Manor Club

[Fairwinds]

Greetings from MSE; Place is looking good. Today we played a relaxed afternoon 9 on Blue Heron. Tomorrow we'll visit Colonial Williamsburg with passes (haven't done that in about 20 years). And we are really looking forward to 18 on Blackheath (my favorite) Sunday morning and then on to Grand Illumination (another favorite) in the evening. Have not been here for awhile so not sure when it happened but there are some nice changes to the reception building since our last visit. Moved Market Place adjacent to the reception desk (now 24 hour), converted 1/2 of the old Market Place / Pool Grill into a small food Grill with a few hightop tables and 4-5 seat bar. The old spa area is now a decent fitness center (not great but improved).

 

[GreenTea]

We were there for Grand Illumination last year. Loved it.

 

[Big Matt]

They made the changes to everything this year so it's pretty much brand new. I like Marsh Hawk the best. The units at MSE are nice, aren't they. People always think they are still worse than the original, but I disagree. I still like the original buildings, but the units are about the same now.

 

[GreenTea]

We were in a 1 br in sequel and the room was dated and uncomfortable. Have they done a 10 year reno this year?

 

[Fairwinds]

They made the changes to everything this year so it's pretty much brand new. I like Marsh Hawk the best. The units at MSE are nice, aren't they. People always think they are still worse than the original, but I disagree. I still like the original buildings, but the units are about the same now.

Yes, they are nice. We are in Federal Commons this time but I don't think there is much difference between the three. We also like Marsh Hawk also but it's closed this week
BTW the country club has been redone and the 19th hole is now called Murdoch's and serves pretty good food (lunch and dinner) in a nice but casual setting

 

[Fairwinds]

We were in a 1 br in sequel and the room was dated and uncomfortable. Have they done a 10 year reno this year?

I don't really keep up with the refurbishment schedule but the unit I'm in shows no wear and is very clean. Again, I haven't been here for awhile but the gas fire places have been replaced by surprisingly nice electric simulated fire, appliances are all stainless and work perfectly.

 

[Mr. Vker]

If you get a chance, I highly recommend Busch Gardens Christmas Towne. They do an amazing job decorating the park. Music, shows, great fun.

 

[travelinmom]

It's good to hear! We own there, but have not been there for a while and the maintenance fees have really jumped up in the last few years. It's good to know the money at least went to making it a nice place to visit!

 

[tschwa2]

Tonight in Virginia Beach they are having their holiday parade. We went last year (the night before grand illumination) and if the weather is nice you can combine it will the Toys for Tots lights on the Boardwalk drive and it was a fun evening.

 

[BocaBoy]

I don't really keep up with the refurbishment schedule but the unit I'm in shows no wear and is very clean. Again, I haven't been here for awhile but the gas fire places have been replaced by surprisingly nice electric simulated fire, appliances are all stainless and work perfectly.

We were in Berkeley (original section) a couple years ago right after the gas fireplaces were replaced with these simulated electric ones. I agree that for simulated electric ones they are quite nice, but there is no comparison to the gas ones that were there before. So we were really disappointed with that change.

 

[pedro47]

We also liked the old gas fireplaces; they gave off heat and they looked great.

 

[Quilter]

Thanks for the update.

We have reservations 12/18-27. Just returned from our holiday visit with DD and SIL over in Italy. The primary reason to go to Williamsburg was to get away from home. It's more convenient than driving down to HHI. When we were young marrieds we lived in DC area and Williamsburg was one of our favorite places to visit. I'm hoping we'll find the distraction comforting.

We're booked into a 1 bedroom in MSE.

Please add any other "best moments" to your trip report. Would love to have options to consider while we're there.

 

[Squan66]

We were in Berkeley (original section) a couple years ago right after the gas fireplaces were replaced with these simulated electric ones. I agree that for simulated electric ones they are quite nice, but there is no comparison to the gas ones that were there before. So we were really disappointed with that change.

We stayed in the Berkley in November. It was awesome. We always stay in the original section but have never been lucky enough to snag a Berkley Model. We agree about the fireplaces. Hate the new ones...
Since we book as a getaway I would never complain. This year we hit the jackpot. FYI, the new changes to the grill and bar (former store) were wonderful. Free breakfast on weekends was a nice treat.

 

[BocaBoy]

We stayed in the Berkley in November. It was awesome. We always stay in the original section but have never been lucky enough to snag a Berkley Model. We agree about the fireplaces. Hate the new ones...
Since we book as a getaway I would never complain. This year we hit the jackpot. FYI, the new changes to the grill and bar (former store) were wonderful. Free breakfast on weekends was a nice treat.

Free breakfast on the weekends? I have not heard about this. Tell me more.

By the way, other than one short stay in the Sequel, we have always been able to stay in Berkeley, but we have only been there in early December, January and February, so deep off season times. We love the resort...one of our top 5 in Marriott.