Staying at VB today. Here's the scoop.

[floridafam]

Resort looks good.

New floor in the lobby.

Sonya's is open, along with all of the other restaurants.

Pool was empty so I called MS. They told me they couldn't book until Nov. 20 but I told them I was standing in the lobby so she checked and we booked a room for tonight.

Was told that the 4th floor is still closed as they are still working on rooms.

The slide is closed today. CM said one of the banisters was loose.

Beach looks good but the boardwalk is gone. You now access the beach from the old campfire area. CM said campfire will be across the street for a while and then will be held on the North lawn.

CM asked if I wanted a NS room upon check in. I said YES! She said that it is okay to smoke on the balcony of a non-smoking room. I requested a room in a good location where I knew there weren't rooms on both sides. Oh well.

So, just came home to grab toothbrushes. Going back to the resort. Report more later.

 

[CdnPoohBear]

Tell me what you mean by "the pool was empty"? No water in the pool, or no people by the pool? Sorry if that seems like a silly question. We check in on the 27th November. I spoke with ms today, and they said everything, including the childrens water area are open. We are keeping our fingers crossed. We are staying in a 2bdr. Are there any rooms I should request? 5 adults and 7, 5 and 1 year old children. Thanks

 

[PamOKW]

Thanks for the "live" update!

Here's the info Peggy Fisher posted today

Seaside Scoop Web News: Paradise Recovering



Disney is Open! As promised, Disney is open, once again surpassing their projections and hopes to be open by Thanksgiving. The music is playing, and guests are already checking into the beautifully refurbished resort by the sea. The Green Cabin Room Restaurant with the most gorgeous oceanfront view in Vero Beach is also open—great news for its many fans. For so many Snow Bird owners who read Seaside Scoop for their updates from afar, “Come on down!” It’s better than ever at Disney.

New Disney Look: Super Stringer Ed of CoralStone and other beachgoers report they like the new spacious look at Disney beachside more than the way it was, pre-hurricanes. Between the tons of sand they’ve imported and what Frances and Jeanne demolished, the new vista is stunning and sweeping. He and Carol of Coralstone report their stairs should be rebuilt very soon—hopefully this week.

 

[kweaver]

Leave it to Disney to turn all of that damage from a big hurricane into such a positive for the whole resort!

I'm more excited than ever for April to get here so that we can make our first trip to Vero Beach!

 

[Cora]

Can't wait for April...Thanks for the update! Are all the buildings open at this point? How did the beach cottages fair?
Cora

 

[msdis]

Thanks for the update. Hope you enjoy being home.

 

[WithDisneySpirit]

What wonderful news!!! Hope you have a blast, would love more report later

Lisa

 

[DVC Jen]

that is great news. thanks so much

 

[tinkgrl]

Hi,

Thanks for the news!!! Glad you are having a good time!!

Allison

 

[CaptainMidnight]

Originally posted by CdnPoohBear
Tell me what you mean by "the pool was empty"? No water in the pool, or no people by the pool? Sorry if that seems like a silly question. We check in on the 27th November. I spoke with ms today, and they said everything, including the childrens water area are open. We are keeping our fingers crossed. We are staying in a 2bdr. Are there any rooms I should request? 5 adults and 7, 5 and 1 year old children. Thanks

I was wondering the same since early pictures showed it full of sand. But from the comment about the slide being closed, the pool must have water in it. After all, in a pool with no water, I would guess the slide would be closed for more of a reason than a loose banister.

Hope our resort is recovering.

 

[pumpkinboy]

Originally posted by floridafam
...Pool was empty so I called MS. They told me they couldn't book until Nov. 20 but I told them I was standing in the lobby so she checked and we booked a room for tonight....

Too funny! Talk about your great trump cards: "Well, actually, I am standing in the lobby at the moment, and..."

Thx for the report.

 

[floridafam]

Hi all.

Yes, the pool had water in it. Sorry for the confusion.

The slide was still closed today. They were welding up near the top of the slide.

Our room had new carpet, a fresh paint job and brand new mattresses that were very comfortable.
I felt bad for DH when he had to get up and go to work this morning.

DS learned how to snorkel this morning. I signed him up at Eb and Flo's and he was the only one. I'm very glad we did this. It's called Snorkelears and is for 7 yrs old and up.

The pirate ship was closed part of today because of high chemical levels but it did open back up before we left.

They are still working on some areas. There is no tv with Disney movies in the room off the lobby yet but that should be back to normal soon.

We ordered room service this morning to eat on the balcony and had to come back in the room because of the guy standing out on his balcony smoking next to ours.

When we went to check out, a gentleman asked the CM where he could "have a beer and a cigarette" and she told him the Green Cabin Room or out by the pool.

The resort looks great. Any questions, just ask.

 

[iluvdisney]

Thanks for the update for those of us who can't get there just yet .

 

[jsinohio]

Originally posted by floridafam
When we went to check out, a gentleman asked the CM where he could "have a beer and a cigarette" and she told him the Green Cabin Room or out by the pool.

Hmmm... I thought the Green Cabin room was non-smoking...inside & out????

 

[floridafam]

I think she was telling him it was okay to smoke on the balcony of the Green Cabin Room.

Her comment just seemed silly. The pool area has children's activities, the slide, a pirate ship, etc. and then the CM tells people to smoke out there.

The resort also doesn't allow the use of straws or lids on beverages because of the environment (sea turtles). Well, I'd like to have a clean air environment when I stay there.

Anyway, I just feel strongly on this issue and it gets to me.

 

[thegoods]

Thanks for the reports. We are anxious to see the resort at Thanksgiving. From what I have read, it sounds like Disney went all out.

The last time we were there in June, the balcony of the Green Cabin room was non-smoking. I wonder what changed. The law sure didn't.

 

[Vince]

Thanks for the great report and pics, I feel alot better now !




-Vince

 

[madcoco]

floridafam What floor did you stay on? Thanks for your report. it sure must have felt good to stay at the resort again and run into some of the old CM's faces who have been through alot the last few months. Most of the CM's I ran into early Monday morning were all temporarily displaced from WDW helping to get things back to "normal"

 

[sgtdisney]

Thanks for the update. It is nice to hear that the resort is open now. It sounds like they must have really gotten some water damage inside if they replaced the entire lobby floor and mattresses in the rooms. It is nice to hear that they got it all fixed up though.

 

[floridafam]

madcoco,

We stayed on the 2nd floor.

They said the 4th floor should be open by Thanksgiving.

Yes, it was nice to see a lot of the CM's. They were calling my children by name, as usual. That's one of the things I like about the resort. Most of them seemed pretty happy. I'm glad they are back at work and can make some money.