Polynesian Bungalow Queation

[kateandy08096]

Hello all. I am debating on changing the last 2 nights of our stay in January from a 2bed villa at OKW to the Bungalow at Polynesian. I have tried to find recent reviews and only found some older negative reviews. Can anyone give me any tips and or reviews recently? This would be a surprise for my husbands 40th birthday. I would love to surprise him with the Bungalow and Ohana feast in our room

 

[Lynne M]

I'll move this to the DVC Resorts board, hopefully some recent bungalow guest will see this.

 

[Newsies]

Hi there!

I stayed in a Bungalow for two nights with my family back in January 2017, I had nothing but positive things to say about it. My whole family adored the experience of staying there, especially with our little porch and view of the castle/lake! Can I ask what about the Bungalows has been criticized in the negative reviews? Maybe I can help.

 

[kateandy08096]

Hi there!

I stayed in a Bungalow for two nights with my family back in January 2017, I had nothing but positive things to say about it. My whole family adored the experience of staying there, especially with our little porch and view of the castle/lake! Can I ask what about the Bungalows has been criticized in the negative reviews? Maybe I can help.

Hello there! Ive read reviews that they lack in size, the service wasnt great, house keeping etc. Honestly I think it may have been some people who think they are entitled to the world because they have a Bungalow. I just have extra points and thought it would be cool to chow down on some pot stickers watching fireworks from the hot tub

 

[Newsies]

Hello there! Ive read reviews that they lack in size, the service wasnt great, house keeping etc. Honestly I think it may have been some people who think they are entitled to the world because they have a Bungalow. I just have extra points and thought it would be cool to chow down on some pot stickers watching fireworks from the hot tub

I thought the size was pretty appropriate for the Bungalow. We were a family of four, so we had more than enough space with 2 bedrooms and 2 baths. We were only at the Bungalow for two nights, so we didn't receive housekeeping or towels-- can't comment on that unfortunately! But the service was great. Bell Service was friendly and came quickly. The Poly in general has one of the best CM teams on property! I think you'll have a great time Enjoy!

 

[Stratus22]

We Stayed in a Bungalow Oct 2017 and Loved it. It actually felt like home to be honest with you. We loved it so much that we booked it again for Next October. Full Kitchen is a big plus. It does however eat up the points but we don't mind as we only make it down to WDW once a year.

 

[Denise W]

Hello there! Ive read reviews that they lack in size, the service wasnt great, house keeping etc. Honestly I think it may have been some people who think they are entitled to the world because they have a Bungalow. I just have extra points and thought it would be cool to chow down on some pot stickers watching fireworks from the hot tub

Just so you know, they are not hot tubs at the Bungalows, they are splash pools. They are not heated.
Denise

 

[KAT4DISNEY]

I just have extra points and thought it would be cool to chow down on some pot stickers watching fireworks from the hot tub

If you like chowing down on pot stickers in cold bath water then your plan is complete.

They aren't hot tubs - they are plunge pools.

Just an FYI since it's a lot of points to spend expecting that there's a certain amenity there that isn't. It would be my big complaint about the Bungalows and one that they "corrected" with the CCV cabins. The HVAC systems in the bungalows required repair or it might have even been replacement as there were issues early on with them not cooling the bungalows so there were several legitimate reasons for complaints.

 

[Deb & Bill]

The bungalows also had plumbing issues that occurred every time you flush the toilet. Loud wooshes.

 

[MickeyWaffles]

We stayed in a bungalow in May.

It was wonderful! We were 4 adults and 2 kids. We normally have a couple more adults with us and stay in one of the grand villas somewhere, so it definitely felt smaller than we were used to for a comparable number of points. But it was worth it to try at least once.

Sitting on our deck, right on the water, watching the electrical water pageant and HEA with the the kids every night in their jammies, then off to bed. It was such a special stay for us.

You’ll see lots of feedback about the plumbing noises. I was concerned about this with two small toddlers/waking them up/etc. It was totally fine and a non issue for us. I was worried for nothing. It didn’t happen that often and was not at all as startling for us as many made it seem.

Same with the boat horns. I was concerned about this too after reading reviews on here. We LOVED hearing the horns even at night and in the morning because we love the sounds of Disney - I didn’t realize how much I loved the sound of the horns until we were staying there. They were not as loud as I thought they would be (we were on the side closer to the GCH, not super close to TTC.)

We did the Ohana feast too. It was perfect and we had leftovers the next day.

One of my favorite stays ever.

We only had one minor issue - our deck did not have hanging chairs and they couldn’t get us a set for some reason. They kind of dropped the ball on getting back to us about it and compensated us very nicely when they realized it.

 

[GoingSince1990]

I love the bungalows. The only negative is the relatively small size. They cost exactly the same in points as a VGF Grand Villa which have an extra bedroom and whose kitchen and living areas are absolutely vast by comparison.

 

[Brett Wyman]

We just returned from a 6 night stay in Bungalow 7007. Was amazing and a once in a lifetime stay for us. We are renters, not owners, and we were able to rent it for 11 dollars a point, which helped a lot.

Its a shame that guys negative Tripadvisor review is the first thing to pop up anytime anyone searches on the bungalows. If you think you are getting Ritz or Four Seasons level VIP treatment for the cost, then yeah I guess you may be disappointed. But to me this is a rental for true Disney fans (Which obviously applies to DVC owners) who wake every morning in awe of staring out over the Seven Seas Lagoon and the amazing view of the Castle, GF, and Contemporary. I never stopped being amazed over 6 nights there.

As for noise issues, yes I heard every single thing that is mentioned in peoples complaints, but we were never bothered by any of them. We are a family of 4 with a light sleeping 2 year old and he never woke up. The Electrical Water Parade is VERY VERY loud, but I feel like the rooms are well sound proofed to reduce the noise. After that the loudest thing it is the Happily Ever After grand finale which shakes the room a little, but again never woke our little ones.

We didn't receive towel service on the 5th day(do we have to request this?), but with just 4 of us it wasn't really an issue. Trash service was always prompt around noon. Everything operated as expected during our stay.

My only regret is we will probably never stay at anything of this level on property again!

 

[Deb & Bill]

We just returned from a 6 night stay in Bungalow 7007. Was amazing and a once in a lifetime stay for us. We are renters, not owners, and we were able to rent it for 11 dollars a point, which helped a lot.

Its a shame that guys negative Tripadvisor review is the first thing to pop up anytime anyone searches on the bungalows. If you think you are getting Ritz or Four Seasons level VIP treatment for the cost, then yeah I guess you may be disappointed. But to me this is a rental for true Disney fans (Which obviously applies to DVC owners) who wake every morning in awe of staring out over the Seven Seas Lagoon and the amazing view of the Castle, GF, and Contemporary. I never stopped being amazed over 6 nights there.

As for noise issues, yes I heard every single thing that is mentioned in peoples complaints, but we were never bothered by any of them. We are a family of 4 with a light sleeping 2 year old and he never woke up. The Electrical Water Parade is VERY VERY loud, but I feel like the rooms are well sound proofed to reduce the noise. After that the loudest thing it is the Happily Ever After grand finale which shakes the room a little, but again never woke our little ones.

We didn't receive towel service on the 5th day(do we have to request this?), but with just 4 of us it wasn't really an issue. Trash service was always prompt around noon. Everything operated as expected during our stay.

My only regret is we will probably never stay at anything of this level on property again!

You should have gotten your towels and amenities replaced on day 4, not day 5.

 

[Brett Wyman]

You should have gotten your towels and amenities replaced on day 4, not day 5.

We never got them replaced. Six night stay.

 

[Deb & Bill]

We never got them replaced. Six night stay.

If you do a stay like this again and don't get your towels and amenities replaced, just call Housekeeping and tell them.

 

[Brett Wyman]

If you do a stay like this again and don't get your towels and amenities replaced, just call Housekeeping and tell them.

Thanks. We have a 6 night 2 bedroom VGF stay coming up in September so thats good to know.

 

[CarolynFH]

Thanks. We have a 6 night 2 bedroom VGF stay coming up in September so thats good to know.

FYI the day you check in is day 1. That threw us off a few times in the beginning - they came the day before I expected them!

 

[Networth]

I love the bungalows. The only negative is the relatively small size. They cost exactly the same in points as a VGF Grand Villa which have an extra bedroom and whose kitchen and living areas are absolutely vast by comparison.

You pretty much stole my string of thoughts any time I contemplate doing a bungalow stay. We can use our points for nights at our home resort in a GV the size of house, or a 2 bedroom bungalow... I can never get past that so I drop the issue and end up back at the Grand.

 

[kateandy08096]

Thank you all! Since posting this I have decided not to book the Bungalow just for 1 night and do a split stay between a 2 bedroom at OKW and a beach house villa at Vero