Polynesian Worth it?

[Matthew Caito]

I have been coming to disney for over 28 years and have always stayed at the GF. I love the elegance of if, the quiet, tranquil peace. but nothing like taking an afternoon break from the park in your room and hearing the train whistle from your room, there is a calm sense to it.

my wife loves the poly. every time we go down she always says, she wants to stay there. We love 'Ohana, and i do like the atmosphere there. but the rooms seem kind of generic and im afraid its going to be cluttered and chaotic. Has anyone stayed there? is it crowded with guest? how is the pool area?
I dont mind staying there and having another experience, i am just afraid we are going to pay that kind of money and not have a great experience. To me the GF is worth the extra money for what you get. Will i be happy at the poly?
help !

 

[mickeynut1]

I have been coming to disney for over 28 years and have always stayed at the GF. I love the elegance of if, the quiet, tranquil peace. but nothing like taking an afternoon break from the park in your room and hearing the train whistle from your room, there is a calm sense to it.

my wife loves the poly. every time we go down she always says, she wants to stay there. We love 'Ohana, and i do like the atmosphere there. but the rooms seem kind of generic and im afraid its going to be cluttered and chaotic. Has anyone stayed there? is it crowded with guest? how is the pool area?
I dont mind staying there and having another experience, i am just afraid we are going to pay that kind of money and not have a great experience. To me the GF is worth the extra money for what you get. Will i be happy at the poly?
help !

Everyone's opinion is different, but I think the Poly is worth a try. No one can say for sure if you'd be happy staying there as everyone has different expectations/experiences, but staying there vs just visiting will give you a better feel for the resort. The rooms are large and spacious (same size as GF) and the pool is nice as it backs up to the beach with a view of the castle in the distance. We've also stayed at the GF and although the Poly is our favorite overall, the GF runs a very close second. I vowed to never stay at the GF as I didn't like the feeling I got every time we visited, but once I bit the bullet and stayed there, I was blown away at how much I liked it. The Poly will always remain my #1 favorite, but the GF isn't far behind. With that said, I would give the Poly a try as you won't know if it's a resort for you unless you try it for yourself. You might not like it after staying there, but you also might like it so much that you wonder why you didn't try it sooner. Good luck .

 

[_auroraborealis_]

Happy wife, happy life, my friend.

 

[hakepb]

Everyone is different, but while Poly may not scream over the top luxury, I would never describe Poly as chaotic.

Walking the grounds is a wonderful and relaxing stroll through lush tropical gardens with Hawaiian music playing, lit by Tiki torches (at night)

 

[mi*vida*loca]

I think you will enjoy it. It's a beautiful resort with its own vibe. The rooms are pretty with plenty of space, QS options are really good, you can see the castle from the pool area, etc.

 

[Disneylover99]

To me? Worth it!

 

[recmouse]

We stayed at the Poly last year and are staying there again in March. We are DVC members and really love the DVC rooms (not the bungalows... we don't have THAT many points!) The smaller pool is wonderful! We even got picked to have a cabana for a day! It's just a nice, relaxing atmosphere.

Try it... what's the worst that happens... you go back to GF next time!

 

[DisneyWishes14]

Yes, I think compared to GF, Poly is crowded and chaotic. I love the theme at Poly and the rooms are quite lovely too (I wouldn't call them generic!), but there is no shade at the main pool and Capt. Cook's is a nightmare IMHO, so it makes dining at the resort, unless you have a TS ADR, not a very pleasant experience. I find GF to be much more tranquil. It has a more open feel to me, the pools never seem as crowded and Gasparilla's is manageable. There are also more TS to choose from. I would suggest perhaps doing a split stay on your next trip with a few nights at Poly to see if you like it.

 

[Anthony1971]

Not that long ago it was different.. But being Tonga toast, Ohana and Trader Sams are talked about all the time on these boards... You will find a lot of visitors in the morning eating Tonga toast at Capt. cook --Kona gets it fair share but not in anyway overrun with people, Trader Sams will have a line of people waiting to get inn in the afternoon and Ohana has a lot of people waiting in the lobby at night. Other than that the grounds and resort itself is very peaceful and has less people around than GF. We like Kona as we always did the food is far superior not an issue eating there. The new feature pool at GF is a mirror image of the one at the Poly except the slide at the poly is mostly in the dark. I have slept hours on the Hammocks on the beach by sunset point and the only thing you hear is the train whistle.... I cannot say which you would prefer but the Poly has always been the most relaxed resort at Disney but as above lately some areas in the lobby are visited frequently.. lastly the coffee at the stand by the monorail has Kona blend coffee which is far superior to anything Disney serves -- full Kona coffee is only at Kona café by getting the press pot.

 

[katmatry]

We stayed at the Poly last year and are staying there again in March. We are DVC members and really love the DVC rooms (not the bungalows... we don't have THAT many points!) The smaller pool is wonderful! We even got picked to have a cabana for a day! It's just a nice, relaxing atmosphere.

Try it... what's the worst that happens... you go back to GF next time!

What do you mean by "you got picked to have a cabana"? We were there in April "16 and they were first come first serve. Has that changed?

 

[_auroraborealis_]

What do you mean by "you got picked to have a cabana"? We were there in April "16 and they were first come first serve. Has that changed?

It's changed several times. Cabanas are now a paid reservation.

 

[CynBeth]

I say go with the Poly! We stayed there for the first time a few years ago during Thanksgiving week and loved it.

 

[Sweettears]

Not that long ago it was different.. But being Tonga toast, Ohana and Trader Sams are talked about all the time on these boards... You will find a lot of visitors in the morning eating Tonga toast at Capt. cook --Kona gets it fair share but not in anyway overrun with people, Trader Sams will have a line of people waiting to get inn in the afternoon and Ohana has a lot of people waiting in the lobby at night. Other than that the grounds and resort itself is very peaceful and has less people around than GF. We like Kona as we always did the food is far superior not an issue eating there. The new feature pool at GF is a mirror image of the one at the Poly except the slide at the poly is mostly in the dark. I have slept hours on the Hammocks on the beach by sunset point and the only thing you hear is the train whistle.... I cannot say which you would prefer but the Poly has always been the most relaxed resort at Disney but as above lately some areas in the lobby are visited frequently.. lastly the coffee at the stand by the monorail has Kona blend coffee which is far superior to anything Disney serves -- full Kona coffee is only at Kona café by getting the press pot.

I would be interested to know how you were able to hear the train whistle but somehow blocked out the ferry which is literally yards away.

 

[justme0729]

I would be interested to know how you were able to hear the train whistle but somehow blocked out the ferry which is literally yards away.

We never heard the ferry but heard the boats. We weren't on the DVC side though.

Poly is worth it! We haven't stayed at GF so we are giving it a try but our favorite is Poly.

 

[clayfolks]

We are dvc members who initially bought in to AK. We stayed at VGF because our business partner wanted to give it a try and we were meeting for a few days. I was not very enthusiastic about it, but bit the bullet. We ended up loving it. Last September, we were able to pick up a night at the Poly in a DVC studio. We SO fell in love with the Poly that we ended up adding on there. The resort is calm and laid back. The only hustle and bustle we saw was when we were checking in.

 

[adisneyaunt]

Having been to both I think Poly is more "chaotic", tho I think I'd use the word " energized" seems to be more guests and Day visitors ( restaurants ) and those that want to walk around. Seems the GF is more serene, calmer. I'd likely return to Poly doing CL again rather than a chance room somewhere.
I like both resorts for different reasons.
It Sounds like you are already negative on it OP and for that reason IF ur wife doesn't mind, I'd choose GF again and perhaps plan a follow up short visit stay at Poly to heed her wishes.
Enjoy whichever you choose

 

[Sweettears]

I've stayed at both and enjoyed both of them. I have to say that I felt like we had more room at the Poly but that could have been an illusion as we had a TP view with a balcony. It was nice to have access to the monorail, boats and the TTC from the Poly. It was a little more hectic but general only around meal times.

For me my preference would be greatly influenced by room location but then you can't have that guaranteed. I do agree with PP who mentioned hearing the MK sounds from your room. Woke up every morning to the howl of the wolf.

 

[mrs moon]

Is there shade at the main pool?

 

[Sophiesmom]

I have been coming to disney for over 28 years and have always stayed at the GF. I love the elegance of if, the quiet, tranquil peace. but nothing like taking an afternoon break from the park in your room and hearing the train whistle from your room, there is a calm sense to it.

my wife loves the poly. every time we go down she always says, she wants to stay there. We love 'Ohana, and i do like the atmosphere there. but the rooms seem kind of generic and im afraid its going to be cluttered and chaotic. Has anyone stayed there? is it crowded with guest? how is the pool area?
I dont mind staying there and having another experience, i am just afraid we are going to pay that kind of money and not have a great experience. To me the GF is worth the extra money for what you get. Will i be happy at the poly?
help !

Give it a try! You still may end up preferring the GF for future trips, but sounds like this would mean a lot to your wife.

 

[mikedoyleblogger]

Everyone is different, but while Poly may not scream over the top luxury, I would never describe Poly as chaotic.

Walking the grounds is a wonderful and relaxing stroll through lush tropical gardens with Hawaiian music playing, lit by Tiki torches (at night)

See, in terms of everyone is different, my partner and I walking the grounds in December felt very claustrophobic there. The longhouses are so close together, the pathways are narrow, and in some places you're in uncomfortable proximity to the first floor windows and patios. We felt similarly cramped in the Great Ceremonial House, where to us it seemed like all the eateries and shops are just crammed into too-small spaces, and the Lava Pool area, which felt oddly wedged in, as well. We spent time at GF that day as well, and didn't feel cramped or claustrophobic at all there. We don't event feel that way about CR. But for us, there's something odd about the Poly, like they had so much space to start with, and yet from the beginning, they decided to hem everything in.