Poly vs. Animal Kingdom

[Mom2Four]

Hi everyone. This is my first time posting so I hope I'm doing it right. We are coming down to Disney November2-10th. I can't decide between the Poly and AKL. We have stayed at the Poly before and loved it. Do I stay wih what I know or try something new? Also, we probably won't have a car this trip, so maybe AKL wouldn't be a good bet for us. Any opinions????

 

[HillPete]

I have a similar question. We are going down at the end of September and will stay at POR for the first few nights. We have saved up to afford a few nights at Poly or AKL at the end of our trip, we just can't decide which! We have dreamed about both and would love either. We have 2 DS ages 5 and almost 3. Any advice would be appreciated. --Hillpete

 

[Tess]

Welcome to the DIS--your post is just fine and you have a really wonderful dilemma--life should be so easy!

My family and I are Polynesian devotees. We love this resort! I never hesitate to recommend it to anyone. It is very relaxing and has a slow-paced kind of ambience. It is also a very beautiful resort from a grounds point of view--there's nothing like strolling the walkways at night with the tiki torches glowing and the soft Polynesian music playing in the background. It just doesn't get any better.

Now, all of that said--you've been there and know this. You wonder whether you should branch out and experience a different resort. I would encourage you to go for it--you won't find your personal favorite until you sample the variety offered! We've stayed at AKL and found it lacking in comparison to Polynesian--you (and many, many others I may add) might prefer it. We've stayed at quite a few of the resorts (GF, BWI, AKL, BC/YC, CBR, POR, ASMu and visited the rest to walk the grounds--save CSR--haven't gotten to that one yet)--Polynesian remains our first choice! You may prefer another. . .

HillPete. . .you have a different dilemma (but also a good one)--to stay Polynesian or AKL. . .I would vote Polynesian, hands down--as I said, it's our personal favorite! AKL is a nice resort and can usually be had for less $$$--if that's a factor, you can't go wrong staying at AKL too. If I had to choose--it would be a no brainer--Polynesian.

As to the concerns about the lack of a car--the bus transportation is USUALLY pretty good. AKL doesn't share busses with other resorts and, therefore, they run with regularity--something that isn't quite as nice at the other deluxe resorts. Every resort has it's problems--at GF and Polynesian it's the bus service! For the amount of money you spend at these resorts you would think the bus service would be top notch--sadly, we've never found this to be the case in the many years we've visited. It's not enough of an issue to deter us from staying there though!

Happy decision making!

 

[iloveeeyore]

Nothing beats the Poly for convenience and room size. If you have young children, stay at the Poly! AKL will be there when your kids are older and you don't care so much about transportation. AKL is beautiful and you can always pay a visit for dinner and a stroll, but you don't have to stay there! It's a perfect place to stay if you want a more remote location and don't want to spend as much time at the parks. AKL beats Poly in price (because of more remote location and smaller room size). That's it. Do Poly if price is not an issue.

 

[KristiKelly]

We will be staying @ Poly in October, we've never stayed there before. We have always loved the look & feel of it & the monorail is a big plus.

We did stay @ AKL April 2002. We really liked it. The fact that it is so far out never bothered us. When we went, I had not yet found The Dis, so I had never heard that it was far away from everything else. We never had long waits for the busses. We did have a car & made a few trips to the store, but would have been just fine without it. My kids loved eating their breakfast on the balcony watching the giraffes & zebras.

I am really excited about staying @ the Poly, but would stay @ AKL again in a heartbeat. One thing to keep in mind about AKL, it is a dark resort incl. rooms, again this never bothered us. It is a beautiful resort & Boma is great.

 

[momtotwinglesx4]

I agree with the previous posts, and Tess is absolutely right--you'll never know how much you might love another resort unless you try it!

I've stayed at the Poly with young children and the monorail transportation to the MK (and to Epcot if you make the short stroll over to the TTC) is unbeatable for parents of kids in strollers. It's just heaven to be able to push the stroller onto the monorail without having to remove the kids and fold it up, esp. when you have a double stroller w/ 2 small children in it. I cannot say enough about the convenience. You'll still need to use the bus if you want to go to AK or MGM, but we spent far more time at MK and Epcot with our small kids. (Yes, my kids love Epcot!)

On the other hand, AKL is so beautiful, IMHO! I haven't stayed there yet (we will this July) but have visited and dined at Boma (LOVE it!) many times.

My vote is, if you have small kids and think you will spend more time at MK and Epcot than AK or MGM, then stay at the Poly and spend an afternoon/evening visiting and dining at AKL.

If you don't have stroller kids and/or want to spend more time at your resort or at AK and MGM, then stay at the AKL.

These decisions are never easy, are they? LOL, I'm sure you'll have a great time at *either* resort!




Sue

 

[momtotwinglesx4]

Oh, I forgot to mention one other little tidbit that may have an impact since you're going in Nov. and the weather may be cool, esp. at night:

The AKL has hot tubs. The Poly does not. (Why *don't* they, anyway?)

 

[k&a&c'smom]

Mom2Four - Welcome! You have a great dilemma! The choice between the Poly and AKL is hard for me to make, too, so last trip, we didn't! We split between the two! We only stayed for four days total, split down the middle with 2 at the Poly and 2 at AKL.

We love both these resorts, and it is so hard to choose. The Poly has the monorail access to MK and Epcot, the beautiful beach and castle view, the wonderful island atmosphere, that great volcano pool. The music, tiki torches at night, all those wonderful paths through the lush landscaping, it's easy to forget you're in FL! On the other hand, AKL is very exotic, the lobby smells wonderful (like cardamom and fire,very subtle) there are lots of viewing areas for the animals and savanna guides to answer your questions. You can book a room to overlook a savanna, and have a view of the animals day and night. The restaurants Boma and Jiko are very good. The atmosphere is very calming, relaxing.

I'll have to agree with the previous posters, if you're main focus is going to be MK, and/or you have small children, go with the Poly for convenience. If your children are older, and transportation is not as much of an issue, go with AKL. Or, do as I do, and split between the two for the best of both worlds!

(HillPete, that probably won't work as well for you, with children that young, I'd probably go with the monorail resort! )

 

[Boardwalk Tigger]

You have a very hard choice to make! To complicate it more I would also suggest that the Beach Club is a great place to stay as well. I think everyone should experience the the Epcot hotel area. Personally I love this area better than being on the monorail and I can't go to Disney without staying there at least for part of my trip. We have experienced many of the Deluxe hotels and love them all for differerent reasons. I love the walks you can take( even pushing the kids in a stroller ) especially in the evening. The BC/ YC has the best pool an property. There are so many restaurants. Entertainment on the Boardwalk in the evening....You can take the boats to MGM and Epcot or walk there. I always feel very priviledged to be able to walk back to my hotel at the end of Illuminations instead of heading for the monorail or the parking lot like so many people do.

I am going to try the Poly this December (also staying at the BCV's for the first four days) and am excited about this although I hope I won't wish I was in Epcot hotel area for New Years. I would also like to try the AK in the future but need a jr suite as the rooms are a little small there. Good Luck

 

[BambiTamby]

Mom2Four....first of all....

<marquee direction="right">

</marquee>

Those are my two favorite resorts! I would be having the same problems choosing, too!

Tess, k&a&c'smom, and others have pretty much told you everything. you just need to decide what you want to do for the end of your vacation.

I've got to lean towards the Poly, though, because of the monorail access to the MK and Epcot for the little ones.
Many a time that monorail was a godsend when we needed to get DS back to the room for a nap.


either way....you're going to have an awesome time!

 

[kaekae]

Hi, just wanted to pop in and say thanks for all the advice about the poly. I didn't ask the question, but I'm glad Mom2four did. I will be a first timer to stay at a Disney resort and have been leaning towards the poly for our next visit. As you can see by my count down timer it won't be for quite some time but it still leaves me excited and eager to plan. Our little one is just coming up on a year and Dh says we must wait till he's older, that four years old we be a more appropriate age than one. Other wise we'd be there a whole lot sooner. At least it will give us plenty of time to save up money. Thanks for helping me make up my mind.

Those of you that have been to poly whats in a view. If I can request a certain room which one. Is it worth the extra money to request a Magic kingdom view if so how do I go about doing that? Thanks for everyones great advice you all sure help me to continue to be excited even though we won't be going for a really long time.

Mom2Four, you will have to tell all when you return from vacation.

 

[puffkin]

Another thing to consider, especially with young kids is the animal factor at the AKL. We noticed a lot of kids carrying on when it was time to leave because they wanted to stay and watch the animals. This can either be a good thing or a bad thing, depending on what you hope to accomplish on your trip.

I would say, for first time visitors and for families with young children, I would vote the Polynesian for its convenience to the MK. For those who can devote more time to the resort or who want to visit the other parks more, I would say AKL. We thought the bus service was fantastic, rarely had a longer wait than 5 minutes and it was nice having no other stops.

Good luck on your decision. You won't go wrong with either!