Polynesian Village 2015 Mother’s Day Trip
Day One
So we flew out of Philadelphia on Frontier Airlines on Thursday, May 7th, at around 2:35 PM. I don’t know if it was because it was early afternoon on a Friday but this was one of the easiest experiences we had going through security and getting to our gate. It was myself, wife and 3 kids (D14, S12, S08) and we are DVC members and love WDW so we have been going down on trips at multiple times on an annual basis now. As I am new to the trip report scene, I will preface this report by stating that my first time to WDW ever was in 2009 and I am, as of 2015, 45 years of age. It was also my wife’s first trip as well, so we are young enough in our WDW experience that nothing is stale for us and we don’t have decades of experience from the 70’s through the 90’s that tarnishes the satisfaction we get out of traveling here.
That being said, we arrived at the Orlando airport on time. We only had two carry on bags for this trip (with the kids each having their own small packs for their Nintendo DS, games, and sleeping aids - blanket, stuffed animal). Again, no issues getting off of the plane and getting on the monorail, the first real ride after landing in Orlando. Following this is the ridiculously long walk to the check in at Magical Express. Of course we let our kids scan their bands to start us on our journey, and the 8 year old never turns down a chance to do this. At this moment, I will take the time to say that we never had one single issue with our bands on this trip…not one. We even did the advance check in for our DVC room without a stop at the front desk and the bands got us in with no problem. This is a gamble that WDW is taking with this because, for example, we were in Pago Pago. Had our bands not worked, it is not a short walk back to the Grand Ceremonial House to get something like this fixed.
As stated previously, we are DVC members and our home resort is the Villas at the Grand Floridian (see how new we are). However, due to the launch of DVC at the Polynesian Village, we decided to book a short Mother’s Day trip here. Of course, on our Magical Express ride, we stopped at Fort Wilderness, Wilderness Lodge and The Contemporary before arriving at the Polynesian Village. I don’t complain though because it is included in the price, and I won’t complain about not having to rent a car for the trip or take a taxi as this is an additional cost to what I am already paying for (which I assume includes the ‘free’ WDW transportation).
Anyway, we arrived at the newly refurbished Polynesian Village. I must say that the new entrance looks very nice with the rock work that acts as the backdrop for the new sign. When we were dropped off, we picked up our carry-on bags and proceeded into the new lobby. Now that the construction walls have been removed, the new water areas on either side of the walkway that leads into the main lobby of the Grand Ceremonial House looked great.
Upon entering the lobby, you are now greeted (finally) with the Tiki statue, perched on top of the shrunken water feature.
Now, just so I am completely honest in my posting, I am going to come right out and say that I love the new lobby. The previous version was nice too, but for me, the openness of this lobby, coupled with the Tiki statue, new sitting areas with the brighter colors and the overhead lights looks fantastic. And for the record, I did stay here when the fountain was still standing in all of its glory so I can at least make the comparison. But admittedly, it is without any nostalgia to influence my perception or opinion. I truly do understand how people can get attached to a certain look or feeling that a certain part of WDW will give them. I expect that this will happen to me in the future, but as of right now, all of this newness and change is something that I am enjoying.
Unfortunately, I did not take any photos of the room itself. I figured that there are much better photos on this site, as well as numerous other sites online, that one can get a sense of what it looked like. I assume that each DVC deluxe studio is pretty much the same. The room was clean with one exception; there were several Cheerios tucked under the legs of the small table in the room. Other than that, everything was as I expected it to be. The one thing that I will add is that I like the new color scheme of the DVC deluxe studios. The bright oranges and reds really pop and it gives the DVC longhouses a much different feel than those of the actual resort itself. Also, having two complete separate bathrooms was a nice touch. And adding in the pull out bed with the Stitch theming makes this room very spacious and accommodating for a family of 5.
Unfortunately, we could not hang around to enjoy the room as we had a 6:00 PM reservation for dinner at the Plaza restaurant. Because we were down to 15 minutes to go until we had to be there, unpacking was held off until later, so it was off to the monorail. As I am not as detail oriented as others on this site, I will openly admit that I cannot remember which color monorail it was. Rather, I will highlight the fact that it had that new carpeting in it so I suppose that was a plus. After a quick stop at the Grand Flo, it was off to the Magic Kingdom. Luckily it was not a mad rush to get in at this time so the bag check and entrance queues were non-existent. The weather was almost perfect as it was still warm, but the sun was low and there was a slight but constant breeze. I would almost venture to guess that it was the exact type of weather that most people move to Florida for as there was also no humidity.
This was the first time that we ever ate at this location and we enjoyed it. This is not a restaurant that people line up to get into, and the prices and food quality reflect that. It was, however, very good and at an affordable cost. I got a grilled chicken sandwich that was very tasty and the fries were thickly cut and very good. Everyone enjoyed it very much, including the children, which is always a ‘win’ when we are able to accomplish that. Some of the palates that travel with me and my wife tend to be narrow-minded at times.
After dinner, it was off to the Seven Dwarf Mine Train in (New) Fantasyland, our first fast pass. I know that there has been consternation over this ride - not long enough, not enough dark ride scenes, etc. - but I love it. It is a great family coaster and a good stepping stone in between The Barnstormer and Big Thunder Mountain, with the added bonus of having some of the most impressive AAs in all of Orlando. The projected face AAs of the dwarfs are remarkable to me and really give the impression that these are indeed figures that have jumped right off of the animator’s drawing table. I will also say that riding that right after the sun has set just adds to the experience, creating (to me) more depth to the forest as you zoom through the trees.
After exiting the Seven Dwarf Mine Train, we took a stroll through Bell’s Village and past the Journey of the Little Mermaid. Again, I enjoy this part of the park at night more so than during the day as it creates a bit of a haunting quality to each area that builds upon the fantasy theme. We then quickly took a spin on the TTA People Mover in Tomorrowland as it is my daughter’s absolute favorite ride in the Magic Kingdom. The one thing that interested me is that you could see the indoor dark sections of this ride way better than during the day. The inside of Space Mountain was much clearer as you skirted through that section of track.
Following this quick and unexpected trip into Tomorrowland, we went to the Plaza Ice Cream Parlor on Main Street as the young ones were begging for dessert. Due to coincidental timing, we arrived at the parlor right as the Main Street Electrical Parade was rolling down Main Street USA. As a result of this impeccable timing, there was no line for ice cream, so we darted in and came out soon after with an order for five. The good thing was that due to the decrease in temperature, it really was not melting that fast so it could be consumed with the idea of enjoyment with no need for expediency.
Along with my knowingly controversial approval of the new Poly lobby, the next controversial move that I made was to get fast passes for Wishes. This is an act of heresy to some people, but I will tell you that being able to sit with an unobstructed view of the castle while enjoying ice cream without worrying about being bumped into, or having to lean over to dodge iPads was great. It was probably one of the best viewing experiences we have had as a family. We saw the entire projection show as well as Wishes itself. Aside from the experience, I will go on to say that I think that the Hub garden areas are beautiful and the artificial turf that you sit on was not hot at all.
After the show we made our way back down Main Street and out to the monorail station. It was back to the Poly to unpack and settle in for the next three days. I promise to have more photos as this particular trip unfolds. Also, this is my first attempt at a trip report so I will hopefully improve as time goes by.
Day One
So we flew out of Philadelphia on Frontier Airlines on Thursday, May 7th, at around 2:35 PM. I don’t know if it was because it was early afternoon on a Friday but this was one of the easiest experiences we had going through security and getting to our gate. It was myself, wife and 3 kids (D14, S12, S08) and we are DVC members and love WDW so we have been going down on trips at multiple times on an annual basis now. As I am new to the trip report scene, I will preface this report by stating that my first time to WDW ever was in 2009 and I am, as of 2015, 45 years of age. It was also my wife’s first trip as well, so we are young enough in our WDW experience that nothing is stale for us and we don’t have decades of experience from the 70’s through the 90’s that tarnishes the satisfaction we get out of traveling here.
That being said, we arrived at the Orlando airport on time. We only had two carry on bags for this trip (with the kids each having their own small packs for their Nintendo DS, games, and sleeping aids - blanket, stuffed animal). Again, no issues getting off of the plane and getting on the monorail, the first real ride after landing in Orlando. Following this is the ridiculously long walk to the check in at Magical Express. Of course we let our kids scan their bands to start us on our journey, and the 8 year old never turns down a chance to do this. At this moment, I will take the time to say that we never had one single issue with our bands on this trip…not one. We even did the advance check in for our DVC room without a stop at the front desk and the bands got us in with no problem. This is a gamble that WDW is taking with this because, for example, we were in Pago Pago. Had our bands not worked, it is not a short walk back to the Grand Ceremonial House to get something like this fixed.
As stated previously, we are DVC members and our home resort is the Villas at the Grand Floridian (see how new we are). However, due to the launch of DVC at the Polynesian Village, we decided to book a short Mother’s Day trip here. Of course, on our Magical Express ride, we stopped at Fort Wilderness, Wilderness Lodge and The Contemporary before arriving at the Polynesian Village. I don’t complain though because it is included in the price, and I won’t complain about not having to rent a car for the trip or take a taxi as this is an additional cost to what I am already paying for (which I assume includes the ‘free’ WDW transportation).
Anyway, we arrived at the newly refurbished Polynesian Village. I must say that the new entrance looks very nice with the rock work that acts as the backdrop for the new sign. When we were dropped off, we picked up our carry-on bags and proceeded into the new lobby. Now that the construction walls have been removed, the new water areas on either side of the walkway that leads into the main lobby of the Grand Ceremonial House looked great.
Upon entering the lobby, you are now greeted (finally) with the Tiki statue, perched on top of the shrunken water feature.
Now, just so I am completely honest in my posting, I am going to come right out and say that I love the new lobby. The previous version was nice too, but for me, the openness of this lobby, coupled with the Tiki statue, new sitting areas with the brighter colors and the overhead lights looks fantastic. And for the record, I did stay here when the fountain was still standing in all of its glory so I can at least make the comparison. But admittedly, it is without any nostalgia to influence my perception or opinion. I truly do understand how people can get attached to a certain look or feeling that a certain part of WDW will give them. I expect that this will happen to me in the future, but as of right now, all of this newness and change is something that I am enjoying.
Unfortunately, I did not take any photos of the room itself. I figured that there are much better photos on this site, as well as numerous other sites online, that one can get a sense of what it looked like. I assume that each DVC deluxe studio is pretty much the same. The room was clean with one exception; there were several Cheerios tucked under the legs of the small table in the room. Other than that, everything was as I expected it to be. The one thing that I will add is that I like the new color scheme of the DVC deluxe studios. The bright oranges and reds really pop and it gives the DVC longhouses a much different feel than those of the actual resort itself. Also, having two complete separate bathrooms was a nice touch. And adding in the pull out bed with the Stitch theming makes this room very spacious and accommodating for a family of 5.
Unfortunately, we could not hang around to enjoy the room as we had a 6:00 PM reservation for dinner at the Plaza restaurant. Because we were down to 15 minutes to go until we had to be there, unpacking was held off until later, so it was off to the monorail. As I am not as detail oriented as others on this site, I will openly admit that I cannot remember which color monorail it was. Rather, I will highlight the fact that it had that new carpeting in it so I suppose that was a plus. After a quick stop at the Grand Flo, it was off to the Magic Kingdom. Luckily it was not a mad rush to get in at this time so the bag check and entrance queues were non-existent. The weather was almost perfect as it was still warm, but the sun was low and there was a slight but constant breeze. I would almost venture to guess that it was the exact type of weather that most people move to Florida for as there was also no humidity.
This was the first time that we ever ate at this location and we enjoyed it. This is not a restaurant that people line up to get into, and the prices and food quality reflect that. It was, however, very good and at an affordable cost. I got a grilled chicken sandwich that was very tasty and the fries were thickly cut and very good. Everyone enjoyed it very much, including the children, which is always a ‘win’ when we are able to accomplish that. Some of the palates that travel with me and my wife tend to be narrow-minded at times.
After dinner, it was off to the Seven Dwarf Mine Train in (New) Fantasyland, our first fast pass. I know that there has been consternation over this ride - not long enough, not enough dark ride scenes, etc. - but I love it. It is a great family coaster and a good stepping stone in between The Barnstormer and Big Thunder Mountain, with the added bonus of having some of the most impressive AAs in all of Orlando. The projected face AAs of the dwarfs are remarkable to me and really give the impression that these are indeed figures that have jumped right off of the animator’s drawing table. I will also say that riding that right after the sun has set just adds to the experience, creating (to me) more depth to the forest as you zoom through the trees.
After exiting the Seven Dwarf Mine Train, we took a stroll through Bell’s Village and past the Journey of the Little Mermaid. Again, I enjoy this part of the park at night more so than during the day as it creates a bit of a haunting quality to each area that builds upon the fantasy theme. We then quickly took a spin on the TTA People Mover in Tomorrowland as it is my daughter’s absolute favorite ride in the Magic Kingdom. The one thing that interested me is that you could see the indoor dark sections of this ride way better than during the day. The inside of Space Mountain was much clearer as you skirted through that section of track.
Following this quick and unexpected trip into Tomorrowland, we went to the Plaza Ice Cream Parlor on Main Street as the young ones were begging for dessert. Due to coincidental timing, we arrived at the parlor right as the Main Street Electrical Parade was rolling down Main Street USA. As a result of this impeccable timing, there was no line for ice cream, so we darted in and came out soon after with an order for five. The good thing was that due to the decrease in temperature, it really was not melting that fast so it could be consumed with the idea of enjoyment with no need for expediency.
Along with my knowingly controversial approval of the new Poly lobby, the next controversial move that I made was to get fast passes for Wishes. This is an act of heresy to some people, but I will tell you that being able to sit with an unobstructed view of the castle while enjoying ice cream without worrying about being bumped into, or having to lean over to dodge iPads was great. It was probably one of the best viewing experiences we have had as a family. We saw the entire projection show as well as Wishes itself. Aside from the experience, I will go on to say that I think that the Hub garden areas are beautiful and the artificial turf that you sit on was not hot at all.
After the show we made our way back down Main Street and out to the monorail station. It was back to the Poly to unpack and settle in for the next three days. I promise to have more photos as this particular trip unfolds. Also, this is my first attempt at a trip report so I will hopefully improve as time goes by.
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