Florida Vacation Blog

Archive for the ‘Disney Vacation Packages’ Category

Orlando’s theme parks are full of Halloween entertainment. From the very scary at Universal’s Halloween Horror Nights to the kid’s fun at SeaWorld’s Halloween Spooktacular, there’s something for everyone.

At Disney’s Magic Kingdom, you’ll find Mickey’s Not-So-Scary Halloween Party already in full swing. The annual, separate ticket event allows guests an opportunity to dress up in their costumes and trick-or-treat alongside favorite Disney Characters and Villains.

The Villians Mix and Mingle show has been restyled for this year and now features Dr. Facilier, the voodoo doctor from Disney’s “The Princess and the Frog” movie. The main musical number for this highly choreographed show is “Friends on the Other Side” from the same movie. The song offers up visual highlights like black-light effects and illuminations. As in the past, the show is followed by a fun meet-and-greet with the Disney Villains.

This year’s event at Magic Kingdom also offers a new trick-or-treat zone, Br’er Rabbit’s Laughin’ Place Candy Patch. The new candy patch area is located adjacent to Splash Mountain in Frontierland and replaces the former Alice & Mad Hatter’s Treat Trail that was formerly located in the old Mickey’s Toontown Fair.

For information on discount Disney tickets and discount Orlando family vacation packages, please visit www.westgatereservations.com.

Disney’s Animal Kingdom recently welcomed a bouncing new baby boy, a healthy 311-pound African elephant.

The newborn elephant calf becomes a sixth born at Animal Kingdom. The theme park’s herd now includes 8 female and four male elephants. The mother, Vasha, was impregnated through artificial insemination in 2009 and gave birth following a 22-month gestation period. It was the second calf born to Vasha at Animal Kingdom. She previously gave birth to a female calf, Kianga, back in 2004.

Vasha is currently nursing her newborn and the baby elephant will gradually be acclimated to the rest of the herd in the coming weeks.

For information on discount tickets to Disney’s Animal Kingdom or to learn more about discount Orlando theme park vacations, visit www.westgatereservations.com.

The new year is bringing a new parade adventure to Disney’s Hollywood Studios.

The popular, high-energy Block Party Bash made its farewell performance at the Disney theme park on Jan. 1, 2011. The parade featuring dance routines with synchronized choreography and acrobatics, plus scooter riders, pogo jumpers and trampoline artists had been running at Hollywood Studios since spring 2008.

Park guests can now look forward to a new parade experience: The Pixar Pals Countdown to Fun! parade is scheduled to begin Jan. 16.

For more information on Disney’s Hollywood Studios and disount Disney vacation packages, go to www.OrlandoThemeParkVacations.com or visit www.WestgateReservations.com.

The English rock band Psychedelic Furs is scheduled to be the musical guest at this month’s Velvet Sessions concert at the Hard Rock Hotel in Orlando.

The group will perform in the lobby of Universal Orlando’s Hard Rock on May 27, 2010.

Admission is $25 online and $30 at the door and includes specific specialty drinks and a variety of finger foods beginning at 6:30 p.m. and running til 8:30 p.m. There will be a cash bar starting at 8:30 p.m. when the Furs take the stage. Parking is complimentary at the Hard Rock Hotel.

For more on the monthly Velvet Sessions program at Hard Rock, visit www.velvetsessions.com. Or visit www.OrlandoThemeParkVacations.com for details on Universal Orlando Resort and other Orlando area theme parks and attractions.

The popular Rock ‘n’ Roller Coaster: Starring Aerosmith at Disney’s Hollywood Studios is scheduled to close briefly in May for refurbishment. The ride is slated to close from May 15 through May 20, 2010.

The roller coaster, which initially opened in July 1999, accelerates from 0 to 60 miles per hour in just 2.8 seconds. Each of the coaster trains feature a different Aerosmith song and those songs contain some new lyrics written specifically for the attraction. For example, “Love in an Elevator” is sung as “Love in a roller coaster.”

Another attraction at Disney’s Hollywood Studios is also scheduled for an upcoming refurbishment. Jim Henson’s MuppetVision 3-D will close from April 24 through May 14, 2010.

For additional information about Disney’s Hollywood Studios, or any of the other Disney World parks in Orlando, FL, visit www.OrlandoThemeParkVacations.com. Or go to www.WestgateReservations.com for details on discount Disney vacation packages and hotel or resort accommodations.

Spring is in the air and Major League Baseball is back in Central Florida. Orlando might be the theme park capital of the world, but when it comes to Spring Training baseball, there’s no better place to catch all the Grapefruit League action.

Fourteen different major league teams call Central Florida their home for spring training. As a result, baseball fans don’t have to look far for the next game throughout the month of March.

Two teams - the Atlanta Braves and Houston Astros - have training camps right in the middle of the greater Orlando area. The Braves play at Disney’s ESPN Wide World of Sports complex in Lake Buena Vista while the Astros take the field just down the road in Kissimmee.

From there, just a short drive down I-4 takes you to Lakeland, spring training home of the Detroit Tigers. And farther west along the Gulf coast, you’ll find the Boston Red Sox and Minnesota Twins in Fort Myers, the New York Yankees in Tampa, the Pittsburgh Pirates in Bradenton, the Baltimore Orioles in Sarasota, the Toronto Blue Jays in Dunedin, the Tampa Bay Rays in Port Charlotte and the Philadelphia Phillies in Clearwater.

On the Atlantic coast side of Florida’s peninsula, you can catch spring training games and workouts for the Florida Marlins and St. Louis Cardinals in Jupiter and the New York Mets in Port St. Lucie.

There’s no better way to see and interact with your favorite MLB stars up close than at a highly affordable spring training game. For spring training schedules of your favorite team, or for any of the Grapefruit League teams, visit www.MLB.com.  

For details on discount theme park tickets and discount Orlando vacation package specials, please visit www.OrlandoThemeParkVacations.com. For discount resort or hotel packages, go to www.WestgateReservations.com/sweepstakes.cfm.

Spring is in the air as the annual Epcot International Flower and Garden Festival kicks off at Disney World on March 3 and runs thru May 16, 2010,

This year’s event features more than 100 colorful and fun topiaries ranging from a 14-foot tall Goofy fishing to Lion King characters and, of course, Mickey and Minnie. Enjoy millions of blooms, hundreds of butterflies in the butterfly garden, and more. There’s also experts ready to provide gardening tips and demonstrations, and on Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays during the festival, you can also enjoy the Flower Power Concert Series featuring music from the 1960s and 1970s.

For more information about Disney World, Epcot and other Orlando theme parks, visit www.OrlandoThemeParkVacations.com. You’ll find discount tickets, discount Orlando vacation packages and discount Orlando hotel and resort accommodations.

ESPN’s annual fan-fest continues this weekend (Feb. 26-27-28) at Disney’s Hollywood Studios in Orlando, FL.

 With 35 superstar athletes, two dozen sportscasters, live shows, special motorcades, interactive sports zone and more, it’s sure to be a fun-filled weekend for sports fans of all ages.

Don’t miss your chance to get up close and personal with stars from the NBA, NFL, major league baseball, golf and more. Plus look for all of your favorite ESPN personalities.

Of course, you’ll also enjoy a full day of fun at Disney’s Hollywood Studios theme park which offers a wide range of thrill rides, shows and other attractions.

For information on Disney’s Hollywood Studios, discount Orlando vacation packages and discount Orlando theme park tickets, visit www.OrlandoThemeParkVacations.com. Or for discount Orlando resort and hotel accommodations, go to www.WestgateReservations.com/sweepstakes.cfm.

The classic Main Street Electrical Parade is slated to return to Disney’s Magic Kingdom in June and run throughout the summer as part of a Summertime Nightastic! promotion.

The longtime favorite originally found its way down Main Street U.S.A. back in 1977 and ran until 1991 when Disney introduced the SpectroMagic parade. The Electrical Parade returned again from 1999-2001 but has been part of the fun at Disney’s California Adventure Park in Anaheim the last few years.

As part of the return to Disney World, the classic parade will feature a new Tinker Bell presentation at the start of the parade. Also new to the Main Street Electrical Parade will be Snow White and Pinocchio floats.

In Disney’s ongoing effort to “go green,” the thousands of lights in the parade have all been replaced with LED bulbs.

Visit www.OrlandoThemeParkVacations.com for information on all the Disney parks as well as discount Orlando vacation packages and discount theme park tickets. Or visit www.WestgateReservations.com for discount Orlando hotels, resorts and accommodations for the entire family.

Now your little princess can have lunch with a real Disney princess. Actually, you can enjoy any meal of the day, thanks to the new Fairytale Dining attraction at Disney World’s Cinderella Castle inside the Magic Kingdom.

Guests with reservations can now greet Cinderella in the Castle lobby prior to having breakfast, lunch or dinner inside the Castle dining area. While dining, additional princesses will stop by your table to chat, pose for photos and sign autographs.

While there is no guarantee as to which princesses circulate on any given day, you can usually expect to see Snow White, Jasmine, Aurora and Belle.

For more information on attractions at Disney World or for discount theme park tickets and hotels, please visit www.WestgateReservations.com or www.OrlandoThemeParkVacations.com today.