Here at Vistana: Impressed!

[erinch]

from the vistana you make 2 right turns and are in the Disney road system; you don't have to go anywhere near 192 or I-Drive. No traffic hangups, except we've eaten quite a bit a Crossroads Plaza by downtown disney, and that gets congested in the evenings. (Don't get my hubby started on trying to turn into the Mickey D's drive through.)

All of the disney roads are a maze to me; I just follow the signs; the one to Ft. Wilderness is clearly marked, and within the same general 15 minute time frame.

It's an easy but more congested trip up to the SeaWorld/Universal area; you can go on I-4 as opposed to going Universal Drive.

 

[AZKathy]

It is very easy to get to Disney and Universal from Vistana. To get to Universal, turn left onto 535, take I4 east towards Orlando. Follow the signs for Universal. It is 15 minutes at the max to get there.

There are two ways to get to Disney that we used on our last trip. You can turn right onto 535, turn right on International Drive South and take Osceola Parkway (536)right into the main drag into Disney. Follow signs to where you want to go.

You can also go in from Downtown Disney area. You turn left on 535 and go past I4. Turn left on Hotel Plaza Blvd ( I believe it is the first light after I4). You will see signs on each side for WDW. Turn right on Buena Vista and then turn left on Community Drive. You can follow the signs where you want to go from there.

Either way is maybe 5 minutes. Vistana gives you handouts with directions to where you need to go and how to get there from Vistana when you check in. You know, how to get to WDW, how to get to Sea World, closest grocery store, etc.

 

[Mjasp]

erinch...Did you get my email? Any luck with getting in the unit?

Thanks

 

[obnurse2003]

Two more questions plesae!!!!

1. Did you rent a car or use shuttle/taxi service?

2. How do you go about getting the Diamond Check-in? I was told that for a special building/unit request you have to ask the day of check-in. If there is another way, please let me know!!

 

[Mjasp]

starwoodvo.com then click on resort collection then Vistana resort then follow directions.

 

[erinch]

Joanna--
I could not get in--and when we've been here it's been pouing.
i'll get a picture of the outside today, see if any units might be being serviced, and otherwise will send you some pictures of our interior--i think they're pretty similar.

with only a midweek cleaning, there are few opportunities to catch a cleaning person.

 

[Mjasp]

erinch...I wasn't sure if you got my e mail or not. Please don't worry about, enjoy your vacation. What is this with RAIN? Is it the usual afternoon T-storms or rain. OH NO, it hasn't been a great summer here in NY and I have been counting the days to lay in the hot sun and enjoy summer.

Enjoy the rest of your time
Joanna

 

[obnurse2003]

How does the Diamond Check-in Lane differ from the regular one and why doesn't everyone use it? Does it cost?

Also, can you give me the estimated time it took to leave the Vistana , travel to the TTC and get to the gates of the MK? I am trying to make sure we are not late for our breakfast at CRT!!!!! Thanks for taking the time to answer!

 

[erinch]

Originally posted by obnurse2003
How does the Diamond Check-in Lane differ from the regular one and why doesn't everyone use it? Does it cost?

The Diamond Lane is for when you have previously emailed them your requests. Since we rented from an owner, the owner emailed in the text I sent. I got a confirmation email back from them. When you come in to the welcome center, you are greeted, if it's a Saturday afternoon, by a massive line of maybe 200 people waiting for the "next available" checkin person. I waltzed past all of them to the very last window, which says "Diamond Lane" and did not have to wait at all. My hunch is that many people simply do not know about it, in particular if they are not the owners, but maybe even then. It costs nothing, and is the best thing you can do for yourself.

Also, can you give me the estimated time it took to leave the Vistana , travel to the TTC and get to the gates of the MK? I am trying to make sure we are not late for our breakfast at CRT!!!!! Thanks for taking the time to answer!

The drive time to the TTC is 10 minutes or a little lesss. Will you need to get tickets or exchange vouchers once you get to the MK gates? As you know, you have to take either the monorail or the ferry, and need to allow time for bags to be checked, plus to get through the turnstile if the park is open. We are finding with security and in the height of summer crowds it's about 1/2 from when we yell at the kids that we are leaving NOW to when we actually are in the park.

 

[obnurse2003]

We have our tickets. We have an early breakfast at 8:10 a.m. which is BEFORE the park opens which is why I am concerned about getting there before the ferry even starts. When does it start ?

Thanks for your help.

 

[Mjasp]

Erinch...Are the parks crowded? Let me know how crowded Magic Kingdom and MGM were if you were there.

Thanks

 

[andychris14]

If no one minds what prices are you getting?

We stayed at the vistana May 2000 and the vistana villages Aug2002. We loved them both. We did the timeshare thing both times. I was hoping that we can do it again because the price is normally very high. We are planning our trip for Aug 2004 and would like to go back for part of the trip.
THanks

 

[obnurse2003]

Does anyone have any pictures of these resorts? The ones on the web are pretty generic!!