Poly or the Four Seasons for NYE

[FSU Girl]

I currently have a reservation booked for Poly over New Years. I've never been to Disney at this time and love the firework show, I usually live stream it at midnight. I have a lot of big trips planned for next year and am trying to save some money, so I'm thinking of cancelling Poly and booking a night at the Four Seasons instead. I know they have rooms that face the parks and I think there's a restaurant with a view, although I'm guessing that would be reserved for a special New Years Eve party? Has anyone stayed there for New Years? Is the view of the fireworks good enough or is Poly the better choice? Or should I save my money and watch the fireworks from my TV again.

...It will be my first New Year's as a newly married woman

 

[2xcited2sleep]

Seems crazy that the Four Seasons would present a savings opportunity vs. the Poly but I guess that's where we are with Disney prices! I haven't stayed there but have eaten at Capa and loved it. They do have views of both Illuminations and the MK fireworks -- although so far away that you don't see the globe action on the lagoon or projections on the castle -- but I'm not sure you can see the projections from the Poly either. I can't recall if they pipe in the music... I don't think so. Last year they did a special NYE dinner - details are at the link below

https://press.fourseasons.com/orlando/hotel-news/2017/festive-season/

Tough call on which to choose. I think the Four Seasons would be lovely and elegant and romantic but it definitely isn't "Disney."

 

[Hopefully]

I would do the Poly if viewing fireworks is your goal. The view from the Four Seasons is pretty distant. The Poly beach is reserved for Poly guests only on NYE

 

[hakepb]

Due to the massive crowds, Transportation to the Poly after MK or Epcot (Monorail) fireworks will be much, much easier than any driving or bus transportation.
I guess that doesn’t matter as much for remote viewing

The NYE fireworks shows at MK and Epcot are the best Disney fireworks...and the party atmosphere in the parks (with multiple DJ’s, etc) is a great, unique experience. I’d highly reccomend experiencing them in the parks..it’s crazy but fun.

 

[FSU Girl]

Seems crazy that the Four Seasons would present a savings opportunity vs. the Poly but I guess that's where we are with Disney prices! I haven't stayed there but have eaten at Capa and loved it. They do have views of both Illuminations and the MK fireworks -- although so far away that you don't see the globe action on the lagoon or projections on the castle -- but I'm not sure you can see the projections from the Poly either. I can't recall if they pipe in the music... I don't think so. Last year they did a special NYE dinner - details are at the link below

https://press.fourseasons.com/orlando/hotel-news/2017/festive-season/

Tough call on which to choose. I think the Four Seasons would be lovely and elegant and romantic but it definitely isn't "Disney."

It is crazy how it would save money, maybe because Poly is a monorail resort? It would be just me and the new hubby when we go so romantic could be really nice.

I would do the Poly if viewing fireworks is your goal. The view from the Four Seasons is pretty distant. The Poly beach is reserved for Poly guests only on NYE

The fireworks is the main objective of the trip, if we did stay at Four Seasons we'd probably drive to the park, which I'd imagine would be crazy hectic.

Due to the massive crowds, Transportation to the Poly after MK or Epcot (Monorail) fireworks will be much, much easier than any driving or bus transportation.
I guess that doesn’t matter as much for remote viewing

The NYE fireworks shows at MK and Epcot are the best Disney fireworks...and the party atmosphere in the parks (with multiple DJ’s, etc) is a great, unique experience. I’d highly reccomend experiencing them in the parks..it’s crazy but fun.

With Poly we were planning on not going into the parks and watching the fireworks from the beach. I think if we did the Four Sesaons we'd go into the park. Do you think it would be easier if we parked at Hollywood Studios and then walked over to Epcot? I think Hollywood Studios closes earlier so there should be less traffic leaving from there? Or would there be an issue getting the car after the park is closed?

 

[GADisneyDad14]

I was at Poly NYE this year. I have never been so happy in my life to have monorail access to two parks. You couldn’t PAY me to drive anywhere on property that day.

I usually keep my posts/opinions hyperbole-free around here, but the MK and Epcot traffic we witnessed coming and going to the Epcot on the monorail that morning/afternoon was really incredible! It was seriously no joke. At Poly, we were pretty much totally immune to the chaos all around.

I guess point being, if your plans involve driving on NYE (or even taking the 4S bus, which would be in the same traffic), just be prepared.

4S would certainly be more romantic though.

 

[GADisneyDad14]

OP, also, maybe these pics will help. First three are a 4S TPV room, they may help give you a feel for the distance. The last pic is from the Poly beach during the late show.

In case you don’t know this, they do an early and late fireworks show both 12/30 and 12/31 at MK.

Hope that helps!

 

[hakepb]

It is crazy how it would save money, maybe because Poly is a monorail resort? It would be just me and the new hubby when we go so romantic could be really nice.


The fireworks is the main objective of the trip, if we did stay at Four Seasons we'd probably drive to the park, which I'd imagine would be crazy hectic.


With Poly we were planning on not going into the parks and watching the fireworks from the beach. I think if we did the Four Sesaons we'd go into the park. Do you think it would be easier if we parked at Hollywood Studios and then walked over to Epcot? I think Hollywood Studios closes earlier so there should be less traffic leaving from there? Or would there be an issue getting the car after the park is closed?

I recall that DHS also had some NYE fireworks, so I don’t think they would be empty...and before they finish their parking lot construction, DHS is the most congested parking lot on property.

And FYI, they have always had the MK NYE fireworks show on the 30th and 31st. So it’s possible to experience both MK on the 30th and Epcot on the 31st.

 

[FSU Girl]

OP, also, maybe these pics will help. First three are a 4S TPV room, they may help give you a feel for the distance. The last pic is from the Poly beach during the late show.

In case you don’t know this, they do an early and late fireworks show both 12/30 and 12/31 at MK.

Hope that helps!

Ya those look really far away and if they don't have music pipped in it won't be as magical.

And FYI, they have always had the MK NYE fireworks show on the 30th and 31st. So it’s possible to experience both MK on the 30th and Epcot on the 31st.

I remember reading about that.

So new dilemma, should I stay at Poly or switch to an Epcot resort. I'm on the fence about actually going into the parks on these days since it'll be crazy crowded and my Fiance does not do well with crowds. If we didn't go into the parks Poly would make the most sense since we can watch from the beach. If we do decide to actually go into the parks I feel like Epcot would be the easier one to deal with the crowds since it's so spread out and we wouldn't have to rely on transportation at all since we could walk back. But if the crowds are too much for him at Epcot to take we'll be SOL since you can't really watch those well from outside the park.

 

[Lesley Wake]

Ya those look really far away and if they don't have music pipped in it won't be as magical.



I remember reading about that.

So new dilemma, should I stay at Poly or switch to an Epcot resort. I'm on the fence about actually going into the parks on these days since it'll be crazy crowded and my Fiance does not do well with crowds. If we didn't go into the parks Poly would make the most sense since we can watch from the beach. If we do decide to actually go into the parks I feel like Epcot would be the easier one to deal with the crowds since it's so spread out and we wouldn't have to rely on transportation at all since we could walk back. But if the crowds are too much for him at Epcot to take we'll be SOL since you can't really watch those well from outside the park.

Could you do 1-night Poly for Dec 30th and see the MK fireworks, and then do 1-night at Epcot area and see those?

 

[FSU Girl]

Could you do 1-night Poly for Dec 30th and see the MK fireworks, and then do 1-night at Epcot area and see those?

Is it just Magic Kingdom that does the fireworks two nights in a row? It might work doing two different hotels, but then from 11am-3pm we won't have a room, is that crazy when it's so busy there? I just want to make sure we'll see fireworks on NYE even if my Fiance finds the crowds too intense in the parks.

 

[hakepb]

Ya those look really far away and if they don't have music pipped in it won't be as magical.



I remember reading about that.

So new dilemma, should I stay at Poly or switch to an Epcot resort. I'm on the fence about actually going into the parks on these days since it'll be crazy crowded and my Fiance does not do well with crowds. If we didn't go into the parks Poly would make the most sense since we can watch from the beach. If we do decide to actually go into the parks I feel like Epcot would be the easier one to deal with the crowds since it's so spread out and we wouldn't have to rely on transportation at all since we could walk back. But if the crowds are too much for him at Epcot to take we'll be SOL since you can't really watch those well from outside the park.

Walking back from Epcot is much, much easier than most other options, but most of Epcot is massively busy, like 30 person extended queue outside every restroom around World Showcase busy.

If you mostly stay in Future World (didn’t notice a ton of people between soarin and Nemo) and they open up the grassy areas before World Showcase, so you can bring a blanket and “chill” in a more open area, it might be OK.

There are loud bands or DJ’s in most countries, but they also setup a “silent groove” area where they provide headphones:
https://www.wdwmagic.com/events/hol...s-eve-2017-special-entertainment-line-up-.htm

 

[2xcited2sleep]

I'm a frequent visitor and just did my first NYE this past year and I have to say that the crowds are beyond intense. They move along surprisingly well but it's just a sea of humanity and was a little stressful keeping track of multiple kids. We were a large group of 10 and there was just no way to stay remotely together when walking around the lagoon. There's a twitter account EpcotNYE (unofficial acct) that "comes alive" only for New Year's each year but you can check it out for some pictures and video of the crowds.

If your fiancé doesn't like crowds, it sounds like remote viewing of the fireworks might be a better plan. For remote viewing, I think the Poly beach is probably your best bet.

If you think you may want to try to go to a park, then I'd say Epcot is the better bet. MK did enter phased closure this past NYE (but not sure it ever closed to resort guests). We stayed at Boardwalk and found the ability to walk in/out of Epcot to be priceless. Early on in the day we were able to go in and do a few rides with fast pass. We went back into the park for dinner - we ate at La Hacienda and by happy accident ended up with a view of the first round of fireworks (an aside - I think an ADR is an absolute must - the lines for quick service were crazy and I have no idea where people found space to stop and eat) and honestly decided after that, that the crowds were too much for us. So we went back to the resort. There was a DJ and huge dance party for the kids (or young at heart) on the green and we bought a couple of bottles of champagne and some paper cups and just sat out on the big porch and chatted while the kids went back and forth to the dance party. We went down onto the Boardwalk for the final countdown - they were handing out noisemakers - and while we saw the top of the fireworks, it's not really an ideal view. It was enough for us but again if fireworks are the priority, I think I'd say stick with the Poly. I'm not positive they offer it on NYE but if you had an MK facing room you could even order in Ohana and just hang out!

This was long-winded and I'm not sure if even helpful. Happy to answer any questions about our Epcot experience last year. I'm sure whatever you choose to do will be magical. You just have to go in with the mind set that this is not a typical day in the parks. Oh and congratulations!!

 

[FSU Girl]

Walking back from Epcot is much, much easier than most other options, but most of Epcot is massively busy, like 30 person extended queue outside every restroom around World Showcase busy.

If you mostly stay in Future World (didn’t notice a ton of people between soarin and Nemo) and they open up the grassy areas before World Showcase, so you can bring a blanket and “chill” in a more open area, it might be OK.

There are loud bands or DJ’s in most countries, but they also setup a “silent groove” area where they provide headphones:
https://www.wdwmagic.com/events/hol...s-eve-2017-special-entertainment-line-up-.htm

I think the worst line would be the bathrooms lol. I love Epcot, but I'm not sure my Fiance would want to stick it out until fireworks at midnight there. The silent Groove area sounds really cool though and could give you a feeling of not being surrounded by people

 

[FSU Girl]

I'm a frequent visitor and just did my first NYE this past year and I have to say that the crowds are beyond intense. They move along surprisingly well but it's just a sea of humanity and was a little stressful keeping track of multiple kids. We were a large group of 10 and there was just no way to stay remotely together when walking around the lagoon. There's a twitter account EpcotNYE (unofficial acct) that "comes alive" only for New Year's each year but you can check it out for some pictures and video of the crowds.

If your fiancé doesn't like crowds, it sounds like remote viewing of the fireworks might be a better plan. For remote viewing, I think the Poly beach is probably your best bet.

If you think you may want to try to go to a park, then I'd say Epcot is the better bet. MK did enter phased closure this past NYE (but not sure it ever closed to resort guests). We stayed at Boardwalk and found the ability to walk in/out of Epcot to be priceless. Early on in the day we were able to go in and do a few rides with fast pass. We went back into the park for dinner - we ate at La Hacienda and by happy accident ended up with a view of the first round of fireworks (an aside - I think an ADR is an absolute must - the lines for quick service were crazy and I have no idea where people found space to stop and eat) and honestly decided after that, that the crowds were too much for us. So we went back to the resort. There was a DJ and huge dance party for the kids (or young at heart) on the green and we bought a couple of bottles of champagne and some paper cups and just sat out on the big porch and chatted while the kids went back and forth to the dance party. We went down onto the Boardwalk for the final countdown - they were handing out noisemakers - and while we saw the top of the fireworks, it's not really an ideal view. It was enough for us but again if fireworks are the priority, I think I'd say stick with the Poly. I'm not positive they offer it on NYE but if you had an MK facing room you could even order in Ohana and just hang out!

This was long-winded and I'm not sure if even helpful. Happy to answer any questions about our Epcot experience last year. I'm sure whatever you choose to do will be magical. You just have to go in with the mind set that this is not a typical day in the parks. Oh and congratulations!!

What time are the earlier fireworks done at Epcot? One thought I had was to get park hoppers, do some rides at Magic Kingdom in the morning then go over to Epcot for dinner and a view of the first fireworks. Then head back to Poly and watch the NYE fireworks from the beach.

I prefer ADRs on a normal day so there is no way I'd go without one on this trip. Did restaurants get booked up fast for this day?

 

[2xcited2sleep]

What time are the earlier fireworks done at Epcot? One thought I had was to get park hoppers, do some rides at Magic Kingdom in the morning then go over to Epcot for dinner and a view of the first fireworks. Then head back to Poly and watch the NYE fireworks from the beach.

I prefer ADRs on a normal day so there is no way I'd go without one on this trip. Did restaurants get booked up fast for this day?

I like your plan a lot!!

The first set of fireworks were at 6pm and included the holiday tag -- same version that had been showing all week since Christmas. The midnight version has a special extra countdown and tag. Another aside but La Hacienda does a special prixe fixe NYE meal (which got some great reviews and might be another option as it removes you from the crowds) but they were also doing an early seating off the regular menu, which is what we did. I think the ADR might have been as early as 4:30pm (party of ten are beggars not choosers, LOL) but they didn't rush us at all as I think they only did one regular seating and then their prixe fixe party I don't think started until maybe 7:30 or 8 -- and we were in a side room not the main dining room where the event would be occurring. It ended up being a really good choice. Again our table didn't have fireworks views but they were nice enough to invite the kids to come to the windows where others had already vacated and they were getting ready for the party. They also gave us party hats when we were seated which was a cute touch.

We actually lucked into that ADR at La Hacienda less than a week out (note that was with some rather obsessive compulsive checking of the app & as I'm writing this I'm wondering if they decided on doing that early seating at the last minute and released those later).

Edited to add - here's a review of the special prixe fixe menu event La Hacienda did for NYE.

https://www.disboards.com/threads/la-hacienda-new-years-eve-dining-event.3655706/

 

[FSU Girl]

I like your plan a lot!!

The first set of fireworks were at 6pm and included the holiday tag -- same version that had been showing all week since Christmas. The midnight version has a special extra countdown and tag. Another aside but La Hacienda does a special prixe fixe NYE meal (which got some great reviews and might be another option as it removes you from the crowds) but they were also doing an early seating off the regular menu, which is what we did. I think the ADR might have been as early as 4:30pm (party of ten are beggars not choosers, LOL) but they didn't rush us at all as I think they only did one regular seating and then their prixe fixe party I don't think started until maybe 7:30 or 8 -- and we were in a side room not the main dining room where the event would be occurring. It ended up being a really good choice. Again our table didn't have fireworks views but they were nice enough to invite the kids to come to the windows where others had already vacated and they were getting ready for the party. They also gave us party hats when we were seated which was a cute touch.

We actually lucked into that ADR at La Hacienda less than a week out (note that was with some rather obsessive compulsive checking of the app & as I'm writing this I'm wondering if they decided on doing that early seating at the last minute and released those later).

Edited to add - here's a review of the special prixe fixe menu event La Hacienda did for NYE.

https://www.disboards.com/threads/la-hacienda-new-years-eve-dining-event.3655706/

Thanks for the review link I'll check it out. Since our plan will be to watch the MK fireworks we'll probably not do any of those NYE set menu events. I've never seen the holiday tag version at Epcot before so that'll be a new experience too. We're only going to be up there from 30-1 so we won't have that much time so I want to make sure I hit all the highlights for a New Years trip

 

[Disneylover99]

What time are the earlier fireworks done at Epcot? One thought I had was to get park hoppers, do some rides at Magic Kingdom in the morning then go over to Epcot for dinner and a view of the first fireworks. Then head back to Poly and watch the NYE fireworks from the beach.

I prefer ADRs on a normal day so there is no way I'd go without one on this trip. Did restaurants get booked up fast for this day?

Yes. Epcot dinner reservations at every restaurant get scooped up quickly for NYE. It's harder then normal to get last minute cancellations because so many people are frantically searching.

 

[FSU Girl]

Yes. Epcot dinner reservations at every restaurant get scooped up quickly for NYE. It's harder then normal to get last minute cancellations because so many people are frantically searching.

Do you think I'll have problems getting something when my booking window opens? It'll be 180+1

 

[Disneylover99]

Do you think I'll have problems getting something when my booking window opens? It'll be 180+1

No. You should be fine. Last year, I changed a few ADR's a few weeks after my 180 date. There was still availability but it was already quite limited for the evening hours. The year before that I didn't even try to get an ADR until October for my New Year's trip. I managed to get one ADR in Epcot for mid afternoon. There was nothing available in the evening. I kept checking and a few restaurants popped up for late at night, but it was too late for us.