Just returned great trip Williamsburg, II trade! any ??

[BWV Dreamin]

We stayed at this resort on points last August in a 2BR. My 10 cents:

- Request an upper floor unit in the original buildling (which we were in), much nicer than the units in the expansion section across the street.

- Furnishings in the villa were equal or superior to anything I've seen at a DVC resort. Well equipped kitchen had a glass top stove

- Shop around for the best deals on tickets to Colonial Williamsburg/Busch Gardens/Jamestown (the "big three" in the area), there are all sorts of combo passes available. I found the most value out of getting a "buy two days, get the the third free" pass directly from Busch and then getting a "historical triangle" pass for CW, Jamestown and Yorktown. Some of the best deals require either picking tickets up at the local chamber of tourism office (a pain) or having them sent to a local hotel - unfortunately, the Marriott Ford Colony isn't on the list of those were you can have the tickets sent.

- Roads in the area are O.K.; albeit there are lots of annoying dual turn lanes at intersections (an archiac traffic design one sees all across Virginia, one of the reasons they have such high accident rates).

- Tons of places to eat in the area, don't feel limited to what's at Fords Colony.

- IMHO the "sleeper" historical attraction is Jamestown. A nicely designed living history experience which doesn't feel dated and which can be done in a single morning or afternoon. Skip Yorktown unless you're really into revolutionary war history. Colonial Williamsburg is a conundrum; on the one hand, it's still impresses by virtue of the scale of the place. On the other hand, as hard as they're trying, it still feels too much like a dated aggregation of "great house" tours - most of the activity in a visit consists of standing quietly and politely (or shuffling forward in herd form) while a formal costumed guide goes on and on and on...which I could appreciate but which tends to drive kids nuts. Irrespective of what you see in the jazzy TV ads, there's still far too much "look but don't touch" here.

Busch Gardens: most hyped attraction is Dark Castle, which employs the same technology as the Spider Man Ride at Universal. It aspires to beat the latter but fails by virtue of having a poorly developed and confusing back story. There are also lots of coasters, many of which are first generation steelies which are showing their age. The best one is Apollo's Chariot in the Italy section of the park. Also in that land is Escape from Pompeii which is better than the garden variety flume ride but not up to Splash Mountain scale. But the sleeper of the park (one which Disney could really learn from) is Corkscrew Hill, a very clever, amusing combination of Irish storyline, 3D movie and motion simulator.

Many combo tickets to Busch include admission to Water Country USA, their water park about 10 minutes away from the theme park. It's solid but rather generic, nothing particularly unique or special here. The supposed theme is 50s/60s "Cowanbunga Surfing/Route 66," which is executed cheaply. Think the Boneyard at AK with 1/3 the budget Disney spent.

Great report beachblanket! I'm printing this off. I always enjoy your commentaries!

 

[beachblanket]

Great report beachblanket! I'm printing this off. I always enjoy your commentaries!

Thanks!!!

 

[DisDaydreamer]

OT.........

(an archiac traffic design one sees all across Virginia, one of the reasons they have such high accident rates).

According to the National Highway National Transportation Administration, for 2006 (most recent published), the fatality rates per 100M VMT (vehicle miles traveled) show that VA is in the bottom 20 states.

 

[icydog]

I own three platinum Manor Club weeks. Two of them are in the dedicated two bedroom side (MMC) and one is in the newer side known as the Manor Club Sequel (MSE). We bought them purely as traders in the Marriott timeshare system. This Easter I did a trade into the Sequel side (I didn't use my owner weeks) and frankly I was disappointed.

The one bedrooms on the Sequel side were long and narrow. (I might have liked it better if we had a two bdrm but since it was Easter there was no trading up.) The resort had no discernible activities for kids, we had our 10 yo grandson with us, and none at all for adults. The units are clean but not kept up like other Marriotts we have been to. In fact, if I had to rate the Sequel, the only units I saw, I would give it the lowest ranking of all the Marriotts we've been to.

Of course, March in Williamsburg is less than ideal. The small pool in the Sequel side was not open. We don't play golf. So maybe it was the time of year and not the resort. To those of you who want to try out a Marriott you should contact an owner and do a preview stay. That is the best way to see if you like the resort or not.

 

[MBELSANTI]

I've seen it several times 2-3 weeks out. Remember the way this actually works is exchanges will be available only about 3 weeks or less from when you're looking as the full week in question needs to be completed by 30 days from a given date.

It is not feasible to get to Williamsburg or get around without a car unless you stay within walking distance of the historic area itself. There are a few places to stay that will fit this need including 2 or 3 hotels that are part of the historic district. The Williamsburg Inn is a Gem but expensive, the W. Lodge is just a hotel but close. In addition there are two timeshares within walking distance, the Westgate and Bluegreen ones. Manor Club and the rest are a few miles out of town. Going to Williamsburg without a car isn't that much different than going to VB without one.

Thank you for this information Dean! I will have to do more research on this destination.

 

[beachblanket]

OT.........



According to the National Highway National Transportation Administration, for 2006 (most recent published), the fatality rates per 100M VMT (vehicle miles traveled) show that VA is in the bottom 20 states.

Thanks, I was talking fender-benders, not fatalities. That's reflected in auto insurance rates in the mid Atlantic!!!

 

[Mtnman44]

By the way, don't confuse the Jamestown settlement complex with the actual Jamestown historical site run by the park service. Jamestown settlement is a big place, lots to see and do, sells tickets, etc.

If you keep following the road another mile or two, you will come to the actual Jamestown site, right on the water, run by the park service with a museum, actual dig site, etc. Personally, I enjoyed the actual site much more than the "living experience" replications over at the Jamestown Settlement place. A NPS guide told us a lot of people get to the Settlement and never continue on to the actual historical site.

P.S. don't forget to check out the glass making place nearby!

P.S.S. I LOVED Yorktown!!! It was amazing to see the bunkers and earth Turrets still there and realize the amazing history. Gen. George Washington and Lafayette ordering the charges! The house where the surrender was signed is still there.

 

[PlainJane]

We've stayed there too, we actually stayed at pretty much every timeshare in Williamsburg because we only live about an hour away. You're guide was right, that's one of the nicest places to stay in Williamsburg.

I know, someone else mentioned Powahtan Plantation. I love staying there. It's so much fun touring the historic home they have, and their gardens. The pool setup is also very nice, there is even an adult only pool. The thing I like the most about PP is that everything you need is there, they have two full service restaurants, a gym, and a convenience store.

 

[PlainJane]

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