Last weekend my husband, Jason, celebrated his birthday. For weeks he’s been singing his version of Sammy Hagar’s 1984 hit with the parody lyrics, “I can’t lie…I’m FIFTY-FIVE!” But after countless eye rolls from our daughters we had finally arrived at the momentous day. And we spent the weekend at the Conrad Orlando at Evermore Resort.
Birthdays in our house are a big deal. They are complete with balloons scattered across the floor, decorations, coordinated gift wrap, and usually some type of surprise for the recipient. For this particular birthday the girls and I had spent weeks scouring for the right staycation. Swim practice limits our travel during the summer, but we are fortunate enough to live a stone’s throw from countless options. Jason’s birthday comes with a side of sunshine and/or the beach and good food, so we were on the hunt for something that would fit this bill. We looked at all of our past favorites: St. Augustine, Cocoa Beach, Disney’s Riviera. But then my girls jumped on the “no repeats” bandwagon and we decided to dip our toes into the newest local hot spot.
Evermore has a variety of accommodation options. You can book a 4 Bedroom Flat (think large apartments), a Villa, or a House (house range from 5-11 bedrooms and all have their own private pools!). If you have a smaller travel party or you’re looking for a full service experience, you can also book the Conrad Orlando, a Hilton property. The larger properties have a two night minimum, so for our one night, two day celebration we opted for the Conrad. We booked a double queen room with a balcony and a pool view. It was PERFECT for what we were looking for!
Let me give you a quick run down of the hotel.
First Impressions of the Conrad Orlando:
The Conrad is GORGEOUS! First of all, it’s brand new. They just opened three months ago. It still has that new hotel smell. The property grounds are beautiful (see the view as you enter the lobby), the staff was next level friendly and accommodating, and the rooms were well appointed and actually quite spacious! Our oldest daughter is adult sized and the hotel room was just fine for us for one night. We arrived just after noon and headed out to the beach area after storing our luggage with the concierge desk. (Note, they only have valet service. I’m not a fan of this because I like to be able to head out when I want to without waiting for my car. But we never waited more than three or four minutes every time we needed the car.)
First Impressions of Evermore Resort:
How is this tucked away in the middle of Orlando?! As we were sitting on the beach (yes, it looks and feels like a real beach, minus the salt water, seaweed, and creepy crawly animals) we couldn’t help but marvel at the fact that it did NOT feel like we were 15 minutes from our house. Truthfully, we had driven past this resort many times without even knowing it was here!
The amenities are second to none! Evermore Bay is pristine. The entire complex was clean and inviting. And everywhere you looked there was something else to do. Corn hole. Ping pong. A DJ. Fire pits. Swings. And that’s just the “low frills” stuff you see walking around the perimeter of Everymore Bay. We haven’t even gotten to the big stuff yet!
Water Activities:
If you are staying at the Conrad, you have access to ALL of the Evermore amenities. Included in your $50 resort fee is every water sport activity available and bottled water (it’s supposed to be 2 per day, but as soon as my daughter saw it was BOXED water, she’s never been so committed to hydration…she easily consumed double the resort fee in water alone)!
The first of the big ticket items are the kayaks and paddle boards. You can use a single or double kayak or a single paddle board free of charge. They have kid and adult sized paddle boards. They also have a GIANT paddle board that holds up to six people at a time that you can rent. There was a line for these every time we used them, but it went pretty quickly. Everyone must wear a life vest and you paddle in an area that is roped off from those guests who are swimming. They had life guards kayaking around the area and it was very safe (much safer than trying to paddle against a current in the ocean).
The next two amenities were our favorites! There’s the HUGE slide and a three platform jump. The slide was so much fun! Four people can ride the slide down together. They let parties stay together without grouping you with other people. This is likely because some smaller guests may wiggle around on the way down. If your child is under a specific height (I think it’s 48 inches, but I’m not positive) they can still ride, but an adult needs to ride next to them or be waiting at the bottom.
Right next to the slide is the fan favorite…the triple platform jumps! There’s a rope swing in the middle, and two platform jumps on either side. I saw so much laughter and joy watching people of all ages going off the edge of these! One man in particular, probably in his later 60s, jumped and cannonballed at least 15 times in one session! He was over the moon happy! You couldn’t help but smile!
If you’re on the fence about any of these, just do it! Moms, we tend to sit on the sidelines. We plan the trips. We take the pictures. We smile while everyone else is squealing in joy. Go. Ride. The. Slide. You won’t regret it! And if you aren’t afraid of heights, do the rope swing! It was one of the best parts of the weekend!
You will need to sign a waiver to participate in any of these water activities. You can fill it out right at the base of the slide or by the kayak/paddle board line. It’s good for the duration of the day, but you do need to fill it out again each day. It’s not a big deal. They use a stamp to indicate that you’ve signed. Using a wristband would be a better option. But this may just be one of the kinks they are working through.
Food:
There are more food options than you can even imagine throughout Evermore. The reality is that most of the guests have full kitchens. But not everyone wants to cook on vacation. (I prefer to cook on vacation, but being in the hotel this was not an option. We will have Kroger deliver our groceries next time. ;0) That’s how we roll on vacation almost everywhere we go!) The Landing holds a food hall with burger, pizza, and wrap/salad stalls. We ate here for lunch on our second day and it was fantastic. We didn’t try the burgers, but they looked pretty darn good at the table next to us! I had food envy. There’s also a coffee shop and a little convenience store if you needed any necessities or snacks. The prices here were reasonable. There were, obviously, some mark ups, but I thought this was more reasonable than other resort type convenience stores.
There are also bars and smaller “food trucks” around the perimeter of Evermore Bay. Make sure you are checking your receipt. Some places include gratuity and others do not. Just be mindful and aware of this.
The Conrad has several full service restaurants that look INCREDIBLE. We ate at Ceiba for Jason’s birthday dinner. You can actually see the Magic Kingdom fireworks AND the Disney Springs Drone Show from this rooftop restaurant (although the drones are pretty far away). The food was amazing! The service was wonderful, albeit a little slow. Again, they’ve only been open a few months and they are still working through some things. But, overall, it was a fantastic experience.
A Few Key Takeaways:
Bring your own alcohol or other beverages. We like to splurge on craft cocktails with dinner. But the drink markup on a High Noon or a Sprite while lounging at the beach was astronomical. That’s where they get you. But here’s the thing. You can bring your own drinks. I like nice things. But I’m also cheap. I don’t like to spend extra money on things unnecessarily. So, I bring my own day drinks and splurge on craft cocktails at dinner. #priorities
The hotel rooms have a “cooler” but not an actual refrigerator. This would be fine to cool drinks or keep some fruit cool, but if you need this for medicine, don’t count on it. I’m sure they have portable ones, like most hotels, if you request one.
One night at the hotel was perfect for us. You can maximize both days by arriving early and staying late. We didn’t leave the resort until almost dinner time on check out day. It was lovely. Like I said, swim practice cramps our travel options. But because this is so close to our house the girls were able to go to practice on Saturday morning before we left and we still enjoyed the resort for two full days!
The Conrad had something I’ve never seen before; at least not in this capacity. It had a dedicated Arrival and Departure Lounge. This was a dedicated area for guests to use on their arrival and departure days to help them fully enjoy the resort! The lounge had a seating area, water, reading materials, and a locker room with showers, restrooms, and a changing area! It made changing out of wet bathing suits a piece of cake. If you had a late flight home or an early morning flight to Orlando, the concierge will store your suitcases for you and you can change into your swimsuits and make the most of the day! This was a wonderful, unexpected bonus!
While one night/two days was perfect for this weekend, I REALLY want to stay in one of the Flats. Our girls both want to have their birthday parties here (which seems to be a common theme amongst girls their age if my FB feed is any indication) and it really is perfect for that! If you have a group of friends or extended family one of the Flats, Villas, or Houses would be perfect for this! (And the houses ALL have their own private pool in addition to Evermore Bay!) It would even be great for a weekend getaway with your Mom Friends.
It felt a little like a cruise, minus the all inclusive aspect. It was relaxed. Everyone’s needs were met, which is complicated to do with teenagers. My girls don’t sit on a beach. They don’t tan. They don’t like to be stationary. But Jason and I do like to sit and relax a little. *GASP* We might even read! Evermore gave us the chance to all do what we wanted to do: spend some time as a family, and still be active. (There is a fitness center and even a Peloton studio at the resort…we weren’t that ambitious!) And then we had a chance to enjoy some amazing food and the company of our T4Fam. And after the girls went to sleep we walked the resort and sat by the fire pit for one last cocktail. It was perfect for our family.
And a really great way to celebrate another trip around the sun with my favorite person.
I have conflicting emotions about this next statement…but I think Evermore has officially overtaken Disney’s Riviera as our family’s favorite staycation resort!
If you are interested in learning more about Evermore Resort, send me an email at [email protected]. I can help with every aspect of the planning and booking process, at no additional cost to you! I’d love to help you and your family plan the perfect vacation!
This is a fabulous and honest review! I love the Bougie on a Budget tips. Keep sharing, this is great!!
Thank you! This was a really wonderful Staycation! And you know me…I love a good time that won’t break the bank! ;0)