Pony up and make a decision!
We first drive into Florida looking at several places south of Orlando. Liked the grounds, but none of the houses.
On the way back to Georgia, we spontaneously stopped by TV. Driving thru SS, then LSL.
Walked into their sales center, looked at their Eastport 3D model, liked what we saw.
Walked to the nearest realtor and asked if she was busy. Told her we wanted a view lot, exchanged info and went home.
We passed on the first round of view lots. Bid for 1 lot the second time around and got it. Moved in last October.
Never looked back, couldn’t be happier!

We bought on our 4th lifestyle visit so they definitely allow more than two. You don't get all the free stuff like golf and tickets but you get the villa and golf cart.

Visits
 

We did 4 or five at different times at different locations, bought and have lived there for 5 years. We are now selling and moving out of the overcrowding and to many outsiders using the facilities and causing problems. It was a great place but to much traffic and to many people. The villages actually called us and asked if we would like another lifestyle visit for one of our trips. Good luck on your next visit

I know someone who just did their 4th. Said you just get fewer perks - but almost everything. 4 lifestyle visits - not sure why it's allowed.

You bought five years ago and suddenly TV is overcrowd?
As for outsiders using facilities, it is a minimal occurrence, or are you including Snowbirds and renters with outsiders?

Rent a place for a month or two so that you have an opportunity to "live in The Villages". You'll no longer be a "visitor" and really get the feel of being a full time resident. You should be able to make a fully informed decision by the end of your stay.

Why not just ask The Villages sales associate

Renting first is the best idea.
 

We just built a house.
I would never consider building here again. Although I love my neighbors there were just too many No’s when asking if we could vary from the “example model” A resale home would have already put out the expenses for, and the list is long…gutters, landscaping, window treatments, water system and irrigation filters, electrical plugs where needed, pantry and closet build outs.
Then there are the extras that some might like such as epoxy coated garage floors, if you decide because one of you is tall and the other of you is short, you may have to switch out one brand new toilet(the villages only gives you one choice when building and all bathrooms get either standard or tall) and everything I have listed is on your own dime! We had to hire a plumber to remove one tall toilet so I could have a standard one to use in our house.

Not to mention and this makes me so mad, if you get a cook top hood, they make it sound like you would expect. The backsplash should look finished. Every picture I see in any magazine has the backsplash going all the way up to a reasonable height before stopping. They don’t show you a picture while designing and you think it will look like some picture you saw everywhere but here. Here what you get is such poor quality that I want to rip it all out and start over(at my cost)! See attached picture.

There are beautiful resale homes that are just a few years old, in perfect shape. You will be better off not building.

We did zero lifestyle visits before buying. We only viewed The Villages via videos and pulled the trigger to buy a house we never visited too. Our realtor showed it to us through a video walk through. When you know…you know. Best thing we ever did. Go with your gut.

The lifestyle visits are limited and taking in the Villages takes a month or more of visits at least to see everything from Spanish Springs to Eastport and beyond, IMO. At least that was our experience.

Crowded? I guess that’s subjective. I don’t find The Villages crowded at all. Everything is close and convenient. I’m use to commuting 15 miles to work taking 90 minutes to get there. That is crowded in my book. Living here is a breeze.

If you're 75% sure you should rent a home for a month in the area you think might fit your lifestyle preferences. We rented three different times in different neighborhoods, then bought and never regretted it.

We rented for 3 months twice and bought when we rented the 3rd time. That was seven years ago. By the time we bought we had friends from both snowbirds and frogs. We have been loving it for 7 years now, with no change in how good a decisioon it was to live here.

If you're not sure after two visits, rent for a month.

Totally agree! We don’t notice crowds at all, but we are in a southern village (DeLuna) that’s kinda off the beaten path from the older villages. When we travel around TV by cart we go past many recreation centers that are practically empty (pools, courts, etc), even during snowbird season.