My head is spinning

[zoo19]

As you can tell I am a newbie here and I have lurked for awhile to start getting information for our trip next year and I thought I would have enough time to get to know everyone before we went. My husband saw the info on the Fairytale Vaction Package and said we should go now.

Today I booked us and our daughter (5), and niece (9) at the Poly for August. I have been looking at tikiman's site and a couple of others and I have just confused myself even more. I tried to find an old thread here to try to help me pick out which longhouse to stay at.

Currently we are booked at a garden view but may upgrade to lagoon just depending on what I find. Does anyone have a suggestion on which one they prefer to stay at ? Any help would be appreciated as I'm going crazy just trying to get PS reservations, kennel for the dog, etc. etc.

 

[Nana]

Welcome, I kind of lurk too and certainly don't consider myself an expert. I don't know what you have researched but "The Unofficial Guide to Walt Disney World" is a book that does a great job telling you about good rooms and not- so- good rooms at the different resorts. The newest edition has the most detail. Other than that, I have never stayed at the Poly but it sounds fantastic. Maybe you will hear from others who have actually stayed there. Good luck and have a great trip. We also took advantage of the Fairytale package but we aren't going until Sept. We can't wait.

 

[epcotisbest]

Hi,
The Poly is a great place. One of our favorite things to do there is take the walkway over to the GF during the evenings. It makes for a nice relaxing stroll and the GF is amazing. Also,the Poly is a great place to view the Floating Electrical Parade, and see the Fireworks over the castle. The best viewing spot for fireworks is from the boat dock.
Just about everything you could want to know about the poly can be found at the link below.

Also, the tip about the unofficial guide is good. It is probably the best book out there to help plan a trip.

Have a wonderful trip, and if I could offer one piece of advice, relax. Overplanning can cause headaches. Yes, plan out your trip, but don't get stressed over it. You can't do everything, so don't even try. Pick out the highlights and try to do those, but schedule in some leisure time and have fun. More tips available if you are interested.
Ricky

Poly info.

 

[MouseMadness]

Well, I'm certainly no expert... I'm only planning my 6th trip! :lol: I've got a lot of catching up to do to reach the level of expertise you'll find in some of the others who post here. However, three of our visits we stayed at Poly, and two were at GF. Poly is awesome! I love everything about it... the theming, the layout, the pools, just everything. We have been lucky enough to have a lagoon view each time we stayed, and the last two trips we were on the ground level, which meant we could walk right out the back door to the beach. AND (and your girls would love this) the little ducks and even a rabbit come right up to your door if you bribe them!!

 

[zoo19]

Thanks for the info and suggestions. I'm now in the process of trying to secure PS reservations for Cinderella breakfast and of course they are full. I expected that but I thought I would give it a try on the off chance someone cancelled.

The person I reached suggested going to 1900 Park Fair for the Character dinner and that Cinderella and the Fairy Godmother are two of the characters that appear there. I did make a reservation and we'll see what I decide in the next few days.

Once I get some of this planned out I will be able to relax. I didn't expect to make all these calls and reservations so quickly.

Counting down the days and taking a deep breath to relax.
45 more days!

 

[jordanyosh]

Have fun

Check out this website http://wdwig.com. They have a ton of info including recent complete menus. We had made PS for Citricos and then took a look at a recent menu and decided it was too limiting for our large group (13 family and friends converging on WDW in Sept).

Everyone is going to tell you their favorite Character Meal. Truth is Disney generally does a great job at all their Character Meals. We have been to a few Character Meals and always had several Characters come over to our table and we have been able to take pictures. Our personal favorite is the Character Buffet Breakfast at the Animal Kingdom at Restaurantasaurus(spelling?). And the servers were hilarious as well.

Good luck at making PS. if you have any other restaurant questions or any others let all of us here know.

 

[zoo19]

Thank you sooo much !!!! I love that site !!! It really helps me because my daughter and husband are very picky eaters and I can somewhat plan on where we might want to eat.

I did notice most places have the standard childs menus which will make that easy so now I only have to worry about my hubby. Until I stumble across this site I didn't know how many Disney sites there are and people who are willing to help you.

Thank you to all

:sohappy: :sohappy: :sohappy:

 

[jordanyosh]

Just another tidbit

Some of the restaurants have seasonal menus and they change. I have been to the Flying Fish 5 times and I think their menu was different every time. A few items were the same, but many items were different. So just as a caution when checking out menus and making plans, the menus listed may not be exactly the same when you get there.

You will find that most folks here want to make your experience at WDW the best. So don't be afraid to ask more questions. Chances are someone will know the answers or have an opinion.

 

[Slinky Dog]

Hi and welcome to the boards :wave:

We've stayed at the Poly nine times now and will be returning for our tenth time next year. We absolutely love it!

As for the lagoon or garden views, if you can stretch to the lagoon view, do it, it's well worth it, especially for the view across Seven Seas Lagoon to the Magic Kingdom.

We prefer staying in a longhouse closer to the Transportation and Ticket Centre (I believe the kennels are there too? Correct me if I'm wrong). Staying closer to the TTC means you have easy access to the Epcot monorail and plenty of buses, but you're a little further away from the Great Ceremonial House at the Poly where you'll pick up the monorail to the MK and buses to other parks - it's a nice balance for us, if you're on the other side of the resort to the TTC, it's a bit of a walk, but you're closer to the main pool (good for the little ones), marina and Great Ceremonial House, however, as we tend to eat at Epcot most nights, being closer to the TTC is convenient for returning to our rooms.

Hope some of that waffle helps! And have a wonderful, magical trip.

 

[tigsmom]

Last trip we stayed at the Poly because we couldn't get room at the WL. We stayed at Rappa Nui (? sp). It was the closest to the TTC..but far from the Ceremanial house where all the restaurants and shops are located. My oldest got turned around a few times on the paths back and forth in the dark (and early morning). It was nice to see the floating parade from the beach and the kids loved the water slide, but the pool was only 3 ft deep which isn't too good when you are tall.

We are also doing the Fairy Tale pkg in August, but are going back to the WL.

 

[RPMdfw]

Originally posted by zoo19
Thanks for the info and suggestions. I'm now in the process of trying to secure PS reservations for Cinderella breakfast and of course they are full. I expected that but I thought I would give it a try on the off chance someone cancelled.

If you can't get the PS for Cindy's Royal Table, I highly recommend having breakfast with Pooh and Friends at the Crystal Palace restaurant instead. We ate there two weeks ago. It was my first character meal ever (I'm 34 going on 6) and I loved it! The buffet was great, and there's definitely something for everyone.

Have fun!

 

[Stefffe]

we...also...are going to take advantage of the fairytale package... we had planned originally to go in the late spring of next year...but this deal is just too good to pass up. we plan to be there in October...

this is my first trip to WDW as a mommy....so im trying to make all the right plans and book all the right shows....it can definatly get un nerving...thankfully ive let her dad be responsibibble for most of the PS "stuff" and all i really have to do is prepare.

any suggestions on a first trip with a kiddo would be appreciated...


WDW bound in October...

~stefffe~

PS...ill stop posting for the day

 

[zoo19]

How old is your child and is it a boy or girl? I don't know a lot yet but that might help someone give you some good info.

 

[Stefffe]

ahhh my little girl is 5...will be 6 by the time we get to WDW...she has no idea we are going so soon...going to give her a pair of mouse ears as a birthday gift and see if she figures it out *s*



WDW bound in Oct...


~stefffe~

 

[zoo19]

We're going the first week in August and my daughter is 5 and will be 6 in August. I'm not sure what to recommend now but when we return I will let you know some of the things that she loved and worked well.

 

[Stefffe]

thank you sooooo much

any advice i can get from one her age would be a great help indeed

~stefffe~