When we visited our beautiful villa in Orlando in June we made a trip to Hollywood Studios to see the new interactive ride, 'Toy Story Mania'. However, we were not there early enough, having 'hopped' from Epcot first, and found that the queues were horrendously long - over two hours - and there were no fast passes left. We left disappointed, vowing to make sure that next time we would go there first. So when we visited our home again, in December, we made sure that Hollywood Studios was first on our list of parks, and that 'Toy Story Mania' was the first attraction we headed for when we reached the park.

So it was that we set off bright and early for Hollywood Studios, and luckily our villa is only a few short minutes away so we arrived at the gates just as they opened. We made a beeline for the Pixar area, which can be found behind Mickey's Sorcerer's Hat, which dominates the central area of Hollywood Studios. Located in the area which once housed 'Who Wants To Be a Millionaire,' this new attraction has been a huge success. The first view of this attraction is when you walk under the huge 'Pixar' sign which is suspended above the walkway. Even outside there are some great features - look up and see the giant Scrabble board which hang down the front of the building.

We were delighted to see that the wait times were only about 20 minutes, so we dashed over to get our fast passes for later in the day, and then stood in line at the entrance. We were not to be disappointed, as this is a really stunning attraction, and the fun starts the minute you walk round the corner into the main waiting area. As we entered we picked up 3-D glasses, and then made our way round and round the queuing area. This was brightly decorated with an amazing array of huge toys - giant crayons, bricks etc.

All of this makes you feel as if you have been shrunk to the size of a toy, when in reality the toys have been made to a large scale.  Despite quite a long queue, the time went quickly as there was so much to look at around the room, and hanging from the ceiling. As we reached the rear of this area we could see Mr Potato Head, interacting with the crowd and cracking jokes. Occasionally a body part would pop loose which is highly amusing.

The time seemed to pass in a flash and we soon found ourselves walking through to the vehicle area.  The vehicles themselves are partitioned, so that each couple face a different way. You sit back to back with the other couple, with a partition between you. In front of you is a toy cannon, which fires when you pull a string, and there are two cannons in each section of the train. The aim is to fire at targets in the game booths on the way.

We sat down quickly and familiarised ourselves with the cannon, before donning our 3-D glasses, ready for the off! The vehicle started on its way and we were soon in front of a practise target. A good tip is to keep firing, as you never run out of ammunition. The practice over, we were off to the real games. The route is themed, with about 12 scenes, each hosted by a character from Toy Story and Toy Story 2. We saw Buzz, Woody, Bo Peep, Hamm, and the Little Green Men who cheer you on. The aim is to hit the targets, and rack up the highest score. The cars do spin, but it is fairly mild. Each of the targets has a different score - the ones at the bottom of the game are often higher, so look out for the highest scoring targets and aim for them. It is surprisingly easy to get the hang of it, much easier than the Buzz Lightyear attraction at Magic Kingdom.

There are six mini-games including Pie Throw Practice Booth, Hamm and Eggs, Bo Peep's Baa-loon Pop, Green Army Men Shoot Camp, Buzz Lightyear's Flying Tossers, and Woody's Rootin' Tootin' Shootin' Gallery. The detail is brilliant, and your score is recorded on an onboard display screen.

We really enjoyed this attraction, and had great fun zapping away. We couldn't wait to do it again, although our fast passes were not for another couple of hours. Second time round it was even better, and it is definitely on our list of 'must do's' for the next time we visit Orlando. Make sure you go there first if you want to be sure of doing it, and get your fast passes first so that you can try it again later in the day. It's brilliant!

Submitted by "ellie" view her property here:  http://www.perfectfloridavillas.com/main/prop.aspx?pID=183

Mrs McCullum and her husband, Ian from Edinburgh, Scotland had long dreamed of taking their family to Disneyworld in Orlando, Florida. She states that “Having 3 children, I had always thought that it would be too expensive” Then she started looking into doing the trip in an independent way instead of using a package holiday. “ I started searching for flights and found that they were much more expensive during the kids school holidays, so we managed to work it so that they would only miss one week of school, the prices were much better" By this time Ian’s Mother and Father had also indicated that they would love to go along too.

So the next step was to find somewhere to stay when she was getting prices for hotel rooms the cost started to get quite high. To be comfortable she didn’t want to cram her and her husband and 3 kids into a hotel room. “The youngest Chloe was 5, Joe was 12 and Janine was 14, so it would have been a bit cramped. This meant looking at 2 rooms for us and one for my in-laws. It was then that my mother-in-law suggested that we rent a villa. I did a search on Google and found Orlando Villas from Perfect Florida Villas. I am so glad that I did, I was able to browse through the large selection homes on offer, able to choose the location and amenities etc. We narrowed it down to a short list and ended up choosing a gorgeous villa on Calabay Parc. We had some great chats with the owner and she gave us tons of advice that proved very useful. It had a games room, PC and free international phone calls. The pool was marvellous and we had the sun most of the day. The kids loved it. The cost of the villa for the 2 weeks was much less than the hotels we were looking at working out to £900 for all 7 of us and we loved the comfort and freedom.

It was a great holiday and we hope to repeat it again next year and would not consider staying in a hotel room. Thank you Perfect Florida Villas!”

 

After a cold winter Orlando is under going some very hot Spring weather with temperatures reaching the upper 90’s. This is the time that Florida needs some rain as we start to see some wild fires cropping up in various parts of the state. Also villa owners and other home owners don’t want to see their lawns drying up and dying.

So the time is finally just about here when we set off for our next visit to Orlando Florida. I know most UK visitors go for 2 weeks and many US visitors for less but this is our first time for so short a visit. Well 15 days to be precise. It is niggling away at me that the time will just fly by. Circumstances are such that it is only possible to visit for this amount of time so we will have to make the most of it and cram everything in.

 We didn't visit last year instead we went to Jamaica which was a nice change but I must confess to missing my "Florida Fix". If we had been going for more time we probably would have gone to our favourite haunt of Ft Myers for some chill out time. Maybe next time. 

As it has been two years since visiting Orlando I expect to see quite a lot of changes as things move so fast there. We fly out on Tuesday with Virgin Atlantic. I am pleased we always fly Virgin and that they are one of the more stable airlines with a lot of cash behind them. I feel so sorry for those that have recently suffered losses through the collapse of the XL group.

 

Anyway when we get back I will write a trip report.

So you have decided to rent an Orlando villa for this year's vacation. So what do you do next? First visit a site such as Orlando Villas by Perfect Florida Villas or Florida Villas Elite and take a look at what is on offer. Browse or search the villas to find the perfect villa for your trip. Check to see the distances from the theme parks if this is one of your reasons to visit. Most all of the villas listed are within 10 -15 mins of Walt Disney World. If you have any questions you can ask the owner directly and they will only be too happy to help. Once you have selected the villa or villas you are interested in send out your enquiry. Be sure to list any preferences that you would like, such as, games room or South facing pool etc.

Next you will receive replies form owners meeting your requirements. They will confirm that they have availability and give you a total price for the period. You will see just what good value it represents especially for larger families and groups. Once again, if you have any questions feel free to ask. Once your mind is made up and you have chosen your dream villa contact the owner and let them know. They will ask you to send a deposit to secure the booking. There will be nothing else to pay until the final balance is due. This could be anywhere from 8 - 12 weeks prior to you arriving in Orlando. With the final balance a security deposit is normally required, some owners take a swipe of a credit card to cover this. The security deposit is like a damage bond and if there is no damage the owner will return it shortly after your departure from the villa. The security deposit amount is around $300/£200 for the stay. 

Shortly before you arrive at your chosen villa you will be given the details of how to get to it and how to gain access. Almost all of the villas have a lock box on the outside or an electronic door lock that has a code to allow access. Inside the lock box you will find the door keys after entering a code. This eliminates the need to have to travel to a central point to pick up keys which is great especially after a long flight.

I'm sure you will be sad to leave your new found home and will not be able to wait till you can return. If you do wish to come back in future years contact the owner and ask if they would give you a discount, most owners do give a discount to repeat visitors.

 That's about all there is to it. If you would like to rent the property above visit Orlando Villas.

If you want things to run smoothly, well, as smoothly as possible it is best to know before you go so that you can be prepared for some of the things that you will face and hopefully make it a less stressful journey.
If you are an International traveller say, from the UK, the first thing to decide when planning your trip is whether or not to stay at the Airport the night before. This of course depends on how far away you live from the Airport. I live around 3-4 hours away from Gatwick and probably 3 hours from Manchester.  I prefer to travel down to the airport the day before and enjoy a good night’s rest at an airport hotel. Plus I think it adds an extra day to your trip! The thing you don’t want especially if travelling with small children is to be leaving home in the middle of the night and arriving with not much time to spare at the airport. One great thing about Virgin Atlantic is that they have “Twilight Check-in” This means that you can check your luggage in after 12 noon  up till 9pm the day before you fly. This is a great service and means that you don’t have to cart your heavy suitcases with you to hotel rooms.  If you do decide to drive down prior to your flight, make sure you leave yourself with more than enough time.
 
When checking in at the airport make sure you have all your documents ready, passports for all travellers, flight tickets or eTickets etc. I always think it is a good idea to keep all of your documents in a handy sized wallet that contains all of the above along with Drivers Licence, any vouchers for Car Hire, Hotel rooms and so on. This then should be kept in your carry on luggage.  You will answer some security questions here. Once you bags are checked in, you may have time to do some duty free shopping. Just don’t buy too much so that you have too much carry on luggage. Remember that Airports no longer make flight announcements they will tell you on check –in your departure gate and to keep an eye on the monitors for flight information. If you have time it is a good idea to fill out the Green Visa Waiver forms (I-95) that you were given at check-in. If you weren’t given any or made a mistake don’t worry they will give them to you on the flight.  If you do make a mistake don’t alter anything just get a new one. You will have probably already done the advanced passenger information, if not you do that here. This just has all your details and where you are staying in the US. This info is sent over prior to you leaving your home country. You can find out more about Advanced Passenger Information and Visa Waiver forms here.

Boarding the flight can take upwards of an hour and most airlines ask that you be at the gate an hour before departure. From the point of checking in your luggage to boarding you will pass through several security checks. The rules for what you can take onboard with you are constantly changing and it is advisable to check with the airline the current policy. If you are taking laptops with you you may well be asked to take them out of their case/bag and place them on the scanner, remove any coins and any other metal objects from your clothing and place them in the receptacle provided and put them through the scanner along with all of your carry on luggage. You will have to dispose of cigarette lighters but you may have a box of matches?? You may be asked to remove your footwear and place them on the scanner. Once you pass through the detector you will be able to gather up all of your belongings and continue to the duty free shops. Before finally boarding the flight you may be pulled over yet again for a quick search.
 
The flight could be 9 + hours, so again if you have children, try and take something to keep them occupied. Some of the airlines have seatback TV’s with some kids programming. When travelling with Virgin Atlantic kids get a rucksack type bag with lots of goodies in them, this helps to while away some time.  By the time that you arrive at your Airport, be it Orlando International (MCO) or Sanford (SFD) or Miami (MIA) you will be feeling a little weary but will find renewed energy at the prospect of being in the Sun and fun of Orlando or wherever you have entered Florida! Except for small children, this has been a long tiring journey for them and they may start to resent the fact that they are not tucked up in bed!

Once you arrive at immigration, again get out you document wallet and produce your passports, your correctly completed visa waiver forms for all travellers. They can be quite strict here and they have a lot of power and can refuse you admission if they so wish. So be polite and don’t argue with them over anything. You will have your picture taken and your index finger scanned. Once through this part you pick up your bags from the carousel and proceed to Customs. Make sure you have not brought anything made from animal products, fruit etc. Though the airline should have advised you of this before you land in Florida.
 
Final stop, and the last time you will need your document wallet is to either pick up your rental car or get your airport transfer to where you are staying. You are finally on your way. Although it sounds like a lot of hassle it is not really and it is better to be safe than sorry. It is well worth it anyway! You can find more information about Car Rental pickup at Driving in Orlando and at Orlando Car Hire

Car Hire & Rental Pick Up.

When you arrive at the car rental desk, whether it be Dollar, Alamo or Budget, you will need to produce your UK driving licence, both parts, for all the drivers that are on your vehicle rental agreement. You will also need your rental voucher. You will have received this either with your travel documents if you have booked a package holiday or if you booked it direct from one of the many car rental suppliers on the net. Generally there is a queue/line here and you normally wait around 20 minutes. Sometimes if there are a group of people in your party it would be a good idea to get the driver/drivers to go straight to the rental desks whilst the rest of the group attend to the luggage. It is important that all drivers sign the rental agreement for insurance purposes. You will have to leave a credit card imprint at the desk and, depending what type of reservation you have, you have to pay for a tank of fuel at inflated prices, meaning you can bring the vehicle back empty. They may try to talk you into upgrading your vehicle, unless you really do want to, don’t bother. It’s more expensive to do it that way and also you will probably get the vehicle they are trying to get you to upgrade to anyway as they have run out of your type of vehicle. The latest thing now is to give  you the option of a daily fee to use the tolls free of charge. This may be of some benefit for those that have to pass through tolls quite regularly to get to and from the accommodation. I believe that you only get charged if you use it, so if you don't pass through a toll for 3 days then there is no charge. If you do pass through one 10 times one day you only pay the daily rate. Apart from that don't bother with any of the insurance top ups that they offer if you have purchased all inclusive from the UK.

Dollar Car Rental:
They will allocate a car for you based on the voucher you have they more than likely will try to talk you into an upgrade. One thing that may be of interest, if you decide to visit Florida on a regular basis, or every year, you can go to the dollar website and sign up for their "Dollar Express" card. Online you submit all your driving licence details etc. They are then stored on the system and they have a special express line at the desks which has hardly anyone in it, so this can really speed things up.

Alamo Car Rental:
They will allocate you a car based on your voucher and again will try to get you to upgrade and do all the things Dollar do. You then go to the garage and get to pick the car that you want from your category section of the garage. Nice if you don’t like Red cars for example!

Budget Car Rental:
Much the same procedure as Dollar.

Vehicles get allocated to size of party if booked through a holiday company such as Virgin holidays etc. The thing to remember about US cars the boot/trunk is normally quite small.

Have you ever considered renting an Orlando Villa or a vacation home elsewhere in Florida? It is probably one of the least thought about options available to visitors to Florida. I think the first thing the majority of people visiting tend to think about is booking a hotel.
 
Hotels are fine for a couple of nights, but anymore than that they become less attractive. Plus any more than 2 people sharing a room can be problematic too. With Orlando Villas or any vacation homes in Florida for that matter, you get so much more for your money. The cost of homes in Florida can actually work out cheaper if you are travelling in a larger group, but even for a group of 4 it can not be that much more expensive. Take a look at Orlando Villas by Perfect Florida Villas and check out some of the rates.  
 
Privacy and space is at a premium with vacation homes even for mom and dad with the kids. Being stuck in one hotel room with tired kids can be very trying to say the least. Keeping the TV sound low so as not to disturb them. The Kids waking early in the morning before you. These are all things that can be a bit of a pain. In a villa you can put the kids to bed in their own bedrooms, sit on comfortable seating watch a bit if TV with a glass of wine maybe? Even take a late night swim in your private pool. Speaking of private pools, this is one of the highlights for kids staying in a villa. They want to get in there when they first get up in the morning and can't wait to get home in the evening to have another swim. All vacation homes have alarms on doors leading to the pool deck and/or a removable safety fence around the pool itself. This is the law in Florida.
 
 Another side to look at is dining. You can, if you wish, do as little or as much cooking as you want in these homes. They come equipped with everything you could need to conjure up that gourmet meal. Even if you want to order takeout food or bring it home with you there is ample seating around the dining table. In fact everything thing you need to live here is provided from linens, towels, utensils and crockery. You only need bring your clothes and you can wash and dry them all before you leave if you wish in the washer and dryer provided.
 
Many homes now have Games rooms with pool tables, foosball and darts. Some homes have Jacuzzis or hot tubs, some have BBQ's, high speed internet, free long distance and international phone calls. There is so much to choose from all at very reasonable rates. So why not go along to Orlando Villas by Perfect Florida Villas and check some of them out.

(Courtesy WESH 2 news)
ORLANDO, Fla. -- A new way of dividing the lines could have travelers moving faster through airport security.

Orlando International Airport began a testing phase Tuesday using new procedures that could make getting through the security screening phase a little more convenient.

Passengers are divided into three lines. One line is for families and inexperienced travelers, a second for the casual traveler, and a third line is dedicated to the expert who wants to quickly get through the line.

"The family line is slightly slower, but it gives people who need the extra time to fold up a stroller or a wheelchair," said Transportation Security Administration spokesman Lee Kair. "It gives them a little extra time to get through the process without being rushed."

The security separation is only in the test phase. If it's well-received, six more airports will adopt the new lines.

The new procedure was first introduced in Salt Lake City; OIA is the third Airport to test it.
 
It seems to me the only people to benefit from this are business travelers who get fed up with waiting in line with tourists. As most travelers are families that visit Orlando, I would imagine those lines will be huge!