Terra Verde VS Emerald Island

[daystar91]

We are looking to rent a huge vacation home in Florida on our family vacation to Disney. Can anyone tell me about the difference between Terra Verde and Emerld Island? I have two houses I'm interested in and need some advice..Which Resort would you choose and why?

 

[daystar91]

Bump

 

[sympatico]

I would choose and have chosen Emerald Island over Terra Verde because I like the area better. It's very close to Disney property, you can be parked and walking to the entrance of AK in less than 10 min. There's a lot of new restaurants and shopping that have opened up on this end of 192 in the last couple of years and I don't find the traffic as bad as it is down in the Poinciana area. JMHO.
On this map Emerald Island is #15 and Terra Verde is #62
https://maps.google.com/maps/ms?ie=...8.272032,-81.608849&spn=0.068335,0.11055&z=13

 

[guarn3md]

Terra Verde and Emerald Island were built by the same builder and are similar communities. The main difference is what side of Rte 4 you want to be on. Emerald Island is on the west side and Terra Verde is on the east. I can leave my home at Terra Verde and take Osceola Parkway (.75 toll) and travel with little traffic and be in Animal Kingdom in 10/15 mins. But that is Animal Kingdom and there are a multitude of places to visit in Disney World. Epcot is closer to Terra Verde than the Magic Kingdom. It doesn't matter where you stay because there is always traffic in and around Disney. Even when I have stayed on Disney property and rented a car and traveled to Animal Kingdom it could take me 15 mins to get to the park!! AND if you don't rent a car and use Disney transportation then your travel time can easily double - depending on the resort you have chosen to stay out.
I wouldn't base a rental property off of the community as a whole and the approximated "travel time"... I would choose according to which home/community is going to provide you and your family the amenities you are looking for. I would also suggest that you read real reviews on Trip Advisor. Terra Verde is consistently rated in the top three of specialty lodging in the Kissimmee area.
Good Luck with your decision!! You are making a great choice to stay in a rental home and up until 6 months ago I would have never thought that way. I have always stayed on Disney property until March of this year when I stayed in a town home in Terra Verde and now I won't stay anywhere else!!
Debbie

 

[Badamon]

On this map Emerald Island is #15 and Terra Verde is #62
https://maps.google.com/maps/ms?ie=...8.272032,-81.608849&spn=0.068335,0.11055&z=13

Loving this map! Thanks for posting this link. I'm finding it so helpful in getting my bearings while we plan our upcoming trip. We've been to WDW quite a bit, but when reading about different resorts and restaurants it's great to have a visual on the map at the location. Thank you, thank you!

Oh, P.S.
We booked in Terra Verde (3 BR, 2.5 BA). I'll post my opinion of the resort when we return!

 

[melissasmithpackett]

this info is very helpful. thx