The *NEW* Polynesian Resort FAQ thread - *SEPT 2008*

[DisAlicia22]

Hi Everyone,
I am booked for my first time ever at the Polynesianfor Jan 18-25th and I'm freaking out. I have been waiting my whole life to stay there and I finally have the chance to. Only thing is, I'm afraid it won't live up to my expectations. It has always been one of those resorts that I walked through and drooled over and never thought I would get the chance to stay there. Now that I have the chance I'm scared that I've built it up too much and that I'll be dissappointed. I'm looking to have a luxurious, carefree vacation and I want to make sure I made the right choice. Anyone have any thoughts on this? Has it ever happened to you? Where you even the tiniest bit dissappointed when staying here for the first time or was it everything you thought it would be? Sorry if this sounds crazy but I've been going back and forth about it for weeks now.

Thanks to anyone with any thoughts on this!

 

[megveg]

I think that's pretty reasonable! The less requests that you make, the less restrictive it is; so you're smart to think about what is MOST important to you, and let that be your only request. This gives the room assigners a lot of leeway to work within. I hope you have a great trip and get a third floor room!

thank you thank you thank youuu! the balcony is lik e90% of the reason DBF decided to Disney again

 

[DisneyLily]

The only requests we've ever made were:
-Not near an ice machine & not near an elevator.

 

[mmmears]

SeaSpray,

From the Hawaii building, can you tell me (approximately) how long it takes to get to the MK by boat compared to the monorail? We really like to take the monorail, but have never stayed at the Poly before.

 

[RachelTori]

Hi Everyone,
I am booked for my first time ever at the Polynesianfor Jan 18-25th and I'm freaking out. I have been waiting my whole life to stay there and I finally have the chance to. Only thing is, I'm afraid it won't live up to my expectations. It has always been one of those resorts that I walked through and drooled over and never thought I would get the chance to stay there. Now that I have the chance I'm scared that I've built it up too much and that I'll be dissappointed. I'm looking to have a luxurious, carefree vacation and I want to make sure I made the right choice. Anyone have any thoughts on this? Has it ever happened to you? Where you even the tiniest bit dissappointed when staying here for the first time or was it everything you thought it would be? Sorry if this sounds crazy but I've been going back and forth about it for weeks now.

Thanks to anyone with any thoughts on this!

I have a very strong feeling that when you open the door to your room for the first time, all your worries will vanish! I do think your feelings are perfectly normal, but I know what's in store for you and if you're hoping for a luxurious, carefree vacation - oh, yeah - you made a GREAT choice!!!

 

[krist]

Going next week to the Poly and just have a few questions... I haven't stayed in the Poly in a few years and first time going to Disney with our 18 month old ....and we rented a full size crib...hopefully their is a spot for it?? Also, do the rooms have a table and chair for a booster seat for room service/snacks? What about fridges?/ Iread somewhere that the Deluxe rooms have them for free you just have to request ne when you get there???True???Lastly, we need to print our boarding passes the day before we leave and our airline is not one that is on the "list", do they have comouters there that we can use and print stuff off of?? If so where are they located?? Thanks!!

Oh, one more ting...is there a "grocery store" on Disney to get Milk and stuff.

Thanks for any info you can give me......

 

[ReneeDisney]

Hi Everyone,
Where you even the tiniest bit dissappointed when staying here for the first time or was it everything you thought it would be? Sorry if this sounds crazy but I've been going back and forth about it for weeks now.

Thanks to anyone with any thoughts on this!

It was everything we thought it would be! Wonderful palm trees, the sounds of the islands, tiki torches light paths at night and so much more. Watching the fireworks from the beach and the boats go back and forth is one of our favorite things to do! Not to mention, shopping, shopping and more shopping as well as eating, eating, eating! Overall we really love the Poly. No matter what room we've had or how far away or close to the GCH - we've always enjoyed our time at the Poly! I hope you enjoy your time too! We'll be there the week after you - 1/24 - 2/1 !!!

 

[CR Resort Fan 4 Life]

What about fridges?

There will already be a frigde in your room when you check-in, so you don't need to request one.

 

[habg1]

Just back last night from our 1st trip at the Poly.

Here are our thoughts:

Pros​

*Everybody very friendly, never heard "aloha" so much.

*Nice theme, if you're never going to get to Hawaii.

*Transportation options were good.

*Short walks to the TTC

*Clean (except for the people who can't bother to throw their pool towels in the right bin, instead leave them on the walkways).

*Handicap rooms were nice

*We got to check in early

*Awesome dining options.

*Nice to sit on the beach and watch the fireworks.

Cons​

*Need more food selections in Captain Cook's

*Walls too thin, but we may have had very noisy, disrespectful neighbors.



Overall we enjoyed our trip. Hotel was awesome. Landscaping was beautiful. So nice to jump on the monorail.

I have a few pictures and I will post them shortly.

 

[DisneyLily]

Just back last night from our 1st trip at the Poly.

Here are our thoughts:

Pros​

*Everybody very friendly, never heard "aloha" so much.

*Nice theme, if you're never going to get to Hawaii.

*Transportation options were good.

*Short walks to the TTC

*Clean (except for the people who can't bother to throw their pool towels in the right bin, instead leave them on the walkways).

*Handicap rooms were nice

*We got to check in early

*Awesome dining options.

*Nice to sit on the beach and watch the fireworks.

Cons​

*Need more food selections in Captain Cook's

*Walls too thin, but we may have had very noisy, disrespectful neighbors.



Overall we enjoyed our trip. Hotel was awesome. Landscaping was beautiful. So nice to jump on the monorail.

I have a few pictures and I will post them shortly.

Hi!

I hope you had a lovely first trip to the Poly!!

I totally agree with the "Need more food selections in Captain Cook's". There really does need to be more of a choice. It's a lovely place.

 

[SeaSpray]

Hi Everyone,
I am booked for my first time ever at the Polynesianfor Jan 18-25th and I'm freaking out. I have been waiting my whole life to stay there and I finally have the chance to. Only thing is, I'm afraid it won't live up to my expectations. It has always been one of those resorts that I walked through and drooled over and never thought I would get the chance to stay there. Now that I have the chance I'm scared that I've built it up too much and that I'll be dissappointed. I'm looking to have a luxurious, carefree vacation and I want to make sure I made the right choice. Anyone have any thoughts on this? Has it ever happened to you? Where you even the tiniest bit dissappointed when staying here for the first time or was it everything you thought it would be? Sorry if this sounds crazy but I've been going back and forth about it for weeks now.

Thanks to anyone with any thoughts on this!

I've never been disappointed with any of the resorts at Disney World, but I definitely understand the idea of building up your expectations before a trip and not wanting to be disappointed.

Even though I've stayed at the Polynesian several times now, I still get excited as we're pulling up to the resort on that first day.

Try and just enjoy all aspects of your trip, as it unfolds, and hopefully you won't be disappointed with anything.

SeaSpray,

From the Hawaii building, can you tell me (approximately) how long it takes to get to the MK by boat compared to the monorail? We really like to take the monorail, but have never stayed at the Poly before.

It's a very short walk from the Hawaii building to the dock, and then you just have to wait for the next boat launch to arrive. When it pulls up to the dock, you have to wait for the guests to get off the boat before you can get on, and then it's a pretty short (I'm bad at estimating times. lol) boat ride. It's a direct ride from the Polynesian to the Magic Kingdom, if I had to guess, I'd say it takes about 5 minutes across the lagoon.

As for the monorail, you go up to the second floor of the Great Ceremonial House to get on, and then it stops at the Grand Floridian first, before arriving at the Magic Kingdom

All things considered, I think it's quicker to get to the MK from the dock (unless your room happens to be much closer to the GCH), as compared to the monorail, but they're both FUN.

 

[SeaSpray]

The only requests we've ever made were:
-Not near an ice machine & not near an elevator.

Those would be easy requests to fill, too, in my opinion.

Just back last night from our 1st trip at the Poly.

Here are our thoughts:

Pros​

*Everybody very friendly, never heard "aloha" so much.

*Nice theme, if you're never going to get to Hawaii.

*Transportation options were good.

*Short walks to the TTC

*Clean (except for the people who can't bother to throw their pool towels in the right bin, instead leave them on the walkways).

*Handicap rooms were nice

*We got to check in early

*Awesome dining options.

*Nice to sit on the beach and watch the fireworks.

Cons​

*Need more food selections in Captain Cook's

*Walls too thin, but we may have had very noisy, disrespectful neighbors.



Overall we enjoyed our trip. Hotel was awesome. Landscaping was beautiful. So nice to jump on the monorail.

I have a few pictures and I will post them shortly.

Welcome back, and thanks for your review! I'm glad you enjoyed your first stay there. Looking forward to your pictures.

 

[huntconn]

*Need more food selections in Captain Cook's

Have to agree with you there. Captain Cook's is much improved since the recent rehab. However, they really should look into greatly increasing the number/variety of food offerings. Simply not enough choices. I feel that way about Samoa Snacks as well. Their selection is extremely limited, mostly due to the lack of space. I wish they would convert the merchandise area next to it into a large convenience store area. I really don't think the Poly needs an area selling the same Disney merch you can find in any other WDW merchandise shop.

 

[wlwilliams9]

Hi Everyone,
I am booked for my first time ever at the Polynesianfor Jan 18-25th and I'm freaking out. I have been waiting my whole life to stay there and I finally have the chance to. Only thing is, I'm afraid it won't live up to my expectations. It has always been one of those resorts that I walked through and drooled over and never thought I would get the chance to stay there. Now that I have the chance I'm scared that I've built it up too much and that I'll be dissappointed. I'm looking to have a luxurious, carefree vacation and I want to make sure I made the right choice. Anyone have any thoughts on this? Has it ever happened to you? Where you even the tiniest bit dissappointed when staying here for the first time or was it everything you thought it would be? Sorry if this sounds crazy but I've been going back and forth about it for weeks now.

Thanks to anyone with any thoughts on this!

I kinda feel the same way! Our upcoming trip will be our first stay at the Poly. Everyone here on the Dis loves the Poly and I'm sure it's a beautiful resort, but DH and I spent nearly 3 weeks island hopping in French Polynesia for our HM and I can't imagine that Disney's Poly will live up to the REAL Poly, but we are going for our anniversary so it seems appropriate to "relive" our HM. I know we won't be disappointed though because the resort is beautiful and the monorail can't be beat (we have a 2 yo, so stroller in tow)! What I'm trying to say is, I can't wait to visit the Poly and WDW! I'm sure we'll all be happy with our choice!

 

[mmmears]

SeaSpray,
Thanks for the quick response!

habg1,
Glad you had a great first time at the Poly! I'll be waiting for the photos as we're planning our first trip now.

 

[A_NY_Outlaw]

Hi Everyone,
I am booked for my first time ever at the Polynesianfor Jan 18-25th and I'm freaking out. I have been waiting my whole life to stay there and I finally have the chance to. Only thing is, I'm afraid it won't live up to my expectations. It has always been one of those resorts that I walked through and drooled over and never thought I would get the chance to stay there. Now that I have the chance I'm scared that I've built it up too much and that I'll be dissappointed. I'm looking to have a luxurious, carefree vacation and I want to make sure I made the right choice. Anyone have any thoughts on this? Has it ever happened to you? Where you even the tiniest bit dissappointed when staying here for the first time or was it everything you thought it would be? Sorry if this sounds crazy but I've been going back and forth about it for weeks now.

Thanks to anyone with any thoughts on this!

I wouldn't worry too much. I am a very hard person to please when it comes to resorts, and with our trip a couple of weeks ago, I was very pleased with our stay at the Poly. The concierge and staff were always polite and friendly. We missed ADR's on a couple of different occasions at ohana's and Kona, and they still took us in without a problem. The rooms were very clean and bigger than I anticipated, and the grounds were very well groomed. I know of your concerns though- in our '07 trip we stayed at POFQ and I was very VERY disappointed with just about everything. I think you will really enjoy your stay.

 

[CR Resort Fan 4 Life]

Just back last night from our 1st trip at the Poly.

Here are our thoughts:

Pros​

*Everybody very friendly, never heard "aloha" so much.

*Nice theme, if you're never going to get to Hawaii.

*Transportation options were good.

*Short walks to the TTC

*Clean (except for the people who can't bother to throw their pool towels in the right bin, instead leave them on the walkways).

*Handicap rooms were nice

*We got to check in early

*Awesome dining options.

*Nice to sit on the beach and watch the fireworks.

Cons​

*Need more food selections in Captain Cook's

*Walls too thin, but we may have had very noisy, disrespectful neighbors.



Overall we enjoyed our trip. Hotel was awesome. Landscaping was beautiful. So nice to jump on the monorail.

I have a few pictures and I will post them shortly.

Thank you for posting your review.

 

[ryanshana]

Going next week to the Poly and just have a few questions... I haven't stayed in the Poly in a few years and first time going to Disney with our 18 month old ....and we rented a full size crib...hopefully their is a spot for it?? Also, do the rooms have a table and chair for a booster seat for room service/snacks? What about fridges?/ Iread somewhere that the Deluxe rooms have them for free you just have to request ne when you get there???True???Lastly, we need to print our boarding passes the day before we leave and our airline is not one that is on the "list", do they have comouters there that we can use and print stuff off of?? If so where are they located?? Thanks!!

Oh, one more ting...is there a "grocery store" on Disney to get Milk and stuff.

Thanks for any info you can give me......

I can answer a few of those questions but not all I believe in the Poly there are fridges automatically in the room. And w/ the boarding pass what I always did is give the conf # and whatever else info you need to check into your flight to a friend or relative at home. So that he/she can do it for you. Hope this helps Have fun! You can get Milk (in a pint size)at Captain Cooks

 

[eyenjeff]

Going next week to the Poly and just have a few questions... I haven't stayed in the Poly in a few years and first time going to Disney with our 18 month old ....and we rented a full size crib...hopefully their is a spot for it?? Also, do the rooms have a table and chair for a booster seat for room service/snacks? What about fridges?/ Iread somewhere that the Deluxe rooms have them for free you just have to request ne when you get there???True???Lastly, we need to print our boarding passes the day before we leave and our airline is not one that is on the "list", do they have comouters there that we can use and print stuff off of?? If so where are they located?? Thanks!!

Oh, one more ting...is there a "grocery store" on Disney to get Milk and stuff.

Thanks for any info you can give me......

Hi, we are going on Dec 7th and have a 2 yr old. we did not rent a crib as we requested a port a crib fromt he hotel and it will be waiting for us when we check in. I have not stayed at the Poly, but from what I have heard, the rooms are big and there is plenty of room. Also, the couch folds out into a twin sleeper and you can request Bed rails if you feel comfortable with hime sleepin there.

I have also read where you can request a high chair and have it deleivered to your room.

Call guest services at the Poly and put in your requests.

Have a good trip!

 

[mmmears]

For high-chairs, when our DD was small we requested them and got them from the YC and the GF. I would think all the deluxes would have them.

We used the bed-rails instead of the crib for her (even though she was still in a crib at home) and they worked out great. Also made the room more spacious without the crib (but there was room for it if we wanted it).