Orlando Florida/Disneyworld (Part 2) *CLOSED*

stan747

orlando is quite a big place, there is quite a distance from say, universal studios to disney.
if it's seaworld and thereabouts you should be looking on i-drive, for disney, the kissemee area. have a look at some of the previous posts regarding villas, you may be lucky to find a 3 bed at a good price, plenty of villas in the kissemee area and they do get cheaper the further out you go.

-1-

What are the roads like in Florida.

I'm off to Kissimmee and although I have been driving in the UK for 10 years, I have never driven on the other side before, nor in an automatic which the rental will be.

The more I look at their roads / signs, the more I think "Argh..."

stan747

it's not as bad as you think, most roads are dual carriageways anyway, once you make that first turn out of the airport you'll be fine that is the critical one, i nearly turned into the wrong lane straight into an oncoming bus last month and i've drove over there a few times!
some tips- you can also turn right on a red light providing you come to a complete stop and make sure it's safe to go, although some junctions forbid this but they are clearly marked.
driving the automatics is a doddle, just fight the urge to use your left foot!!!
i would reccomendyou take a sat nav with you as they can be expensive to hire but are a must if you unfamiliar with the area. you can get florida maps and poi's and upload them to your unit, i used my phone with tomtom and a seperate bluetooth reciever and it worked fine.

-1-

stan747 wrote: »

it's not as bad as you think, most roads are dual carriageways anyway, once you make that first turn out of the airport you'll be fine that is the critical one, i nearly turned into the wrong lane straight into an oncoming bus last month and i've drove over there a few times!
some tips- you can also turn right on a red light providing you come to a complete stop and make sure it's safe to go, although some junctions forbid this but they are clearly marked.
driving the automatics is a doddle, just fight the urge to use your left foot!!!
i would reccomendyou take a sat nav with you as they can be expensive to hire but are a must if you unfamiliar with the area. you can get florida maps and poi's and upload them to your unit, i used my phone with tomtom and a seperate bluetooth reciever and it worked fine.

Thanks for that.

I'll be driving from Sanford airport to Kissimmee, around an hours drive I think.

I'm ok with the turning right bit as it'll be on my side, it's the turning left bit that scares me.

I don't own a sat-nav but if it helps so much I might invest in one just for the trip.

KarenG

Don't worry about turning left - it's almost always at traffic lights and the lanes are all clearly marked on the roads so it's quite hard to go wrong

I find driving in Florida way easier than in the UK. I've never hired a Sat Nav but I do always make sure I have a map.

jackieblack

-1- wrote: »

What are the roads like in Florida.

I'm off to Kissimmee and although I have been driving in the UK for 10 years, I have never driven on the other side before, nor in an automatic which the rental will be.

The more I look at their roads / signs, the more I think "Argh..."

Like you, we were worried about the driving when we went two years ago, but it really is much easier than we thought it would be.
We're going again soon and not worried about it at all this time.
We didn't have Sat Nav and it wasn't a problem but you do need a good map (the tourist ones don't have alot of the minor roads marked.

Two tips (it took us a few days to work these out)
'Next exit' means the one you're almost at!
and if you're following directions and the signs appear to stop, keep going straight on, they only appear to have a sign when you need to turn off!

Don't worry about left turns, they tend to have white lines painted on the road for you to follow.

Remember, Orlando is one of the tourist capitals of the world, they are used to, and equipped for, those who are not used to the roads!

Have a great time!

-1-

jackieblack wrote: »

Like you, we were worried about the driving when we went two years ago, but it really is much easier than we thought it would be.
We're going again soon and not worried about it at all this time.
We didn't have Sat Nav and it wasn't a problem but you do need a good map (the tourist ones don't have alot of the minor roads marked.

Two tips (it took us a few days to work these out)
'Next exit' means the one you're almost at!
and if you're following directions and the signs appear to stop, keep going straight on, they only appear to have a sign when you need to turn off!

Don't worry about left turns, they tend to have white lines painted on the road for you to follow.

Remember, Orlando is one of the tourist capitals of the world, they are used to, and equipped for, those who are not used to the roads!

Have a great time!

Thanks , that has put me at ease.

A paper map would obviously be cheaper than a Sat Nav, do you have any recomendations for a good road map that includes the major parks/ touristy things to see ?.

Also, this is probably for a different forum, but the automatic cars, what do the different letters mean ?. I'm guessing P is Park, but is that for traffic lights or when parked over night ?. D= Drive ?.

Can't find much info online about Automatic newbie drivers.:rotfl:

valiant23

I'm nervous about driving on the right too.
:eek:

http://216.239.59.104/search?q=cache:VRq0OWAqIuUJ:www.rospa.com/roadsafety/info/automatic_gearboxes.pdf+Automatic+gearbox+instructions&hl=en&ct=clnk&cd=1&gl=uk&client=firefox-a

The majority of gear selector positions are marked:
P
PARK must never be engaged whilst the vehicle is in motion as it locks the transmission and
prevents the car from moving.
R
REVERSE
N
NEUTRAL
D
AUTOMATIC DRIVE USING ALL FORWARD GEARS and a configuration of 1, 2, 3
and 4 for manual selection, or a symbol such as a plus or minus sign for upward or
downward manual changes. For normal driving the lever can remain in ‘D’ and allow the
transmission to make automatic adjustments according to road speed, engine loading and
accelerator position.

eslick

Hi All we used a villa website from a link I found here last year but cant find it now

Thought it was lastminutevillas.com but this isnt workingWhat are the best sites for Florida villas

Thanks

Froggitt

A lot of American cars have a footbrake instead of a handbrake........also most traffic lights you can turn right at a red light. Finally, where theres a multi-way crossing eg 4 ways, you should all go in turn.