Encore Resort Reunion Florida Private Villa Rental

For our trip to Florida we opted to stay at Encore Resort Reunion in a Villa with private pool – we felt this would work better for us as there were 11 of us (4 adults and 7 children!) the idea of being stuck in hotel rooms didn’t really appeal!

We booked through Virgin Holidays however they booked it through Jeeves who sublet the luxury villas at encore resort homes on behalf of owners.

Check in

We weren’t aware that Virgin book vacation homes through a 3rd party company so when we arrived at Encore we had trouble getting through the security barriers as they wanted to know where we were staying, but we didn’t know until we checked in!

It turned out we should have had an email with details of our villa etc but I didn’t receive this, luckily they sent it over to the reception who printed it all out for us and they directed us off to our villa.

When you check in you’ll be given a card which you can use to get through the entrance barriers, get into the waterpark and you can also use it to charge to your account if you add a card when you check in.

Our Villa

We actually booked a 6 bedroom villa however we were incorrectly allocated a 5 bedroom villa and as we were so exhausted by the time we arrived from our drive from orlando international airport we didn’t actually realise until the following morning!

We stayed in 221 Burma St and it was beautiful. Super spacious and clean when we arrived, Jeeves also include a welcome pack of essentials for when you arrive too. It is accessed villa a key code lock so no worrying about losing keys, which worked out better for us too as we didn’t need to keep thinking about who had the key if we didn’t go out together.

Lounge / Kitchen

The ground floor consisted of an open plan area with the lounge, dining room and kitchen. In the lounge area is an L shaped sofa, 2 chairs and 4 (yes 4!) glass tables – the coffee table is just the right height to bash your knee every. single. time. you walk past it, as Gaz found out many times.

We were nervous with there being so much glass with so many kids but fortunately it all stayed in one piece! The TV was also huge, the kids loved it. The dining table only seated 6 but there is also a breakfast bar on the kitchen island with 4 more seats.

The kitchen had an oven with hob, tall fridge/freezer with ice maker, microwave, kettle and toaster. It is well equipped with kitchen utensils, pots and pans etc. There is also a good sized storage cupboard with shelves. It had everything we needed to cook for the 2 weeks we were there.

Laundry Room

We love American washers and driers! This is just what we need back home – They also supplied loads of beach towels which were great for around the pool. The lead into the garage/games room.

Bedrooms

Bedroom 1 – Master Suite

This was our bedroom, we ended up with Oscar in with us as we should have been in a 6 bedroom villa . Our room was super spacious, the Super king sized bed was so soft it was like sleeping on a cloud. We had plenty of drawer storage in the bedroom and also a walk in wardrobe / dressing room through the bathroom.

Our bathroom also consisted of a double shower, twin sinks and a separate toilet. The only real negative here was there were no where near enough hangers for all of us.

We did have to call out the bug man as we had some unexpected visitors around 10 nights in to our stay (Cockroaches – yuck!) and they came out and disposed of them for us as we managed to trap them under cups.

Bedroom 2 – Frozen themed

The 2nd bedroom is Frozen themed, with this giant Elsa on the wall and huge stuffed Olaf in the corner. This room has a bunk with a double bed on the lower and single on the top.

It also had a double fitted wardrobe and lots of drawer storage including drawers in the steps of the bunk bed.

Again they also had a TV with Netflix etc on and their bathroom also had a twin sink and a bath with a shower over it.

Bedroom 3

Miles had this room to himself, with the double bed, he had a double wardrobe and a tall chest of drawers.

His ensuite consisted of a single sink and bath with shower over it.

Bedroom 4

This room is Star wars themed – decorated with stickers to the walls and a death star lamp. Another bunk bed with a double bottom bunk and single top bunk.

Again lots of storage with the double wardrobe and chest of drawers.

Bedroom 5

This is the only bedroom downstairs and had a double wardrobe, chest of drawers and TV. There was also a bathroom next to this room with a single sink and shower.

Game room

In the garage you’ll find another huge L shaped sofa, an air hockey table and a basketball game. The girls loved there were Minions painted on the walls.

Cinema area

On the first floor landing, where the most we can store is a laundry basket, this house had a 6 seat, 3 screen, cinema area. One screen was hooked up to an Xbox, another to a Playstation with a selection of video games and lastly one for the TV which also had access to Netflix etc. The seats were reclining leather chairs with cup holders and the girls loved them!

Pool area

Outside the patio door you’ll find your very own private pool and an under cover area with a table seating 4 and an outside toilet. The pool had steps at both ends, a small shallower area off to the left and a hot tub jacuzzi on the right. This can be heated independently to the rest of the pool.

It took us a couple of days to realise our pool heating wasn’t working and Jeeves had to reset it remotely to get it to work.

The patio doors are alarmed which was a bit of a nightmare with the kids as you had to press a button before you opened them or an alarm went off. You had to do this every time you opened it and they were too high for the kids to reach (for safety reasons) but it means an adult needs to be on hand to constantly let them in and out.

Water park

We only visited the private water park once but it was really good, the super fast racing slides were great for the bigger ones (there are height restrictions) and the splash area and smaller water slides were perfect for Holly and Oscar. Just be careful when that bucket fills and spills because it tips ALOT of water cascading down over the play area.

You can grab free towels from the hut on your way in and the bar is open and shows sports on the screens behind the bar.

Complex

Within the complex at Encore Resort Reunion you’ll find the main reception and also the fitness center (which we didn’t use) there is also a kids club but it wasn’t available due to Covid.

Finns Restaurant & The Shark Lounge

The entire family had dinner here once and it cost us around $250 for the 11 of us with mains and desserts. The food was alright and the portions were good sizes. We had the desserts to go and they boxed them all up for us.

Coffee 2 go / shop

Coffee and pastries were available here and a small selection of essentials such as milk, toiletries and chargers.

Other facilities at Encore Resort Reunion

They also offer free transfers to all the theme parks including Walt Disney world (you need to prebook them), BBQ hire and even a private Chef hire. There are also daily activities but we didn’t do any as we were so busy with all the parks!

Security patrol the resort constantly and all the entrances have barriers and/or security huts on them.

Rubbish is collected daily from the side of your villa, they don’t have recycling facilities apart from cardboard boxes which need to be flattened and placed at the side of the house. Pool cleaning is done weekly.

Some activities weren’t available due to covid restrictions but they do also offer basketball courts, tennis courts, a full soccer field and spa treatments.

You can even get married on their event lawn and they have packages to cover everything for a perfect wedding from a small intimate affair to a lavish affair. Their friendly event team is full of experienced wedding planners to help you plan your dream wedding

Summary

We would definitely stay at Encore Resort Reunion Florida again, it’s a great location only a short drive to Disney and Universal or you have the option of the free transport to the parks. It’s a really great place for the whole family. As it is a gated resort it also feels really safe and secure.