Doing the Lifestyle visit next week!
 

Hi everyone! We are coming down next week for a 5 day Lifestyle Preview visit. We are curious to hear how others enjoyed their visit and what made your visit the deciding factor for you to move there. What things did you do while visiting? We are so excited about this upcoming visit!! Any advice or tips you can give us will be so appreciated. Thank you!

I have posted this before sometime ago and perhaps posting it again with some updates will help you out.

1. The best nights at Lake Sumter Landing are Tuesday and Thursday. These are the nights of the best entertainment and the Vendors are there those nights that is why they have the best entertainment.

2. The best nights at Spanish Springs are Monday and Wednesday. These are the nights of the best entertainment and the Vendors are there those nights that is why they have the best entertainment.

3. To me the best night at Katie Belles is Monday night. You need to make reservations so check with your host to find out how to do this. By far one of the best shows in The Villages and is a must. Also there is a good show on Wednesday night as well. Won't hurt to catch both.

4. If you have not been here before first thing is take a trolley ride to get a feel for the place. Then get a good map that shows the golf cart paths. Use your golf cart that is what this place is all about.

5. As you use your golf cart remember do not cross or drive on a 4 lane road it is against the law and you could get a ticket. If you find yourself in this situation stop and go back where you came from and look at all of the other carts and see where they are going and adjust you route. When in doubt pull out a map and look lost within 30 seconds you will be offered help.

6. If you are playing golf have your host schedule you on Palmer and be sure you play Riley Grove. When you see the videos you can say I was right there.

7. See what shows are at the Savannah Center and ask your host to make reservations for you if it is not sold out The Villages may comp you great seats. You have to ask!

8. Urban Flats has entertainment & dancing inside most nights. RJ Gators has great Karaoke (these people are good) & dancing on Wednesday and Saturday nights starting around 8:30 however you need to get there early to get a good seat. The Light House has entertainment many nights a week.

9. If you want to play golf other than the freebees that The villages offer simply call the courses after 6:45 AM on the day of play and ask about open tee times. They will set you up and you will pay the rate of a Villages Resident. Drop by any Pro Shop and they can supply you with phone numbers or check out The Villages Phone Book. Same for the Executive courses but don't waste your voucher on an Executive Course if you play both use the voucher on the Championship Course and pay for the Executive course.

10. Happy Hours at Cane Garden and Arnold Palmer start at 3:00 PM and are great prices. Cane Garden happy hour is done at 5:00 PM I think Palmer runs a little later but someone else may help us out there. Mallory Hill also has a good happy hour that runs till

I did the Lifestyle in January, Sookey. Make sure to take that trolley ride. Do you have a sales rep? Your rep should give you a good tour of the area and show you the various rec centers and all that TV has to offer. I got soooo lost in my golf cart........but EVERYONE was so very helpful. The nitely entertainment at the Squares is a must. My major problem was that I started drinking that KoolAid from the moment I arrived and ended up buying a lot within 24 hours of arrival. You'll love it.......enjoy every minute!:wave:

I can't add much to Indy-Guy. Great advice!

If you're into softball or pickleball or tennis please make sure you check out the facilities and watch a game or two.

SookeyJo:

Excellent advice from Indy-Guy. Have a great time.

Donna Moore performs at Katie Belles and is great enetrtaiment. The beauty of TV in the way it is kept and its friendly people. I met someone and he introduced me to someone who would give me a job to facilitate moving to TV. The people are soooooooooo friendly.

Indy-Guy:

You post had me tearing up drinking my coffee thinking how much I miss TV.

For a moment, I felt like I was there.

SookeyJo - If TV doesn't give you one as part of your visit, buy "The $5 Map" of TV. You can get them at a variety of places - the sales offices at LSL and SS are usually convenient. Or if your sales person is on the ball, they might just have one for you!

Even if you feel like there's no way in the world you'd ever buy a place in TV so quickly, bring the checkbook along.........just in case! :) Many many many (did I already say 'many'?) people have done exactly that - one visit, fall in love.......and whip out the checkbook!!

You'll find tons of feedback in various existing threads containing questions and feedback from people regarding their Lifestyle Preview visit. You can use the "Search" function on the tool bar towards the top of the screen: try searching on 'lifestyle' and read through some of the resulting threads. (The Lifestyle Preview visit goes by a bunch of different acronyms: LPV, LPP, LSV, and so on. Those search terms won't generate a search - they don't contain enough characters.)

Hope that helps!

Bill

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Make sure you get up early and go to Starbucks at Lake Side Landing get a drink then walk across the square and sit on one of the benches on the water...you can watch the ducks, alligator and turtles float around...they also enjoy The Villages.

Great post!!!!!!!!!!
 

We did the Lifestyle over Easter week. LOVED IT!! We did most of the things you recommended. They all are on target. Our salesman was dud! We got in his car, asked him it was a busy time? (we waited 35 min in the sales office for him to appear) Giving him a chance to apologize to for us waiting that long. His response was "Somebody has to take these!?!? I have no idea what "these" meant. We had made reservations over 2 months in advance. On our tour he took 4 phone calls. Two were of a personal nature. When it came down to getting tickets. We asked about a Polo match, "They were all gone!?!?" We were buyers,, and tried to make that clear to him, just didn't seem to want to sell. OH well,,, Headed back for an 8 week visit this summer... we have a home booked for June.. STILL looking for the month of July for that bargain, with pool or spa at the home. We cant wait to return to look for a permanent home.

we did the lifestyle in dec.
our sales agent was great, jean trueax, she spent lots of productive time with us, first asking our need and requirements and then showing us neighborhoods as well as homes. the neighorhood sold us first and then the perfect house, (unfurnished). we are now the owners of a house in tamarind grove. we are just visitors for the next couple of years, but hope to be snowbirds soon.

Hi SookeyJo,
Indy gave you great advice.

As for "what made your visit the deciding factor," you'll see. It's not any one thing but everything. It's the people, the beauty, the squares, the community rec centers, the cart lanes, the neighborhood rec centers, the people, the pools, the country clubs, the oodles of fun things to do and the Kool refreshing drink served in a variety of flavors everywhere you turn.

The trolley no longer goes north of Rte 466 or Spanish Springs, so be sure to check out that area on your own if your sales rep doesn't take you there. It has Katie Bell's and a lot of other things including shops, bowling lanes, restaurants, Savannah Center, polo grounds etc.

Yep....Indy's advice is the best. And......don't forget to bring that checkbook! :)

SookeyJo, Enjoy your visit. I will be back in TV in July for visit #2. Wish I could move to TV tomorrow.

Indy Guy, Thank you for posting the tips for visitors...it helps to know which square has the best entertainment each night and which nights/locations the vendors are selling.

Be sure to get The Daily Sun every morning and check for the open houses - new as well as pre-owned. Visiting a few will help you learn about the properties that are in TV. And finding the properties (including getting lost) is half the fun.