What it is like at Disney’s Polynesian overwater bungalows

It is unlikely you’re going to get too shut to those villas and not using a reservation, as you will must scan your MagicBand or keycard to get previous the gate.

Aside from barely completely different areas (which we’ll discuss extra about shortly), every of the 20 Polynesian Bungalows are primarily an identical, with a dock resulting in the lined porch, full with a wind chime and a padded seat on the porch adjoining to the entrance door.

Moving into the bungalows, you will enter right into a hardwood floored hallway which leads into the open-concept front room and kitchen. The hallway is flanked on both aspect by the 2 bedrooms.

There’s a vaulted wood ceiling and bits of Polynesian-inspired decor with an ocean-themed shade palette of blues and browns, prone to signify the water and the seashore. Very like within the Copper Creek Cabins at Disney’s Wilderness Lodge, these are finest regarded as mini high-end properties that occurred to be positioned on the Disney monorail loop with a view of the Magic Kingdom.

The kitchen has full-sized home equipment, silverware, cooking utensils, pots, pans and sponges, dishwashing cleaning soap and different requirements. There is a eating desk for eight, which can be the utmost occupancy of the bungalow.

The lounge has a sofa which additionally serves as the placement for a pull-down Murphy mattress that may sleep two. Beneath the big front room TV is a pull-down single mattress with one of the vital distinctive themes hidden inside … the traditional Electrical Water Pageant, which has been round for the reason that park opened in 1971 and you may nonetheless see from the again porch of the bungalow every night.

The first bed room is kind of giant for a Disney bed room and has a king-sized mattress and a direct door that takes you out to the again deck. Thankfully, given what number of devices and gizmos households often must cost every night whereas at Disney, similar to the brand new MagicBand+ choices, there are many shops to juice up your electronics.

A shining star of the first bed room is the en suite lavatory which is beautiful.

There’s floor-to-ceiling ocean blue shimmering tile, double self-importance, a deep soaking tub, walk-in bathe and in-mirror TV. I’ve seen in-mirror TVs earlier than, however none as effectively accomplished and all-around unbelievable as this. I am going to admit, I watch recordings of the Disney welcome display on YouTube at residence as joyful background noise at occasions, so having it in my overwater bungalow’s lavatory was simply #objectives I did not know I had.

Throughout the corridor is the secondary bed room with a surfboard-inspired headboard over the queen-sized mattress and one other single pull-down mattress beneath the TV, this time with a Lilo and Sew theme hidden inside if you pull out the mattress. This room is extra compact than the first bed room nevertheless it nonetheless feels spacious, with a big window and a sitting space. It would not have an en suite lavatory, however one is accessible from the hallway positioned between this room and the lounge.

In the identical space because the secondary lavatory can be a washer and dryer, which is an underrated amenity on a household journey.

Exterior on the big deck, you will discover two largely impractical and considerably uncomfortable (however nonetheless enjoyable) swinging chairs, two lounge chairs and a small desk for 4.

However the crown jewels out listed here are the view itself and the plunge pool, which at first might look like an afterthought because it’s neither heated nor giant sufficient to really swim in. However let me inform you, after returning from Magic Kingdom on a 100-degree day, it was fairly unbelievable to take a fast dip there with out having to go all the best way to the principle pool.

In fact, with the huge and unbelievable Lava Pool a brief stroll away, the plunge pool might understandably not be the place you do the majority of your swimming. However, it is nonetheless fairly good to have, even when all you do is dangle your toes in it whereas having fun with an on-deck cocktail.

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Finest issues about staying at Disney’s Polynesian Bungalows

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Issues I did not love concerning the Polynesian Bungalows

I would have stayed in these overwater bungalows for so long as they’d let me, which sadly was only one evening, so take all the issues I did not love about them with an enormous grain of salt. However, if I have been to offer some constructive areas the place the bungalows may very well be even higher for these paying top-dollar to be there, the listing would come with:

• We have been in one of many bungalows closest to the Ticket and Transportation Heart (TTC). From an hour earlier than early entry to the Magic Kingdom (7:30 a.m. on our date) till 90 minutes after the park closed (11:30 p.m. for us) you’ll hear the frequent horns of the ferries taking folks forwards and backwards to the park. It was loud and until you’re a heavy sleeper (or utilizing earplugs), it might make for fairly brief nights of sleep if you’re staying within the villas for a number of nights. I would request a villa far-off from the TTC, if in case you have that possibility.
• Including to the brief evening difficulty, there’s actually no good approach to hold out the sunshine and sleep in. The bungalows are appointed with considerably translucent window shades and there are hardwood slats on the door resulting in the deck, neither of which stored out the solar.
• The worth. This most likely goes with out saying, however as we’ll dive into subsequent, that is an awfully costly place to remain at Disney World that prices in a single evening what a whole Disney World trip might value for a household. In order a lot as I really like the bungalows, the percentages are brief that I might ever really afford to remain right here for actual.

Worth to remain at Disney’s Polynesian Bungalows — and tips on how to make it decrease

The unhealthy information: the retail money worth for an evening in a Polynesian overwater bungalow typically begins at $3,200+.

And that is when the bungalows are even out there to e-book with money, which they typically aren’t, on condition that there are solely 20 in all of Disney World and Disney Trip Membership members reserving with their factors typically get first dibs. Nevertheless, therein lies the silver lining.

It is nonetheless expensive, with stays beginning at 112 DVC factors per evening throughout the least costly time of the yr (weekdays from Sept. 1–30). In distinction, the common studios on the Polynesian that extra carefully resemble customary resort rooms begin at simply 14 factors per evening throughout that very same lowest-priced time of the yr. So, one bungalow can value the identical variety of DVC factors as eight studio villas.

However let’s not let practicality get in the best way of reaching a bucket listing objective. Although it does value a number of factors, it will possibly nonetheless be cheaper to lease DVC factors to remain within the bungalow than pay the going money charge. It is also slightly simpler to search out DVC availability than money availability.