My wife and I checked into Vero on Friday April 1 and left on Monday April 4. This was our first trip to Vero and we were very impressed with the resort. We stayed in an ocean front Inn Room and the room was very nice. It was clean, well maintained and had a spectacular view. There were minor problems, the light above the microwave needed replacing, but nothing to hinder our enjoyment. There was a dehumidifyer running in the room, a remnant from the hurricanes. Our room was not ready when we checked in (about 2 PM) but was ready at 3:00 PM.
I would like to commend the CM's at Vero. They were very friendly and helpful. There seemed to be plenty of staff all over the resort and it was maintained perfectly. The kids programs seemed to be exceptional. I was constantly seeing staff working with groups of kids in about a 2:10 or better ratio. The pool staff was always around keeping the area clean. Mousekeeping was always around and the restaurants and lounges seemed to be well staffed.
On Friday night we had dinner in Sonya's. The meal was excellent and they were also having a wine paring special for $45 per person. We did not have this but it looked very good and the price was reasonable for what you received, a 4 course dinner and 4 glasses of wine. After dinner we went to the Green Cabin Room (the resorts lounge) where there was live entertainment. The duo was very good and friendly and is there every Friday and Saturday night. Sunday nights they have a singer / Piano player who is also very good.
On Saturday morning it rained so we went into Vero Beach. It is about a 15 minute drive. Vero is very nice and has a nice downtown shopping area. The rain stopped about noon so it was back to the pool. The pool is very nice at Vero but can be crowded. The slide is fast and fun. The biggest complaint about the resort is the issue of "reserving lounge chairs at the pool", but more on that later. There is no quiet pool at Vero, the beach takes that function. The beach is very long and in great shape. It was not crowded during our stay and if you walked a little ways from the beach entrance then you had the area to yourself. They do rent chairs for the beach which I feel should be free. When I stayed in Sanibel last year they were free but I also know that a lot of resorts do rent them. This was not a major issue but a little annoyance which would be a nice member perk.
Saturday at 2 we played golf at Aquatina, an executive course about 15 minutes north of the resort. They have a twilight special at 2 PM of $26 for as many holes as you can play with a cart. Saturday night was into Vero Beach for dinner at the Ocean Grill. An excellent restaurant on the ocean in downtown Vero. The price was similar to Sonya's and the food was very good.
Now for the bad. We got to the pool on Sunday around 9:30 and most of the lounge chairs had towels on them and the tables had towels and jackets on them to "reserve" them. The pool was not crowded but it was very difficult to find seating for 2. I talked to the CM at the pool about this and I was told that it's the way things are done at Vero and I should complain to management. We were at the pool until 1 PM and there were very few people using all of the saved chairs. I feel it's reasonable to save a chair for an hour or so while your walking the beach or getting something to eat but 3 hours seems unreasonable. Anyway, we left to play golf again at the same course and had a great afternoon.
The resort looked great and there was very little damage that I could see from the hurricanes. Some palm trees were obviously replaced. The boardwalk is being rebuilt and some shingles were replaced but overall the resort looked great. I'm sure that people who have been there before would see the differences, but for a first timer it looked very good.
We left Monday when they were putting up the scaffolding to work on the roof. They were enclosing the scaffolding as they always do at Disney so I'm not sure what this will do to the view. Shutters will lose their views while the scaffolding is up there. I'm not sure if they will close down the ocean view rooms or not that are being affected. I'd be interested to know from someone that's down there now.
Overall I felt that it was an excellent resort and an excellent location. A car is needed as everything is about a 15 minute drive but directons are easy with everything off of Route 1 or A1A. I will definately be going back, maybe next April. Also, any panic selling of Vero points because of fears of assessments or the damage done there is very foolish. The damage is not noticable and they are in much better shape than anything else around them.
I would like to commend the CM's at Vero. They were very friendly and helpful. There seemed to be plenty of staff all over the resort and it was maintained perfectly. The kids programs seemed to be exceptional. I was constantly seeing staff working with groups of kids in about a 2:10 or better ratio. The pool staff was always around keeping the area clean. Mousekeeping was always around and the restaurants and lounges seemed to be well staffed.
On Friday night we had dinner in Sonya's. The meal was excellent and they were also having a wine paring special for $45 per person. We did not have this but it looked very good and the price was reasonable for what you received, a 4 course dinner and 4 glasses of wine. After dinner we went to the Green Cabin Room (the resorts lounge) where there was live entertainment. The duo was very good and friendly and is there every Friday and Saturday night. Sunday nights they have a singer / Piano player who is also very good.
On Saturday morning it rained so we went into Vero Beach. It is about a 15 minute drive. Vero is very nice and has a nice downtown shopping area. The rain stopped about noon so it was back to the pool. The pool is very nice at Vero but can be crowded. The slide is fast and fun. The biggest complaint about the resort is the issue of "reserving lounge chairs at the pool", but more on that later. There is no quiet pool at Vero, the beach takes that function. The beach is very long and in great shape. It was not crowded during our stay and if you walked a little ways from the beach entrance then you had the area to yourself. They do rent chairs for the beach which I feel should be free. When I stayed in Sanibel last year they were free but I also know that a lot of resorts do rent them. This was not a major issue but a little annoyance which would be a nice member perk.
Saturday at 2 we played golf at Aquatina, an executive course about 15 minutes north of the resort. They have a twilight special at 2 PM of $26 for as many holes as you can play with a cart. Saturday night was into Vero Beach for dinner at the Ocean Grill. An excellent restaurant on the ocean in downtown Vero. The price was similar to Sonya's and the food was very good.
Now for the bad. We got to the pool on Sunday around 9:30 and most of the lounge chairs had towels on them and the tables had towels and jackets on them to "reserve" them. The pool was not crowded but it was very difficult to find seating for 2. I talked to the CM at the pool about this and I was told that it's the way things are done at Vero and I should complain to management. We were at the pool until 1 PM and there were very few people using all of the saved chairs. I feel it's reasonable to save a chair for an hour or so while your walking the beach or getting something to eat but 3 hours seems unreasonable. Anyway, we left to play golf again at the same course and had a great afternoon.
The resort looked great and there was very little damage that I could see from the hurricanes. Some palm trees were obviously replaced. The boardwalk is being rebuilt and some shingles were replaced but overall the resort looked great. I'm sure that people who have been there before would see the differences, but for a first timer it looked very good.
We left Monday when they were putting up the scaffolding to work on the roof. They were enclosing the scaffolding as they always do at Disney so I'm not sure what this will do to the view. Shutters will lose their views while the scaffolding is up there. I'm not sure if they will close down the ocean view rooms or not that are being affected. I'd be interested to know from someone that's down there now.
Overall I felt that it was an excellent resort and an excellent location. A car is needed as everything is about a 15 minute drive but directons are easy with everything off of Route 1 or A1A. I will definately be going back, maybe next April. Also, any panic selling of Vero points because of fears of assessments or the damage done there is very foolish. The damage is not noticable and they are in much better shape than anything else around them.
