No parks this year.

[Jonell]

Due to our finances and the increase in ticket prices it looks like this summer will be a no park trip for us (our first trip ever without parks).We'll be spending 4 nights at Vero followed by 4 nights at OKW.. Please tell me about Vero and some fun things to do there??.. We'll be golfing, enjoying Disney Spring, and exploring Orlando while at OKW.

 

[quandrea]

You will have fun. We are in the same boat. Four thousand for APs. Okw is great. Community Hall, boat rides to Disney springs, there is a special tour of Conch Flats that is great, Olivia's has great food, golf, see a movie, swim. Vero is great too.

 

[bwvBound]

Vero, depending on the specific dates of your visit, may be very focused on turtle activities -- either egg laying or egg hatching? Be sure to research and join the turtle talks and turtle walks, if available, at either the resort or the Sebastian Inlet. We also like to rent kayaks or such at the Inlet for a half-day adventure on the water. We bring our own lunch and drinking water.

We've also enjoyed small farm tours -- focusing on organic Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) locations. It is always nice to learn about the lifestyle and, perhaps, bring a box of fresh produce back to the condo.

 

[Barbydoll8]

I live on the west coast of FL near Clearwater. Stayed at Vero a few years ago and I found a great lack of "stuff to do" there. The beach is fine (but I have the gulf) and we really wanted the tourist experience. There are things kind of near it but you will need to drive.
We went here: https://brevardzoo.org/ which was a nice day trip. Trip advisor has these as the top 10 things to do: https://www.tripadvisor.com/Attractions-g34709-Activities-Vero_Beach_Florida.html

It can be very relaxing there but the sidewalks kind of roll up at night. Be prepared for that. ;-)

Of course being at OKW you have access to Disney Springs which now has ALL KINDS of cool stuff to do and see. Especially entertainment in the evening.

 

[com_op_2000]

Some of the things to do outside the parks if you haven't done them before, depending upon what you are into:
sports: golf, mini-golf, fishing, marathon, bowling, ESPN Club, WWS/ESPN Zone, etc
shopping: DTD, area outlet malls, large scale malls
drinking: Jellyrolls, Raglan Road, monorail tour of resorts, walking tour of resorts in the Boardwalk area
movies: DTD 24 screen theater some with meals served by waiters
night clubbing: Jellyrolls, Atlantic Dance, Raglan Road, Citywalk
resort tours: monorail tour of resorts, Boardwalk around the lake tour of resorts, horse drawn tour of FWC, AKL/AKV
offsite: Gaylord Palms Resort, Citywalk, swamp tour
eating: Formal GF 5* Chef's Table @ V&As

 

[DVC Jen]

We did that two years in a row. One year was a week at Vero and this past summer was a week at Hilton Head. It was a nice change and made going back to WDW that much more special

 

[Murron]

We did an Indian River tour out of Captn Hiram's once -- spotted the manatees and dolphins. Vero is a quiet, laid back area which is why we all call it Zero Beach. =) I love it. Love the quiet. Absolutely love walking the beach at sunrise and sunset! There are some cool restaurants around and as others have said, a few "attractions" which really...meh. If you get there when the turtles hatch and march to the water, it is really something to see. We've also did our bike rides on the Jungle Trail and played some golf. You didn't say if children were involved or not. If they are, the cast members at Vero have a wonderful time pool side with the children. Much more involved than the pools at WDW resorts. We are heading back in May and looking forward to seeing all the new restaurant facilities and renovations!