As an owner at Vistana in the Fountains II section, I have always been very partial to that complex. We've had many lovely stays there, and have always had a great unit and a wonderful vacation. This past week, however, we traded our Vistana 2BR/2BA unit for a 3BR/3BA unit at Cypress Pointe (not GrandVillas) because we invited my husband's DB and his family to join us, so instead of being our usual cozy family of 3, we were a rowdy family of 8 and needed lots more space. Since there seem to be loads of questions about both these resorts, I thought I'd take a minute to compare them "feature by feature" for everyone.
Grounds: Vistana wins hands down. The grounds are beautiful, the pools numerous and lovely, and the other recreational amenities are plentiful and top quality. CP Volcano pool was nice, but not the same. It's smaller and has fewer things going on -- no restaurant for one thing, and not as many activities. It was nice, just not as nice.
Unit: Our 3BR at CP was huge, and nicely furnished and appointed. The beds were comfy, and everything was immaculate. I liked the decor and the layout. Bc of the second master bedroom being a lock-off, it afforded more privacy since it was pretty far away from our bedroom.It was also closer to the smaller third bedroom, which had 2 twins and a trundle, which was good for us bc we had my niece and nephews in that room. That room really is very small, you had to climb on the bed to get to the closet, but for little kids, it was fine. (But if we had not had the lock-off MB, the unit would have been smaller than the Vistana 2BR.) We also had a BIG screen TV (DH and DBiL enjoyed watching the Red Sox win on that screen!) and a DVD player and a stereo. The unit also had high speed internet for a fee and a safe in each MB.
Many people here have complained about the bathroom set-up in these units, and I admit, it is WEIRD. There really is little to no privacy in the toilet area, even though it is behind a wall, there is a mirror going across the whole double sink so you can still be seen in the room! We made a rule to lock the bedroom door if one of us was in the bathroom, and that worked fine.
I had seen posts here about units that were old and in bad condition and I was soooo worried that before we checked in, I called a manager to tell her of my concerns. She explained to me that they have 3 categories of units: Timeshare owners (inc. RCI trades), Marketing (people there on those promo deals where you have to go to the presentation) and Rentals (hotel booking services). She said that the last 2 are significantly more worn than the owner units bc a) they are used and turned over more frequently and b) bc owners take better care of the units than transient people. (Don't jump on me for this, I am just repeating!!) So those people who book a cheap rate on hotelkingdom are more likely to get a more worn room than an RCI owner. She told me that sometimes they allocate the nicer rooms to rentals, but it's not a sure thing. So if you want a nice unit there, ask to be in an owner building.
The Vistana Fountains units don't come in 3BR. The second BR though is MUCH larger than the second BR at CP so take that into consideration when comparing the 2 resorts. It has 2 double beds and a TV. The decor is more dated in Fountains II but they are changing that as we speak. The TV is normal sized, and I don't remember a stereo. Other than that, the units are comparable. Oh - Vistana MB has a little pocket door for the toilet area so it's more private.
Location: Equal.
When all is said and done, both resorts are lovely and a good value. Let me know if you have questions.
Grounds: Vistana wins hands down. The grounds are beautiful, the pools numerous and lovely, and the other recreational amenities are plentiful and top quality. CP Volcano pool was nice, but not the same. It's smaller and has fewer things going on -- no restaurant for one thing, and not as many activities. It was nice, just not as nice.
Unit: Our 3BR at CP was huge, and nicely furnished and appointed. The beds were comfy, and everything was immaculate. I liked the decor and the layout. Bc of the second master bedroom being a lock-off, it afforded more privacy since it was pretty far away from our bedroom.It was also closer to the smaller third bedroom, which had 2 twins and a trundle, which was good for us bc we had my niece and nephews in that room. That room really is very small, you had to climb on the bed to get to the closet, but for little kids, it was fine. (But if we had not had the lock-off MB, the unit would have been smaller than the Vistana 2BR.) We also had a BIG screen TV (DH and DBiL enjoyed watching the Red Sox win on that screen!) and a DVD player and a stereo. The unit also had high speed internet for a fee and a safe in each MB.
Many people here have complained about the bathroom set-up in these units, and I admit, it is WEIRD. There really is little to no privacy in the toilet area, even though it is behind a wall, there is a mirror going across the whole double sink so you can still be seen in the room! We made a rule to lock the bedroom door if one of us was in the bathroom, and that worked fine.
I had seen posts here about units that were old and in bad condition and I was soooo worried that before we checked in, I called a manager to tell her of my concerns. She explained to me that they have 3 categories of units: Timeshare owners (inc. RCI trades), Marketing (people there on those promo deals where you have to go to the presentation) and Rentals (hotel booking services). She said that the last 2 are significantly more worn than the owner units bc a) they are used and turned over more frequently and b) bc owners take better care of the units than transient people. (Don't jump on me for this, I am just repeating!!) So those people who book a cheap rate on hotelkingdom are more likely to get a more worn room than an RCI owner. She told me that sometimes they allocate the nicer rooms to rentals, but it's not a sure thing. So if you want a nice unit there, ask to be in an owner building.
The Vistana Fountains units don't come in 3BR. The second BR though is MUCH larger than the second BR at CP so take that into consideration when comparing the 2 resorts. It has 2 double beds and a TV. The decor is more dated in Fountains II but they are changing that as we speak. The TV is normal sized, and I don't remember a stereo. Other than that, the units are comparable. Oh - Vistana MB has a little pocket door for the toilet area so it's more private.
Location: Equal.
When all is said and done, both resorts are lovely and a good value. Let me know if you have questions.
