Marriott Grande Vista, Cypress Harbour, Horizons, or Sheraton Vistana

[jhugge]

We are planning a 13 person trip in October and have vouchers for use at RCI resorts. These appear to be the best available. Can anyone give me their thoughts or experiences at these resorts.

Thanks in advance.

 

[Robinrs]

I've stayed at the Grande Vista and Vistana. LOOOOVED the MGV, reallly liked Vistana. Is it for the Resort or the Villages?

The MGV is a pure class act and I'd pick it over any property at this point. Cypress Harbour, as I was told by the sales staff at the MGV, is the MGV basically WITHOUT the golf course. The Horizons was built for timeshare owners who wanted a little less of the luxury (no jacuzzi) but a Marriott nonetheless. I'm sure others here with experience will let you know more.

My vote: The Marriott Grande Vista!!

 

[littlestar]

Marriott Grande Vista and Horizons trade through Interval.

Cypress Harbour is dual affiliated through RCI and Interval, but I don't know how much availability RCI gets.

Sheraton Vistana Villages is very nice from what I'm told. I think it trades through RCI (somebody correct me if I'm wrong).

 

[jhugge]

Marriott Grande Vista and Horizons trade through Interval.

Cypress Harbour is dual affiliated through RCI and Interval, but I don't know how much availability RCI gets.

Sheraton Vistana Villages is very nice from what I'm told. I think it trades through RCI (somebody correct me if I'm wrong).

Let me correct myself. These are through Interval. They are from my parents timeshare so I had to confirm.

Unfortunately it is not the Vistana Villages it is the resort. I have stayed at the Villages before and it is very nice.

Is there alot for small kids to do at the MGV and CH?

Thanks for your help.

 

[littlestar]

We were at Horizons last weekend. This resort really catered to young children. I've heard Cypress Harbour across the street from Horizons is great for older kids.

 

[MaMa3Princess]

We were at Horizons last weekend. This resort really catered to young children. I've heard Cypress Harbour across the street from Horizons is great for older kids.

Does anyone know if their are stuff to do at the Grande Vista? We are using some reward points to stay at the GV and I know it is golf friendly but is it even a little kid friendly?

 

[biras jim]

I know it wasn't one that was initially mentioned , but does anyone have any experience with the Marriott Royal Palms ? We're heading there in September on a promotional (read as "cheap") deal. Thanks.

 

[utahkennedys]

We were at the GV last April and they seemed to have quite a few activities for kids. DD was 3 and had fun at with her grandma at a party/activity and face painting. Of course she also loved the pools, but the main pool was a little too cool for her and her lips turned blue very quickly! They had rootbeer float activities, crafts, etc. We didn't participate in much, but there seemed to be quite a bit to do for children. Next time we do a Marriott Vacation Club in Orlando it will be at Horizons though, even though I have heard it isn't as "posh", I think the pirate pool alone would be worth it for dd4.

 

[rejobako]

I know it wasn't one that was initially mentioned , but does anyone have any experience with the Marriott Royal Palms ? We're heading there in September on a promotional (read as "cheap") deal. Thanks.

We stayed at the Royal Palms one year. Great villas, with many rooms overlooking the golf course, and it's very quiet there. This has both pros and cons. If you want easy access to a lot of "resort" activities and features like interactive pools, restaurants, etc., you may be disappointed. The facility itself has a nice but nondescript clubhouse with a beautifully landscaped pool, but it's very understated in comparison to most other timeshare resorts. I don't recall any organized activities etc. on-site.

On the other hand, Royal Palm is adjacent to the mega-huge convention-hotel Marriott World Center, and as a guest a Royal Palms you have pool and charging privileges there. Problem is, even though you're next door its quite a hike. I think you can arrange for a complimentary golf cart transportation to the MWC lobby. If you got a "deal" on Royal Palms, I think you'll be happy there, but personally I much prefer the Grande Vista because it's newer, more centralized, and feels more like a "resort" condo property without being "too much".

 

[jeff968]

We were just at the Imperial Palms which is next to the Royal palms. It is a quiet location. We took the shuttle up to the world which was an incredible location but the shuttle was a pain and too long of a walk.

As for the original question, we like Cypress harbor best. we've toured GV and it looks very nice but it is bigger. Horizons has smaller units (we've toured there as well). Sheraton is nice, we stayed there, but there are some older units which you could end up in.

 

[tortoni]

We've stayed at Marriott Cypress Harbour 2 X and recently (last week!) at Sheraton Vistana Resort. I would choose Marriott CH hands down, especially if you request one of the newer rooms. We stayed in the Fountains section of Vistana. It was nice, but the furnishings were very basic, an old kitchen and no view to speak of. At Marriott CH, the furnishings are bright and new, great amenities in the room (jacuzzi, nice kitchen, etc.) and the grounds are beautiful. Don't get me wrong, we liked VIstana, we just liked Marriott CH a lot better.

 

[twinmomplus2new]

Grand Vista has extensive childrens programs and programs for adults. Every day, some examples frisbee spin art, tie dye t-shirts. Make your own stuffed animals. ( like build a bear) Kids paddle boat races, family scavenger hunts...

Can you tell I called today for next months schedule? The fitness staff said the schedule is the same month to month for the most part and fixed by day of the week.

They also do a family photo with the resort photographer. I bought like 7?? 8 by 10's and the disk for $66 last year.

 

[biras jim]

We stayed at the Royal Palms one year. Great villas, with many rooms overlooking the golf course, and it's very quiet there. This has both pros and cons. If you want easy access to a lot of "resort" activities and features like interactive pools, restaurants, etc., you may be disappointed. The facility itself has a nice but nondescript clubhouse with a beautifully landscaped pool, but it's very understated in comparison to most other timeshare resorts. I don't recall any organized activities etc. on-site.

On the other hand, Royal Palm is adjacent to the mega-huge convention-hotel Marriott World Center, and as a guest a Royal Palms you have pool and charging privileges there. Problem is, even though you're next door its quite a hike. I think you can arrange for a complimentary golf cart transportation to the MWC lobby. If you got a "deal" on Royal Palms, I think you'll be happy there, but personally I much prefer the Grande Vista because it's newer, more centralized, and feels more like a "resort" condo property without being "too much".

Thanks for the info on the Royal Palms . Really, we will just be using it for sleeping and swimming, so as long as it is clean and in good condition, we should be set. Our deal is something like $199(total) for 4 nights, but we do have to listen to the timeshare sales job. Is it really just a 5 minute drive to the MK, as the literature promised ?

 

[momofbgtwins]

We own at Horizons and Grand Vista. Horizons is our preferred resort with the twins because they cater to kids. The pirate pool and the splash pool are fantastic. We like that it is cozier, and easy to walk around. It is soo close to Sea World (the kids preferred theme park), but easy to get to WDW, too. Cyress Harbor is nice, too. We toured there. Grand Vista is huge, and it might be hard for 13 people to get together if you can't get rooms close together. The OP didn't mention the ages of the 13 people going, but if there are young kids I think Horizons is your best bet. If mostly adults and older kids (teens), then maybe Grand Vista or Cypress Harbour? They are more posh than Horizons. I don't know anything about Vistana.

 

[Brutie]

I'm coming into town Saturday and staying at the Grand Vista for the first time. I've heard good things about it and am looking forward to it. I've wanted to stay there for about 3 or so years now, since I first saw a picture of it in a Marriott.

Does anyone know if they have a shuttle to the parks?

 

[rejobako]

Thanks for the info on the Royal Palms . Really, we will just be using it for sleeping and swimming, so as long as it is clean and in good condition, we should be set. Our deal is something like $199(total) for 4 nights, but we do have to listen to the timeshare sales job. Is it really just a 5 minute drive to the MK, as the literature promised ?

Pretty darn close, I'd say. Very easy access from that Marriott property to WDW because you're basically on a limited access highway that crosses over I-4 and exists solely to deposit you into the heart of the World.

 

[rejobako]

I'm coming into town Saturday and staying at the Grand Vista for the first time. I've heard good things about it and am looking forward to it. I've wanted to stay there for about 3 or so years now, since I first saw a picture of it in a Marriott.

Does anyone know if they have a shuttle to the parks?

Brutie: As of last year they did NOT have scheduled transportation to Disney. I don't know about Universal or SeaWorld. I would suggest calling the resort directly and asking about transportation arrangements, as I'm sure this is a big issue for many.

 

[gaz]

I've stayed at the Grande Vista and Vistana. LOOOOVED the MGV, reallly liked Vistana. Is it for the Resort or the Villages?

The MGV is a pure class act and I'd pick it over any property at this point. Cypress Harbour, as I was told by the sales staff at the MGV, is the MGV basically WITHOUT the golf course. The Horizons was built for timeshare owners who wanted a little less of the luxury (no jacuzzi) but a Marriott nonetheless. I'm sure others here with experience will let you know more.

My vote: The Marriott Grande Vista!!

we are staying here in AUG this year. we exchanged it with our timeshare. we have a 2bed 2 bath apartment. my MIL and FIL coming withus now and we were wondering if it is possible to upgrade to a 3 bed apartment on checkin.

 

[rejobako]

we are staying here in AUG this year. we exchanged it with our timeshare. we have a 2bed 2 bath apartment. my MIL and FIL coming withus now and we were wondering if it is possible to upgrade to a 3 bed apartment on checkin.

I think that's a possibility, but it might depend on when you're travelling in August. If it's still early in the month, a lot of kids are still on summer vacation meaning families are still travelling -- the resort may not have the 3-bedrooms available. By end of the month, your odds are better, I would think.

 

[Joyce Kingkade]

We got the $199.00 deal too! We were scheduled for Cypress Harbour, but had to change our dates and now we have reservations at Horizons. Will we be disappointed with Horizons? Our kids are teenagers and from some others sounds like they may enjoy Cypress Harbour more.