Cheap Orlando Vacations
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Cheap Orlando Vacations 5 Days - 4 Nights ORLANDO
VACATION PACKAGE |
Starting At $399 (Per Family) LIMITED TIME Limit 1 to 4 people per room. |
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As significant as air conditioning in making the state what it is
today, WALT DISNEY WORLD turned a wedge of Florida cow fields
into one of the world's most lucrative vacation venues. The immense
and astutely planned empire also pushed the state's media profile
through the roof: from being a down-at-the-heel mixture of cheap
motels, retirement homes and tacky alligator zoos, Florida suddenly
became a showcase of modern international tourism.
Walt Disney World is the pacesetter among theme parks: it goes way beyond Disneyland, which opened in Anaheim, California, in 1955 - delivering escapism at its most technologically advanced and psychologically brilliant across an area twice the size of Manhattan. Its four main theme parks are quite separate entities and, ideally, you should allow a full day for each. The Magic Kingdom is the Disney park of popular imagination, where Mickey mingles with the crowds - very much the park for kids, though at its high-tech best capable of thrilling even the most jaded of adults. Known for its giant, golfball-like geosphere, EPCOT Center is Disney's celebration of science and technology; this sprawling area involves a lot of walking, and may bore young children. Disney-MGM Studios suits almost everyone: its special effects are enjoyable even if you've never seen the movies they're based on. The newest of the four, Disney's Animal Kingdom , brings all manner of African and Asian wildlife to the theme park setting, perhaps the lone entry that can be explored fairly quickly.
For some years, it seemed that US TV and film production would move
away from California to Florida, which, with its lower taxes and
cheaper labor, was more amenable, and the opening of Universal
Studios Escape in 1990 appeared to confirm that trend. So far, for
various reasons, Florida has not proved to be a fully realistic
alternative, but that hasn't stopped the Universal enclave here, now
known as Universal Studios (park opens daily at 9am, closing
times vary; one-day pass $48.76, children 3-9 $39.22, under-3s free;
two-day pass $84.75/$68.85; parking $7; tel 1-800/837-2273, ) from
becoming a major player in the Orlando theme park arena. While
Disney still holds court, Universal has drawn much attention, adding
the hi-tech, special effects-laden Islands of Adventure and
CityWalk , an earthier lure for nightlife dollars than
Downtown Disney. Universal is also aspiring to full-fledged resort
status with the Portofino Bay Hotel and plans for other
accommodation. For access to all areas, park in the garage half a
mile north of exits 29 and 30B off I-94.
Of the three Disney-owned waterparks, Blizzard Beach , on
World Drive north of the All-Star Resorts , is the most
creative, based on the fantasy that a hapless entrepreneur has
opened a ski resort in Florida and the entire thing has started to
melt. Star of the show is Summit Plummet , which shoots you
down a 120ft vertical drop at more than fifty miles per hour.
Gentler rides include toboggan-style slalom courses and covered
raft rides. As well as the slides, Typhoon Lagoon , at Lake
Buena Vista (one-day pass, one-park $28.57/$22.79), features
geysers and a rainforest, a huge surfing pool and a shark reef,
where you can snorkel among tropical fish. River Country is
older, smaller and quieter (one-day pass $16.91/$13.25)
Wet 'n' Wild , 6200 International Drive (hours vary, tel 1-800/992-9453, ; $29.95/$23.95, parking $4), defends itself admirably in the face of the Disney competition, with a range of excellent slides including the challenging seven-story Bomb Bay and the almost vertical Der Stuka. Lines are shorter, too.
Discovery Cove , the second of Sea World's theme parks, is
a much more exclusive venture, limiting visitors to those with
reservations (and who can afford the high admission prices that
start at $109; tel 1-877/4DISCOVERY, ). This will entitle you to
swim and play with dolphins, snorkel up to sharks and barracudas
behind a clear partition and feed tropical birds in a resort-like
setting.
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