A Family-Friendly Resort in Orlando, Florida that Mrs. HomeFree Couldn’t Pass Up

While my husband and I don’t have children, we strive to experience lots of different categories of travel.  Sometimes our accommodations are luxurious (The Battle House in Mobile, AL).  Sometimes it is a budget-friendly hotel like a Courtyard or a TownePlace Suites.  And sometimes we get the chance to try out a resort!

We recently stayed at the Sheraton Vistana Villages on International Drive in Orlando, Florida.  Even though the property is geared towards families, this was our second visit.  That should tell you how much we enjoy it.  This property is actually a time share community, so the units are little apartments with kitchens.  For us, a few days here is a nice chance to change things up.  We have a full-size fridge and a two-burner stove, so we can do slightly more elaborate cooking that we otherwise do.  We also have a washer and dryer in our apartment, so we can do laundry for free and not have to juggle rolls of quarters.  Simple pleasures for full-time travelers!

Special note: I am married to a financial counselor.  He will tell you that we do NOT endorse joining time share communities.  There are dozens of ways to invest your money better.  We book this property just like we would with a regular hotel, and we don’t have a long-term commitment and haven’t tied ourselves to thousands and thousands of dollars in debt.

Sheraton Vistana Villages is located on a quieter section of I-Drive in Orlando.  Proximity to a grocery store is important since you will have access to a kitchen.  It took me less than 8 minutes to drive to both the Publix and the Aldi.  

There are three little “villages,” each with its own pool.    The architecture is supposed to remind one of historic St. Augustine.  The Key West village is supposed to remind guests of that locale.  These references in the architectural details are pretty minor and many people wouldn’t even notice them.  If you like a strong theme, maybe you won’t care for this.  But, overall, I don’t know that it would impact a guest’s vacation one way or the other. We have always been assigned to the “St. Augustine” section.  This appears to be the largest of the three pools and has a pirate ship at one end.  Yes, you read that right.

There is a huge ship for kids to play on, complete with water cannons for them to shoot.  The other end, while appropriate for both kids and adults, is calmer.  The less rambunctious children seem to hang out at this end with their parents.  I don’t worship the sun often, but when I do, this is where you can find me.

The property also has a restaurant (currently closed due to Covid), multiple gyms, a business center, multiple playgrounds, a little game room and a walking/jogging trail.  Five minutes down the road is an amazing Venezuelan restaurant that I will discuss in an upcoming post. The staff even organize group activities several times each day like karaoke contests by the pool and that sort of thing. I can envision a family spending a very enjoyable vacation here without ever having to fight the crowds at the theme parks.

We received a phone call from the front desk during our stay reminding us that we hadn’t stopped by to pick up our “free gift.”  Warning:  This is really just a chance for them to sign you up for a sales pitch meeting.  Channel your inner Nancy Reagan.  Just say, “No.” We did and they left us alone. 

We were told that housekeeping only services rooms once guests have stayed at least 14 days, so there is no worry about someone coming into your space while you are there unless your vacation is truly an extended one.  At one point, we called the front desk and asked for clean towels.  We put our dirty ones in a big bag outside our door, they picked those up and dropped off a bag of clean ones.

We always stay in a one-bedroom villa, but they do have two-bedroom units. The largest units can accommodate 8 guests and are over 1,000 square feet.  Most units have screened porches.  We were very fortunate that the apartment we were assigned this time had a beautiful view of a bridge, a pond and a waterfall.  I nearly forgot that I was in the middle of Orlando. 

All the buildings on the property have either five or six floors.  Each building has multiple staircases and an elevator or two.  The sidewalks are in good repair too, so ADA accessibility is pretty good. I taught my ESL classes online every morning without any problems.  This tells me that their wifi is strong enough to handle streaming and an international connection at the same time.  (Though rare, there have been one or two places we’ve stayed where this has not been the case.)

During our stay, we noticed that in addition to families, there were couples our age, retired couples and even a few couples that I think were honeymooners.  While the resort is designed to be family-friendly, it is not over-the-top.  It doesn’t mean that groups without elementary-school aged children can’t have a good time too.   There are lots of ways to relax, social distance and enjoy each other’s company.  After the year most of us have had, that sounds like a recipe for a heavenly time.

Have you ever stayed at a resort like this?  What was your favorite part?  Tell us in the comments.