Hi, we just arrived home from a one week stay at Grande Vista and really enjoyed it. I had requested a new or newly furbished 2 bedroom unit on the ground floor and got a beautifully decorated new unit in the Cristobal building. Plenty of parking and easy 15 minutes to Disney World and 10 minutes to Universal.
My husband did take my kids to the big pool with cool water cannons as well as the indoor play structure. The indoor play structure is huge and clean. Our unit was very clean when we went in and looked very nice. It was great to have a washer and dryer in the unit. We cooked breakfast every morning in the unit before heading out to the parks. As stated earlier, there is a big Publix very close (supermarket). In addition, this strip mall has a Walgreen's and a couple of small stores. I saw a Denny's nearby as well as a gas station and 7-11 convenience store. Across the street from Publix is the Orlando Preminum Outlet Mall. They had some nice stores, but not great discounts at this time. I did buy some things at the Disney Outlet store in the Preminum Mall. Plus, there is a food court inside the Mall. Oh, Dixie Stampede is right across the street from the Mall as well. We didn't get a chance to see Dixie Stampede but went to Arabian Nights instead. We will do Dixie probably during our December trip.
Only negative about our unit was the pesky insects coming into the unit (probably from the little gap under the front door). We sprayed the area with around the door with DEET and I tried to put a bug repellent towelette near the gap. Other than this minor inconvenience (insects stayed near the kitchen area because living room and bedrooms had ceiling fans), the resort is beautifully landscaped and there is plenty to do for everyone in the family. My husband did some exploring and stated that some of the building and units closer to the registration area appeared to be older and maybe not be as nice.
Hope you have a great time in August.