Standard View Polynesian vs. Water View Beach Club

[ashaway12]

Good afternoon, I was previously debating Beach Club vs. Wilderness Lodge and decided on Beach Club but am now questioning whether or not we should consider the Polynesian. For the price of a water view room at Beach Club we could do a Standard View room at Polynesian. Looking at the TouringPlans room selector tool the Standard view room views don't look terrible at the Polynesian. We have never stayed at either hotel, both previous visits were to the Wilderness Lodge. It will be me, my wife, my 9 year old daughter and my 6 year old daughter. The plan is a 6 night stay, two days at MK, one day at Epcot, and one day at HS. I understand the pros for Beach Club are the pool, proximity to Epcot and to Hollywood Studios. For some reason though something is giving me pause. I like the way the new updated rooms at Poly look, I like the theming of the Poly better, and the food options look a little better. Does anyone that has stayed at both have any thoughts? The Poly pool looks nice but maybe not as good as the Beach Club?

 

[Brett Wyman]

Sounds like you weighed the options already and are leaning Poly.

We've stayed both multiple times(DVC though no BC water view) and for us Poly wins hands down with the exception of walking into Epcot and HS, which is actually huge these days(We stayed BCV last Feb for that exact reason).

I think we prefer the Poly pools over SAB, but we are crazy like that.

 

[JoJoGirl]

Be careful using the Touring Plans room selector for the Poly for the next couple of years. It will become outdated very quickly now that construction of the new DVC tower is starting where Luau Cove used to be. The standard view rooms in Aotearoa, Fiji, and Tuvalu will be very close to the construction site, and many will face it. There should still be some great standard views in Rarotonga, Niue, and the monorail side of Aotearoa, if you want to request those.

 

[Mynamewastaken]

Poly no question!

 

[Disneylover99]

I’d choose standard at Poly over water view Beach Club.
I love standard Poly. And my kids prefer Poly pools over SAB.

The best part about the BC was walking to Epcot every morning for breakfast at Les Halles, but with the park reservation system, that option is gone.

I would be a bit leery of staying at the Poly though during construction.

 

[SleeplessInTO]

Honestly I love both. Have a split stay at Poly & Beach Club on the books. But I also like the Poly pools better than the ones at Beach Club, and same with the food. So I vote Poly but you really can’t go wrong with either one.

 

[Karebear]

My vote goes to the BC (well actually YC is my favorite). I love how you can walk to the 2 parks and since you are kind of in the middle of Disney, the bus rides to both AK and MK don't take too long. I prefer the pool at BC, the Poly pool is too small and crowded in my opinion. Yes they have the quiet pool at the Poly, but my kids always wanted to be at the main pool with the slide. The monorail was nice, but the bus service to AK and HS from the Poly stunk (at least for us) and I have stayed there 3X. You will have a wonderful time no matter which resort, but I would pick BC.

 

[JAMIESMITH]

I haven't stayed at BC or YC, but I have stayed at BWI and Poly. The Poly has been our absolute favorite resort, no contest!

 

[Anthony1971]

Poly and wilderness lodge are by far the best themed resorts on Disney property. I can include AKL here but truthfully that is more of a destination resort then themed. If you like wilderness lodge you will like Poly. BC, YC, BW have an easy walk to Epcot but Not near the attractions open in the morning and an ok walk to HS. Poly has one of the best slides on property as it is fast and part covered the only maybe better slide is at BW. To compare pools can BC can top being able to be in the pool have a great view of the MK fireworks with music piped in and yea dimmed lights? But I guess a small lazy river is nice as well Don’t forget to rent a tube but you can walk around it as well if you prefer and use your imagination as you can hear the EPCT fireworks.

 

[disny_luvr]

We have stayed at both resorts and love them both. We like the location and pool at the BC more, but like the rooms and food options at the Poly more. The new Poly rooms are amazing; the BC rooms are no where near as nice as the Poly rooms. We stayed in a standard view room at the Poly last summer and it was great! Unlike the BC, most of the standard view rooms at the Poly are nice views. You cannot go wrong with either resort.

 

[Jacq7414]

My daughter is 6 and we went to Disney in April. She still talks about the Poly and their Moana rooms. We did a Poly/BC split when we went and although I liked the convenience of walking to Epcot, I liked the Polynesian so much more as a resort. I know everyone raves about stormalong bay but I did really like the Poly pool and felt that it was better suited for my 6 year old. So I’d honestly go for the Poly over BC. Even if it’s a standard room.

ETA: I also did like the slide at Poly better. The SAB slide hurt my butt. I felt like their were ridges in it or something . For the same price though, I’d 1000% stay at the Poly over BC. The only reason I’d stay at BC again is the walk to Epcot. I loved the world showcase entrance. But the bus to the MK was absolutely awful when we went to BC. We waited forever for it

 

[RoseGold]

I would be concerned about the Poly Tower construction. It doesn't have dates, but it is obviously starting.

I was there last week and it looked like they were installing utilites to a whole neighborhood at the golf course across the street. Massive in scale. They have to redo the street and the parking lot and build a whole giant tower. It's a lot. It might even block access to GF.

The food options are significantly better, but Tonga Toast isn't worth staying in a construction zone to me. There are several cash longhouses that would be right on this construction. The DVC rooms are waaaay on the other side, so I hope at least those will be OK.

 

[bjck99]

So we just did a split stay in March, YC/Poly, and we’ve stayed at the BC in the past. We also had a standard view at the Poly, and we stayed in Rarotonga. Loved staying in Rarotonga but aside from that, I know I’m in the minority here, but we didn’t love Poly enough to go back. Transportation is great with the monorail, but we did not love the food at the Poly. I know, I know, we are in the minority, but our meal at Kona was AWFUL and Captain Cooks is just ok. The only saving grace for us was the ease of getting Dole Whips . The pool was crazy crowded too at the Poly, but I know stormalong bay can be too. Really though, you can’t go wrong with either. Poly is hard to get reservations for, so if you want to try it out, then go for it.

 

[Robber Baron]

We have never stayed at either hotel, both previous visits were to the Wilderness Lodge.

You have stayed at WL, so you either had a patio or balcony.

Neither Poly or Beach Club can guarantee a balcony.

All rooms at Yacht Club have a balcony.

 

[FSU Girl]

I personally didn’t like staying at Poly. I don’t like that you have to leave the main building to get to your room so if you’re hungry and it’s pouring rain there’s no choice but to get wet. I’ve stayed many times at Beach Club and love how close Epcot is and hollywood studios is easy to get to also.

 

[Robber Baron]

I personally didn’t like staying at Poly. I don’t like that you have to leave the main building to get to your room so if you’re hungry and it’s pouring rain there’s no choice but to get wet. I’ve stayed many times at Beach Club and love how close Epcot is and hollywood studios is easy to get to also.

I know. I’ve stayed at Poly a few times but find absolutely nothing deluxe about having to go through the rain to get to the lobby.

 

[cjlong88]

With visiting MK twice and EPCOT once, I think the Poly would be the better option from the perspective of transportation. You could walk to TTC to take the monorail to EPCOT and take the monorail or boat to MK. That means you only need to take the bus for HS. Getting back to your hotel from MK quickly is the best -- I always seem to feel the most exhausted after a visit to MK.

I will say, we visited the Poly twice because I definitely want to stay there someday with my sister and two nieces. We grabbed some dinner and explored the grounds / main lobby. It was okay. I wasn't as in love with it as I thought I would be compared to visiting other resorts (i.e. AKL or CSR).

For me, Yacht & Beach Club has the one of the most relaxing vibes of any of the resorts I've stayed. A morning stroll on the Boardwalk...it's so peaceful and beautiful. The dining options are also plentiful with the Swan & Dolphin and the Boardwalk Area right there, steps away.

All of this is purely personal taste, of course.

 

[Dave006]

All rooms at Yacht Club have a balcony.

Not exactly. YC room 5163 (CL room) does not have a balcony just a wall where the balcony would normally be placed due to the roof-line / wall facade.

On the positive side it does have 3 large windows on the Gazebo side of the building and a slightly longer hallway entrance into the room.

Dave