If so can U help me put together an itenery.
I will only be doing 7 days there then moving on so want 2 fit as much as possible.

Can anyone advise which of the parks are worth it. Is Bisch Garden better than Universal and Universal better than Disney and Disney better than SeaWorld as I've been told?

Anyone been 2 Cici's pizza place all U can eat 4 $4.79?
Can U recommend some more cheap ass buffets, strip clubs, RnB clubs, Cinemas, shows, shopping districts and crack-head areas 2 avoid... thankQ


S.A.F

dayum.. you have been doing alot of travelling lately.. have fun!

REDFEATHERS said:

Yes, all part of my plan 2 be an....







































International Lover

busch gardens is in tampa..about 90 minutes away.
for thrill rides, islands of adventures is the best. they have the incredible hulk rollercoaster and the 3-D spiderman ride. on the same lot is universal studios (2 parks, to seperate admisssions), where they have the mummy ride, twister, jaws, and a cool ass shrek theater/ride.
seaworld is blehhh, if you've been to your local aquarium, that's about the same.
disney is great if youe have kids, but the place is huuuuuge..take up like six or seven exits off the highway.
for night life, go back to universal city walk (it's free)..disney offer treasure island (also free)

other than the parks, it ain't shit in orlando, so atrip to the seedier tampa might be in the cards

sexyAuntyFuka said:

OMG!!!

Fury said:

Thanks Fury. Thats very helpful. Im staying at the Mariott Next to Sea World so I was gonna go but will give it a miss now.

Can U also recommend places 2 eat. Im from humble beginnings so I love the cheap n' cheerful stuff...KFC, Wendy's... I hear there's a Bostons Losyter thing place, is that any good All the seafood U can eat 4 $33

First 3 days: Disney, Animal Kingdom, Epcot

(If you have children do Animal Kingdom, Epcot, and Disney cause they'll complain about the other parks after they've been to the "Magic Kingdom")

I'd recommend (if you have the budget) to go to Universal studios "Islands of Adventure" or the orginal. "Islands of Adventure" competes with the Magic Kingdowm, while the original competes with MGM---the original is better than MGM in my opinion. The only thing I liked about MGM was the tower of terror and rockin rollercoaster. MGM's rides are just better, unfortunately. If you don't have the budget, MGM is sill pretty good, and kids love it.

If you're not bringing kids at all, head over 1 hour to the west (Tampa) to Busch Gardens. It's thrill rides are better than any of the Orlando theme park rides, and its safari is first rate. Plus when you're done with Busch Gardens you can go to Ybor City and dine at "The Columbia" which is a famous Tampa Cuban restuarant which showcases flemenco dancers and authentic cuban food. The restaurant is featured in that movie "The Punisher". Ybor city is Tampa's hisoric Cuban district, and looks a lot like a spanish version of the French Quarter in New Orleans. The beaches in the Bay area are also superior to the East coast, but it's an extra 40 minutes to Clearwater or St. Pete.

If you're in Orlando, all the parkse close between 8 and 9. If you're not completely exhausted, head down to Church Street Station (bars, restaurants, local businesses). Its always packed on the weekends.

You can also check out "Downtown Disney" which is twice the size of the one in California I believe. There's a complex there that opens at 10 PM which charges a flat rate to get into (it's basically a man-made island with 7 nightclubs. Every nightclub celebrates "happy new years" at midnight).

A great guidebook is Frommers, and there's also a series called "Unofficial Guide". There's tons and tons to do.

You can even fit in a visit to Cape Canaveral, see the beaches on the Atlantic coast, and have a relaxing day that way.
And you can still comfortably swim this time of year. The water at the beaches is much more shallow than what you'd find in the west coast of the US.

God, I love Frorida.

just don't do this!

Also, as someone who personally doesn't care about the theme parks all that much (i'm a resident afterall), there are TONS of awesome kayak rentals and top notch nature trails for kayaking and boating. The wildlife here is amazing if a bit scary.

And if you like really weird things , there's a little town about 30 minutes outside of Orlando called Casadaga. The entire town is owned by physics and there are little paranormal stores and a physic restaurant you can dine at. It's a bit touristy now , but good entertainment. Everyone I know who've been there have been quite entertained.

Imago said:

yeah, sea kayaking is fun. exciting too!

XxAxX said:

Imago said:

Imago, Ur a legend. I've printed this and will put it in my suitcase so I can refer 2 it when I travel. Co-incidently...any good Buffet's, Chinese especially

sexyAuntyFuka said:

There are TONS of chinese buffets in Orlando, but I'm not familiar with any of them. My favorite Chinese Restaurant in Orlando is actually a chain called PF Changs located at the Orlando mall.

My favorite Asian Dish in Orlando is "Thai Tani" on International Drive. Not as fancy as the Tampa version, but still nice. The food is great.

If you like to shop, Orlando has the most shopping outlets than any other city in America I beleive. All concentrated near each other--the guidebooks I mentioned above tell you how to get to each. It has everything from mid-range to high end outlet stores.

I'm sorry, but I'm not hugely familiar with Chinese buffets in Orlando.

Imago said:

ha. i'm not kidding. my friend took me sea kayaking for the first time in la jolla, the day of the fatal shark attack just a few miles up the coast.

at one point i really did see some big, huge whitish thing below my kayak i thought it was a rock but then i remembered.....

Imago said:

Thanks again!

Lastly, Are there any areas 2 be wary of as tourist...Im not paying Virgin £2000 2 get my ass kicked in America

sexyAuntyFuka said:

The rough part of Orlando is East Orlando. There's nothing there that would interest you as a tourist. Even if heading east to go to Cocao Beach and Cape Canaveral (45 minutes away), you bi-pass that area altogether. And it's nothing like the crime in other tourist destinations.

Strangely, East Tampa is the area to avoid too--Busch Gardens is in East Tampa. But it's not like you'll drive through a neighborhood and get caught in a gang shootout . It's not like that.

XxAxX said:

I've been to La Jolla. The only thing I can say is that the California coast has Seals. Hence, Great Whites, and lots of them.

Florida has 13 different types of sharks, but I don't know if any kayakers have ever been attacked. We don't have seals to attrack the great whites close to shore, our water is warmer and much more shallow near the sands.

I've been kayayking several dozen times and never ran into trouble. I did see a shark that was about 4 or 5 feet in length and that was it.

oh, and an Aligator and some manatee.

Imago said:

yeah la jolla cove is really cool. there were caves (smuggler caves!) and a baby seal beach (which is where i saw the big, whitish thingy underwater) and beaches.

so what if great white sharks lurk off its coast and occasionally eat innocent sea kayakers?? i san diego.

Fury said:

Actually, it is Pleasure Island. While it is free to walk along the outside area, the clubs all charge admission. However, after the 28th that won't be the case as Disney will be closing Pleasure Island at that time. It will become a more "family-friendly" environment.
[Edited 9/25/08 7:47am]

Disney's water parks are top notch. Epcot is awesome. Universal and Islands of Adsventure are great too. Sea World, Busch Gardens and the like are kind of the B list amusement parks. Waste your money at Disney and Universal, you'll be glad you did.

JerseyKRS said:

Bush Gardens is the BEST!!!

Albeit, it doesn't have the same animotronic/tehcnology rides Disney/Universal has, it's thrill rides are better


And yes--the disney water park, particularly Blizzard Beach is incredible.
You can do Blizzard beach for half a day and then spend the rest in Downtown Disney and Boardwalk.


God, I love Florida

Imago said:

INSATIABLE said:

You reappear for this?

aaah, white trash heaven

sexyAuntyFuka said:

I haven´t been to many places in Florida - just Sea World and Disney World. Loved both.
If you like animals, you´ll love Sea World. I love their shows with whales. Made me almost cry. Phenomenal