How long is too long at HHI?

[A1A1]

I am wondering how long people stay at HHI. I am used to all the action of WDW, and all that it has to offer. There is so much to do there. If you want to relax, you can do that at the resort. When you want to have action, you just get to a park. Fun is always close by.

What about Hilton Head? Beside the beach and pool, what other excitement is there. I think that might get boring pretty quickly.

 

[baileybrad]

To us the resort and the "lack of action" is why we made HH our home resort. If someone doesn't enjoy just loafing by the pool or hanging out at a beach without basically a care in the world then I wouldn't think that the HH DVC resort would be a huge draw for more than a stay of a few days. We go there for the vacation, which again, for us is the resort, pools, beach, etc.

 

[vernon]

there are quite a lot of things to do in the HH area, but they are different than "commando style park visits". I had 10 days at HH last xmas and didn't find I was bored at any time. Played golf three days, round the pool a couple, shopping a couple, dolphin cruise, horse riding, one day at the beach and an afternoon wandering around the wildlife preserve an Pinkney Island. This isn't allowing for visits to Charleston or Savannah both of which have an interesting history. DVC does quite a few kids activities so it's possible to get a break from the kids which is always nice particularly if you can tie them in with some of the adult activities like the cheese and wine tasting or cooking programs DVC offer.

 

[Dean]

We were there 2 weeks summer 2001 and we thought is was just about right. We don't golf so spent a lot of time relaxing.

 

[Disneyaholic]

Really! I love the atmosphere here and the relaxed feeling. We're on our 4th visit to the HH resort in the past year, and I'm already dreading having to go back to reality on Sunday.

The activities here can be whatever you make of them. If theme parks are what you are looking for, you won't find them, but you can do as much or as little as you'd like. The activities available also depend on the time of the year you're here; obviously there's more to do in the summer.

If you're not sure, just book a few days to try it out. I'm sure you can fill up the days quickly and then you can decide if you want to make a repeat visit.

 

[sumessefui]

We find a lot to do at HHI. We spend 6 days there and could do more time. Try it and you will be amazed at how much ( or how little) you can do.

 

[Johnnie Fedora]

I really depends on the type of person you are. I like WDW, but I'd rather be bored for two hours on the beach at HH then 2 hrs in the line for Splash Mountain.

I would suggest a 5 night stay, you really won't know what's right for you until you try it. HH offers a great contrast to the vacation atmosphere at WDW.

 

[ZerasPride]

I wasn't sure how I would like Hilton Head until we booked a trip in December 2001. I was used to the hustle and bustle of the theme parks and being on the go from sun up to way past sun down. But as others have mentioned, there is something to be said for lounging around the pool with a good book, sitting in a rocker on your balcony watching the sun set, playing a game of checkers or pool at Big Murgy's Den and there's so much I haven't tried that I am looking forward to this November like: the dolphin cruise, a Savannah day trip, A Private Affair with Chef Gordon, trying some of the restaurants on the island that we haven't been to and eating at our favorites, seeing what the Disney Character Outlet has waiting for me, renting a bike and touring the island, taking a cooking class and I know I could go on and on. We love the relaxed and laid back atmosphere at Hilton Head and that's why we chose it as our home resort.

Give it a try, you may be pleasantly surprised!

 

[cgcw]

We now go for almost a week - check in Sunday, out on Saturday. We have talked several times about adding on so that we are able to spend two weeks at HH every summer. One of these day hopefully we'll be able to do just that.

 

[A1A1]

Thanks for the replies. I sometimes feel that I can't stand the thought of going into the parks. I just like to loaf around the resort by day, but like to meander over to the parks at night. I am kind of a restless type. I can imagine that the parks are going to begin wearing on me, and that I will be looking to relax more as I get older. I travel alone with my DD who is 5, and I can't imagine her getting bored of the parks for another thirty years.

I was wondering if those that love the relaxation of HHI dread the thought of WDW, or do you equally love both?

 

[Candace]

I own at both. I have always traveled with my two boys by myself, so Disney (and staying on the grounds) felt safer for me. With school vacations, esp. summer, being the available times for us to go, I have grown weary of the heat and crowds in the parks. We have been going for 11 years now, and my youngest always invites two or three friends. They are mid-teens, so I let them do their own thing, and I sometimes go days without entering a park. I will sometimes meet them for dinner, after things have cooled down, and I will do a few things then. My true favorite times for the parks are November, January, and March. When I retire (hopefully in 3- 5 years), I hope to get my husband to join me at the more adult offerings of Disney such as the Food and Wine Fest. What I truly love about HH is the relaxed feeling I have there. I actually wish I had more of my points there, and less at WDW. (And I am not an "up-early, go to the beach" person). There is plenty to do on the island if you want - not just what the resort offers, but neat restaurants, clubs, stores, etc. And some very interesting historical day tours nearby. As far as "dreading" the thought of WDW, I'd have to say NO. As much as I enjoy relaxing at HH, I get very excited about returning to WDW. In fact, I will arrive there 2 weeks from today with my 82 year old mom, and I can't wait! We will do the parks, but at a much slower rate! You just need to visit HH to get a "grip" on the place. Be careful, though, you might want to add on! Good luck!

 

[cgcw]

We also own at both HH and BWV. We love both but they are two totally separate vacations. We still get very excited about each trip and always have a wonderful time. This last trip to WDW was actually relaxing. We think because of owning DVC and knowing we'll be back sooner than if we didn't. It has made us realize that we don't have to do it all in one day and we can allow ourselves to relax at WDW in addition to HH.

 

[LisaR]

I would just be curious if those of you that enjoy HH for a week or more have the same feelings about VB? We are going to HH in March for the first time. I was very nervous about booking a whole week at HH because I was bored at VB. Don't get me wrong, we LOVED VB. A week was just too much for us. However, it seems like there is so much more to do in and around HH.

Lisa

 

[gracelrm]

We've just returned (two hours ago) from four nights at HHI. We just went to check things out since we'd never been there before. We really liked it and as the other posts have said, it was a really relaxing trip. Obviously, we were there during the off season and it wasn't very crowded. nor was the beach much of an option. Yet, we still enjoyed it and are making plans to visit again. We LOVE being at WDW and doing the parks, but this trip was for "unwinding" after a hectic holiday. We found marvelous restaurants, fun things for the kids to do, and even rented bikes!!! We have three kids, so vacations are usually packed full of seeing and doing - but this one was totally different. I'd recommend trying it for a few days, like we did, and see for yourself if it fits your style.

 

[baileybrad]

Concerning whether enjoying the relaxing/laidback atomsphere of the DVC HH resort and how do we handle the flip side at WDW. We love WDW and the tons of things to do. We just know that our HH and WDW vacations will be different. Not better but different. We can''t wait to get to either place. We have stayed at Vistana Resort and Vistana Villages for our last 2 stays in Orlando because we got really good deals and couldn't get exactly the accomodations that we wanted through our DVC.

LisaR,
This is not meant as a shot at Vero but while we loved the resort, we enjoy the Hilton Head area and its many restaurants much more than we did Vero Beach. And even though there is a short drive down to the beach from the HH resort.....we prefer the beach there over the Vero beach. We spent 3 days at Vero on 2 different occasions and it was just enough for us....oddly enough, we combined these trips to the Daytona Beach area whose beach we love.

 

[Disneyaholic]

I don't even know how one would begin to compare a vacation at HH with one at WDW. They're just very different experiences. We love them both and hate when our vacation time at either place is coming to an end.

I guess it's like comparing driving an SUV to driving a Corvette or something like that. Both can accomplish the goal of getting you to your destination, but they are very different experiences along the way.

If I were forced to make a choice, I'd say that HH is my favorite DVC resort (said as I'm sitting at the kitchen table in our 2BR villa at HH...), but that doesn't mean that I'm unhappy with our WDW vacations!

 

[Dean]

While I truly enjoy VB, a full week is too long for us there. The difference to us is the beach is much better at HH and there are so many more options for things to do, shop, eat at HH; at least close by. Everything at VB is 8-10 miles away. We also think the surounding area is much prettier at HH than VB.

While I do enjoy HH overall, I'm not sure I would want to stay in the Shelter Cove area for more than a week. We stayed at Marriott's Harbour Pointe for a week a few years ago and any longer would have been too much. The only stay at DVC HH was on cash in 1999 for 3 or 4 nights in a 1 BR and I got the impression that a full week would have been almost too long.