Can anyone compare-Sheraton Vistana and Marriott Harbour Lake?

[My2CrazyGirls]

We stayed at Sheraton Vistana Resort last spring break. It was a split stay between Loews Royal Pacific when we did Universal, and the Sheraton Vistana for the relaxing part of the trip. We are again doing a non-Disney spring break trip. This time I think we will do Sea World/Aquatica for 2- 3 days and spend the remainder of the week relaxing and enjoying resort amenities and activities. I have narrowed it down to Marriott Harbour Lake after lots of research. It looks like a great place, and they have a pool slide which is something I was looking for. Our girls are 9 and 10. I read on past thread that Harbour Lake is great for "young children."

We really enjoyed the Sheraton Vistana, we are just looking for something different. Can anyone compare these resorts? Something we really enjoyed at the Vistana was taking walks and feeding the ducks and wild turkey looking creatures. Is the Marriott a nice place to walk around?

 

[Upatnoon]

I highly recommend Harbour Lake.

Harbour Lake is a smaller resort -- you can walk to all the pools for example. Harbour Lake's pools feel a bit more updated to me. The resort is newer, so feels a bit more up-to-date. Our 2 bedroom was a bit smaller than Vistana.

The resort had a lots of activities when we were there that our kids loved. The pool slides are not extreme and the splash areas really appeal to younger kids.

While Vistana is like a city, Harbour Lake feels more like a cruise ship so-to-speak.

 

[chicagoshannon]

We love harbour lake. My dd is almost 9 and still loves the resort.

Bonus is it's less than 5 minutes from Sea World.

There are 2 pools and several hot tubs. The hot tubs are huge! They also have mini golf, volley ball charts and pool tables ect. One of the pools has a pirate ship with smaller slides while the other has a much larger slide. There is also a large splash park with tipping buckets ect.

Last time we were there they had a magician one night and Gatorland come another afternoon.

 

[Thumper1066]

We love Harbour Lake. It is our Orlando home away from home. The themed pools are outstanding and the staff there provides a magical experience. It is about 5 minutes from Sea World and it is right on the Iride Trolly system. If some in your group wish to head back early it is very handy. There are a massive amount of activities at the resort and we have found the entire experience wonderful. Generally we take two or three days on Disney property and then move to Harbour Lake once we get our Disney fix. We still visit Disney parks from here for the rest of our experience and the drive has never been hectic at all. Disney can be intense and getting a few miles away can be a retreat.

 

[gorjus121]

Going back to the Harbour Lake for a third time. Great for families with younger children. The kids love the pirate pool. I always feel like I'm in the Caribbean when I'm there. It never takes away from being off Disney property when we stay there.