Florida Vacation Blog

It’s almost time to face your fears at Universal’s annual scare-fest, Halloween Horror Nights.

Halloween Horror Nights® XX: Twenty Years of Fear, takes place only at Universal Orlando® Resort on select nights in September and October.  The theme park will be transformed into the nation’s premier Halloween event filled with haunted houses, scare zones and shows.

During this 20th anniversary edition of Halloween Horror Nights, Universal takes terror to a whole new level as guests venture into a nightmarish maze of one-of-a-kind frights in the night.

Halloween Horror Nights at Universal Orlando Resort is a separately ticketed event. This year’s event dates are September 24, 25 & 30; October 1-3, 7-10, 14-17, 20-24, 27-31.

Haunted Houses

Catacombs Black Death Rising

Hades The Gates of Ruin

Horror Nights The Hallow’d Past

Havoc Dogs of War

Zombiegedden

Legendary Truth The Wyandot Estate

Psychoscareapy Echoes of Shadybrook

The Orfanage Ashes to Ashes\\

Scare Zones and Shows

Zombie Gras

The Coven

Saws N’ Steam

Esqueleto Muerte

XX Fear Revealed

HHN Twenty Years of Fear

Bill and Ted’s Excellent Halloween Adventure

Brian Brushwood: Menace and Malice

For more information on Halloween events in Orlando, visit www.OrlandoThemeParkVacations.com. Or go to www.halloweenhorrornights.com/orlando for details on Halloween Horror Nights at Universal Studios.

Mickey’s Not-So-Scary Halloween Party is a special extra ticket, after-hours event at Disney’s Magic Kingdom on select nights from Sept. 14 through Nov. 1, 2010.

Perfect for children of all ages, Mickey’s Not-So-Scary Halloween Party runs from 7 pm til midnight and guests of all ages are encouraged to dress up in their favorite Halloween costumes and collect candy while trick-or-treating around the Magic Kingdom theme park.

In addition to many favorite Disney attractions, Mickey’s Not-So-Scary Halloween Party is filled with special entertainment such as Mickey’s “Boo-to-You” Halloween Parade featuring Disney Characters and the stars of the park’s Haunted Mansion attraction. The parade begins with a spooktacular ride by the Headless Horseman.

Throughout the park, you’ll find a wide variety of your favorite Disney characters and Disney Villains in special Halloween costumes. In addition, the park will offer special lighting, music and themed effects to transform some areas of the Magic Kingdom into happy haunted hallows.

There’s also a special Happy HalloWishes fireworks spectacular show featuring Disney Villains trick-or-treating in the sky.

2010 EVENT DATES:  September 14, 18, 21, 23, 25, 28, 30  October 1, 3, 7, 8, 11, 12, 14, 17, 19, 21, 22, 24, 26, 28, 29, 31  November 1

For details on this and other fun-filled Halloween events in Orlando as well as Disney tickets and vacation packages, visit www.OrlandoThemeParkVacations.com or www.WestgateReservations.com

Save room for a special taste of Disney World fun - the annual Epcot International Food & Wine Festival!

The popular annual event at Walt Disney World Resort in Orlando is set to run Oct. 1 through Nov. 14, 2010. The Food and Wine Festival turns Epcot theme park into a true food and wine lover’s paradise with specialty foods, culinary events, parties and the rocking, ”Eat to the Beat Concert Series” featuring a lineup of celebrated musical guests.

What’s on the menu? You can taste delicious regional foods and sample wines and beers from around the world throughout Epcot’s World Showcase Promenade. You can get tips from renowned chefs and winemakers at special programs and demonstrations. And you can sample the finest cuisines from around the globe at a variety of culinary events. While some events require an additional ticket fee, most activities are included in your regular Epcot Park admission.

To plan your day, be sure to visit the Festival Welcome Center when you arrive at Epcot. And for convenience, you can pick up a Food & Wine themed mini Disney Gift Card that offers a fast, easy and secure way to carry your money on your wrist.

Just load or reload the card with any amount from $5 to $1,500. Then simply swipe the card any time you want to pay for food, merchandise or other Epcot expenses. The gift cards are available throughout Epcot at ticket booths, Guest Relations, the Festival Welcome Center and other locations where food and merchandise is sold.

For more information on Epcot or any of the other Disney World theme parks and attractions, visit www.Orlandothemeparkvacations.com or go to www.WestgateReservations.com.

Summertime means extra fun time at SeaWorld Orlando. And now you can take advantage of the theme park’s special extended summer hours and save money at the same time.

SeaWorld Orlando is offering a special Twilight ticket that provides entrance after 3 pm for only $39.95. You’ll avoid the hottest hours in the central Florida sun, but you’ll also have plenty of time to enjoy all the fun, all the shows and all the attractions SeaWorld has to offer.

Experience thrilling, high-flying coaster rides like Manta. Enjoy once in a lifetime animal encounters by feeding a dolphin or petting a sting ray. Sit back and enjoy awesome shows featuring a variety of marine animals. And experience all the extra fun of SeaWorld AfterDark, the park’s special summer nighttime events that include night shows, festivities and fireworks as the park remains open til 10 pm.

The special Twilight ticket is available now through Sept. 6, 2010. For more about SeaWorld Orlando, visit www.OrlandoThemeParkVacations.com.

Legoland Florida is under construction, but some of its key building blocks were recently announced by the theme park.

The park, formerly known as Cypress Gardens, is being designed to emphasize interactive attractions as well as adventure, while also incorporating some old time favorites from Cypress Gardens.

Among the new signature rides is a dinosaur-themed wooden roller coaster. It is one of more than 50 rides, shows and attractions that will go along with thousands of large Lego models around the park. Guests will also have an opportunity to visit the Lego factory and see how the iconic Lego plastic building blocks are made.

The theme park, scheduled to open in the fall of 2011, will also feature a medieval Legoland castle while maintaining the botanical gardens and water ski shows made famous during the park’s earlier era.

For more information about Legoland Florida and other central Florida and Orlando area theme parks and attractions, go to www.OrlandoThemeParkVacations.com.

The Wizarding World of Harry Potter officially opened at Universal’s Islands of Adventure on June 18 but already the new addition is taking the theme park to the top of the charts.

Islands of Adventure was voted the “best theme park” in the 2010 ratings released by ThemeParkInsider.com. And the park’s new signature ride, “Harry Potter and the Forbidden Journey” was named “best new attraction.”  

The winners were recently announced in the 9^th annual Theme Park Insider Awards. Winners are based on ratings submitted by the Web site’s visitors.  Runners-up for the top theme park award included Busch Gardens Williamsburg and Disney’s Animal Kingdom in Orlando. Runners-up for best new attraction included, “World of Color” at Disney’s California Adventure and the “Intimidator” roller coaster at Carowinds.

For more information on Universal Orlando Resort and Islands of Adventure as well as discount theme park tickets, go to www.OrlandoThemeParkVacations.com.

Don’t underestimate the power of Harry Potter’s wizardry.

The Wizarding World of Harry Potter officially opened at Universal’s Islands of Adventure on June 18, but that has been plenty of time to propel the theme park to the title of “best theme park” in the 2010 ratings released by ThemeParkInsider.com.

Winners announced in the 9^th annual Theme Park Insider Awards are based on ratings submitted by the Web site’s visitors.  Runners-up for the award included Busch Gardens Williamsburg and Disney’s Animal Kingdom in Orlando.

The 2010 honor marks the fourth time Islands of Adventure has been named the top theme park. The Orlando-based park also claimed the honor from 2002-2004.

For more information on Universal Orlando Resort and Islands of Adventure as well as discount theme park tickets, go to www.OrlandoThemeParkVacations.com.

It’s time for another round of Velvet Sessions and there’s no better time to get your FIXX of rock & roll.

The Velvet Sessions concert for July at Universal Orlando’s Hard Rock Hotel features The Fixx, the English rockers best known for the song “One Thing Leads to Another.”

The group will perform July 29 at the hotel’s quaint Velvet Bar and Lobby Lounge. Admission is $30 at the door or $25 if purchased in advance. Admission to the adults only party includes free specialty drinks and finger foods from 6:30 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. and a cash bar at concert time. There is no charge for parking at the Hard Rock.

The award winning “Velvet Sessions” format is a monthly rock & roll cocktail party that features a different type of beverage theme as well as amazing live music from some of the world’s best groups and musical artists. Recent past performers have included Asia, Psychedelic Furs, Everclear and, A Flock of Seagulls.

Get ready for another blast from the past at Walt Disney World Resort in Orlando, FL.

On July 2, Disney will bring back the 3-D sci-fi movie, “Captain EO,” starring the late Michael Jackson.

The film which originally ran at Epcot from 1986 to 1994, will take over the Imagination Pavilion’s 570-seat theatre that had housed, “Honey I Shrunk the Audience.”

The 17-minute, 3-D movie was one of the first films ever to incorporate 4-D, in-theatre effects like wind, water and lighting. The movie will have only minor tweaks from its original version. Even the show’s original marquee sign is back. Captain EO is also playing at Disney parks in California, Tokyo and Paris.

Epcot will open its gates early at 8:30 am on July 2 for a ribbon-cutting ceremony prior to the re-opening of the show.

The movie, which co-stars Anjelica Huston, features two Jackson songs and lots of dancing. For more information on Epcot and Disney World Resort or Disney tickets, visit www.OrlandoThemeParkVacations.com.

Surf’s up. And you won’t even have to go to the beach to find the perfect wave! That’s because indoor surfing is coming to the Orlando area this fall.

It’s all part of the excitement at Fantasy Surf, an all-new, indoor aquatic recreation facility currently under construction at FantasyWorld Resort in Kissimmeee, FL.

The new water park venue will utilize a FlowRider system to provide a controlled surfing style environment. When completed, the Fantasy Surf system will be 32 feet wide by 49 feet long. It will also included padded walls a 3-inch sheet of water will create the surf conditions.

The 14,000 square-foot surfing center is tentatively scheduled to open in October, 2010.

For more information on Orlando area hotels, water parks and theme parks, visit www.OrlandoThemeParkVacations.com. Or go to www.WestgateReservations.com to find discount Orlando vacation packages and discount Orlando tickets.