# Best Resorts



## brandons1981 (Apr 12, 2013)

I am new to Wyndham and would like to know from everyone what are some of the best resorts you have visited based on the accommodations and staff.

Thanks,
Brandon


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## DeniseM (Apr 12, 2013)

If you join TUG ($15) you will have access to the ratings and reviews.


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## ronparise (Apr 12, 2013)

brandons1981 said:


> I am new to Wyndham and would like to know from everyone what are some of the best resorts you have visited based on the accommodations and staff.
> 
> Thanks,
> Brandon



The question "whats best" is a difficult one to answer because some features are of prime importance to you, but not to me, and vice-versa

The newer resorts in the system that were purpose built by Wyndham like Bonnet Creek, National Harbor and Grand Desert, all seem to be designed and built from the same set of plans. You wont be disappointed and like McDonalds you know exactly what to expect when you go there

The fact is that I usually dont pick my vacation spot based on the accommodations provided.  Rather I start with the place I want to visit

For example, last year I went to Las Vegas for a wedding. It didnt matter to me whether the Grand Desert resort is better than La Casada or not. I wasnt going  to Texas, I was going to Nevada. On those few occasions when I dont care where I am, I just want something different than home, I still dont choose based on accommodations. I choose based on location. Once location is set then I can consider the merits of the various resorts there

 which is best? 
Riverside Suites or La Casada, 
La Belle Maison or Avenue Plaza
Bonnet Creek or Cypress Palms
Santa Barbara or Sea Gardens or Royal Vista

To me it makes no sense to compare Riverside Suites to Avenue Plaza, or La Belle Maison to Bonnet Creek


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## littlestar (Apr 12, 2013)

We've enjoyed our home resort, Wyndham Smoky Mts Sevierville.  Also, we love staying at Wyndham Bonnet Creek in Orlando with the two lazy rivers and pools with slides.  

We enjoyed Wyndham Waikiki Beachwalk on Oahu. Great area and close to the beach.


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## joestein (Apr 12, 2013)

I have two 10 year old girls.  We have really enjoyed both Wilderness resorts.  Glacier Canyon in Wisconsin and Smokey Mountain Lodge in TN.

Of course Bonnet Creek is great for Disney/Universal.

We also enjoyed Ocean Walk in Daytona, but i have heard that resort now has issues.

The resorts I didn't care for were:

Kingsgate in Williamsburg, VA
Cypress Palms in Orlando


Good luck with your points.

Joe


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## comicbookman (Apr 12, 2013)

joestein said:


> The resorts I didn't care for were:
> 
> Kingsgate in Williamsburg, VA
> Cypress Palms in Orlando




Just to show people like different things, we have enjoyed kingsgate and Cypress Palms over the years.  Of course we don't have 2 10 year old girls.  (daughter now 21 and son now 18)

Steven


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## NHTraveler (Apr 12, 2013)

joestein said:


> We also enjoyed Ocean Walk in Daytona, but i have heard that resort now has issues.



What issues?  We were just there in January.  There were a couple things I would like to see done, but didn't have any problems while we were there.


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## NHTraveler (Apr 12, 2013)

brandons1981 said:


> I am new to Wyndham and would like to know from everyone what are some of the best resorts you have visited based on the accommodations and staff.
> 
> Thanks,
> Brandon



Brandon,

Ron is right...everyone looks at things differently.  

Take Riverside and La Cascada in San Antonio.  Riverside is in the center of it all.  You don't have to travel (walk or drive) to get to the main portion of the the Riverwalk...you would be staying right in the area.  

La Cascada is on the Riverwalk extension...about 8-10 minute walk on the extension to get to the main portion of the Riverwalk.

Riverside has smaller units, mini kitchens.  Cascada has larger units, full kitchens.

Cascada has an outdoor pool, hot tub and excercise room.  Riverside does not, however, people staying at Riverside can use the pool at Cascada.

I will choose La Cascada every time.  Just my opinion of course.

---------------------------------

In Pompano, I have stayed at Palm Aire, Sea Gardens and Royal Vista.  Palm Aire is nice, but not on the ocean.  I love Sea Gardens for its wonderful tropical garden and overall feel.  Royal Vista is a nice place, but to me it is missing that tropical feel I am looking for when traveling that part of Florida.  RV, in my opinion has the best, most friendly front desk staff we have come across to date.  Because of them, we will be going back there sometime.


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## simpsontruckdriver (Apr 12, 2013)

My wife and I went to Wyndham Ocean Walk around Labor Day last year, and the weekend before Valentines Day this year, and there were NO issues. The only "issue" I see is if you have 2 cars (resort only allows 1 car per suite). Our suites were in great condition, the resort is beautiful, and the facility had no issues.

TS


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## hjsweet2002 (Apr 12, 2013)

Which resort is best is a tough question.  The answer varies from individual to individual based upon needs.  My wife and I love Bentley Brook in MA and  Inn on Long Wharf , RI.  We stayed at Cypress Palms this year versus Star Island last year.  We preferred the peacefulness of Cypress Palms versus the business and activities at Star Island.  We likes Smoky Mountain in TN versus Great Smokies Lodge as it seemed less busy.  Individuals with families probably would enjoy Great Smokies Lodge better.  I have also found that staff at Wyndham owned resorts seem more friendly and helpful versus shared resorts.  The staff at Star Island seemed less friendlier than Cypress Palms.  We plan future stays at Governors Green in Williamsburg VA and Bentley Brook (our fourth time there) ans Inn on Long Wharf (second time).  We have enjoyed them all even Star Island but I prefer Cyprus Palms.  Jim


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## hjsweet2002 (Apr 12, 2013)

I forgot too mention that we stayed at Shawnee Village.  The staff and resort was great.  The only problem was that the pool was miles away from our unit.  Probably will not go back there unless we have a reason to visit that area.


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## Deb from NC (Apr 12, 2013)

And since i love cities, museums, music, etc. my favorites are Alexandria and San Francisco!  All depends on what is fun for YOU ! 
Deb


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## MaryBella7 (Apr 12, 2013)

As others have said, it is hard to pick the best when it always depends on what you want.  I do know that my husband and I decide that we want to move to every place we visit because we enjoy each one.  Each are so different, however.  I can tell you that we loved each place we visited for different reasons.
We have been to Newport Onshore, Shawnee Ridge Top, Atlantic City, Kingsgate Williamsburg, Lake Lure North Carolina, and Bonnet Creek Florida in the past year and a half.  We have enjoyed each and each was different.


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## joestein (Apr 13, 2013)

simpsontruckdriver said:


> My wife and I went to Wyndham Ocean Walk around Labor Day last year, and the weekend before Valentines Day this year, and there were NO issues. The only "issue" I see is if you have 2 cars (resort only allows 1 car per suite). Our suites were in great condition, the resort is beautiful, and the facility had no issues.
> 
> TS



I had read messages a while back on TUG that said the condo owners were fighting with the Wyndham board and that many of the facilities were not being maintained.  

In particular, I remember reading that except for 1 pool, all the others were all green with Algae.

If those issues were solved that is great, but I dont remember reading that.


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## joestein (Apr 13, 2013)

comicbookman said:


> Just to show people like different things, we have enjoyed kingsgate and Cypress Palms over the years.  Of course we don't have 2 10 year old girls.  (daughter now 21 and son now 18)
> 
> Steven



I thought both of those resorts were very tired.


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## vacationhopeful (Apr 13, 2013)

NHTraveler said:


> Brandon,
> 
> .....In Pompano, I have stayed at Palm Aire, Sea Gardens and Royal Vista.  Palm Aire is nice, but not on the ocean.  I love Sea Gardens for its wonderful tropical garden and overall feel.  Royal Vista is a nice place, but to me it is missing that tropical feel I am looking for when traveling that part of Florida.  RV, in my opinion has the best, most friendly front desk staff we have come across to date.  Because of them, we will be going back there sometime.



You should stay at Santa Barbara, too. Their Front Desk Staff is the best of the 3 Wyndhams, every unit has a balcony (including the studios with full kitchens and the jetted tubs) and all have "OPEN" kitchens to the LR with a view out the balcony. The Studios consist of 40% of the building - and for 1 person, just right. For 2 persons, it does have a queen size bed verses the king in the 1bdr or 2 bdr units - but it is South Florida with a shorter walk to the beach than several of the buildings at Sea Gardens, 

Santa Barbara is on the Intercoastal Waterway with a small city park (think Florida city backyard size) with a couple of benches and some shade nearby. And almost ALL units have a view of water - and many of views of both ocean and intercoastal - including the studio units.


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## vacationhopeful (Apr 13, 2013)

joestein said:


> I had read messages a while back on TUG that said the* condo owners *were fighting with the Wyndham board and that many of the facilities were not being maintained...



Just to be clear, the CONDO OWNERS are FULL SHARE (52 weeks a year of a deed condo) owners. While the concept sounds great on paper, buy a vacation home in a beachfront condo and if you want to rent it, you have a full service "hotel" to handle it with front desk, housekeeping, and maintenance services. Reality is a bit different - as the CONDO's HOA seems to be paying (as they own them) for some of the timeshare's benefits more --- it is all in the construction and paperwork. These full share condos do not qualify for regular mortgages (anymore) and values have DROP like a lead weight on the finishing line. Plus, add a few "refurnishings" their units have not had and those owners got dropped out of the rental program.


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## brownjjst (Apr 13, 2013)

*Ocean Walk now has issues!*



joestein said:


> I have two 10 year old girls.  We have really enjoyed both Wilderness resorts.  Glacier Canyon in Wisconsin and Smokey Mountain Lodge in TN.
> 
> Of course Bonnet Creek is great for Disney/Universal.
> 
> ...



Ocean Walk now have issues!  Just recently visited OCean Walk, stayed in a 2 bedroom ocean view, the room needed some repair, i.e. door frame coming off, wall peeling, kitchen outlet cover broken, towel rack so wearin, won't dare but a towel on it, toilet seat same as towel rack, in all did not meet wyndham standards.  Besides the room, the resort was good, right on beach, access to shopps, food, and activities.


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## CruiseGuy (Apr 13, 2013)

brownjjst said:


> Ocean Walk now have issues!  Just recently visited OCean Walk, stayed in a 2 bedroom ocean view, the room needed some repair, i.e. door frame coming off, wall peeling, kitchen outlet cover broken, towel rack so wearin, won't dare but a towel on it, toilet seat same as towel rack, in all did not meet wyndham standards.  Besides the room, the resort was good, right on beach, access to shopps, food, and activities.



My parents spent a couple days at Ocean Walk in Daytona Beach last fall.  They said the same thing, that maintenance had gone down hill since the last time they stayed there and lot of things seemed worn and neglected.


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## SusanU (Apr 14, 2013)

We have enjoyed Branson at the Meadows, and Mountain Vista, Bonnett Creek, Ocean Walk, Grand Desert in Vegas, Kona Hawaiian on the Big Island, but our all time favorite is Beach Street Cottages in Destin.

Susan


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## joestein (Apr 14, 2013)

NHTraveler said:


> Brandon,
> 
> In Pompano, I have stayed at Palm Aire, Sea Gardens and Royal Vista.  Palm Aire is nice, but not on the ocean.  I love Sea Gardens for its wonderful tropical garden and overall feel.  Royal Vista is a nice place, but to me it is missing that tropical feel I am looking for when traveling that part of Florida.  RV, in my opinion has the best, most friendly front desk staff we have come across to date.  Because of them, we will be going back there sometime.



We have stayed at Palm Aire.  While I love the pool, the resort is located in a not so nice area.   We once went to the supermarket next door at 9/10pm or so and it was a scary out there.

We always stayed at Palm Aire because we did the 28K RCI trade, but now that is gone, we are staying at Royal Vista when we visit Mom this June. Looking forward to checking out the resort.

Joe


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## timeos2 (Apr 14, 2013)

No ones mentioned Royal Vista. It is NOT one of the "cookie cutter" newer Wyndham resorts (as Ron correctly points out they are all the same plan with different entries & common areas much like Disneys are just slightly larger hotel rooms with fancy themeing in the commn areas.  Nothing wrong with it but it doesn't make for a unique experience. 

Royal Vista was not designed by Wyndham but another group & bought when brand new by Wyndham.  It is lovely, right on the beach & has great amenities. It has been undergoing a recent renovation (it was getting a bit long of tooth) that has brought it back to top notch condition. One of our favorites.


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## vacationhopeful (Apr 14, 2013)

Santa Barbara is the NEW favorite of us experts of the Wyndham collection.

Esp those of us who brought a bunch of the winter fixed deeded weeks ... those deeds did better than my stocks.


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## DaveHenry (Apr 14, 2013)

*Shearwater for the views*

Shearwater on Kauai for the lovely ocean views.


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## rifleman69 (Apr 15, 2013)

DaveHenry said:


> Shearwater on Kauai for the lovely ocean views.



And that's where I'll be tomorrow!


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## abbekit (Apr 16, 2013)

rifleman69 said:


> And that's where I'll be tomorrow!



Post lots of pictures please!  Can't wait to see how the renovation of the units is coming along.  Have a great trp!


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## mistalong (Apr 16, 2013)

vacationhopeful said:


> Santa Barbara is the NEW favorite of us experts of the Wyndham collection.
> 
> Esp those of us who brought a bunch of the winter fixed deeded weeks ... those deeds did better than my stocks.



So Are you saying I should keep this fixed week at Santa Barbara?  Hmmmmm


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## Rent_Share (Apr 16, 2013)

DeniseM said:


> If you join TUG ($15) you will have access to the ratings and reviews.


 

There is a filter on the top Rated resorts to limit the selection to Wyndham, which would give you the top 10 rated Wyndham resorts in order

http://tug2.com/RnR/ResortsGrid.aspx?TOP10=true&ResortName=Wyndham


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## vacationhopeful (Apr 16, 2013)

mistalong said:


> So Are you saying I should keep this fixed week at Santa Barbara?  Hmmmmm



Which SB week and unit number?


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