[Juanita]

I am trying my hardest to put together a family vacation for the end of July.... yes this year!!!!!!!!! It will consist of My husband to children 3 & 8, parents, a 81 yr YOUNG grandparent, Sister and neice 6 yrs old... WHEW... We are considering staying at Sheraton Vistana due to budget reasons... has anyone stayed there or can recommend some off site locations? THANK YOU!

[mickey]

Juanita

You could look at one of the Marriotts that are at the World Center. They have 3 bedroom units that often come up for rent.

[DisneyAnne]

Welcome to DC...

I have never stayed at Vistana although I think it looks beautiful. I would check the hotels of Downtown Disney as they offer some of the amenities of onsite hotels. http://www.downtowndisneyhotels.com/

Courtyard by Marriott in this location offers some great deals. Some folks have gotten rooms for $20.03 per night. Looks like they are running some great deals that include ultimate parkhopper passes.

You may also be interested in this deal for the Sherton Safari - $49/night on weekdays. http://dir.travelzoo.com/Lodging.asp...y=28&id=105155

You might also want to check www.mousesavers.com for discounts for onsite and offsite hotels.

Good luck!:)

[Juanita]

Thanks so much for your replies. I will have to check them out and do some comparison. Thanks again!!!!

[sandanv1]

Vistana is great - although not as great as on site
we owned at Vistana for 4 years. We loved it, and spent many vacations sharing with family members ( Christmas 2000 - Me, DH, DH's Mom, 2 DS and 6 of their friends- who brought sleeping bags and claimed floor space ) I would recommend Vistana if you are staying offsite. Do you belong to the Sheraton preferred guest club?? this can mean some discounts. www.spg.com

[Mstiz]

The Vistana is great!! We've stayed there twice (trying on-site for the first time in October...gotta love that Fairytale Package!! :) ) The nice thing about the Vistana is that it is close to several places...you've got the Walgreens (where we have dropped many a roll of film), it's a pretty straight shot to the parks, and it's very close to Bahama Breeze (a favorite of the restaurants around). And the best part...free laundry facilities in each "room."

One recommendation is to ask for a room that's been recently remodeled. In 2001 we got one of those rooms and it was just wonderful. In 2002 they were still remodeling parts of the complex and we got a room that wasn't as nice as the first one, but we were almost about to get one that hadn't been remodeled...honestly, I don't want to know what that one looked like.

Both times we had a great visit...I would totally recommend the Vistana. Good luck!!

:)

[dab]

There are 2 Sheraton Vistana properties near WDW - the Sheraton Vistana Resort (closest to WDW) and the Sheraton Vistana Villages (newest property). We used a time share week of my DH boss and stayed at the Sheraton Vistana Resort in Oct. 2001 and it was very nice... and only cost us $400! The resort is extremely quiet and the grounds are lovely. The resort has some newly built units. We were in an older unit and though newly refurnished it did't have the jacuzzi tub in master. I'd definately request a new unit. It was great having a washer/dryer and full kitchen! Nice pool - then 3 yr old DD liked the slide, convenient general store, on site dining (though not the best fare in town). We returned to the resort for naps every afternoon and we would have to allow about 30 min travel time to get from the parking lot to our condo. We perfer to stay on property but I understand how sometimes the budget dictates differently.

[Juanita]

WOW ! Thank you again for this information. It has put some ease in deciding that this is the place we will be staying. It is the Vistana Villas.... is that still a good choice or should it be the other property? :D

[iluvwdw]

Originally posted by Juanita
I am trying my hardest to put together a family vacation for the end of July.... yes this year!!!!!!!!! It will consist of My husband to children 3 & 8, parents, a 81 yr YOUNG grandparent, Sister and neice 6 yrs old... WHEW... We are considering staying at Sheraton Vistana due to budget reasons... has anyone stayed there or can recommend some off site locations? THANK YOU!

Juanita, I go to Vistana Resort EVERY year...I own timeshare there! I can tell you anything you need to know about the resort...it is amazing and I truly LOVE it. It is so close to WDW...it takes 5 minutes to get to Downtown Disney! Vistana property actually touches Disney property!

First and foremost, if you make a reservation to stay there, ask for the 2 new sections of the resort (LAKES & CASCADES). These are the last 2 phases of the resort and they are BRAND new. These villas have everything you will need. They have 2 bedroom villas, large one bedroom villas and regular size one bedroom villas. The 2 bedrooms and the big one bedrooms all have a whirlpool tub (not too sure about the smaller one bedroom, though). There is a full stocked kitchen, a dining room, a living room with a Queen size sleeper sofa, a washer/dryer, ironing board, iron, hairdryer and every villa has a screened in patio with a table and chairs and even a ceiling fan out there!

The resort is gorgeous...there are 7 outdoor swimming pools, a bunch of hottubs, 3 restaurants, Pizza Hut, Haagen Dazs Ice Cream shop, a General Store, fully equiped fitness centers, 13 tennis courts, basketball courts, Miniature Golf, 4 children's playgrounds, shuffle board courts, a pro-tennis shop, and on and on and on...the list is too long for me to type!

Vistana Villages is also a good place to go, but it is a lot further away from WDW and the property is A LOT smaller than Vistana Resort (there is only one pool). It is newer, but the Cascades and Lakes sections at Vistana Resort are just as new. I think Vistana Resort is the way to go!

If you have any further questions, feel free to PM me and I will give you any further info you need. Oh, for more information, click on this link:

Vistana Resort in Orlando

Have fun planning!!! :)

[Juanita]

THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU "ILUVWDW"... Your information and insight is a great help... this has made or decision final... I will be finalizing the rest of our plans and should be ready to confirm all tomorrow!!!! I might take you up on contacting you if the others in my party have questions you didn't comment on..... DISNEY WORLD HERE WE COME!!!!!!!!!!!!

[iluvwdw]

Originally posted by Juanita
THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU "ILUVWDW"... Your information and insight is a great help... this has made or decision final... I will be finalizing the rest of our plans and should be ready to confirm all tomorrow!!!! I might take you up on contacting you if the others in my party have questions you didn't comment on..... DISNEY WORLD HERE WE COME!!!!!!!!!!!!

I am so happy I was able to help you!!! :laugh I seriously can't say great enough things about Vistana Resort...PLEASE PM me with any questions you have! Oh, I forgot to mention, if you are renting from them, they include the shuttle to all of the parks FREE OF CHARGE...and since it's so close, it won't take you an hour to get there like it does when you take shuttles from some of the other off-site hotels...YOU WILL HAVE A GREAT TIME! Remember BE SPECIFIC about the area of the resort you want to stay in...LAKES OR CASCADES. The other areas are nice, but they are older villas, with no elevators (I never stayed in those) and the new areas are the nicest the resort has to offer. Seriously, PM me if you need further info! ;)