Day 3 - On Sunday, I got up at 6:30 and went for a jog. Completed 2 laps around the resort, including the path connecting the Poly and GF. It was so peaceful around the resort. There were some staff cleaning the pool area, and a handful of guests making their way to Captain Cook's to pick up the family breakfast. This time by myself was the most relaxing 20 minutes of the trip. After the run, a shower , the rest of the family slowly crawled out of bed and we went to breakfast. We all enjoyed breakfast in the concierge lounge.
No major changes to the lounge. New carpet and fresh paint was all that I noticed. Later during the trip, I asked Chef ________ his opinion of the rehab, and he didn't seem too impressed. He did say that they upgraded the AC in the entire building, but that the kitchen in the lounge was still not cool enough for him.
At 9:30 we took the bus to MGM. The park was already pretty busy, it was ABC Soap Weekend. We headed to HTH and got Fastpasses (1 hour wait), and then got in line (25 minute wait). We then went over to R+R Coaster, and Stand-by was only 10 minutes. We did this twice. After that, we walked up towards Indiana Jones, and decided to stay for the next show, starting in 30 minutes. We got front row seats, but I did not get selected to be an extra (I did last year). The kids wanted me to do it, but I wasn't really into it.
The show was great, with some new stunts added since last year. We walked around a bit, the kids grabbed lunch - pizza, fries and drinks. We shopped for pins, DS8 has started a collection. The 2 oldest wanted to do R+R once more, and then head back to the hotel to swim and ride the boats. DS8 and I walked around a bit and he got a temporary tatoo. It seemed like on every corner there was a soap star surrounded by fans looking for autographs. Some of the stars were setup at tables doing Q+A. We all met up at 2:30 and headed back to the Poly.
Back at the Poly, the kids swam and rode the speed boats. We decided to go to Downtown Disney, the kids wanted to hang out at Disney Quest. We left right at 5:00, so we didn't get to enjoy the concierge evening service. They prepared what I call "Lazy Mans lasagna", which was pasta, hamburg, sauce, and cheese. It looke pretty good, but we saved our appetite for Planet Hollywood. I was not able to get a PS on the same day, so the Poly front desk gave me a VIP pass, which got us a table immediately. There was only a 15 minute wait anyhow. The food was good, pricey. and the service was excellent. Off to Disney Quest we went. My kids were in heaven - unlimited video games without asking Mom or Dad for money. It was very crowded, I think due to the weather, which was off and on showers. We let the kids play for almost 3 hours, with my wife and I taking turns to go outside for a break. I enjoyed the breaks, there was a Blues band playing outside right across the street at the House of Blues. We stopped for ice cream on the way back to catch our bus. Returned to the Poly around 10:00 pm.
Day 4 - Monday - Breakfast in the lounge at 8:00 am. It was very crowded, and we had to wait for a table. We walked over to the TTC and got the Epcot monorail. We did stand-by and Fastpass for Test Track. We then did stand-by for Mission Space (25 minutes). None of us were too impressed with this new atttraction. A lot of people didn't feel very well after the ride due to all of the spinning. Disney gives you ample warning before you get on the ride. We then headed off to the World Showcase, to enjoy the shops and Food and Wine Festival. At each country, they had a Kids Zone, where the kids could draw and color pictures, and get their flower stamped at each country. A prize was given for any kid who had the stamps of all the countries. DS8 had 8 out of 12?? We took our time browsing, my wife let me have lunch at Beirgatten (Germany). She and the kids gag at the smell of saurkrout. The 2 oldest went back to the Poly, ate, and went to Disney Quest. My wife and DS8 took our time walking thru the Showcase, and then returned to the hotel.
None of us were interested in the lounge food that night (sushi, noodles and shrimp), so they ate at Captain Cooks.
It was raining again that night, off and on, and since everything closes at 7:00 (except Epcot), we decided to hang around the hotel. DS8 and DS14 swam at the volcano pool for a couple of hours. DS15 decided to watch a movie in the room, and wife and I sat out by the pool with the kids and had a few drinks. We were barely able to see the Wishes fireworks at MK from the beach, due to clouds and fog.
We all got to bed early to get a good start the next day, our last full day.
__________________
07/78 Offsite
05/96 Polynesian Garden View
05/02 Polynesian Lagoon View Concierge
11/03 Polynesian Lagoon View Concierge
No major changes to the lounge. New carpet and fresh paint was all that I noticed. Later during the trip, I asked Chef ________ his opinion of the rehab, and he didn't seem too impressed. He did say that they upgraded the AC in the entire building, but that the kitchen in the lounge was still not cool enough for him.
At 9:30 we took the bus to MGM. The park was already pretty busy, it was ABC Soap Weekend. We headed to HTH and got Fastpasses (1 hour wait), and then got in line (25 minute wait). We then went over to R+R Coaster, and Stand-by was only 10 minutes. We did this twice. After that, we walked up towards Indiana Jones, and decided to stay for the next show, starting in 30 minutes. We got front row seats, but I did not get selected to be an extra (I did last year). The kids wanted me to do it, but I wasn't really into it.
The show was great, with some new stunts added since last year. We walked around a bit, the kids grabbed lunch - pizza, fries and drinks. We shopped for pins, DS8 has started a collection. The 2 oldest wanted to do R+R once more, and then head back to the hotel to swim and ride the boats. DS8 and I walked around a bit and he got a temporary tatoo. It seemed like on every corner there was a soap star surrounded by fans looking for autographs. Some of the stars were setup at tables doing Q+A. We all met up at 2:30 and headed back to the Poly.
Back at the Poly, the kids swam and rode the speed boats. We decided to go to Downtown Disney, the kids wanted to hang out at Disney Quest. We left right at 5:00, so we didn't get to enjoy the concierge evening service. They prepared what I call "Lazy Mans lasagna", which was pasta, hamburg, sauce, and cheese. It looke pretty good, but we saved our appetite for Planet Hollywood. I was not able to get a PS on the same day, so the Poly front desk gave me a VIP pass, which got us a table immediately. There was only a 15 minute wait anyhow. The food was good, pricey. and the service was excellent. Off to Disney Quest we went. My kids were in heaven - unlimited video games without asking Mom or Dad for money. It was very crowded, I think due to the weather, which was off and on showers. We let the kids play for almost 3 hours, with my wife and I taking turns to go outside for a break. I enjoyed the breaks, there was a Blues band playing outside right across the street at the House of Blues. We stopped for ice cream on the way back to catch our bus. Returned to the Poly around 10:00 pm.
Day 4 - Monday - Breakfast in the lounge at 8:00 am. It was very crowded, and we had to wait for a table. We walked over to the TTC and got the Epcot monorail. We did stand-by and Fastpass for Test Track. We then did stand-by for Mission Space (25 minutes). None of us were too impressed with this new atttraction. A lot of people didn't feel very well after the ride due to all of the spinning. Disney gives you ample warning before you get on the ride. We then headed off to the World Showcase, to enjoy the shops and Food and Wine Festival. At each country, they had a Kids Zone, where the kids could draw and color pictures, and get their flower stamped at each country. A prize was given for any kid who had the stamps of all the countries. DS8 had 8 out of 12?? We took our time browsing, my wife let me have lunch at Beirgatten (Germany). She and the kids gag at the smell of saurkrout. The 2 oldest went back to the Poly, ate, and went to Disney Quest. My wife and DS8 took our time walking thru the Showcase, and then returned to the hotel.
None of us were interested in the lounge food that night (sushi, noodles and shrimp), so they ate at Captain Cooks.
It was raining again that night, off and on, and since everything closes at 7:00 (except Epcot), we decided to hang around the hotel. DS8 and DS14 swam at the volcano pool for a couple of hours. DS15 decided to watch a movie in the room, and wife and I sat out by the pool with the kids and had a few drinks. We were barely able to see the Wishes fireworks at MK from the beach, due to clouds and fog.
We all got to bed early to get a good start the next day, our last full day.
__________________
07/78 Offsite
05/96 Polynesian Garden View
05/02 Polynesian Lagoon View Concierge
11/03 Polynesian Lagoon View Concierge