I just got back from VB -- I absolutely love it there.
The Inn rooms are in the hotel portion of the resort and the studios, 1 bedrooms and 2 bdrms are in 3 other buildings. The Beach cottages are free standing overlooking the beach!! You park under the buildings you stay in (which is super convenient when you arrive and leave (with luggage) or go out. Each room has a balcony too.
They have a pool with a lighthouse waterslide-- directly across the pool access is the access to the beach. the beach is very clean and you can rent chairs and umbrella and jet ski etc. They have towels on the pier that you can bring to the beach. they also have a outside shower to wash off the sand. The beach is pretty much private as the area around the resort to the left is all private homes and then smaller condos to the right.
They have mini golf, shuffle board, tennis, a ship water playground for the little ones, shuffle board, ping pong, bike rentals, arcade fitness center basketball (you access the tennis and basketball /sport thru an tunnel that goes underground the street (kinda cool!) They also have scheduled activities for the kids, such as unbirthday parties, bingo (parents can play too), crafts, scavanger hunts for both tots and older kids, camp fire with smores every other night and pool games on Sundays. Also, they provide group babysitting service for a few hours most nights too.
The area where the resort is located is very laid back and pretty much residential. There are 2 schools nearby about 2 miles away. They do have an outlet mall about 15 minutes away from the resort and lots of restaurants, such as TGIF etc around the mall area. We went into town and ate at a sports grill one night. they also have a few publix supermarkets and cvs near by and pizza delivery (although there is a pizza place next to the resort).
It is a very nice resort. However, it can be a bit boring if you are used to the hustle and bustle of Disney, but if you like the beach it is heaven. We usually try to spend 2 days there and have never stayed more than 2 days.
My kids are 8 & 11 and we didn't have a free moment during the entire 2 days. one day they even had archery. they also have DVDs you can rent (members get them free) from the gift shop and have limited food at the gift shop too. They do have internet access.
Like I said, I just love it there. Its a touch of Disney at the beach. Oh and they do have a character brunch or breakfast on Saturdays too.
