Our Amazing Trip: Arrival

[HJL413]

DW - Linda
DS - Harry (10)
DDS - Sandra and Alexis (twins 7)
ME - Harry - The Trip Planner
and our friends
John
Sue
Cecilia (3)

The 8 of us travel to Disney World 2/28 - 3/05 for our first stay at the Polynesian

We have a 5:25 pm flight on SW out of Philadelphia.

Our friends arrive at the airport around 3:30 pm and we arrive around 4:00 pm. We enter a very long security line which has us slighly concerned, however, we meet our friends near the gate at 4:45 pm. Just enough time to buy some snacks and a couple of beers for John, a nervous flyer who makes me look like a pro and we get in line. Our friends take Alexis and add her to their family while they pre board (an absolutely silly term) and we line up with our "A" passes and in minutes we are taking up 3 rows of seats ready to take off for our amazing trip.

A little background is necessary. I never thought I wanted to go to Disney World until our 1st trip in 2005. The moment we arrived and drove under the Disney World sign I was hooked. The little kid in me was in awe. It is tough to explain, however, most everyone here understands. I now love going to WDW and I have so much fun trip planning. I really enjoy the experience of sharing Disney with others on INTERCOT so I hope the length and detail of my trip reports is appropriate.

HERE WE GO:

We landed 20 minutes early at 7:40. Sue had arranged Mears shuttle service and our kids were thrilled to see a driver holding a sign which almost spelled our last name right, just missed by 1 letter. The bags arrived and we were on the way to the Polynesian

The shuttle ride was all 8 of us acting like kids as we watched for signs of WDW. Our driver thought we were staying at the GF and drove right past the Polynesian. A quick turn around at the GF entrance and back to the Polynesian.

We arrived around 9:00 and it was a quick check in process. We did a very fast once around the Grand Ceremonial House. We were assigned 2 rooms on the 2nd floor in Tuvalu. We had requested Tokelau and rooms with a balcony so we were 0 for 2 on room requests.

We enjoyed the many things about the Polynesian, however, we didn't fall for the resort as many predicted. I will try to provide honest opinions about our Polynesian experience.

The first comment I have is that the Hawaiian theme hits you as soon as you enter the resort and it works great. It is easy to understand why everyone greets you with aloha.

It was odd being sent to find our room ourselves with only a map. The Tuvalu building is back near the lake and the 8 of us had no idea where we were going. After a few mistakes and the help of a CM near the dock we found our building.

The biggest complaint we had about the Polynesian is how it screams 1970's. When we entered the building the hallways were narrow and the decor felt like the Brady Bunch goes to Hawaii. The 1 elevator in the hall felt like a 1970's motel not a deluxe reort and the elevator had the most hideous musty smell. It must have been the cleaning chemical they use because it remained constant for the entire trip. John explained to the kids that this was how things smelled back in the 1970's.

We were in our adjoining rooms by 9:30. Cecilia was asleep so Sue stayed in the room and ordered room service. We were all very hungry so John joined our family and we went looking for a late dinner.

We thought the only choice would be Capt. Cook's, however, we took a chance and stopped at the podium at Kona Cafe. It was exciting when the hostess said of course we will serve dinner. Our waitress was thrilled to have our table and she provided a wonderful introduction to the Polynesian.

We started with pot stickers and sticky wings which were devoured fast. John had turkey medallion, Linda had mahi mahi and I had the noodle stri fry. They were all great, however, the mahi mahi was the best. The children had hot dog, burger and grilled cheese with smiles all around. This was a wonderful dinner. We enjoyed a happy walk back to our rooms for some much needed sleep as we had a 9:20 ADR for breakfast at Chef Mickey's. I left a 6:45 am wake up call so I could get up and go for an early run and it was sleep time for everyone

NOTE: I will attach some photos soon.

Next: Day 1


HARRY

[faline]

Sorry you were wowed by the Poly and didn't get your room requests met. I hope this is just a minor annoyance in your trip.

Kona Cafe always delights! Glad you had a good meal there!

[HJL413]

I think I need to clarify something. We loved the Polynesian just not a blow us away wow experience. As for the room request it didn't impact our trip. I offer the information for those curious about room request experiences. We were happy with the building. We are glad we stayed at the Polynesian and there were many plusses as I will talk about later.

[Maleficent's Dad]

The biggest complaint we had about the Polynesian is how it screams 1970's. When we entered the building the hallways were narrow and the decor felt like the Brady Bunch goes to Hawaii.

Okay, Okay, I understand what you mean!!!

The Poly is so popular on these boards, and where I did like it, I never have loved it like so many!

Thanks for the report - great job on the Kona Cafe!

[Bethis26fan]

sounds like a great start.

[Goodwife]

Thanks for reporting on your trip.
We stayed in Tuvalu back in October, and I guess what was so special for us is that the Poly was the resort we stayed in our first two trips with our little kids back in the 80s. In October, we had our grandson with all of us.
It's not for everyone, but it did hold magical memories for us.
I do know what you mean about the smell in the elevator...we noticed it on our last day there...thought someone had gotten sick
I look forward to the rest of your report.

[pdrlkr]

Sounds like a great start!

[dtootsie42]

Sounds like you have had a good start. I have never thought the Poly screams 70's I always thought the earth tones are very reminiscent of the Hawaiian Islands.

[pogo]

I'm enjoying your reaction to the Poly, because it is the same way I felt about it when we stayed last year. It's nice, but not "wow" ! I'd stay there again, but not right away.

I can't wait to read more.

[princessgirls]

Thanks for the trip report.

Julie

[HJL413]

I can't believe it has been 2 months since our trip. I know it is late, however, I really want to share our trip report. I hope it is ok to post a report from March and fun for others to read

[KylesMom]

I can't believe it has been 2 months since our trip. I know it is late, however, I really want to share our trip report. I hope it is ok to post a report from March and fun for others to read

Are you kidding? We've all got our ears on and are ready to listen!!! Sounds like a good start, and that you survived your travel day without any major letdowns. Can't wait to read more!

[January-2007]

Yeah, write away, we'd love to read more!

[BriarRose0708]

Bring on the details! The only experience I've had with the Poly is riding past it on the monorail. My grandmother always stayed there when she would go in the 70's and early 80's and loves it, so I hope to stay there one day, too. Looking forward to reading more about your trip and seeing some pictures!

[Bethanymouse]

Thanks for the report. I am a die hard Polynesian fan so I am glad that you enjoyed your stay there. The funny thing about the decor looking 70's is that they just refurbed the place! I guess it will always have that feel for some. I wasnt around in the 70's...plus I have been told I have that odd taste of likeing avocado green and orange together.... ! Anyway, off to a great start, thanks so much for posting. I cant wait to read more!

[ChipnDaleGal]

I think any trip that begins with a meal at the Kona will be a good trip! Glad that you are off to a good start and enjoying the Poly despite not being blown away. thanks for reporting.

[poeticeclipse]

Loving this trip report so far!!!!

I like hearing about people's experiences with the Poly. When I was younger and i'd see it from the Monorail I thought "oh, it's kind of ugly....that looks like a tropical motel 8." Then, 2 years ago I went inside.... totally different. But, I do think that from the outside it's not much of a sight to behold. My fiance and I threw around the idea of staying at the Poly for the last 3 days of our honeymoon but decided that we wanted to save our money up and stay there the full time next year for our anniversary.

Can't wait to read more!

[sleepingbooty]

I didn't realize that not all rooms at the Poly have balconies. That would be a huge disappointment for me, so I'm glad it didn't affect you too much

[mrsgaribaldi]

I am one person who stayed at the Poly in Jan and fell in love with it. We stayed at the building you requested, Tokelau. The halls were big and we had a balcony. I was thrilled. I would have been disappointed without a balcony I can understand how you felt.
Sounds like you're off to a good start. We didn't eat at Kona Cafe but I wish we had. Thanks for sharing