I NEED your expertise, PLEASE!!

[Emmaline Lola]

I am heading off to the Westin on HHI in less then a month. Unfortunately, the Disney resort did not have any discounted villas available for my dates.

My DH who works for the Swan and Dolphin, was able to book the Westin on HHI for $49 a night, due to his Starwood Hotels discount. So we figure for 3 nights we can stay for less $$$ than 1 night at the Disney property-why not give it a go?!

Has anyone been to the Westin? What do you think of it?

Also, is there a restaurant at the Disney resort we can visit for breakfast?

And lastly, are the outlets worth a visit? How far are they located from the Disney resort?

Thanks in advance!

el

 

[Caskbill]

There are no restaurants there. The only food service is a basic 'snack bar'.

Keep in mind that the resort is gated. You need your room key to get in and out. For newly arriving guests there's a speaker phone to contact the front desk and they can buzz you in.

If you just want to look around you can probably ask. They'll probably say it's OK.

The beach house area is also gated and I think you must have a key to get in there.

The outlet malls are not on the island itself but just before the island. You'll pass them when you first get there. They're probably 10 miles from the DVC resort. They're your basic outlet malls. Nothing special about them that I remember.

 

[dvc_john]

I'll be at HHI myself in about 3 1/2 weeks. Staying at DVC.

Haven't stayed at the Westin, but have walked thru and had lunch there.
It's very nice, and I'm sure you'll like it a lot. It's on Port Royal plantation, more on the northern part of the island. Has a beautiful beach. And happens to be adjacent to one of the Marriott timeshares (Marriott Barony Beach).
DVC is in the middle of the island at Shelter Cove. The beach house is across the highway in Palmetto Dunes.

 

[dis-happy]

The Westin has been considered one of the top resorts on HHI---I'm sure you'll have a wonderful stay there (and what a fantastic price!!!). It's been a few years, but I remember the pool situation there was very nice, right on the ocean (believe there is also a pool that is partially indoors as well???). There was also a place we sat outside by the pool and ate lunch---enjoyable, convenient and tasty. I never get to stay at the DVC there (we have access to a free condo instead), but have visited friends at the DVC---regardless of where you're staying, you are sure to have a wonderful vacation at HH.

 

[jnrrt]

Don't know about the Westin, but as to the outlet malls, I just wanted to add that there are actually two big sections of them. They are on the same side of the road (on your left if coming from the island) about two miles apart. They are really pretty huge when taken together, and there aren't many stores not represented in one or the other, so if you like outlet shopping, it is worth it. We usually stay in Sea Pines, which is the farthest plantation, and it still only takes us about 20-25 mintes to get there. It does depend on traffic though, getting into or out of the island on Saturdays during the season is pretty awful since most rentals are Saturday to Saturday. Other than that the traffic isn't too bad.

 

[StormalongKay]

We just got back from Hilton Head DVC last night. Spent Easter and the 5 days following there - had nice warm weather and a terrific time.

We passed the Westin but didn't go in - it looks like one of the nicer places on the island.

Funny you should ask about breakfast because DH and I were just saying we thought the choice of restaurants for breakfast were lacking. We ate once at the HH Diner, had terrific service but weren't impressed with the food. Other than that, we stayed in the room for breakfast. There is a Cracker Barrel but it seemed most restaurants on the island only opened for lunch, dinner or both. We thought something similiar to a character breakfast buffet (minus the characters - only Shadow is at HH) would work really well at HH DVC.

There is alot of shopping on the island so don't restrict yourself to the outlets. But if you get as nice weather as we did, you may not want to stay indoors!

PS - we found the traffic getting on and off the island bottlenecked on both our entry and exit days (which weren't weekends!)

Have a great vacation!

 

[Emmaline Lola]

There is alot of shopping on the island so don't restrict yourself to the outlets. But if you get as nice weather as we did, you may not want to stay indoors!

I really appreciate your help!

StormalongKay: Are there specific areas that have "quaint" shops, like boutiques and sucH? What areas do I want to be sure to visit?

Thanks again everyone!

el

 

[Dean]

Go by the DVC resort when you get on the island and ask for the discount list. You can get the discounts with your membership card whether you're staying at DVC or not.

 

[jnrrt]

Could someone post directions to DVC on HH? We'll be there again this summer, but staying at my parent's place. I didn't know there were discounts for DVC members, so I'd like to look into this! Plus, I was planning to see if I could tour the resort while we're there since we've never seen it.

Thanks!

 

[Dean]

Could someone post directions to DVC on HH? We'll be there again this summer, but staying at my parent's place. I didn't know there were discounts for DVC members, so I'd like to look into this! Plus, I was planning to see if I could tour the resort while we're there since we've never seen it.

Thanks!

On business 278 it's about 8 miles in on the right just behind Shelter Cove Marina and just past the Mall and Piggly Wiggly.

 

[jnrrt]

Thanks, Dean.