Poly or Wilderness Lodge

[Brett Wyman]

They are both among the best-themed hotels on property. Money being equal, I prefer the Poly, but it really comes down to personal preference and how the themes resonate with you.

Agreed. Price per night being equal I'd always choose the Poly. But the WL is a great property and many times several hundred cheaper per night than a Poly room. What you don't get at the WL lodge is the monorail, walk to the GF(and now MK), walk to the TCC, and the feeling of being on Seven Seas Lagoon with a view of MK and the other properties(which is to me is the quintessential Disney "feeling").

 

[westie55]

Right now, I would choose the WL only because it wouldn't be worth the price to me to stay at the Poly with the Epcot monorail down, Trader Sam's not open, Ohana having no characters, etc. The Poly prices don't reflect the reduced offerings currently. When everything is back to normal, I will pay more for the poly. Until then, it's hard for me to justify. WL is a lot cheaper. However, I imagine by Feb 2022 things will be fully open. In that case, I would definitely try the Poly for a change of pace. I love staying at different resorts each trip. It really keeps things feeling fresh and exciting.

 

[vcb]

Our first trip with our kids was to the WL and it was our favorite for that reason. It was a great first resort. I loved it because it was an affordable deluxe with great amenities and it was compact! And that lobby! But, we haven't been back since. We have tried various other resorts since then (2013). It is still our Top 3, though, right behind the POLY!!

The Poly is our home choice. We stayed there because we had a bigger budget in 2015 and now we make it work whenever possible. We are not DVC, but we book the studio deluxe as I usually find the rate to be the same or cheaper than the standard room. I'm a big fan of 2 bathrooms! We also have dropped the dining plan (not finding it cost-effective for us anymore with my kiddos) and have groceries delivered for breakfast and lunch/snacks).

There's just something about this resort. Seeing Cinderella's castle from the pool, watching the fireworks from the beach every night and not have to worry about being smack up against people (unless you choose to be), Dole Whip, the cast members, the smell of the lobby, the other guests, just walking through the resort walkways.

Both resorts are well-themed, but the Poly is on another level. It's very subversive to me and my family. We will go back to WL again, for sure. My twins were only 4 when we went and they look at pics and my son recently saw a pic and said it looks epic with the green roofs. I kinda think I just want to remember that first trip and my kids being tiny little ones. I don't want to replace that image with these big kids I have now.

 

[starousse]

The Poly and WL are our two favorite resorts. We usually prefer the Poly in the summer and WL in the winter months. We're heading down in August and have decided to go with WL over the Poly, due to the high rack rate prices at the Poly. IMO, it wasn't worth the additional $1700, especially with the possibility of the construction still going on. We're looking forward to being back at the lodge and seeing the newly renovated rooms. Of course we will visit the Poly for dinner one night.

 

[Dug720]

There are so many Polynesian fans on these boards that one can kind of lose perspective, listening to them go on and on about how wonderful it is. I

The same can be said about WL, to be fair. It almost swayed me to stay at WL over my birthday which I was interested in SOLELY because of the Bambi backsplash in the coffee area. I ultimately decided that I'm going to be happier at CSR because the western/national park themeing really does nothing for me.

 

[goofy4prez]

The same can be said about WL, to be fair. It almost swayed me to stay at WL over my birthday which I was interested in SOLELY because of the Bambi backsplash in the coffee area. I ultimately decided that I'm going to be happier at CSR because the western/national park themeing really does nothing for me.

Bam, spot on right there. I agree 100%. There are fans of all the resorts in WDW and are passionate about their opinion whether it's the WL, Poly, AoA, BC or any other resort. One just needs to go with what they want and do it regardless of all the hype or criticism of the resort.

I personally love the WL and really don't care for the Contemporary, but someone else will feel differently, such as you with the WL. I've learned not to be swayed, balance out the opinions and go with what I am feeling for that trip. I'm doing that for our Poly stay in February.

 

[Have3Kids&aHusband]

We love both. We went to whispering canyon for dinner last summer. We loved all the updates outside by the pool. We're a family of five so we haven't stayed at the WL for a while. We missed out on Poly last summer due to it being closed and couldn't get transferred to the DVC side. We went over there to get a dole whip and walked the resort grounds. Love it there too.

 

[DisneyDillyDally]

Bam, spot on right there. I agree 100%. There are fans of all the resorts in WDW and are passionate about their opinion whether it's the WL, Poly, AoA, BC or any other resort. One just needs to go with what they want and do it regardless of all the hype or criticism of the resort.

I personally love the WL and really don't care for the Contemporary, but someone else will feel differently, such as you with the WL. I've learned not to be swayed, balance out the opinions and go with what I am feeling for that trip. I'm doing that for our Poly stay in February.

I also love WL and have zero interest in the Contemporary!

 

[disny_luvr]

I think they are both great choices and you really can’t go wrong with either, but if I had to choose, I’d choose Poly. The rooms are noticeably larger and when traveling with four people, two of them teen boys, room size is important. We also enjoy the pools at the Poly more than the pools at the WL. We like the food options at the Poly more, too. When the Epcot monorail is running, I think the Poly is the best resort in terms of transportation. I love the quick hop on the monorail to and from the MK. Even with the monorail not currently stopping at the Poly, it is a really quick walk to the TTC.

 

[mwhite67]

I love both as well. Used to exclusively stay at the WL for years and years. But I will say the Poly feels a bit less crowded to me given the different spread out buildings. That means more walking. It appears the Poly DVC rooms are soon to be updated (threads re: people having reservations moved in late Aug/Sept). So it sounds like the a soft refurb will happen. The DVC rooms definitely need it. Also, though you get a lot of walking at the parks, I love that you can now walk from the Poly to the GF then on to the MK or even the Contemporary. I wish they would have opened that path a long time ago. I've done the walk and its very peaceful, though it does take 30-40 minutes to walk from the Poly all the way to the MK. So not for everyone and probably not a great option in the heat of the summer. Really can't go wrong either way and WL definitely great value as others have said.

 

[CrystalClear82]

Like the others have said, I think this decision is based on personal preference.
I find the Wilderness Lodge to be more of a relaxing hotel verse the Poly's convenience to the parks makes it a bit busier..

Unless I hit the lottery to stay in the bungalows, i don't have an otherwise interest in staying at the Poly. The Wilderness Lodge is a home away from home for me/us.