For our first use of our DVC points, we stayed at our home resort, the Polynesian (which we will refer to as the Poly moving forward) for 5 days and 4 nights. This is beautifully themed hotel. From the moment you leave the steps of the Magical Express you are transported to the islands of the Polynesian. Once you walk into the lobby you can see Cinderella’s Castle in the distance through the back glass doors, which is a great way to kick-start your vacation!
The DVC Room:
The room is very spacious and offers two bathroom areas, which worked well with our family. The bathrooms are quite large and you don’t feel l like you’re constantly running people. The room comfortably fits a family of 5. There are a queen bed, a full sofa bed, and a pull-down twin size bed. The lanai (or balcony) is quite long as well.
Resort Activities:
Unfortunately, due to the weather, we didn’t get to enjoy the two pools that the Poly has to offer as much as we would have liked. The two pools are the Lava and Oasis. Additionally, there is a splashdown area next to the Lava pool which my kiddos definitely enjoyed.
The Poly also offers child services at Lilo’s Playhouse, boat rentals, movies under the stars (on certain nights), kids games, campfire activities and fishing excursions. There’s plenty to do outside of the parks and the Poly is also a quick stroll to the Grand Floridian (GF).
The Food:
The first morning we did try out the quick service, Capt. Cook’s. We ordered a Mickey waffle platter for the kids to split as well as the bounty platter and the Tonga toast meal for my husband and me to share. The breakfast was ok, we expected a lot more from the Tonga toast, but were warned that it’s best to order it from Kona Cafe, (one of the restaurants at the Poly).
Some of the other items we did enjoy were the Pulled Pork Nachos from Capt. Cook’s and the Sashimi of Tuna, Salmon and Hamachi Oasis Bar & Grill. We also checked out ‘Ohana for dinner (see our review: http://havingamagicalday.com/worth-the-hype-o…inner-experience/)
And for our Dole Whip fix, we made a couple stops at the Pineapple Lanai. The Dole Whip Swirl is amazing and enjoyed by everyone in our family.
[Helpful Tip!] If you’re staying at a DVC room, for a money-saving tip, I would recommend that buying breakfast items (bread, cereal. etc.) and milk from Moana Mercantile on the 2nd floor of the Great Ceremonial House. It saves time and money on those busy mornings as you try to get ready for the parks.
Transportation (monorail, boat, and buses):
Getting to the Magic Kingdom was super easy because the Poly is a monorail resort. The Poly is one of the middle stops, so heading to MK you will pick up the folks staying at GF and on the way home you will let off the people staying on the Contemporary first. The buses are shared with the GF resort but were never super packed. We found that the most direct way to MK, was the boat, but it doesn’t hold a large capacity of people.
Overall Experience:
I really loved the theming and how friendly/warm the staff was. The resort is not too large which is great, so you don’t feel overwhelmed, like others. We got to watch Happily Ever After fireworks from the beach as well as when we dined at ‘Ohana. The tiki torches add another magical touch at night. We truly loved it and look forward to staying here again.
From our Disney crazed family to yours, we hope you’re having a magical day!
