The Official Polynesian Resort FAQ thread!

[bahama97]

We are headed to the Poly this summer. After reading this thread, I am even more excited!! We are celebrating my daughter's 7th birthday while there.

Thanks for sharing all the information!

 

[bahama97]

We are headed to the Poly this summer. After reading this thread, I am even more excited!! We are celebrating my daughter's 7th birthday while there.

Thanks for sharing all the information!

 

[lindsmom]

I just stumbled across this link with pictures of the Neverland club... I'm so excited because I was looking for pix for our trip as well... let's see if this works... I may be too newbie...

http://www.intercot.com/infocentral/children/childcare.asp

oh cool! it worked! whoo hoo!

 

[tcmac]

For those of you who have been there a time or two, I have a question about the availability of OJ at the Poly.
We are going in 4 weeks (!), and I'm planning to send down some breakfast foods via UPS. I've read that we can use snack credits to get milk. But does anyone know whether we can get OJ? Would it be available to put in a refillable mug? Do they have individual cartons?

Thanks!

Laura

 

[tinknme]

They have the 16 0z plastic bottles of OJ in the cooler. Not sure if you can use a snack credit for these, but we got them as our drink with our CS meal on the DP.

For those of you who have been there a time or two, I have a question about the availability of OJ at the Poly.
We are going in 4 weeks (!), and I'm planning to send down some breakfast foods via UPS. I've read that we can use snack credits to get milk. But does anyone know whether we can get OJ? Would it be available to put in a refillable mug? Do they have individual cartons?

Thanks!

Laura

 

[jenluvdisney]

My family and I have gone to DW 6 times in the last 7yrs. THis will be our first time staying @ the Polynesian. I requested ground floor in the Niue building but after reading other posts I get the impression i should change it to the Samoa building. Any other suggestions? I have a slight disability so i would like to keep walking to a min but I also have a 6yr old who can not wait to see the Volcano pool. I welcome suggestions.

 

[MsStinkerBelle]

My family and I have gone to DW 6 times in the last 7yrs. THis will be our first time staying @ the Polynesian. I requested ground floor in the Niue building but after reading other posts I get the impression i should change it to the Samoa building. Any other suggestions? I have a slight disability so i would like to keep walking to a min but I also have a 6yr old who can not wait to see the Volcano pool. I welcome suggestions.

Welcome to the boards!

I'd recommend Niue first and Samoa second. You're still very close to the volcano pool in both cases.

Check out Steve Siefert's (Tikiman) website which has all kinds of information about the Poly. Just do a google search on his name and it'll come up.

 

[ahowanitz]

My family and I have gone to DW 6 times in the last 7yrs. THis will be our first time staying @ the Polynesian. I requested ground floor in the Niue building but after reading other posts I get the impression i should change it to the Samoa building. Any other suggestions? I have a slight disability so i would like to keep walking to a min but I also have a 6yr old who can not wait to see the Volcano pool. I welcome suggestions.

We just got back from our vacation and stayed on the 3rd floor of Raratonga. I have to say that the location was PERFECT for us! We wanted to be close the the Great Ceremonial House, and it was right across the way…not more than 20 feet. I would highly recommend this location, and it isn't too far from the pool either. But that's just my opinion.

 

[jenluvdisney]

Thanks for the advise. IT is not often we will be able to stay @ this resort so we are trying to make the best of everything.

 

[WickedWench]

My family and I have gone to DW 6 times in the last 7yrs. THis will be our first time staying @ the Polynesian. I requested ground floor in the Niue building but after reading other posts I get the impression i should change it to the Samoa building. Any other suggestions? I have a slight disability so i would like to keep walking to a min but I also have a 6yr old who can not wait to see the Volcano pool. I welcome suggestions.

Just keep in mind that Niue does not have an elevator. If you are on the 2nd floor, you either have to take the stairs or use Rarotonga's elevator and cross over an outdoor walkway to Niue.

 

[ConcKahuna]

For those of you who have been there a time or two, I have a question about the availability of OJ at the Poly.
We are going in 4 weeks (!), and I'm planning to send down some breakfast foods via UPS. I've read that we can use snack credits to get milk. But does anyone know whether we can get OJ? Would it be available to put in a refillable mug? Do they have individual cartons?

Thanks!

Laura

Also, if you stay club level they have OJ in the lounge.

Just keep in mind that Niue does not have an elevator. If you are on the 2nd floor, you either have to take the stairs or use Rarotonga's elevator and cross over an outdoor walkway to Niue.

That is correct, so you might want to request a first floor room

 

[irisbud]

We are back from our first ever stay at the Poly and I wanted to do a quick mini-review, though I will (probably) be writing a full trip report later.

Check in: Monday, January 7th, 2008 at about noon
Check out Thursday, January 10, 2008

This was a week long trip (6 nights, 7 days) for my BF and I. We spent the first three nights (January 4-7) at the Boardwalk. We had a ground floor room in the Tokelau (I am sure I just butchered that) building, maybe number 9135 (I know the end was 35, but don't remember the first two numbers)

Pros:

*Large room with lots of space
*Ample drawer space
*Decent amount of closet space, though one of the two closets had several items for the room alread stored inside, taking up a lot of the space inside
*Iron that worked well
*Good hair dryer
*Good water pressure in shower
*Room was clean
*Common areas of the resort were clean
*Beautiful landscaping
*Viewing Wishes from the beach
*Kona Cafe
*Soft beds and Pillows
*Ample electrical outlets
*Building was in a decenty location. Not too far for transportation or GCH. We did not use the pool
*On monorail line
*Multiple transportation options

Cons:
*Resort is very dark. We turned on all of the lights in our room in the evenings, and it was still dark. This was good for when we wanted to sleep late, however, as the room was still dark as night well after the sun had come up.
*Pathways around the resort are very dark. I always feel very safe (maybe too safe even) at Disney, but walking alone between the lodge building and the GCH one night when there weren't many people around gave me the creeps due to the low lighting.
*Aside from 3 castmembers, most of the staff at the resort that we encountered seemed slightly unDisneyish. It was nothing terrible, but just not "magical". Perhaps the holiday season that had just passed had simply worn them down.
*The bathroom: one sink, hard to regulate water temperature, no seperation of sink area and toilet area, and no fan. Also a little mold on the caulk that, despite repeated (nice) requests did not get cleaned.
*Difficult to regulate the temperature in the room.
*Very crowded busses
*Did not really like Captain Cooks

Overall Impression:
Though I enjoyed my stay at this resort, I will not be in a hurry to return. I did not dislike the Poly, it simply was not my taste. I would stay here again without reservations, I just have other places that I enjoy more. Of the 5 resorts that I have stayed at at WDW, I would rank the Poly at number 3:

(1) Grand Floridian
(2) Boardwalk
(3) Poly
(4) Beach Club
(5) Animal Kingdom Lodge

JMHO

 

[WOODY13]

For those of you who have been there a time or two, I have a question about the availability of OJ at the Poly.
We are going in 4 weeks (!), and I'm planning to send down some breakfast foods via UPS. I've read that we can use snack credits to get milk. But does anyone know whether we can get OJ? Would it be available to put in a refillable mug? Do they have individual cartons?

Thanks!

Laura

tcmac, we used snack credits for OJ and got OJ for our drink with counter service meal on the dining plan. You are not able to get OJ or milk in the refillable mugs.

 

[ahowanitz]

I just thought I would compare and branch off of Irisbud's account of the Polynesian, based on our stay last week. This was our first time at the Polynesian as well, and we absolutely loved it!!! My whole family was on the trip, but my parents, sister and her boyfriend stayed at the CR and they were very very frustrated they chose there instead of the Poly, because they like our room and hotel much better.

Check in: Thursday, December 27, 2007
Check out Thursday, January 3, 2008

We stayed in Raratonga, Room 3283 (on the 3rd floor) - I was glad we were on higher up, and we really enjoyed the balcony. Even though our window faced the parking lot, you couldn't see much of it. The trees and flowers were gorgeous from there, and it was really neat to watch the monorail ride by. Raratonga was so close to everything...we loved that after getting off the monorail from a long day, or in the mornings when we wanted to run over and grab some cups of Kona coffee. The atmosphere of the resort was so peaceful and serene...we loved that!

There was a lot of space in the rooms, something that CR definitely doesn't have much of, so that was GREAT! We also loved the beds...they were not too soft or hard...we slept wonderfully! We actually enjoyed Captain Cook's...really liked the noodle bowl and the turkey club. I think it would be even better if there was more of a selection there though.

Mousekeeping was excellent!! But I absolutely agree with Irisbud about the CMs at the Poly. There were only about 2 or 3 that were friendly. Everyone else seemed put out by their jobs. A special thanks to Eder (who checked us in); he made us feel VERY welcomed.

I 100% agree that the room was too dark. It made us really really tired when we were just relaxing in the room at night. There are a lot of lamps, but they don't give off too much light.

I will have to disagree on the shower and water pressure. My DBF and I are both 5'11" and we had to bend pretty far backwards to get our heads under the shower head. It was really low!! And the water pressure settings were terrible; the water either dripped out or had a thin spray that took forever to rinse out your shampoo and conditioner with. Excellent amount of sink space though! (Again, unlike CR). And we thought the automatic fan in the bathroom was pretty cool.

And finally, we also had problems with the room temperature. If I turned it back up to 72 degrees from 69, the heat kicked on. Oh well...

All in all...we absolutely LOVED the Poly and wouldn't really want to stay anywhere else on site. Being on the monorail is such a huge perk, and out of the 3 resorts, I really love the laid back feel and wonderful surroundings at the Poly the best.

 

[MUFFYCAT]

The Polynesian is like home to us. We've stayed here for all of our trips. We even spoiled ourselves by staying concierge. Everyone is so friendly and helpful.
I'm so happy to be going in December even though it won't be concierge.

 

[jewelmicky]

We are starting to pack for our trip next month. I've only ever stayed at POR...mostly when it was still Dixie Landings. This is a big multi-generational, pull out all the stops, once in a lifetime (for folks and FIL).....vacation extravaganza.

The mini trip reports really help....I haven't requested a specific building...figure I'll leave it up to chance....there are no "bad" ones, right?

I just requested connecting rooms with a patio or balcony for medical reasons (long story.) If I get those 2 things a view would just be a bonus.

I'll do a mini report when we return.

 

[tcmac]

Thanks for the OJ info and the trip reports! We are going 4 weeks from today!

Laura

 

[Cheesehead66]

Hello -

Sorry I can't get the search function to work on this thread - has anyone stayed recently with the guaranteed MK view? Was just wondering if that could be in several different buildings or generally in one particular one. We've never been to the Poly or even visited, so I'll have to start reading here from page 1 I guess (when I have a lot of extra time)

Thanks.

 

[MsStinkerBelle]

Hello -

Sorry I can't get the search function to work on this thread - has anyone stayed recently with the guaranteed MK view? Was just wondering if that could be in several different buildings or generally in one particular one. We've never been to the Poly or even visited, so I'll have to start reading here from page 1 I guess (when I have a lot of extra time)

Thanks.

It can be in several buildings. We stayed in one in the Tuvalu building. There are other guaranteed MK view rooms in Aoteroa, Tahiti and in the Hawaii (concierge) buildings.

 

[mousescrapper]

We stayed at the POLY during the last two weeks of August and while the pool area was busy, it's nothing like it is in June/July and we were able to find chairs by the pool around 3pm or so. We take our swim breaks around that time.

Hope that helps!

You say "it's nothing like it is in June/July..." is it bad? We'll be going June 5-12 and plan on several pool breaks during our stay. Any further insight?

Finally back from 9 nights at the Poly-- November 19-28. Here are the notes-- as well as maybe a few answers to recent inquiries...

From the leis and cookies in the lobby upon arrival, to Eb helping us unload the “Beverly Hillbilly-mobile” with 2 coolers and endless items—I have no idea how he did it-- our arrival was pleasant. We had Room 3041 in Tahiti. This was NOT where I wanted to be. You can’t get farther from the GCH. In the end though, we loved it as we were up above the easily viewable 1st and 2nd floor rooms (don’t forget to close your drapes folks!) and there was no traffic going by Tahiti. It was very convenient to the TTC, which we used to go to Epcot and got off here when returning from MK. Tahiti has the bigger rooms. They feel huge. Mattresses and pillows were lovely and plentiful (well the pillows were, only one mattress per bed...). My DH-13 enjoyed the daybed (she is 5’ 4”) but when she lay on our bed the last night was stunned at how comfortable it was. The 2 sinks in the bathroom really were nice. The bathroom is huge and comfortable. Housekeeping was great some days and just OK others. But it was always clean. It was clear when different people did the rooms by the way it would be left/beds made/toiletries, etc. No towel animals, but some days DD’s animals were cutely arranged. Nothing was ever missed with the exception of one day when all the recycling was left on the bathroom counter still (they leave a request to recycle) and no toiletries were left. No biggie—I think they may have been sidetracked. The AC worked fine—you need to have the slider shut for it to go on—there is a sensor on the door. The fridge was fine and was set on 5 upon arrival. H2O products worked as well as any high end stuff I brought (and ran out of). Any change in my "normal" hair is due to the Florida/hotel water, not the products IMHO.

I suggest keeping any personal items well out of the way as with the exception of DD’s stuffed animals, they moved nothing of ours to clean. I say that positively. TV—such limited channels! For 9 mornings, I had to turn on the darn WDW channel at volume 22! I do not like the fact it is locked on such a high volume. One hotel coming home has an upper lock of a sound level lower than that!


Laundry- $2 per wash, $2 per dry--BUT you get about 50 minutes dry time (I wasn't timing it, but I know it went over 45 min. when I started paying attention. 4 loads wash divided into 3 dryers. Did 2 dryer loads 2X to be dry well. (I do prefer the ones that give X minutes for .25.) Empty laundry room on Friday at 10 a.m., BUT several loads of wash in machines...for 1/2 hour. We removed them finally as more people came in and then a CM came in and bagged them. I never saw the party return in the 3 hours I spent there. (They'd have needed to ask where the laundry was.) It got very busy later! I'd definitely do a very early or late night laundry.

Captain Cook's had amazing food. I was so surprised to find it to be freshly made and delicious consistently. We ate there every day for 1 meal or another and everything was great. Our favorites were the stir-fried noodles-- what a lovely taste! Made fresh for each order. Also the Aloha Pork sandwich was wonderful. I actually loved the chip mix-- but the fried won tons were the best. Asian slaw was delicious also. Tonga toast was perfectly done each time and never greasy. Breakfast always hot, good, no grease at all, even with bacon or sausage. DH and I split a breakfast platter many days. Decided to get the refillable mugs-- ended up a smart move, even with the walk from Tahiti.

1/2 pint of milk here (white) was $1.29. Same price for a pint of milk upstairs-- Trader Jack's. They have NesQuick Chocolate pints here for the same $1.29. Sushi was pretty good here and the Poly salad was great! Don't even get me started on the Dole whips. I really thought people here at the DIS were a little goofy about the Dole Whips. Now...I know the truth. I could eat one at every meal. They were unbelievably good-- DH and I got them many nights...

Volcano Pool-- considerably cooler than Quiet Pool-- which was quite nice. Too many kids in Volcano Pool many times. Not nearly enough caution used by kids in waiting for the green light. Witnessed one accident when a child didn't wait at all to go and crashed hard into the one at the bottom of the slide only seconds later. Scary. Also noticed a distinct odor at the top of slide indicating lack of proper "potty breaks". Ick. That was when DD and DH quit the slide. Lifeguards always paying very close attention and switching off frequently.

The grounds were perfectly manicured-- we saw workers each day out early grooming plants, etc. Sadly we occasionally saw a beer bottle in the bushes or another piece of garbage, but it was just gorgeous and peaceful. We loved the atmosphere and especially the “Welcome Home” at the gate. It especially meant a lot the night we did a drive-by of Downtown Disney and wound up off-property and heading the wrong way on 4! 50 long minutes later, the guard made our night with her “Welcome home.”

Safe-- nice size, works well. Very handy to have, easy to use. We fit plenty of stuff into it when we would leave the room.

Charged everything to room keys. Balance always easy to read and all correct (I saved all my slips to be anal...) Kona was the best food on the trip. Enjoyed Artist's Point, but preferrred Kona's food. I understand some feel it is noisy, but it really wasn't bad at all. Maybe for a romantic proposal it would be too noisy, but in the restaurant itself, even on a busy night, we found it easy to talk normally/quiet and hear well. Service there was great, food delicious and the presentation was gorgeous.

Any questions or things I missed-- feel free to ask. I'd stay there again in a heartbeat!!

Never saw a hot dog in Capt. Cook's, listed or eaten.

Thanks for all the great info and specifics! I'm a mega planner and love the little details, especially the laundry. To me very helpful as we're a family of 6 and I plan to do laundry on our rest day of the trip. So thanks!

I'm pretty sure Samoa Snacks has 1/2 gallon jugs, but if not they probably have the larger bottles (quart? Is that the size?).

Just had to say my kids are just mesmorized by your seagull clip...my DD 5 asked isn't that wrong?

I just stumbled across this link with pictures of the Neverland club... I'm so excited because I was looking for pix for our trip as well... let's see if this works... I may be too newbie...

http://www.intercot.com/infocentral/children/childcare.asp

oh cool! it worked! whoo hoo!

Awesome! Thanks for this link. We have 3 of our 4 kids booked for a night here. These pictures will really help set the expectations for my son. He has some special needs and knowing what to expect before he goes with his other sisters will really help. And he really likes Peter Pan especially after meeting him in 05 during the family tour at MK.

Thanks to everyone who posts on this thread and keeping me not only more and more excited to be staying at the Poly for the first time but in the "know".

I'll post again here.