Ohana Means Family

The Polynesian Resort was our home during our stay at Disney. The past three times we have visited we have always resided at the Grand Floridian so this made the trip extra exciting - a new place to discover! The Polynesian is based on resort you would find in the South Pacific and it is modeled after a relaxing tropical paradise featuring lush vegetation, thatched roofs and waterfalls both indoors and out. The main building is called the Great Ceremonial House and it is surrounded by smaller villa's that contain the guest rooms. The atmosphere was awesome with the employees all saying "aloha" and calling you "cousin". The kids, especially Jude, were excited each time they saw the waterfalls and tiki's. He would squeal with delight. Chapel and Eli had been looking forward to the volcano pool for months and it did not disappoint. Conor was quite taken with the baby ducks that swam in the lagoons. Seriously, with all the entertainment at our hotel we almost didn't need to bother with theme parks. Brett and I joked the kids would have been just as happy staying there all week and never leaving to visit the Magic Kingdom or Epcot.

As for mom and dad, we loved the restaurants at the Polynesian. My all-time favorite is Ohana, a word for family, where there is an open fire and turkey, shrimp, steak, and pork are brought to your table on these big skewers. They also bring you this awesome pineapple bread and dumplings and noodles to the table and everything is served family style.

We also attended the Spirit of Aloha dinner show which is all-you-can eat family style luau featuring authentic dances from the south pacific (including the hula dance) and my favorite, fire spinners. It was amazing and made me feel like I had been transplanted straight to Hawaii. Chapel and Eli were also certainly amazed by the chocolate volcano dessert.

Our third and final meal at the Polynesian was a character breakfast which featured Lilo and Stitch and the ever-popular Mickey Mouse, wearing a Hawaiian shirt, of course. Lilo and Stitch are a perfect fit for the Polynesian - if you have ever seen the movie it takes place in Hawaii. I have decided Jude's nickname should be Stitch due to both his propensity to be a troublemaker and adorable at the same time!