Poly Lovers- Contemp, Grand,or BC?

[MartyMcfly]

The new photos on tikimans facebook have solidified our vacation not returning to the polynesian this year.

Where is the next choice for Poly lovers to stay?

Contemp seems popular but i dont get it, going from a lush environment to a seemingly cold structure?

Beach club sounds like its main draw is the pool and convinience to epcot, but what about the environment?

The grand has the beach walkways to the poly, convinence of the monorail and in front of the beautiful seven seas lagoon yet people (who stayed there?)saying its too sterile.

Whats a poly lover to do?

 

[Aliceacc]

I'm a Poly lover who converted to the Beach Club and will be returning there this summer.

I think the BC exudes the same sort of serenity as the Poly, though it's packaged differently.

And Stormalong Bay, along with the Epcot and DHS access, can't be beat.(We still haven't gotten to the Boardwalk... maybe this trip? But it's right there too!)

 

[mickeynut1]

The new photos on tikimans facebook have solidified our vacation not returning to the polynesian this year.

Where is the next choice for Poly lovers to stay?

Contemp seems popular but i dont get it, going from a lush environment to a seemingly cold structure?

Beach club sounds like its main draw is the pool and convinience to epcot, but what about the environment?

The grand has the beach walkways to the poly, convinence of the monorail and in front of the beautiful seven seas lagoon yet people (who stayed there?)saying its too sterile.

Whats a poly lover to do?

Having stayed at the Poly (our favorite resort), GF, and BC, my choice after the Poly would be the GF. While we did like the BC and enjoyed our stay, we like the GF more as the atmosphere is more relaxing (to us), the rooms are larger, there is more of a variety of dining options close by at the CR and Poly, and the CS options are more plentiful as the BC CS options are very limited (to us). Plus, when we go to Epcot, we spend our time in the front of the park, so being within walking distance to Epcot from the BC really isn't convenient for us as we have to walk all the way to front. Also, we prefer the GF pool to SAB as we found SAB crowded and not the most relaxing (this is just my personal opinion). I can't comment on the CR as we've never stayed there. Good luck.

 

[njmom76]

I haven't stayed at the Cont or GF, but we loved BC when we stayed there a few years ago. The staff was awesome. We stayed at the Poly the last 2 trips due to the monorail and MK visits, but plan on the BC again once in the future.

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[Skywise]

Actually the Contemporary can feel "sterile" but I have a certain fondness for it. It's not "themed" but it's cool to stay in the atrium and watch the monorail go by from a higher floor and the TPV's cannot be beat.

The GF is nicely themed but can feel "stuffy" according to other family members. I found it relaxing but agreed that you get the sense that you have to be on your "best behavior" there. Totally unlike the vibe I got at the Polynesian.

Haven't stayed at the BC so I can't give an opinion on that - Lots of poly lovers say it's a good fallback candidate though. Downside being you're not on the monorail line though.

 

[Octoberbaby]

The Polynesian is also my favorite resort. Contemporary is my second favorite so I would go with the Contemporary. I have stayed at the GF once and really didn't like it! It is too "stiff" feeling for me. Although I do love being in the lobby of the GF and listening to the music, I would never stay there again. I have never stayed at the BC but would love to! I love being on the monorail loop though as transportation is so much better.

 

[Babsy]

The Poly was the first onsite resort that we chose to stay in WDW and we love it there. That said, the construction caused us to move our vacation plans from there to the CR recently.

Until I stayed at the CR tower, TPV I didn't understand why anyone would choose to stay here over the Poly or GF. Now I understand.

The CR rooms are modern and comfortable with an amazing view of the MK and MK resort area. I think it feels like an exhilarating mountain top experience, whereas the Poly feels like a tropical island experience.

The monorail is an issue these days, so the CR comes out ahead because you can simply walk to and from the MK.

Many people tout the Poly walk to the TTC as a great way to go to Epcot and other destinations. It's my belief that you have the best transportation option from the CR of any WDW resort. You can walk to MK. You can monorail to MK, TTC, Epcot, Poly and GF. You can walk to the MK bus stop and ride to any other resort. You can boat to the WL and FW. You can bus to the DHS and AKL.

It is so exciting to look down to Chef Mickey's and the monorail in the huge atrium. Watching the fireworks from your balcony is memorable. The atmosphere feels very much like you are staying in tomorrow land in the MK. The theme of the CR fits the retro futuristic feel of tomorrow land.

It looks sterile from the outside looking in, but from the inside looking out the CR is all Disney. WE LOVED staying here.

The Gf is beautiful as well, but it does have a more upscale feeling. Some are comfortable with that and some are not. Also, the rooms are more 'grandmotherly' in decor. Very much Victorian elegance, but not to everyone's taste.

Neither resort has the feel that the poly has, but that is a good thing. The GF feels refined and elegant, the CR feels modern and exciting. Both are great places to stay with a lot to offer.

My personal favourite after the Poly would be the CR, but the GF is a very close second.

I would say to look at some pics to see which appeals to you more, but it is really hard to get a feel for the CR until you have tried staying there. SOme like it, some not so much. I didn't think that I would. Now it is my second fav resort in WDW. Go figure?

The BC, btw, is nice as well, but it is a different sort of holiday in the Epcot area. Very nice and convenient to Epcot in particular, but it feels different from a monorail hotel. the 'environment' is pretty much Epcot and the walk around the Epcot area hotels. The BW has some exciting nighttime activities to take in that gives almost a going to the fair atmosphere. If you want the Epcot area, The BC is great! Smaller rooms and 50% chance small balcony plus no castle has me liking the monorail resorts a bit more, overall.

Ideally, I like to do a split stay with a monorail resort and the BC as the Epcot area resort. It's the best of both worlds.

Any of these resorts are great. Enjoy your choice.

 

[heidijanesmith]

The new photos on tikimans facebook have solidified our vacation not returning to the polynesian this year. We love the Poly too, but would stay elsewhere until the construction is done

Where is the next choice for Poly lovers to stay? We like the Poly due to the location and the themeing

Contemp seems popular but i dont get it, going from a lush environment to a seemingly cold structure? My husband agrees with CR having little themeing and not as appealing. I would like to try CR as we could walk to and from MK and the buses are good all over property.

Beach club sounds like its main draw is the pool and convinience to epcot, but what about the environment? We liked staying at the YC and really liked walking to DS and EPCOT. We chose the YC over BC as we wanted a patio or a full balcony and BC has limited options.

The grand has the beach walkways to the poly, convinence of the monorail and in front of the beautiful seven seas lagoon yet people (who stayed there?)saying its too sterile. We have toured GF and it's beautiful but just not our cup of tea.

Whats a poly lover to do?

We found that AKL is an immersive themed resort like the Poly, so for theme it was amazing! We enjoyed AKL but find it a little removed from everything, as we like to resort hop on the monorail or walk around the EPCOT area resorts.

We are trying BW this time as we really like walking to EPCOT and DS.

 

[jcjen519]

the polynesian has been our favorite resort for 30 years. My husband wanted to try the grand floridian last fall. We loved it and I have to say its pretty close to the polynesian for us now, a very close second. We in no way found it sterile, I would recommend that resort anytime the poly is not an option.

 

[FutureMayor]

I'm not sure why the Poly isn't still an option... We just returned from a trip to WDW last night. We stayed at the Contemporary. The resort is great and has some nice features, but it isn't the Poly.

We had friends staying at the Poly (which I might add is our favorite resort). We visited them during the day and night and did not find the construction a distraction at all. There is well documented construction coming down the pike, which could be more of an issue.

I think you need to focus on what is truly important to you during your stay. If it's a resort feel, then you go with the Poly or GF. The Contemporary to me felt somewhat generic. We were only going for a 3 day trip so we decided to try someplace new. We loved being able to walk into the parks... but there's a little too much concrete around for my taste.

The Beach Club is nice, but doesn't rank with the resorts on the monorail. For my money, I pay for convenience. The Poly has it in spades so I will overlook a little construction. I don't think you can beat the feel you get walking the Poly property. I know you were asking for alternatives, but I still think the Poly should be among your choices. I wrestled with the same concerns you likely have for our trip in July and feel like we are making a good decision by staying there.

Whatever you choose, I hope it works out.

 

[thisismyusername]

I think you need to decide what is most important to you: Location to MK or immersive theming.

The CR is my least favorite resort. It has a fabulous staff, it is wonderfully located, and it has beautiful rooms with an unbeatable view if you stay facing the MK. But I don't feel relaxed there. I'm worried about my kids leaning too far over a railing either on the outside or the inside of the building, the first four floors are bustling and filled with tons of people, you have to take central elevators down to the main floor and walk through the busy lobby to get to the pool, etc. I feel like I'm staying in a high-rise office building and not a resort. The pool is nice, but it has no "wow" factor. And my kids think the slide is the most boring one on property.

We LOVE the GF, and love our new "home" in the GFVs. We love that it's close to the Poly, too, so it's easy to visit. The grounds are gorgeous and the resort is just the right size, IMO, with nothing being too far away or a hassle to get to. If you are looking for an immersive theme that transports you to another place in the world, however, you're not going to get it at the Grand. However, you'll still have wonderful views of the castle and fireworks, the convenience of the monorail, and the luxury of visiting the Poly easily without needing to stay in the midst of the construction. I don't think that the GF is sterile at all, and we have always encountered some of the very best and friendliest CMs at the Grand.

Beach Club, to me, is a more relaxed and slightly different experience than the Grand. I am very fond of the Epcot resorts as we love spending our time in the back of World Showcase and the ease of accessing that and the restaurants and entertainment on the Boardwalk. While we also love the uniqueness of the pool, as a mom of differently-abled swimmers, I don't find that I can quite relax there as I'm trying to keep track of all three of my kids, all of whom enjoy different areas of the pool.

Other ideas for you would be Wilderness Lodge and Animal Kingdom, both of which I haven't stayed at (yet), but both seem to be the only other two deluxe resorts on property that have fairly immersive themes. I also think that the color schemes and aesthetics of the grounds and resorts would be similar to what you're used to with the Poly.

If you're open to a split stay, that's an option too. We are huge fans of doing split stays when trying new hotels as it allows us the option to try something new without committing the entire vacation to the new resort in case we don't love it as much as somewhere else on property. Personally, we find hotel hopping to be easy and pain free at Disney if you pack with the move in mind and don't mind being possibly "homeless" for a few hours of your moving day.