Vistana Village and HIFS ???

[crusoe2]

I think we have finally narrowed it down to these two for our trip in Oct. but have some questions before we make a final decision. So here goes:

HIFS - What cable stations do you get on television and are there hot tubs in the east courtyard near the big pool with all the cool toys?

Vistana Village - What is the kiddie area of the pool like and what is the game room like? Also, what kind of kid and family activities do they have? Anything special here that would appeal to a 9yo boy? And what cable stations do you get here?

Basically our dilemma is that we would love to take our son somewhere as kid-friendly as HIFS but we know we would probably be much more comfy in a 2 bdr. at Vistana Village. The price we were quoted by hotelkingdom.com is only about $5 a nite more for Vistana Village and we don't really think the free breakfast will make much difference to us since we're not big breakfast people. But the themeing and free activities at HIFS look and sound great for our 9yo son.

Would appreciate any info or suggestions - especially new info on Vistana Village. Thanks in advance!

 

[ljsmom]

Bump!

My family is also going in October and we have narrowed our search down to the same two off-site hotels, for many of the same reasons. We are also considering CS on property ... got an awesome rate of $89/night (AP). I would love to stay at CS, but with two kids I think we will need the space a suite/villa has to offer.

I got a rate of $114.90 at HIFS through Hotel Kingdom and $119.90 for Vistana Villages 2 Bedroom. When I called Vistana directly I got a rate of $209!

Any advise to help with our decision?

 

[babla]

Wow, great minds think alike! Last October, we stayed at HIFS, and this October we are staying at Vistana Villages. Here are my thoughts which may help.

We loved our stay at HIFS and the kids wanted to stay there again this time. They were 7, 7, and 10 years old. Their favorite things were their own room, the pool, the free breakfast, and the bingo and kareoke nights.

I don't remember what the cable stations were, but I would say it was similar to basic family cable. There are also Nintendo games to rent, but they are not the newest or greatest games, so you may want to bring some from home. There are also movies to rent. We do not spend much time in the room, so this was not a major issue for us.

Last year, the only hot tub was located on the far side of the adult pool. Not a convenient location. But I seem to remember that they were building a hot tub by the kids' pool. Maybe someone who's been there within the last year would know this.

The pool is a good place to hang out. The kids liked the animal rafts for rent, and DH and I liked the frozen daquiries. The pool did shut down twice, though, because of ~ugh~ poop in the pool. Not fun. But I suppose this could happen in any pool geared to kids of all ages.

So, why are we not going back there again? Mainly because we need more space. There are five of us in the family. Even though we spend very little time in the room, we all do better when we are not on top of eachother and get a good night's sleep. The kidsuite rooms at HIFS are 500 sq feet, and the rooms at V.V. are about 1100 sq feet (at least that's what I've been told). Plus, I want 2 bathrooms; and a washer and dryer.

I think either choice you make will be good. But for me, it comes down to space.

Let me know if I can answer any more questions.

 

[crusoe2]

and the reply - I wondered if anyone else was having the same problem. We originally planned to stay on site but my DH begged me to find something with more space. First I found HIFS and thought I'd found the best deal. Then I found Vistana Village for virtually the same price. Unfortunately my son had already seen and heard about HIFS and now he's kinda hooked on the idea of staying there. If we knew more about the pool, gameroom and kid activities at Vistana Village he might be just as excited about staying there, tho. I also wonder about the cable stations available at each place because my DH and DS are not gonna be happy without ESPN, Cartoon Network, NICK and Disney channels. (Yeah, even at Disney World - go figure! ) Anyway, thanks again for taking the time to reply!

Hi babla! Just saw your post right after I submitted mine. Thanks for the info. Yours is not the first report I've heard of a "poop in the pool" problem at HIFS altho it's true that could happen anywhere. What are your trip dates? We may see you at Vistana Village!

 

[mainey-mouse]

Just got back. This is a bit long - so here is the summary...
If I was going again with my kids, and debating between HIFS and V V, I would stay at V V for most of the stay, and then move to HIFS for the last couple nights (but I didn't actually stay at either). If I was also considering CS at $89/night, I might decide to stay there for the last couple nights instead to settle my curiosity (actually, I settled my curiosity with PO-RS for $89/night) - but your kids aren't going see it as a comparable replacement for HIFS if they already know anything about THAT place (mine didn't, anyway). The hotel moves (we did 2 in 11 nights) really weren't a big deal. I thought it might be a big hassle, but it wasn't.

Here's the long part....
My kids are 4 and 7. The first place we stayed was in a "Sleepy Bear Den" room at St. Pete's beach Travelodge. The hotel itself was a little low end for my tastes - but we stayed for free on Travelodge points that my my husband has from busniess travel. The room was actually nice - they were all renovated a year ago I believe. There were nice grounds at the back with beautiful gardens and lots of lizzards for the kids to chase. Our room openned onto these gardens. The hotel was also right on the beach. The room had a microwave, half size fridge (bigger than a bar fridge), kitchen sink and cupboard, good size table where two could sit comfortably side by side, and a closet. The decor was kid-ized with the Sleepy Bear character decorating comforters, lampshades and drapes. It had Nintendo available over a hotel network- 7$ for an hour of play.

Second place we stayed were the Tropical Palms cabins in Orlando. Two bedrooms, full kitchen, deck. Not fancy, but comfy. Nicer establishment than the St. Pete's Travelodge. Very relaxing to return here after a day in the parks. There was also a sleeping loft for kids. I didn't let mine sleep there, as I was afraid they'd get up in the middle of the night and fall down the ladder - and the 7 year old is a sleepwalker. The kids loved the loft anyway and it was a great play place. Lots of lizzards, squirrels, racoons around the grounds, all of which had great kid appeal. This place also had the friendliest guests.

Third place was Port Orleans Riverside, our last 2 days. At $89 /night, I couldn't pass up this chance to see what a Disney Resort was like. It really was very very nice. Fanciest place we stayed. Best beds. Really nice grounds, pools playgrounds. No lizzards, but some bunnies. But from the parents' perspective - just too crowded. Our room didn't even have a closet so we had to have the luggage out and about, and while it did have two bathroom sinks outside the bathroom for convenience, it didn't quite match the convenience of kitchen facilities available in the same size (approx) room at the Travelodge. Smallest bathroom too. From the kids' perspective, I quote my 7 year old - "Well, its just, you know, fancy...no Nintendo, no Loft, no Sleepy Bear stuff...". She wasn't overly impressed. I'm glad we tried it - Disney really does do some nice things with its resorts - but I'm also glad we didn't try to spend our whole vacation in a hotel room, Disney or otherwise. btw, the serpent slide pool at PO was closed because someone barfed in it...this stuff is basically unavoidable I guess.

And last but not least ... we were all set to go with HIFS some months back, before we heard of the under 5 pool diaper rule, which wasn't a hassle we wanted to face on vacation with my 4 1/2 yr old.. My daughter (7) never quite got over the idea of bunkbeds and HIFS theming though. It really does appeal to kids. In retrospect, I'm glad we didn't spend the whole stay there either - I liked the two real bedrooms, loft, full kitchen and deck at the cabins - and the abilty to just walk right out the door. Just more space. We also seriously considered V V - it was pretty much a coin toss decision to go with TP. Our final judgement, after trying various levels of accomodation, is that space rules for parents and kids stuff rules for kids. If we go back within the next couple years, we'll stay at some suite place - maybe Tropical Palms again, or maybe V V or something else, for most of the stay - and then we'll go to HIFS for the last couple nights to let the kids have their fun.

 

[vmkids]

There are hot tubs two of them on the same side as the fun pool. IT is on the opposent side of the little baby play center though. They have put in putt putt gulf right beside the tubs. IT is free and my kids liked playing while grown ups were in the hot tubs.

 

[preb]

The two hot tubs near the putt putt/0 depth pool are also kept at different temperatures. One is traditional (hot) and the other is just warm, so the kids can enjoy it. I thought that was a nice touch!