Vero Beach vs Hilton Head for a beach lover...

[SingingMom]

After a few years of WDW and Adventures by Disney European trips, which are the favorite destinations of DH, & DD, I miss the ocean! My favorite vacations are on the beaches of Cape May, NJ and Bermuda!

That being said, DH and I are looking for about 5 days at the beach before driving to WDW to visit our CM daughter.

Which resort will give me the beach vacation I'm looking for? Reading under my beach umbrella, swimming in the waves, enjoying afternoon cocktails and a dip in the pool before a nice dinner and pleasant evening, possibly with music and more cocktails. lol

We aren't DVC members, but would like to visit one of these two resorts. Please give me your feedback so I can decide! (we will be flying from NY Tri-state area.)

Thanks very much!

 

[Chelley00]

DHHIR is a mile off the beach so you have to shuttle or drive there. We've even ridden bikes there (It takes just minutes) There is also only counter service and no table service (but so many of the HHI restaurants are amazing).

Vero is a lot closer to the beach and has more restaurant options.

 

[bobbiwoz]

Inn rooms at Vero Beach can have direct ocean views which are wonderful! At HHI, you may have a creek view, and you would have to get to the beach. So, if you want a view of the ocean from your room, it would be VB for you.

There is no table service at Disney's HHI resort, but good restaurants are either a short walk or ride away. Disney's Vero Beach had 2 on site table service restaurants, one, Sonya's is billed as fine dining. You would have to drive for other good restaurants, and there are many in the area.

We just returned from Vero with our extended family. We ate at Shutters ( more casual table service) on Saturday and there were a variety of special Lobster dishes. My son and I agreed what we had was tasty, we are the lobster lovers in the family!

Shutters has a character breakfast on Saturdays. I always enjoymit when we're there!

 

[DisneyStarWisher]

Even though the HHI resort isn't directly on the beach, the HHI beach is much nicer than VB's. It is wide and flat, can ride bikes on it. VB's is narrow and steep. We found it hard to walk on. Waves are gentle at HHI unlike the very high, strong waves at VB. We never even got into the ocean at VB because of this.

 

[queendarvet]

I would go to Vero. It is an easy drive to WDW. The beach is right there and there are plenty of places to grab a cold drink (pool bar as well as the Green Cabin). There are restaurants on site as well as a pool grill. I love swimming in the waves at Vero. It isn't always rough but the water is beautiful. I have heard the ocean in Hilton Head is a bit murky?

 

[twoj]

I think if you are doing the parks, Vero would be the most convenient. HHI is wonderful but I would go for a longer time to enjoy everything the island has to offer. If you are looking for a quick getaway, Vero is good for that. Not sure I could stay more than 2-3 days at Vero.

 

[cedricandsophie]

Vero is great. My husband walks on the beach every morning and goes a couple of miles. Love the waves.

 

[Anal Annie]

They are two completely different beach experiences. HHI is wide and flat and has very slight gradual grade - so you can walk WAAAY out before it getting deep. The beach is hard and flat near the water and people ride their bikes up & down on it. The waves there are not real big so you can't really "ride waves" but you CAN relax on a raft without getting slammed. They have a nice pool right at the beach too if you'd like a change of pace. There is a little more going on at HHI with regards to restaurants and things to do (watersports on the inlet side). Vero has big waves tho if you're into that. When we were there the beach was very short and steep and the water was head deep almost immediately. Both resorts are very pretty in their own rights with nice pools. The town of Vero Beach closes down & rolls up the carpet by 9:00 pm - not much going on to do after that. BUT it's only a couple of hours from WDW if you're going there afterward so it's convenient. We found 3 nights there was plenty of time.

 

[lovin'fl]

Vero is better for beach access as it is beach front. But HHI is better for stuff to do as the entire island has lots of good dining and shopping and what not...Vero is remote and isolated and you will drive 15 minutes to get to restaurants/shopping. But Vero does have dining options on resort (Disney dining type options...pool counter, pub with some food, casual sit down and fancy sit down)...they take TIW card too. We don't mind the quick drive across the road to the beach house at HH. It is on the inlet with a marina next door so there is stuff to see and do right there too.

 

[bobbiwoz]

I forgot about The Green Cabin Room at VB! We enjoyed the food there, too!

Beach access is a bit hard at VB. This was Jan 2, 2016:

 

[Chelley00]

Here are a couple of beach pictures from HHI so you can compare

 

[SingingMom]

Thank you for those beach photos ! They may have made my decision! I don't like the look of Vero's beach! I think I will look into Disney's Hilton Head resort, or maybe another beach town in Florida.

 

[staceymay00]

I'd choose Hilton Head over Vero Beach - nicer beach, nicer destination when considering the area around the resort (bike trails, restaurants, etc.). My family loves HHI, although we usually rent something on VRBO instead of using our DVC points. The Disney resort on HHI is nice (would be better if a short walking distance from the beach) and I'd be happy to sometimes stay there if we had a surplus of points. We've rented in both Palmetto Dunes and Sea Pines. I really love the bike trails in Sea Pines. I recommend something on the gulf side if you stick with Florida. Anna Maria is a nice, fairly quiet beach town. There are local restaurants and shops, but not the major development you see in some places on the gulf - no mid to high rise condos and hotels, no chain restaurants or stores - although those things are only a 15 minute drive away.

 

[Sammie]

Thank you for those beach photos ! They may have made my decision! I don't like the look of Vero's beach! I think I will look into Disney's Hilton Head resort, or maybe another beach town in Florida.

To me the most gorgeous beaches and water are found in the Florida Panhandle along 30-A. Sugar white sand and emerald green water.
https://everywhereonce.files.wordpress.com/2011/03/grayton-beach-white-sand.jpg

Since you are flying, fly into Tampa and go to Clearwater Beach.
http://img2.10bestmedia.com/Images/Photos/307871/hilton-clearwater-beach_54_990x660.jpg

 

[queendarvet]

Since you're willing to look into other Florida beaches then I second the above suggestions and go to the gulf side. We love Sanibel Island and have done many split stays with Sanibel and WDW. It takes about 3.4-4 hours to get from one to the other.

 

[seelyt2]

We haven't been to Vero (yet!), but we did go to Disney's HHI resort a few years ago and LOVED it. We had our own car, which was a godsend, although the resort does offer shuttles to the beach house/pool. We're early risers (somewhat) so we would get to the beach by 10, rent a chair with umbrella, boogie board and enjoy the day. In the afternoon we would go next door to the beach house, have a snack or drink, dip in the pool since the kids were skittish of fish, etc. It was a great vacation with lots of independent things to do and lots of restaurants to eat in. We'd like to go back.

 

[Sammie]

Are you driving to WDW or flying?

After a few years of WDW and Adventures by Disney European trips, which are the favorite destinations of DH, & DD, I miss the ocean! My favorite vacations are on the beaches of Cape May, NJ and Bermuda!

That being said, DH and I are looking for about 5 days at the beach before driving to WDW to visit our CM daughter.

Which resort will give me the beach vacation I'm looking for? Reading under my beach umbrella, swimming in the waves, enjoying afternoon cocktails and a dip in the pool before a nice dinner and pleasant evening, possibly with music and more cocktails. lol

We aren't DVC members, but would like to visit one of these two resorts. Please give me your feedback so I can decide! (we will be flying from NY Tri-state area.)

Thanks very much!

Are you driving or flying to Disney World?

 

[jgdsoarin]

I love both, but my family prefers Vero because of the beach being right there. Plus, the boys like to ride their boards in the waves and the water is too calm at Hilton Head. We did Hilton Head last summer and this summer everyone asked for Vero. They are both great, but very different.

 

[Halle]

There are lifeguards at HHI, no lifeguards at VB.

 

[bobbiwoz]

It is seasonal, but the small state park, Wabasso Beach Park, the neighbor to the north of VB resort, has lifeguards.

http://www.ircgov.com/Departments/General_Services/Parks/Wabasso_Beach_Park.htm