Poly vs. Dolphin. Opinions please.

[njmom76]

My husband and I are now just planning a last minute 3 night stay for the end of August to surprise our 4 year old DD. We are torn between staying at the Poly and doing just the regular MYW tickets and the Dolphin with Park Hoppers (we like PHs when we stay at an Epcot resort). The Dolphin would be around $400 cheaper (after accounting for the difference in ticket price), but I keep hearing amazing things about Poly and we have never stayed there (DH has stayed at many more places onsite than I). Also, would the AAA room discount be better than the 20% off Disney is running themselves? I am already planning on getting tkts either through UC or AAA and paying for dining OP, so really only need the room only.

I am open to any suggestions! Thanks.

 

[olive]

I would check on what the AAA discount is, or if there is one available, for your dates at the Polynesian, and make sure you have called the Dolphin to check for their best rates so you have a good sense of the true price difference. (I mentioned this because sometimes the rates I find online for Swan/Dolphin turn out to be higher than whatever the reservations person can find when I call.) Make sure you are also accounting for travel costs to and from the airport if you stay at the Dolphin since you can't take ME. We have used Tiffany Town Car, and have used them even when we can take ME because we prefer the convenience. I really like both resorts. Poly makes it easy to get to MK and Epcot with access to both monorails just a walk away, and of course you can walk to Epcot and Hollywood Studios from the Dolphin. You can watch Wishes from the Poly beach, or Illuminations from the BW. Given that you will be there in August, the choice of pools at Dolphin may be a nice feature - and the grotto pool is quite a bit larger than the volcano pool at the Polynesian which gets quite crowded (I haven't had problems at their quiet pool, though). You can get a AAA discount at the Dolphin on most of the food (the S/D thread has a list of where), which is nice for breakfast items or snacks later. It's a difficult choice - we like to split between both locations because we enjoy the BW and the MK area - but once you double check the prices, your decision may be easier. If the difference is relatively small and you have your heart set on the Polynesian, try it out! We have never had a bad stay there. Sorry to be wishy washy in my response!

 

[Couchy]

I would go Dolphin . The ease of walking or taking the boat to two parks is also lots of food choices at the Dolphin. quick walk tithe Boardwalk area as well. The grotto pool is amazing!

But if you are spending g most your time at the MK you might want the Poly

 

[Belleofthehouse]

I vote for the Poly for a couple of reasons:

(1) I am not a park hopper fan especially with young kids. Disney is very stimulating for children without going from one park to the next in a single day.

(2) The Poly is wonderful! We enjoy the resorts alot, so we stay somewhere that is relaxing. The pool is lots of fun and the food options are kid friendly. Plus it is a monorail resort.

Good luck in your decision.

 

[cjsm&d]

My husband and I are now just planning a last minute 3 night stay for the end of August to surprise our 4 year old DD. We are torn between staying at the Poly and doing just the regular MYW tickets and the Dolphin with Park Hoppers (we like PHs when we stay at an Epcot resort). The Dolphin would be around $400 cheaper (after accounting for the difference in ticket price), but I keep hearing amazing things about Poly and we have never stayed there (DH has stayed at many more places onsite than I). Also, would the AAA room discount be better than the 20% off Disney is running themselves? I am already planning on getting tkts either through UC or AAA and paying for dining OP, so really only need the room only.

I am open to any suggestions! Thanks.

First, let me say that my family loves Swan and Dolphin because we are EPCOT fans first and formost.

That said, if your 4 year old is anything like my DS when he was 4, EPCOT is really boring. Not alot for the average 4 year old. If the goal is to treat your 4 year old over 3 days, then Poly, with the monorail to MK is the choice. MK and AK are really the only parks a 4 year old gets much out of (IMO).

This would also allow for quick trips back from MK for naps and relax time, and returning to MK for parades, fireworks, etc...

 

[Hooked On The Mouse]

I agree with others that the Poly is probably the best choice for traveling with a 4 year old girl. I'm guessing you would probably spend lots of time at MK, and then the Poly location can't be beat. You can also access the Epcot area very easily from Poly by taking the monorail. I know when we stayed there I was very happy to be able to get back to my room so quickly if I wanted, and then turn around and get back to the park quickly too. Poly has a great pool area and beautiful grounds. We were less thrilled with the building interiors, but they were by no means bad. I'm also not a fan of park hoppers- I don't see the need with small children especially.

 

[BLTLDZ]

Are you planning on spending most of your time at MK? With a 4 yr old, I would imagine that you would be. The Poly is great for the theming, the atmosphere, the fact that you can see the castle from the resort & fireworks from the beach..AHH... And then there's the monorail access...

The Dolphin. Dh& I LOVE this area!! SO many great restaurant options at your disposal, quick walk to 2 parks...Boardwalk entertainment at night. The liveliness of it all.... Sorry this is not helping!! I see the positves in both.

I guess what it really boils down to is : do you want to be on the monorail?

 

[patty57]

We love the Epcot area resorts, and just finished a stay at the Swan. Loved it! Have stayed at Beach Club and Boardwalk many times and love them both. For us, Epcot is where we want to stay.
Where will you be spending the most time with your four-year old? Magic Kingdom? If so...Poly.

 

[amberpi]

Hi! Long time lurker but this question is near and dear enough to my heart that I thought I'd finally register.

I've been to WDW a zillion times and now only stay at the Swan/Dolphin (I'm in consulting so I travel more than I like to think about but the Starwood points are great to either bank or use) after staying at all the deluxes in the Epcot area and on the monorail. Here are my thoughts:

I think that of all the WDW pools I've experienced, the pool at the SD can only be topped by the YC/BC and that the pool at the Poly is overrun with poolhoppers. Until they enforce that, its really not fun being overrun with people that shouldn't be there.

I hate WDW toiletries - and did hear that S&D finally moved to Molton Brown, but even Bath and Bodyworks are better

The location is a bit better from my POV. You can walk or take the ships to Epcot or HS and if you want to take the little one to Wishes one night, you can even go the LONG way and go to Epcot, grab a drink for mom and dad and then take the monorail over to MK.

The resort view balcony rooms can often be had for a nominal onsite upgrade fee at the Dolphin and the view of Illuminations is much better than any view I've had at the Poly (but not as good as some views from CR - I'm sure Bay Lake is even better, I haven't done any of the DVC stuff, I like hotel rooms, not condos, my mom and SIL are the exact opposite, I love that WDW can give us all our ways

The food choices are the best for convenience and quality (especially if you include the entirety of the Epcot resort area). Yes, this means you have to either do the WDW transportation hokey pokey or take a cab to do V&A (which you would probably be skipping with the little one, right? I know we are on our next trip in Sept. with a 5 year old!) or Cal Grill, but the ease of the counter service coffee station in the mornings to the variance of offerings is just not to be missed. Honestly, we used to do Cal Grill every trip, but now with Kimonos (agree with previous poster on it being GREAT!) having better sushi and Cal Grill's movement to a bit less innovative menu, I'd take Flying Fish or even Kouzzina over it. Also, if you can't get a reservation (and I will totally admit to tipping CMs for a table!) somewhere, I've found the availability of Boardwalk restaurants and S&D restaurants a bit manageable. I don't have the luxury of planning things 180 days out to my job so I'm always scrambling to get in where we want to eat - although a lot of our faves must not be very popular because it has seemed easier lately.

The beds at the S&D are much more comfortable than anywhere else I've stayed at WDW.

The fact that it's a little less themey and a bit less loud are serious pros for me but I know lots of people want the towel animals, etc...to each their own!

We rarely go for more than 3 or 4 days at the most (I like to tag a short WDW stay to biz meeting and go more often for a short duration) and park hoppers are the best, especially in August when it still be a bit crowded. I can't tell you how many times we've decided to leave a too crowded park (even with the crowd calculators now) based on what the ride times are in another park - and BTW, god bless all those new and amazing apps - WDW Waits is my favorite. You guys let me know if you know of a better one.

Anyhow, either way you will have an amazing time and I've learned a lot from this board!