elaine amj
DIS Veteran
- Joined
- Jan 26, 2012
At the end of February, I spent 2 weeks near Disney, staying one week at Sheraton Vistana Resort and then the following week at Club Wyndham Bonnet Creek, both in 2 bedroom villas. I have stayed at both multiple times over the past couple of years - never with little kids as mine are young adults now.
We were 3 adult ladies as my mother and her friend were travelling with me (myself 44, DM75, D60s). I spent most of my time in the parks while the ladies chilled at the resorts.
Rooms - rooms are MUCH more spacious at Sheraton Vistana Resort. I didn’t notice much in the past but it was very obvious this trip. Otherwise, basic amenities are the same. Nice to have a front desk in each building at WBC but I handled almost everything by text at both. A nuisance to drive over to the lobby at Vistana when I needed more key cards though. Oh I should note that WBC uses magic band like wristbands for your room key card. (Which the ladies loved for the convenience of not having to pull the key from a pocket/purse). But WBC lacks windows that open. I like fresh air and WBC only has the balcony slider.
Walkability - WBC is compact enough to walk everywhere. Vistana we either had a long walk, used the free shuttles, or drove.
Grounds - way more lush and pretty landscaping at WBC. Vistana is nice enough with many little lakes everywhere. Pools are decent, but small. Anything larger is sectioned off so terrible for lap swimming.
Activities - WBC has tons of trivia, game shows, a free luau, decent live entertainment, and a million kids activities incl free minigolf. Only one cornhole tournament a week - no other sports competitions for active older kids / teens. Vistana has added soooo many fitness classes from yoga to dance fitness to aquafit to workout classes. Really catering to senior snowbirds with 2-3 classes every day. Didn’t pay attention to the sports facilities.
Gym - good gym at both for gym rats (my DS is picky about his equipment and doesn’t bother to go to smaller hotel gyms with minimal equipment. He is into weights and not cardio).
Vistana has tennis, pickleball, and basketball courts as well as the ubiquitous shuffleboard. WBC only has table tennis, shuffleboard and cornhole (that I can think of). So Vistana wins in sports by far.
Vibe: WBC is lush, beautiful, music everywhere, great lazy river, and just lovely grounds to stroll in. Busy busy busy with young families everywhere. Vistana is mostly senior snowbirds staying several weeks or more with some young families sprinkled in. Much more laidback and calm. With more space. People at Vistana are sociable and ready to make friends. I have exchanged contact info with various people through many stays. WBC people are sociable too, but are usually there for shorter stays.
Location - Vistana is well situated within 10 mins or so of all the parks. During peak morning hours (9-11ish?), use the resort exit at the other end of the resort as the normal road can get very congested. Occasionally you’ll hit short stretches of traffic jams on returning back, but not on the way to the parks. WBC if course has the edge. It is slightly closer (only maybe 1-2 mins difference most trips) but avoids any traffic.
I rent from owners and do find WBC costs me a little bit more. I like both resorts and would choose my stays depending on the needs of the trip. This time, we should have stayed at Vistana the whole two weeks as paying extra for WBC wasn’t worth it to the ladies who preferred Vistana as it had more stuff to do that appealed to them and they really disliked the cramped feel of WBC’s layout.
We were 3 adult ladies as my mother and her friend were travelling with me (myself 44, DM75, D60s). I spent most of my time in the parks while the ladies chilled at the resorts.
Rooms - rooms are MUCH more spacious at Sheraton Vistana Resort. I didn’t notice much in the past but it was very obvious this trip. Otherwise, basic amenities are the same. Nice to have a front desk in each building at WBC but I handled almost everything by text at both. A nuisance to drive over to the lobby at Vistana when I needed more key cards though. Oh I should note that WBC uses magic band like wristbands for your room key card. (Which the ladies loved for the convenience of not having to pull the key from a pocket/purse). But WBC lacks windows that open. I like fresh air and WBC only has the balcony slider.
Walkability - WBC is compact enough to walk everywhere. Vistana we either had a long walk, used the free shuttles, or drove.
Grounds - way more lush and pretty landscaping at WBC. Vistana is nice enough with many little lakes everywhere. Pools are decent, but small. Anything larger is sectioned off so terrible for lap swimming.
Activities - WBC has tons of trivia, game shows, a free luau, decent live entertainment, and a million kids activities incl free minigolf. Only one cornhole tournament a week - no other sports competitions for active older kids / teens. Vistana has added soooo many fitness classes from yoga to dance fitness to aquafit to workout classes. Really catering to senior snowbirds with 2-3 classes every day. Didn’t pay attention to the sports facilities.
Gym - good gym at both for gym rats (my DS is picky about his equipment and doesn’t bother to go to smaller hotel gyms with minimal equipment. He is into weights and not cardio).
Vistana has tennis, pickleball, and basketball courts as well as the ubiquitous shuffleboard. WBC only has table tennis, shuffleboard and cornhole (that I can think of). So Vistana wins in sports by far.
Vibe: WBC is lush, beautiful, music everywhere, great lazy river, and just lovely grounds to stroll in. Busy busy busy with young families everywhere. Vistana is mostly senior snowbirds staying several weeks or more with some young families sprinkled in. Much more laidback and calm. With more space. People at Vistana are sociable and ready to make friends. I have exchanged contact info with various people through many stays. WBC people are sociable too, but are usually there for shorter stays.
Location - Vistana is well situated within 10 mins or so of all the parks. During peak morning hours (9-11ish?), use the resort exit at the other end of the resort as the normal road can get very congested. Occasionally you’ll hit short stretches of traffic jams on returning back, but not on the way to the parks. WBC if course has the edge. It is slightly closer (only maybe 1-2 mins difference most trips) but avoids any traffic.
I rent from owners and do find WBC costs me a little bit more. I like both resorts and would choose my stays depending on the needs of the trip. This time, we should have stayed at Vistana the whole two weeks as paying extra for WBC wasn’t worth it to the ladies who preferred Vistana as it had more stuff to do that appealed to them and they really disliked the cramped feel of WBC’s layout.
