Need help planning our possible non-Disney trip.

[twinspluscade]

We've taken the kids twice to WDW, and just a few weeks ago to Disneyland. For our next family vacation (June 2009) we are thinking of doing a non-Disney vacation. Don't get me wrong; we've loved our Disney trips but I'm ready to see some new stuff.

One option we're thinking of is going to Orlando, and doing Universal, Sea World, etc. We've always done JUST Disney when we've gone, so any of those parks would be totally new to us. We would have six days total, and we will have a car. I was thinking of one day Universal, one day Islands of Adventure, and one day Sea World. Which still leaves three days to fill. Are there any nice beaches within an hour's drive or so? What about national parks or nature preserves near by? Would the Kennedy Space Center be fun for kids ages 7,7,5....or would it be a little too "old" for them yet? How far of a drive is Busch Gardens, and is it worth a visit? Any other suggestions for things we could do? We are willing to drive a short (two hours or less) ways if it's worth it!!

TIA!

Kelly

 

[davinakb]

FWIW:

• Sea World: IMO it takes 2 days (which is why they often offer 2 day tickets). there are several animal shows, a few rides, and things to see so you would be rushed and hard to do it all in only one day.
• Busch Gardens: fun, nice, and offers multi-day tickets in conjunction with SW; even with the US/IoA via the flex ticket. lots of coasters, fun water rides, and animals. totally worth doing for a day.
• US/IoA: a day for each would be good. even with summer crowds you should get to do it all. Only been once, just not sure if there is a lot for small kids to do vs. WDW (esp. MK) ticket options
• Have not tried any beaches in the area, sorry. There are several water parks in the SW/US area if you just want the water fun. Or you can just enjoy a day at your resort hotel, shop, that type thing.

 

[pjinaz]

I definitely would try to do a couple days at a beach. You can get to several beaches within an hour or so. Both on the atlantic side and on the gulf. Have fun!

 

[Freaky]

We did a non-Disney trip this summer and went to US, IOA, SeaWorld and Bush Gardens. The kids (12 & 8) really enjoyed Bush Gardens the best so certainly consider this park. From memory it is about an hours drive away and a full day out but certainly has something for everyone. Our DD12 is an adrenalin junkie so loved the rides but DS8 was more into the animals.

Tracey

 

[isla bonita]

Our kids loved BG and there is something for every one JMHO.

Great ticket combo buys for both parks BG and SW.

 

[BadgerGirl84]

Almost every Orlando vacation I have been on has been a mix of Disney/non-Disney.

Universal Studios is great--a day will be enough time Never been to IOA--heard it's awesome there. Sea World is tons of fun. I thought I would be bored (mostly look at aquariums and watch shows) but it was a really interesting and relaxing day. Busch Gardens is great too (from what I can remember--I probably went 10 years ago.) Really nice zoo areas and fun rides.

I've been to Cocoa Beach and Clearwater---for whatever reason we usually go to Clearwater beach. It's about a 60-90 minutes away and is a very nice beach.

I would still highly recommend throwing in a couple days of Disney parks if it fits in your budget--I know I would be sad going to Orlando and not even going to MK.

 

[CDNCA]

Be careful not to plan too much for the 6 days. You can look at the Universal site and find a 7 day ticket for a reasonable price with options to add other parks like Sea World, Bush Gardens and Aquatica. Possibly you could spend a night in Clearwater to get an evening and morning at the beach and combine that with a visit tio BG on one day. The nice thing about the 7 day ticket is that you can spend 1 day at each park and then choose where you need to go back to to finish things off.

This would likely more than fill 6 days and you have not gone shopping at the outlet malls, seen Cyprus Gardens, tour'd I drive and Old Town....

Our 12 yo was a little bored at Kennedy Space Center, but, if your kids are interested in rockets and space, they would likely enjoy it.

 

[Darcy03231]

We did a non-Disney vacation last summer and had a blast. We were there for 16 days and did SW (2 days), Busch Gardens (2 days), Ripley's Believe it or Not Museum (1/2 day), Wet n'Wild (1 day), and US/IOA (7 days). We did sneak in one night at WDW for Pirates and Princesses. The whole family still thinks its one of the best vacations we ever took. Since US/IOA are not as big as the WDW parks we were able to get a lot in in 5-6 hours and then relax for the rest of the day.

Another option my family likes is cruising. If you enjoy the beach and water that might be something to check out. Both Carnival and Royal Carribean are very family friendly.

 

[Detailor]

I think that you've got a good start with Universal and SeaWorld. In past years we've gone to Universal/IOA using a seven-day/two park pass and gotten a great value by devoting a day to each park and then 'parkhopped' later in the week. SeaWorld is a very good one-day park, in my opinion.

Busch Gardens is well worth the trip to Tampa (it's about an hour from the Disney area).

We like some of the state parks - Blue Springs SP in Orange City has become a recent wintertime favorite because of the manatees but they'll be long gone when you go in June. How about the Merritt Island wildlife refuge in Titusville? It's located roughly between Cocoa Beach and Cape Canaveral, so you could do part of a day at the beach and part at the refuge. Titusville is just under an hour from Orlando, Cocoa Beach is just about an hour away.

Like BadgerGirl84, we tend to like the gulf coast beaches better than the beach at Cocoa Beach but the drive to the gulf is longer - about 90 minutes or more depending on which beach you go to (and how congested the traffic is as you go through Tampa).

There are some things to do in the Orlando area, too. We like to spend some time at Downtown Disney (shopping, go to the movies to beat the heat and maybe miss a June rain shower, DisneyQuest arcade, eat), we also like to visit Celebration (shops, restaurants, walking paths). A bit of a departure from the theme park activity might be to visit Lake Eola near downtown Orlando - it's a nice city park around the sinkhole lake with some paddle boats to rent and sometimes there'll be a concert.
Someone on another thread recently asked about area orange groves where you can pick your own. Showcase of Citrus on State Route 27 in Clermont (west of Disney area). There's not much in season in June but the Valencia Oranges should be waiting to be picked.

Enjoy your trip!

Dick Taylor