Disney's Polynesian Resort - Lake Buena Vista

After 4 Disney vacations in a year's time, we have become quite familiar with the surroundings. We've stayed at the Floridian and now the Polynesian (as well as off-grounds twice), and by far the Polynesian is our favorite of the locales. With little ones, staying on the monorail is essential. As for the Polynesian, the grounds are immaculate and the […] gardens quite relaxing to walk through to your room. Proximity to the transportation center makes getting to Epcot easiest. The restaurant at the Polynesian (Ohana) is a personal favorite. Rooms were more spacious than the Floridian, as were the bathrooms. Automatic doors to each building were a nice convenience when using strollers. Staff was all friendly, as to be expected at Disney. We encountered a faulty toilet when we checked in that took a while to repair, and then were forced out of our room for maintenance on the A/C. Both of these issues happened on the same day, which made them more significant than they otherwise would have been separately. One other minor inconvenience was the lack of luggage carts at the building to help with loading/unloading. Overall this was our favorite hotel due to the location on the monorail and proximity to the transportation center, as well as the location of our favorite restaurant within the resort. Very nice pools, and you can watch the nightly fireworks from behind the ceremonial house. Les mer

Virkelige gjesteanmeldelser

Hotel was great. Fantastic and friendly service. Family had a blast.

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We felt like we were in Hawaii!! It smells like gardenias! So beautiful. And the staff is amazing! So friendly and helpful. The volcano waterslide pool is a blast. And there were always activities for the kids deck side. Like dancing or trivia games. Super fun!! The poolside bar has awesome piña coladas and mai tais. But the very best part was taking […] the boat to and from magic kingdom. Our stay at the Polynesian was wonderful!! Les mer

Virkelige gjesteanmeldelser

Most convenient location to Magic Kingdom and Epcot. The pool was great and provided many activities for my 3year old. Two draw backs...It is advisable to make restaurant reservations in advance. We could not get reservations at the two main restaurants when we walked up any of the days and we were there on not peak dates. Surprisingly, the television […] in the room was bad quality and one would think they would have the Disney Channels easily accessible. Les mer

Virkelige gjesteanmeldelser

Loved it. The rooms were recently renovated and were very nice. I loved the beach and the fact that you could get to the Magic Kindom by boat or monorail very easily. The staff was very friendly and always had an "aloha" for you. I would go back to the resort again and would recommend it to a friend.

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Virkelige gjesteanmeldelser

The hotel was really nice and our family enjoyed our time there. However, we were not informed before we booked that much of the hotel was under construction, so an older room in an older building was the only room available. It was pleasant being on the main floor going out into the garden. After the first night, our entire family woke with nose problems. […] After checking the filter in the room, we realized that it hadn't been changed for over 18 months! My son enjoyed the marshmallow roasting on the beach and the food was really good in the hotel restaurants! Les mer

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Almost $400/night for a room without hot water for 2 days. I called 4 times before it was fixed. I was given a disabled room which I did not request. It did not have a tub and therefore I could not bathe my child- when I called to have it changed, I was told I could change the next day at 11am. Since I had already spent $260 on amusement park tickets […] for the next day I opted not to miss those hours and have a dirty child who promised to bathe by shower (not a good idea). I brought him back early from the park for a nap one day to find the electricity was out (as I was notified by a card under the door the night before-- for reg scheduled maintanence.. How come accommodation were nt made before?). The bathroom was pitch black, we were unable to see at all. I had to have my kid pee in the bushes outside of the room. The paint on the walls is peeling. It took 2 hrs to get luggage delivered to our room. Despite this- I enjoyed the view and location. Just can't believed I was fleeced in such a manner. I have paid greater than $400/night for a room. Never have I felt so taken. Les mer

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Location is ok, although it is a 15-20 minute bus ride to just about everything - downtown disney, animal kingdom, epcot, but there was a boat that went directly to Magic kingdom in about 7 minutes. Grounds of the hotel and inside are nice enough but certainly not anything above 3 stars and that is being kind. Our room was #1807. Patio doors on ground […] level of room were best part. It was dingy, out of date, dirty and small. Some staff were barely friendly. Unfortuantely, we were going to stay 1 extra night due to unforseen circumstances but they wanted us to check out of that room to check into another so new guests could check in. I tried to explain that they could put the new guests into the room they would move us too but they didn't get it. Then we came to find out that our current room was up for construction/demoloition the next day but really, I'm sure 1 more night wouldn't have delayed the entire renovation project! When checking out/back in, I was quoted $500+ for 1 night! I said hell no. The night before the manager said we would get the Expedia price which I'm sure wasn't more than $199, so she made "the call" only to come back with $450 for the night. Needles to say we checked out and moved on which meant having to adjust our plans again. The room wasn't worth more than $100 per night Les mer

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I was nervous because I had read other reviews that said the Polynesian was "aging" - totally false. I am very particular, and I highly recommend this hotel. Some tips: if you have tiny ones and you have a pool day, rent one of the two cabanas - definitely worth it. Make reservations for Ohana far in advance, I tried a month before our trip and we couldn't […] get in. We did snag a spot at the character breakfast, which was great. The luau was also worth the money - good food and entertainment to get you in the tropical mood! I cannot overstate how convenient this hotel is to the Magic Kingdom. Just a 5 minute trip on the monorail - we came back mid day for naps at the hotel and it was perfect. Views of the fireworks are great too! We got a great rate on our room - thanks, Expedia! I would stay here again! Les mer

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I gave it an overall 1 because the price of the room was astronomical. Paint was peeling, cold water did not work in the first room in one of the faucets.Very disappointed.

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Sensational atmosphere with plenty of activity for my family including sons 8 and 11. Kids had their own resort card and could explore things on their own.

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Temperature controls were not working - the air conditioner fan was deafeningly loud and the fan in the bathroom was not working at all. Wait times for all the restaurants were 30-45 minutes - we had to take a pager even for breakfast!!! The staff was rushed and appeared frustrated at the dining areas. Poolside food at the Captain Cook's area was horrible […] - buns were stale and the food was tasteless and expensive. At the Kona Cafe the prices were very high. The dining experiences were stressful because there were so many people waiting in line and the noise from the central lobby waterfall was so loud you could not have a conversation with your table mates. It was impossible to get reservations at the buffet - apparently these had to be booked 6 months in advance (breakfast and dinner). We checked out after three days and moved to the Grand Floridian (same price but the quality of our stay there was so superior to the Polynesian, it was hard to believe they were both run by Disney). Had we not changed hotels I think it would have been a ruined vacation and we likely would never consider returning to disney. Because the Grand Floridian was so much better, we may go back in the future- NEVER to the Polynesian. Les mer

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Reception were unresponsive following previous confirmation we had adjoining rooms they had given one of them away! Did not speak to us for 20 mins why they waited in the phone

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We will book our next Disney trip at the Polynesian based on our stay on 2/12/13. The rooms are a bit older and the showers aren't exactly designed for taller people. It is a bit dark in the rooms but this is easy to get over. The service was great we had towel animals on our bed each morning from the cleaning staff. Anytime we called for anything they […] were there in minutes. The choices for dining is awesome and the proximity to the ferry and monorail sold us for future visits. The pool, beaches, and views are amazing. the campfire, outdoor movies, and light show in the lake sealed the deal for us. We will stay again for sure. Les mer

Virkelige gjesteanmeldelser

Most convenient access to all transportation available to any WDW parks. This is a monorail accessible hotel also with direct walking access to the transportation and ticket center and also the ferry launches directly from the resort.

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Great location in Disney World with an excellent staff . The hotel is showing its age and despite the many ongoing and somewhat intrusive renovations, it's looking tired. Food and service at this resort were both excellent. I would recommend a more updated resort.

Virkelige gjesteanmeldelser

Loved it. Sure it was expensive, but you get what you pay for and there's no comparison to staying on a monorail stop vs. some random hotel off property that you have to get in a car and drive to the parks everyday. Great friendly staff, everything was easy, quick - and Disney magic hours were worth every penny of the trip.

Virkelige gjesteanmeldelser

The obvious advantage is that it is in the monorail; the lobby staff is very friendly; the hotel is obviously dated, the elevators tiny, the matresses quite worn out and a little of a musty smell on the hallways. It is definitelyoverpriced for what you get; next time i'll just deal with car and parking and spend the money elsewhere

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Beautiful place. Room was pretty clean. Some broken items in the bathroom. Most of staff was friendly except for some older grumpier workers at the hotel. I would stay again.

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The hotel is old and (as far as I can tell) has never been renovated but it is kept very clean and the service at the hotel was very pleasing. Plus the location (right on the monorail) is great and makes up for the fact that the hotel is older. Overall would recommend if the person does not mind that it is an older hotel.

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Virkelige gjesteanmeldelser

Staying at any of the three hotels directly on the Disney monorail is phenomenal. We were able to go into and out of multiple parks per day. The rooms were also very spacious (much larger than I remembered from many years ago). We had two queen beds and a pull-out queen size bed, plus a desk and separate sitting chair and table. The bathrooms were also […] very spacious. Les mer

Virkelige gjesteanmeldelser

Clean and comfortable but way too expensive. They advertise it as a "luxurious" hotel but it is not. It is comparable to the "all-inclusive" resorts in the Carribean but with nothing included, except for the free internet. By the way, this was the first hotel I've been to that provided a hassle-free, no password-required wi-fi connection. A big plu […] s! Les mer

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XMAS week and the hotel was understaffed. One day we had to call at 5PM because our rooms had not been serviced. We received a temporary electronic key because of a computer glitch. Unfortunately the key was disabled 11PM and we could not get back into our room. It took many calls and the better part of an hour to get security to open our door. The […] room was properly serviced the other days. The airport transportation from the hotel and the checkout was sensational. Of course the location was great until the monorail stopped late one night because of mechanical problems. Les mer

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Our check-in was dreadful. We probably wasted $45 in tips just checking in. When we arrived at the Polynesian, the first thing asked if us was, "Do you want to valet park?" I said, Yes!" No one bothered to tell us that we could park our cars right in front of the wing near the express monorail which was a long walk from the lobby of the hotel with the […] valet parking lot out front. When all if the luggage was taken out of our car, it was placed in a holding area. After checking in, it was then placed on golf carts to be taken to our room quite a distance away. We then discovered the wise thing to do would be to not valet park but mice or a car to the wing where we were staying, I asked the receptionist to the valet parking charge off. When I checked out, the charge was still on my bill and I had to. wait to get it off. Les mer

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Our room was clean and felt pretty newish. The hotel is old (I think it might be the first Disney one) anyway, for being old, they have done a good job keeping it up along with the room. We had a theme park view which looked out over the 7 seas lagoon to the magic kingdom which was great. The food at the hotel is expensive and not the best, but no terrible […] by any means. We enjoyed our stay and may go back or possibly will try another Disney hotel off the monorail. We'll see... Les mer

Virkelige gjesteanmeldelser

This was our family's first visit to Disney World, so first the Cons: Candidly, for the price of the room, I expected a little more "pop." All the basics were there, but the beds were too firm. Towels were rough. One morning, the housekeeper knocked to see what, if anything we needed for the room, which was nice, but I have three daughters ranging in […] age from 16-25. Getting up and going is not exactly our "strong" point. Housekeeping was knocking before 9:00 am, which was a little awkward for us. After that the privacy sign was out. We lived in Northern Florida for 4 years during military service. I am aware that in general, the water does not taste good. With that said, I kind of expected that Disney would "anticipate" some of these issues, sadly they did not. But...they did have very expensive bottled water to make up for it! ;-) The Pros: It was very nice to access the various parks, use the mono-rail and bus system (which is very extensive) directly from our motel. There was a trade off for us in that we didn't want the expense of a car rental, and the convenience afforded was very nice. Obviously, each family etc... will have to determine what their priorities are and make decisions from there. Our time at the park was very leisurely and from that perspective, it was exactly what we wanted! If we do end up coming again, we will probably research a little more. We "heard" the Grand Florida Resort (on-site) was very nice, but this was a pricey upgrade. Les mer

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I'm glad to give the Polynesian Hotel an excellent review. Pools were super clean. Great lifeguard supervision for my kids. Grounds were beautiful. Staff super helpful and friendly. Was not impressed by the food at Capt. Cooks but both the Kona Cafe and Ohana were excellent.

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The only thing that I was really disappointed about was the restaurant situation. There were no reservations available at the restaurants. We had to eat in the cafe there and is was way overpriced. I think that the prices on food, soft drinks, etc. were way overpriced, and I believe that they should allow some walk up seating at the nice restaurants. […] We never got to try the other two restaurants. Other than that, it was wonderful and the staff was very friendly. Les mer

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Excellent vacation.

Virkelige gjesteanmeldelser

My kids love staying at the Polynesian and I love being able to watch the Magic Kingdom fireworks from the beach. We had a great time!

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We love the location of the Polynesian. The front desk person "Ivan", went above and beyond our expectactions. There was a small problem with the room we checked into, but "Ivan" cleared up the problem in no time. His attention to detail and to please us was outstanding. We also had a problem, twice with dining in the Kona Cafe. When we checked in […] for our reservations, we were given a pager and told that we could stay anywhere on the second floor. Much time passed by when my husband approached the host and asked when we would be seated and we were told that our pager was obviously not working and they did not bother to look for us. This happened on two different occasions. After I thought about it for a while, I was thinking that perhaps, since we were so inconvenienced, they could have at least given us a complimentary cup of coffee(etc.) but, nothing was done to compensate us for the more than 45 minute wait, when the restaurant wasn't even full. I suppose it was our fault for not speaking up, but we were following the instructions of the host. We also felt that the hotel/resort was a bit tired looking. It definitely looked like it was ready for a decorative update. This Polynesian decor definitely needed some freshening up including the guest rooms and the guest areas, such as the Great Ceremonial Hall. If one is going to stay in a 5 star resort, you have to give them that 5 star look and feel. Otherwise, we had a glorious time!! Les mer

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Room was very clean. Scenery was tropical and beautiful. Service was great.

Virkelige gjesteanmeldelser

Everyone was so nice and helpful. My twin 6 year old boys LOVED the volcano pool with water slide. Access to all of Disney properietes were easliy accessable with the monorail, boats and buses.

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Excellent location and decor. Room maintenance was required. Mold in bathroom tiles and ceiling in bathroom around fan was peeling.

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Had a little trouble with the air conditioning, but it was resolved.

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Property and staff excellent hard to believe the hotel is 41 years old! Look forward to another trip to this Disney Iconic Resort...

Virkelige gjesteanmeldelser

This WDW Hotel has the advantage of being located inside WDW Orlando. This makes it easy to go to the different attractions directly by Monorail. The hotel is probably as old as WDW Orlando (about 50 years) and it shows its age although it is well maintained. Rooms are away of main building,but if you come to WDW you come to walk, walk, walk and wait, […] wait and wait. Les mer

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A great Escape. Beautiful lush foliage like the rain forests of Hawaii.

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Virkelige gjesteanmeldelser

Fabulous room, big balcony, beautiful view. Perfect!

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Staff were great, nothing was too much trouble. Slightly messed up our booking so our two rooms were not close together on the first night. Everyone was very apologetic, they upgraded our room for rest of stay and moved us to rooms on the same corridor. Beds were exceptionally comfy. All staff very friendly. Lots of free entertainment for the kids. […] Movies on the beach every night and spectacular view of Disney fireworks. One of our best holidays ever! Lots of people come to the hotel in the evening to use the Ohana restaurant so need to book early if you want a sit down meal. Les mer

Virkelige gjesteanmeldelser

The hotel is nice enough. However, the pillows on the beds are half the size of a standard bed pillow. We thought they were kid pillows. Also, after a long day at Disney came back around 10pm to relax and watch tv after putting kids to sleep. Turn on TV and got a no signal message. Therefore, could not get a picture. I called the front desk. A technician […] had to come to my room and pressed a button on my remote. I guess this is a common problem at the hotel. He mumbled something about pressing a number in a certain range on the remote. Location is great. Character breakfast at the hotel restaurant was well done. Les mer

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The room was clean and comfortable, the concierge helpful, the staff is great, the hotel is well located, monorail at the door... but 1) if someone gets sick, nothing serious, and you ask the concierge for help, they will give you a flyer of a medical center and probably you will spend lots and lots of hours there. In a place packed of tourist a good […] doctor would be good common sense. 2) if you need to print a single sheet of paper, the nice concierge will tell you to go next door, to the Floridian, where you can find a business center (but no nurse or doctor there too). They cannot print a single paper. 3) restaurants at the Polonisean seems to work on a book out base, meaning that is a win - lose situation (hotel profits and you don't eat, or take a cab and go to downtown disney or outside the park or order a pizza to your room). Bottom line: stay at the Floridian (comtemporary may be is a option too) if you need to print any last minute stuff and PLEASE be healthy. Getting sick may make you lose one precious day AND enjoy, because kids LOVE the parks. Les mer

Virkelige gjesteanmeldelser

The rooms are beautiful with big bathrooms and you can't beat the location. The resort is on the monorail line so you have easy access to other monorail resorts as well as Magic Kingdom and Epcot. You can even watch the Wishes fireworks from the beach at the resort or your room if your room faces the castle. Now the most important part is that you can […] get a Dolewhip whenever you want at Capt. Cook's since it's open 24 hours and definitely try the Tonga toast at Kona Cafe. Les mer

Virkelige gjesteanmeldelser

A beautiful environment of lush, tropical plants! The room was very comfortable, very clean and very coordinated with the Polynesian theme. One morning we walked by a cobblestone sidewalk being cleaned with hot, soapy water--unbelievable! I felt very confident about the cleanliness and safety of this resort. The friendly staff and earthy surroundings […] projected a cozy family feel, unlike some of the more extravagant hotels/resorts. Les mer

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