Any chance that installing French Doors (with the blinds in the glass) can budgeted in your reno?

ML

Why do you need a window treatment there? Is it for privacy? Sunblocking? Because it's there?

Maddielee, no changes at this point. We are already 3k over our planned cabinet budget, but I don't want to skimp there because they are essentially permanent. The door is only about 6 years old. If we have to replace it for other reasons in the future, we definitely would get the blinds on the inside type!

Fori, mostly privacy as we are in a development, with a lot on the inside circle part of a cul de sac. We have planted arborvitae that are trying to grow in, but they are only 3 years old. A little sun blocking too, as I notice we tend to leave the vertical blinds mostly closed, but partially turned to allow in some light, but not full sun. We feel pretty exposed at night especially, when our lights are on and it is dark outside.

I feel your pain. I have a similar door and have had vertical blinds on them since we moved in over 20 years ago. I do hate them, and would love to change them to something else. They are wonderfully functional, but I do not like them. I have a dog who slobbers and lays there, and ours face south so it gets full sun. To be honest we have hardly ever closed the blinds as we really dont need ir for privacy. I have seen some of the panels you mentioned but I cant decide how durable they would be in my situation. I do like the gromet panels and have toyed with putting those in. According to others, they do slide pretty well so they would be functional for closing and opening easily. Your other choices are lovely by the way. I will be watching this to see the suggestions you get.

I wouldn't get the panel shades since they'll stack on the left side of your slider, blocking a lot of your view.
Have you looked at the vertical cellular shades, or the Luminettes?

Here is a link that might be useful: Luminettes

Curtains on a traverse rod that stack all the way off the window, or the Luminettes, in particular because they can provide some privacy, light and view all that the same time.

I have a patio door in my kitchen dining area and I've been there and done that with the vertical blinds. I replaced the blinds with grommet top drapery panels which I could easily slide closed at night. I didn't want them closed during the day though because we are constantly in and out those doors. However, because the door faced south, often the sun was too intense in the summer. We replaced the door as part of our kitchen remodel and put blinds between the glass for sun control. I reinstalled the rod and drapery panels though because I thought it dressed up the dining area a little more.
I bought 4 panels on clearance at Bed Bath and Beyond and seamed 2 of the panels together for each side of the door. Here's a shot of how mine look.
{{gwi:1545431}}

If replacing the doors aren't in the budget yet, I would do what Badgergirl suggested. You can also buy some sliding fabric panels. Check out JCPenney.

We have the french doors with the blinds between the glass, and they are awesome. I also was very happy to get rid of the vertical blinds. If your doors are a standard size, they are not that expensive. Lowe's carries the Reliabilit fiberglass for about $800. Ours were a little more because we had to order a custom size. They also made a difference in our energy bills because they are Energy Star certified.

We also keep ours open during the day when we are home to let in light. We keep them closed when we are at work or at night. We can also keep the bottoms lifted up a bit so kitties can loook out.

I have a large sliding door in my family room. I replaced old vertical blinds with grommet outdoor drapes from Pottery Barn. They look like cotton canvas, but resist stains and machine wash easily.

Definitely grommet top drapes on a rod - I just loathe vertical blinds!