Disney's POLYNESIAN VILLAGE RESORT Information & Questions

[bettymae1121]

Any personal experiences with a studio villa with a party of 3, especially for a longer stay (ours will be 6 nights)? We'll be two adults and what will be a tall 10 year old girl. I'm hoping she'll comfortably fit in the murphy bed. Anyway I know about the lack of drawer space but other than that, how did you find it?

 

[maiapapaya]

We have a “Lagoon View” room booked for June. I looked on the Touring Plans website to see what my options are, it shows very little rooms in that category - a handful in Tuvulu and a handful in Aotearoa. Is that really all that is available for that category? Which of those lodges do you recommend? Or should I change my category (because I’m not sure I’m thrilled with either of those choices). Thanks!

Unfortunately when WDW converted part of the resort to DVC they lost a big chunk of the lagoon/theme park view room inventory to DVC (that's why you aren't seeing that many rooms in that view category). However, we've stayed theme park view in Tuvalu a couple of times and really liked it. The way the longhouse is situated it feels like the building is sitting right out over the water. It is also very close to the Great Ceremonial House.

 

[maiapapaya]

Question about staying CL for non-US residents. The last few visits they didn't seem to have anyone greet the ME bus when we arrived and we had to go into the lobby to check in. We are staying CL this trip and in the past a CM would walk you over to Hawaii for CL check-in. Hawaii is a secure building and we will not have magic bands when we arrive - since they don't ship them out of the US and we have to get them at check-in - so can't really walk ourselves over. But someone told me they would have our magic bands at the concierge desk in the Hawaii building. Has anyone had any recent experience with a CL arrival and no magic bands? Just go to the main lobby and get instructions? Will a CM greet the bus?

 

[mickeynut1]

41 days until Disney! (42 until Poly but we’re coming a day early staying at Boardwalk!) It will soon be Dole Whip time. I’m hoping for good weather for our cabana day but in case it’s not, (and because DH has been bemoaning the fact it’s been over a year since our last) I’ve book a 4 day cruise on the Dream as a surprise the day after! He’ll figure it out when I tell him to bring his passport though.

I’ll be picking ADRs when we get back for our October trip. I have lake view rooms in Moorea for us and my niece’s family for that trip. It’s their first trip to Disney although we took my grand niece last year. She’s already becoming the little Disney expert! Most exciting thing about that trip is no runDisney races and getting up a 2 am.

Sounds like an awesome trip! Hope you enjoy your Poly stay and have a great cruise .

Any personal experiences with a studio villa with a party of 3, especially for a longer stay (ours will be 6 nights)? We'll be two adults and what will be a tall 10 year old girl. I'm hoping she'll comfortably fit in the murphy bed. Anyway I know about the lack of drawer space but other than that, how did you find it?

I can't comment as we've never stayed in a studio, but hopefully others will be able to help .

Question about staying CL for non-US residents. The last few visits they didn't seem to have anyone greet the ME bus when we arrived and we had to go into the lobby to check in. We are staying CL this trip and in the past a CM would walk you over to Hawaii for CL check-in. Hawaii is a secure building and we will not have magic bands when we arrive - since they don't ship them out of the US and we have to get them at check-in - so can't really walk ourselves over. But someone told me they would have our magic bands at the concierge desk in the Hawaii building. Has anyone had any recent experience with a CL arrival and no magic bands? Just go to the main lobby and get instructions? Will a CM greet the bus?

Not sure if this will help, but I had my first Poly CL stay this past Oct and we did our check in at the resort. Even though we already had our MBs, the CM that checked us in did walk us over to the Hawaii building. We had a town car so didn't arrive by DME, but I don't recall anyone out there greeting others. There is a designated CL check in window in the Poly lobby, so if they don't have your MBs there, I would imagine someone would walk you over the CL building .

 

[disneydreamer1980]

Any personal experiences with a studio villa with a party of 3, especially for a longer stay (ours will be 6 nights)? We'll be two adults and what will be a tall 10 year old girl. I'm hoping she'll comfortably fit in the murphy bed. Anyway I know about the lack of drawer space but other than that, how did you find it?

We had 2 adjoining studios this past nov/dec. we had 2 adults, 2 kids and a toddler in one and 3 adults (one only 18) and 1 kid in the other. They are small with not a lot of storage space and you have to make up the pull out bed every night, but we were happy with the studio. There’s 2 bathing areas but only one toilet which is a little strange. We were in the Tokelau longhouse which made it super easy to get to Epcot from the TTC. We stayed here 10 nights then moved to a bungalow for 3 nights (the bungalow was a surprise graduation present to my DD who was dreaming of staying in one). So I think only 3 people would be fine in a studio.

 

[maiapapaya]

Not sure if this will help, but I had my first Poly CL stay this past Oct and we did our check in at the resort. Even though we already had our MBs, the CM that checked us in did walk us over to the Hawaii building. We had a town car so didn't arrive by DME, but I don't recall anyone out there greeting others. There is a designated CL check in window in the Poly lobby, so if they don't have your MBs there, I would imagine someone would walk you over the CL building .

The designated CL check-in in the lobby is new since our last CL stay. That definitely helps. Thanks!

 

[mickeynut1]

The designated CL check-in in the lobby is new since our last CL stay. That definitely helps. Thanks!

You're welcome! Have a great trip .

 

[maiapapaya]

You're welcome! Have a great trip .

Thanks! We seriously can't wait. We are on snow day #15 here today. Sooo done with this winter.

 

[mickeynut1]

Thanks! We seriously can't wait. We are on snow day #15 here today. Sooo done with this winter.

You're welcome

That's a lot of snow days, you really need this trip to get a break from all that snow! I think you chose a great resort as Poly CL will be a great escape .

 

[maiapapaya]

You're welcome

That's a lot of snow days, you really need this trip to get a break from all that snow! I think you chose a great resort as Poly CL will be a great escape .

Yes, we are big Poly fans. This will be our 9th stay, but haven't done CL since 2012, so that will be an extra treat

 

[GADisneyDad14]

Question about staying CL for non-US residents. The last few visits they didn't seem to have anyone greet the ME bus when we arrived and we had to go into the lobby to check in. We are staying CL this trip and in the past a CM would walk you over to Hawaii for CL check-in. Hawaii is a secure building and we will not have magic bands when we arrive - since they don't ship them out of the US and we have to get them at check-in - so can't really walk ourselves over. But someone told me they would have our magic bands at the concierge desk in the Hawaii building. Has anyone had any recent experience with a CL arrival and no magic bands? Just go to the main lobby and get instructions? Will a CM greet the bus?

@mickeynut1 answered your question but the CL greetings out front have been pretty non-existent in our recent (last few years) Poly CL travels. The CL-specific check-in desk @mickeynut1 mentioned is the first station inside on the right - it has a sign that says “Club Level Arrivals” or something to that extent. Note, that sign can be flipped over to a regular check-in station and I have seen times where it’s not being used for CL arrivals, so if you don’t see it don’t worry.

I have done a combo of checking-in at that CL arrival station (they’ll do a bit of paperwork then walk you over to the CL CMs) or I’ve gone straight to Hawaii ourselves. We get MB’s in advance but we have bad MagicBand mojo so they hardly ever work, so we stand there and wave through the glass to get a desk CM’s attention, then do check-in there.

Hope that helps, enjoy your trip!

 

[MeeskaMooska13]

Unfortunately when WDW converted part of the resort to DVC they lost a big chunk of the lagoon/theme park view room inventory to DVC (that's why you aren't seeing that many rooms in that view category). However, we've stayed theme park view in Tuvalu a couple of times and really liked it. The way the longhouse is situated it feels like the building is sitting right out over the water. It is also very close to the Great Ceremonial House.

Thank you for your feedback!! Although, technically, our category says “Lagoon View”, not “Theme Park View”, you recommend keeping it and hoping for Tuvalu? My other option is “Standard View” (assuming there is availability).

 

[maiapapaya]

@mickeynut1 answered your question but the CL greetings out front have been pretty non-existent in our recent (last few years) Poly CL travels. The CL-specific check-in desk @mickeynut1 mentioned is the first station inside on the right - it has a sign that says “Club Level Arrivals” or something to that extent. Note, that sign can be flipped over to a regular check-in station and I have seen times where it’s not being used for CL arrivals, so if you don’t see it don’t worry.

I have done a combo of checking-in at that CL arrival station (they’ll do a bit of paperwork then walk you over to the CL CMs) or I’ve gone straight to Hawaii ourselves. We get MB’s in advance but we have bad MagicBand mojo so they hardly ever work, so we stand there and wave through the glass to get a desk CM’s attention, then do check-in there.

Hope that helps, enjoy your trip!

Thanks for the extra CL info! We have Canadian resident tickets that have to be activated at customer service at one of the parks or DS, so I'm anticipating our own bad MagicBand mojo (just for different reasons LOL).

 

[maiapapaya]

Thank you for your feedback!! Although, technically, our category says “Lagoon View”, not “Theme Park View”, you recommend keeping it and hoping for Tuvalu? My other option is “Standard View” (assuming there is availability).

Theme Park View and Lagoon view are on the same side of the longhouse. The only difference is TPV guarantees you an unobstructed view of the castle, while LV may have a tree or something in the way (you will still be able to enjoy the view, just might have to crane your head around a tree trunk if you want to see the castle). I would still keep it. Standard view can be a view of the gardens, monorail or parking lot. The view of the water and other monorail loop hotels, ferry, etc is so nice! Just a heads up, unless it has changed, all of the LV rooms in Tuvalu are on the first or second floor (none on the third floor). The first floor rooms will have a patio, but the second floor rooms don't have balconies (it's like that in all of the non-DVC longhouses). There is still a slider that you can open to enjoy fresh air and the view, there is just no where to sit outside. You can phone the main reservation number and request both Tuvalu & a patio if outdoor space is important to you. They will tell you it's not guaranteed, but they do still try to honour requests if they can.

 

[Simba's Mom]

if you want a clear view of the lake (and the Castle beyond), because of the bungalows, you'll want to request as high a floor as possible. You can certainly still see the lake from the ground floor, but it's more like looking at the shore in front of the bungalows.

How often do the requests for upper level lake view get granted? I've heard from a couple people who requested upper floor, only to get the first floor. That's why, although I really want to see the Electric Water Pagent, I requested standard view. Are there any benches near the water or anyplace you'd recommend to see the water pagent?

 

[madchatter]

Are we still having to go through security twice when headed to Epcot? Once when walking into TTC and again at Epcot?

I keep hoping that will change but the most recent things I can find seem to indicate two security checks still.

Thanks for any recent experiences.

 

[disneydreamer1980]

Are we still having to go through security twice when headed to Epcot? Once when walking into TTC and again at Epcot?

I keep hoping that will change but the most recent things I can find seem to indicate two security checks still.

Thanks for any recent experiences.

I haven’t been since December but there was double security checks then. Though if you don’t have a bag it’s not so bad.

 

[MeeskaMooska13]

Theme Park View and Lagoon view are on the same side of the longhouse. The only difference is TPV guarantees you an unobstructed view of the castle, while LV may have a tree or something in the way (you will still be able to enjoy the view, just might have to crane your head around a tree trunk if you want to see the castle). I would still keep it. Standard view can be a view of the gardens, monorail or parking lot. The view of the water and other monorail loop hotels, ferry, etc is so nice! Just a heads up, unless it has changed, all of the LV rooms in Tuvalu are on the first or second floor (none on the third floor). The first floor rooms will have a patio, but the second floor rooms don't have balconies (it's like that in all of the non-DVC longhouses). There is still a slider that you can open to enjoy fresh air and the view, there is just no where to sit outside. You can phone the main reservation number and request both Tuvalu & a patio if outdoor space is important to you. They will tell you it's not guaranteed, but they do still try to honour requests if they can.

Thank you so much for the detailed feedback! It’s exactly the info I was seeking!

 

[mickeynut1]

Yes, we are big Poly fans. This will be our 9th stay, but haven't done CL since 2012, so that will be an extra treat

CL is definitely a treat! I've only stayed at the Poly twice, but it became my favorite just after one stay .

The CL-specific check-in desk @mickeynut1 mentioned is the first station inside on the right - it has a sign that says “Club Level Arrivals” or something to that extent. Note, that sign can be flipped over to a regular check-in station and I have seen times where it’s not being used for CL arrivals, so if you don’t see it don’t worry.

Thanks for this info, it's good to know for future stays .

 

[JPTexan82]

I haven’t been since December but there was double security checks then. Though if you don’t have a bag it’s not so bad.

Yes there is still a double check.