[Barefoot]

Originally Posted by charmed59

My hubby and I are taking part in the Villages Experience to see if the Villages are the place for us. We only have four days there, and I'd love to hear suggestions of what to do for our first taste of life there.

We are interested in seeing if the recreation activities would be something we would take part in every day. The idea of pickle ball sounds fun. We would like to try out some pool activities (volleyball, aerobics). And we are enthusiastic but horribly mediorcre golfers that would love to try out an executive course or two.

From a social point of view, we love live music, and I see from this website there is live music everynight on the squares. Can we just show up and dance? Is this the time of year we need reservations to eat at the restaurants?

As for real estate, we'd like to look around and see what different price points will get us. We have several scenarios in our head of how to transition into retirement, ranging from renting a few high seasons, to buying a lower priced second home, to sell our big house and going all in. Is there a specific day for open houses in the villages? And wll golf cart cruising/biking through the neighborhoods help us figure out where we want to be?

There are Open Houses every day in The Villages. However I would recommend letting a Villages agent take you around and show you houses in your price range. A Villages agent can show you both new and resale homes without obligaton. Debra Park is a good agent, Mobile 352-408-8800. There is a trolley bus tour provided by The Villages so you can get an idea of the enormous size of TV.

There are three town squares that have free entertainment nightly: Spanish Springs, Lake Sumter Landing and Brownwood. Just show up (entertainment starts at 5 PM).

For us, during our lifestyle preview, we found it very helpful just to talk to other Villagers, at the pool, at restaurants, and while enjoying dancing at the town squares. Villagers are friendly people and more than willing to offer their comments and opinions! It's very easy to make new friends in The Bubble.