!

 

[bnk1120]

If there is no one resort you REALLY want to try, then stick with the Poly. Many people (like me!) would love to stay at the Poly even once! If you can afford it and already know you love it, stay there.

 

[sandym718]

We absolutely love the Poly, too, and Tokelau specifically! Stayed there first in April/May 2007 and then again this past May. We're looking to return in March 2011 possibly. I just can't imagine staying anywhere else at this point. The only other resort I'd somewhat like to try is the Beach Club, mainly for Stormalong Bay. We're big pool/swimming people. But I just can't get around that "monorail to both MK and Epcot" from the Poly thing!!! It's just so wonderful. My kids love it as well, and it's part of the magic for them. We drive to WDW, so we wouldn't have to rely on the busses, but still.... Plus, that Volcano slide is just as big a hit with my kids as any ride in any park!! The ambience of the Poly does it for me, after a sort of "hectic" park experience, to come back to the Poly and the slower pace, relaxing feel.... to me I feel like I'm getting 2 vacations in one - Disney and the beach!

 

[TinkerbellinLouisian]

Go with BC....Your Kids (and you) will LOVE it...

BC has the most wonderful pool I have ever seen in my life...SAB..the BEST pool at WDW...

Proximity to BW....with dining, shops, rent a "bicycle for 6"!

Walk to Epcot...Boat to DHS (yes - you CAN walk to DHS also)

Cape May Character Buffet for the little one...

Arcade, (better than Poly) and work out room for the 16 yr old...

Did I mention SAB? 2 Hot TUbs (another 3rd one at quiet pool) whirlpool...slides.... sand bottom.... Sandy Beach....volleyball... river type fun...

Go with BC!

Hugs,
Mary

 

[TJA]

Here is what I think.....give the BC a shot only if you think you will be happy without the "Castle feeling" 24/7. Personally, we have 2 young kids (age 6) and seeing the Castle 24/7 isn't overly important to them (or us). What we have grown to love the most is: the pool at BC is perfect for young kids along with older kids and adults. There is something for everyone. A huge sandy-bottom pool with shallow water and mounds of sand to play in -- we started staying at BC when our kids were age 2 and we were all immediately hooked on all the fun there. Other reasons we love BC include the location (5-minute walk away from the International Gateway leading right into Epcot countries and also a boat ride or 20-minute walk away from HS), the boardwalk offers much fun for everyone (surrey bikes especially fun during Illuminations and gorgeous ride around the water, carnival-type games on boardwalk, entertainment including magicians and piano man, Espn Club, shopping, restaurants), campfires at night and movies on the beach, Beaches & Cream for ice cream treats, so much to do and see.

I can't imagine being disappointed in staying at an Epcot resort, really. Next trip we are staying at Poly so we can have that MK/Castle experience again. But our favorite will always be the BC. We do feel it's important to rotate the resorts to get different kinds of experiences. We never stay at the same resort 2x in a row, but that is just us. If you are a split-stay kind of family (we are not...), then I agree with a post above to stay at BC first and then move to Poly for the 2nd half of your trip.

Good luck!

 

[Beachbumpirates]

my vote is for the Beach Club. the pool is amazing and is like a mini water park! the rooms are nice and the lobby is comfortable. your a five minutes walk from EPCOT and a 15 minute walk/ 10 minute boat-ride to DHS. on my recent trip i stayed at Poly and wasn't as impressed as i thought i'd be. the pool was pretty and the view was breathtaking, but i found it dark. it's all in what you like- and i like the beach club! the yacht club is nice too- but has more of an adult-only feel and i see your traveling with a young one. you really can't make a wrong choice when your going to disney!!!!