New Orlando youtube channel for my tourist site!

February 13, 2010 by

Click here for my Orlando tourist youtube channel!

Well everyone I’m really excited about the past few days. I got myself a cool new camcorder! I’ve been meaning to get one for a long time, and finally got one. It’s nothing fancy, a Panasonic SDR-S26. But it’s great for youtube videos, with a 70X zoom on it!

I also just opened up my own youtube video channel, click the link to see it and all my videos so far. Right now I just have some picture slide show videos I made. But very soon I’ll be taking a lot of videos of Disney, Universal Studios, Sea World and so much more here in Orlando.

In fact next Sat. I’m going to Universal Studios Mardi Gras and take a nice video of that parade. Plus bike week in Daytona is almost here and I’ll take a lot up there. I can see how I’ll be spending more time in the theme parks taking videos of the rides!
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Sea World’s Aquatica Omaka Rocka new water ride

January 23, 2010 by

Sea World's Aquatica Omaka Rocka new water ride

Sea World’s new water park, Aquatica, is getting a brand new and fun water slide for this spring. Called Omaka Rocka, it will be a two-seater tube ride you slide down inside a pipe. What makes it different than the rest is that you will hit walls that you slide high up on, like a skate boarder doing a half-pipe trick.

You’ll end up rocking back and forth on the walls, feeling almost weightless at each peak. Finally at the end you’ll come skimming out into a splashdown area. It’s the first new water slide Aquatica has added since it opened two years ago. It will share the Whanau Way tower already there.

I’ve seen it under construction, and they should have no problem getting it done to open on time, which is March. It looks like a lot of fun and I’ll be sure to ride it once it’s open. Aquatica is a very fun park and well worth it to spend a day there!

Aquatica water park tickets

Click here for Aquatica water park discount tickets!

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Crowds light at Disney, Universal Studios from now till Easter

January 3, 2010 by

Light crowds at the Orlando theme parks

Empty water ride boat at Universal Studios

Well it’s the new year, 2010! The holidays are gone, and it’s now the middle of the winter here in the USA. Of course down here in Florida it’s still toasty warm, maybe a bit cool. It’s also one of the most perfect times to take that Disney Orlando vacation you’ve been waiting for! A lot of people have the misconception that winter is when it’s crowded in Florida.

Everyone knows the snowbirds come down here for the winter. That’s true, but most of them are older folks who don’t really care for the theme parks. The kids are back in school, so most in USA don’t feel they should take an Orlando vacation in the winter. Same is true for our Canada neighbors.

Even the tourist from the UK, which makes up a lot of the theme park crowds, wait until summer to visit Disney. That leaves from now until Easter with the theme parks light on crowds. The weather is nice, around the 60’s or 70’s during the day. The bugs are gone, and it does not rain hardly at all during the winter months.

That means it’s a perfect time to see Disney, Universal Studios and Sea World here in Orlando. If your an older couple with no kids, single, childless couple or home school your kids you don’t have to worry about taking the kids out of school. Prices for everything are also lower than in the summer. It really is much lighter now than the summer tourist crowds.

So if you can, head down here to Orlando and enjoy the theme parks without having to fight the crowds, summer heat, rain, bugs and higher prices. Pay for your theme park tickets online and be all set when you get here!

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Disney, Universal Studios and Sea World New Years eve events

December 26, 2009 by

Disney, Universal Studios and Sea World New Year parties

Well I hope everyone had a great Christmas, at least those that celebrate it. The next big holiday of course is New Years eve. Just about all attractions in Orlando will have some type of New Years event or party going on. Many want to know what will be happening at the big theme parks for New Years Eve. So here’s a brief run down of what’s going on.

Universal Studios
Since Universal Studios has a big nightclub complex right at the parks it’s only natural that they will be having more events than the others. Most of the clubs at Citywalk, Universal Studios night time party zone, will be having live music inside them. Two big time bands; The Temptations and The Four Tops will be performing several times on New Years eve.

Between performances you can dine on all-you-can-eat gourmet cuisine and great desserts! Then, cap off the night with a midnight countdown, champagne toast, confetti burst and more! Yes you have to buy a special ticket, get your Universal Studios New Years eve party tickets here.

Walt Disney World
Disney’s New Years eve events are not really that much. The holiday is not one that fits the family friendly parks. About the only thing different will be better firework displays in each of the parks that have them. However they will have the best fireworks of any place in Orlando, and well worth it to go and see.

Sea World
Surprisingly Sea World will be having a special New Years eve event going on. From 9:00 PM to 12:30 AM you can hear continuous Jazz music from live entertainers in the park. At the Bayside stadium Michael Andrew and the Atomic Big Band will be performing live. Then at midnight you can see fantastic fireworks light up the sky.

So there you have it, the New Years eve events at the big three theme parks here in Orlando. Of course many nightclubs and smaller attractions will have their own little fireworks, party poppers and holiday events. You can buy fireworks in Florida, so don’t be surprised to see and hear folks setting off their own fireworks display!

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Christmas Holiday events going on at Sea World

November 25, 2009 by

Polar Express show plus other holiday events at Sea World Orlando

Sea World of Orlando has some new Christmas holiday events this year, along with some old ones. The Shamu show features new holiday music and festive lights, along with new tricks from Shamu and friends.

Clyde and Seamore, the funny, comical sea lions have a new Christmas show called “Countdown to Christmas” that is a hoot.

The gang from Sesame Street will be at Sea World putting on their own holiday show called “A Sesame Street Christmas.” The show will featuring our favorite yellow friend Big Bird and the other popular character as they show what Christmas is all about. There will also be a meet and greet after the show for kids.
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Thanksgiving day at Universal Studios and Sea World

November 12, 2009 by

Thanksgiving day at Universal Studios and Sea World

A week ago I made a post about what is going on Thanksgiving day at Disney. So I thought I’d also tell you what will be going on at Universal Studios and Sea World on Thanksgiving day. The truth of the matter is, there really is not that much extra going on at any of the theme parks on Thanksgiving day, except for bigger crowds!

Both Universal Studios and Sea World will have a few extra decorations and so on with a Thanksgiving theme. But there are no special Thanksgiving parades planned, or any Thanksgiving shows. It’s just not a Holiday that lends itself good with theme parks.

Here and there you will find restaurants in both Universal Studios and Sea World that will be serving the traditional Thanksgiving meal, like turkey, ham and cranberries. Normally it will be the bigger restaurants in the parks that will be serving Thanksgiving meals.

But that’s really about the only things that will be different. However because it’s a Holiday the parks WILL be full, very full. So be prepared for that and come early. Right after Thanksgiving all the parks will put up their Christmas decorations and lights.

They really do a good job transforming the parks into a Christmas theme, and the lights at night are fantastic. So if you are visiting the parks at Thanksgiving make sure you also come back the day or two after Thanksgiving, and stay till night to see the lights!

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Sea World raises basic ticket prices again, still lower than Disney

October 31, 2009 by

sea world raises prices again, still lower than Disney

Picture by Joe Burbank, Orlando Sentinel

Well I knew it was going to happen, I just did not know when. Today Sea World of Orlando announced that they would raise the price of a basic one day ticket. The cost now will be $78.95 for a basic one day ticket to Sea World. The move brings Sea World’s base price to just 5 cents less than single-day, single-park tickets to Disney or Universal, both of which raised their own prices over the summer.

Every year all of the big three theme parks raise their base, one day one park ticket prices. So it’s nothing new, it happens every year. But I wanted to let you know this. Now, most of the theme park tickets people buy actually cost less than this. That’s because of all the special multi-day and park hopper ticket deals you can find.

In fact you should never buy a one day, base price ticket to one park at Disney, Universal Studios or Sea World. Normally if your on a vacation in Orlando your going to spend several days at the parks. All of them offer two, three or more day ticket deals and park hopper specials.

But they have to have a base price to work with, so they always have a standard, one day one park price to work with. As you can see, all the theme parks are very close when it comes to their base price. But it can vary widely with multi-day and park hopper deals. Now if only they would lower their base price!

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Sea World ride height requirements, why so high?

October 17, 2009 by

Sea World's Journey to atlantis ride

Recently someone asked me why it seems like the height requirement on all the rides at Sea World are so high? For a kid friendly theme park, she expected much more rides that a toddler up to kids 30 inches or shorter could ride. Well, when Sea World first opened they did not have hardly any rides at all! Sea World was made to be primarily an aquatic animal and sea life park.

All of the animal shows and exhibits anyone can go and see, even toddlers. But down the road Sea World decided to start making a few rides so they could attract a wider audience. Since they were making rides one by one, each one had to be a thrill ride, made to attract most people, from teens to adults.

Because a thrill ride throws you around and even turns you upside down, you have to be tall enough for the shoulder harness and seats to hold you in place. A short person or child could slip under the harness, or be thrown or bounced right out of their seat. Since all the rides they made so far are thrill rides, the height requirement has been on the high side.
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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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Tips on how to avoid lines at theme park rides

October 7, 2009 by

How to avoid long lines at theme park rides like Disney

One of the biggest headaches, if not THE biggest one at theme parks, is waiting in line for the rides. Everyone is different in respect to their tolerance of waiting in line. Some seem to be happy and talk with others through a 2 hour wait, while a 15 minute wait for others is draining. The cruel fact is, your going to be waiting in line for most of your day when you go to a theme park.

In fact sometimes it seems like the whole point of going to a theme park is to stand in lines! Waiting an hour to go on a 2 minute ride does not seem like such a hot deal. But everyone does it, at least if they want to get on the ride. However there are some ways to cut down on ride wait times.

So I’m going to give you some creative tips on how to avoid some of the lines. You may or may not want to take some of these tips, it all depends on how big your family is, your kids ages and how much you dread long lines! So these are just tricks to cut down on some of the waiting throughout the day. The first one is pretty obvious, which is, get to the park as soon as it opens!
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Sea World Halloween events, Spooktacular

September 30, 2009 by

Sea World Halloween events, spooktacular

For SeaWorld’s 2010 new Spooktacular Halloween event information and times, please go to the new Halloween Spooktacular article you can find here.

It’s been a while since I made a post here about Sea World! So what better way then to let you know what special events are going on there for this Halloween season. Sea World is having what they call their Spooktacular trick or treat events. Halloween Spooktacular begins each day at 12 p.m. October 3-4, 10-11, 17-18, 24-25, 30 and 31, 2009.

It’s a mix of fun things the little ones can do on those days. Kids can come in costumes or not, it’s up to you and does not matter. Throughout the park you can pick up a Spooktacular map that shows a dozen or more places kids can find many different sweet treats to find. It’s a mix of sweets and healthy foods so you can pick what you want your kid to have.

There’s also a special Sesame Street “countdown to Halloween” musical show with lots of the Sesame Street characters. The frozen fun zone features an ice DJ with interactive games and activities that is sure to be a hit with little ones. Finally there will be fun and funny Costumed characters dressed as fish and treats roaming the park to greet kids.

My that job sounds like fun, too bad I did not hear about the auditions! So if you like Sea World and have little ones, now you know what days to pick so they can have some extra fun. Unless your child is the type that might get traumatized by a giant walking fish sweating profoundly wanting a hug! Have fun at Sea World’s Halloween Spooktacular!

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Orlando Theme park ride height requirements

September 2, 2009 by

Orlando theme park ride height requirements

One of the most frustrating things to experience at a theme park is getting to a ride your kid has been talking about forever, only to find that he or she is not tall enough to ride it. The temper tantrums I have seen those poor kids throw, oh boy! So it’s a good idea to check first and make sure your child is tall enough to ride the ride before getting to it.

First let me explain just why they have height limits. Each ride is made with what they figure is an “average” size of the person who will be riding it. Rides for little kids of course are made for child size. Bigger rides are made for a happy medium between kids heights and full, tall adults. The restraints that hold you in are made to fit MOST sizes, but there is a limit as to how much difference they can hold.

Mild rides that don’t turn upside down or throw you around too much have a smaller height limit because there is less chance your going to get thrown out even if the restraints are loose on you. More extreme rides that do loops and throw you around must hold you in your seat very tightly. So you must be taller so the shoulder harness can securely lock you in place.
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