Decided to go to Florida this summer

Mark M

Mark M

Mark M

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Newcastle upon Tyne
Was there a couple of years ago and had a great time so decided to go back. Last time I went in a big group (12) but this time it will just be me and my gf. We were thinking about staying on International Drive and not getting a car and just bussing it so we can have a couple of drinks during the day etc.

Anyone done something similar? Any advice from doing it this way?

Will probably be booking through Travel City direct as they were spot on last time but Im open to alternatives if anyone has any suggestions?

Cheers, Mark
 
I have stayed on international drive twice. I would recommend using the buses as they are really frequent and you are not far from many of the atttractions.

If you hired a car you would have all the trouble of parking and following directions, not to mention driving on the opposite side of the road!

You find that the hotels always have excersions going on so youll have plenty to do.

Hope you have an awesome time. :)
 
Most of the hotels lay on buses (some courtesy, some not) to the parks but it means you have to leave the parks at a certain time and will no doubt miss your intended bus due to the queues. I find cars to be the easier option as I don't have to wait around at the hotel or the parks and can come and go as I see fit.

You will also be able to visit the malls and outlets without having to worry about catching the right bus or trying to find which bus actually goes where you want to visit.

I'll be heading to Florida again in May for my eleventh visit so if you want to know a bit more about anything in particular, just ask.
 
If you are planning on theme parking it, and can only go to one, Islands of Adventure is absolutely unbelievable. Make sure you go.
 
Don't do it without a car, it isn't new york or something.

You won't be able to have any flexbility in accomodation etc.

Get a villa and book a flight.
 
jam pie said:
If you hired a car you would have all the trouble of parking and following directions, not to mention driving on the opposite side of the road!
Click to expand...

Oh yeah, driving around Florida was incredibly difficult by the end of a fortnight I wished I was dead :confused:

Its dead straight forward, especially to get to any of the larger attractions, and driving on the "other side" of the road takes a whole 20 minutes to get used to.

jam pie said:
You find that the hotels always have excersions going on so youll have plenty to do.
Click to expand...

Yeah, if you want to be stuck on a coach with people who moan, stink, are late getting back, etc etc etc.

We only took one coach journey (to Kennedy), and we wished we had taken the car.
 
Gonna go twice this year, summer and for Xmas. I usually go every Xmas but my littleun has been too young for us to go, so this year I am going to start to make up for lost time. :D

I never hire a car though, use the Panda buses or the disney free buses, you meet some amazing people.
 
My boss has a villa in Florida which he lets when he's not using it. I'm tempted to hire it, but I figure that if I broke something or barfed on his carpets, it could be a career terminating move.
 
GarethDW said:
My boss has a villa in Florida which he lets when he's not using it. I'm tempted to hire it, but I figure that if I broke something or barfed on his carpets, it could be a career terminating move.
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I wouldnt be too worried, just offer to pay for it, or rent it off him through his managment company, so you'll be treated like a regular visitor.
 
Been a few times and would really recommend the villa and rent a car options. Oh, and if you do chose the villa option, complain about the littlest of things. We went one year with the grandparents and they blagged a HUGE villa, the swimming pool was the size of a lake and had tropical plants etc all around it. must have been the biggest one on the estate. They only complained about a few aints and some trouble getting the key.
 
When is the best time of the year to go? Just been speaking to my gf and she suggestsed going the end of March?

Whats the weather like then? Everything open etc?
 
I went this past Aug/Sept (Followed into) .... Erm, It was great, best two weeks of my life to say the least.

Very easy to travel if you're on the International Drive, everything is there! = Outlets are amazing, all designer brands if you are into that are like 50% off the UK marked price.

Get a 2 week Idrive pass (the busses which go up and down the idrive)... Think they are $20 a person, and thats unlimited usage, on the other hand you can pay $1 each time you 'hop on'. - You will use it a lot though if you have no car.

We never had a car, as our hotel took us to all parks (some for a small charge) not a big issue, and no hassle of driving I guess.

Enjoy your stay! - Any questions feel free to keep asking in this thread!:)
 
Driving in Florida is great fun. Being able to turn right on a red and let's not forget those big ass crossroads (no roundabouts) so everytime you wanna turn left you brace yourself, close your eyes and floor it and pray that one of those vast array of traffic lights suspended up there (pointing in every imaginable direction) means you can turn left without the need to have your holiday health insurance details at the ready to show the paramedics.:D

Other than that, Seaworld for the win.
 
Ok been speaking to the gf again and were now thinking about going in late September? Is that hurricaine season and if so what are the chances of getting really bad weather?

I know its a bit of a daft question as obviously no one can predict a hurricaine this far in advance but just wondering if anyone has been before late September

Mark
 
I went in the first two weeks of September, (this sept which has just gone)...exceptional weather, almost 40 degrees C... Florida is generally sunny all round. - Hurricane season is for like 3 months over the entire summer, but Orlando is not in that kind of area if you get my drift.
 
Also with going sept/oct the parks are a lot less busy ,and its still about 30-33
get a car its far far better with one .
 
I'd definately get a car if you can. It doesn't really feel like you're driving on the wrong side of the road, because the whole car is reversed, it only takes a few seconds to figure out what's going on. All of the major attractions in Florida are very well sign posted, so you really can't miss them - I was able to navigate to them when I was 8 :p.
You haven't said how old you are though, renting a car can be tricky if you're under 25, depending on the company, so you could end up stuck with buses anyway.
 
I spend time out in America jumping, and I couldn't cope without a car.

Even though I spend 90% of my time in the same place, it's still sooo useful. You don't even save that much money, car hire is cheap when split and saves you bus fares and, most important saves hassle and gives flexibility. Do it!!!
 
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