Orlando Florida Vacation

Orlando which was once a quiet farming town today attracts more than 25 million visitors a year because of its many attractions like Walt Disney World, Universal Studios Escape, Sea World and a host of other theme parks. Orlando Florida vacation promises to be one of fun-filled holidays for adults and children alike. Plan your Orlando Florida travel and check out the villas and rentals available at Orlando Florida.

Orlando Florida

Nine miles away from the International Airport, downtown Orlando lies on the northern side of the airport. The official Information Booth provides you with brochures and discount coupons which you can collect after your arrival. Shuttle buses are available to go to Orlando area. Taxis can be booked to International Drive or the motels on Highway-192. There are buses and trains too which arrive at the Greyhound terminal and the Amtrak station. You can also pick up discount coupons and promotional offers at the Visitor Information Center at International Drive.

Orlando Florida vacation

Kennedy Space Center: NASA's launch headquarters is just 45 minutes from the famous Orlando theme parks and attractions. You get the unique opportunity here to tour launch areas, see huge rockets, get to meet an astronaut and even train in spaceflight simulators. There is also the possibility of viewing a launch.

Discovery Cove: Only visitors with reservations are allowed. The admission prices are a bit high and start at $109, but you can get to play and swim with dolphins. Behind a clear separation you can also snorkel up to sharks and barracudas. You can enjoy feeding tropical birds in a resort-like setting here.

Universal Studios: Universal Studios has become a major player in the Orlando theme parks after it was established in 1990. Universal Studios with its Islands of Adventure laden with high-tech special effects has drawn much attention in spite of Disney World still holding court. With the collaboration of a big hotel, Universal is aspiring for a full-fledged resort status. You have to park your vehicle in the garage half a mile north of exits 29 and 30B off I-94 for access to all these areas.

Sea World Very close to the intersection of I-4 and the Bee Line Expressway, Sea World is situated at Sea Harbor Drive. Don't miss Florida's great marine parks located here.

Shamu Adventure show is a big event. It begins with a pre-show film which attempts to explain the tricks performed by killer whales for twenty minutes. Artificial snow and ice are recreated in the Wild Arctic Complex where you can see beluga whales, walruses and a few bears. You can experience a thrilling simulated helicopter flight through an Arctic snow storm.

Journey to Atlantis is the park's first thrill ride which has a sixty-foot drop with fantasy, water-slide and roller coaster. There are many smaller tanks and displays that explain you about the undersea world.

The Penguin Encounter is another highlight which tries to recreate Antarctica with lot of waddling birds scurrying over an iceberg. It is a delight to watch dolphins in the Dolphin Pool. In the Terrors of the Deep you can walk through a glass-sided tunnel which offers the closest eye-contact with a shark.

Walt Disney World: One of the world's most popular vacation venues, Walt Disney World has pushed the state's media profile as it is judiciously planned. A pacesetter among theme parks, Walt Disney World surpasses Disneyland which was opened in Anaheim, California in 1955. Being twice the size of Manhattan, it is technologically advanced. The Magic Kingdom is a park where the famous Mickey joins the crowds to amuse them. EPCOT Center, known for its giant geo-sphere which looks like a golf-ball, is a sprawling area and this center is Disney's celebration of science and technology. As it involves a lot of walking, kids may find it difficult to walk through the entire area.

Disney MGM Studios: Disney's Animal Kingdom, which is the latest of all the four, has in it almost all kinds of African and Asian wildlife brought in to the theme park setting. If you are exhausted after a long day at the parks, you can relax at the nightspots of your liking, from piano bars, country clubs and medieval banquets. There is some kind of closing-time bash held in each theme park of Walt Disney World which involves fireworks and fountains. Pleasure Island which is a remake of an abandoned island, located at 26B off I-4 has some pseudo-warehouses which serve as the setting for shops, night clubs and themed bars.

Orlando Florida vacation package

Blizzard Beach, one of the three Disney-owned water parks is located on World Drive north of All-Star Resorts. The highlight of the show in this most creative water park is Summit Plummet. You are shot down a 120ft vertical drop at more than fifty miles per hour! Toboggan-style slalom courses and converted raft rides are some gentler rides you can enjoy. There are features like rainforest, geysers, huge surfing pool and slides in Typhoon Lagoon at Lake Buena Vista. A shark reef here gives you the pleasure of snorkeling among tropical fish. In older and quieter River Country is a small place nearby.

Wet 'n' Wild on the International Drive has a range of exciting slides that include a difficult seven-story Bomb Bay and a vertical Der Stuka.

Orlando Vacation Homes

There are vacation homes and condos available in the heart of Orlando, Kissimmee and Central Florida. Villas are also available for rent near Disney World. Located near the attractions, these lodging accommodations are excellent alternative to hotel accommodations; especially when you are traveling with your family to see the wonder world of Disney, Universal Studios and Sea World. You can also find these Orlando villa rentals on golf courses with good views of lakes and secured gated communities. There are vacation packages offered by hotels and resorts. These resorts offer great discounts on hotels and timeshare accommodations and attraction tickets for your Disney World vacations too.

Orlando travel guide

In February, the Florida Park Service in collaboration with the Department of Health and other state agencies is participating in Step Up, Florida! events. Florida State Parks with more than 1600 miles of trials and 100 miles of sandy white beaches are tremendous destinations for fun and fitness. Providing the perfect setting for a range of healthy out door activities like biking and inline skating, canoeing, kayaking and swimming, Florida's scenic parks help empower individuals to get fit.

Wildlife Walk: Paynes Praire Preserve State Park is to organize a Paynes Prairie Ranger walk on the wild side on Saturday, April 2007. Depending on water level, this program is organized to demonstrate why the Prairie Preserve is recognized as a National Natural Landmark. The walking adventure on to the prairie basin on an earthen dike trail will give an opportunity to see the wetland and Alachua Sink in action and you can also observe alligators, 271 species of birds, and stunning displays of flowers in bloom. With the three-mile walk leading to an elevated observation deck, the duration of the program is around three hours.

Wild Azalfa Festival: On Saturday, March 17, 2007, Stephen Foster Folk Culture Center State Park is organizing this festival at the State of Florida's Nature & Heritage Tourism Center. In association with the Town of White Springs, the heritage center is to celebrate the spring bloom of wild azaleas along the Suwannee River. Visitors get a chance to take a free ride on a horse-drawn wagon. There will be musical performances, arts and crafts, trail hikes and other out door recreations. There will also be a sale of native plants like wild azaleas.