Poly or Beach Club

[thatdarncat]

I have ressies for Poly. I like the idea of having the monorail service. But Beach Club is right next to Epcot, it has a cooler pool (IMHO) and I'm just torn. I'm thinking of switching but the drawback of the Beach Club having a more interesting pool is that it makes it a more crowded pool. I'm not crazy about that. I'll be there in September, though. Does is make a difference in crowds? Any thoughts on this subject? Which would you choose?

 

[momof3luvs2run]

We chose the Beach Club for the land portion of our land/sea package in November. It sounds so nice to me. And I've read all good things about it.

Good luck deciding.

 

[LibertyBelle]

September... Definetly the Beach Club. The pool does draw more of a crowd but in September you should not have a problem. Besides since they added the volcano to the Poly pool it too draws in a nice size crowd. I personally like the monorail service at the Poly, but I prefer not having to go outside to get to my room which is nice about the Beach Club. I have always been a fan of the Yacht and Beach. The decor is inviting, the rooms are all in the main bulding, the pool is awesome and as you said you can walk to Epcot...

 

[thatdarncat]

How's the bus service from Poly?...And from Beach Club. I'll be going to Animal Kingdom one day, MGM one day and probably a night at Downtown and a night at PI.

 

[mariamouse]

I've never had a trouble with the bus service at either, although I know that the BC has somewhat of a bad reputation when it comes to bus waiting times.

You cannot go wrong with either resort--these are probably my two favorites--it just depends on the location and theme you are looking for...both are wonderful!

Have a wonderful trip!

mariamouse

 

[DisneyWisher]

Poly does share a bus with WL and GF. In April we stayed at All-Stars and went to Poly to eat at Ohana's. I thought taking the bus back to DTD then catching the All-Star bus would have been quicker then taking the monorail to MK and running to catch the bus to All-stars. It was about 10pm and MK closed at 9:30. It wasn't faster. We waited about 30 mins for the DTD bus. I was about to take a cab. I think walking to the TTC to catch a bus there might have been quicker.

How long are you going for? Maybe split your stay. Best of both worlds.

Shirley

 

[Frances999]

Originally posted by DisneyWisher
Poly does share a bus with WL and GF.

When we were there at Easter it shared with Contemporary and the GF most of the time. The only time I remember it sharing with WL was from DTD. It was slightly irritating because the bus always drove straight past the Poly to drop off people at the Contemporary first.

However, I love the Poly! And I think you will have an amazing time.

 

[Danauk]

I would choose the Beach Club. The pool is really good and I won't be too crowded I don't think. We were there for the last 2 weeks of August last year and had no problems with crowds at all (in fact we were surprised how quiet it was at some points.) Plus if you are wanting to go to Epcot and MGM it is actually easier and quicker to walk there from the BC (although you can catch the boat if you want to.) Like someone else has said about transport, although the busses are shared from the BC with other resorts we didn't wait more than 10 minutes for bus and always got on straight away.

 

[Ladyhawke10]

My vote is for the Poly. My favorite location at WDW is the GF/ Poly/ Contemporary loop--it is so fun to be on the monorail and there is just something about that view across seven seas lagoon to the castle. The Poly is very relaxing....you have the hawaiian music and the torches at night...it is more removed from other hotels than the Beach or Yacht club, so you feel like you are on an exotic vacation. It is a short walk away from the GF which has fabulous restaurants and grounds to explore, and you have access to the motor launches that go between MK, the Poly and GF--they are one of my favorite things to experience, it is so beautiful to glide across the lagoon at night. You can watch the MK fireworks from the dock at the Poly, or swing on the beach swing. There are the mouse boats to rent, and other water activities. Ohanas and the Luau are rated well. I just think the Poly has an atmosphere that stands out from others.

The Beach club emulates Cape Cod in Massachusetts, but is much busier since it is joined w/ Yacht club and is just across from Boardwalk, Swan and Dolphin (and Epcot). It is fun to walk back from Illuminations back to the hotel (that is my favorite part of staying at one of the Epcot hotels) but it doesn't feel as peaceful (IMHO) as the Poly. I like the boats that go between the Epcot and MGM but I usually go on those anyway when I am staying at a monorail resort because I will take a boat from Epcot. I have found all resort pools crowded at various times and like the quiet pools at Yacht/ Beach club better than Storm Along Bay for that reason--they jacuzzi at SAB is too small....however, Poly lacks a jacuzzi altogether, so that may be a factor for you.

Have fun deciding

 

[BALAMAV]

Here is what we think. We have stayed at both. They both are very nice. We like the Poly better. More relaxing in our opinion. Yes you do have to walk out side to get anywhere but that is nice. I never go anywhere without rain gear so if it is raining I don't have to worry. I will tell you that there is only 1 elevator in the BC. So if you are not close to the lobby. I mean you will walk forever down lots of hallways. Which is fine but after a long day at the parks can be tiring. If you have older folks with you it is very hard on them.

The busses are awful at the BC. You share with Swan/Dolphin the YC the BC then BW. Some busses are full and you have to wait. We waited no less than 30 min for the MK bus. One morning there was 100 people waiting for the bus for 1 hour. (This was may 3rd not a busy time)The buss to DTD/blizzard beach and the AK/TL we waited about 15 min. The busses at the Poly we never waited longer than 5 min. The busses were never full. The only time I noticed we were sharing a bus was on the way back to the resorts. You do share with Cont and GF.

If you are doing a Land/Sea package thought our rooms were put in the worst place in the in the resort. They were the farthest away you could be from the lobby and you were over looking the roof in the front of the hotel. They will not let you request a room. They want you all close in the same place for the tranfers for the ship. I am not sure where they put you in the Poly. But I do know they put you in the same area for the transfers. Our Cruise package was not cheap I felt we should have gotton a better view at the BC

Don't get me wrong we had a great trip. The BC is very nice we did like the resort itself but we loved the Poly. The pool at BC is great we have two girls 6 and 8. But I will say you have to go out of the pool area across the boardwalk and behind the ship to go up the stairs to the slide. We always had to go with them. I don't let my girls go that far out of my sight. Plus you have to worry about people on the Scurry bikes. The pool at the Poly we could always see the girls. They could go up the slide by themself. So we could sit and watch them. The slide at thr Poly is much faster too.

The restuarants at both are great. Beaches and Cream we went every night. What a great place. Cape May is good to but you do need PS. Ohana's was great so was Kona. BC didn't really have a place to get counter service like the Poly does.

I think that both places are great but we liked the Poly better. I just thought there are things that I wish we had known before we went to the BC. No matter where you go you are at Disney and you will have a great time. Have fun Brenda

 

[currycook]

Going to get some very different views here putting the Poly against the BC. In my mind, although both are nice, its a clear easy choice. The BC! But then we are big fans of the BC and you will find many big fans of the poly.

The pool is a no brainer, its the BC all the way.

But the best neutral adivce I can give is if you plan on going to the MK a lot then the Poly is a better pick. But if you plan on going to Epcot or MGM a lot then the BC is a clear favorite in location.

 

[jarestel]

If you want to spend most of your time at the MK, go with the Poly. If you're more of an Epcot / MGM type, then the BC is the place you want to be. Both resorts are nice, but the convenience factor when it comes to visiting the parks would be the deciding issue for me. Good luck & have a great trip!

Edited to add:
Whoops! Looks like I echoed currycook's post. That's what I get for not reading all of the responses.

 

[thatdarncat]

Thanks for all your help! It really is fun trying to decide. I am splurging for this vacation but I think since my last vacation was 7 years ago, I deserve it!!! YEY!! Dinsey here I come!!!

 

[Cameo]

You didn't say how long you are staying. Why not split your stay and arrange your schedule to do MK things while at the Poly and Epcot things while at the BC? This is exactly what we did last year at the end of September. It was so nice to have two vacations in one by staying at both hotels. By doing that I also found out that I definitely like the Poly better. Poly would be my choice if I had to pick just one.

 

[thatdarncat]

I'm going for 6 nights, 7 days (last day travel). I'm not too keen on switching resorts midweek, but if I was staying for longer I totally would switch. That's a really good idea!

 

[disneysue]

Don't for one minute think that the pool at the Poly doesn't get crowded. It's always an absolute zoo! If you get there early enough to get a table/lounge chair you're all set. If not, it's not that easy to see your kids. The quiet pool, however, is a little bit better.

It's really a matter of preference as you can see from the various responses. When our children were little and we were at the MK 24/7, the Poly was perfect for us. Now, that our kids are older, we much prefer the Epcot resorts because it's more relaxing and slower paced over there. Every resort I have ever stayed at always has a crowded pool!

 

[Beka'sMom]

We love the Beach Club!!!

Although I have not stayed at POLY, my sister did this past July and compained about the rooms being a bit dated and the walk to room- not inside corridors. She said resort was nice, pool was OK, but over-priced for what it was- being on monorail was great, but no night time scene.........

We love Beach club due to ease of walking home from epcot, strolling to boardwalk at night, and (of coarse) the POOL!!!!!!!

I think the atmosphere there is so relaxing and combines the Disney trip with a relaxing vacation at the same time!

 

[splashfamily]

That darn cat~

IMHO timing is the key to where you stay. On our usual trips to wdw we go in late August ( last week) and MK closes early and we find ourselvess in Epcot alot for dining. Therefore, we chose the Epcot resort ( stayed at BC on our last visit), since it's a quick walk in the evening to Epcot.
This year we are coming in early August and MK will stay open later. We elected to stay at the Poly for convience of the monorail. Having stayed at both resorts we enjoyed them both.
I will be more than happy to report back to you when we return in a few weeks.

 

[dizprincess27]

I was facing this same dilemma myself just recently but what swayed me to the POLY is that it's only going to be me and my 11 yr old dd and I don't ever let her out of my sight. I couldn't relax if I couldn't see her going up the slide. I would end up having to walk her around and I really don't want to do that unless of course I'm planning on riding the slide 1000 times LOL !!! Both resorts look lovely and actually the BC looks very pretty but we'll probably split our time between all the parks fairly evenly anyway. One other thing is the Poly has a certain magic about it that I didn't feel when I visited the BC. It's definitely got the Disney feel to me Whatever you decide will be wonderful. Have a great trip!