Poly is an ok resort

[DduzDis]

It is one my most favorite resorts. Everything about it is just fine for me. The 70s vibe is exactly what makes it so great and one of the more worrisome aspects I have of the tower when it is added. I really hope they incorporate some of the nostalgic details in the tower even as they modernize the facilities. But, it is nice to have so many choices.

 

[Princesca]

I WISH it looked as much like the 70s as it used to. I still mourn the loss of the waterfall.

 

[disneydreamer1980]

Polys our fave followed by bwv. You couldn’t pay me to stay at riviera though. Funny how different people are

 

[loves to dive]

Poly was our go to resort back in the days the only resorts on property were the monorail, WL and the Fort. Now, not so much. We have just outgrown it. This is going to sound bad, but I find it too kid friendly. The lobby is loud, the pool is crowded. When my son was young, he loved it, now while he has good memories it's not on his radar. We don't like that the only park it's really close to is MK, which is a half day park at best or a couple hour hop a few times during a trip. We love Epcot and HS and I'm not a fan of the monorail (gasp I know) it's cute but if they gave you a choice of taking a bus, I'd be on the bus, it's faster and less chance it's going to break down. We do have good memories and if it were the only place available, we would stay there but it's not first choice. I'm not even a fan of O'Hana, again too noisy and I don't eat enough food to justify it.

I will say the first time we went to the Pacific on a dive trip, I walked into the resort and told hubby it looked like they had copied Poly. He, of course, dryly reminded me that it was most likely the other way around.

 

[redboat45]

We liked the old atmosphere of the Poly. When they took down the waterfall and several years before got rid of the KOI fish outside they ruined it. A lot of the charm is now gone. We stayed in a studio a few years ago and it was just way too dark for me. It felt like a cave in the room. The pool also wasn't as magical as it was back in the 80's. lol

 

[TinkB278]

I love the poly. I love the tropical vibe, I sleep the best in their studios with the dark wood, and I love the nachos at capt cooks! The only thing I don’t like is how they play “todays hits” at the main pool. When I’m at Disney I don’t want to hear songs from the radio, I want to hear resort theme music or Disney music.

 

[RivShore]

Before flying to the Poly with it's 60-70's vibe you can stay at this hotel with it's 60's vibe...

https://nypost.com/2022/04/12/jfk-airports-twa-hotel-runway-roller-skating-rink-is-back/

 

[thegash35]

oh my god they have a savanna like I do at akl.

AKL is our home resort and honestly I have no idea why the savannah excites people so much. The animals are pretty stationary and the rooms are not worth the extra points at all.

 

[jennyq87]

I somewhat agree. I really enjoy the vibe of the Poly at night -- walking along the path by the water with the tiki torches lit, seeing fireworks from our room. I love the way the lobby smells and Kona is one of my favorite breakfasts on property. But during the day, the resort is always buzzing with everyone visiting from other resorts/waiting for ADRs in small lobby spaces and it's loud & overwhelming. The rooms were nice, but the hallways definitely had that 70's vibe, and I didn't love the long walk outside to get to the lobby for food. I have a hard time with that setup for Deluxe prices. So I will definitely stay there again, especially since they've updated things, but it's not in my top 3. Maybe top 5.

 

[bbn1122]

I will definitely know how I feel after my first stay in September. I have stayed at every resort, except BC and BW, besides Poly. This includes, VB and HHI (east coast resorts.).

My favorite resort right now is RIV. But I am really looking forward to 3 nights after cruising on The Wish. Lake view room. The rooms look fantastic, the view of the lake, MK and fireworks are going to be fabulous.
I love the lush and tropical setting and the food choices are great.

I haven’t stayed at the POLY since 2003.

I really feel all DVC are special in their own ways. I try to not look for negatives while on vacation and for the most part Disney makes that possible for me.

 

[ciaoaloha31]

I have only been to Poly to eat at 'Ohana on two separate occasions. It was definitely buzzing at meal times but holding out on deciding if it is ok or better than ok until I stay there in August and really take in the resort as a whole. I will say the recent refurbishment looks to be a plus.

 

[KimMcGowan]

I think the new room updates significantly brightened the rooms, so I am not sure that dark rooms are still a legitimate complaint. The long walks… well there is no way to defend those really. Our last stay we were in the very last rooms in Moorea, far closer to the TTC than the GCH. However, we love everything about the resort and are glad it is our home. The Moorea rooms made it awfully easy to walk to the EPCOT monorail. It is funny because I absolutely love Sanaa, I think it is my favorite restaurant at Disney, but I have no desire to ever stay at either AKL resort again, a perfect example of different strokes for different folks.

 

[nuhusky123]

The great thing about dvc is the vast number of options to pick from

if one resort doesn’t appeal odds are good another one will. Each resort is unique

id stay at poly again in the future if I want to be on monorail and my gfv points are used. I just know what to expect and very much an OK resort in my grade book

 

[pineapplepalms]

Trader Joe's

I’ve gotta say, an onsite Trader Joe’s would move the Poly up in my ranking.

 

[Royal Consort]

The tiki culture vibe is usually an aesthetic I like but Poly never enamoured me either. It seems to be kitsch masquerading as authentic. I don't believe it to be well themed either. Actually, let me amend that. I quite liked visiting Poly until they massacred the lobby and removed the fountain. Since then it is meh.

 

[ProudMommyof2]

There is a Portuguese expression my Dad would use for this conversation- “Mais fica (para mim)”
Roughly translates to “more remains (for me)”

The Poly is my family’s favorite. We never even considered VGF because it’s vibe is really not for us. But it’s all good because “Mai’s fica” for those who love it. I think it’s great to try different resorts but you buy your “home” resort for a reason.

 

[DduzDis]

I think the new room updates significantly brightened the rooms, so I am not sure that dark rooms are still a legitimate complaint. The long walks… well there is no way to defend those really. Our last stay we were in the very last rooms in Moorea, far closer to the TTC than the GCH. However, we love everything about the resort and are glad it is our home. The Moorea rooms made it awfully easy to walk to the EPCOT monorail. It is funny because I absolutely love Sanaa, I think it is my favorite restaurant at Disney, but I have no desire to ever stay at either AKL resort again, a perfect example of different strokes for different folks.

We got a Pago Pago room with a parking lot/monorail view last July and I was kind of disappointed when we got our room assignment. But, after staying there I have come to realize for us there really is no bad DVC location. We are either very close to the TTC/EP monorail, to the GCH or somewhere in between. We've visited several times but just became owners last year and I couldn't be happier with that decision.

 

[Chuck96]

I've only stayed at the Poly once (my first DVC rental), but it remains a strong sentimental favorite. Including for some of the reasons you listed.

1) Original WDW hotel
2) 50s/70s vibe based on polynesian fever (which has it's own post-WWII, early airline travel vibe)
3) Dole Whip
4) Location: Hard to beat the quick walk to the monorail for MK or the quick walk to the TTC for Epcot
5) Great view for fireworks
6) Extra bathroom in the morning in the DVC
7) Parking is right near some of the DVC buildings...very convenient
8) Original WDW hotel

It's just a classic to my tastes.

 

[Simba's Mom]

Upfront I expect tons of hate

but… poly is just an ok resort

pros
- location is awesome. On monorail and walking distance to transportation center
- it has dole whips
- ohana

everything else though makes it an ok resort. Nothing special. Not bad but nothing that makes me say wow I would stay here if mk didn’t exist which is my measuring tool for good hotels

the rooms although updated still have super old bones. For example the wall light sconce. You can just tell this resort was built a long time ago

the pools are really small and again look like they were built in the 70s. Heck everything about this resort screams 70s

i didn’t have a bad stay and I love dole whips and ohana, but again it’s just an ok hotel for me.

id stay here again and I’d be happy but poly isn’t a bad resort, it isn’t amazing where I scream oh my god they have a savanna like I do at akl. Poly is a sold C resort, just ok

Based on my one stay, in 2019, I completely agree with you. I'm not a fan of the tropics. I have no desire to go to Hawaii, so the theming just left me cold (not surprisingly, DH made X rated jokes about me not liking lei flower necklaces). And the whole atmosphere reminded me of the 70s.
However, I keep saying I should give the Poly a second chance-this time, in a lake view. I've always liked the Electric Water Pagent, and I've since discovered I love Captain Cook's (ironically, I never ate there when I stayed at Poly, but ate there several times from VGF).

 

[Prince John Robin Hood]

Poly is possibly my favourite resort. The only negative imo is the high point chart.