Posts Tagged ‘Enjoying’

Aiden enjoying his solo vacation

Aiden is jumping on the bed at the Orlando hotel. He’s singing “spongebob square pants” withhus spongebob pj’s.

Dad enjoying the SUMMER part of the summerland course

Image taken on 2003-09-20 15:43:00 by AmandaB3.

Kerr enjoying Faroe adventure – Video

Kerr enjoying Faroe adventure – Video
Former Republic of Ireland manager Brian Kerr has nothing but admiration for his Faroe Islands part-timers even though they traditionally struggle in competitive action. – Video available

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5 Tips for Enjoying Family Amusement Park Vacations

Last weekend, my husband and I decided to take a 1 day, 2 night trip down to Disney World.  Living in Jacksonville, Florida you would think we would visit Orlando more often – but to be honest we only go once a year, if we are lucky… or unlucky depending on how you look at it.  Family amusement park vacations are one of the most popular destinations for families.

The nostalgia of amusement parks has always been a long standing summer tradition in my family.  My sister and I used to always get excited to know that we would spend 1 week in Orlando and that was all we needed in our summer!

As I’ve gotten older, the thought of amusement parks isn’t quite as fun.  Maybe it’s the thought of money, food, hotel, gas, sweating, whining kids, and hurting feet that has marred my memory of wonderful years when I was young.  Although, last weekend it was about perfect.  I think my husband and I finally have figured out how to make the experience fun for everyone!

Buy souvenirs from gift shops located off the premises to save money!

Here are 5 tips that helped us enjoy the amusement park:

1.) Plan your day according to your family:

Depending on the age of your kids, endurance of the family members, and how much territory you are trying to cover in the park(s), consider this the day before you hit the park.

If you’re traveling with teenagers, ask them what they want to do. What rides they’d like to go on, so everyone will be on the same page on park day. There is nothing worse than a family vacation being ruined because everyone’s expectations were different.
Over estimate how much time you will spend at the rides, eating, standing in lines, shopping, etc..

2.) Eat a good meal before you get into the park:

This one seems obvious, but then families don’t often do it.  Unless you enjoy spending a small fortune for hamburgers, fries and a drink for each family member 3 times in one day, eat at a good restaurant before arriving.

If you eat before hand it will give you energy, and it will probably be more healthy.  Consider bringing granola bars, nuts, and bottled water with you to the park.
Most parks will allow a diaper bag (good place to stash snacks, bottled water, etc.. Don’t try to bring fast food bags, coolers, etc.. Most parks will not allow).

Eat a good meal before hitting the park.

3.) Determine how much time you REALLY need at the park:

In the past, our family would get to Disney at 9:00 am and stay until the park closed at 11:00pm. The next day we were worn out, and it took another two days to recover. This last time we decided to go at 5:00 at night.  This helped us avoid the awful heat, and enjoy the park at night.  After about 5 rides the kids were tired, and it was enjoyable to just sit and watch the light parade!

You and your family may enjoy themselves more if they actually do less!
Remember, you still might have to drive home or go to work the next day – take it easy!

4.) Have a budget:

This one is hard.  It seems like you never can estimate how much souvenirs, snacks, meals, etc.. cost at amusement parks. My best advice if you’re on a budget are below:

Stay in a hotel that is off the premises of the actual amusement park. If you don’t want to drive, choose hotels that offer shuttles to the park.
If you will be in town for a number of days, consider getting a hotel room with refrigerator, microwave, and/or kitchenette.  Then you can buy food, and eat smaller meals in the room.
Buy souvenirs in local gift shops rather than the amusement park.  Often times they have similar items, and your child won’t know that’s it isn’t the ‘official’ merchandise of the park!

Dress comfortable so you can enjoy the attractions.

5.) Wear comfortable clothing:

This tip is especially for dressing your kids. I have seen too many children with Minnie Mouse dresses and black dress shoes running around the park. By the end of the day, you could tell their feet were hurting! Make sure adults and kids have hats, comfortable shoes, light clothing, and plenty of sunscreen!

Do you have other tips you would recommend? Leave some comments and share!

Enjoying Holidays In Florida Villas

Comfortable vacations have become more a necessity than a luxury in today’s fast paced world. Every day dawns with its own share of surprises, anxieties and uncertainties. Fighting these odds, the energy levels deplete at a rate much faster than ever before. It is only natural therefore that we need a decent break to recharge ourselves and demonstrate our love and affection for the family.

Holidays in Florida Villas

With the world famous Disney World in Orlando, Florida it can be an ideal choice for your forthcoming vacation. Some of you may imagine that a place like Disney World is always an expensive proposition and beyond your reach. Thankfully though, the creator of Disney World, Walt Disney has himself bestowed adequate attention to this aspect and has encouraged facilities suitable for every pocket. With a little home work researching the internet, you could be in the neighborhood of a famous 7 star hotel at one fourth the prices but enjoying identical or value added facilities. Most Florida Villas promise you that.

Great locations too

And, if you thought that such wonderful offers can only come from locations distanced from the main attractions, again you will be surprised that this is not true. Some of these villas are in fact in locations more ideal than the choice hotels themselves. They are like the owner’s pride and the neighbor’s envy. Most villas also offer a host of amenities which are often absent or limited in the hotels. Many of them being on the self catering mode, you can look for a well appointed kitchen in these villas. While making your booking you should confirm this with the villa owner. Having a kitchen in your vacation villa has several advantages apart from affordable food expenses.

Villa rentals are in most cases for the whole property and not per room or person. That, then should translate to a few more dollars in savings.

Palm Beach Fl Enjoying Higher Rates Yet Again

Even if the reason is not known, people are often found to close the eyes to the city of West Palm Beach, Florida and this is certainly not fair. If you do not know, learn it from now that this Palm Beach FL is also having a good price in the current (and burgeoning) real estate scenario and people are flocking to the area to have the same without delay. What should you do then? Would you like to be within your 1-room flat for the rest of the life or move to some better position? Have second thoughts before taking the final decision.

What does this Palm Beach FL offer then? how can you reach there? Well, all you have to do is to go across the Lake Worth Lagoon from Palm Beach and there is the city of West Palm Beach, Florida. It is basically a 55 square mile city containing a population above 82,000. But it is relatively more reasonably priced than staying in Palm Beach. While on one hand you take delight in the luxurious resorts and beaches of Palm Beach, on the other hand both Boca Raton and Miami Beach are in close proximity.

Even if you are trying to make a survey of the vicinity through staying in any hotel, there is nothing to worry. You can stay at any hotel like Palm Beach Marriott, 1001 Okeechobee Boulevard, West Palm Beach and several others. You can also go for Radisson Hotel Palm Beach Airport, 1808 S. Australian Avenue. There are also a large number of economical hotels in and around the city.

What are the popular recreations then? Throughout the city there are thirty six tennis courts and you can play tennis on any one of them at your liberty. Some of the best golf courses across the United States are situated in t his area. Take you kids to the Palm Beach Zoo and there you (certainly along with your family) can perceive in excess of 23 acres of lush, tropical landscaped habitats that are home to over 900 animals from Florida, Central and South America, Asia and Australia.

Oops. I’ve just forgotten to mention Norton Museum of Art, 1451 S Olive Avenue, West Palm Beach, FL. This institution’s notable enduring collection having 19th and 20th century European and American art, Chinese, contemporary art and photography can earn your awe.

When on earth I come to shopping, West Palm Beach’s trendy boutiques can’t be ignored; they are simply awesome. There is another quite popular entertainment; it’s to opt for saltwater or freshwater fishing. If you or anyone of your family members is an aficionado of siesta, miles of beautiful public beaches are open and are waiting for the very person. How do you find at the end of the day? Don’t you want to be a permanent settler of this area? Surely you are!

Enjoying Affordable Family Vacations in Florida Theme Parks

Florida is known the world over for its amazing theme parks, featuring cartoon characters, movies, thrilling rides, and outdoor fun. They’re also known as an entertainment Mecca due to their abundance of live shows and nightlife offerings. It is also the world leader in Theme park. The concept of Theme Park has become a huge success in Florida and the Tickets to Florida Theme Park have become very expensive also. There are a lot of ways in which one can get Tickets to Florida Theme Parks. One can use a travel agent or buy it online from the official websites of those particular parks which turns out to be expensive in most of the cases. People choose unofficial means to buy these tickets also which turns out to be cheaper.

There are a variety of Tickets in the Theme Park Ticket Category and Orlando Flex Tickets are the most sought after tickets as this ticket is the collection of tickets of different parks of Orlando. Such a ticket really comes in handy when one wants all the time to enjoy the theme parks and not stand in line to buy tickets. Generally, the group of parks such as Universal Studios Florida, Islands of Adventure, Sea World of Florida, or Wet ‘n Wild, Orlando comes together. There is five and six park Flex Tickets which are available too. Orlando Flex Tickets saves one from buying individual tickets of each and every park. Though these tickets offer lots of flexibility, yet these flex tickets have some limitations like one has to visit continuously without making any interruption for 14 days. Visitors can save money by this and enjoy the flexibility of the Disney World tickets.

If you are only interested to go to a single park then Island of Adventure is not a bad choice at all. The Island of Adventure Tickets has to be booked as soon as possible because it has got many islands like the Lost Continent which reveals mystical attractions of times past. There is live action of Poseidon’s Fury: Escape from the Lost City and The Eighth Voyage of Sinbad. Then it also has Toon Lagoon Island where toons from the past and present live together. There a Jurassic Park Island too and to witness all this fun you need to buy the Island of Adventure Tickets. All these themes are absolutely amazing.