HHI Adoration & Information 2009

[Disneymom2266]

Hello fellow HHI lovers. I cannot wait until our July 12-17th trip. We went once before but only got to stay 2 nights. This time are hoping to see Savannah. Has anyone on here been to Savannah? What to do there, where to or not to eat? I will have DD 18 and a friend, and DD12 as well as DH. We are from the Northwest suburbs of Illinois. I see other Illinoians. You didnt think the drive was that bad? We have a mini van. Any opinions about HHI will be greatly appreciated. I look forward to replies!

 

[mblsj]

So glad to see this thread!

We are looking forward to our first trip to HHI 10/11 to 10/16. Hoping the ocean will still be warm then!

 

[chum]

This time are hoping to see Savannah. Has anyone on here been to Savannah? What to do there, where to or not to eat?

Hi Disneymom226!
I'm a current 18 year resident of Hilton Head and spent 4 years prior in Savannah. We take many day trips to Savannah now too.
There's plenty to do in both places. How much time were you planning in Savannah?

 

[chum]

So glad to see this thread!

We are looking forward to our first trip to HHI 10/11 to 10/16. Hoping the ocean will still be warm then!

Great time to be on Hilton Head. Smaller crowds. Water/Air is still warm!

 

[mblsj]

Great time to be on Hilton Head. Smaller crowds. Water/Air is still warm!

Perfect! Thanks, chum!

 

[chum]

HHI UPDATE
Hilton Head has been pretty quiet until this last week 3/7-14/09.
Folks are here on Spring Break. The beach is not crowded but the restaurants are starting to fill up. The resorts have noticeable activity. This past Saturday you could see the typical check-in traffic make it's way on to the island around 1pm. People are in the Atlantic trying to swim but it's too cold for most.

 

[dallastxcpa]

The first post has been updated for those who gave me dates.

For all of those traveling in the next month be sure to post lots of pictures for us when you get back.

 

[dizneefamily5]

Thank you so much for the updates chum and Steffy!! We will be there April 4-12 and have worried about the weather/things to do. I'm glad to hear it's nice! I'm getting more and more excited.

 

[scottb8888]

We get to HHI on Sunday 3/22. Our first trip there. What's the internet access like? Free to DVC'ers? I'm hopeing the weather will treat us well.

 

[Simba's Mom]

We get to HHI on Sunday 3/22. Our first trip there. What's the internet access like? Free to DVC'ers? I'm hopeing the weather will treat us well.

There's free internet access in every villa. When we were there in November, they gave us a code at the front desk (not at check in, I called for it).

 

[Steffy]

We get to HHI on Sunday 3/22. Our first trip there. What's the internet access like? Free to DVC'ers? I'm hopeing the weather will treat us well.

The internet is fine. Wireless and free to all DVC members. I think the weather will be really nice next week. Today has been the best day of my entire vacation.

 

[kristenrice]

Hi!

We are new DVC owners as of Sept 2008 !

We bought a small 100 point contract at AKV. Since our DD's are so young (ages 3 and 5) we figured that a good portion of our upcoming vacations will be at WDW. DH is not a big Disney fan and the idea of an annual (or even biannual) Disney trip is not really exciting for him. He let me get the DVC membership so that I could take the girls in the summer and then we could all go the following spring and then take a year off.

Much to my surprise, DH asked me today about using points at HHI... !
Apparently, he found some sort of hunting that he wants to do and it is fairly cheap in South Carolina. He figures now that he can "drop us off" at HHI and we can enjoy ourselves at the beach while he and his brother go hunting. I'm sure wherever it is that he wants to hunt is nowhere near HHI, but at least I like his train of thought .

His idea is to "let" me and our DD's stay at HHI with my SiL and niece (age 12) while DH and BiL go hunting for three days. He said that the hunting season starts in late August but he'd rather go the first week of September. I would rather not plan on taking the girls out of school so I was pushing him towards the last week of August.

That brings me to my questions...

First, how busy is it at that time of year? Is it hurricane season? We'd be driving so we're not too concerned about flight delays/cancellations.

Second, I see the lists of all the great kids' activities. Are they completely supervised? Like, could I drop my kids off at one of them and go off by myself for a while? What activities have a charge (and how much?) and what one's are free? Also, I see that there is a shuttle to the beach. Can you drive yourself there? Which is better, the shuttle or driving?

Third, since we only have 100 points, I would probably want to save them and just pay cash, at least for our first stay. If we really like it, I may consider an add-on. How easy or difficult is it to get a 1BR on cash? How far out can you book a cash reservation? We would do a 2BR if SiL and DN come too. If it is just me and the DD's, I could "suffer" with a studio, but would prefer a 1BR.

Is there an "official" website for Disney's HHI Resort? I'd like to see the site where a "non-DVC" person would go if they wanted to book HHI.

Thanks (in advance) for putting up with all my questions. I have been so excited to finally get my DVC membership (after 7 years of begging!) that I have been planning all sorts of WDW vacations. I hadn't thought of HHI trip until our girls got sick of WDW. I do not see that happening for another 8-10 years. Maybe now that DH is interested, we may take a trip there sooner than I had planned .

 

[chum]

August is Hurricane season but chances increase usually in Sept.

I figured I would comment on the hunting around Hilton Head. Your husband will miss gator season unless the trip is after Sept 10. A private property hunt is totally different. The hunting is good around Beaufort & Jasper county and not very far from Hilton Head. There would be no need to spend the night off Hilton Head if your husband wanted to get a days worth of hunting in. Fishing, shrimping and crabbing are great on the island but make sure he picks up a weekly license at say WalMart. Deep sea or area water fishing by charter is a blast but not cheap. He could book a boat out of Shelter Cove Marina which backs up to HH DVC.
Savannah makes a good day trip for him and your family as there are plenty of historic sites and a few spectacular forts (Pulaski, Jackson).

 

[Disneymom2266]

Hi!

We are new DVC owners as of Sept 2008 !

We bought a small 100 point contract at AKV. Since our DD's are so young (ages 3 and 5) we figured that a good portion of our upcoming vacations will be at WDW. DH is not a big Disney fan and the idea of an annual (or even biannual) Disney trip is not really exciting for him. He let me get the DVC membership so that I could take the girls in the summer and then we could all go the following spring and then take a year off.

Much to my surprise, DH asked me today about using points at HHI... !
Apparently, he found some sort of hunting that he wants to do and it is fairly cheap in South Carolina. He figures now that he can "drop us off" at HHI and we can enjoy ourselves at the beach while he and his brother go hunting. I'm sure wherever it is that he wants to hunt is nowhere near HHI, but at least I like his train of thought .

His idea is to "let" me and our DD's stay at HHI with my SiL and niece (age 12) while DH and BiL go hunting for three days. He said that the hunting season starts in late August but he'd rather go the first week of September. I would rather not plan on taking the girls out of school so I was pushing him towards the last week of August.

That brings me to my questions...

First, how busy is it at that time of year? Is it hurricane season? We'd be driving so we're not too concerned about flight delays/cancellations.

Second, I see the lists of all the great kids' activities. Are they completely supervised? Like, could I drop my kids off at one of them and go off by myself for a while? What activities have a charge (and how much?) and what one's are free? Also, I see that there is a shuttle to the beach. Can you drive yourself there? Which is better, the shuttle or driving?

Third, since we only have 100 points, I would probably want to save them and just pay cash, at least for our first stay. If we really like it, I may consider an add-on. How easy or difficult is it to get a 1BR on cash? How far out can you book a cash reservation? We would do a 2BR if SiL and DN come too. If it is just me and the DD's, I could "suffer" with a studio, but would prefer a 1BR.

Is there an "official" website for Disney's HHI Resort? I'd like to see the site where a "non-DVC" person would go if they wanted to book HHI.

Thanks (in advance) for putting up with all my questions. I have been so excited to finally get my DVC membership (after 7 years of begging!) that I have been planning all sorts of WDW vacations. I hadn't thought of HHI trip until our girls got sick of WDW. I do not see that happening for another 8-10 years. Maybe now that DH is interested, we may take a trip there sooner than I had planned .

Welcome Home to you new DVCers. Well, now that your hubby discovered more places to go, you will def use up your allotment of points, and prob want to add on. I would leave a grumpy non DH home when I go to WDW and then maybe, just maybe take him with other places. There are so many places to use your points, not WDW, that is the most common misconception most people have. I`ll bet after your visit to HHI, you`ll be adding on points sooner than you imagined. Have fun! Convert that non disney DH!!

 

[Disneymom2266]

We will be in HHI July 12 -17th. We were thinking of doing a couple of day trips from our resort, since its not far. If we dont get there enough during our HHI stay, we might extend our trip and get a room one night somewhere in Savannah, then head home. We were only in HHI 2 nights last time, which was not long enough, IMO. We went to Salty Dog, and shops around there, but never go to Savannah. Can`t wait. I wanted to do the Paula Deen tour. What do you think?

 

[SFLTIGGER]

We are condsidering a few days over the 4th on our way to NC & VA. As I was poking around, I noticed no one on the role call for then Is there something I should know?

Also, this would be our first trip to HHI, can someone enlighten me about requests for best "view", etc. for a 1BR.

Thanks!!

 

[JVL1018]

Can someone who will be there soon check on bike rentals for me?
I think it was $100 last year for 4 of us for the whole week.
Just wondering if prices have gone up.

 

[chum]

I wanted to do the Paula Deen tour. What do you think?

I don't think you can go wrong with any of the downtown tours.
I prefer to just walk which allows you to stop and grab a coffee or step in a store or read a menu posted outside a restaurant in hopes of deciding on a lunch/dinner spot. Walking under the mossy oaks and taking in the details is a very relaxing experience.
If you walk Savannah then start at River St. and take Bull St. south all the way to Forsyth park. On your way back go one block east and walk north on Abercorn and check out the civil war era cemetery.

Savannah is a favorite city of mine and I hope you have the time to visit.

 

[nzdisneymom]

Can someone who will be there soon check on bike rentals for me?
I think it was $100 last year for 4 of us for the whole week.
Just wondering if prices have gone up.

We'll be checking in a week from tomorrow, so I'll check on the bike prices. How did it work for renting bikes at the resort? We were interested in doing it so some pre-arrival info would be helpful.

We're planning to take our laptop and post a live-from report with pictures, so if there is anything anyone wants to know about, please let us know and we'll do our best to find out. This will be our first trip to Hilton Head. Can't wait!!!

 

[dallastxcpa]

Here at work today! and took a minute to go to the Salty Dog webcam. Talk about jealousy Those people don't know how good they have it.