Apologies for having these questions so close together, but planning is a hassle and we want to figure things out before rates go up.
Right now, we are torn between Sapphire Falls and Aventura due to their proximity. We're not very familiar with UOR's hotels, the first we stayed at was CBBR for HHN in 2021, but we were so busy that it was hardly more than a place to sleep and shower. This trip is different though. We will be flying down in the evening on Wednesday, going to HHN Thursday and Friday nights, using Saturday for either IoA or another HHN night, and flying home Sunday. However, we have nothing planned for Thursday and Friday before Stay and Scream, and we will likely use that time to explore Citywalk and the resorts.
My main question lies in if the offerings of SF (and the premier resorts as well) can be taken advantage of as an Aventura guest. Aventura generally looks bland and corporate to me, but as I said, we will likely spend little time there besides sleeping. We are really curious as to how much of the higher resorts we can experience, such as the pools, restaurants, and water taxis. I am especially curious about the water taxis, since they don't use that massive security hub by parking, the walk back to the resort would be brutal after HHN, and I've heard some say they check for room keys sometimes.
For our dates, rates are $225 for Aventura and $345 for SF. We have no desire for premier resorts since we have no need for Express. Splurging a little bit to take advantage of all of SF's offerings wouldn't be a problem... but if we can access most of it as Aventura guests, I'm not sure the ultimate extra $500 is worth it. It really does seem beautiful, but do the rooms offer anything that will make our experience THAT much better? Or might we be better suited staying at Aventura and spending our free time at SF and the other resorts?
Sorry for the long post or if anything is confusing. Thanks in advance