Your Review Of The Polynesian

[mickeynut1]

We love the Poly for many reasons and although being on the monorail is great, we love it for many other reasons. We love the tropical atmosphere, the beach for watching the fireworks, the volcano pool with a view of the castle off in the distance, and Captain Cooks . It's also great that the rooms are very big and that all rooms come with a daybed, which is nice with 2 teens. We had always dreamed of staying at the Poly and when we finally did, it exceeded all of our expectations, with our Poly stay being one of the best trips we've had (and all of our trips to Disney have been great ).

 

[guitarob]

I love the Poly for so many reasons.

1. I love the longhouses, and the walk outside from the GCH/TTC/wherever to our longhouse. It makes it feel like more of a resort than a hotel, and the grounds are absolutely beautiful, especially at night with the tiki torches and the small path lights.
2. The music being played throughout the grounds.
3. Wishes and the EWP from the beach
4. The view of the castle from the pool - There is nothing like sitting in the pool and staring across the lagoon to the castle.
5. The launch ride to/from the MK.
6. The availability of the TTC. Especially when returning from the parks if there's a long line at the Poly bus stop, which is usually located right next to the TTC stop so you can grab either the Poly or the TTC bus. Walking to/from the Epcot monorail is a plus too. (We're not huge AK fans either, so we really only use the bus to DHS)
7. The Kona Cafe, especially at breakfast. We can usually just wander in whenever and get a seat, and the meal is always excellent.
8. The CM's at the Poly all seem to be into the spirit. They are always very welcoming and very helpful.
9. The smell in the GCH, and the sound of the waterfall in the center.
10. The room views
11. The proximity to the MK (to me it is the heart of WDW and I love being right there).
12. Walking the grounds early in the morning before the rest of the guests. I love listening to the MK coming to life from across the lagoon.

The rooms have never smelled musty or seemed dark to me. I know it's all about personal taste, but with the curtains opened up I can't imagine it being much lighter.

 

[fitzperry]

Not sure I have anything new to add to the comments already made, but here are my thoughts after staying there the week after Thanksgiving last year . . . .

The room size is a major plus compared to a value or mod. Our two daughters hate to share a bed, so the daybed was a welcome amenity. And, although it's not quite like having a suite or villa (which is always my preference when we travel with the kids), the larger room and balcony do make a difference to us. You don't feel like you're tripping over each other when trying to get ready, etc.

The pool is great. My kids loved the volcano slide. Grounds are beautiful.

As others have mentioned, stopping for a dole whip on the way back to your room at night is fun.

Enjoyed the sushi bar, Kona Cafe, and `Ohana.

As far as the theming is concerned, I guess you either love it or you don't. Personally, that 70's kitschy Brady Bunch in Hawaii vibe says Disney World to me, so I love it.

All that said though, without a major discount, I'd still go back to Port Orleans.

 

[rotlex]

Not sure I have anything new to add to the comments already made, but here are my thoughts after staying there the week after Thanksgiving last year . . . .

The room size is a major plus compared to a value or mod. Our two daughters hate to share a bed, so the daybed was a welcome amenity. And, although it's not quite like having a suite or villa (which is always my preference when we travel with the kids), the larger room and balcony do make a difference to us. You don't feel like you're tripping over each other when trying to get ready, etc.

The pool is great. My kids loved the volcano slide. Grounds are beautiful.

As others have mentioned, stopping for a dole whip on the way back to your room at night is fun.

Enjoyed the sushi bar, Kona Cafe, and `Ohana.

As far as the theming is concerned, I guess you either love it or you don't. Personally, that 70's kitschy Brady Bunch in Hawaii vibe says Disney World to me, so I love it.

All that said though, without a major discount, I'd still go back to Port Orleans.

LOL at the part I bolded, but man, that is EXACTLY how I feel.

Agreed on all the positives posted in this thread. Love the place, however, IMHO, it's not worth the cost unless you have a MAJOR discount. I'd go Wilderness Lodge or Riverside, I know, deluxe vs mod on that, first, and extend my trip by a week.

 

[bdklein]

I have always wanted to stay at the Polynesian. I have been there many times going to Ohana, but I was wondering your thoughts what makes it better than a value resort.

Not counting the obvious - Monorail and being close to Magic Kingdom.

What makes you think it"s better??

 

[ajh88]

I love the Poly for so many reasons.

1. I love the longhouses, and the walk outside from the GCH/TTC/wherever to our longhouse. It makes it feel like more of a resort than a hotel, and the grounds are absolutely beautiful, especially at night with the tiki torches and the small path lights.
2. The music being played throughout the grounds.
3. Wishes and the EWP from the beach
4. The view of the castle from the pool - There is nothing like sitting in the pool and staring across the lagoon to the castle.
5. The launch ride to/from the MK.
6. The availability of the TTC. Especially when returning from the parks if there's a long line at the Poly bus stop, which is usually located right next to the TTC stop so you can grab either the Poly or the TTC bus. Walking to/from the Epcot monorail is a plus too. (We're not huge AK fans either, so we really only use the bus to DHS)
7. The Kona Cafe, especially at breakfast. We can usually just wander in whenever and get a seat, and the meal is always excellent.
8. The CM's at the Poly all seem to be into the spirit. They are always very welcoming and very helpful.
9. The smell in the GCH, and the sound of the waterfall in the center.
10. The room views
11. The proximity to the MK (to me it is the heart of WDW and I love being right there).
12. Walking the grounds early in the morning before the rest of the guests. I love listening to the MK coming to life from across the lagoon.

The rooms have never smelled musty or seemed dark to me. I know it's all about personal taste, but with the curtains opened up I can't imagine it being much lighter.

Not sure there is really a good way to compare the Poly to a value. We liked All-Star Sports just fine the few times we stayed there, but it was definitely a place to sleep and maybe swim/eat on an off day - NOT a place to relax and soak in atmosphere.

The Poly is just a completely different feel...we could sit on our balcony for hours watching the SeaRaycers and other boats on the lagoon, listening to the castle forecourt show, hearing the blast of the ferry horn...it makes us FEEL like we are on vacation and slows down our pace. We don't feel the need to rush from one location to another (although we still do plenty of that too!). And Dole Whip on tap is just the icing on the cake!

 

[bdklein]

I have always wanted to stay at the Polynesian. I have been there many times going to Ohana, but I was wondering your thoughts what makes it better than a value resort.

Not counting the obvious - Monorail and being close to Magic Kingdom.

Fewer trashy people.

 

[ols386]

I love the tropical feel.

CBR also has that feel and theme, but it's just different at the Poly.

The rooms are larger.

The rooms are dark, which I don't normally like the darkness, but at the Poly it feels right.

 

[ols386]

What makes you think it"s better??

It's an opinion. Relax.

Fewer trashy people.

What an ignorant post.

 

[bdklein]

It's an opinion. Relax.



What an ignorant post.

Meaning what was the OP reason for wantng to stay there. Why do they think it is better? That's what I meant by it.

And I stand by comment about Poly vs Value-in general.

 

[CSN2001]

Meaning what was the OP reason for wantng to stay there. Why do they think it is better? That's what I meant by it.

And I stand by comment about Poly vs Value-in general.

I'd have to say out of all of the Disney Hotels; the Polynesian is my favorite one to go to. With that being said, I wanted to know what other people thought of it, when they stayed there.

I have eaten at Ohana probably about a dozen times in the last few years, but I have never stayed at the Polynesian.

I love the island theme, the pool area and the lobby. I also like to go to Captain Cooks and get a quick meal. I love Ohana and one of the best parts of it is the service we get from Michaud(We always request him). I also enjoy laying in the hammock on the beach and watching the fireworks from the Magic Kingdom. With all of that being said, the only thing I have not experienced is staying in the room.

When I walked through one of the buildings other day, I noticed that the carpet in the hallway was outdated and somewhat stained. Now, if the rooms are that way as well, then some of the value resorts have newer and cleaner carpet than that.

I have stayed at the following resorts:

Fort Wilderness Campground
All-Star Sports (First Disney hotel I ever stayed in and I love to go back.)
All-Star Movies
All-Star Music
Pop Century
Caribbean Beach (Seems to spread out)
Coronado Springs
Wilderness Lodge(1bd villa) (Loved the room, it was like staying at Bass Pro)
Animal Kingdom Lodge(studio)
Old Key West(studio) (This resort just seems like a more expensive CBR)

Yes, most of the value resorts are host to competitions and tour groups, but they are not trashy by any means.

We still get good Disney service as well.

Last time we stayed at the sports, we planned on checking-in and then going to Ohana(To be walk-ins). Well, we were assigned to a room that was not even cleaned and time was running out to get to Ohana. Not only did they give us a room that was ready, but we also got a voucher for a free cab ride to the Polynesian. We were Priority walk-ins when we got there, so we did not have to wait more than 5mins.

Keeping that all in mind, is it worth it to pay the extra $300 for the Polynesian Room/View from the room? Without staying there, you can experience what the Polynesian has to offer anyway.

 

[eacosper]

I cannot think of anything negative to say about the Poly. We could be anywhere there in 5 minutes. The pool was fantastic, watching fireworks/movies on the beach was fantastic, the room was beyond fantastic, everything was beyond anything that I could have made up in my head. LOVE LOVE LOVE the Poly!

 

[ols386]

Meaning what was the OP reason for wantng to stay there. Why do they think it is better? That's what I meant by it.

And I stand by comment about Poly vs Value-in general.

You mean when you said "fewer trashy people" at the Poly vs. a value resort?

Maybe I'm misunderstanding what you meant by that comment?

 

[CR88]

We just came back last night from an amazing stay at the Poly. We had a beautiful room with a gorgeous view! 3rd floor Somoa. We had requested Tokelau but this is our new favorite. Close to everything even the walk to the TCC was not bad. The room was very nice and had no musty smell at all. Both my DH and DS have severe allergies and both were fine. The only thing I noticed that needs some work was the elevator in our longhouse. Worked fine just a little beat up. The only problem was leaving! Wish we were back!

That is also the building we stayed in this past July. Love it, great location too. We were in the quiet pool side. Also, I agree that there was no mustiness whatsoever. My wife also has allergies and is very sensitive to mildew, dampness/mustiness. She can tolerate it, but she just notices it right away. It was actually a very clean room, surprisingly clean for it's age.

As to the comments about CM's; while everyone's experiences are different, in our case we were greeted by practically every one of them with a smile and "Aloha!" In many cases they asked if we needed help finding something, and even took pictures of my wife and I when they noticed me trying to use the timer on my camera. It was one of them that told us about using the TTC since they noticed that we were in a hurry. What a tip. We used it the rest of our stay unless we were going to MK or one of the other monorail resorts.

The front Airline check in people were also EXTREMELY helpful. We had an issue with Southwest accidentally canceling us from our flight home and they actually stayed on the phone with them until it was resolved. They told us not to let it ruin our last day and that they would find me or call me on my cell phone when things were resolved and have our boarding tickets waiting for us. 20 minutes later as we were eating lunch at Captain Cooks, we found out that they resolved the issue. The CM was physically trying to track us down to let us know that we were back on the flight and that they were ready to check our luggage in. She caught up with us as we were walking through the front lobby to check in our luggage. I was shocked, and they seemed very happy to have helped us out. We had a similar situation at Port Orleans some years ago and they just told us that they couldn't check us in and that we had to take our luggage with us and resolve it when we got to the airport. And that was it. They said the Magical Express would still take us there but we had to have the airline fix it at the terminal.

I knew it wasn't their fault, so we didn't let it totally affect our view of that resort or their staff, it was just a comparison as to how things were handled. We like Port Orleans quite a bit and wouldn't hesitate to stay there again.

The two front check-in girls at the Poly did everything in their power to help us out and we couldn't have been happier. It was just another way that one of their CM's or staff members went above and beyond for us during our stay.

 

[bdklein]

You mean when you said "fewer trashy people" at the Poly vs. a value resort?

Maybe I'm misunderstanding what you meant by that comment?[/QUOTE

Yes there are fewer trashy people at the Deluxes vs the Values-as a general rule and as a whole.

 

[Tinkerbellie16]

Just got back from a split stay at CSR/BWV. We absolutely missed the Poly!!! We have stayed there 4 times and we've decided that the Poly MAKES a Disney vacation for us! I have tried the following - ASM, CSR, CBR, POR, Disney Institute (old), Dolphin, WL, AKL, BC, BW, and the Poly (and Hilton Bonnet Creek but that was slightly 'offsite'). And Poly wins by a landslide - LANDSLIDE!!!!! Here is why:

• Vacation within a vacation - the ambience and things to do are numerous and enjoyable. It FEELS like you are on a Hawaiian vacation.
• Transportation - OF COURSE you can not exclude this. The monorail CAN NOT be beat. It comes often, it is quick, and it is fun. Get to MK via GCH or a short walk to TTC for Epcot.
• Large rooms - musty and dark??? If you come from a dry climate, it might seem musty but this is a humid climate so it will be somewhat HUMID. Dark? Open the curtains...
• Food!!!! - Captain Cooks has great quick service choices along with a dole whip. Ohana is one of the best sit down restaurants for the family. And the other sit down spots at Kona usually don't need reservations and they have good sushi.
• CMs - LOVE the CMs here!!!
• Pool - VOLCANO POOL!!!!! And the east pool - both great for different reasons, yet both easily accessible to the bar
• Activities - boat rentals, cabana rentals, beach volleyball, table tennis, hula lessons, fire ceremony, kids activities, best kids club on property, watching fireworks from the beach and the EWP, etc.
• Shopping - I like the shopping at the Poly. I know you can shop anywhere at Disney but I like resorts with good shopping so I can take my time and enjoy the unique items of the resort.
• The poly relaxes me. No other Disney resort does that for me - NONE. I feel more rushed at the other resorts and not as relaxed.
• Access to GF and Contemporary. I enjoy taking a quick monorail ride to these resorts to visit, shop, and eat. It's like having 3 resorts in one.
• Access to Sammy Duvall sports at Contemporary - again, a quick monorail ride and you can be parasailing!!! Yup, we did that - awesome!!
• Cabanas - Oh wow, these things are great! So relaxing. Only some resorts have these (not even all Deluxes have these) so it is special.

I seriously could go on and on. Poly is the best Disney resort!!

 

[CaliKT]

Things we loved about the Poly (besides the monorail location):

The Daybed. This came in especially handy when my older son got sick mid-trip. We could "quarantine" him a little better. Also, my kids just really prefer not to share a bed.

The Landscaping/Atmosphere. We have been to Hawaii several times and adore it, and this really did give us an island feel.

The Leis. My son wore his lei from check-in almost every day.

We very much enjoyed our stay. I will say that we are not staying there on our second trip because we could not justify the price. Perhaps on a different sort of trip. I ate at Kona by myself one dinner (the night that my son was sick), and we grabbed food to go from Captain Cooks once or twice, but otherwise did not take advantage of the restaurants on property.

We were underwhelmed by the volcano pool, but perhaps we had built it up too much in our minds.

 

[mayfam2010]

I love the Poly for so many reasons.

1. I love the longhouses, and the walk outside from the GCH/TTC/wherever to our longhouse. It makes it feel like more of a resort than a hotel, and the grounds are absolutely beautiful, especially at night with the tiki torches and the small path lights.
2. The music being played throughout the grounds.
3. Wishes and the EWP from the beach
4. The view of the castle from the pool - There is nothing like sitting in the pool and staring across the lagoon to the castle.
5. The launch ride to/from the MK.
6. The availability of the TTC. Especially when returning from the parks if there's a long line at the Poly bus stop, which is usually located right next to the TTC stop so you can grab either the Poly or the TTC bus. Walking to/from the Epcot monorail is a plus too. (We're not huge AK fans either, so we really only use the bus to DHS)
7. The Kona Cafe, especially at breakfast. We can usually just wander in whenever and get a seat, and the meal is always excellent.
8. The CM's at the Poly all seem to be into the spirit. They are always very welcoming and very helpful.
9. The smell in the GCH, and the sound of the waterfall in the center.
10. The room views
11. The proximity to the MK (to me it is the heart of WDW and I love being right there).
12. Walking the grounds early in the morning before the rest of the guests. I love listening to the MK coming to life from across the lagoon.

The rooms have never smelled musty or seemed dark to me. I know it's all about personal taste, but with the curtains opened up I can't imagine it being much lighter.

Yep! This!! We stayed at the Poly on our first trip last year (I went as a kid but stayed off site, this was our first family trip with our own kiddos!) and we LOVED IT for all the reasons you listed. I didn't get a musty smell at ALL and I'm very picky about that kind of thing. I was impressed with the room size, because we're a family of 5 the extra bed was nice and we definitely never felt like the room was too small.

On our next trip, we'd love to do the Poly again but I'm not sure its in the budget. If it were, we'd book at the poly again in a heartbeat!

 

[Chelley00]

I loved the huge rooms and the kids loved the daybed. There was enough floor space that one kid slept on the daybed and another slept on a twin air mattress (and the next night they switched)

1. We liked being able to monorail to MK or walk to the TTC to monorail to Epcot.

2. Fruity drink from the pool bar, sitting in the sand on the beach watching EWP and Wishes. It was really nice to just walk back to the room and throw the kids in the shower afterwards.

3. The kids loved the pool slide.

4. We had an issue with our first room (monorail noise and vibration....it was crazy) and they moved us after the first night and were very nice about it. They even picked up our luggage and held it for us until we could check in to the new room.



Now, with all that said, the Poly didn't wow us.

1. Our room was dirty and we had to fight mousekeeping to get it taken care of (food on the sheets) and an open bar of soap in the bathroom. Gag. No apologies or anything when they came to clean our room at 10:30pm

2. It was always so flipping busy. Trying to get past people waiting to eat at Ohana or Kona to get to the monorail was insane. The monorail stop always had a line (in October, not usually a busy season)

3. Tons of people come to the beach to watch Wishes and EWP, and sometimes we couldn't find a place to sit. And forget trying to find a hammock. It's frustrating to pay to stay there and not be able to use the amenities.

 

[sndral]

I think perhaps I expected too much, but I was underwhelmed by my stay at the Poly, we had 2 rooms for 4 people for 9 days in 12/09.
The positives:
CMs were very nice - even the very slow one in training who took forever to check us in.
Access to 2 monorails and thus 2 parks w/out buses (plus the boat) loved this
The negatives:
Not all rooms have balconies - I really wanted one, I didn't get one
No way to guarentee you don't overlook a parking lot w/out a huge price increase for TP view- garden view when I went included parking lot views (albiet framed by foliage and in our case w/ the monorail in view) I hate looking at other people's cars.
Crazy busy, crowded grounds/lobby, we were there in early Dec and it was mobbed w/ people going to and from the restaurants and the luau and just checking out the grounds or the beach - lots of day tripper types so not so peaceful and quiet in my experience.
No hot tub/jacuzzi.
Long waits for each of our ADRs @ the resort (Kona and Ohana - Kona they 'squeesed' in a pleading party of 12 w/out ADRs in front of us - result we were seated an hour late for our ADR, Ohana seems chronically busy - I think we were seated only about 40 mins late for that one) and no place to sit while you wait.
YMMV, but for what I paid, I won't be back for awhile - once they do the redo I've read about maybe I'll give it another try.