Vero Beach 2014 Information & Adoration Thread

[Twinprincesses]

We are here now (though leaving today too) if I can answer any questions! Things I found out (not sure if it is common knowledge since I haven't read the whole thread). Mug refills - $3.00 (so bring your old RFID mug) TIW accepted at the pool bar/dining! So I guess that makes refills on mugs about $2.40! Totally worth it!

About the mugs..l. We are going to Bay lake for 2 days, getting a mug, cruising and then doing 4 days at Vero so will I be able to use my mug at Vero?

 

[TinkerbellLuvr7]

About the mugs..l. We are going to Bay lake for 2 days, getting a mug, cruising and then doing 4 days at Vero so will I be able to use my mug at Vero?

If you buy the length of stay option then yes it will still work at Vero, the length of stay is good for up to 14 days. If you only get the two day option then you will have to add days at Vero at $3 a day (you can do two days at a time for $6)…which you can do outside at Bleachers or inside the gift shop.

 

[CTdaizy]

My guess on no more movies by the pool has something to do with the nesting sea turtles and lighting regulations.

 

[ohionola]

I see many of the things have a fee. Do they list the cost of the activities anywhere?

For the activities that cost money, can you charge it to your room or is it cash only? I normally don't carry a lot of cash with me.

 

[mikaj3645]

Thanks for posting the activities sheet"

?? The morning kayaking trip where do they go? Or where is the kayaking done? And any reviews ?

The kayak trip goes out from the Indian River lagoon, and stops at a small island for water and snacks. The naturalist, Mary Anne is simply awesome.

We have been a number of times. The kayaks are sea kayaks, with rudders. Single and double are available. We have seen dolphins and manatees every time we've gone. One time, a bunch of manatees came over and started pushing us along with their noses!

I highly recommend this activity. It's a must-do for us!

Cathy

 

[ohionola]

How strict are they on the age limits on the activities? I have a 6 year old with an October birthday that is wanting to do the fishing activity that you must be 7 for. Any chance he will get in? Sorry for a million questions, we are just getting very excited.

 

[PammyK]

Ack! I found this thread back on page 2! This just won't do at all. So as DVBR prepares for its upcoming 2014 Tour de Turtles event, here's a photo that demonstrates just how far a sea turtle will go to try to lay her nest in a safe place. Yes, she crawled out of the water, up the beach and under the public beach access ramp and the Disney turtle people had to crawl under the ramp to locate the egg chamber and verify the nest. This nest was laid at the end of May and should be hatching any day now.

 

[caralyn817]

When is the turtle release going to be?

 

[PammyK]

When is the turtle release going to be?

Quoting from a story on the Sea Turtle Conservancy Facebook page dated July 16, 2014:

Disney Teaches Local Boys & Girls Clubs Children about Sea Turtle Conservation! Yesterday, children at the Boys & Girls Clubs of Indian River County designed their own sea turtle tracking devices and learned about sea turtle conservation during an event led by the Disney’s Animals Science and Environment Team and Disney VoluntEARS. The children will participate in an upcoming private sea turtle release from Disney's Vero Beach Resort in late July. Great job, kids!

Also, according to the Tour de Turtles website, there is a Kick Off Social & Silent Auction event at the Barrier Island Center in Melbourne on the 26th, as well as a public turtle release event at the Center starting at 7:30am on the 27th.

 

[ohionola]

Here now. They have a poster saying there will be 2 turtle releases at 7:30 Saturday the 26th.

 

[brookelizabeth]

Here now. They have a poster saying there will be 2 turtle releases at 7:30 Saturday the 26th.

Might be a stupid question - but 7:30 AM, right?
http://www.pinterest.com/pin/create/extension/

 

[kaulds]

If I go shopping for groceries on our way to the resort and arrive before my room is ready, is there a cold storage like other Disney resorts have like when the garden grocer comes before you do

 

[ohionola]

Might be a stupid question - but 7:30 AM, right? http://www.pinterest.com/pin/create/extension/

Yes 7:30 am and it is open to the public so they said it would be crowded. They said it would be like a huge party.

 

[brookelizabeth]

Yes 7:30 am and it is open to the public so they said it would be crowded. They said it would be like a huge party.

Thank you! I appreciate the response. We arrive later in the day, a bit bummed to miss such a fun event! All well!

(and smilies from my son...he loves these things LOL:
http://www.pinterest.com/pin/create/extension/

 

[PammyK]

Here now. They have a poster saying there will be 2 turtle releases at 7:30 Saturday the 26th.

If you get a chance, can you check with someone to see if they'll be releasing the turtles at 7:30 or starting the events at 7:30? That is going to make a difference in the time we head over for our reservation on Saturday morning.

 

[ohionola]

If you get a chance, can you check with someone to see if they'll be releasing the turtles at 7:30 or starting the events at 7:30? That is going to make a difference in the time we head over for our reservation on Saturday morning.

I asked a couple people and no one seems to know. One person said it starts at 7:30 and another person said the turtles would be released At 8 but didn't come across as knowing for sure. People from animal kingdom are coming to do it.

 

[ohionola]

We are here a week but have already been impressed. Here are a few takeaways.

1. Staff is very friendly and accommodations are much better than I expected. We are in a 1 br In building 15. The only building that feels far away is building 12.

2. There literally is nothing close to the resort. We really like that but keep that in mind.

3. We did the pirate night dinner and it was fair. I can say service was very poor for disney standards. Nothing major but 5 or 6 things I wouldn't expect like taking 20 minutes on drink refills. Even if service was good we probably wouldn't spend the money on it again.

4. There are tons of activities. Perfect for our family. However if you don't have kids I could imagine it would get annoying very quickly. Due to rain the lobby felt like a daycare center. Again perfect for our family with kids but I could only imagine how I would have felt without kids.

5. They do the evening turtle walks on Thursday-Saturday during nesting season. We booked this as soon as we checked in Sunday and they only had about 10 spots left for the week.

6. They seem to be very liberal with the ages of activities. Example some activities that said under 5 had older kids and some asking for older kids had younger. Again great because it is hard explaining to a sibling they can't do what the other is doing.

7. I am very uneasy on the room charging. I have used it several times and they never ask for a id, pass code or even my room number. If my card was lost or stolen a huge bill could be ran up very quickly. Next time I will consider shutting off charging privileges.

8. The resort was much less crowded today then Sunday: I think a lot of people probably only come for a couple of days.

Overall it has been a blast and we will be back again in the near future.

 

[caralyn817]

Thanks. I called them and they told me that activities will begin at 7am and the turtles will be released at 8am. We're going to miss it as we won't be arriving until later that day. A little bummed.

 

[PammyK]

I asked a couple people and no one seems to know. One person said it starts at 7:30 and another person said the turtles would be released At 8 but didn't come across as knowing for sure. People from animal kingdom are coming to do it.

Thanks for asking. We might have to try to leave at 5:30am (ugh!) to make sure we don't miss things. Oh well. We'll just have to splurge for a beach set up and nap on lounge chairs under an umbrella afterwards.

 

[caralyn817]

How strict are they on the activities? My daughter whose 4 would really enjoy doing the tie-dye mickey. Will they allow her to do it with me helping?