Disney's Polynesian Resort

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New Polynesian Resort's logo

Old Polynesian Resort's logo

Disney's Polynesian Resort is a Disney-owned Deluxe resort located at Walt Disney World in Lake Buena Vista, Florida that began operation on October 1, 1971. The resort has a South Pacific and Hawaiian theme. It was originally called Disney's Polynesian Village, but was changed to its current name after its expansion in 1985.

The resort originally opened with 492 rooms. The resort was designed by Welton Becket and Associates of Santa Monica, California and WED Enterprises and constructed by US Steel Realty Development. The rooms were constructed fully off-site and each room weighed 8.5 tons. The rooms were slid into place just like the Contemporary Resort and the Court of Flags Resort which were also built by US Steel.

In 1978, a new longhouse (Oahu) opened (later called Tokelau). and gave the resort a new total of 634 rooms. The resort's last major expansion came in 1985 which brought the room total to 853. This total was then reduced to 847 when 6 of the rooms were removed to add the concierge lounge onto the end of Hawaii longhouse. Just recently, the resort embarked upon renovations to the whole resort. These new renovations to the rooms will be complete by December 2006 with some ongoing changes going into 2007.

1 Resort facts
2 Resort Basics
3 Dining
4 Shopping
5 Recreation
6 Longhouses
7 External links
8 References

[edit] Resort facts

Category: Deluxe
Theme: South Pacific
Location: Magic Kingdom Area Resorts
Opened: October 1, 1971
Areas: Rarotonga, Niue, Samoa, Hawaii, Tuvalu, Fiji, Aotearoa, Tonga, Tokelau, Tahiti, and Rapa Nui
Rooms: 847

[edit] Resort Basics

The Polynesian Resort is located on the southern shore of the Seven Seas Lagoon, south of the Magic Kingdom and just west of the Transportation and Ticket Center. The resort is on the Magic Kingdom monorail loop. Transportation to the Magic Kingdom is also available via boat, and all other Walt Disney World resort locations are reached via bus. There is also a lighted walkway connecting the Polynesian Resort to the Ticket and Transportation Center.

Disney's Polynesian Resort

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The resort has 847 guest rooms, located in a number of two and three story buildings located on site. None of the guest room buildings, called longhouses, are physically connected, though sidewalks and paths link all of the buildings together. The Great Ceremonial House is the central nexus of the resort, and contains several restaurants, gift shops, and resort check-in. The monorail is accessed on the second floor of the Great Ceremonial House.

Guest services sells tickets to all theme parks and attractions. Theme park tickets can be integrated with your room key, along with a credit card number for charging privileges at Walt Disney World. Valet parking is available, along with self-serve parking.

[edit] Dining

Polynesian Resort, Ohana

The Polynesian Resort has one major restaurant, one minor restaurant, and a snack bar. The major restaurant, ’Ohana, is a popular family-oriented destination at the resort, serving a variety of open-flame grilled meats and desserts. The food is served family-style at the table, and is all-you-can-eat. ’Ohana is located on the second floor of the Great Ceremonial House. It is also the site of the 'Ohana "Best Friends Breakfast", where Lilo and Stich, Mickey, and Pluto will interact with you right at your table.

Also located on the second floor of the Great Ceremonial House is Kona Cafè, featuring lighter entrees for breakfast, lunch, and dinner. Kona Cafè is well-known for its Tonga Toast, a deep-fried banana-stuffed French toast, a popular breakfast item.

Polynesian Resort, Kona Cafe

On the first floor of the Great Ceremonial House, one will find Captain Cook's Snack Company, a 24-hour snack bar. Recently refurbished, Captain Cook's now offers Tonga Toast and Dole Whips, two Disney World favorites. Samoa Snacks is available on the second floor and offers simple snacks.

A musical performance called the Spirit of Aloha Dinner Show is performed nightly at the Polynesian. The food is all-you-can-eat, and is served family style. Authentic Polynesian dancing is featured, and reservations are required.

While not located at the resort itself, a number of other restaurants are located at Disney's Grand Floridian Resort and Disney's Contemporary Resort, which are quickly accessible via the Resort-loop monorail.

[edit] Shopping

There are two main shopping areas located at the resort. On the first floor, the "BouTiki" shop (new for 2006) has Polynesian themed gifts, clothing, and sundries. Wyland Galleries, in a new location, has collectibles. The second floor houses "Trader Jack's" (up-scale souvenirs and sundries), and is connected to "Samoa Snacks," a quick-service meal establishment.

[edit] Recreation

Polynesian Resort's Pool

The Polynesian Resort features two swimming pools; the extensively themed Nanae pool with its Volcano waterslide and "lava" waterfall, and the unthemed "quiet" pool. The resort's Nanae pool area was completely redone and re-opened in March 2001. Both pools are heated, and Nanea even features Polynesian music played through underwater speakers. The Nanea pool can be accessed with a wheelchair due to the pool sloping down like a beach on the on side. Adjacent to Nanae, a children's water playground with inground waterjets attracts kids of all ages.

There is a marina where guests can rent a variety of personal watercraft for use on the Seven Seas Lagoon. There are no health club facilities located on site, but the health club at Grand Floridian is a short walk away, and free to guests of the Polynesian. Professional caliber tennis facilities also are available at the Grand Floridian. "The Neverland Club", a club specially designed for kids, offers entertainment, crafts, meals, a babysitting service, and more. It is open from 4:00 p.m. until midnight, and accepts toilet-trained children ages 4 and up.

There is a large expanse of beach fronting the Seven Seas Lagoon, though swimming is not permitted in the water. A video game arcade is also available for children. Volleyball courts are available, and guests may rent fishing gear for catch-and-release fishing only. Boats can be rented for a fee or if you have the premium package plan it is included.

Note: At one time swimming was encouraged and permitted in the Seven Seas Lagoon. In the Polynesian's portion of the lagoon sits remainders of a wave machine that was used for a short time when the resort first opened. The wave machine was scrapped when the beach became severely eroded and swimming was scrapped altogether in 1994.

[edit] Longhouses

Map of the Polynesian's longhouses, as of April 2006

The resort design and layout consists of 11 room buildings, called longhouses, spread throughout the property. The resort originally opened with 8 longhouses, Bali Hai, Bora Bora, Fiji, Hawaii, Maui, Samoa, Tahiti and Tonga. In 1978, the Oahu longhouse was added and the Maui longhouse became the Maori longhouse. The Moorea and Pago Pago longhouses were added in 1985. In 1999, 10 of the 11 longhouses, excluding Fiji, were renamed: Bali Hai became Tonga; Bora Bora became Niue; Hawaii became Samoa; Maori became Rarotonga; Moorea became Tahiti; Oahu became Tokelau; Pago Pago became Rapa Nui; Samoa became Tuvalu; Tahiti became Aotearoa and Tonga became Hawaii.