Is one week enough in Florida?
When I go somewhere, I love to squeeze in as much as I can. This November, without school holidays to worry about, and with a week to spare, we headed off to Florida to explore the Sunshine State. With year-round good weather, Florida is a sun-worshipper’s dream. Our summer months can make it humid and you’ll frequently get short bursts of heavy rain in the afternoon and in the evening. In our winter, the heat subsides a little, so it’s ideal weather to get out and about. Whenever you go, you’ll always find plenty to do.
We started our trip in Orlando, with four nights at the Sheraton Vistana Village on International Drive. We only bargained a few days here because a) we were travelling with a two-year-old, and didn’t want to commit to too many hectic park days and b) we were desperate to hit Miami in our week-long stint.
When I pictured International Drive, I had in my head a strip of restaurants, bars, hotels – the kind of hub of Orlando. What I quickly realised is that this is on a completely different scale. Hiring a car is the ideal way to get around if you’re not on site at Disney or Universal. If you don’t fancy driving, Uber is readily available and a godsend. Plus, parking is expensive, so you might find it weighs out in the long run.
Day one, Orlando. Whacked from the flight, we chilled around the hotel, enjoying the huge heated pools and the gorgeous blue skies. My husband is a keen shooter, so he headed off to a professional range (which he LOVED) and then later we drove to Downtown Orlando and Lake Eola. This place has such a cool atmosphere with a walkway around the lake, swan pedaloes to hire and a laid back bar dishing up Margaritas while the sun sets. The perfect way to settle into Floridian life.
Because we were travelling with a toddler, we’d opted to just go for SeaWorld and Universal tickets. We covered SeaWorld in our second day, and it was a great shout. It’s structured with regular animal shows plus a brill parade in the new Sesame Street land. There's big rides too, but because there was so much else going on, we didn't miss them. The Sesame Street area is great for tots with a handful of rides with toddler-friendly height restrictions plus a splash park and play area.
I was the main driver behind Universal. We opted for Islands of Adventure because of Seuss Landings, a colourful zone aimed at smaller thrill-seekers. This side of the park also has Hogwarts and Hogsmeade Village. So, for a Harry Potter geek like me, kicking off the day with a butterbeer in The Three Broomsticks was paradise.
Universal offer a really handy child swap system. You don't get to trade in your kid for a better behaved one, but you do get to jump the line by hopping into the single rider queue, splitting when you reach the front, with one going on the ride, and the other waiting it out in the family room. When they're done, they can go straight to the family room, trade places quickly and rider two goes straight on. Universal is much more ride-oriented and so this works really well for making sure you have a full day and get your money's worth out of the ticket price.
We didn’t stay on site at Disney, but loved the chance to visit Disney Springs, a fun village filled with shops, restaurants and entertainment, and Disney’s Boardwalk, a romantic lakeside setting with a New England theme and a few restaurants (my favourite of the two). You can visit either of these without being a Disney guest, or holding a valid park ticket. Parking is free too.
After a busy few days in Orlando, we headed down the coast to Miami. The drive was easy, but traffic can be heavy, and pre-paying your tolls is a must. On route, we visited Sawgrass Mills, a frankly enormous outlet mall with fantastic shopping. You may well need a spare suitcase!
In Miami, we stayed on South Beach, a few blocks from Ocean Drive in a boutique suite hotel called ABAE. We’d picked both hotels on account of their spacious layout and separate bedrooms. I loved this area, South Beach with its low-rise, pastel-coloured Art Deco buildings feels like a proper beach resort compared to the skyscrapers of Downtown Miami. On our first day, we couldn’t tear ourselves away from the South Beach people-watching. Lined with trendy bars and restaurants, it’s the place to see and be seen with super cars rolling by and the great and good of the Miami scene eating brunch and sipping mimosas. It was straight out of a music video!
The following day, we did an open-top bus tour aiming to take in the colourful Wynwood Walls and Little Havana. Traffic was heavy and with the best will in the world, we can’t make an early start. So Wynwood fell by the wayside for extra time in amazing Little Havana. A real Cuban outpost, Spanish is spoken here and bright murals, fabulous music and authentic restaurants make you feel like you’ve been transported straight to the Caribbean. We visited ‘the most famous Cuban restaurant in the world’, Versailles, for delicious roast pork and black ‘moros’ rice – as well as, of course, several mojitos!
We missed our last bus home and ended up delightfully stranded at Bayside Park. Yachts bob in the harbour, al fresco cocktail bars circle a live music stage, and on our Friday night, a group blasted out live Latin music while people of every age salsa-ed under the stars. Amazing!
We loved both Orlando and Miami and, on reflection, needed much more time to do it justice. But all that means is that we DEFINITELY have to return!
If you're planning a trip to Florida and need some help, tips and advice on how to make the most of this fabulous destination then give me a shout. I can create you a bespoke itinerary tailored to your every requirement.