Had breakfast at Polynesian last week

[KevMcNJ]

I drove down to Florida for the races last week. I called an old high school buddy who lives South of Tampa to tell him Id be driving from Daytona to Ocala on Wednesday and Id like to see him for lunch or breakfast if at all possible.

First words out of his mouth were "Meet you for breakfast at the Polynesian"

The Tonga Toast is just as good as I remember and even though I didnt have time or money enough to buy a one day ticket, just doing a lap in the monorail and wandering around the GF, Contemporary and Poly was Magical enough. Also being on the monorail and seeing the train station, Cinderella Castle, Space Mtn and Seven Seas Lagoon really did make it feel like I was there!

I swear just spending an hour wandering thru the resorts puts one in the Disney Frame of Mind!

Im thinking breakfast at the Poly is now a mandatory part of my annual Speedweek vacation

I hope saying this doesnt ruin a good thing, but doing a lap in the monorail is probably one of the best free things one can do in Florida

[beksy]

Yummy...I love Tonga Toast! I agree that this is a great way to spend some time and get some free Disney magic. Glad you were able to do it and had a wonderful experience.

[grumpyguy]

I don't know if I could do a quick stop like that.To be so close to all the magic and not stay.
We've talked a few times about getting a quick weekend "fix" and getting an All star room and going to MK for a couple days or something but
then we go,"what about EE,my beloved ToT and
RnRc and so on....
Maybe if my dreams came true and I became a local.Then breakfast at the Poly would be fun,
lunch at Sci-fi and dinner at Coral reef.
Oh yeah ,work in between..

[ibelieveindisneymagic]

doing a lap in the monorail is probably one of the best free things one can do in Florida

I agree! We've done that once, when we got off the cruise, but weren't going to the "world" ... breakfast and then a trip around the monorail was a perfect "hold-over!"

[SBETigg]

I swear just spending an hour wandering thru the resorts puts one in the Disney Frame of Mind!

I hope saying this doesnt ruin a good thing, but doing a lap in the monorail is probably one of the best free things one can do in Florida

So true! What a wonderful little dose of Disney. I love the monorail loop. Glad you fit it in.

[magicofdisney]

I agree!

Several years ago our vacation was booked for October. I was having serious withdrawals so my girls and I went down for the weekend, a couple of months before the scheduled trip. Downtown Disney, touring the resorts and riding the monorail tide me over until our scheduled trip.

[DisneyDINK]

and even though I didnt have time or money enough to buy a one day ticket, just doing a lap in the monorail and wandering around the GF, Contemporary and Poly was Magical enough.

Magic on the cheap! Love it! I'm glad these posts aren't all about spending thousands of dollars. Thanks for sharing!

[Main Street Jim]

I drove down to Florida for the races last week. First words out of his mouth were "Meet you for breakfast at the Polynesian"

...Being on the monorail and seeing the train station, Cinderella Castle, Space Mtn and Seven Seas Lagoon really did make it feel like I was there!

I swear just spending an hour wandering thru the resorts puts one in the Disney Frame of Mind!

Im thinking breakfast at the Poly is now a mandatory part of my annual Speedweek vacation

I hope saying this doesnt ruin a good thing, but doing a lap in the monorail is probably one of the best free things one can do in Florida

How was the races? Didja go to any of the other short tracks down there (New Smyrna, Ocala, Volusia County, East Bay)?

[roses]

I'd love to be close enough to just drive onto property and do something like that!

[KevMcNJ]

How was the races? Didja go to any of the other short tracks down there (New Smyrna, Ocala, Volusia County, East Bay)?

I saw two nights of the World of Outlaws sprints at Volusia. Monday night I didnt feel like seeing the Late Models so I just hung out in the camping area with the guy camping next to me. I went to Daytona on Tuesday for the modified race (NEVER again!!)

Wednesday was my travel day to the Gulf Coast and was also the day when I hit the Polynesian for breakfast

I was at Ocala on Thursday and Friday nights for the USAC sprint cars and Saturday I hung out with an old high school buddy who now lives in Tampa.

I drove home to SC on sunday and listened to the 500 while I drove home

[Tigerinvestigator]

....and that is why I want to live in Florida. I can see the conversations in my household now..."Dad can we run get a cream cheese pretzel, I'm hungry." or "Where do you want to eat dinner?......I want Mexican food, I want Japanese Food, I want German food......I know lets just run over to World showcase and eat!" . Yes one day I will be living in the sunshine state!

[DizneyFreak2002]

Did someone say Tonga Toast?

[KevMcNJ]

....and that is why I want to live in Florida. I can see the conversations in my household now..."Dad can we run get a cream cheese pretzel, I'm hungry." or "Where do you want to eat dinner?......I want Mexican food, I want Japanese Food, I want German food......I know lets just run over to World showcase and eat!" . Yes one day I will be living in the sunshine state!

I live 7 hours away from Orlando Its something I can do only one week out of the year

[Main Street Jim]

I saw two nights of the World of Outlaws sprints at Volusia. Monday night I didnt feel like seeing the Late Models so I just hung out in the camping area with the guy camping next to me. I went to Daytona on Tuesday for the modified race (NEVER again!!)

Wednesday was my travel day to the Gulf Coast and was also the day when I hit the Polynesian for breakfast

I was at Ocala on Thursday and Friday nights for the USAC sprint cars and Saturday I hung out with an old high school buddy who now lives in Tampa.

I drove home to SC on sunday and listened to the 500 while I drove home

*AWESOME* Another *short track* fan here on Intercot!

As for the Modifieds and Late Models at Daytona...I have a feeling that ain't gonna last. New Smyrna got a NASCAR sanction this year, so I'd guess if they keep it, they'll move these races over to New Smyrna. If you wanna see a GOOD asphalt Modified sow during Speedweeks, head down to New Smyrna for Friday night's Richie Evans Memorial. Even though they had a pretty short field this year, a lot of people still said it was a great race between the top three all night.

As for "seven hours away", where are you from (in SC)? You could live in the same state as Walt Disney World and still be seven hours away...LOL...

My wife and I used to go to the parks nearly half the week after work...cheap (and free!) entertainment....LOL...perks of bein' a Cast Member! :P

[KevMcNJ]

That show at Daytona was so bad I dont know how many people will even go back next year. I know I wont return in the future unless I see a dramatic improvement next year. They need to cut the field down to 24-28 cars, get rid of those tires in the turns so cars dont get hung up on them so easily and go to single file restarts

Ive been to New Smyrna in years past and thought about going down there to see the USAC Midgets this year but chose not to.
I grew up in New Jersey and spent countless Saturday nights watching the asphalt modifieds at Wall Stadium
That being said, sprint cars are my thing so thats why I chased them around Florida all week

When I was younger and living in NJ, I used to get so bummed out that I couldnt afford to get to Florida in February for all the races that were going on.

So now that I live so much closer (Columbia, SC) and can afford it I try and do Speedweek every year.

I still need to see a race at Aubrundale just because its there and I havent seen a race there yet

[DisneyDawgette]

I've found that the quickest way to remedy the 7-hour away issue is to convince others to buy annual passes. DBF and I are almost completely saved up and we have at LEAST three trips planned so far- and we live near Atlanta!

But as for free and short, we just came back today! We went to DTD, I bought a new Disney quilt, and we ate at T-Rex! Another great, free day in WDW! I would have LOVED to take a ride on the monorail, but I don't think I would have been able to NOT get off!

[KevMcNJ]

After breakfast my buddy and I did wander around DTD too.

I understand why they did what they did, but it was kind of a bummer to see Pleasure Island without all the old clubs in place.

I had some good times there 20+ years ago