July 2007 proved to be a wonderful time to be staying at Disney's Polynesian resort! This was our fourth time there, and it was our BEST time ever!
Once again we stayed in the Hawaii concierge building and check-in was quick and easy.
There is ice-cold orange/guava/passion fruit juice waiting for you, right near the concierge desks...
Our room was not quite ready for us yet (it was around 1pm), so we decided to take the resort launch directly from the marina at the Polynesian, over to the Magic Kingdom. This boat is one of the perks of the resort that we really enjoy. Here are some pictures of the resort and Seven Seas Lagoon area, as we motored our way across the lagoon...
Nice view of the Polynesian beach and volcano pool from the boat...
The Grand Floridian...another great Disney resort which is also on the monorail line, and shares the resort launch with the Polynesian....
Across the lagoon is the Contemporary resort which is the third resort on the monorail line, making it very convenient as well....
John took this picture of the Hawaii building, and it's now my favorite picture of the resort! It simply captures the essence of the tropical Polynesian feel...
A wider view of the same shot...
Approaching the Magic Kingdom!
Lots of activity on the lagoon...ferries, boats, and monorails - coming and going, bringing and returning happy park goers!
After a stroll through the Magic Kingdom and a ride on Pirates of the Caribbean, we headed back to the Polynesian so we could check out our room and unpack...
There are always friendly CMs of all sorts at the Polynesian, to greet you and make you smile! You just know he's thinking "Aloha!" in his head... (LOL)...
On this trip more than on any of our previous trips, we REALLY took the time to stop and smell the roses, as it were.....and we took many, many pictures of this beautiful resort....
Before heading to our room we stopped into the concierge lounge for some cold drinks and snapped a few pictures of the view of the castle from there, as well as pictures of the lounge itself:
Even in between the food services, you can always find juices, water, sodas, fresh fruit, and cookies available:
We finally made our way to our room and it was in the perfect location for us!! We had room #3502, and it was close to the elevator on the third floor. Here are some pictures we took from our balcony:
At 5pm the concierge lounge puts out hot and cold appetizers:
Some pictures now which were taken around the resort itself:
John and I have a favorite spot near the volcano pool where we like to relax... it's over between the pool bar beach area, and the path to the marina. While sitting there, we like to snap pictures of what we see....
They had just installed new speakers, here is what they look like. They gave great sound of the Wishes fireworks show, as well as tropical music...
An outdoor shower near the volcano pool and children's water feature area:
Gotta love the sight of a flaming tiki torch!!! We love walking the grounds at night, all ablaze with the flames of the torches....
A friendly-feathered CM who was singing for us...lol...
AHHH!! Here we are, enjoying our first-ever Lapu-Lapus!!! HOW did we go 3 visits without trying them before? They certainly won't be our last! LOL
The INSIDE of a Lapu-Lapu! (In case anyone was wondering...lol)
Even though it's a little blurry (night shot, without a flash!) here is a picture of one of MY favorite spots at the Polynesian....
There are always plenty of fresh clean towels at the volcano pool....
Now, back to the Hawaii building!
Taken from our balcony one morning: A "hidden Mickey" in the sand, as created by the beach sweepers!
More pictures taken from our balcony....
The wedding pavilion...
There was a bee!!!!
And more beautiful tropical flowers in all colors, all around the resort...
Another friendly small-sized CM!
More shots taken from the resort launch, to and from the Magic Kingdom...
One afternoon the volcano pool was filled with noodles, the kids were having a blast!
Our room, #3502
Each of the lights on the headboards are on their own dimmer switches, it was nice to be able to get exactly the lighting you wanted...
Turndown service with chocolates.... ahhh, I love it!
Taken from inside our room:
The open-fire pit at 'Ohana, where we shared a wonderful dinner with Eddie, Maryann, and their 2 sons:
This is a Pina CoLAVA and it was great! It's a pina colada with raspberry!
On the beach, awaiting the fireworks show....
This picture shows the CMs cleaning the volcano pool, but later that night we went swimming and had a great time!
Some early-morning pictures of the Polynesian.... it's a beautiful place ANY time of day!
It's difficult to see in this first picture, but we encountered an orange-necked CM one morning during our walks...
Now can you see him???
More balcony pics! We never get tired of sitting on the balcony and enjoying the views and activities on the lagoon...
You can see the top of Big Thunder Mountain in this picture...
A resort launch, heading our way!!!
Ahh...the world is my oyster... I mean, the World looms beyond... I mean... Here I am, on our balcony! LOL
Some pictures from inside the Great Ceremonial House:
Breakfast at the Kona Cafe, featuring the infamous Tonga Toast! This trip we also tried the Kona Coffee Press Pot and I really liked the taste of this coffee. We had breakfast at the Kona Cafe on every morning of this trip, and we got the Kona Press pot each morning too!
I have no idea what they put in their scrambled eggs but these were the BEST eggs I've ever had! They were THE BEST, JERRY! The BEST! (A little Seinfeld reference there ;)
John took some pictures of me, taking pictures....lol...
Ok, WHY John took a picture of these 2 flies, is beyond me. But maybe THEY are the smallest CMs I've ever seen! lol
The Hawaii building and beach...
I had to leave our "mark" on the beach!
The contrast between the VERY blue sky and the VERY black clouds made for some incredible shots!
The beach area is really nice, and the "cabanas" over the lounge chairs are available to everyone.
The monorail passing by the wedding pavilion, as seen from the Polynesian beach area...
The pool was as gorgeous as ever on this trip...the temperature was slightly cool and refreshing during the day, but felt warm and heated at night...
A couple of Pina CoLAVAs, as served from the pool bar! Yummm....
Another little CM friend, on the tree! (By the way, don't be afraid of them, they're tiny and run away from you!)
There's a new activity poolside at the Polynesian! It's called "Paint your own mask" and costs $15.
More Great Ceremonial House pictures....
More various pictures.... Enjoy!
Welcome to the Hawaii building!!
Breakfast offerings in the concierge lounge:
LOTS of more room pictures, including some close ups!
We didn't make it back for desserts and cordials in the concierge lounge, but here's what was left late one night:
Early-morning shots from our balcony. In some of the pictures, my camera was a bit fogged up!
Another breakfast at the Kona Cafe! This time, pineapple-macadamia nut pancakes!
We were surprised at the Kona Cafe with these complimentary Cocoa Puffs, to celebrate our anniversary!
Standing behind the waterfall! Believe it or not, you won't get wet just walking through here.
These restrooms are located inside the volcano, right behind the waterfalls!
A ramp for those in a wheelchair; they can put their chair right next to these stairs, slide over to the top step, and lower themselves into the pool:
The children's water play area:
These were all taken from inside the concierge lounge, on our last afternoon:
