Welcome to our Florida Guide. Your one-stop shop for vacation planning for that trip of a lifetime to Florida! http://www.villasflorida.com/orlando_guide/ en-us Copyright 2008, Orlando Villas LLC. All Rights Reserved. info@orlandovillas.com http://www.orlandovillas.com/pictures/rss/logo.gif http://www.orlandovillas.com/ 75 50 http://www.onlinefloridavillas.com/orlando_guide/bone-fish-grill.aspx They have opened a Bonefish Grill at the Loop. I have to say this has to be one of my favorite restaurants! The restaurant is not too fancy and but the décor is very well done and comfortable. Their pricing is very reasonable, 2 adults can have an appetizer, dinner and drinks for about $55. 00 to $60. 00. They offer a variety of fresh fish prepared with several options. If you like Ahi Tuna it’s wonderful with the pan Asian sauce is amazingly good! I can’t go there without ordering the Bang Bang Shrimp, and it seems they have added something new to the menu called hand held’s for diners who want to eat lighter meals or dine more casually. This sounds like a great addition to the menu! I have frequently ordered the specials that they offer and can say I have not been disappointed with anything I have ever ordered! They offer drink specials every day for $5. 00 which includes Wine, Margaritas, Martini’s and Peach Long Island Ice Tea’s. I am not a wine drinker myself, but the do o... http://www.onlinefloridavillas.com/orlando_guide/healthy-eating-in-orlando.aspx During our last visit to Orlando in September 2008 I was determined not to gain the usual 5 pounds in weight so I decided to find healthy alternatives to my usual chicken sandwich and fries delicious though they may be. Our first meal was at Applebee’s as it is close to our villa just off the US 27. I was delighted to find a dedicated weight watchers menu with a varied selection all quoting calories and fat content. I opted for the Cajun Lime Tilapia served with Broccoli, which was delicious and very filling. We also tried Chillis Bar and Grill at Championsgate which again had a dedicated menu called Guiltless Grills offering Salmon, Black Bean Burger, chicken platter and chicken sandwich. I opted for the salmon, which was very tasty, but next time I think I will try the chicken sandwich which I noticed flying by on the way to another table. TGI Fridays also has a selection of healthy alternatives which typically have 10g of fat and less than 500 calories. We tried the Dragon Fir... http://www.onlinefloridavillas.com/orlando_guide/cruise-and-stay.aspx What could be better than two weeks at Disney World Florida . . . ? Two weeks at Disney followed by a luxurious Caribbean cruise. These are our two favourites types of holiday and we are lucky enough to be able to combine both. We spend the majority of our time in Orlando and then head off down to Miami or Fort Lauderdale for a week of relaxation after our busy time in the Disney area. Occasionally there are cruises out of Port Canaveral and we have cruised Carnival from Canaveral once, but the majority of cruises leave from further south. It is an easy 4/5 hour drive and we arrive in plenty of time for the late afternoon sailaway. We usually share an inside cabin, which does take some getting used to after spreading out in a spacious 4 bed villa, but as we don and rsquo; t spend much time in the cabin and there is a huge difference in the price of cabins, budget usually wins. After all the hustle and bustle of Orlando, it is nice to spend a week relaxing, having all our meals ... http://www.onlinefloridavillas.com/orlando_guide/travelling-with-infants.aspx We have travelled to Florida for many years and as a Health Visitor and mum of two girls I feel well qualified to offer advice to others contemplating a long haul flight with small children. On most flights to Florida you will find others with infants, so you will not be alone. Providing you plan ahead and are well prepared the flight should be pretty easy. Firstly be prepared for the journey, if you are travelling with infants who are formula fed, it would be best to take ample cartons of ready made formula feed which can be poured into an already sterilized and sealed bottle. Recent advice from the Department of Health (UK) discourages the making up of infant formula in advance. The other option would be to ask the cabin crew to fill your sterilized feeding bottle with recently boiled water, allow this to cool for about 30 minutes before adding the infant formula powder and then cool rapidly in cold water until it is at a suitable temperature for your baby. Ensure you have enough... http://www.onlinefloridavillas.com/orlando_guide/bargain-shopping-trip.aspx Comfortable shoes are a must. Dress as though you were doing a day in Disney! Most of the Malls have free parking and it is good to have the car nearby so you can make frequent trips back to your car boot (or trunk) to unload your bags and keep your arms free! Make sure you pack things in the boot though and do not leave shopping on show. Although in general, prices in the stores are very good with most items matching the pound in dollars, for example, when the exchange rate is a favourable £1= $2 the goods are actually near enough half price. However with the recent drop in of the Pound to the Dollar rate, shoppers have to be a bit more resourceful to find a bargain, but there are still plenty to be had. The Orlando area is the home of the shopper, from large malls with all the big names to smaller discount stores, Orlando has it all and here is one of my favourites. The Osceola Square Mall is located 7. 5 miles east of I-4 on the highway 192 (in the opposite direction to the Di... http://www.onlinefloridavillas.com/orlando_guide/merritt-island.aspx When you are all out of hustle and bustle of the theme parks, why not see a little of what the real Florida can offer there is so much more if you just look past the theme parks Just a one hour’s drive from Orlando along the Beeline (528) to the east is a wonderful peaceful area that takes you back to the old Florida. Take the 95 to Titusville and then it is just a short hop across the water to Merritt Island. Once on the island there is a choice of interesting thing to see and do. Try the visitor centre, you can see and learn all about the wild life in the area, there is a board-walk that takes you to some quiet un-spoilt viewing points where you are very likely to see fish, maybe an alligator, many types of birds and other animals. A little further onto the island is the nature drive about 5 miles long. Take it slowly; we have always seen at least one alligator drifting in the shallow waters they are difficult to see but well worth the slow drive. There is a main stopping point w... http://www.onlinefloridavillas.com/orlando_guide/rivership-romance-cruises.aspx For something a little different , we tried a river cruise Sunday Brunch meal, plus great entertainment. The rivership Romance cruises out of Sanford Harbor, over Lake Monroe and then along the St Johns river. Florida’s St. Johns river flows from the wetlands to the South right up to Jacksonville and the Atlantic Ocean providing a home for Heron, Eagles, Osprey, Manatee and Alligators. You can enjoy a relaxed, soothing ride on a luncheon or moonlight cruise on the great 200 seater rivership watching the river glide past in air conditioned decks or stroll the outer decks, take photos or dance In the lounge to the great entertainers who regularly play aboard the ship. Arriving at Sanford harbour we were quickly ushered aboard and seated (after having previously booked by phone). We were immediately greeted by our host, MC (and vocalist! ) for the trip, Dave Johnson, who pointed out the facilities and a few safety instructions in a light hearted and smooth way. Then we were on our... http://www.onlinefloridavillas.com/orlando_guide/trip-to-the-everglades.aspx In March 2008 my wife and I celebrated our 30th wedding anniversary. Having had a pretty spectacular 25th anniversary with a 10 day tour of California taking in San Francisco, Yosemite, Las Vegas, the Hoover Dam and Death Valley, we knew we had a hard act to follow. This time we decided to have a more relaxing break but to take in the Everglades and Florida Keys. On the morning of our anniversary we got up early and left our Hampton Lakes villa heading towards Tampa and then dropping south on the 75. Breakfast was at Post Charlotte where we eventually found the sea but ended up having pancakes in a Cracker Barrel just south of the town. We then proceeded south heading for Everglade City which we reached around 11. 00am. Having never been to the everglades before, we were a bit unsure of what to expect. We had decided on an airboat trip but had no idea how to book and what was a sensible cost. The tourist information centre was very helpful and although not able to recommend a particu... http://www.onlinefloridavillas.com/orlando_guide/gatorland-orlando-florida.aspx An interesting and local attraction for all ages. It and rsquo;s a place you drive past and comment on very much like it and rsquo; s nearest neighbour Tupperware HQ on the way to Costco or the Florida Mall. The time we arranged to go our plans were tharted due to the extensive fire in the entrance area, the large landmark open alligator mouth. Not to be put of we planned it for our return visit last april. In the 6 months following the fire they have redeveloped an entrance area, and distracted away from the damage. On entering the park it and rsquo; s worth taking note of the show times, they seem very tacky but great family fun, involving the park staff and visitors fully. The gator wrestling wwas a hit even with our 5 yr old who was so imresssed, but not eenough to go for her picture taken. However many were there for the once in a lifetime experience of an upclose encounter with an alligator. The breeding program explains the whole development cycle and growth processes, s... http://www.onlinefloridavillas.com/orlando_guide/flea-market-great-day-out.aspx Regular visitors to the Orlando/Disney may well have stopped off at the Flea Markets on the 192. The two main locations on the 192 are a popular stop for bargain shoppers with each having around 2-300 booths selling all kinds of goods, from jewellery to car accessories to tee shirts to cd’s right through to bizarre tools to extract teeth and even assault-tazers of all things. Well if you’ve visited these booths on the 192 and liked what you see then there are a couple of treats awaiting you further east on the 192 heading towards St Cloud, and also up north near Sanford Airport – both of which only open at weekends and are far bigger than their smaller weekday cousins. The one closest to most of the Orlando area Vacation homes is the “Osceola Flea and Famers Market”. This is held every Friday, Saturday and Sunday and opens at 8am, closing at 5pm. It is located on the 192 between Kissimmee and St Cloud at 2801 East Irlo Bronson Memorial Highway, about 5 miles east of Historic Downto... http://www.onlinefloridavillas.com/orlando_guide/madeira-beach-johns-pass.aspx We discovered Madeira Beach in 1988 on our first trip to Florida back in 1988. We stayed in a cheap motel right on the beach and it was lovely to walk out of our room, around the pool and straight onto the white sandy beach. Madeira Beach is located on the Gulf of Mexico between Clearwater and St Pete Beach. From here we could walk along the beach for about 30 minutes to Johns Pass and amp; Boardwalk. (The next time we visited we had two young children and we walked all the way there to find neither of us had taken any cash to get them a drink or an ice cream). The boardwalk has changed a lot in the last 20 years. We were there for a day last summer and there are some lovely shops, restaurants and bars there now. We loved the seafood restaurant on the boardwalk and if its cool enough you can sit outside and watch the boats coming and going throught the pass. We went on a dolphin cruise from there and it was excellent, we saw loads of dolphins close to the boat, playing and showi... http://www.onlinefloridavillas.com/orlando_guide/siesta-key.aspx During our 3rd visit to Florida in May 2008 since having our daughter, we decided to spend some time at the beach. There are hundreds of beautiful beaches in Florida to choose from. Previously we have visited Blind Pass and Stump Pass near Rotonda, which were idyllic, but this year we decided on Siesta Key. It was about a 2 and a half hour drive from Orlando and we arrived in plenty of time to settle in ready to go out and explore. On our first day we visited Siesta Key beach, which has white power like sand that stays cool during even the hottest parts of the day. There was always a cool breeze and the sea was beautifully clear although a little chilly. Not that it stopped our two-year-old daughter Jessica from taking quite a few dips with daddy using her inflatable ring The facilities were very good, with nearby toilets and showers together with lots of places to get something to eat or drink. We opted for a picnic on the beach under our little tent that we bought to protect Jessi... http://www.onlinefloridavillas.com/orlando_guide/downtown-kissimmee.aspx When you find that you have a Friday or Saturday evening available and you feel you need a break from the World of Disney, take a journey back in time and visit Downtown Kissimmee to watch the vintage and custom car parade and enjoy the many other surrounding entertainments. From the parking lot head for the entertainment the fun-fair has many attraction that suit both young and old with several carousels, a roller-coaster and one of those vertical drop towers to compact your spine should you be too tall! ! You can try the reverse trip at the other end of the street and we tell you about that later. For a while, the vintage and customized cars are on static display in the main narrow street that becomes a pedestrian area. Taking a slow walk from one end to the other can be an ideal solution for the average couple. The chaps envy and stare at the hardware with fins and chrome and hoods open with 5 litre plus engines and talk to the proud owners who are polishing and preening in the ... http://www.onlinefloridavillas.com/orlando_guide/day-at-the-lightning.aspx Of the thousands of activities available to the Floridian holiday-maker, few offer the same experience as that of the National Hockey League. Tucked away in the heart of metropolitan Tampa lies the St Petes Times Forum, home of the Tampa Bay Lightning, winners of the 2004 Stanley Cup - the Ice Hockey equivalent of the Premier League. The Lightning are one of the best followed teams in the league, undoubtedly as a result of playing in one of the most modern and comfortable arenas in the world. The front line is led by arguably the best line of players in the world in Vincent LeCavalier, Martin St Louis and Brad Richards, and as a unit they are a young, exciting hockey club with a thriving infrastructure and bright future. Considering the Lightning generally play in the evening, it gives you a great opportunity to fit a game into a busy day. The arena is a mere 25 minute drive from the roller-coaster-dream park of Busch Gardens, which usually closes only an hour or two before the g... http://www.onlinefloridavillas.com/orlando_guide/want-to-be-an-astronaut.aspx SUMMER ‘07 /b Last summer we went to Kennedy space centre for kid’s space camp. We were put into groups depending on our age there was; Gemini Apollo discovery and robotics. My sister and I were put into the discovery team. The discovery team was for the older age group and the robotics team was for people returning for the 2nd year. It was mainly located at the astronaut hall of fame. We were introduced into our groups with our instructor (we had Amy). We also had a foreign exchange group from china join our group for the week. Then we went onto the computers and built space stations the space station had to be balanced out like if you had 2 docking stations for the shuttles then you would need enough life support for 12 people ect. We then went and made rockets out of only paper and sellotape we then took them outside and had tanks of pressured air and had to place the rockets on the tanks and set them off. My rocket went the furthest so I won the competition and my rocket even bea... http://www.onlinefloridavillas.com/orlando_guide/orlando-eye-2010.aspx It looks like Orlando is to get its own version of the iconic London Eye in 2010. The Great Wheel Corporation announced on the 25th June that is is to start work on constructing a giant 400ft high Big Wheel on a piece of land near to the Orlando Convention Centre. The company has already constructed similar wheels in Singapore, Beijing and Berlin. (It should be noted that the Great Wheel Corporation did not construct the London Eye. ) Scheduled to open in 2010 the Great Orlando Wheel will tower at 400 feet. It will capture the experience of flight with spectacular views spanning 25 miles in all directions. The 25-mile panoramic view will showcase world-class Central Florida attractions like SeaWorld, Universal Studios and Walt Disney World, as well as firework displays and rocket launches from NASA Kennedy Space Center. The Great Orlando Wheel will sit on a 20 acre piece of land next to the Convention Center, making it less than five minutes from Interstate 4 and SR 528. The locat... http://www.onlinefloridavillas.com/orlando_guide/florida-holiday-may-2008.aspx No matter how many times we visit Florida (as villa owners hopefully often) there is always something new to discover or try. Florida has so many layers I doubt we will uncover them all. We visited Florida in April/May of this year and the temperature was in the high 80’s all of the time and touching 90 for a couple of days - Fabulous. We had our first experience of Chilis (one of the new restaurants recently opened on Highway 27) recommended to us by our family who were holidaying with us - what a great meal, the service was quick and excellent, the food was varied and superb. The menu - as usual in Florida, far too much choice, and the price for four of us including starters, main meal and drinks a $100. 00, what more could we ask for with the dollar suiting us very well at the moment. Applebees, another restaurant on the 27 is another great deal (two for one on your drinks) again a superb menu and great value for money. We decided to relax a lot more on this holiday, so we onl... http://www.onlinefloridavillas.com/orlando_guide/just-like-the-locals.aspx After visiting Florida a couple of times a year for several years it soon becomes apparent that the “native” Floridians have various customs which separate them from us as visitors. One item is their attachment to mobile phones (or cellphones in Floridaspeak! ). Another is their ability to sail past the queues for the “Change and amp; Receipts” lanes at the toll booths on toll roads while we look on enviously. It is possible to use your UK mobile in Florida if it is a tri-band or quad-band phone (i. e. It has the USA bands incorporated). Initially, the setback to this is that calls will be billed via your UK service provider and will therefore be very expensive, even if you are calling a local number whilst in Florida. One answer to this is to obtain a USA network Pay as you Go sim card (such as T-Mobile, Cingular etc). These can be readily obtained from Ebay or from the network providers own shops in Florida. Often the sim cards come with airtime already in place, but can be topped... http://www.onlinefloridavillas.com/orlando_guide/old-town-in-kissimmee.aspx Many visitors will no doubt have sampled the many delights of “Old Town” Kissimmee, the amusement, shopping and dining area, which can be found on the 192 near mile marker 9. This charming area is themed to resemble “Old Town America” and is a great place to spend a few hours during your visit to the Orlando area. However, if visitors were to just continue a few miles further East on the 192 they might stumble upon the “real” Old Town in Kissimmee – that being the Historic District of Kissimmee itself. This charming area is tucked just off the main Highway 192 at the intersection with Orange Blossom Trail on the 17/92. This area of Kissimmee dates back to the mid 19th Century when it was known originally as Allendale. In 1883 the city was renamed to Kissimmee and enjoyed a short boom period as Steamships sailed into the area and docked at the North West shore of Lake Toho (or Lake Tohopekaliga to give it its full name). The steamship era was short lived however and the town eventua... http://www.onlinefloridavillas.com/orlando_guide/day-at-leu-gardens.aspx We discovered the Harry P. Leu Gardens in a guidebook. No one we know had ever visited this Orlando attraction but it sounded like something we might both enjoy on a quiet day so we decided to visit and we were certainly glad we did. We were very impressed by the beauty and tranquillity of this oasis the heart of downtown Orlando. The 50-acre site is well signposted from exit 85 on I-4 and approached through the city’s cultural district. The Gardens are beautifully landscaped and laid out in a series of themed areas. Each area displays a unique character and at the centre of the site lies the old Leu homestead. Visitors enter through the rainforest garden designed to emulate the Amazon rainforest with lush tropical planting along the banks of a tumbling stream leading down to the lake. Beyond this lies the most extensive collection of camellias in Florida, a sight to be seen during the early months of the year when they are in full bloom. The largest rose garden on the eastern seab... http://www.onlinefloridavillas.com/orlando_guide/toddling-around-orlando.aspx Many families avoid Orlando as a holiday destination when they have small children. After all what can a toddler do in Orlando – can’t go on a rollercoaster and how much will they appreciate the Theme Parks. Well the answer is there’s lots to do and oh yes they will appreciate it! And it doesn’t have to cost the earth! Florida should be an easy choice with small children. The Orlando area is packed full of things to do for the whole family. Firstly lets explore the Theme Parks. All of the major Theme Parks cater for Pre-schoolers. There are plenty of attractions that your little ones can participate in. Disney is does this extremely well. Magic Kingdom and Animal Kingdom is great fun. Our 18 month old was in awe of “It’s a Small World” and Peter Pan. The Disney Website is packed full of information as to what is available for pre-schoolers so its very easy to plan your time. On the Disney site you can select Pre-schoolers and it will clearly show the different attractions suitable ... http://www.onlinefloridavillas.com/orlando_guide/gulf-coast-day-out.aspx Many people who visit Orlando never see anything more than the parks. There is so much more to see and our personal favourite is the Gulf Coast. We start our day by driving to Clearwater and spend the morning on the beach and having a walk along the pier and around the harbour. Its fun just to sit and watch the visitor trying to negotiate their way around the roundabout, it’s usually chaos. We then take a leisurely drive down the coast passing through Indian Rocks, Reddington Beach and Madiera Beach, watch out for the fabulous homes built next to beach, we can all dream of the day we win the lottery! ! . We finally reach our favourite place to lunch, John’s Pass with its quaint pier and myriad of shops and cafes. We always time our visit for around 3pm to avoid the lunch time rush. Our favourite restaurant is the Friendly Fisherman, it’s on the pier and the staff are friendly and can recommend dishes for you. The service is usually quick and the food delicious. My favourite is th... http://www.onlinefloridavillas.com/orlando_guide/t-bones-haines-city.aspx Located on Hwy 27 in Haines City just passed Southern Dunes Golf and amp; Country Club approximately 20 minutes from Hwy 192 area. This restaurant is situated next to the highly popular Mannys Chophouse and so you would think it might struggle for business! But this is definitely not the case, and quite rightly so! The decor is fairly basic but spotlessly clean and very spacious. A separate room is available to book for private parties or the larger than average group of holiday makers. A large bar is situated in the restaurant with TVs showing sports programmes for customers that wish to just drink and not dine. It seemed that a lot of the customers were known to the staff so were either locals or regulars, which is always a good sign! There were not many children in the restaurant however, it was January when we visited and so not normal family holiday time. The menu offers several starters and an extensive choice of Steaks, Pasta and amp; Seafood main courses, all of whi... http://www.onlinefloridavillas.com/orlando_guide/organic-and-health-food-orlando.aspx Wholefood and health food stores can be found in Orlando! I thought it would be a good idea and useful for those visiting Orlando to share our knowledge on food stores that sell Organic and special diet foods in the area. When we first visited Orlando we found it hard to find the products we needed with our special diets in stores like Walmart, although Target stores do stock a small variety of Organic products. Thankfully we came across a couple of really good whole food stores. The closest one to our house, which is off of Poinciana Boulevard is at the junction of the US192 and John Young Parkway called Chamberline’s Food Store. It’s a small store but contains everything from fresh produce to vitamins etc. . . They are extremely helpful in the store and can give you advice on many of their products or dietary requirements. The best store we think is The Wholefood Store in Winter Park, about 30-40 minutes drive north. This is a very large store that has a wide range of fresh p... http://www.onlinefloridavillas.com/orlando_guide/cruising.aspx One of the most relaxing holidays you can have is cruising; cruising on a ship that is. On the other hand it can be one of the busiest and most hectic. Either way it will be what you want it to be. There are an abundance of cruises from Florida ports. Tampa, Port Canaveral, Miami and Fort Lauderdale are all within driving distance from the Orlando area. The two nearest ports to Orlando are Tampa and Port Canaveral so if you were planning a cruise whilst staying in the Orlando area it would make sense to book from one of these ports if possible. Carnival cruises, the owners of Cunard and P and amp; O are probably the biggest player in Florida. You can do a 7 day cruise to the Caribbean and stay 7 days in a villa. You can even do a 3 or 4 day cruise just for a change of scenery and location. Carnival fun ships offer a range of cruises around the Eastern and Western Caribbean to places like Jamaica, Mexico and Grand Cayman. They call them fun ships because they really are great fun t...