2 weeks at Disney and 1 week at ? HELP??

[Karenpowley]

Hi Everyone,

am abit early (for Jul 09) but want to plan our trip now. We are defo thinking of Orlando for the first 2 wks, but would like to move on to the third week to somewhere else - any recmomendations???

There will be me, DH, DD (7) and DS (15)

Was thinkin of the carribbian, but lookin at some of the posts, is there anywhere that you would recommend that we could possibly drive to (say within a couple of hours)?

We like, Beaches (breathtaking please) snorkling, people watching,food, restaurants.

Any ideas??

Thanks
Karenx

 

[CustardTart]

Hi! I can recommend adding a cruise for that final week - then you can visit the Caribbean and do all the activities you enjoy... Good luck with your planning!!!

 

[Karenpowley]

Hi! I can recommend adding a cruise for that final week - then you can visit the Caribbean and do all the activities you enjoy... Good luck with your planning!!!
_________________________________________________________________
Thats an idea!!! Any suggestions on where to look to book a cruise - unfortunately cost will dicatate tho.

Thanks again.

Karen x

 

[CustardTart]

I'm a Disney Cruise Line addict so you can take a look on the DCL website - check out the itineraries and do some dummy bookings to get an idea of the prices. DCL is pricier than other lines but plenty of them sail from Port Canaveral which an hour's drive from WDW...

I found this website that gives you a flavour of the other cruise lines that go from PC...

 

[SammieG]

Fort Lauderdale is absolutely stunning.. and about a 2 hour drive....

Sammie x

 

[Karenpowley]

Thanks Sammie,

Will have a look at that too - any recommendations on where to stay there? Outside Orlando, im abit lost.

Thanks Karen x

 

[daipp]

I would also suggest a 7 day cruise with Disney Cruise Line - DCL ARE a little more expensive than Carnival but they're great.

David

 

[Stitch's Greatest Fa]

For our honeymoon we did 2 weeks Disney and one week paradise island in the Bahamas - it was great. Only an hour flight from Orlando too.

 

[SammieG]

Fort Lauderdale is full of hotels..

we just stayed at a branded hotel.... but i cant honestly remember which one it was.

Lovely beaches (not palm tree lined.. but wide and deep blue seas)..

 

[mickey mouse]

Naples is well worth a visit. We plan to visit again next month which will be our third post Orlando trip to this resort. It is an upmarket location with great beaches and restaurants. Takes about 4 hours from Orlando. We stayed in the Naples Grand Hotel. We have also been to St Petes beach which is also worth a visit (around 2 hours drive).

 

[wayneg]

Personally we dont like beaches, once stayed at Clearwater after 2 weeks in Orlando, what a mistake, not for us but many love the beaches in Florida.
For us it has to be cruiseing, have 3 booked for next 18 months.
Look at Disney but as I have said before it can be very expensive, also check out RCCL, all depends when you are going but just looked for 7 nights on Mariner of the Seas, lovely ship from £325(incl all fees & taxes)each for 7 nights in Sept with FREE Mumm's Cordon Rouge Champagne if booked with Cruise direct. Also 3% cashback thru rpoints Food is better than Disney imho.

 

[CustardTart]

Personally we dont like beaches, once stayed at Clearwater after 2 weeks in Orlando, what a mistake, not for us but many love the beaches in Florida.
For us it has to be cruiseing, have 3 booked for next 18 months.
Look at Disney but as I have said before it can be very expensive, also check out RCCL, all depends when you are going but just looked for 7 nights on Mariner of the Seas, lovely ship from £325(incl all fees & taxes)each for 7 nights in Sept with FREE Mumm's Cordon Rouge Champagne if booked with Cruise direct. Also 3% cashback thru rpoints Food is better than Disney imho.

Sounds a great deal, Wayne! Just had a look at the website - I definitely think we'll try RCCL someday soon...

 

[wayneg]

Sounds a great deal, Wayne! Just had a look at the website - I definitely think we'll try RCCL someday soon...

I have a RCCL cruise booked thru them for August, only 4 nights £200 each outside cabin. I now get an email every week from them with their top 10 deals, last week incl
6-NT Holland America Western Caribbean Cruise from $356. Round trip from Fort Lauderdale. Calls on Half Moon Cay, Grand Turk, and Grand Cayman.

or a repo cruise in alaska
7-NT Princess Alaska Cruise from $483. Repositioning from Whittier to Vancouver. Calls on Skagway, Juneau and Ketchikan.

Disney is great and we have 2 booked but they are very expensive. We like to do others inbetween. Just love cruising, about 5 years ago we said cruising is not for us

 

[amystevekai&bump]

cruising would always be my preferred option - but if you want to stay in FLorida and drive somewhere - I know others don't like it - but we LOVE clearwater (great malls, beaches and restaurants!!!), Sarasota (again some lovely beaches and beautiful St Armands Circle for boutiques and cafes to stroll around) and then further afield Captiva/Sanibel islands - (quieter and lovely shelling beaches)

hope that helps!!

Happy planning!!!

 

[Beth__WDW23/6/02]

Naples is well worth a visit. We plan to visit again next month which will be our third post Orlando trip to this resort. It is an upmarket location with great beaches and restaurants. Takes about 4 hours from Orlando. We stayed in the Naples Grand Hotel. We have also been to St Petes beach which is also worth a visit (around 2 hours drive).

Have to also say Naples is lovely.
Gorgeus beaches.

 

[Giddy Kipper]

We stayed a week in private condo at India rocks ...bang on the white sanded beach...Pelicans dive bombing the sea and dolphins swimming early morning...very relaxing.cost about £500 for the week...

 

[Mrs Dazzle]

Oh my, where to start for Florida's lovely beaches!

If you want somewhere within a couple of hours drive, would recommend St Pete's Lovely beaches, wonderful shelling (Florida's national pastime on the gulf coast ), beautiful sunsets (anywhere on the beach to be truthful has these).

We've done two dolphin watch boat tours - one was on a yacht; stunning, saw mama and baby dolphins. It's a half-day cruise and you take a picnic, landing on shell island where you just soak up the atmosphere and, well, shell The other was their sister boat, a motor launch. This time we picnicked on Egmont Key then snorkelled.

The best snorkelling we've done in Florida was down in the Keys. Beautiful.

St Pete's Pier is well worth a visit.

There's even an amphibious Duck Tour available.

It's only 90mins to Busch Gardens and Tampa, if you've not had your fill of theme parks.

We love the Marco Island and Naples area - have to say these would be our first choice. Approx 4 hours drive from Orlando, but well worth it. There's a wealth of stuff to do around both areas, or nothing other than sitting on the beach, sipping a margarita watching the sun go down Then there's Sanibel and Captiva islands, just down the coast, or Fort Myers.

Our trip this August consists of flying into Miami, staying at a beach (haven't decided where yet, Fort Lauderdale is top of the list at the mo because we've not spent a lot of time on the east coast), then Orlando for 8 nights, then down to another beach for the last week

Can you tell we like the beach

We actually live on the south coast, own a beachhut here - but nothing compares to the Gulf Coast of Mexico when in Florida.

 

[JohnnySharp2]

Hi,

Firstly we have been very lucky to travel around many parts of Florida.

For a third week somewhere else, it could depend on what you are looking for.

Clearwater and St.Petes I think have the best beaches, Naples is the nicest place we have been - really quiet and refined.
Only issue with these places is they are good for relaxation and a total contrast from Orlando but probably a week would be too long perhaps? Unless it's a quiet, relaxed week you are after.

If it's more active, more night-life, best shopping then the east coast cannot be beat. Palm Beach, Fort Lauderdale and Miami are much more vibrant and lively. Plus the added advantage of being close to each other, so there is more to do and more going on.