Disney's Polynesian Village Resort

My husband and I stayed at the Polynesian for 3 nights in the end of April with our son’s family, including a 3 and 6yo (their first visit). The timing of this visit was to celebrate our 50th anniversary. We honeymooned at the Poly in 1974. Unfortunately, Disney Magic seems to be gone now (it certainly was for me). No “welcome home”, no happy anniversary greeting (unless you count the greeting on the room tv screen) and most importantly, our room request to not be near construction was not met. Our reservation was made about 9 months ahead of time. Lots of time for me to imagine the beautiful “resort view” we would enjoy. Our rooms were in the Aotearoa building, which I knew to be closest to the construction; however, I was assured we weren’t on the construction side of the building. It turns out there is construction on both sides of the building. I certainly didn’t expect this “resort” view. Based on our view this resort is dirty, poorly kept, and noisy. Our view was of a dead or dying tree, path or roadway construction (directly outside our room) and included a truck crew using jack hammers. They charge more for water view, why not less for construction views? As for the positives… our room was nice with lots of space and storage and the bathroom and shower was great. We had a balcony, but considering the noise and view that was not enjoyable. The pool area and splash pad were fun for the kids; however the beach was over crowded in the evening for fireworks. All that to say, I sadly would not recommend staying at the Polynesian unless you can afford to upgrade yourself to a better than resort view.

The hotel itself was fine and the room was recently renovated and clean. Can't beat the beautiful location close to the theme parks. However, the single greatest reason why we will NEVER stay here again is because of the fireworks and loud music blaring over the water every night. If you have young kids (which I've got to imagine is the majority of their hotel guests?), this is complete misery when the kids have bedtime around 8 PM-9 PM and can't sleep due to the noise torture.

10/10 in every way. Hotel is so fun, beautiful, clean, festive, well staffed with the most attentive people. I can’t say enough great things about this place. Smiles from ear to ear from the entire family. Book a theme park view to watch the fireworks and boat show every night. Can’t wait to come back soon.

The Poly is dreamy and wonderful. Loved almost everything about it - beds, decor, pools, location, easy parking and transportation. I will 10/10 stay here again. Worth every penny. One teeny area of criticism. The food options are not great. They are very much Polynesian themed and limited if you have dietary restrictions or the time of day. We made due but would have preferred a greater variety.

A fantastic retreat at Disney World. My family favorite, we’ve been coming here for years and each visit exceeds the last. Newly reimagined, the entire resort has received a refreshing look and the rooms are bright and fun with little Moana touches infused into the decor. The onsite dining is among the best at Disney and Trader Sam’s is a gem for an enchanted bar experience. The two pools here are well maintained and the lava pool will keep families entertained daily with trivia, music, games and activities. The quiet pool is a lovely retreat when you prefer a laid back afternoon. The music throughout the resort sets the mood, with impeccable landscaping to make you feel like you’re in Hawaii. For those that want an elevated experience, the club level rooms are worth the amenities in the club lounge. What we love about the resort are the friendly cast members, the beach, views of the nightly fireworks and castle and monorail access. We will continue to visit this resort and highly recommend for all ages.

If traveling any time Soon - note that if you’ve booked a standard room, there is a good chance that you will be facing a construction site. This means construction equipment running outside your window first thing in the morning. We were able to get a room change but I’m sure this is not always possible. Once we were away from the construction, we had a great stay. The convenience to Magic Kingdom, pools, and grounds are great. The food can be hit or miss depending on your tastes.

We had the most amazing time, the staff at the Polynesian club level were so friendly! Evan was great in helping us get situated and made everything easy from check in to check out. We go to Disney each year and this was one of the smoothest Disney trips we’ve had. We stayed a week and every day at the club level was magical. Thank you again Evan!

This is a review from someone who has never stayed at this resort but has resort hopped: Omg this place is GORGEOUS and I love the vibe. This is the resort to go to get Moana & Stitch merchandise. The restaurants are very nice, everything here is beautiful. Be prepared for metal detectors & possibly being searched when you leave. That was new.

Such a convenient park to stay at with little ones. The monorail makes it really easy to get around to both magic kingdom and Epcot (our two favorite parks) The rooms are large and have two showers, which was fantastic. Big shoutout to the valet staff who helped us get a taxi with an infant seat when our 8 month old had to go to the emergency depar**ent. William from valet went truly above and beyond helping us make sure we could safely get our baby to the ER. All other staff we encountered at the resort were kind and helpful as well. Thank you!