Kennedy Space Centre

wibblewibble

We are off to Orlando in 4 weeks time and are in the process of booking our attraction & tour tickets and trying to be as MSE about it as possible lol

I have searched the forum but wasn't able to find the answer to my question - entirely possible thats my rubbish search terms.

Essentially we want to book Kennedy Tickets with transportation & include lunch with an Astronaut - prices are about the same on most sites at £87 -£89 each for the "Space Pass" which includes a behind the scenes bus tour; however Travel Republic have a ticket for £66 which includes the lunch with an astronaut & transportation and apparently the NASA general bus tour.

Could anyone tell me what the difference is between the NASA run bus tour and one provided by the tour/ticket operators? Would we see just as much with the NASA one? Are there any particular issues with using the NASA tour over sticking with the "tour operator" one?

As the difference in price is £21 each I'm wondering if the "tour operator" bus tour is actually worth it.

Many thanks.

Pinklepurr

I've been to the KSC twice and can only remember the tour of the site being operated by NASA itself. I don't recall any other tours being done by any other operator. There is the main visitor complex with the IMAX cinemas (v good) and the space shuttle experience. You then take a bus around the site to visit the observation gantry and the Saturn 5 centre.

Westin

All the on-site tour transportation is on the NASA buses. I think the ticket options you are looking at with transportation are the ones with a motor coach from Orlando.

wibblewibble

Yes thats right the transportation is from Orlando but Greyline for example say on their ticket priced at £87 that they have a 2.5 hour tour exclusive to them which takes you to the launch pads, the vehicle assembly area, and a few other sites.

What I wondered was if the NASA buses take you round those sites anyway?

iwanttoberich

I went to the Kennedy Space Centre a couple of years ago and used Viator Tours: http://www.viator.com/tours/Orlando/Kennedy-Space-Center-Day-Trip-with-Transport-from-Orlando/d663-2855KENNEDY

They only supply the transport to and from the centre and the entrance tickets (you don't have to pay KSC any other fees). They will tell you the nearest pick up location to your hotel and let you know what time to meet the coach to go back.

The actual tours are done by the space centre coaches. There are several locations to visit and the coaches between them are quite frequent. There is plenty of time to do everything.

It is a little over an hour away from Orlando. Our coach showed a movie on the way back. It was dark and everyone I am sure was tired so it was a nice touch.

Pinklepurr

The NASA buses will take you past the huge vehicle assembly building (you don't get to go inside). Then it goes to the observation gantry, an open sided building where you can climb up and view the launch pads. There is a great panoramic view from here and they have telescopes so you can get a closer view of the launch pads. The tour does not actually take you up to the launch pads themselves. The tour then travels to the Saturn 5 visitor centre. You can choose how long to spend at each place as the buses stop frequently.

KSC is a really interesting day out but we still haven't managed to do it all, despite two visits! The IMAX 3d films are really good and in an air conditioned cinema, which can be a welcome respite from the heat!

Hope you have a great time!

Westin

The new Atlantis shuttle exhibition opened in June. I was lucky enough to be there for the opening day. Well worth visiting.