Told DD we are going back to RPR

[rpbert1]

Her response was a mighty WOOHOO, fastpass.
Having stayed this year at RPR first and getting FOTL, she was not impressed having to queue at Disney.

[bubba's mom]

Now you know why everyone tells you to do Disney first and UO last. I think we're staying at HRH in Feb. and RPR again in July......we loved it! Can't wait to go back! :thumbsup2

[rpbert1]

Yeah Bubbas Mom, i realised that when i got to Disney , told DW ,now i know why they say to do Disney first.
Well heres looking forward to next year , we are not oing Disney just Universal and will probably only be in the park a few times ,more of a holiday this time.

[tarheelmjfan]

Yeah Bubbas Mom, i realised that when i got to Disney , told DW ,now i know why they say to do Disney first.
Well heres looking forward to next year , we are not oing Disney just Universal and will probably only be in the park a few times ,more of a holiday this time.

That's our kind of vacation. My DH says noone vacations like we do though. We spent 5 nights at HRH last week, & the only show we saw was Universal 360. We didn't get to several of the rides either. As my DH says, "There's always next trip". :teeth:

[bubba's mom]

You can do that Tammy....you live in Florida. I have to figure airfare, hotel (at the airport & parking the car) and a rental car....so, we spend quite a bit to go to Universal.....OUR thinking is we can always "lay around" at home for FREE....so, we like to be busy.......can always catch up on sleep at home :teeth: .....now, if I LIVED in Florida....I'd probably feel the same way! Ah, someday...... :rolleyes1

[tarheelmjfan]

You can do that Tammy....you live in Florida. I have to figure airfare, hotel (at the airport & parking the car) and a rental car....so, we spend quite a bit to go to Universal.....OUR thinking is we can always "lay around" at home for FREE....so, we like to be busy.......can always catch up on sleep at home :teeth: .....now, if I LIVED in Florida....I'd probably feel the same way! Ah, someday...... :rolleyes1

Florida is most definitely conducive to a laid back lifestyle. It's perfect for our family, because we've always been lazy. :rotfl: The longer I live here, the more I lose touch with reality in other parts of the country. When I read things like people asking if it's okay to wear white after labor day or how they were appauled because someone came into the local bar after work wearing shorts & tennis shoes, I can't help but think, "Are you kidding me?". Then there's my niece & nephews in NC that will only wear Abercrombie & American Eagle. Floridians don't even notice, if you have clothes on. :rotfl2: Seriously, everyone has much more of a live & let live kind of attitude. They also seem to just go with the flow. When my family from NC comes to visit, they keep wanting people to move along & can't believe noone seems to care about those little things that drive them insane. :p Come on down, & join the laidback lifestyle. :teeth:

[bubba's mom]

....... they keep wanting people to move along & can't believe noone seems to care about those little things that drive them insane. :p Come on down, & join the laidback lifestyle. :teeth:

Being from PA, that is something I notice when we visit Ocala (DFIL) every year...how SLOW everyone moves :rotfl: . (btw, WHY, tell me, do people in Florida drive :car: in the left lane and pass in the right???)
Anyhows....waiting to have our house paid off (coming soon) till we move there....want to retire early and LIVE there, not work to pay a mortgage! :teeth: We're working on it..........
Sorry to go :offtopic: rpbert1......we're planning 2-3 trips for 2007 to UO...maybe we'll catch you and the family once! :thumbsup2

[rpbert1]

OK Bubbas Mom, missed you this year so maybe see you if your there the same time next year.
Still looking for another hotel or motel for our other 10 days, was thinking of Cocoa Beach, but DD is not to fussed on going to the beach, so might just stay in Orlando, have been pricing Swan & Dolphin and they have good rates for Education Personnel, although if we stayed there DD would want to go to Disney, and want this to be a more laid back sort of holiday

[Akdar]

You can do that Tammy....you live in Florida. I have to figure airfare, hotel (at the airport & parking the car) and a rental car....so, we spend quite a bit to go to Universal.....OUR thinking is we can always "lay around" at home for FREE....so, we like to be busy.......can always catch up on sleep at home :teeth: .....now, if I LIVED in Florida....I'd probably feel the same way! Ah, someday...... :rolleyes1
It must be a Berks county thing! (fyi Bubba's Mom and I live in the same county) That's exactly the way I am on vacation. Sometimes I have to "convince" my 19 year old DS to get a move on when I want to get to the parks. Speaking of travel, I just booked our October trip on Southwest, out of Philly for a little over $400, roundtrip, for the 3 of us, that is the cheapest I have ever flown to Orlando!

[tarheelmjfan]

(btw, WHY, tell me, do people in Florida drive :car: in the left lane and pass in the right???)


I've only noticed this on county roads, but know what you mean. I think some people do it, because they live on the left & don't want to have to cross the extra lane. Then there's those people who may not know exactly where they're turning & feel more comfortable being closer to the center of the highway. I've only visited PA, & haven't paid that much attention to the traffic, except in Lancaster of course. It's kind of hard to miss the horse & buggies. :teeth: The biggest difference in many drivers from FL & NC is that most Floridians fly, weaving in & out of traffic, on the Interstate, but don't get in a hurry on other highways. North Carolinians fly on curvy roads, but drive much less aggressively on the Interstate. Now that I think about it, the average age in Florida is much higher than most other locations. The older crowd does most of their driving locally, which could be why you notice left lane driving more on county roads. :confused:

I know what you mean about retiring here. We hope to be snowbirds someday ourselves. We've got a while to go for that though.


Still looking for another hotel or motel for our other 10 days, was thinking of Cocoa Beach, but DD is not to fussed on going to the beach, so might just stay in Orlando, have been pricing Swan & Dolphin and they have good rates for Education Personnel, although if we stayed there DD would want to go to Disney, and want this to be a more laid back sort of holiday

Our DS doesn't care for the beach either. I just don't get it! :confused3 If you do decide to go to the beach, there's better options than CB, IMHO. What other things does you family enjoy doing, & what type of transportation will you be depending on to get from one place to another? We may be able to offer some suggestions of other places to visit. Florida's a great state & with 10 extra days you could see so much. :sunny:

[rpbert1]

Thanks for the offer Tarheelmjfan, we will be driving ,but it is more of a relaxing 10 days than driving around the place, DW likes shopping hence one reason for us coming back next year, DD just likes the pool, me i just take it as it comes , we like it quiet and not to noisey but enjoy visiting any local attractions that would be in the areas where we stay, thought Cocoa Beach as it is quite close to Orlando, and our flight gets in about 5 pm and by the time we get through visa control and get our luggage and car could be about 7 oclock, if we go the other direction we would probably have to stay 1 night in Orlando and head down the next morning ,not a problem if we got a good deal , still looking as a lot of hotels have not got there rates for 2007 out yet

[tarheelmjfan]

Thanks for the offer Tarheelmjfan, we will be driving ,but it is more of a relaxing 10 days than driving around the place, DW likes shopping hence one reason for us coming back next year, DD just likes the pool, me i just take it as it comes , we like it quiet and not to noisey but enjoy visiting any local attractions that would be in the areas where we stay, thought Cocoa Beach as it is quite close to Orlando, and our flight gets in about 5 pm and by the time we get through visa control and get our luggage and car could be about 7 oclock, if we go the other direction we would probably have to stay 1 night in Orlando and head down the next morning ,not a problem if we got a good deal , still looking as a lot of hotels have not got there rates for 2007 out yet


I totally agree with that. We prefer vacations where you don't get in a vehicle the entire stay. (Maybe a quick cab ride, trolley, etc., but that's it.)

I'm biased toward Tampa :teeth: , but there really is a lot to do in the area. There's Busch Gardens (Adventure Island, if you're here in the warmer months), lots of museums, aquarium, zoo, an upscale mall + many more malls, the list goes on. Also, the Gulf coast is much nicer than the Atlantic, IMHO. From Orlando, you could be to Tampa in less than an hour & 15 minutes. From Tampa, you could be to the Gulf in 30 minutes. That's just one option that has a lot to do in one area. I'll give a little more thought into other areas you may all enjoy.

[rpbert1]

thanks Tarheelmjfan, so the drive to Tampa would probably be the same or near enough as going to Cocoa beach, maybe abit more to the coast ,
Must tell DW as i know she had more of a preference for the Gulf,
must look at some places to stay ,unfortunatley not everywhere has prices out yet, do you know if they get cheaper nearer our departure [next July] or do prices stay about the same

[tarheelmjfan]

thanks Tarheelmjfan, so the drive to Tampa would probably be the same or near enough as going to Cocoa beach, maybe abit more to the coast ,
Must tell DW as i know she had more of a preference for the Gulf,
must look at some places to stay ,unfortunatley not everywhere has prices out yet, do you know if they get cheaper nearer our departure [next July] or do prices stay about the same

I've never paid much attention to hotel prices in the area. I'll check out the rates for some hotels in both Tampa, & on the Gulf, & get back to you on that one.

[rpbert1]

Thanks Tarheelmjfan, not in any hurry as will not book my hotel for a while yet

[Motherfletcher]

Must tell DW as i know she had more of a preference for the Gulf,
must look at some places to stay ,unfortunatley not everywhere has prices out yet, do you know if they get cheaper nearer our departure [next July] or do prices stay about the same
You might want to check out Loew's Don Cesar on St. Pete Beach. As a LF Plat member they will upgrade you to a suite. The Pink Castle and it's beach will impress most DW's. Loew's has a Signature Summer rate this summer at $159 for Don Cesar.

[aztecgoods]

You can do that Tammy....you live in Florida. I have to figure airfare, hotel (at the airport & parking the car) and a rental car....so, we spend quite a bit to go to Universal.....OUR thinking is we can always "lay around" at home for FREE....so, we like to be busy.......can always catch up on sleep at home :teeth: .....now, if I LIVED in Florida....I'd probably feel the same way! Ah, someday...... :rolleyes1

Me too, we do the parks all day, then the pool and hotel drinking and what not until 2 or 3, sometimes to 4, in the morning almost every night, back up at 8am to do it all again, like you said, we can lay around at home, too much to do when you're at the greatest place on the planet!!! It is exhausting but running on the adrenaline helps too. Can't wait to go back!!! Or did I say that already in another post?!?!?! HE HE HE

[bubba's mom]

....we do the parks all day, then the pool and hotel drinking and what not until 2 or 3, sometimes to 4, in the morning almost every night.......

please define "what not"..... :rolleyes1

[aztecgoods]

please define "what not"..... :rolleyes1

Well I usually take my girlfriend so I'll let you figure that out, (although I admit that everytime I go I have taken a different girlfriend) but the new one we just had our 1 year anniversary so I think she is a keeper! So hopefully she will be the last one I take! Did I read somewhere that you just went to Kings Dom, need a report please on that park, that is one park I have not made yet and plan too sometime in the future.

[tarheelmjfan]

Me too, we do the parks all day, then the pool and hotel drinking and what not until 2 or 3, sometimes to 4, in the morning almost every night, back up at 8am to do it all again, like you said, we can lay around at home, too much to do when you're at the greatest place on the planet!!! It is exhausting but running on the adrenaline helps too. Can't wait to go back!!! Or did I say that already in another post?!?!?! HE HE HE

I'm tired & a bit hungover just reading your post. :teeth: You must be quite a bit younger than me. I haven't had that much adrenaline pumping through my veins in years. ;)

Have you ever considered the reason you've taken a different girlfriend each visit, may be because all that adrenaline combined with alcohol & no sleep makes you look & act like a performer at HHN. :rotfl2:

[tarheelmjfan]

please define "what not"..... :rolleyes1

You are so bad! :sad2: Glad you're back!!! :teeth:

[rcraw45425]

Bubba's Mom, it's not just Florida with the left hand driving, we live in GA and notice it a lot in Alabama as well! :rotfl: Of course over there it's just as likely to be a tractor with a cultivator thing on the back driving in the left lane, hanging over into the right lane :confused3

[bubba's mom]

You are so bad! :sad2: Glad you're back!!! :teeth:

I'm not bad....just curious.... :rolleyes1 Anyway, we were just at Kings Dominion for 2 days, and lemme tell ya....I plan to "report" on it on the boards, but don't have much time till Sunday (or Sat. nite IF I can get on the computer....mine took a crap, and we're down to DS' and DH's).... anyway, I will sum it up in 4 words....ready? IT AIN'T NO UNIVERSAL!!!!! :sad2: Altho it was nice to a point, the park, the food, the service, the hotel....we are so spoiled w/ UO, we're probably not going back to KD anytime in the near, or far, future..... let's say my DH said he got LOTS to put in our trip report......but, I will trip report this weekend and am looking forward to our UO trip in Feb.....so, till then.............

[robvia]

The parks up north are nice, and I've been to PKD, but once to go to IOA and stay onsite, you'll be spoiled.

First of all, the parks up north don't have fancy onsite hotels, except for Cedar Point in Sandusky Ohio. PKD has a Best Western next door. The thrill rides are better, but the overall experience is lacking because the parks don't open until 10am, and then they have long lines.

This is exactly what happened to us a couple weeks ago at Six Flag Great Adventure (what I call SFNJ). We got there at 09:30am, went to Kingda Ka, and it was down. Went to El Toro, down. Superman, Down. I mean, they don't care about having the rides ready in the morning. They all opened later that afternoon as we were leaving.

The other differance with the parks up north, is they don't have the elaborate theming in the queues, with the music. When you wait in line for a Six Flags ride, it's in a regular queue with no music, no tv screens, boring. You go on the ride, have a minute of fun, then it's back to waiting in boring lines in the hot sun.
When you walk around IOA, you feel like you're in a movie, in a different world. It's the themes and music that make this happen.

[aztecgoods]

I'm tired & a bit hungover just reading your post. :teeth: You must be quite a bit younger than me. I haven't had that much adrenaline pumping through my veins in years. ;)

Have you ever considered the reason you've taken a different girlfriend each visit, may be because all that adrenaline combined with alcohol & no sleep makes you look & act like a performer at HHN. :rotfl2:

I know what you're thinking, you think I'm like Jerry Seinfeld that breaks up with a girl for eating peas one at a time instead of scooping them, but I'm not. I have finally found the perfect girl, so as said, probably won't have to say that anymore. I have had a run of bad luck with girlfriends the last 10 years or so with a few good ones in between (See report on last years trip with psycho ex girlfriend titled "Weekend getaway at U turns into spendfest of ridiculous proportions" I horned in on her thread for that report) but that will give you an example.

But those days are all behind me I am actually getting some aniversary surprises for new girl today (this month was 1 year).

Look forward to BM's report on Kings Dom.
I have wanted to visit all of those parks including BG at Williamsburg, but I have a feeling I will leave them all with what BM said, "they ain't no universal." I like 6-Flags over TX near Dallas, and its a nice park with some super coasters but ItANU.

[bubba's mom]

Look forward to BM's report on Kings Dom.


Done! On Universal trip report board!
ps---sorry for "hijacking" your thread rpbert1 :blush:

[rpbert1]

Thats ok Bubbas Mom, you can hijack my threads anytime.lol

[tarheelmjfan]

rpbert1,
I haven't forgotten you. :sunny: I'm in the process of planning a Thanksgiving getaway to St. Augustine. As soon as I've finished reading every website on the net that even mentions the word St. Augustine, I'll get back to your hotel issue. :teeth:

[rpbert1]

Its ok Tarheelmjfan, i booked the RPR for the 3 weeks, DW and DD where not to keen on the beach ,so i just booked the extra week at the RPR, although this could be changed.

[rpbert1]

Motherfletcher, got a price by email from DonCesar Beach as i could not get prices on line, they had no AAA, yet but wanted $295 a night plus $20 resort fee & taxes a night, surely the prices will come down considerbly by next year.
i have the 3 weeks booked at the RPR and unless they come down i will just keep the 3 weeks there

[tarheelmjfan]

Motherfletcher, got a price by email from DonCesar Beach as i could not get prices on line, they had no AAA, yet but wanted $295 a night plus $20 resort fee & taxes a night, surely the prices will come down considerbly by next year.
i have the 3 weeks booked at the RPR and unless they come down i will just keep the 3 weeks there


We got a postcard from Don Cesar a couple weeks ago offering a rate of $159. I'm sure they'll come down some. We've never stayed there, so I don't know what the pricing trend is. I agree with Motherfletcher though. It's a fabulous resort. They even have their own reef that you can snorkel to from their beach.

[rpbert1]

thanks tarheelmjfan, i think i read reports of a similar price for the RPR so prices will or should be similar, do not know why there quote was so high, will wait and see as plenty of time to decide.
Have you got your trip all arranged for thanksgiving

[tarheelmjfan]

thanks tarheelmjfan, i think i read reports of a similar price for the RPR so prices will or should be similar, do not know why there quote was so high, will wait and see as plenty of time to decide.

Loews seems to do that with their hotels. They start high, then reduce them at intervals. The rates fluctuate a lot too. I guess all the upscale chains do that. They adjust the rate by supply & demand. If they can get people to book early at the highest rate & leave it at that, they come out great. Then they'll reduce the rate for those who didn't bite the 1st time. We know to wait to bite, then keep checking for the rate to go down after booking. I bet they hate people like us. :teeth: The only time they don't reduce the rates much is high season. Summer in most of FL isn't considered high season. The theme parks are an exception, because of kids being out of school.



Have you got your trip all arranged for thanksgiving

Of course, not. :rolleyes: We finally decided on a place to stay, & got that booked. :cheer2: Now, I need to narrow down all the places we want to eat & things we want to do & see into a manageable number. It's kind of hard to fit in 10 tours & 3 attractions each day, especially for laidback tourists like us. :sad2: Naturally, there's also all those tours, attractions, & restaurants I haven't discovered yet. :rolleyes1


ETA: I'll keep you updated on any postcards we receive from the Don.

[rpbert1]

thankyou tarheelmjfan, it must be great to be able to drive where you want to go ,when you live there. I want to retire there but would have to convince our older children to go to, as DW would not want to leave them,

[goofy!]

rpbert1 and tarheelmjfan - we vacation like you do. We just like to take things easy.

Although the Colorado airfares are terrible (I wish we could find the airfares that are reported from the East Coast!!!), we are not in a hurry to do everything. We also subscribe to the 'we will catch it next time' vacation strategy.

Last time we went for an extended period - we stayed 10 days at the PBH, and still did not manage to catch all the shows. We discovered the joys of renting a cabana at Hard Rock, playing at the PBH pool, shopping at the outlets and just hanging around on the balcony, having a drink and watching the boat come in. We did venture over to KSC to watch the shuttle, but that was as adventurous as we got :teeth:

Even when we go for a shorter time, we never manage to do everything, as we are just lazy, lazy.

We are going at Thanksgiving for 9 days and are planning the same kind of vacation. :)

[goofy!]

We got a postcard from Don Cesar a couple weeks ago offering a rate of $159. I'm sure they'll come down some. We've never stayed there, so I don't know what the pricing trend is. I agree with Motherfletcher though. It's a fabulous resort. They even have their own reef that you can snorkel to from their beach.

We stayed at the Don Cesar condos (Beach House Suites By Don Cesar http://www.beachhousesuites.com/ ) about a block down from the pink castle, and we loved it. It was owned by Don Cesar, so you could walk down the beach and enjoy all the amenities at the main resort. It was absolutely beautiful. The only drawback is we went during a terrible Red Tide outbreak and the huge amounts of dead fish, horseshoe crabs and eels on the beach were unsettling. So, we packed up and headed over to Universal early. But I am looking forward to going back, now that we can enjoy our Platinum status there!

We have also stayed at the Ocean Hammock Beach Resort just south of St. Augustine. Also a gorgeous resort with a golf course, right on the Atlantic and 5 pools for the kids, including a lazy river. Although, even with the dead fish, we preferred the gulf beaches over the Atlantic beach.

[tarheelmjfan]

We stayed at the Don Cesar condos (Beach House Suites By Don Cesar http://www.beachhousesuites.com/ ) about a block down from the pink castle, and we loved it. It was owned by Don Cesar, so you could walk down the beach and enjoy all the amenities at the main resort. It was absolutely beautiful. The only drawback is we went during a terrible Red Tide outbreak and the huge amounts of dead fish, horseshoe crabs and eels on the beach were unsettling. So, we packed up and headed over to Universal early. But I am looking forward to going back, now that we can enjoy our Platinum status there!

We have also stayed at the Ocean Hammock Beach Resort just south of St. Augustine. Also a gorgeous resort with a golf course, right on the Atlantic and 5 pools for the kids, including a lazy river. Although, even with the dead fish, we preferred the gulf beaches over the Atlantic beach.


I'm biased, but I also think the Gulf beaches are much nicer than those on the Atlantic. Not only is the beach nicer, but the water is too. My DH & DS do like to spend a few nights a year on the Atlantic to play in the waves. :rolleyes: We stayed in a gorgeous resort at Daytona Beach Shores this summer. It's called Shores Resort & Spa & the rooms were in a word "opulent". We had been avoiding Daytona for a while now. It just wasn't our idea of a nice place to visit. Shores has been totally renovated & opened under new management. It's also away from the party crowd, so we thought we'd give it a try. We'll definitely be returning often. :thumbsup2