I have just returned from 10 nights at Sheraton's Vistana Villages via an RCI exchange.
I'll start by saying that the resort was very easy to navigate to from the airport. We took the south exit, to toll road 417 and took the exit marked I drive. It was only 1 mile from there to the resort. We were stopped at the entrance gate by a guard. The checked to make sure we were on the arrivals list and we were let in. We were checking in after dark so all I could see were spotlights on large palm trees and the exterior lighting on the villas.
We pulled up to an elegant portico and walked into a spacious lobby, decorated in a Floridian style. The center piece of the lobby was a night time view of the pool waterfall. The furniture was an eclectic mix of overstuffed chairs and sofas situated on an ornately woven rug in the pattern of large palms in pots. There were 3 people behind a counter and we were greeted immediately with smiles. We were given our room keys, our resort id's to charge to and a packet of information about the resort. Check in was a breeze. We also stopped by the information desk, which was where we would have scheduled our timeshare tour if we had wanted to. There was no pressure to do this.
We had reserved a 2 bedroom villa. We were on the ground floor and parking was very close to our unit. If we had been given a higher floor, the elevators would have made it very easy to get to. We used our key cards and entered the villa. Upon entering, we turned on the light and found an interesting focal point in front of us. There was an alcove, with a spotlight shining on a large silk floral arrangement in cranberry and a nice moss green. We will find these colors repeated through out the villa. The floor was a ceramic tile in warm red tones and had an nice inlayed pattern that outlined the shape of the entry way. The ceiling was painted in a light tan which had inset of dark terra-cotta color and white trim. Inside of this we found a high quality light fixture made with Murano glass, which had an almost marble appearance. Both the spotlight on the arrangement and the ceiling fixture were on a dimmer to add to the ambiance.
The Kitchen was on our right, with the same tile floor. Light oak cabinets and an oatmeal toned corian countertop and snack bar were the main focus here. There was a stainless steel double sink with a Moen faucet and Whirlpools appliances. ( dishwasher, smooth top range, microwave and refrigerator with icemaker). On the counter we found a toaster, coffeemaker with timer and a blender. The dinnerware was a teal fiesta style with nice quality silverware. The glasses and the salad bowls were a nice heavy glass with a crystal feel. The quality of the cookware was not as nice as the dinnerwear, but I did not cook. The walls in this area were painted a dark moss green with a very pretty border near the ceiling which depicted palms and banana leaves. On one end of the kitchen area there was a closet that housed the stackable washer and dryer and plenty of shelves that we used as a pantry.
The dining area was filled with a large glass topped table, which had an interesting gold toned painted frame. There was another matching floral arrangement in the center of the table. There were dark green placemats and napkins in rings at each of the 6 seats. There were also higher chairs at the snack bar which were upholstered in the same cranberry patterned back and vinyl covered woven fabric seats which matched the chairs at the table.
On the wall above the table there was a large gold framed rectangle mirror and on each side there was a planter that held silk ivy that trailed down the wall. On the opposite wall was a closet that could be used for clothing for the guests sleeping on the sofa bed.
The sofa was a dark green chenille, it was large enough for my 6 ft. husband to stretch out on. Above the sofa were huge triple matted prints of Palm trees ( are you guys seeing the theme here?). There were 2 upholstered chairs and nice pine Thomasville end tables. The commercial carpet was soft and cushy plush in a green and tan pattern, which went throughout the villa. There was very good lighting with interesting lamps and a ceiling fan. The large sliding glass door to the patio was heavily framed with ornate floral and palm pattered drapes, sheers that were beautifully covered in a design of palm leaves and room darkening privacy drapes. The entertainment center housed a 30 inch television, VCR and CD player all made by Phillips. Also in this room was a wet bar with the same oatmeal corian and 2 more complimenting prints of palm trees.
The Master bedroom door was right off the living area. It also had a door to the screened patio. The king size bed was very comfortable as well as beautiful, the carved headboard was huge! There was a nice amoire which held a 20 inch TV along with 3 large drawers and 2 matching 3 drawer night stands leaving plenty of drawer space. Above the amoire, there were silk vines along with some architectural objects. The sheets were not fitted, but were a very high thread count, almost silky and a nice pastel green, not your standard white. Feather pillows completed the bedding. There was a cranberry upholstered chair near the windows. The windows were dressed similar to the living area but with stripes and still had the sheers and the useful room darkening privacy drapes. These windows looked out onto the courtyard that held the pool. All of the windows could be opened and had screens for ventilation.
The large whirlpool tub was in a corner of the bedroom and surrounded by gold mirrors and cords with tassels. The flooring in the bathing area was the same ceramic tile as in the kitchen as were both sinks set in the same corian. The 2 person shower and toilet area had a sink and there was a second sink-vanity area in the bedroom-tub area. This was very handy for 2 people. I'll also note that all of the counters and vanities were a little higher than normal and each one had 2 small drawers and lots of storage underneath. All of the towels in the unit were a light beige and very fluffy. The maids did a great job of arranging them in attractive designs. There was Sheraton soap included here too.
The 2nd bedroom which held 2 double beds was right off of the entryway. This room had a closet and another amoire that held a smaller TV. It had one night stand between the beds, there was not much room on sides of the beds. Each bed had another huge carved headboard and triple matted prints above them. The second bath was nicely done in creams and a cranberry stripe wallpaper that had palm trees in the stripe. There was a large vanity with a mirror and bright lights. This bath had a pocket door to the 2nd bedroom and also opened to the kitchen/ living area.
The living room and the master bedroom opened onto a screened porch which had a distressed look iron, marble topped table with 4 chairs. There was a ceiling fan here also. I will add that the concrete floor was painted a very pretty dark brown which felt very clean on bare feet. I enjoyed sitting out there in the morning.
Outside, each building was similar is style but each one was painted differently. This gave the illusion of sameness, but also subtle differences made each one interesting. I notices this as I sat in the hot tub by the pool. The landscaping was well thought out and the assortment of different palm trees was very interesting. There were quite a few flowering plants which gave me the feeling of tropical elegance. The grass and walkways were manicured in a formal sort of way.
The pool area was very, very beautiful ! There was a large free from pool with a spot for swimming laps, a zero level entry area with an interactive fountain and the wonderful waterfall area! On the other side of the waterfall was the quiet pool and hot tub area. Music was played at the pool area, it was a mix of popular songs with no repeats.. not a radio station. There was a great abundance of lounge chairs, tables and chairs and along the quiet pool were large cabanas. Since the pool area was surrounded by the villa buildings, the sun was not as intense. Also in the center of the resort was a large lake with another waterfall that had bridges to some of the villa buildings. Pool towels were available at the activity center and were easily acquired. There was a snack bar/ convenience store and a pool bar in the area also. Near each villa building surrounding the lake were BBQ grills (charcoal) and picnic tables. A childs play area was near our villa also. There were scheduled activities during the day for children and families.
All in all, the quaility of appliances, furnishings and materials used in the construction and decoration of these units were above standard! They were clean and almost flawless in their appearance. The grounds and common areas were clean and well maintained as well. Security into the resort is adequate with guests required to show a parking pass to enter with a manned guard gate.
Now the downsides.. local call are expensive.. I called Celebration fl. right down the road and it was 5.00 amd 9.00 for 2 short calls. These units were not soundproofed very well, we had some inconsiderate folks above us for a few days and it was terrible. ( we did not hear others, I could not even hear the kids on the playground0 Also, no salt or pepper is available , nor is a starter supply of coffee. They did give you a handi wipe, a kitchen towel and 1 package of dishwasher detergent and a small squirt bottle of liquid detergent. We did not get our paper towels replensihed during our stay even though we were out.
Hope you all enjoyed this... I know I did! I almost don't want to post this because I want to keep this a special gem for myself! enjoy!
I'll start by saying that the resort was very easy to navigate to from the airport. We took the south exit, to toll road 417 and took the exit marked I drive. It was only 1 mile from there to the resort. We were stopped at the entrance gate by a guard. The checked to make sure we were on the arrivals list and we were let in. We were checking in after dark so all I could see were spotlights on large palm trees and the exterior lighting on the villas.
We pulled up to an elegant portico and walked into a spacious lobby, decorated in a Floridian style. The center piece of the lobby was a night time view of the pool waterfall. The furniture was an eclectic mix of overstuffed chairs and sofas situated on an ornately woven rug in the pattern of large palms in pots. There were 3 people behind a counter and we were greeted immediately with smiles. We were given our room keys, our resort id's to charge to and a packet of information about the resort. Check in was a breeze. We also stopped by the information desk, which was where we would have scheduled our timeshare tour if we had wanted to. There was no pressure to do this.
We had reserved a 2 bedroom villa. We were on the ground floor and parking was very close to our unit. If we had been given a higher floor, the elevators would have made it very easy to get to. We used our key cards and entered the villa. Upon entering, we turned on the light and found an interesting focal point in front of us. There was an alcove, with a spotlight shining on a large silk floral arrangement in cranberry and a nice moss green. We will find these colors repeated through out the villa. The floor was a ceramic tile in warm red tones and had an nice inlayed pattern that outlined the shape of the entry way. The ceiling was painted in a light tan which had inset of dark terra-cotta color and white trim. Inside of this we found a high quality light fixture made with Murano glass, which had an almost marble appearance. Both the spotlight on the arrangement and the ceiling fixture were on a dimmer to add to the ambiance.
The Kitchen was on our right, with the same tile floor. Light oak cabinets and an oatmeal toned corian countertop and snack bar were the main focus here. There was a stainless steel double sink with a Moen faucet and Whirlpools appliances. ( dishwasher, smooth top range, microwave and refrigerator with icemaker). On the counter we found a toaster, coffeemaker with timer and a blender. The dinnerware was a teal fiesta style with nice quality silverware. The glasses and the salad bowls were a nice heavy glass with a crystal feel. The quality of the cookware was not as nice as the dinnerwear, but I did not cook. The walls in this area were painted a dark moss green with a very pretty border near the ceiling which depicted palms and banana leaves. On one end of the kitchen area there was a closet that housed the stackable washer and dryer and plenty of shelves that we used as a pantry.
The dining area was filled with a large glass topped table, which had an interesting gold toned painted frame. There was another matching floral arrangement in the center of the table. There were dark green placemats and napkins in rings at each of the 6 seats. There were also higher chairs at the snack bar which were upholstered in the same cranberry patterned back and vinyl covered woven fabric seats which matched the chairs at the table.
On the wall above the table there was a large gold framed rectangle mirror and on each side there was a planter that held silk ivy that trailed down the wall. On the opposite wall was a closet that could be used for clothing for the guests sleeping on the sofa bed.
The sofa was a dark green chenille, it was large enough for my 6 ft. husband to stretch out on. Above the sofa were huge triple matted prints of Palm trees ( are you guys seeing the theme here?). There were 2 upholstered chairs and nice pine Thomasville end tables. The commercial carpet was soft and cushy plush in a green and tan pattern, which went throughout the villa. There was very good lighting with interesting lamps and a ceiling fan. The large sliding glass door to the patio was heavily framed with ornate floral and palm pattered drapes, sheers that were beautifully covered in a design of palm leaves and room darkening privacy drapes. The entertainment center housed a 30 inch television, VCR and CD player all made by Phillips. Also in this room was a wet bar with the same oatmeal corian and 2 more complimenting prints of palm trees.
The Master bedroom door was right off the living area. It also had a door to the screened patio. The king size bed was very comfortable as well as beautiful, the carved headboard was huge! There was a nice amoire which held a 20 inch TV along with 3 large drawers and 2 matching 3 drawer night stands leaving plenty of drawer space. Above the amoire, there were silk vines along with some architectural objects. The sheets were not fitted, but were a very high thread count, almost silky and a nice pastel green, not your standard white. Feather pillows completed the bedding. There was a cranberry upholstered chair near the windows. The windows were dressed similar to the living area but with stripes and still had the sheers and the useful room darkening privacy drapes. These windows looked out onto the courtyard that held the pool. All of the windows could be opened and had screens for ventilation.
The large whirlpool tub was in a corner of the bedroom and surrounded by gold mirrors and cords with tassels. The flooring in the bathing area was the same ceramic tile as in the kitchen as were both sinks set in the same corian. The 2 person shower and toilet area had a sink and there was a second sink-vanity area in the bedroom-tub area. This was very handy for 2 people. I'll also note that all of the counters and vanities were a little higher than normal and each one had 2 small drawers and lots of storage underneath. All of the towels in the unit were a light beige and very fluffy. The maids did a great job of arranging them in attractive designs. There was Sheraton soap included here too.
The 2nd bedroom which held 2 double beds was right off of the entryway. This room had a closet and another amoire that held a smaller TV. It had one night stand between the beds, there was not much room on sides of the beds. Each bed had another huge carved headboard and triple matted prints above them. The second bath was nicely done in creams and a cranberry stripe wallpaper that had palm trees in the stripe. There was a large vanity with a mirror and bright lights. This bath had a pocket door to the 2nd bedroom and also opened to the kitchen/ living area.
The living room and the master bedroom opened onto a screened porch which had a distressed look iron, marble topped table with 4 chairs. There was a ceiling fan here also. I will add that the concrete floor was painted a very pretty dark brown which felt very clean on bare feet. I enjoyed sitting out there in the morning.
Outside, each building was similar is style but each one was painted differently. This gave the illusion of sameness, but also subtle differences made each one interesting. I notices this as I sat in the hot tub by the pool. The landscaping was well thought out and the assortment of different palm trees was very interesting. There were quite a few flowering plants which gave me the feeling of tropical elegance. The grass and walkways were manicured in a formal sort of way.
The pool area was very, very beautiful ! There was a large free from pool with a spot for swimming laps, a zero level entry area with an interactive fountain and the wonderful waterfall area! On the other side of the waterfall was the quiet pool and hot tub area. Music was played at the pool area, it was a mix of popular songs with no repeats.. not a radio station. There was a great abundance of lounge chairs, tables and chairs and along the quiet pool were large cabanas. Since the pool area was surrounded by the villa buildings, the sun was not as intense. Also in the center of the resort was a large lake with another waterfall that had bridges to some of the villa buildings. Pool towels were available at the activity center and were easily acquired. There was a snack bar/ convenience store and a pool bar in the area also. Near each villa building surrounding the lake were BBQ grills (charcoal) and picnic tables. A childs play area was near our villa also. There were scheduled activities during the day for children and families.
All in all, the quaility of appliances, furnishings and materials used in the construction and decoration of these units were above standard! They were clean and almost flawless in their appearance. The grounds and common areas were clean and well maintained as well. Security into the resort is adequate with guests required to show a parking pass to enter with a manned guard gate.
Now the downsides.. local call are expensive.. I called Celebration fl. right down the road and it was 5.00 amd 9.00 for 2 short calls. These units were not soundproofed very well, we had some inconsiderate folks above us for a few days and it was terrible. ( we did not hear others, I could not even hear the kids on the playground0 Also, no salt or pepper is available , nor is a starter supply of coffee. They did give you a handi wipe, a kitchen towel and 1 package of dishwasher detergent and a small squirt bottle of liquid detergent. We did not get our paper towels replensihed during our stay even though we were out.
Hope you all enjoyed this... I know I did! I almost don't want to post this because I want to keep this a special gem for myself! enjoy!
inkbounc
