Orlando Tips & Tricks

NESSIEHUNTER

We are going away in the summer to Florida, 2 adults + 2 Kids (16 + 13), doing the Universal Flexplus pass, it`s our first time going and would love to maximise our time there, so as the header above says, What tips & tricks are there to get the most from Orlando?, what`s the shows to see and the show`s to miss, how do you get good deals on food at Restaurants etc.

Also we will be there for the 4th of July, where`s the best place to go at night to see the fireworks, (have already been told to try the Grand Floridian Hotel).

I know there is already An Orlando thread, I have looked at it for months but it seems to be missing the little tips and stuff.

jackieblack

NESSIEHUNTER wrote: »

I know there is already An Orlando thread, I have looked at it for months but it seems to be missing the little tips and stuff.

If you ask your question on the Orlando thread, rather than starting a separate one (they don't bite, honest ), there will be many people who can answer all your questions.
And although you say you have been looking at it, most of these points have been covered, several times over already on the Orlando thread.

As to which shows to see/miss, it is very much a matter of personal taste - some people love Fantasmic, we thought it was a waste of time (assume you are going to do Disney, although you haven't said this).
You have chosen to do Universal, we chose not to as there appeared to be little there that interested us and we prioritised other attractions.

Our top tips would be get up early, eat a good breakfast and be at whichever park you are going before the official opening time, you will do/see more in the first 2-3 hours than in the rest of the day. If you've had a good breakfast and are drinking plenty (essential, especially in the summer months) you won't need to stop for lunch, you can get by with a few snacks. Go to Wal-Mart/Publix/any grocery store outside the park to buy drinks & snacks as it will be much cheaper. We usually do this the first morning after we arrive as we are always awake by 4am and there are no queues in Wal-Mart at that time .

Thea Maic Kingdom will be heaving on the 4th July, most guidebooks recommend going to Epcot that days as the park is bigger and the crowds will appear thinner.

Get a free Orlando Magicard before you go, it will give you discounts in some restaurants, and you can pick up books of discount vouchers in supermarkets or hotel lobby.
Chains such as Sizzler or Ponderosa are good value for money, especially with a couple of hungry teenagers!
Some restaurants do deals if you eat before a certain time, but both your children will be classed as adults so any 'kids eat free' deals will probably not apply.

Our other tip would be to take something brightly coloured to tie to the aerial of you rental car (we used a small yellow ball), it sounds stupid but the carparks are vast and it makes finding your car alot easier after a long tiring day.

But the most important tip of all is wear comfortable footwear!:D
Make sure you take well worn-in trainers. You may find your feet will swell due to the heat/humidity. Comfort will be far, far, far more important than fashion!

KarenG

Personally, I prefer the view from the Polynesian (next door to the Grand Floridian), to the Grand Floridian, if you want to see the fireworks in the best possible way without paying for a ticket. It won't be the same though!

poe.tuesday

go to Bahama breeze for a meal - it's great and really reasonable

as for the waterparks - go early and take a picnic

wear comfortable shoes

don't go on a water ride when you first get to the parks as you will be soaking for the whole day

fast pass everything you can

RudeDogg1

fast pass is a waste of money as u can only use them on rides once!

Leave for the parks early to avoid most cues not that it was bad for me last month. And when in islands of adventure if you are harry potter fans go to potter world first as that was heaving the first day we went there.

poe.tuesday

RudeDogg1 wrote: »

fast pass is a waste of money as u can only use them on rides once!

or you could queue up for 2 hours and still only go on the ride once

OnceUponADream

try www.thedibb.co.uk - a fantastic site for all things Disney and beyond.

OnceUponADream

RudeDogg1 wrote: »

fast pass is a waste of money as u can only use them on rides once!

Leave for the parks early to avoid most cues not that it was bad for me last month. And when in islands of adventure if you are harry potter fans go to potter world first as that was heaving the first day we went there.

If you purchase your tickets in the UK they come with fast pass so it doesn't actually cost you anything.

FP is most definitely needed for the popular rides.:)

steve_the_womble

don't know if this has been said anywhere else, but when parking,take a digital photo of the area/block sign nearest the car. it's easier to look for this than search for the car.
the photo is then deleted at the end of the day.
one other thing i do is use, a camera memory card on alternate days, then if your camera is lost/stolen, you don't loose all your photos

chrisandrob

OnceUponADream wrote: »

If you purchase your tickets in the UK they come with fast pass so it doesn't actually cost you anything.

FP is most definitely needed for the popular rides.:)

I have been to Orlando 3 years in a row and have never heard of this being included...where abouts can I but these tickets?

KarenG

chrisandrob wrote: »

I have been to Orlando 3 years in a row and have never heard of this being included...where abouts can I but these tickets?

I didn't understand this either and I've been to Orlando most years since 2002

For the benefit of all on the thread, Fastpass is FREE and available to anybody buying Disney tickets, when you are in the park.

There are a few ways to get bonus FPs, so I can only guess there may have been a deal historically where if you bought a ticket somewhere specific it gave you a few of these ????? Never heard of this though. Usually you get them because you've had bad service, or for example done a Disney timeshare tour etc.

The fast pass arrangements are chargeable at Universal, and very expensive in my opinion. A better way could be to book a night at one of the Universal onsite hotels, which gives every person in the group unlimited fast passes for the length of stay. Universal call this Front of the Line Access, commonly shortened to FOTL access. HTH.