Disney - It's all in the location

I have been to Disney World several times, however this is the first time I have taken a baby (8 months old). I prefer to stay on Disney due to the proximity to the parks and the guest benefits (like free transportation, sending your packages back to your hotel and the best one...extra magic hours). I normally stay at a moderate hotel level or at the Shades of Green (the military hotel). But for this trip we decided to splurge and booked the Polynesian Resort...it was so worth it!

Upon check-in, we received leis and an aloha greeting. We had opted to use the online check-in service, which allowed us to verify all of our information online and provide a credit card for the remaining balance. Then when we arrived at the hotel, we looked for the online check-in desk and our welcome packet was waiting for us.

Our room at the Polynesian was located in the Tokelau building on the first floor, which worked out perfectly for us. The building was centrally located. It was close to the main pool, the ceremonial house, and the Ticket and Transportation Center (which you can walk to, to catch the monorail to Epcot). Not to mention the quiet pool was located right next to our building.

Our room was large...it had two queen beds, a day bed (great for night-time feedings for our little one), two chairs, a dresser and a desk. The room also had two closets, a mini-fridge and a safe. You can request a crib, however we opted to bring our own pack-n-play. Something I really liked about the hotel room (which is kinda funny), the lights on the headboard and one by the daybed are on dimers, so you can turn them on as bright or dim as you like. We used them like a night light...perfect! One thing I worried about being on the first floor was that we would hear a lot of noise, however that was not the case. We never heard any noise, it was so quiet.

The Polynesian is located on the Magic Kingdom resort monorail line. It was very quick to hop on the monorail at the ceremonial house and to be at Magic Kingdom in minutes. Or walk to the Ticket and Transportation Center and hop on the monorail to Epcot.

Before going to the parks (Magic Kingdom or Epcot), we loaded our baby into the stroller, added our bags and rolled her out of our room and onto the monorail. When we got to the park we rolled her off the monorail through the gates and were on our way. When we needed a break, we jumped back on the monorail and back to our room to cool, off take a nap, or go for a swim.

The only thing I disliked about the hotel was that the bus service to Hollywood Studies, Animal Kingdom, Downtown Disney and the water parks is shared with the Contemporary and the Grand Floridian which makes the trip to and from those locations longer.

We really enjoyed our stay at the Polynesian and look forward to future visits!

I have not covered all the activities and amenities that Disney's Polynesian Resort offers. For more information on the Polynesian Resort click here.

Watch for future blog postings about our recent trip to Disney World.