We stayed in the Lakes section at Vistana Resort, and loved it! We were about a 5 minute walk to a pool that was great for kids, which had a beach entry. Walking another 3 minutes would get us to a huge pool. The pool was a little on the cool side, but my daughter warmed up to it with the other kids and had a great time.
We were a long way from the check in building, and I don't know where the general store was located. You might want to check the map on
www.vistana.com.
Our building did not back up to a major road, and I had asked in my e-mail for Diamond Lane Check-In that we not be placed too close to a major road. In the early morning when we walked outside, I could hear the noise from a major road, but never saw anything.
We would definitely stay at the Lakes again. It was a very spacious 2 bedroom, 2 bath unit, and was certainly over 1,000 square feet. We had a screened porch with a table and 4 chairs, a washer and dryer, three TV's, and a huge jacuzzi tub. The stove and dishwasher were showing some age, but they worked. I had a problem with the toaster, which was promptly replaced. The timer on the dryer didn't work, so I had to keep track of when to unload the laundry (I didn't bother to report this problem). Other than these minor problems, everything was great.
We took advantage of the Sea World second day free offer. We got off the plane early on our arrival day, and left late. Sea World was a great choice for the arrival and departure days.
The crowds were very light. I think our longest wait was 10 minutes for Big Thunder Mountain at Magic Kingdom! And the weather was perfect. We were there 9/29/01 to 10/4/01.
If you have any more questions, just ask!