Hi All

Looking to maybe do Florida next summer, with the family, (mrs, 17 y/o lad, 13 y/o lad, 11 y/o daughter and last but not least our 2 y/o daughter) so 6 of us.

I work for a major tour operator so can get a pretty good deal but am a bit lost of how to plan everything as neither of us have been to the states before. My main questions are:

1. Accomodation?, better to go for a villa/apartment/hotel?
   
2. Location? kissimee seems popular for villas? or are we better heading for Int drive?
   
3. Attractions? there seem to be loads to go at, I really want to go to the kennedy space centre, the kids will prob want disney, busch gardens, sea world maybe? Are there any must see's, things that can be missed?
   

We stayed in Orlando (International Drive, Monumental Movieland Hotel) went to Disney, Universal, Daytona Speedway, Kissimmee, Titusville to see the shuttle take off, Kennedy Space Centre.

Didn't do Seaworld (animals in captivity and all that stuff)

At Kissimmee Boggy Creek airboats is a must. Go for the private tour rather than the group and you might get Captain Kirk like we did.

Where we saved a load was not eating out for breakfast and not eating in the parks.

There was a Walmart 5 minutes away from our villa.

We froze squash drinks the night before and made a packed lunch in the mornings, the iced drinks kept the food cool and we had slush drinks all day.

We ate out every night, steak and ribs, heaven!

Mission Space was one of our favourite rides. Soarin was quite cool too.

For the price, I'd go for a Villa over a hotel. Your kids will have their own space but with you, rather than squeezing into a hotel room.
Plus on the quiet days, you'll have you own pool.
Try and make is 2-3 days doing stuff then a pool day, as otherwise you'll come home wanting a holiday.
Dont try and do everything, save the bits you don't do for next time.

Universal - Islands of Adventure and Busch Gardens are great for the coasters, Disney is good for the walking round, shows, smaller rides.

If you want something different from the pool day, do one of the water parks. Blizzard Beach is fantastic and can either be lounging around in the Creek on a big inflatable tyre or going down the mental slides and fishing your shorts out your ass.

Wouldn't bother with Wet&Wild or Watermania (if they're still going) and if you're able, book to see the Blue Man Group, one of the best shows I've ever seen.

Make sure you get your head around the tickets, as they're confusing. Plus do some research into the prices. It swings from year to year being cheaper to book in the UK and collect out there, or collect out there. Also make sure they're proper ticket vendors, not selling on "spare/unused days" as you'll probably get to the gate and be turned away.

We always book a villa with a pool, you can't beat having your own quiet villa, there are only 2 of us in a 4 family villa, but its away from the rabble of hotels and kids running up and down the corridors.

International drive to me was like Blackpool.

Checkout the Titanic Experience, its great

you will never see all the attractions in one visit so decide is it Disney or Universal, Disney is great for kids of all ages, lots to see, 14 days won't be enough, so you won't be bored, 2 great water parks, Epcot etc, all worth a day, we stayed in the Kissimmee area up the 27, lot's of private villas in gated communities,

Universal is also a great day out, I believe you can book a 14 day ticket in the UK for less than £100 per person, so if you made 2 visits to Universal it has paid for itself.

Beaches to aim for are Daytona, Clearwater and of course St Pete's Beach.

Car wise, if you can book it separate to the holiday with US Rentacar, save a fortune. Always pick Platinum insurance to qualify for a full tank of fuel and the best insurance cover.

Kennedy is excellent, lots to see for all ages, its about 2 hrs drive from Kissimmee area, a nice drive up past Christmas to Titusville.

We saw Discovery launch in 2009 at a minute to midnight, that has to have been the best thing ever to see.

If you fancy a different day out, checkout Mount Dora, its a lovely drive and a lovely little village, and if you are up to it, you can hire Segways, not for kids however.

Oh.... I feel sorry for your wallet, all those different attractions x 6 people is brutal. I live about 45 min from Disney, and I would say Kissimmee is going to probably be your best bet of location/cost. There are tons of places just off of 192 which is your main access into Disney, as well as providing a couple of back roads into the I-Drive corridor.

International Drive IS the heart of the tourist district and everything is pretty much right there, but the traffic is unbearable at any time of day. You have the Pointe Orlando which is an outdoor mall with an Imax movie theater. There is a Ripley's Believe it or Not museum and a place called Wonderworks which is an interactive science place for kids in the age range of your middle 2. There are also tons of restaurants and shops as well as a couple of those "fun spot" types of places with go-karts and video games.

Disney, Universal, and Sea World are all spectacular. Haven't been to Disney in a few years, but Harry Potter at Universal is amazing. I'm a big nerd, so I enjoyed Sea World for all of the information I could soak up, and its quite fun to boot.

If anybody in your family is a petrol head then head to Old Town (right on 192 in Kissimmee) as they have a huge parade of cars on Saturday nights. Just prepare yourself for the overwhelming "Murican!!!" atmosphere. From the last time I was there it was a mostly American muscle car fest, which is great in its own right and the cars are really awesome. Especially when they drive through Old Town on their way out. Some of the mustangs and camaros have been cammed up and they vibrate your whole chest as they drive by. It's free to get into so that's something that can be done on the cheap.

Downtown Disney is a little shopping/entertainment area that is on Disney property. They have some cool shops and a movie theater there that is pretty nice. Disney Quest (5 story video game arcade) was one of my favorite places to go back in high school (15 years ago). Its a flat fee to get in, but once your in all of the video games are free.

Hope this gives you a little bit of an idea of what you can do.


Beags

Went in 2005 and got a villa for 2 weeks. Definitely the best way to go in my book.

Did the whole thing, got those tickets that allow as many visits to all the main parks etc. and it was well worth the cash

If you go to the Kennedy Space centre, don't be dissapointed by the look, it does need a little lick of paint but it was still cool to walk along the length of a Saturn V rocket and we were lucky enough that the Shuttle was on the pad at the time. Shame that it won't be there anymore though.

We ate a BIG 'all-you-can-eat' breakfast in one of the many cheapo eateries en-route and had a self-cooked meal in the evening with a snack at lunchtime.

The main thing I would say is go with the attitude of "if you want it, get it", nothing worse than skimping on things, you're there to enjoy it so do just that.

Hope you get all sorted and you and the family will love it

Also forgot to mention......

Legoland has been open in MY town of all places, Winter Haven. Its about 45-60 minutes from Kissimmee area depending on traffic but its an easy drive. Legoland offers a shuttle to take you to and from Orlando so you don't even have to drive. The park is really geared for kids who are not quite in their teens yet, but its offers some really neat experiences. For example, kids can drive a little go-kart (like 2mph) around a track. There's no guide rail so they have to learn to steer on their own and whatnot, stuff like that. The problem I have with it are the ticket prices.... they are comparable with Disney and Universal and frankly those parks are just better.

FWIW

Beags

Cheers for all the input fellas!

I know the wallet is going to take a beating once there but I've been putting it off for a few years now and I've managed to build up my concessions at work to a reasonable level now.

The Villa I think is the only way to go for us. I think 3 bought meals a day x 6 would bankrupt me. If we could save a bit on meals that would free up more cash for other things, (hmm wonder if I could squeeze a new bike lump in my case on the way home!)

The pool days are a great idea to break things up. Some good none mainstream suggestions too, loving those.

Keep them coming

If you want a day away from the parks, consider visiting some of the State Park just north of Orlando.

My favorite is Wekiva Spring, where you can rent canoes an paddle along the natural spring or just swim in the crystal clear natural spring. You'll see lots of wildlife, turles, gators, birds etc. Wekiva

Blue Springs is also good, they do a boat trip on the St. Johns River where there is a possibility of seeing Manatee.

Old Town - Just off the 192 has a classic car cruse one night each week too.

[Edited on 15/5/12 by andy350z]

Very simple.

Go this time and see / do as much as you feel able to whilst not going at too fast a pace.

You can see more the next time you go.

(This is not in question, you will want to go back).

We were last there 5 years ago and it's way tooo long.
For the little one, you must see the end of night fireworks in the Magic Kingdom.
Your little girl will thank you for the rest of her life for that experience.

The Lion King show in Animal Kingdom is pretty far up there too, as is Indiana Jones, the car show at Old Town, Kennedy Space Center (sic), the food, getting to drive a car with a big petrol engine and not worry about it, it's beyond amazing as far as family holidays go.

Skydivepaul on here has a villa over there that he rents out (or at least used to). Was a minter and well priced.

http://www.blueskiesvilla.co.uk/

Talking of |Skydiving, which your not really, but checkout Sky Venture near International Drive, opposite Wet n Wild, if you fancy doing some free fall skydive without a parachute.

Its great fun, when I did it, it cost $45 for 2 x 1 min jumps.

Also checkout the fairly new Flowrider surfing thing off the 192

There is so much you can do, we have been 6 times now, and still not done everything, going back next year :-)

I was there in Dec with work, and had a few days there to myself. I would have preferred a villa, but on my own it was daft.

Hire car is a must, even the cash machines are drive through over there!

I went to Busch Gardens and had a GREAT time, the rides are head and shoulders better than UK rides, I got there early, got the all you can eat deal on the ticket and eat my way through about $120 of food and drinks, breakfast lunch and tea, for about $35.

I also did wetnwild and have to say it got my heart pounding far more than busch gardens did - that is not to say busch gardens isn't adrenalin heaven, its just that there is something really brilliant about it just being YOU, no straps, no carriage, just you - the bomb bay is quite possibly the biggest rush I've ever had. If you go after 1 its half price, and an afternoon is enough cos its good, but not massive.

Its about 2 minute walk from Orlando's best eatery for the locoster - Ponderosa Steakhouse.

I spent two other half days going to a few of the state parks, hiring a canoe and enjoying the view and peace, especially enjoyed this on the way to the airport, as it was a great contrast to a long flight and hectic airport.

Few things:

Watch out for parking charges, even the big parks hit you up for $15 more to park...
Watch out for little attractions, they can seriously bleed you if you are not careful - there was a slingshot thing across the road from my hotel, it looked good so thought I'd see what it cost - it was something stupid like $35 a go! I didn't do it, but add a burger a few rubbish stalls and a go on a few mediocre rides and your as out of pocket as a trip to a big park!

Personally I didn't really like Orlando, I know it sounds stupid but it was too commercial, and really fake - just look at the "grass". I am sure there are really good parts of america, but florida isn't my cup of tea personally. If I could do the rides without the razmataz I'd have been happy.

Oh and the toilets have MASSIVE gaps round the door. dunno why, but they do - and no "engaged" sign either

I went out to Florida on holiday in 1994.....

Never went back to England...


Funny thing is 80% of what I've just read is news to me.....definitely agree about the off the beaten track oddball stuff..

Enjoy

quote:

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Originally posted by Dangle_kt
Watch out for little attractions, they can seriously bleed you if you are not careful - there was a slingshot thing across the road from my hotel, it looked good so thought I'd see what it cost - it was something stupid like $35 a go! I didn't do it, but add a burger a few rubbish stalls and a go on a few mediocre rides and your as out of pocket as a trip to a big park!

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Please book with Virgin holidays, as it might save my jobfor another year!

I can offer a "hands-on car building experience".....

Very reasonable too....

(how else will I get it finished?)

Daytona is OK if you want the boardwalk attractions, but for just a day at the beach I would go to Jetty Park. Nice flat beach with the rip-tides some of the steeper beaches can get you into.

Due east of Orlando, on the Cape south of Kennedy Space Center.

When you go to Kennedy you will be on a bus part of the time. One of those bus drivers is a very pretty older blonde lady named Triva. She is my cousin.

When we go to the Space Coast we stay at the River Inn in Titusville.(A bit worn but usually clean and quite reasonable in price)

When in Orlando/Kissimee we stay at Celebration Suites next to Old Town.(Same as River Inn except with a kitchenette)

We don't get too picky about hotels because we don't do much there except sleep and use the pool.

quote:

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Originally posted by Dangle_kt
Big snip

Personally I didn't really like Orlando, I know it sounds stupid but it was too commercial, and really fake - just look at the "grass". I am sure there are really good parts of america, but florida isn't my cup of tea personally.........

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Hi,

i've got to add my bit, We actually have a place we rent out palmkeyholidays.com, It's in Davenport and it's about 15 mins away from Disney area and 30 mins form Universal etc., there is a community pool and play area etc which is nice as the kids can play with other kids.

Ping me a message and I can give you costs and avaliabliliy if your interested.


All of the parks are great (my fav is Islands of adventures and Spiderman),I agree with the comments about eating in the parks this will inpact your wallet the most, there are loads of little trick people pick up to save money etc for example you can get a voucher for about $20 per kid this enables them to eat free at about 50 places, Sizzler is a great value place to eat and they are correct when they say "nobody does salad like Sizzler".

We love it out there we've been for the last 3 years in a row, although we are having a year off this year.

my top tip.

Dump the kids with grandparents at home get on the plane and relax from then on

My top tip take a sat nav. your gonna need it if it your first time there

We used to live in Florida and have taken our three kids back on holiday.

Buy your flight tickets separately and definitely stay in a villa. But make sure you get one on personal recommendation from someone you trust. Some can be in very dodgy areas..

The Walmart on International Drive used to sell park tickets at a discount.

The water parks are great for a day off. We always carried in a hold all of food and drinks the yanks are used to people doing this, no one bothers you.

Book your car from England that way it will be waiting at the airport so you can get everyone in and away from the airport quickly. The bad guys look out for tired and lost tourists to mug so stick the sat nav on and go straight to your villa.

Have fun and enjoy yourselfs.

Wish I could afford to go back but apparently I've spent all the money building a car!