If you are looking for the biggest and the best retirement community in the world, you may want to visit The Villages in Florida like we did.
We went on the Lifestyle Preview Plan for our six night stay which we had arranged through the Properties of The Villages. You can choose a stay from 4 nights to 6 nights and I think 4 or 5 would do the trick for most.
We flew to Orlando and took The Villages Transportation bus which leaves every hour for The Villages, which is about an hour North of Orlando. Pat Presenti, with Properties of The Villages welcomed us at the Sales office on the town square at Lake Sumter Landing and took us to close by The Cabanas at Creekside Landing to a 3 bedroom Courtyard Villa which was our home for the week. It was complete with use of golf cart and two bikes.
The Villages have three town centers, each with its own personality and theme. As I mentioned we were close to Lake Sumter Landing which borders Lake Sumter and has a Florida seaport theme, then there is the original town square of Spanish Springs and the newest town square of Brownwood, which Pat took us on the first morning of our stay. Brownwood has a Western theme and has life sized bronzed cows and a cowboy riding a horse at the entrance, which you can see at the top of this post.
All three town squares in The Villages are great. In the middle of each square there is music and entertainment every single evening of the year. There are plenty of restaurants, stores for shopping plus a playhouse showing movies around each square. This is where people meet for happy hour, to walk around, socialize, shop and to enjoy the music. I can see that the town squares are a big reason people love the lifestyle at The Villages.
All of the retirement communities are called villages and are located around the squares, close enough to walk or ride your golf cart to the town square. There are 60,000 golf carts in The Villages.
There are 110,000 people living in The Villages in homes and villas. There are patio villas, courtyard villas, cottage homes (ranches), designer homes and more. It is interesting that they build the whole section of the village before the homes are put on the market for sale, then just release a few of the homes at a time. The homes come finished and what you see is what you get. Quite a few of the homes come furnished. There is something for everyone at The Villages, which is both a 55+ community and an active adult community.
Our agent Pat Presenti showed us homes on two days and carried us over to the Spanish Springs Town Square as she was going that way so we could enjoy walking around, going into shops and eating lunch at a wonderful restaurant called Athens Greek.
One morning Pat took us to a couple of recreation centers and I was amazed at how large they were, how many large meeting rooms and how many activities inside and outside were going on. There must be 15 or more recreation centers. This is where you stay active and meet new friends. Below is us in front of the Eisenhower Recreation Center which is decorated by military veterans and their families.
By the way, everyone we saw and met were smiling and having a good time. They were only too happy to tell us how much they liked living in The Villages, just like the many people we had talked with before our visit. The byline of The Villages is “Florida’s friendliest hometown” and I believe it.
Many people visit The Villages on the Lifestyle Preview Plan and then go back home to start packing. I can see how they are sold on The Villages and why The Villages is the largest and fastest growing retirement community in the USA. In our opinion, The Villages delivers a great lifestyle and it the ultimate retirement community. You should check out The Villages with a visit of your own.
Our agent Pat Presenti was never pushy and let us do our thing but always there to assist if needed. Everyone who works at The Villages delivered excellent service. Ask for Pat if you go. Thanks! – Robert and Mary Ann Fowler
Properties of The Villages 800-346-4556 (ask for Pat Presenti)
Florida 55+ homes for rent
Florida 55+ homes for sale
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