Many get the holiday blues at Christmas

December 21, 2008 by

Holiday blues

I hope everyone is having a good holiday season. But the truth is, many don’t look forward to the whole Christmas season. It’s not because of the actual reason for Christmas, it’s because of all the other stuff that gets shoved in your face during this time of year. Many travel to family for the Hoidays, and for some that’s reason enough to get the blues!

For those in big family’s, you get the whole “so are we going to your parents house or mine Christmas day” fight. Then when you get there you have to pretend you really look forward to cousin Larry and his darling 4 kids, or try to remember all the distant relatives who say hi and you don’t have a clue who they are.

This year is even more trying for most, as the economy crunch has really cut into people’s lives. Many who thought they were going to be celebrating Christmas in their new home are now crammed in a tiny apt. and looking for work. Never mind who’s at fault, the point is it can really get you down. Everyone wants to give their kids what they want for Christmas. [Read more…]

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Disney’s Christmas day parade

December 20, 2008 by

One thing that has been going on for a long time is the annual Walt Disney World Christmas day parade. Now Disney has a Christmas parade each day at Walt Disney World in Orlando during the Holidays. But the Christmas day parade is much bigger and is shown live on national TV, at least most of it is. Actually they show parts of both the one in California and Orlando.

This year’s Disney’s Christmas day parade will feature Miley Cyrus and the Jonas Brothers, as well as other stars. The Hannah Montana star will kick off the parade with her version of Santa Claus Is Coming To Town. Then the Jonas Brothers will sing Joyful Kings before American Idol David Cook sings Have yourself a merry little Christmas. [Read more…]

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The joys of traveling Orlando airport single

December 19, 2008 by

Orlando International Airport is not anywhere near as big as some others are. JFK, Miami, Huston and all those airports make Orlando airport look small. But it’s still a major airport, and most of the people coming in are tourist. With the holidays here there are so many traveling at the same time. So it really creates a bottleneck at the check-in counters and luggage pickup.

This is where I find myself getting a bit smug. You see, I’m single, and so most often when I fly it’s by myself. The biggest hassle of flying is your luggage. In fact if not for luggage the whole flying experience would be pretty enjoyable,,,, almost! After a few dozen trips back and forth from Orlando to Vermont where I am from, I have my flying secret down. [Read more…]

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Walt Disney World Orlando holiday lights

December 17, 2008 by

Of all the times of the year, the Christmas Holiday season is the most fantastic for lights and fireworks at Walt Disney World in Orlando. I use to know a lot of the people who put up the Christmas lights and decorations around Disney. It was almost like a military operation! A long time before the decorations go up there is much planning and getting prepared.

Then on Thanksgiving night, crews all over the Walt Disney World resort go out all night long putting up all the holiday lights, trees, decorations and other holiday items. There are many Christmas trees that go up all over the resort. Most are fake ones, with limbs that stick into the main “trunk” of the tree. But they look real.

It’s amazing how much they do in that one night. People staying at the resort are in for a surprise when they wake up the next day to find everything decorated for Christmas. The Walt Disney World Castle has lights shined on it to give it a soft glow, and the lights change every few seconds. They make the fireworks display bigger, with more red, white and green colors for Christmas. [Read more…]

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Orlando Holiday season light this year

December 14, 2008 by

Normally right about now is when Orlando has one of the busiest tourist crowds. The Christmas Holiday season is normally very busy for Walt Disney World and Universal Studios. Or any place around Orlando for that matter. But not this year! I can’t believe how slow it is around here right now. I took a drive out around the hotels and tourist strips the past several days.

It is actually more slower than right after the 9/11 terrorist attacks. All the hotels are only around 1/2 full, if that. They are having great deals and really slashing prices. I’ve seen whole wings of hotels closed down. Normally they can charge MORE during the holiday season, but not this year. Even Disney is having sales on their hotels.

The smaller attractions and parks are really having a hard time keeping things going. I walked into a McDonalds on one of the busiest streets and had to wait for someone to come out from the back, must have been playing cards back there! The economy is really having an effect on the tourist, even the UK tourist, which is where a lot of holiday traffic comes from. [Read more…]

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What is Orlando Inside all about?

December 12, 2008 by

If your here, you must have been looking for something about Orlando, Fl. Maybe you were looking for information on Walt Disney, or Universal Studios. Maybe it was the Orlando airport, or shopping in Orlando. So just what is this site all about? Well let me tell you who I am! My name is Bill, and I have lived in Orlando for over 17 years.

I worked for Walt Disney World for 2 years, and Universal Studios for 1 year. I have lots of friends who work at Sea World also. I worked at the Orlando International airport for 3 years, and was a courier driving throughout Orlando for 5 years. So, I think it’s safe to say I know a lot about Orlando! Through out all those jobs I always saw tourist making bad decisions and choices.

Now, I work from home making websites like this one. I decided to make this site to share all the inside secrets I know from my years of working and playing in Orlando’s theme parks, airport and the many hotels, rental shops, dining areas, resorts and shopping places. I want to help tourist who come here so they get the most out of their vacation and not the vacation from hell!

So this site is all about Orlando; how to get around it, how to get the best deal for your money, the best hotels to stay at, what to do and what NOT to do. An Orlando vacation guide that helps you make your Orlando vacation the best one ever. Best of all, all this information here is free for you to use! So browse around and get tips and tricks for your Walt Disney World, Universal Studios or other type of Orlando vacation.

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A little about Orlando, Florida

December 10, 2008 by

Orlando palm tree

Well I guess the best way to start off my new Orlando vacation site is to tell you a little about,,, Orlando! Orlando is located almost in the center of Florida. It’s about 60 miles to the east coast at Daytona beach and around 80 miles to the west coast at Tampa. Interstate 4, or I4 as the locals call it, runs right through it. It travels from Tampa to Daytona clear across the state.

The Florida turnpike also runs through Orlando, which takes you all the way down to Miami, about 250 miles away! So just about anywhere you want to go in the state of Florida, there is a major highway leading to it from Orlando. Sometimes I’m not sure that’s a good thing, as it’s getting a bit crowded here!

The main source of income in Orlando is the tourism trade. Orlando is home to Walt Disney World, Universal Studios, Sea World and many other theme parks, fun parks, water parks and more. Orlando is also home to The University Of Central Florida, a large college. Orlando has many shopping malls, discount outlets and other places to buy just about anything.

The weather in Orlando is on the hot side, at least for most people. Summer’s are normally in the high 80’s to 90’s Fahrenheit, with nights in the 70’s and 80’s. It gets very humid, and almost every day you have a quick thunderstorm, followed by sunshine right after, drying it up within an hour. Winters are dry, in the 70’s in the day and 50’s at night with almost no rain until spring.

The people that live in Orlando are a wide variety, coming from all over the world. You can hear many languages being spoken and colors of all kinds. There is a large population of Puerto Ricans that live in Orlando, as well as just about every other types. Most people here are friendly and understanding toward tourist who may be a bit overwhelmed with cultural shock!

All in all Orlando is a fast moving, fast growing city that has tourism at it’s center. Anything you could want on your vacation you can find here. From the cheapest motels and fast food joins to premiere resorts and $100.00 dollar steak meals, Orlando has what your looking for in a vacation!

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Welcome to Orlando Inside!

December 8, 2008 by

This is Orlando Inside, a new Orlando tourist site dedicated to helping you get around Orlando, Fl. easier. With tips and tricks on Walt Disney World, Universal Studios, Sea World, hotels, travel, time shares, dining, shopping and much more. All the information you need for your Orlando vacation stay is in here, so enjoy!

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