Orlando Gaylord Palms hotel holiday Ice show!

December 6, 2009 by

Gaylord Palms
Click here to book a room at the Gaylord Palms hotel

If you love looking at ice sculptures, you don’t want to miss one of the most beautiful displays in the Orlando area! Each year the exclusive hotel resort Gaylord Palms puts on a fantastic ice sculpture display housed inside a giant hall inside the hotel. This room is kept at a cool 9 degrees and showcases colored ice sculptures made from 2 million pounds of ice!

Gaylord Palms hotel ice show in Orlando

Made by 40 artisans from China, they hand carve everything you see inside. All guest are given over-sized parkas to keep warm as they explore this winter wonderland. A big hit with the kids is a giant Santa’s ice slide all made out of ice. Called ICE! at Gaylord Palms, anyone can buy tickets to see this amazing display of ice artwork.

Gaylord Palms is one of the biggest and most exclusive hotels in the Orlando area. It’s just minutes away from Disney and has everything you could want in an upscale hotel. To get tickets to this show click here for ICE! at Gaylord Palms event.

I put together a slide show of past ICE! displays. Click the first thumbnail picture below to start the slide show. Click the slide show picture to exit it. Enjoy these fantastic ice pictures!

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Christmas sales on luggage and bags at ebags

December 2, 2009 by


Save 20% at eBags.com!

Now that Thanksgiving is over everyone is having their big Christmas shopping sales! So I thought I’d throw out my own holiday sales here. Ebags is having a 20% off Christmas sale inside their store right now. They have nice affordable luggage, laptop and computer cases, bags and more.

I have a page of their luggage right here in my luggage sets page. It’s really good stuff yet not high priced like others are. You can find single carry-ons up to 8 piece luggage sets. They also have great computer cases and a wide range of bags.

So check them out for some great Christmas shopping sales on luggage and bags. Then book that Orlando vacation and enjoy a holiday stay here, taking in Disney, Universal Studios or Sea World. Disney World look fantastic on the holidays with decorations and Christmas lights. 😉

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Christmas Shopping At The Florida Mall In Orlando

November 30, 2009 by

Orlando Florida Mall map

If your on an Orlando vacation and want to find a place to do some Christmas holiday shopping, one of the best places is at The Florida Mall in Orlando. Located at 1187 Florida Mall Ave Orlando, FL 32809, it’s only around 10 miles from the Orlando airport.

The Florida Mall sits on the east-south corner of Sand Lake rd. and Orange Blossom Trail, or route 17-92. Click the map below to see a much bigger and more detailed map showing where the airport, Sea World and Disney is located from it. One of the biggest malls in Orlando, it has around 200 different shops, eateries and stores!
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Orlando Holiday airport travel tips and tricks

November 14, 2009 by

Orlando Holiday airport travel tips and tricks

The 2009 Holiday travel has begun! Thanksgiving, Christmas and New Years see’s the biggest tourist crowds in the Orlando airport. Many from Florida are flying out to spend a white Christmas with loved ones up north. While many more are flying in for a Disney or other theme park Holiday vacation.

The biggest hassle will be at the Orlando airport. Expect long lines both at the baggage check-in area and also at the security points. These two spots will give you the biggest headaches and cost you the most time. Many people flying in or out for the Holidays don’t travel often and may not be up to date on everything.

So here’s a few refresher tips and tricks for you. Many airlines now charge for checked baggage, or checked bags over one per person. So remember that when your in the baggage line. But since they charge per bag anyway, and the baggage line is the longest wait at the airport, why not ship them instead?
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Orlando Florida boast world’s largest McDonald’s

November 3, 2009 by

World's largest McDonalds in Orlando, Florida

One interesting fact here in Orlando is that it boast the worlds largest McDonald’s. Actually that has been debated, as there are several McDonald’s around the world that are about the same size. But in any case the one in Orlando is one of the biggest McDonald’s in the world.

Located at 6875 Sand Lake Rd. Orlando, FL. It’s just off International drive, a large tourist strip. It has two full floors, with a two story play area featuring 25,000 feet of slides and tubes to play in for the kids. It also has arcade games inside plus tourist information booths.

Located close to Universal Studios, Orlando’s largest McDonalds can’t be missed with the giant box of fries painted on the outside. So if you like eating at McDonald’s, make sure you stop by and see what the world’s largest McDonald’s fast food joint looks like!

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New travel luggage sets from ebags now open

October 21, 2009 by

Meteor 4-Piece Luggage Set
Meteor 4-Piece Luggage Set

Well everyone, I now have a new page of quality travel luggage you can buy from eBags! On the net for years, ebags has thousands of luggage, bags, backpacks and briefcases to choose from. They also have the lowest prices around, yet are high quality. You can find the page in the top left sidebar under “travel luggage sets”.

Once you see a luggage set you like, click on the picture and you’ll be taken right to that item in the ebags website. All their luggage sets come in different colors, so if you like the style but don’t like the color displayed chances are it comes in the color you want.

You can pick from 2, 3, 4 or 5 pieces of luggage per set. Hardcase or soft, rolling or duffel style, you can find it all at ebags. So check out my new luggage sets page and see all the styles. Of course you also can go right to eBags and see everything they have right there.

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What to tip a taxi cab driver in Orlando, Florida

October 19, 2009 by

What to tip a taxi cab driver in Orlando Florida

Many people who go on a dream vacation to Walt Disney World or any theme park in Orlando often don’t travel very much. Because of that, they are confused about tipping. Seems like everyone wants you to tip them, even the girl getting your coffee! But one place that tipping is always expected is the taxi cab driver.

So for this post I’ll just explain what you should tip a taxi service. Now, chances are if you don’t rent a car your going to take a cab from the airport. Because they are use to big families and parties the taxi service there often has mini vans and full size vans along with the more standard taxi cab.

When I first took a cab from the Orlando airport they got me a mini van cab. I was confused about if I should pay a bigger tip because they used a van just for me. The answer is NO, you do not. Normally if it’s a single rider or a couple they will use a car. But sometimes they just have a van available at the time, so that’s what they use.

They also have nice big sedans that don’t even look like a taxi cab. It all depends on the cab company. Again what they use for a vehicle has no bearing on what the tip should be. 15-20% of the fare is the right amount for tipping. Now if you get a private limo that is different, and I would tip 20-25%.

No matter what type of vehicle is used, the standard tip for a taxi cab driver in the Orlando area is 15-20% of the total fare. It also does not matter where you have them take you. Dropping you off at a rental house, Disney or a 5 star hotel the rates are the same.

Now what if you have lots of luggage? Well it depends. If all he does is pop the trunk and stand there as you load it all in, then I would not tip him any more than the normal 15-20% of the fare. But if he helpfully and cheerfully stuffs your 10 bags in the cab and helps get them out, I would throw in an extra 5 bucks or so.

Just on a side note, you never tip a public bus driver, nor any driver of any Disney bus service. You also don’t tip any driver that drives the rental car shuttle bus from the airport to the rental car lot. I hope this helps you a bit to know what to tip for Taxi cab services in the Orlando area!

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Added a laptop computer case, briefcase and luggage page

October 13, 2009 by

McKlein I Series Gold Coast Leather Detachable-Wheeled Laptop Case
Click picture for more info on this item

Hi everyone, I wanted you to know I just added a new page in my site here. Since this is a tourist site and many come here by plane, I figured it makes sense to have a little store with luggage, bags and laptop computer cases in here. So I made the first page, which you can see in the pages selection in the top left sidebar.

This first one has just laptop computer cases. Wheeled ones, briefcase styles, computer bags and so on. Since I travel with a laptop I know how hard it is to buy one you really like. All of these are from Luggage Pros, a quality luggage and bag company.

Clicking on any of the item pictures in the laptop computer case page will take you right to that item on the Luggage Pros website. They have hundreds of styles, colors, sizes and brand names of luggage and computer cases. They have a nice price range too, from lower cost models that are still high quality, to the high end items that cost quite a bit more.

In time I will add many pages for all types of luggage, bags, briefcases and laptop computer cases. Anything I sell here is quality products you can trust that will last and has a good return policy. I hate junk, and I will not sell any of it in here! So check out my new page if your in need of a good laptop computer case, or go right to Luggage Pros and see all their items!

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How far from the Orlando airport is Disney and other theme parks?

October 11, 2009 by

Orlando Florida map of airport distance to Disney, Universal, Sea World and other attractions

Click here to open larger map in new window

One of the most asked questions I get is how far from the Orlando International airport is Walt Disney World, Sea World and all the other attractions. So I’ll give you a quick run-down in this post on the distance in miles from the Orlando airport to Disney and many other attractions and areas around the central Florida area.

The Orlando airport connects to major interstates and toll roads that gets you right to all the major attractions. You can pretty much stay on only one or two roads all the way to where your going. Reading all the road signs can be tricky, but for the most part it’s pretty simple to drive from the Orlando airport to where your going.

Now for the number one question I’m asked: how far is Walt Disney World from the Orlando airport? Disney itself is 44 square miles big, so it depends on what part your going to! But in general Disney World is about 22 miles from the Orlando airport.
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Fall season best time for Orlando vacation theme parks visit

October 9, 2009 by

best time for a Orlando vacation is in the fall for Disney and Universal

Ok so my attempt at using one of my Vermont fall pictures and Tinkerbell is not so hot! I’ll do better next time. Now that fall is here I wanted to say something I’ve said before and I’ll say again; the fall season is the BEST time, in my opinion, for your Orlando vacation to see Disney, Universal Studios, Sea World and the others.

The reason for this is many, and I’ll explain them all here. The summertime is actually the busiest time of the year for all the theme parks in Orlando. So, what happens when any area is at it’s peak for tourist? The prices for everything is the highest it will be all year long. Also, the crowds are the fullest, and the Florida sun is at it’s hottest. To me summer is the WORST time to come to Orlando!

But now that it’s fall, the summer crowds are gone. That means the prices for hotels, rental cars, airlines and so many other things are down. Or at least on their way down right now. It’s not as hot in the fall, yet still plenty warm. Most people underestimate how hot it gets here in Orlando in the summer. Also the afternoon thunderstorms are gone, or at least much fewer.
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Orlando area and theme park Oktoberfest events

September 26, 2009 by

Orlando area and theme park Oktoberfest events

Since Orlando is a major tourist and party place, it’s only natural that a lot of events are going on around here for the 2009 Oktoberfest celebrations! Based on the fall event from Germany, Oktoberfest features lots of German dances, songs and lots of different types of German beer to sample! Just about every club, bar, restaurant and theme park is having their own version of Oktoberfest.

The biggest and most recognizable Orlando Oktoberfest celebration is at Disney’s Epcot Center, where the Epcot International Food and Wine Festival is taking place until Nov. 9th. Celebrate Oktoberfest with a festive show at the fabulous Biergarten located in the Germany location. Dance to authentic German music and song. Enjoy the oom-pah sound of the band and yodel and sing along with the group.

Other places throughout the park will have Oktoberfest events and of course different Germany beer to sample. Just about every Disney theme park will have something for Oktoberfest, from German toys to special German dances and songs plus more Germany beer selections in different restaurants.
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Safety tips for your Orlando Vacation

September 23, 2009 by

Orlando vacation safety tips

Most of the time the thousands of tourist on their Orlando vacation never run into anything bad. The tourist areas in Orlando are for the most part very safe. Like most cities, the bad guys tend to stick around their own areas and prey off each other, which is far from the tourist areas. However, there is always a few that decide to try to take stuff from people on a vacation.

You don’t know the area well, your distracted with all the new sights and attractions, and you can let your guard down. Taking the time to do a few things will insure that your not a victim of tourist crime. Most thieves are looking for a fast and easy victim. So a little precaution will go a long way to discourage them from picking you out of the hundreds of others around you.

So here’s a few general tips that will greatly reduce the chance of you becoming a victim in Orlando. First, don’t rent a convertible! No Floridian ever drives a convertible, which means it says “hey, here’s a tourist, take my stuff”! Trust me, you don’t want to drive one in Florida anyway. It’s so hot that as soon as you stop at a light you’ll be dripping in sweat. Convertibles look fun, but not in Orlando!
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