Fun and adventures in Orlando
On arrival at Orlando International Airport we hopped on the complimentary ‘Disney's Magical Express’ that took us straight to the hotel. Disney has a wide range of on-site hotels to suit all tastes and budgets but I think that the All Star hotels are the best priced. Whilst everything is slightly more basic, you still get all the benefits of staying in a Disney hotel such as use of the free transportation to all the parks and other Disney properties as well as extended hours that allow you to get into certain parks earlier or stay later.
We have stayed here several times and have always found the rooms to be clean and good sized. They have Disney-themed decor and there is even Mickey-shaped soap which the children love! There are a couple of good sized pools and the food court is good value for money.
In the parks, I would say that the big favourites are the jungle safari and Kilimanjaro in Animal Kingdom, the runaway train and Space Mountain in the Magic Kingdom and in Epcot we loved the Test Track ride. Our favourite park is Hollywood Studio and we always head over to the Star Wars simulator ride. This has recently been updated and there are now many different journeys to go on, so it's worth going on more than once. The Tower of Terror is another great thrill. We liked the new Buzz Lightyear ride but it did have the biggest queues! I would also highly recommend seeing the Fantasia show before you leave. If you have time, the Disney waterparks are a great day out and we also managed to fit in a game of crazy golf at Disney's Fantasia Gardens Miniature Golf Course – fun for everyone.
I think Portofino, at Universal, is one of the nicest hotels I have ever stayed in. It is one of three hotels onsite and, although it’s quite pricey, your room key gives you early admission to the park as well as acting as an unlimited 'fast pass' to bypass queues on most of the rides (with the exception of Harry Potter and Rip Ride Rocket). Getting to the parks was simple - just hop on the regular boat and sail down to the entrance in five minutes.
The hotel is themed to look like Italy and our room was spacious, clean and quiet. There was a choice of pools and when we weren't in the park I loved chilling out round the Italian Riviera Villa-styled pool, which was always quiet and peaceful. There was also a busier pool with water slides for the children.
The Universal parks just get better and better. The Harry Potter ride is awesome and well worth the queuing time. Situated in a very realistic mock-up of Hogwarts, there are plenty of things to look at as you wait. At Universal Studios we visited the old favourites like E.T. and the new Simpson's ride is absolutely brilliant!!
Orlando remains our favourite place as for us it has everything - great weather, lots to do and it’s easy to get around. To get the most out of a trip to Orlando, I’d recommend going for over a week in order to experience all the amazing things it has to offer!