Back from VB-Witnessed sea turtle rescue

floridafam

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Mar 26, 2003
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Just returned from Florida. We spent 5 days at WDW for the Florida 1/2 Ironman-DH finished! :bounce:

We then went over to VB.

Most everything was perfect, as usual. Checked in to room 2420. The people in 2421 were out on their balcony all day and most of the evening smoking so we switched after one night to room 2415-the switch couldn't have been easier. We were shown a few rooms and picked 2415. It has a closed balcony and there is not a balcony really close to it. It was perfect! This room has a king bed and a pull out sofa and seems very large.

We spent major amounts of time at the pool and the beach. I also believe they should not allow smoking on the pool deck.

Every meal we had was wonderful. We ate at Shutters, Sonya's and Bleachers. The Seafood Buffet was perfect, as usual. I arranged for a plate of strawberry pralines to be delivered upon check in. They were awesome! Chef Jamie even called to make sure we received them. My kids especially liked the strawberry tulips with chocolate stems.

We were on the boardwalk one night and there was a Dr. from the Animal Kingdom asking people if they wanted to look through night vision binoculars to try and spot turtles. We talked to her for quite a while. She said they try and discourage people from walking on the beach at night during nesting season.

The next day, we were on the beach and everyone started to stand up. There was a HUGE sea turtle in the water and it looked like it was in some distress. Luckily, the woman from Animal Kingdom was there and started making calls on her cell phone to authorities. She advised people what to do and about 20 Disney employees rushed out on the beach. We were out there for quite a while and then had to go back to the room just as they were bringing out a net. We watched from our balcony. The turtle had debris around it's neck and ended up at Living Seas in Epcot. It was really an amazing thing to see.

We saw another turtle the next day come very close to shore. Two kids didn't even notice it next to them. One of them said he thought it was a rock. I think it was bigger than my DH! It lingered for a while and swam back out to sea. The woman from AK said it was scoping out a place to lay eggs.

The next day, we saw a large pod of dolphin. They were swimming along the shore line. They were beautiful! We feel really lucky to have seen all of these amazing creatures!

The CM's were wonderful. Many of them call us by name because we are there so much. We spent some afternoons in the Green Cabin Room playing checkers (we brought our own-they said they lost their checkers about a month ago.)

Drove into town 4 times for lunch at Casey's Place-YUMMY! and Rita's Italian Ice. Had a wonderful meal on our anniversary at Capt. Hiram's.

Saw several rescues in the pool. One of the lifeguards started to get really frustrated. He rescued several small children who were struggling in the pool and their parents were nowhere to be found. :rolleyes: He also picked up pool towels off chairs every morning.

The gate to go to and from the beach was working.

Any questions, ask away. :sunny:
 
We also had housekeeping every day. The housekeeper was great! She knocked on the door and had towel animals she made for DS and DD and told them to take them home and if they wanted anything else just to let her know. :D

I already reported on the internet access in the lobby. Kind of a joke, IMO. You have to have a CM log you on and they cover the password like it's a national secret. You can only use it for 1/2 an hour at a time. I don't know if this is good or bad. We had to use it more than I thought. I shouldn't be on the computer while at the beach but we had things to do.

DS did a craft with Rita and made a really cool mask that he was able to bring home.
:sunny:
 
OK, so how did you score daily Housekeeping? Was it because you were staying for cash, or were you there on points and you got the extra housekeeping bcs they like you?

We really should head down during May sometime. The point costs are low and the wildlife appears to be rocking! If only we weren't just putting in our vegetable garden...
 
We paid for daily housekeeping. (the only day we didn't "purchase" housekeeping was trash and towel day. IMO, daily housekeeping is a must for us at VB with us spending so much time in the pool and on the beach. Stuff gets a little dirty. I don't mind the $25.

We've never seen so many creatures in all of our trips to Vero. The turtles look absolutely amazing.

The ocean was calm and many people were swimming.

As usual, we also saw several lizards. They are so cute and we just love 'em. A little boy caught one and kept it in a sand pail all day. He actually told some people he was going to take it up to the room. :rolleyes: Someone finally told him it would die if he did that.

We could easily spend 2 weeks at VB and not get bored. The resort was much busier than it is in October. I don't think we will go again at the end of May.
 

Glad you had a great time. That is so amazing about the turtle and the Dr. from AK. I also noticed many of the people we chatted with where WDW empolyee's, that enjoyed taking a break at VB.

It sounds like you had a great trip.

Sorry about the smokers, that is one of the reasons we stick to WDW vacations, smoke is at least keep to a mimium with FLA and WDW smoking rules. I am going to give Europe at least 10 more years to improve things. I just know I would be all bent out of shape with all the smoking that goes on there with no consideration for others.

Sounds like a great trip. We are now VB believers and can't wait to go back (maybe next May!)

How close were you to the green cabin room? We were right above it and found some nights the noise (from music) was pretty bad until past 11:00 at night.
 
I'm not sure how close we were to the Green Cabin Room. We didn't hear any noise and it was open until 11:30 each evening.

Our room door overlooked the lobby of the resort but we were off to the South side of the Green Cabin Room. We were on the 4th floor.

The balcony situation for 2415 is perfect.

None of the restaurants at VB allow smoking. I really think it shouldn't be allowed around the pool. There are so many children running around and people trying to enjoy their food from Bleachers. Maybe someday?
 
Congratulations on finishing Ironman!

Your VB trip sounds wonderful! Can you comment on the temperatures, did you ever feel it was just too hot to be there? DH and I have "promised" my mom, sister and a friend a beach weekend next Memorial day, and now I'm wondering about it. Memorial day is the only long weekend that would work for all of us, so it has to be then, but I'd like some idea about what to expect.

Would you not go again at the end of May because of crowds, heat or something else? Was it hard to get dinner ressies? VB was full the week we were there in March, and it didn't seem too crowded, but the ocean wasn't conducive to swimming, it was the week of extreme rip tides and waves.

I hope we see critters like you did.

Bobbi

:boat:
 
I wouldn't discourage anyone from going Memorial Day weekend.

We are just spoiled by going in October. It was hot but there is always a nice breeze coming off the ocean. We spent a lot of time in the pool. If you go to the beach, just be sure to spend some time in the shade. It was not as hot at VB as it was at WDW.

You were better off making a PS for dinner at Shutters vs. just walking up but it wasn't out of control. I'm sure it was just very busy on Friday and Sat. of Memorial Day weekend. We made a PS for the Seafood Buffet the night before. We walked right in. One group of 4 came in and said they made a reservation for 6:15 and were very angry that they had not been seated by 6:30. They were yelling and causing a scene. I felt really bad for the CM's that were working that night. We saw them in the lobby later demanding to talk to a manager.

The resort was full but it still seems nice. VB can be packed and you really don't see it. We always found a chair by the pool.

I would go and have a good time. We just prefer when we feel like we are the only ones there.:crazy:
 
Thanks. Your description, especially of the water with people swimming is so inticing! Mom lives in Cape May, will be 85 soon, but the NJ water is sort of cold and if we hold her hands I think VB's water temps will be perfect for her. Also, she loves WDW, and wants to try Disney's place on the ocean, and of course, we're happy to oblige and show off "our" beach resort!

We just got back from the Grand Canyon and Las Vegas, a long weekend with her and other family and friends. Mom did fine with her "new" knee, but it caused confusion when she set the security alarm off at the airport.

Bobbi:D
 
FloridaFam, I thought about you while there last week. We got caught by the ironman traffic on our way to church Sunday morning. I told DH that a DIS'ers husband was in the event. I wonder if we passed him? Hope you had a good time. Our trip was not our best, but we made the best of it anyway.
 
I enjoyed reading about your recent stay! We will be visiting VB in July and your post was a great help to me! I know my ds (the biggest animal lover I know) would be beyond thrilled to have seen the sights you saw!

Thanks for sharing about your stay! :earsgirl:
 
Originally posted by floridafam
There was a HUGE sea turtle in the water and it looked like it was in some distress. ... The turtle had debris around it's neck and ended up at Living Seas in Epcot.

Why was the turtle taken to Epcot? Did it need temporary medical treatment or was it permanently relocated for some reason? Just wondering.
 
Lisa P.,

I guess the Dr. from Animal Kingdom phoned the state and Sea World and they could not take/help the turtle. A team came over from Living Seas in Epcot and took it there. (this would have been later in the evening.)

:D
 



















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