Crafts, Sports, and Turtles: Disney’s Vero Beach Delights with Abundance of Activities
In booking a few days at Disney’s Vero Beach recently, my family expected a slow down and chance to really enjoy a different side of Disney. What really surprised us though was the incredible amount of activities offered each day, including crafts, culinary explorations, and more adventerous expeditions.
Located on the eastern side of Florida, Disney’s Vero Beach sits on the Atlantic Ocean, making it a stellar place to catch a sunrise. The area also boasts one of the most populous sea turtle nesting sites in the world, and our trip caught the very beginning of the season. Already, Disney Conservation Team Wildlife cast members had marked a few nesting sites on the beach.
As she combed the beach looking for new nests in the morning, we got a chance to chat in the early monring with Disney Conservation Team Wildlife cast member Libby, the biologist stationed at Vero Beach during our stay. We also happened to be one of the first guests to experience her educational talk on the last day of our visit.
The chats had stopped during the pandemic, so it was a special moment to learn so much about the sea turtles and Disney’s work at the location.
Crafts, Activities and Adventures
Aside from the environmental aspects of our trip, the resort truly surprised us with so many activities. From bike rides through the Historic Jungle Trail across the street to kayaking excursions at Round Island just south of the resort, the chances to see local wildlife stood out as stellar options to us. (Unfortunately, the weather did not cooperate.)
Despite red flags throughout our trip and scattered rain each day, we explored the beach activities and hoped to take surf lessons prior to our departure. With Mother Nature not cooperating though, we spent much time at the pool, participating in dance parties, slide races, and trivia.
At Community Hall, the kids in our group explored every activity that they possibly could during our stay. They painted seashells, tye-dyed t-shirts, and made no-sew pillows.
Aside from the independence gained, they also made new friends at archery and created fabric animals at another session earlier in the day. On top of all of that, they did not have to sit through the scrumptious beverage tasting that some of the adults enjoyed.
To little surprise, the complimentary 9-hole mini golf course stood out as a highlight for the under-15 crowd too.
Quiet Evenings at the Beach
In the evening, our group chose to just chill at the resort rather than exploring Vero Beach itself. The resort offered origami making and a paper airplane classes in the lobby.
It left us plenty of time to grab a keylime Dole Whip and finish off a pretty challenging scavenger hunt too.
During our final evening, a couple of cast members hosted one of the most epic campfire sing-a-longs ever. With complimentary s’mores, the event packed so much hilarious energy and brought out the kid in all of us.
Despite the weather and waves, Disney’s Vero Beach offered us such a special couple of days and allowed us to head back to the parks rested and ready for the excitement that remained during our trip.
Just a word of caution: When the resort says it’s no-see-um season, take that seriously once the wind dies down.