Thanksgiving for Disney's Vero Beach

My parents told us a few weeks back that they were coming to see us. My dad was recently diagnosed with throat cancer and wanted to come before he begins treatment. I decided to try my best to make this a GREAT trip for them.

Throughout the week (as DH and I got off work) we went to Disney and shared MK, DHS, and Epcot with them, as well as Downtown Celebration (it is SNOWING here nightly now, very quaint :) ).

But the main thing I wanted to do was take them to Vero. My mom has never seen the ocean, and my dad had mentioned he'd like to fish. At such short notice, I was only able to book two garden view inn rooms for ONE night, so we left early Friday and stayed til after lunch on Saturday.

Vero at the holidays? BEAUTIFUL! Their sea-theamed trees & wreaths were so amazing...some were sea turtles, some were shells and starfish, etc.

My dad and DH went fishing, but caught nothing. The beach was GONE as tide was definitely in, and the ocean was angry! I was there in May for TS Beryl and we didnt' see waves like this. If it hadn't been so cold, DD, DH, and I would have loved to have been out there on our boogie boards! We left shells in the lobby jar to keep a little part of us at Vero at all times :)

We played putt putt, I visited the Green Cabin Room a few times :blush: :marg: and we ate at all the restaurants except Sonya's. Bleachers (QS)has fabulous buckets of shrimp. Shutters dinner was wonderful. HUGE portions. Goofy's Beachside Breakfast was all you can eat and QUITE reasonable as you'll see in the photo.

You can use TiW at any location, QS or TS. Their gift shop accepts DVC and AP discounts (including PAP 20%).

I always feel like I'm trying to sell Vero Beach, but honestly, it is my family's first pick when I say "where do you want to go for your birthday, Memorial Day, etc" It is so laid back, so charming, so natural, and just a fantastic way to enjoy Disney and then not so much Disney.

Hope you enjoy the pictures!

A few more from our visit

And these

Sorry to hear about your dad, Christine.

Thanks, Mel :hug:

I'm sorry about your dad, too. Best wishes to him.

Thanks for the pictures! It looks like a really fun place to visit, and what a great place for some family time. Love the family picture on the beach.

Great pictures, we really need to get to Vero one day.

Sorry to hear about your dad, glad you got to spend time together before he starts his treatments. My thoughts are with your family.

Thank y'all so much for the well-wishes & prayers for Dad. I really appreciate it!! You're the best!

Prayers and oixie dust on the way for your dad and family. Great pictures. Thanks for sharing.

Great pictures as always!

I'm sorry your dad is facing such a serious illness. I hope the treatment goes well.

Incredibly fabulous photos!!!

Best wishes for comfortable treatments for your Dad, Christine!

Thanks for the Report! :vacation:

So sorry to hear about your dad! But it looks like you all shared a great trip and made some wonderful memories.

What a wonderful way to spend some real quality time! Thanks for reporting.

Great pictures! What camera/lens do you use?

Surprisingly, these were all taken with my iPhone 4S! Daytime shots aren't too shabby with it. Nighttime/low-light is another story :)

Wow! I see all these great pictures that are taken with iPhones! My photos with my iPhone come out sooo grainy :confused:

Christine, thanks so much for the pictures and for sharing your wknd with us... it looks so beautiful there, even in the colder weather!!

We'll be keeping your dad in our thoughts and prayers... :pixie: headed his way, too...