Our "other" Orlando attractions-If anyone has questions!

[pnelson]

We started off our 14 day trip with a stay at Cocoa Beach, the Kennedy Space Center, Manatee Sanctuary, and the Titanic Museum. We stayed at the Doubletree Oceanfront on Cocoa Beach which I haven't heard wonderful things about on this board, but we liked it-Great beach access!!! And what a great beach! I loved sitting there at Dusk watching the Disney Magic go out to sea-It was beautiful. If anyone has any questions about anything we did before "hitting" Disney, let me know!! Thanks for all the advice on the "other " attractions I got from this board.

 

[dorisdvu]

Please tell me about the Kennedy Space Center.

 

[FINFAN]

How long did it take you to get to KSC from the DOUBLETREE? How was the pool at that hotel? Glad you had a nice time.

 

[Local_Girl]

Thanks for posting, pnelson! I actually have a question regarding the Titanic exhibit. We are planning to go (me, DH, DS10, and DD7) and I understand that when you enter, they give you the name of a person that sailed on the Titanic and when you reach the end you discover whether or not your person survived. I'm concerned that my son (well, maybe all of us, LOL!) especially will be really sensitive about this. Can you tell me how they handle this? Do they make a big deal about it at the end, or do you just check on your way out and see if you were one of the survivors? I think this will be interesting, but on the other hand, we want to be able to downplay it with the kids in the likely event one of us "doesn''t make it". We are looking forward to seeing this exhibit next week!

Thank you!

 

[pnelson]

The Doubletree is about 15-20 min from the Kennedy Space Center. The pool at the hotel is very small-We actually enjoyed the beach and didn't go in the pool. The beach access was the best-You walk right out and there are even lounge chairs on the beach.

At the Titanic Musuem, there is the name of a passenger on your ticket and you can check the wall when you leave if you want. That kindof went over my 10 year old's head-he was too busy looking around to pay much attention. The tone is very touching though-they might get emotional at the end-there are a lot of pictures, etc of that night.

The Kennedy Space Center was interesting-the bulk of our day was spent on the bus tour-Take everyones advice and take the first tour you can get on and then do whatever you want when you are done. There are a lot of movies, etc. We actually only watched one. My 10 year old was a little bored, my mother loved it-it really took her down memory lane, and I was ready for my beach and long island iced tea by the end of the day.

 

[Local_Girl]

Thanks for the info about both the Titanic Museum and KSC. We are planning to do both and your info is helpful.

 

[hercamore]

Hi,

Sounds like fun. Where is the manatee sanctuary located?

herc.

 

[pnelson]

The manatee sanctuary is located on the main drag of Cocoa Beach. It's just a boardwalk that you walk out to-We stopped by 3 different times and only saw a manatee stick his nose out of the water once. I got the information from Dave's DCL website from the cruise board. There must be manatees there at times otherwise they would not have built a boardwalk, we just didn't see any. It's right next to the Radisson.

 

[jcemom]

My boys are 10 and 9, (we would also have a 1 1/2 year old). Do you think Kennedy Space Center is worth the money? We were thinking of spending a day there, but I don't want to waste the time and money if the boys will find it boring!

 

[iluvflorida]

Sorry can't agree with JCEMOM. Took 8 year old DGS and 5 year old DGD and they loved KSC. They talked about it more than MK. Every kid is different. I knew my DGC loved science and rockets and nature so knew they would love it.

Seaworld was the favorite, with KSC next, and then WDW. In fact they only wanted to go to SW and swim in the pools at the resort the next year we went

 

[jcemom]

Originally posted by iluvflorida
Sorry can't agree with JCEMOM. Took 8 year old DGS and 5 year old DGD and they loved KSC. They talked about it more than MK. Every kid is different. I knew my DGC loved science and rockets and nature so knew they would love it.

Seaworld was the favorite, with KSC next, and then WDW. In fact they only wanted to go to SW and swim in the pools at the resort the next year we went

I think you misunderstood. I wasn't saying that it's boring. I was asking. We have never been there and I was wondering if it was worth taking a day to go over. I actually think that I would LOVE it, as I was always a science and astronomy fan, but I was wondering about the boys as the OP mentioned a 10 yr old being bored by the movie.

 

[pnelson]

My 10 year old was bored...but every kid is different. Mine is definitely a ride and beach kind of kid. In fact, my husband and I are both that way. We can only take so much of "education" while on vacation. I thought it was interesting, but especially for my Mom's generation since it seemed very focused on that era when space exploration was new. I saw the memorial which was very touching.

 

[jcemom]

Thank you!

 

[pocohontas2004]

Wondering what type of ticket you got for KSC - the MAX admission or the STANDARD or one of the special tours. Our boys are 8, 6, and 4 are pretty interested...

 

[Tigger&Belle]

I would love to hear more about the Cocoa Beach area. We are thinking about going here in April after we go to Universal for a few days. We have 4 kids--4, 10, 13, and 16 and want to go to the beach and KSC. I'm assuming that my 4yo isn't at a great age for KSC, but my other kids, especially my 13 would really enjoy it.

Does the Dooubletree only have standard hotel rooms? We need something that will fit our family, without being too expensive.

Thanks, T&B

 

[peachpat]

Has anyone ever stayed at the holiday inn ?. How far is it from the beach?.

 

[pnelson]

Just noticed these questions-I don't know about any other rooms besides 'standard' at the Doubletree. We got 2 rooms for the 4 of us because my Mom does not like to share bathrooms in the morning. They were $85 each with a discount. We loved the Cocoa Beach area, especially the beach access from our hotel. We found the waves to be very mild and perfect for our 10 year old. Cocoa Beach is not fancy, but we really liked it. The only thing-there weren't many dining options there. We definitely want to go back for the beach and to relax. We miss it!!

 

[kaylajr]

Please tell me more about the titanic muesum
where exactly is it
how much and how long of a day is it

my dd who will be 11 is very into anything related to the ship

thanks