Orlando and no WDW? can it be done?

[MOMTOMOOTOO]

I didn't think we would be back before 2007. We are doing other vacations I know gasp. But dh has a conferance coming up in April and we are tagging along. We will be staying at the Portifino Bay for 3 nights and do Universal, but then we have 6 nights left (not sure where we will stay) but I really think we will only do MK and Epcot one day. We have 1 day PH left. ALso we will do Discovery Cove one day so this leaves 5 days of down time. Any suggestions. We are all kind of Disneyed out and needed the break. But we really do like Orlando. So please give me some tips.

 

[spiceycat]

orlando has something for everyone.

shopping, hiking, rivers trips, hot balloning,

what are your interest?

 

[MOMTOMOOTOO]

We are open to anything at this point. Of course we could just hang around the resort and the pool, so I guess my next question...a nice resort with a great pool. We have stayed at alot of the nicer off site hotels, the Ritz Carlton, Gaylord Palms, etc but I am looking for the extra room with for a family of 5. The marriotts look nice but oour last timeshare was OKW, so the marriott may be a bit of a let down, not sure?

 

[mrslur]

What about a rental house in somewhere like Windsor Palms? Most have their own pool and lots of room. As for things to do you could take a trip to the beach one day.

 

[MImom]

Try Sea World. I believe one (maybe all?) of the type of tickets you can purchase for Discovery Cove, admits you into Sea World. We went this past Feb and had a great time. We think it is a nice alternative to Disney, slower paced IMHO. Have fun.

 

[ncbyrne]

http://www.bcairboats.com/
Air boats are always fun...

 

[ttfn3]

We like to stay at the Vistana Resort and just hang out at the resort. We love having a 2 BR unit, and the resort has lots of activities to participate in. It's also close to DW and to SW. We like to check out Downtown Disney and the Boardwalk also while we are there. And I like to do a bit of shopping at the Premium Outlet Mall!

I would suggest that you check the web for festivals while you are there. We went to a wonderful arts festival in Winter Park in March. I LOVE Winter Park. Very cool downtown. The festival was top notch. Plus, they had some cool kids activities.

Depending on when you are there, you could also visit a nearby Orange Grove.

I have also heard good things about Mount Dora - and it's on my list of places to visit sometime.

 

[spiceycat]

no, the Marriott are not a let down after OKW.

I own OKW and the Marriott are lovely.

just make sure you get a rehab villa.

also very lovely are the HGVC (hilton grand vacation club) - just in case you go the RCI way instead of II.

most of the timeshare in Orlando are lovely. they have to be - the competition is that great. What RCI or II would put up in another place where they have one or two timeshare;vs what they will put in Orlando where each place has over 50 timeshare is very different.

most of the timeshare are lovely.

I haven't stayed in one yet that wasn't excellent!!!

 

[jdm]

You do get 7 days of Sea World with your Discovery Cove admission to be used before and/or after your DC actual day. Sea World is a beautiful, serene-like park after the concrete jungles of WDW and Univeral. We love it and you could easily and leisurely stretch it into 2 days.

We always like to spend one shopping day, going to the mall and Sheplars etc.

We usually take one day and go out to Cocoa to see the beach and browse around Ron Jons. One year we went to KSC while we were there- (loved it).

If you wanted, you could do a half day adventure such as Gatorland.

We love having -nothing to do days- of just hanging at the and swimming etc. Marriotts Cypress Harbor is our fav resort to do that as there are lots of options of bike riding etc. if you're so inclined! That's the best part of the vacation to us.

We go to Orlando every year and only do Disney occasionally (although we do a Disney waterpark as often as we can!) and we never run out of things to do, and -as I said, also enjoy doing nothing!! We like Orlando for these very reasons and we are able to trade into condos for very low $$$,

Have fun!
Jenn

 

[MOMTOMOOTOO]

We love having -nothing to do days- of just hanging at the and swimming etc. Marriotts Cypress Harbor is our fav resort to do that as there are lots of options of bike riding etc. if you're so inclined! That's the best part of the vacation to us.

We go to Orlando every year and only do Disney occasionally (although we do a Disney waterpark as often as we can!) and we never run out of things to do, and -as I said, also enjoy doing nothing!! We like Orlando for these very reasons and we are able to trade into condos for very low $$$,

Have fun!
Jenn

Jenn, actually just confirmed Marriott Cypress Harbor. I "work" with a woman to secure our timeshares and she got us Cypress Harbor for $700.00 for the week. I'm excited to stay there. Are there lots of activites for the kids? We
have stayed at BeachPLace, OceanPoint and Doral and loved them so I am hoping that this compares.

We will do Seaworld at least one day, have been many times but it's a nice option with DC pass. Other than what is planned, I am now looking forward to lots of resort time.

All the ideas are welcomed.

 

[Gabriel&Nana]

If you like coasters and animals aw: , try Busch Gardens - Tampa Bay.
It's very nice there, around one hour drive from Orlando.
I think you can get discounted tickets to BGT at Sea World.

Another place we like to visit is Church Street Station which has some shows at night, but opens to visitation the entire day. From there you can go to Lake Eola and Winter Park, a very pleasant place to walk and shop.

We like to go to Daytona Beach, too .

 

[Gabriel&Nana]

http://www.bcairboats.com/
Air boats are always fun...

I always wanted to do this tour and I think I'll be there next Jan !

Thanks for the suggestion ...

 

[spiceycat]

you will love CH - it is often voted the best Marriott timeshare in Orlando.

do you golf? this resort is surrounded by at golf course and lakes.

 

[MOMTOMOOTOO]

you will love CH - it is often voted the best Marriott timeshare in Orlando.

do you golf? this resort is surrounded by at golf course and lakes.

My DH golfs and will probably play. I am actually looking so forward to the non commando vacation.

 

[MKCP5]

We loved cypress harbor and there are alot of activities there as well as great pools to relax and wind down in. Sea world is a great couple of days after all of your other activities and as you mentioned it is nice not to have anything scheduled. The great thing about seaworld being so close to cypress harbor is that you get a free week there with your DC tix so if you want to go 2-3 times for only a couple of hours you can! No need to feel like you have to "get it all in" because we are only here a day or something. Seaworld is practically next door to cy har

Have fun!!

 

[MScott1851]

You could drive over to the Kennedy Space Flight Center, too...

 

[indigoxtreme]

Try Cypress Gardens they have reopened and it is really nice. They do have rides, the ski show, butterfly area etc. We just loved it.

 

[jdm]

Yes, CH has lots of activities. There are planned ones such as karoke and paddleboat races and then just the things you can do on your own. We rented quad bikes and did the paddleboats. The clubhouse pool is great and the you can take a boat to get to the other side of the lake where the activity center is. My girls were old enough to do this on their own (10 & 12) and loved that. The resort is very lush and quiet. We loved it. We preferred being up by the clubhouse pool. It seemed most of the fun was around that pool and we were just one condo away from it. I think we were in #51 or #52. They initially had us in #65, closer to the island pool / beach area but were very accommodating in telling us where we'd probably prefer (based on what our interests were) and then were happy to move us there. I remember them also being very kind at checkin. We were on a redeye out of Seattle and were absolutely exhausted. They let us check in at 8am on Presidents week which was a very busy week. The Vistana said Too bad, so sad the year before and we had to wait until 4:30. So, I really appreciated the service at CH. You'll have a blast.

Jenn

 

[flclarkkent]

Someone mentioned Mt. Dora...it's definately worth a visit. A little bit of New England, without the New England weather. Neat shops and restaurants.

I'd say the same for DeLand, with its nice downtown area.

Someone else had mentioned Church Street Station. While it's undergone quite a revival in recent years, it's not the tourist-y spot it once was. It's more of a bar/nightclub spot now. Same with much of downtown O-town. If you're traveling without kids, it's a fun spot. So is Thornton Park, which is also downtown. Good eatin' and shopping to be had.

Check out Ivanhoe Row, just north of downtown, for antique shopping.

A little farther north, there's the Orlando Science Center, a great museum for kids. Leu Gardens is nearby, it's a beautiful botanical garden. Just north of all that is Winter Park, which someone else mentioned. Park Avenue and the city's downtown is beautiful. Nearby, there are also boat tours that take you around the chain of lakes in Winter Park, and you can get a peek at all the majestic old homes in the city.