Vistana Villages

[sandshal]

Great Thread - wish I'd read this lot before I booked - but seems I might have struck lucky!

Never been to WDW before but been to Paris twice.

58 days before our first trip - booked to stay at the Sheraton Vistana Villages, pleased to see so many good reports!!!

Anybody got any good tips about this accommodation?

 

[sandshal]

Sorry guys

Meant to add my notes to best and worst thread but as you can see made an absolute mess of it !!!!!!!!!!!!!

Still anyone got any info on the Villages?

 

[zaxmom]

We stayed here last year for a week and loved it. The pool area is wonderful with waterfalls and zero-depth entry and fountains. My little ones loved it. The rooms were very nicely decortated. We ate at the deli one time and it was pretty good. I just wish it had a water slide, because that is now a must for my boys.

 

[abbysmom]

We stayed there this past March and thought it was a great resort, very beautifully landscaped, staff very nice and friendly. We had a 1 bedroom deluxe wihich was fine for the me, my husband and daughter. We were in building 9 ground floor. We did the timeshare presentation so we got to see the 2 bdr. units and they were beautiful, I would stay in a 2 bedroom my next visit.
The pools were very nice and not overly crowded, the quiet pool has cabanas that were nice for a really h ot sunny day if you wanted to get out from the sun for a bit We never had trouble getting a good spot by the pool. There are 2 hot tubs as well. This is a smaller resort so nothing was too far a walk, I think buildings 1 & 2 are closest to the pools and lobby area.

This resort is only 2 years old so everything was really nice. Like I said the resort is a smaller one but there are planning expansions in the works. This resort is the last one on south I-Drive, not to far from Sea World and Disney. There is a Publix right down the street about 1/2 mile so grocery shopping was very convenient, there was also a mall across from the Publix. i would definitely recommend this resort. Any questions? I will try to answer them.

 

[Red-Snapper]

I would agree with everything above but also add that the walls are very thin

You can hear people walking about in the next apartment, opening drawers etc etc and if you get a large group staying near you (which we did) be prepared to listen to their conversation/music/party through the night. This was from a room 2 floors below and 2 rooms to the left of us !!!

Eventually at 2am I rang their number and asked if they could change the music for something the rest of the building might like better.

 

[Lorix2]

We stayed there April '02 and LOVED it.

I do agree about the noise though from other rooms, not beside me, but above me.

I would try to request a top floor for sure, there are elevators, so that's real convenient especially with kids.

We stayed in building #8 on the 3rd floor overlooking the pond and basketball court on the other side, very short walk to the pool over a footbridge and pretty waterfall. I would not want to stay near the main pool b/c it was very noisy and open until midnight. Buildings 9 & 10 are toward the main road and might hear road noise, but not sure on that. That's my only tip for you

You won't be dissapointed.

 

[abbysmom]

We stayed in building 9 ground floor room 9103 and didnt have any problems with noise from other guests. We were also facing the pond and basketball court area. Never heard any traffic from I-drive.

 

[calgarygary]

We were in 9107 and did not think the walls were particularly thin. Traffic noises from I Drive were completely shut out if windows and doors were closed. However, if you sat in the screened in patio, you could hear the traffic on I Drive. Yes, there was the occasional noise from a neighbour but nothing to suggest that there was cheap construction - just the same noise you might hear in a finer hotel. The Villages is lacking in quality foodservice outlets so do take advantage of the Publix. Also, my recommendation is to thicken your wallet for a trip to the Premium Outlets that is just past the Publix. Too many choices for great shopping. Landscaping and attention to detail was fantastic at this resort. Have a great time.

Gary

 

[ThreeCs]

I just got back today from a 8-day stay there. Was in 8401. We faced the BB courts and I did hear that noise at night, but not I-Drive. Also, you can hear the Fireworks at Sea World around 9:30 p.m. or so. Having the Publix so close is a big bonus, and there's a Walgreens close by too so you can develop your film before you leave.

Overall our unit was nicely furnished and the resort was pretty, but we had HORRID service. Even though it was on our reservation that we needed two cribs, it took 4 hours after check in and three phone calls to get them delivered to our room. It took over an hour and two phone calls to get foam pillows delivered. We asked for highchairs for four straight days and never did receive those. Plus, we had pre-paid for our entire stay and they tried to charge us again upon check-in. I'm not sure I would stay there again even though the location is great and the resort overall is nice.

 

[sandshal]

Just checked for threads.

Thanks for all your tips, especially abbeysmom (saw your notes before your holiday - really encouraged to see the resort lived up to your expectations and you had a great time).

We're flying from the UK and staying at the Villages through Virgin so I'm not sure we can dictate which building we would like to stay in (what do you think?) - little concerned about the noise levels - I guess its best to avoid Building 9 and the waterfall!)

Has anybody else stayed at the resort through Virgin?

Only 4 weeks to go now, so really getting excited - first trip to the USA!

 

[abbysmom]

sandshal,
if you would like to see a layout of this resort check out www.dollar.com click on hotels, click on Orlando and hit the search. A listing will come up with numerous hotels, I think the Villages was on page 2 and click on more information you will then see you can take a virtual tour of the resort, the pictures are exactly how the resort looks. You will also see the layout of the resort and you can see which buildings are where. Building 10 is on the left followed by 9,8 etc.

I would think buildings 1 and 2 might be kind of noisy right there by the pool, but as I said previously we were in 9 and didnt experience any street noise or really any other noise, we were on the first floor closest to building 8. No matter what building you are in I'm sure you will have a great trip. Please let us know how your trip went when you return, I'm curious to see what you think of the Villages, it's a beautiful resort.

Are you renting a car? Which parks will you be visiting?

WELCOME TO THE USA!!!!

 

[sandshal]

Thanks for the info.

Have hired a 7 seater minivan for 14 nights for myself, hubby, sons 8 and 3, Mum and her fella. We're in one of the two bedroom villas and my mums in a 1 bedroom.

Booked a 10 day disney pass in the UK which covers all disneyparks, waterparks, disneyquest and includes a Character breakfast, and also a 7 day Universal ticket. I think we may have gone over the top here but its our first trip so lots to see - done Disneyland Paris twice so know roughly what to expect.

Did you discover any good restaurants while you were there or see anything else worth a trip - I wondered whether the Titanic exhibit would be worth a look. Let me know if you can think of anything.

I'll certainly let you know how we got on when we return.

Thanks again for your help.

 

[sandshal]

Just took the virtual tour on the dollar site - what a fantastic insight!!!!! - thanks for that one (i'll show the family tonight)

 

[abbysmom]

We didn't eat out a whole lot because we had a good breakfast in our room before we left for the parks, then we'd have a mid afternoon meal somewhere in the parks, we ate at Wolfgang puck in downtown disney one day, its a counter service place, but the food was excellent, we've eaten at planet Hollywood in downtown disney on previous trips and the food was always good. We ate at the Olive Garden on international drive, very good italian food, the place is always busy, we ate at less busy times of the day. There is a really good bakery in Islands of Adventure I can't remember the name of it but it was on the right side not far from the entrance they have Krispy kreme donuts (to die for) and cheesecake etc.
They will be to help you at guest services at the resort for restaurant recomendations.

When you check in you will receive driving directions for the attractions, easy to follow directions that are very helpful.

sounds like you will have a busy schedule, have you considered visiting Sea World? It'svery close to the resort. You may just like to take a few days to just relax by the pool and enjoy the resort. There is water volleyball at the pool your 8 year old might enjoy, table tennis and basketball courts. They also have daily activities for the kids at the resort like tye dying shirts etc. There is also a small playgrond right along side the pool, although there are no pool slides they will have something for everyone to enjoy. They have pool float rentals but they are rather expensive. i think it was like $12 dollars a day, so we bought one at one of the nearby stores and they put air in it for us at the resort.

I wish I was returning soon, the weather should be really hot when you visit so don't forget the sunscreen, the Florida sun is very intense.

 

[Red-Snapper]

Yes - I went with Virgin-Holidays to V Villages (see above post)

I had read up on the resort before we went and generally advice was to go for buildings 8 or 9 as although they were further from the pool they were also the quietest.

I intended asking when we checked in but before I could do this I saw that we were in building 8 anyway.

Buildings 1 & 2 are generally used for the timeshare owners - we did get a tour over there and the furnishings were of a higher standard - I noticed a lot of us Brits in building 8 so not sure if they put all the Virgin guests together

(You get $100 and a breakfast if you attend the timeshare presentation - which we did out of curiosity)

Like I said above a very nice place except for the noise which was bad but maybe as some obviously didnt hear anything, it is just down to luck who is near you at the time.

 

[disneymom3]

The resort is very nicely appointed, but I agree with the above poster about the horrid service. I had to wait an HOUR just to get someone to come and get the stroller we were renting from ABBF out of the luggage room. Glad I decided to do that the night before we went to the parks instead of the next morning! And be glad you didn't get the highchairs, THreeCs--they were icky.

Also had trouble with noise. The building we were in was having some extensive repainting and touch up stuff done and the noise we had to deal with was from employees. The vacuum that woke my baby up at 1 a.m. is what did me in. Calls to the front desk were completely useless.

As I said though, the resort itself is beautiful, the accomodations are very nice and the location is good. Especially that Publix--try their fresh French bread, it's to die for!

I believe we were in bldg 3 and were there on an RCI exchange--might have been 6, though.

 

[calgarygary]

If you do intend to do the timeshare presentation (we didn't) don't accept their $100 offer right away. Tell them you will consider but first must talk it over with your spouse. With time, the offer will improve.

Gary

 

[sandshal]

Thanks for your tips - don't think we'll have time for the timeshare presentation - enough theme park tickets pre-booked to last a month!! - forgot to add Seaworld and Busch Gardens to my list of tickets in hand (however, may be handy if I spend too much cash at the Premium Outlets!)

Does anybody know how easy it is to use the i-trolley? - does it stop outside the resort? and if so does it take a lifetime to get to any of the busy areas of i-drive?

Redsnapper, was the Virgin arrival meeting worth going to?

 

[Red-Snapper]

Yes the I-ride trolley stops outside the front gate. I have to admit we never got round to using it as we had a car and I dont mind waiting till I get back for a drink !!

The Virgin welcome meeting is worth it if it is your first time.

They hold it at DTD in the cinema there - you get to see a short film of the various attractions and they give you a good choice of day tours etc.

Funnily enough we still go to it even now - it is a sort of first morning tradition for us (starts about 9.30). Tend to buy a phonecard if nothing else

Providing you are not light sleepers you will enjoy the V V.

 

[abbysmom]

sandshal,

we did use the trolley, it does stop right in front of the resort, we found it very easy to use. sometimes the wait was about 10-15 minutes for it to pick us up and sometimes it was only a minute or two. It was really nice to get off and on where you wanted to, we didn't have to worry about parking, I-drive can get very busy. Sometimes it only took us about 5 to 10 minutes to get to our destination on I drive and sometimes a little longer, just depends on the time of day it is I guess. Its really worth it to take it to Sea World because it drops you off and picks you up right by the gates. You don't have to worry about parking there.