Polynesian standard room....

[autismgoesdisney]

I know I've been posting like a crazy person about our 2013 trip. As I decided earlier in the week, we are staying deluxe for our next trip. Its our 10 year anniversary trip and well I want it to be a great one. When I think of which hotel I want the most, it is definitely Poly. I stayed there as a child, 3 and 7 years old and I only remember a bit of it. Anyway, we are also deciding between CR and BW.

Anyway, I got off subject ...can anyone tell me is a standard room at Poly worth it? Is a standard room far from everything else? Is Poly big that we'll be far from the pool, restaurants? How is the quick service restaurant at Poly? Any details to share?

 

[LiveToTravelNicely]

When we stayed at Poly, the Garden View Rooms were the cheapest rooms available. I do not believe they have standard rooms. If you look at tikimanpages.com, there is a picture of the "worst view" room that is in Rapa Nui, and in my book, that isn't even a worst view. You can request the East side of Tokelau, the garden side of Tahiti, or the West side of Rapa Nui to stay away from the pools (and in the case of Rapa Nui, the small parking area). Our room was on the 3rd floor of Tokelau overlooking the quiet pool, and we didn't have a problem with noise in the evening/night time. I'm sure there are other quiet rooms on the West side of the resort, but I'm not familiar with those longhouses since we stayed in Tokelau. Captain Cooks was a good CS, but it is fairly small. The resort is great; we really fell in love with it. I just wish it wasn't 400/night+ so that we could stay there every year!

Seeing that you are familiar with CSR, POP, and POR, I think that you will find Poly to be much smaller. Although, I think that distance/size is very subjective. We did not find it overly burdensome, even the walk from Tokelau over to Luau Cove (Spirit of Aloha Dinner Show).

 

[autismgoesdisney]

Oh wow, all these buildings sound Greek to me LOL!

Does anyone know how quick the "standard" or "garden view" rooms book up? If I want to go end of August 2013, do I have to book quickly?

 

[LiveToTravelNicely]

Just go to the tikimanpages.com site and look at the map and it has tips for each longhouse. The site is amazing, and then the tips from DISboards help fill in the gaps!

 

[gogo]

Hi there,

I booked the Poly garden view (standard room) two years ago. I was excited about staying there as it was over 20 years since my previous stay. Although, we visited the Poly for dinner, walking around etc. since then. This was my experience:

I did request a patio (lst floor or second choice a balcony). We were given a first floor room in the Tokaleau bldg. (sorry about the spelling of this bldg.). When we entered the bldg. the hallway was pretty depressing. It was very dark and reminded me of an old school dorm bldg. I think this might be the case with a lot of the bldgs. as the Poly is an older resort. When I entered the room it was very dark. There were a lot of bushes in front of the patio which I think added to the dimness of the room.

When I was walking across the floor in front of the beds the carpet was very wet. My socks were soaked. Plus, the room just smelled musty. I called and asked for another room. The gentlemen I spoke to was very nice. He didn't hesitate to give us another room. He said he could move us to a theme park view but it was on the second floor and he knew I requested a first floor. I told him this would be beyond acceptable. I knew this was a big upgrade. Although the room did not have a balcony, you could open the sliding doors and look out at the lagoon and castle. There was a ton of storage in the room and everything was comfortable.

This view was one of the prettiest views I have had since going to Disney. It was really spectacular. The second room was very bright. I'm sure because it was on the second floor with an unobstructed view.

I really believe that there are some very nice standard view rooms at the Poly and all the resorts. But, I'm sure there are some not so great. Some people may not care about the balcony/view. To me it is important. I think that when you book a standard room you have to prepare yourself for just about anything. I don't think there is much you can do to complain if you get a crappy view because it is a standard. I guess you could always ask to move but it wouldn't be guaranteed or may not have anything else available.

If the carpet wasn't wet, I would probably have stayed put. But, I really appreciated the huge upgrade. Overall, the Poly grounds are lovely. It is really nice to stroll around and enjoy the atmosphere. There are lounge chairs and hammocks to lay on at the beach area. I did think the main pool appeared small and I would think during a busy period it would be packed. There is a quiet pool to use as an alternative, which we used. Not sure if there is more than one.

Last year, we stayed at the Boardwalk Inn in a club level room. I booked standard but requested a boardwalk view and I was given one. The CM checking us in said the hotel wasn't full and that's probably why I received a great view. We were there in January.

I've read where the Poly is due for a renovation. I really think the hallways need to be spruced up. It was not a very deluxe feel. But, the Poly is a charming resort and for a lot of people very special. I agree

 

[autismgoesdisney]

View is not really important to us, however, I would LOVE a patio/balcony. So maybe since I'm considering a patio/balcony, then a view is a little more important than most trips. But I don't want to upgrade and just excited to stay at the Poly!

Thanks for the tips though!

 

[Kae]

I know I've been posting like a crazy person about our 2013 trip. As I decided earlier in the week, we are staying deluxe for our next trip. Its our 10 year anniversary trip and well I want it to be a great one. When I think of which hotel I want the most, it is definitely Poly. I stayed there as a child, 3 and 7 years old and I only remember a bit of it. Anyway, we are also deciding between CR and BW.

Anyway, I got off subject ...can anyone tell me is a standard room at Poly worth it? Is a standard room far from everything else? Is Poly big that we'll be far from the pool, restaurants? How is the quick service restaurant at Poly? Any details to share?

We stayed in a standard 1st floor room & really enjoyed it. We were on the end of the building closest to the TTC, walked out the end of the building 2 min walk to the TTC. I didnt feel far from anything the walk was enjoyable becuse the grounds are so beautiful. QS place was ok, but you can quickly go to GF or CR if you are looking for other options. and I do believe that standard/Garden rooms book first.

Just remember not all the rooms at the Poly have a balcony some 2nd floor rooms do not have one, so if that is important you might want to look at other resorts. Also no Hot tub at Poly.

Kae

 

[mb187143]

we booked whatever the cheapest room rate was, maybe garden or standard I'm sure, and we were on the 1st floor in Tuvalu, all the way over on the end of the building closest to the grand floridian. It was amazing. out the door to the left was the beach and a spectacular view of the wedding pavilion. We were a less than 5 minute walk to GCH and the main pool. The TTC was about a 12 minute walk at my slow pace from our room.

We had a patio, and we were on the first floor, but it was not really dark in our room, and the room was HUGE. We loved every second of it, and having stayed there as a kid, i definitely appreciated the refurb that had been done since i'd been there last. I know the poly doesn't always get a lot of love on the dis, but it's one of our favorites.

 

[DisneyMomx7]

We had two great gv rooms at the Poly. One was third floor, Samoa building, facing the volcano pool. The other was third floor, Fiji building, facing the beach and the GF.

To us none of the buildings are too far away from the pool, the monorail (and main building) or the water taxis. It's a lovely resort and we always had a wonderful time there.

 

[heidijanesmith]

Loved our standard view room at the Poly, we requested 1st floor, near GCH and pool and got 1st floor Niue facing the Volcano pool. It was a perfect location, steps to GCH, pool and Captian Cooks. Close to the bus stop, laundry and TTC. Could not have been happier with our room and location The patio was very large and plenty of landscaping to feel private, but not cut off from the ease of walking out of our balcony to the pool.

I did a lot of research on the Poly and used the tikiman website a lot. There are great maps of each longhouse and transportation times.

 

[mariamouse]

IMO, the garden room views at the Poly (and the GF) are the best on property. The likelihood of having a "bad" view is pretty darn low.

While the Poly longhouses are definitely a bit dated, we appreciate the darker room decor and have always felt that our GV rooms were incredibly spacious!

Simply stated, we love the Poly.

 

[DisneyMom2Boyz]

I've read a few people talking about the Poly going through updating in2013. Can anyone tell me more or an idea when in 2013. I'm planning on going in May 2013! Can anyone help with more info please!!!! Thanks.

 

[jennyjinx3]

We have had GV Tokelau and requested it again for this trip. Awesome view from 1st floor patio, could partially see the beach. This time just asked for floors 2 or three with balcony. (Not all longhouses have 2nd floor balconies). Garden view is lovely.

 

[bethclayton]

we stayed in a standard room for the first night of our trip in dec 2010. i believe we were in the tahiti building. our room was huge. we were on the first floor. we had a lot of foliage right outside our room but the room got a ton of light, particularly in the afternoon. the view was of lush tropical plants, mostly. the beach was right around the back of the building. tahiti is one of the furthest buildings but we were less than a 5 minute walk from the TTC and the GCH. we really loved this room. we then changed to a standard club level room for the remainder of our trip, which is in the hawaii building. this view was of foliage and also part of the building across from us. it was a very pretty view although i personally preferred the view of the first room a bit more. the grounds of the poly are gorgeous if you like that tropical feel, as i do. i would not worry about location as the GCH, captain cook's, and feature pool are right in the center of the resort so all of the buildings will be just a few minutes' walk from there (i would say 5 or less but someone may have had a different experience). i heard people complain about the poly being large or spread out and i just did not feel that way at all.

we did not eat at captain cook's because we stayed club level for most of our trip but i did go in the first night and look around and the menu looked great and it was very clean. we intended to eat there but just never got around to it.

the decor is a bit dark but we loved it. we felt the same way about AKL.

 

[Aliceacc]

I LOVE The Poly!!!! It's a real leap of faith for me to branch out to the Beach Club this year.

The 2 times we've stayed at the Poly, we've requested-- and gotten- a room in Tokelau. The views have been beautiful-- lush gardens with a sideways view of the lagoon. I love the location. It's close enough to the Grand Ceremonial House (where the shops, restaurants and the monorail station are all located.) And it's close to the TTC, where the Epcot monorail is. It's also pretty close to the bus stop. There's a quiet pool right outside it. The walk to the Volcano pool was a little longer-- maybe 3 or 4 minutes??? That was about our longest walk.

My priotity in requesting a room is location. I think of late nights, after the fireworks, and three tired kids. I don't want to shlepp them across a resort; I want to be close to transporation while still enjoying a nice view. Tokelau was exactly what I wanted.

As to Captain Cooks, the quick service restaurant-- the other day, my 12 year old asked if we could squeeze in a meal there. Apparently they have the world's greatest chicken nuggets-- who knew???

And can I tell you about the Volcano pool??? It's delightful. You can sit under a waterfall, as it gives your neck the massage of a lifetime. The kids love the water slide-- I have to admit I've been on it more than once.

The Poly is a delightful, relaxing counterpoint to the frenetic craziness of the parks. You'll have the time of your lives!!!

 

[mickeynut1]

We stayed in a first floor GV room in Samoa and it was great . Samoa is very convenient to everything as it's just steps from the volcano pool, quiet pool, GCH, the beach, and Captain Cooks. With that said, I don't think the Poly is too spread out that there is any building/room that is far out away from anything. There are some that are more convenient to certain places/things, but I don't think there are any that are so far away that you wouldn't be happy staying there. Have fun planning.....the Poly is an awesome resort .