Hi everyone
Just got back yesterday (Wednesday 28 July) from Orlando and thought Id pass a few comments that might be helpful to some of you:
192 is a nightmare at the moment due to roadworks try to avoid if you can luckily we were staying at Lake Berkley so used Oren Brown Road/ Ponciana Boulevard to avoid the queues.
Park report!!
July was too busy in comparison to other times of the year we arrived for park opening and took advantage of Fastpass but combined with the heat we were away from the parks by 4-5 in the afternoon luckily we were in a villa with a pool so once batteries were recharged we were off out again to dine/firework etc. Dont want to put anyone off it was still great but our last visit was late August/Early September and it was far quieter and cooler and drier then.
I wouldnt bother with Busch Gardens unless you are into big rollercoasters theres still loads of other stuff to do there but nothing that isnt done better at Animal Kingdom and Seaworld, plus the road there and back is under major reconstruction it took us 3 hours to get back to Kissimmee eek!.
Highlight for all who hadnt been was Kennedy Space Centre awesome it brought many of us to tears at time and I felt like emptying my pockets to help the Space Program when I came out truly inspirational and will affect your outlook on life for years to come. Nothing is impossible/Failure is not an option.
Ride/Show Report!!
The Mummy was great but over hyped I thought but still worth doing, Spiderman is still awesome the nearest you can get to actually being inside a cartoon, Shrek 4D excellent but a 90 minute wait for us and no Fastpasses (sorry Express passes) no ride is worth a 90 minute wait! I winged about the crowds in July before but the longest we waited without a Fastpass was 30 minutes (aside from Shrek 4D).
Best ride for me was Mission: Space - excellent dont read anything about it before you go and you will be impressed. If you are only going to do one firework night do Fantasmic kicks the others into a bucket.
Highly recommended Grandfather is not interested in the parks at all he likes to potter about shopping and cooking (and drinking beer) however although hes 70 he did try http://www.warbirdadventures.com no experience necessary (a 9 year old had a go after he did) and did the half hour flight and after 15 minutes was doing barrel rolls and loop the loops!! He was absolutely buzzing after he came down and so was everyone who did it while we were waiting hats off to Simon Veness from the Brits Guide for the recommendation. The pilots are great guys and make sure you have a chat with them when whoever in your party is brave enough comes back.
Best non Disney Restaurant was Bahama Breeze went twice to the ones at International Drive and Lake Buena Vista outstanding dining both times, Caribbean influenced food at amazingly cheap prices considering the high quality and fresh ingredients beware there is normally an hour wait but theyve introduced a system where you can ring before you leave to book a place in the queue (they dont take reservations). Also highly recommended were Olive Garden (US192), Tony Romas (International Drive), Tuscan Grill (Millennia Mall) and for quick snacks - Taco Bell (Mexican), Breakfast - Golden Corral. We also had breakfast at Cinderellas Royal Table in the castle at MK (Daughters 8th Birthday absolutely top notch food, service and setting), Character Breakfast at Grand Floridian great hotel wish I could afford to stay there!! Dined also at the French and Mexican restaurants at Epcot and these were both superb. For a quick snack at Epcot try the Morocco Pavilions café the Lamb Wraps with cous cous salad and lentil salad were the tastiest quick lunch option we had at any of the parks.
There were 17 of us split between 2 flights from Manchester Virgin (Orlando International) a bit of a palaver to get out of the airport but plenty to do there while youre waiting on the way back. Sanford a breeze to land/get your hire car etc on arrival but nothing to do/ bad food on the way back.
Having been with Virgin twice now I may try BA or others again as although the service is adequate, its nothing to write home about.
Digital camera users Wal-Mart is cheap at $3.84 to burn a CD (100 pictures) but its self service at the machines (like ASDA) and as the one near Medieval Times was mobbed most days there was no help (I had 240 photos to burn and the machine wouldnt respond) so I tried Eckhard and they were a lot more personal and it was only a dollar more.
Best Mall Mall at Millennia also worth a look were Festival Bay (Outdoor World was like a theme park within a Mall plus Vans Skate Park for the young dudes).
Thanks for all the help weve received on here and I hope Ive put something back in for someone.
And a big thank you to all the Americans we met - I have not met a happier, friendly bunch of people who are proud and patriotic about their country any where that includes Europe, Russia, China, South East Asia, Australia, New Zealand and everywhere else Ive ever been. Dont judge them by those you see on TV!
Have a great day.
Just got back yesterday (Wednesday 28 July) from Orlando and thought Id pass a few comments that might be helpful to some of you:
192 is a nightmare at the moment due to roadworks try to avoid if you can luckily we were staying at Lake Berkley so used Oren Brown Road/ Ponciana Boulevard to avoid the queues.
Park report!!
July was too busy in comparison to other times of the year we arrived for park opening and took advantage of Fastpass but combined with the heat we were away from the parks by 4-5 in the afternoon luckily we were in a villa with a pool so once batteries were recharged we were off out again to dine/firework etc. Dont want to put anyone off it was still great but our last visit was late August/Early September and it was far quieter and cooler and drier then.
I wouldnt bother with Busch Gardens unless you are into big rollercoasters theres still loads of other stuff to do there but nothing that isnt done better at Animal Kingdom and Seaworld, plus the road there and back is under major reconstruction it took us 3 hours to get back to Kissimmee eek!.
Highlight for all who hadnt been was Kennedy Space Centre awesome it brought many of us to tears at time and I felt like emptying my pockets to help the Space Program when I came out truly inspirational and will affect your outlook on life for years to come. Nothing is impossible/Failure is not an option.
Ride/Show Report!!
The Mummy was great but over hyped I thought but still worth doing, Spiderman is still awesome the nearest you can get to actually being inside a cartoon, Shrek 4D excellent but a 90 minute wait for us and no Fastpasses (sorry Express passes) no ride is worth a 90 minute wait! I winged about the crowds in July before but the longest we waited without a Fastpass was 30 minutes (aside from Shrek 4D).
Best ride for me was Mission: Space - excellent dont read anything about it before you go and you will be impressed. If you are only going to do one firework night do Fantasmic kicks the others into a bucket.
Highly recommended Grandfather is not interested in the parks at all he likes to potter about shopping and cooking (and drinking beer) however although hes 70 he did try http://www.warbirdadventures.com no experience necessary (a 9 year old had a go after he did) and did the half hour flight and after 15 minutes was doing barrel rolls and loop the loops!! He was absolutely buzzing after he came down and so was everyone who did it while we were waiting hats off to Simon Veness from the Brits Guide for the recommendation. The pilots are great guys and make sure you have a chat with them when whoever in your party is brave enough comes back.
Best non Disney Restaurant was Bahama Breeze went twice to the ones at International Drive and Lake Buena Vista outstanding dining both times, Caribbean influenced food at amazingly cheap prices considering the high quality and fresh ingredients beware there is normally an hour wait but theyve introduced a system where you can ring before you leave to book a place in the queue (they dont take reservations). Also highly recommended were Olive Garden (US192), Tony Romas (International Drive), Tuscan Grill (Millennia Mall) and for quick snacks - Taco Bell (Mexican), Breakfast - Golden Corral. We also had breakfast at Cinderellas Royal Table in the castle at MK (Daughters 8th Birthday absolutely top notch food, service and setting), Character Breakfast at Grand Floridian great hotel wish I could afford to stay there!! Dined also at the French and Mexican restaurants at Epcot and these were both superb. For a quick snack at Epcot try the Morocco Pavilions café the Lamb Wraps with cous cous salad and lentil salad were the tastiest quick lunch option we had at any of the parks.
There were 17 of us split between 2 flights from Manchester Virgin (Orlando International) a bit of a palaver to get out of the airport but plenty to do there while youre waiting on the way back. Sanford a breeze to land/get your hire car etc on arrival but nothing to do/ bad food on the way back.
Having been with Virgin twice now I may try BA or others again as although the service is adequate, its nothing to write home about.
Digital camera users Wal-Mart is cheap at $3.84 to burn a CD (100 pictures) but its self service at the machines (like ASDA) and as the one near Medieval Times was mobbed most days there was no help (I had 240 photos to burn and the machine wouldnt respond) so I tried Eckhard and they were a lot more personal and it was only a dollar more.
Best Mall Mall at Millennia also worth a look were Festival Bay (Outdoor World was like a theme park within a Mall plus Vans Skate Park for the young dudes).
Thanks for all the help weve received on here and I hope Ive put something back in for someone.
And a big thank you to all the Americans we met - I have not met a happier, friendly bunch of people who are proud and patriotic about their country any where that includes Europe, Russia, China, South East Asia, Australia, New Zealand and everywhere else Ive ever been. Dont judge them by those you see on TV!
Have a great day.
CANT'T WAIT!!!!
