Just back from the Vistana Villages staying in a 2BR villa from September 15 thru 21. Missed all the hurricanes. We missed all the rain except for about a half hour on the last day. I will focus on the Villages for anyone thinking of staying here.
We changed our reservations a total of 4 times deciding where to stay. We had a party of six, with grandma and grandma, mom and dad, and two kids, ages 5 and 2. Our main concerns were ease of access to the parks from the resort, both kids being able to use the same pool, and receiving a new room,not an older unit needing repair because all the owners got the newer ones or we checked in on the wrong day.
We originally were going to bite the bullet and stay in two rooms at the Dolphin for $139 for each room just because it was so convenient. Then we changed to CPGV at $139 for a 3BR villa. More research and we changed to the Sheraton Vistana Resort in a 2BR for $119 with no housekeeping. After discovering we would be placed in an older section because of our day of check in(Wednesday) we then switched to the Marriott Grande Vista at $143 for a 2BR villa. Finally, we took the internet rate of $140 for a 2BR villa at the Vistana Villages.
One thing about the Vistana Villages; the room we received was exactly what you see on the website. The room, the pool, and the grounds were all exactly as advertised. There are ten buildings surrounding the pool and lake area and the farthest one is less than a five minute walk to the main area. Buildings 1 and 2 were the closest and we requested either one of those but we did not want to wait so we took the first available in building number 4. We did not think it mattered that much, but it would be a little more convenient in 1 or 2, but make sure to ask for a higher room because of the noise.
If you are looking for a lot of activities and loud parties this is not the place. They did have some activities planned each day but nothing to keep you at the resort. They have a small pool bar tucked away next to the small deli that had fresh coffee and breakfast sandwiches in the morning and some lunch servings as well. It also doubled as a small convenience store carrying some packaged goods. This resort has no restaurant.
I wouldn't even consider staying here without renting a vehicle. It is on the very southern end of I Drive and nothing really in walking distance. However, you can find anything you need within a 10 minute drive. There is the IRide Trolley that runs up and down I Drive but do not take this if you are in a hurry. Many stops. We rode it for the kids once and it took 45 minutes to get from our resort up to Houlihans just by Wonderworks. As for getting to Disney, it was great. Three traffic lights and then you driving under the Disney signs. We liked the location, we never experienced any traffic whatsoever getting to Disney and we reached the gates in about ten minutes. Of course it still took another 10 to 30 to reach a park entrance depending where you were going. I believe they had complimentary shuttles to Disney but you would be restricted to their schedule.
The pool was great. There is one continuous pool that wraps around a few waterfalls. On one end it is zero entry with the fountains that shoot into the air. It gradually gets deeper with the edges about 3 foot and the very middle was 5 foot 6 inches deep. A volleyball net was set up on the far end. A quiet pool was isolated on the top tier. If you have a toddler and an older child this pool may be ideal for you. You can grab a couple of loungers right by the kiddie area and still be very close to the deeper end to watch the older child. There were a few covered cabanas available and also a hot tub nearby. There is no slide. We loved the setup of this pool for our 2 yr old and our 5 yr old.
As I mentioned, the room was exactly as I expected. Everything was new and clean, and very convenient to have a kitchen for fast and early breakfasts. We used the whirlpool in the master bedroom often and the pull out bed had the most comfortable mattress I have ever seen for a sofabed. We even slept on it for the last night.
In summary, our trip was awesome. We dodged the hurricanes, hardly any rain at all, and no surprises at our villa. If you are looking for a lot of action then you may want to stay somewhere else, but if you want a nice place to relax for a few hours each day between parks this may be it.
I would be more than happy to answer any of your questions you may have about this resort or anything in general. By the way, we had an awesome time at the parks. Four days and nights at the parks, longest wait was 10 minutes, rode and did everything we wanted to and saw all the nightime shows. Cant wait for next time (2007?)
We changed our reservations a total of 4 times deciding where to stay. We had a party of six, with grandma and grandma, mom and dad, and two kids, ages 5 and 2. Our main concerns were ease of access to the parks from the resort, both kids being able to use the same pool, and receiving a new room,not an older unit needing repair because all the owners got the newer ones or we checked in on the wrong day.
We originally were going to bite the bullet and stay in two rooms at the Dolphin for $139 for each room just because it was so convenient. Then we changed to CPGV at $139 for a 3BR villa. More research and we changed to the Sheraton Vistana Resort in a 2BR for $119 with no housekeeping. After discovering we would be placed in an older section because of our day of check in(Wednesday) we then switched to the Marriott Grande Vista at $143 for a 2BR villa. Finally, we took the internet rate of $140 for a 2BR villa at the Vistana Villages.
One thing about the Vistana Villages; the room we received was exactly what you see on the website. The room, the pool, and the grounds were all exactly as advertised. There are ten buildings surrounding the pool and lake area and the farthest one is less than a five minute walk to the main area. Buildings 1 and 2 were the closest and we requested either one of those but we did not want to wait so we took the first available in building number 4. We did not think it mattered that much, but it would be a little more convenient in 1 or 2, but make sure to ask for a higher room because of the noise.
If you are looking for a lot of activities and loud parties this is not the place. They did have some activities planned each day but nothing to keep you at the resort. They have a small pool bar tucked away next to the small deli that had fresh coffee and breakfast sandwiches in the morning and some lunch servings as well. It also doubled as a small convenience store carrying some packaged goods. This resort has no restaurant.
I wouldn't even consider staying here without renting a vehicle. It is on the very southern end of I Drive and nothing really in walking distance. However, you can find anything you need within a 10 minute drive. There is the IRide Trolley that runs up and down I Drive but do not take this if you are in a hurry. Many stops. We rode it for the kids once and it took 45 minutes to get from our resort up to Houlihans just by Wonderworks. As for getting to Disney, it was great. Three traffic lights and then you driving under the Disney signs. We liked the location, we never experienced any traffic whatsoever getting to Disney and we reached the gates in about ten minutes. Of course it still took another 10 to 30 to reach a park entrance depending where you were going. I believe they had complimentary shuttles to Disney but you would be restricted to their schedule.
The pool was great. There is one continuous pool that wraps around a few waterfalls. On one end it is zero entry with the fountains that shoot into the air. It gradually gets deeper with the edges about 3 foot and the very middle was 5 foot 6 inches deep. A volleyball net was set up on the far end. A quiet pool was isolated on the top tier. If you have a toddler and an older child this pool may be ideal for you. You can grab a couple of loungers right by the kiddie area and still be very close to the deeper end to watch the older child. There were a few covered cabanas available and also a hot tub nearby. There is no slide. We loved the setup of this pool for our 2 yr old and our 5 yr old.
As I mentioned, the room was exactly as I expected. Everything was new and clean, and very convenient to have a kitchen for fast and early breakfasts. We used the whirlpool in the master bedroom often and the pull out bed had the most comfortable mattress I have ever seen for a sofabed. We even slept on it for the last night.
In summary, our trip was awesome. We dodged the hurricanes, hardly any rain at all, and no surprises at our villa. If you are looking for a lot of action then you may want to stay somewhere else, but if you want a nice place to relax for a few hours each day between parks this may be it.
I would be more than happy to answer any of your questions you may have about this resort or anything in general. By the way, we had an awesome time at the parks. Four days and nights at the parks, longest wait was 10 minutes, rode and did everything we wanted to and saw all the nightime shows. Cant wait for next time (2007?)
