Trip report at end of posting....for HH Resort

[WDWNewbie]

I emailed the GM and he gave me the details on those lovely pillows!

If anyone else wants to know where to get them, PM me and I'll send you the details. (I don't think I'd be permitted to post it here with prices etc).

Anyway, I will say they are expensive--over $40/pillow!

But so nice to sleep on

 

[dis-happy]

Just a subtle clarification---the fireworks have nothing to do with Disney--they are put on by Shelter Cove.

 

[Donna]

...
Donna, I understand why you might be confused with the resort with the Disney name vs a Disney resort. I think it's a subtle difference, but not a bad one. I've been to the Disney resorts in Orlando and I had a preconceived notion in my mind of what to expect. This is a resort with no theme parks attached. The focus of your vacation is different in HH. You really focus on relaxation, not get up, get breakfast, be at the parks before they open, go all day long, etc. The person who said this to me was a guest who has been to HH as well as WDW multiple times.

.

Now that you know what to expect, your trips there will probably be more relaxing. We've been DVC members for almost 10 years and after the first few years, we finally slowed down even at disney world. There really is no rush to get up real early (unless you go in the summer, when its just a good idea) and head out and not come back til evening. On our weeklong disney trips, we usually incorporate resort relaxation every other day. No rush to see it all, we'll be back! The beauty of DVC! So when we go to HH, we take it that much slower. I like to walk through the entire resort, sit in the adirondack chairs or hammocks and just listen and take it all in. Most evenings, we just sit on the back porch rockers. They used to have disney music playing around the pool from morning til night. Now when i ask them to turn the music on, they look at me like i'm nuts, lol! Our first trip to DHHIR was in 1997 and we only went to "use" up points or lose them. We ended up buying there, even though we already owned at OKW. DVC barely had 5000 members! We knew it was somewhere we'd have to return to each year. I would be curious how you would like Vero Beach. We have never tried it there; I've heard HH beach is better than Vero. If i can tear myself away from HH and OKW, maybe we will give it a try.

 

[lat]

Donna, I agree with you.

We have been to Disney World so many times and we don't go to the parks as much. We go everyday or almost, but only for a few hours each time or just for a meal. We love Disney resorts and spend a lot of time there, maybe that is why when we go to Disney in HH, we don't really feel anything different. My kids are younger than 9, but they love just goofing around, I rent the bike with a little cart at the back to take my 2 kids most of the time.

This past trip at BWV, we brought DD's bike and and she biked from the Boardwalk all the way around the lake to MGM and back while DH jogged alongside. We have more fond memories about these than running through the parks.

Now the next new tryout is Vero Beach and Disney Cruise

 

[pklein09]

Yes, I'll have a much better idea of what to expect for the next trip. I also think I'll have a much better idea of what it expect for our cruise next year. The HH resort is beautiful. I really enjoyed just looking at all the oaks with the spanish moss hanging. We enjoyed the Behind the Ears tour and I wish we could have done the other tour of the resort (the ecological one with the plants, etc). By the time Friday came, I was ready to stay another week. At least I got to enjoy half my week!

 

[Donna]

We always bring the bikes down with us too. On our first trip, kids were only 2 and 12 so we put the little one on a bike carrier and rode all the way to the beach house and back, his head bobbing the whole time, lol. i think he woke up when we went through the sprinklers, lol. Now the "little" one is 10 and the 12 yr old will be 21 and they STILL love to bring their bikes down. Of course, big brother won't be SEEN on a resort bike! he has to bring his specialized mountain bike, lol. Thats ok with us as long as they always want to come with us! I like pulling up to the resort, I go to check in, kids take off for who knows where. I tell them to come back to find us to at least get the room number; we're lucky if we see them by dinner! I am really comfortable letting my younger one have the run of the resort, usually he is with his brother crabbing off the pier. I also really enjoy cooking while at HH. We may eat out once or twice in our stay there. We like Hudsons once per trip. Most other nights, we will cook up something good, nothing fancy. It's fun to yell over the porch down to the pool for the kids to come up to dinner. I just wish time wouldn't go so fast when we are there. We only go once a year, so that time is precious and none of it is wasted. Back in 1987, we stayed in Sea Pines with the golf course for our backyard. While the villa was spacious and beautiful and we could walk to harbourtown, it was no way as nice as the disney resort.