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Sheraton Vistana Villages vs. Harbour Lake

Seaport104

Seaport104

TUG Review Crew
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Hello All,

Trying to decide on a resort for my brother and 7 year old niece. Also, my brother does not drive so I am thinking a resort that's not too large will work better since he will have to walk from the front desk to his assigned villa and rely on Uber to get on/off property. So far, I have narrowed it down to Sheraton Vistana Villages and Harbour Lake.

Any thoughts on which would better for him and my niece? They are looking to stay 50% of the time in the resort and rest to Universal.

TIA!
 
Harbour Lake usually wins for children because of the kid friendly pool and splash pad area. ...but if she is just with dad and not chasing and splashing with other kid family members, the open splash area may not matter as much. Is there a mobility issue? Otherwise, I'm not sure it really makes that much of a difference. I would personally choose the Villages simply because I like the pool and common areas better. I would categorize Villages as "family" friendly and Harbour Lake tilts more toward children if that makes any sense?

You didn't ask, but:
I'm a big fan of Universal, and in many ways, Universal has been outdoing Disney is recent years. BUT-- Universal has many more height restrictions to be aware of. For a seven year old, I really recommend Legoland (yes, I understand Uber is not an option because of distance) and SeaWorld. You didn't say what time of year, but if it's summer, check out day summer camps. Your brother would drop daughter off in morning and pick up in afternoon. The camps are fantastic and would provide a nice structured time for her to be with other kids and enjoy herself... and spend afternoons and evenings with dad.
 
Those critiera do seem prime to reccomend Marriott's Harbour Lake. My only issue with that property is that the pools are small and crowded. But the, often underused, splashpad is great for young children. We also really like Sheraton Vistana Villages and they too have a pirate ship water feature. It just isn's quite as cool looking as the one at Harbour Lake. Check out the playlists I have on my YouTube channel for Marriott Harbour Lake and Sheraton Vistana Villages. We have been to both many times.
 
Seaport104 said:
Hello All,

Trying to decide on a resort for my brother and 7 year old niece. Also, my brother does not drive so I am thinking a resort that's not too large will work better since he will have to walk from the front desk to his assigned villa and rely on Uber to get on/off property. So far, I have narrowed it down to Sheraton Vistana Villages and Harbour Lake.

Any thoughts on which would better for him and my niece? They are looking to stay 50% of the time in the resort and rest to Universal.

TIA!
Click to expand...
Between the 2 I'd take HL. A little closer to Universal, a good choice for the 7 y/o and a very small footprint. There are other resorts closer still to Universal but nothing to write home about and they may not be available to you/them anyway. For this situation I'd probably just stay a couple of days at a Universal resort hotel and then move to the timeshare.
 
Swice said:
Is there a mobility issue?
Click to expand...

No mobility issue, was just concerned that since they d not have a car, having to walk with all the luggage after check in to the other side of the resort as big as Grand Vista would be a huge pain.

Swice said:
For a seven year old, I really recommend Legoland (yes, I understand Uber is not an option because of distance) and SeaWorld. You didn't say what time of year, but if it's summer, check out day summer camps. Your brother would drop daughter off in morning and pick up in afternoon. The camps are fantastic and would provide a nice structured time for her to be with other kids and enjoy herself... and spend afternoons and evenings with dad.
Click to expand...

Thanks for the suggestion re LegoLand. Will let him know. The plan is for Easter break 2022.
 
Seaport104 said:
No mobility issue, was just concerned that since they d not have a car, having to walk with all the luggage after check in to the other side of the resort as big as Grand Vista would be a huge pain.
Click to expand...
SVV is much larger than Harbour Lake. THough I have seen plenty of people being dropped off at both by Uber/Lyft. Seen plenty of people rolling their luggage all the way back to the Key West phase of Vistana Villages too. One thing to consider, SVV is much closer to the Publix grocery store than Harbour Lake. So if they want groceries, what do I mean, they will actually need them since the onsite food options at SVV are pretty limited at the moment. SVV would be preferred for closeness to the Publix on Vineland. Harbour Lake staff may like to tell people that the Publix on Vineland is walkable from the resort (yes I heard the staff telling people this at check in, but it certainly isn't IMO.
 
Last edited:
dioxide45 said:
Those critiera do seem prime to reccomend Marriott's Harbour Lake. My only issue with that property is that the pools are small and crowded. But the, often underused, splashpad is great for young children. We also really like Sheraton Vistana Villages and they too have a pirate ship water feature. It just isn's quite as cool looking as the one at Harbour Lake. Check out the playlists I have on my YouTube channel for Marriott Harbour Lake and Sheraton Vistana Villages. We have been to both many times.
Click to expand...

Videos are WOW!! Thanks! My niece is a fish and loves to swim all day. Looks like VV wins on the pool aspect. So it seems my main concern now is which one is more convenient for those without a car. The main reason I crossed Grand Vista off the list is the massive size of the resort. I wouldn't want to have them walk a mile from the front desk to get to their villa at check-in and having stayed in GV myself, I think it would be a pain to arrange for an uber pick up.
 
Seaport104 said:
Videos are WOW!! Thanks! My niece is a fish and loves to swim all day. Looks like VV wins on the pool aspect. So it seems my main concern now is which one is more convenient for those without a car. The main reason I crossed Grand Vista off the list is the massive size of the resort. I wouldn't want to have them walk a mile from the front desk to get to their villa at check-in and having stayed in GV myself, I think it would be a pain to arrange for an uber pick up.
Click to expand...
If you stay at SVV request Amelia or St Augustine. You’ll be within walking distance to the lobby, the fitness center, the marketplace, the pirate ship pool and the main pool by the lobby. I stayed in Amelia section and walked to all of that as well.
 
I believe Grande Vista will shuttle you over to your villa with your luggage. Others can correct me if I'm wrong but I swear I've seen it happen while there.
 
jmhpsu93 said:
I believe Grande Vista will shuttle you over to your villa with your luggage. Others can correct me if I'm wrong but I swear I've seen it happen while there.
Click to expand...
Yes, they do have a shuttle as does SVV. Though I don't think it is currently running at SVV. It is currently running at Grande Vista.
 
dioxide45 said:
Yes, they do have a shuttle as does SVV. Though I don't think it is currently running at SVV. It is currently running at Grande Vista.
Click to expand...


Oh wow, never knew that! Thanks! This makes it even tougher to decide between SVV and HL!
 
Seaport104 said:
Oh wow, never knew that! Thanks! This makes it even tougher to decide between SVV and HL!
Click to expand...
The shuttle only takes you around the resort. No offsite shuttle at either property.
 
dioxide45 said:
The shuttle only takes you around the resort. No offsite shuttle at either property.
Click to expand...

Thanks for the clarification but I assume they can use the shuttle to get from villa to front desk at checkout also and to get around withhin the property at VV?
 
Seaport104 said:
Thanks for the clarification but I assume they can use the shuttle to get from villa to front desk at checkout also and to get around withhin the property at VV?
Click to expand...
I guess they would, but why would you need it to just get around the resort? I mean, it's a good-sized resort, but it's not THAT big unless mobility is an issue.
 
Seaport104 said:
Thanks for the clarification but I assume they can use the shuttle to get from villa to front desk at checkout also and to get around withhin the property at VV?
Click to expand...
Find out first if it's even running. DIoxide said it's running at Grande Vista, but didn't think it was at SVV.

I've used the shuttle at Grande Vista before when we've had to move between villas/buildings for the 2nd week. DH was at the airport picking up our son so I didn't have a vehicle and they just put my stuff on a luggage cart, took it down and loaded it onto a golf-type cart, drove it over, and took it up to my villa for me.
 
Seaport104 said:
Hello All,

Trying to decide on a resort for my brother and 7 year old niece. Also, my brother does not drive so I am thinking a resort that's not too large will work better since he will have to walk from the front desk to his assigned villa and rely on Uber to get on/off property. So far, I have narrowed it down to Sheraton Vistana Villages and Harbour Lake.

Any thoughts on which would better for him and my niece? They are looking to stay 50% of the time in the resort and rest to Universal.

TIA!
Click to expand...

Haven't been to VV, but when our kids were that age, every visit to Harbour Lake was a blast for them. Very kid-centric, smaller footprint to get around, and still close to International Drive (if wanting to use the trolley service).
 
kds4 said:
Haven't been to VV, but when our kids were that age, every visit to Harbour Lake was a blast for them. Very kid-centric, smaller footprint to get around, and still close to International Drive (if wanting to use the trolley service).
Click to expand...
There is an I-Ride trolly stop right outside the entrance of Harbour Lake.
 
jmhpsu93 said:
I guess they would, but why would you need it to just get around the resort? I mean, it's a good-sized resort, but it's not THAT big unless mobility is an issue.
Click to expand...

Good to know, I was thinking more that if it was closer to the size of Grand Vista, it would be an issue especially with a 7 year old that may not want to walk a great deal.
 
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