We’re just coming back from Orlando where we have been visiting family and had a blast at Disney, Hollywood Studios, Universal, SeaWorld, and we’re staying at Gaylord Palms! Our favorite time to visit Orlando, Florida is during the off season. Yes, you heard me right – in the winter. Why?
- The theme parks are swarmed with visitors when kids are out of school {spring break and summer seem to be the busiest}
- Hotels are cheaper when fewer guests are in town.
- The weather is perfect. It’s usually between 60-85 degrees. Forget those summer temps.
Gaylord Palms Hotel
Visiting Gaylord Palms is such a treat anytime of the year, but we especially enjoyed staying here during the holiday season. There’s so much to do during this time of year but the Christmas decorations are just amazing as well!
The staff at Gaylord Palms is awesome! They are so friendly and quick to help from the moment you step out of your car when you arrive until they wave goodbye when you leave.
We especially enjoyed the FREE shuttles to and from the Disney parks all day everyday. Yep, no paying to park at each park you visit. Pretty nice, huh?
Some of the many attractions you can take part in during the holidays are: ICE!, The Christmassy DreamWorks Experience, Gingy’s Ginerbread Making, & more!
The rooms are extremely nice, clean, and recently renovated. You definitely get your money’s worth at Gaylord Palms. Like other Gaylord hotels, you won’t be disappointed! This hotel is perfect for families while vacationing in Orlando, or couples here for a romantic getaway.
To learn more about Gaylord Palms, follow them on Twitter and Instagram, & “Like” them on Facebook.
Magic Kingdom
Who doesn’t love Magic Kingdom? I mean, the place is so magical and it’s every child’s dream! Magic Kingdom is one of our favorite parks at Walt Disney World.
“See fantasy become a reality as you explore Adventureland, Frontierland, Liberty Square, Fantasyland—open while undergoing the largest expansion in Magic Kingdom history.
The must see things at Magic Kingdom to us are: The Laugh Factory, Buzz Lightyear’s Space Ranger Spin, and the Pirates of the Caribbean ride. Our favorite place to eat is Peco Bill Tall Tale Inn & Cafe. They have everything from taco salads to burgers to BBQ pork sandwiches. Oh, and the desserts? Ah-mazing!
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Hollywood Studios
Hollywood Studios I think is my second favorite Disney park in Orlando. It’s the one place where you can see movie sets and your kids can see their favorite TV show characters. This park has 8 sections: Hollywood Boulevard, Echo Lake, Sunset Boulevard, Streets of America, Commissary Lane, Pixar Place, Mickey Avenue and Animation Courtyard areas.
The boys had two favorite things about the park: (1) The Indiana Jones Show, (2) Star Tours – the ride. Emerson (our 1 year old) loved seeing and meeting Mater & Lightening McQueen at Hollywood Studios. Ohh, and he loved the duck friends that he made.
SeaWorld Orlando
We went to SeaWorld and spent all day at the park. The shows were great {as usual} and we loved seeing all the sea creatures. The first show we saw was the Clyde & Seamore show. Oh my goodness, the boys thought this was hilarious! This show is definitely one of the more comical productions at SeaWorld.
Another great show was the One Ocean show at the Shamu Stadium. Wow, the whale’s were so great to watch! Majestic killer whales join you on a journey into a world that drenches your senses in vivid colors, vitality, and the global rhythms of the ocean in our all-new Shamu show, One Ocean.
One of my favorite exhibits were the penguins.
“Explore the biggest and most expansive attraction in SeaWorld Orlando’s history, Antarctica: Empire of the Penguin. This epic exploration of a mysterious world blends animal encounters with an exhilarating family ride for a one-of-a-kind experience the whole family will enjoy. Be transported to an icy world like you’ve never seen before. Experience the majestic grandeur of the South Pole and see it through the penguins’ eyes on an exhilarating, first-of-its-kind family ride. Then, step out and explore their colony in an expanse that envelops you in cool extremes: bringing you above and below their icy world.”
Tip for the Park: Arrive to the park when it opens. Be the first to decide which rides you want to go on and which shows you want to see before the crowd arrives. Others usually show up about an hour after the park opens and it gets crowded.
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Tip for the Park: Arrive early before everyone else. This will help you decide which rides, shows, and exhibits you’d like to see first and it won’t be crowded. After the park has been open about an hour, it tends to get full.
Universal Studios Park
First off, I want to say how extremely helpful the Online Planning Tool was when we were trying to figure out what we should and shouldn’t see at Universal. The Vacation Planner helps guests plan their Universal Orlando vacation in a fun and interactive way — all from the comfort of their home. The vacation planner allows guests to completely customize their vacation and have access to experiential videos, personal recommendations, travel tips, sample itineraries, vacation packages and more.
The vacation planner can be accessed by clicking the “Plan Your Visit” tab on the Universal Orlando website. Guests are presented with three options to jumpstart their planning process: Watch, Customize and Browse. This is what our vacation planner turned out to tell us what to see and where, after putting in all our info about our trip.
This was by far our favorite park that we visited this week. Universal has two parks, Universal itself and then Island of Adventure. Universal is great for older kids and adults, however Island of Adventure is great for families with kids & adults of all ages! Wow, we were blown away with how much there was to do and see here.
Every where you turn there is a new adventure to take on at Island of Adventure. Take an unforgettable journey through the uniquely themed islands of Universal’s Islands of Adventure, where the world’s most cutting edge rides, shows and interactive attractions bring your favorite stories, myths, cartoons, comic book heroes and children’s tales to life.
Our favorite area was the Dr. Seuss Landing. All of us rode the One Fish, Two Fish, Red Fish, Blue Fish ride. Even little “E”. Everyone squealed as they got wet (don’t worry you don’t get soaked but you do get wet. Just enough to cool you off). Then the older boys and I rode the High in the Sky Seuss Trolley Train. We were sad that the Cat in the Hat ride was closed while we were there. That was one thing we definitely wanted to do. Oh well, gives us a reason to go back.
The older boys really enjoyed the Wizarding World of Harry Potter area of the park. It’s new and so well done! The rides were fantastic and the shops and town itself made you feel like you were inside the story of Harry Potter.
There was so much we didn’t get to do because we ran out of time at the park. My boys are already asking when we can return to Island of Adventure. Universal had the some of the best customer service too. When we arrived at “will call”, Courtney was so friendly and helpful. We definitely took a liking to her.
Tip for the Park: Due to the popularity of our new attractions like The Wizarding World of Harry Potter, at Universal’s Islands of Adventure, and Hollywood Rip Ride Rockit, at Universal Studios, we recommend you purchase at least a 2-Day Ticket with park-to-park access. Also, make sure you get the Express Pass. We had these and flew on past the lines. We never had to wait for a ride or attraction. Was so worth the money and it’s only a little more!
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We’re anxious to return to Orlando. Our trip was fantastic and not long enough. What are your favorite attractions in the Orlando area?
Looks like so much fun Meghan! We love traveling during the off season too 🙂