Polynesian

[Brett Wyman]

I understand about the bad weather and heat, but there is just something about walking around the torch-lit paths especially at night that is very relaxing to us. Whenever we have the money we always try to stay at the Poly.

Yeah the Poly theme would be ruined if it was an indoor hotel, IMO.

 

[heidijanesmith]

We love the Poly!! The room size, the dependability that there is a daybed in every room, the location, the smell, the pool, the decor.... I could go on and on.

We have been staying at BWV 1bd room recently as we really like the 1bd room amenities and walking distance to EPCOT.

My 1st choice for the monorail resorts is the Poly hands down.

 

[kylenne]

My dream resort is the Polynesian. When my sister and I visited Ohana one day for breakfast and got to check out the resort, I fell in love instantly. The decorations, the overall relaxed and tranquil vibe it had, the view...ugh, what I would do to go there today! I was gushing recently to a fellow Disney-lover who also has DVC points and goes 2-3x a year to WDW, and he looked at me in shock when I said polynesian was my dream resort. He said he had stayed there once and his experience was awful and that he'd never recommend it to anyone. I can't remember all the reasons he said he was dissatisfied, but one complaint that pops out was when he and his wife checked into the room, there was still trash in the garbage from the previous guests that had used the room. While I agree that that's pretty careless on Mousekeeping's part, I don't know if that would keep me away forever....is the Polynesian as nice as I've hyped it up in my head to be or no? Curious to know people's opinions!

A lot of great points have been made by others, but I’ll just chime in as someone who wanted to stay at the Poly since childhood and finally did it last year. I was also worried about hyping it up too much (I must have watched TimTracker’s tour video a million times), and freaked out a little after reading some negative posts here leading up to the trip. No resort is perfect, but I have to say it lived up to my expectations and my gf and I both fell hopelessly in love with the place. Walking into the lobby and seeing the castle right there was so magical. The first night, we got dole whips and watched the end of HEA on the beach, then wandered over to the room. Cast was absolutely a joy, from the older gent in Boutiki to the lady who gave us leis. One afternoon we took the resort launch over to MK as the sun was setting and it was so pretty I almost cried (I might have had a lapu lapu right before that, to be fair). One night we ate the Twilight Feast on our balcony in our pjs just watching monorails go by and that’s one of my best Disney memories. Even just sitting by the Oasis pool with a carton of pork fried rice from Capt. Cook’s was awesome. There’s just a vibe to that resort that I love. Being on the Gen X/older millennial cusp, we also dug the kitschy retro vibe that some people feel is dated.

We loved it to the point where I asked my gf where she wants to stay next year, and she said the Poly before I even finished the question. I missed it the second we stepped on the tragical express.

 

[KellyHonos]

I understand about the bad weather and heat, but there is just something about walking around the torch-lit paths especially at night that is very relaxing to us. Whenever we have the money we always try to stay at the Poly.

YES! That sounds so magical.

 

[KellyHonos]

A lot of great points have been made by others, but I’ll just chime in as someone who wanted to stay at the Poly since childhood and finally did it last year. I was also worried about hyping it up too much (I must have watched TimTracker’s tour video a million times), and freaked out a little after reading some negative posts here leading up to the trip. No resort is perfect, but I have to say it lived up to my expectations and my gf and I both fell hopelessly in love with the place. Walking into the lobby and seeing the castle right there was so magical. The first night, we got dole whips and watched the end of HEA on the beach, then wandered over to the room. Cast was absolutely a joy, from the older gent in Boutiki to the lady who gave us leis. One afternoon we took the resort launch over to MK as the sun was setting and it was so pretty I almost cried (I might have had a lapu lapu right before that, to be fair). One night we ate the Twilight Feast on our balcony in our pjs just watching monorails go by and that’s one of my best Disney memories. Even just sitting by the Oasis pool with a carton of pork fried rice from Capt. Cook’s was awesome. There’s just a vibe to that resort that I love. Being on the Gen X/older millennial cusp, we also dug the kitschy retro vibe that some people feel is dated.

We loved it to the point where I asked my gf where she wants to stay next year, and she said the Poly before I even finished the question. I missed it the second we stepped on the tragical express.

First of all, "tragical express", LOL. Love that.
Secondly, I'm so happy to hear that it met your expectations. It sounds exactly like I have imagined it. It also sounds like a really romantic place to stay. Obviously I know families stay here as well, but it sounds as if you could cater the experience to be on the romantic side if you wanted. The tiki torches are such a selling point for me. Very unique and beautiful. This makes me want to go EVEN MORE!

 

[MilwaukeeMom]

I too love the tiki torches and tropical music at night! Seems miles away from everything. In fact, I’d rather hang around the resort than do anything else We’re letting our kids and grandkids fight the crowds in the parks, while we loaf

 

[kylenne]

First of all, "tragical express", LOL. Love that.
Secondly, I'm so happy to hear that it met your expectations. It sounds exactly like I have imagined it. It also sounds like a really romantic place to stay. Obviously I know families stay here as well, but it sounds as if you could cater the experience to be on the romantic side if you wanted. The tiki torches are such a selling point for me. Very unique and beautiful. This makes me want to go EVEN MORE!

It really is romantic! Even if you bring the family, it’s worth setting aside time for a little date night. They have live music out on the Trader Sam patio at night and it’s such a nice atmosphere. And the GF is so close, it’s easy to walk over there for dinner. That path is gorgeous too.

On a related note, while I don’t think this is necessarily unique to the Poly, it was just nice as a lesbian couple to be able to enjoy ourselves and not be fearful. We have had some negative experiences with hospitality staff in the past while traveling elsewhere but Disney is always very welcoming and the Poly is no exception.

 

[KellyHonos]

It really is romantic! Even if you bring the family, it’s worth setting aside time for a little date night. They have live music out on the Trader Sam patio at night and it’s such a nice atmosphere. And the GF is so close, it’s easy to walk over there for dinner. That path is gorgeous too.

On a related note, while I don’t think this is necessarily unique to the Poly, it was just nice as a lesbian couple to be able to enjoy ourselves and not be fearful. We have had some negative experiences with hospitality staff in the past while traveling elsewhere but Disney is always very welcoming and the Poly is no exception.

That is beautiful to hear. So happy you both feel comfortable and safe in Disney.

 

[Shellyred8]

I really enjoyed the Poly (DVC side). I liked being able to walk over to the TTC to pick up the monorail to Epcot. I also didn't mind the walk outside to get to our room. It's a beautifully landscaped resort, so I found the walk to be enjoyable. Now, it never rained during that trip, so that may have impacted my view on this subject!

I also love being able to walk out to the beach and watch the MK fireworks.

 

[4evryoung]

I've only stayed in the DVC studio rooms, but I found those rooms to be spacious (and very pretty in decor -- if lacking storage space for anyone staying more than a few days.) The footprint of the resort is quite small compared to many other resorts we have stayed at, so even if the blocks of rooms are not connected, it is never more than a 2 minute dash under an umbrella to the main building. The amenities (restaurants and bars/shops/transport options etc) are also very close. Staff were very friendly and welcoming. Food options were great. Activities were well delivered.

The downsides were: The elevators are very small and a double stroller or electric chair meant there was no room for anyone else (but the blocks are only 3 storeys high, so walking up the stairs will not be an issue for most people). Ohana always seems to be running behind schedule so the upper lobby becomes a bit of a madhouse with people waiting around for seating, taking away from the ambiance. We thought the Volcano pool area was too small for the resort and very loud. The Oasis pool is a good size, is very nice and has good amenities but couldn't be classed as a "quiet" pool as some other resorts have, ie. if you are looking for a quiet adult pool experience, the Boardwalk, Yacht Club and Beach Club -- even Saratoga Springs and Port Orleans -- might provide a better alternate to main pool madness. Finally, the big no-no for us at the Poly was that it seemed during our trip that a lot of people used room service, but nobody was tasked with collecting the trays and uneaten remains from outside the room doors in a timely fashion -- and there is nothing more off-putting than walking past other peoples' food waste a couple of times a day. This may be because DVC does not have daily mousekeeping and fewer staff to collect the trays outside of rooms, so it may not be such an issues elsewhere in the resort.

 

[buzznina]

It's funny because before going to POLY we always thought it would be great and thought we would not like GF. Well, we found POLY just okay and GF became our favorite resort, go figure We also think the monorail is over rated, yes its a quick ride to MK but Epcot is a hassle and would highly suggest, especially from POLY, walking to the TTC and catching it there. My DW and DD just got back from a quick trip and said the monorail's AC was barely even working, so it was really warm and smelly. As for outside vs hallways, our family when traveling always try to stay at an indoor hotel, but at WDW we much prefer having the room open to the outside. Even though we really liked AK and BC, we really disliked the loooong hallways that magnified your voices and like a PP noted, the dirty dishes and leftover food sitting on the floor. I guess we're different, because when we have room service, we just leave the dishes in the room for mousekeeping.

 

[jennyq87]

We’re staying at the Poly for the first time in January 2020 and this just got me so excited! The Yacht Club is our favorite and I don’t like change - - but this thread got me excited to try something new

 

[mickeynut1]

I understand about the bad weather and heat, but there is just something about walking around the torch-lit paths especially at night that is very relaxing to us. Whenever we have the money we always try to stay at the Poly.

I agree. I love walking around the Poly at night under the lit tiki torches .

We’re staying at the Poly for the first time in January 2020 and this just got me so excited! The Yacht Club is our favorite and I don’t like change - - but this thread got me excited to try something new

Hope you have a great trip and enjoy the Poly .

 

[KellyHonos]

We’re staying at the Poly for the first time in January 2020 and this just got me so excited! The Yacht Club is our favorite and I don’t like change - - but this thread got me excited to try something new

I'm the same as you! Total creature of habit, but when it comes to Disney, I really enjoy seeing the different layouts and themes that the different resorts have to offer!

 

[KellyHonos]

With the comments being made about dirty food trays being left out for extended periods of time: Do different resorts have different levels of mousekeeping, or are mousekeeping standards the same across the board, just maybe not enforced as much as they should be? Or do different resorts just have better management that stays on top of things better? I'd imagine that no matter what tier of resort you're staying in, that mousekeeping would be a top priority, but maybe not?

 

[SharonZ]

I agree that over-hyping one particular resort can lead to disappointment. I've stayed at the Polynesian a few times, it was nice, but I probably wouldn't go out of my way to stay there again, as there were other resorts that I enjoyed more.

 

[SharonZ]

All the issues that are being mentioned are not exclusive to any particular resort, you can run into Mousekeeping issues or bus issues anywhere from Values to Deluxe.

 

[kniquy]

there was still trash in the garbage from the previous guests that had used the room. While I agree that that's pretty careless on Mousekeeping's part, I don't know if that would keep me away forever....is the Polynesian as nice as I've hyped it up in my head to be or no? Curious to know people's opinions!

If that was one of his biggest complaints -- heck that could happen at any resort and in fact you hear random reports of stuff like that happened everywhere. I think what sets poly apart from a lot of the other resorts is that it is a busy resort. Many people will just pop in to visit, eat, get a dole whip. So it isn't a necessarily quite resort (mostly speaking about the ceremonial hall.

We own DVC at AK, but have stayed at Poly. Big mistake because we fell in love with the resort too. There is just something about the history of the resort and the fact that you can look out and see the castle. Truly magical! We are fans of the Polynesian themeing too. Just makes us feel like we are on a real vacation. The grounds are beautiful and there are plenty of walkways to take a nice quite, relaxing stroll around the resort. We loved the DVC rooms for our family very spacious and love the fact that they accommodate 5 and have 2 bathrooms.

As for your friend, sometimes people are just negative nellies and are happier complaining about things rather than looking at the positives in sitatutions.

If you really want to stay there definitely look into a DVC rental ( a company such as Davids DVC) We are going to stay at poly in July 2020 on our points. My in laws will be traveling with us and would need to get a separate room. I looked at this July for some pricing - Just about $4000 for a standard direct room at Poly, but a DVC room through Davids was about $2800. So there are significant savings to be had if you go the rental route.

 

[kiford]

We had been planning to hit all of the deluxe resorts we haven't yet stayed at by the end of this year. We originally planned to do the Poly in December so we spent some time checking it out last trip beyond the main building which we've been to many times. We finally decided to take it off the list entirely. We don't mind going outside to the outer buildings - we do that at GF and we're fine with that but the layout of the grounds and the buildings we found awkward and poorly done. We got APs this year with the intent of going at least 4 times (plus Christmas holidays in 2018) and treating each trip as part theme park/part resort trips so pool and grounds are very important to us. We took a look at the Poly pool and were significantly less than impressed - it's small, shallow and there doesn't seem to be a lot of thought into the surroundings. We have always found the main building a bit busy and noisy and chaotic and were really unimpressed with the shops and their offerings, especially for snacks. The buildings themselves have narrow hallways, low ceilings and are quite dark; the rooms themselves might be nice, but I found the approach to them very offputting. If the price was on par with WL instead of GF we might be more inclined to try it but we feel it's really overpriced and overhyped. We were actually much more impressed with WL and will probably opt to stay there again. This December we'll probably do GF again instead. But - chacun à son goût.

 

[tnolan]

As the saying goes, there's something for everyone. That's why Disney gives us so many choices in terms of resorts.