Florida Vacation Blog

Archive for the ‘Universal Studios’ Category

Looking for a little musical entertainment this weekend? You’ll have plenty of options at Orlando’s major theme parks, including Epcot, SeaWorld and Universal Studios. In all, you can choose from four different featured artists and all the concerts are included with your regular theme park admission ticket!

At Universal Studios’ you can again enjoy a two event weekend with Mardi Gras celebrations both Friday and Saturday nights. On Friday, March 25, OneRepublic takes the Mardi Gras stage. Then on Saturday, March 26, there will be another Mardi Gras concert featuring Blake Shelton. On both nights, the music starts at 8:30 pm immediately following the festive 8 pm Mardi Gras parade filled with beads!

At SeaWorld Orlando, Jerry Rivera hits the stage at 3 pm Saturday, March 26 as part of the park’s Viva La Musica celebration of Latin culture. Meanwhile, over at Disney’s Epcot International Flower & Garden Festival, you can find Melissa Manchester performing at 5:15, 6:30 and 7:45 pm March 25-27 at the America Gardens Theatre.

For details on discount theme park tickets and discount lodging including 5-Star Westgate Resort properties, visit www.westgatereservations.com today.

Are you ready to rock? With the weekend just around the corner, there’s plenty of musical entertainment on deck throughout Orlando.

Universal Studios Florida kicks off its first weekend of Mardi Gras with an evening of high energy street performers, a festive, bead-throwing parade and the first concert featuring Frankie Valli and the Four Seasons. The concert starts at 8:30 pm immediately following the Mardi Gras parade.

Mardi Gras doubles the fun next weekend with a two-day celebration. On Sat. Feb. 19, the concert headliner will be The B-52s followed by a Sunday Mardi Gras party with KC & the Sunshine Band.

Meanwhile, across town at SeaWorld Orlando, the park will be throwing its second of four Bands, Brew and BBQ events. The party features 60 craft beers from 21 breweries, BBQ from local restaurants and a live concert with country icon Willie Nelson. Additional concerts will feature REO Speedwagon on Feb. 26 and Josh Turner on Mar. 5.

SeaWorld concerts will kick off at 4:30 pm. Park hours are 9 am to 7 pm and the event is included with regular park admission.

For more on Orlando area theme parks and concerts as well as discount Orlando vacation packages, go to www.WestgateReservations.com.

Earth, wind, water and fire! Those are the key elements to the 2011 version of Universal Studio’s annual Mardi Gras celebration.

Beads by the handful will soon be tossed from 12 specially decorated Mardi Gras floats in Universal’s Mardi Gras parade. While the floats are nothing less than spectacular, the costumes and street entertainers are also sure to be every bit as elaborate and intriguing as found in the famed Mardi Gras party in New Orleans.

It’s all part of Universal’s 11-weekend party filled with fun, entertainment and live music. While the floats receive new decorations each year based on the theme, there are also some new floats. For example, the fiery red-colored “fire” float features bursts of flame.

Of course, following the Mardi Gras parade, you can also kick back and enjoy some equally red hot live music. For a complete list of Mardi Gras dates and concert lineups, go to www.UniversalOrlando.com. The event runs Saturdays from Feb. 19 through April 23, plus Feb. 20, Mar. 18, Mar. 25, and Apr. 1.

Mardi Gras is included with regular Universal Studios Florida theme park admission. For ticket discounts and Orlando accommodations and vacation packages, visit www.westgatereservations.com or www.orlandothemeparkvacations.com.

The 2011 concert season is upon us and Orlando’s Hard Rock Hotel is now offering a new “season ticket” for all 10 of its popular monthly lobby concert events.

You can purchase the new Sessions Season Pass for $250 and enjoy entry to each of the monthly concerts (January-October). Entry includes the concert plus finger foods and specialty drinks that change each month. The pass is transferable and parking is included.

Tickets to individual sessions are typically $29 when purchased in advance or $35 at the door. The September and October concerts sometimes have a slightly higher ticket price.

The new Sessions Season Pass tickets will be on sale now through Feb. 22, 2011.

Velvet Sessions concerts are held at the Hard Rock Hotel at Universal Studios Resort on the last Thursday of the month. The first concert, Jan. 27, features Little River Band. For tickets or more information on Velvet Sessions, visit www.velvetsessions.com.

For Orlando theme park and attraction ticket details, or information on Orlando discount vacation packages, visit www.WestgateReservations.com.

Harry Potter Mania is returning to Universal Studios!

While Universal Studios is still riding a wave of excitement from its 2010 opening of the Wizarding World of Harry Potter at Islands of Adventure theme park, there’s more Potter excitement just around the corner.

The wildly popular attraction is getting an added boost with the upcoming release of the next Potter movie: “Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows - Part 1,” starring Daniel Radcliffe as the world’s most famous boy wizard.

Universal Cineplex at Universal Orlando CityWalk is celebrating by reserving all 20 screens, including the IMAX screen, for the “Deathly Hallows” movie premiere. At 12:01 a.m. on Friday, Nov. 19, all 20 screens will show the new movie.

Tickets for the “Deathly Hallows” showings are available at the box office or through www.fandango.com. In addition, there will be a second IMAX showing at 3:15 a.m.

For those who want even more Potter, you can also purchase a special combination ticket that includes Thursday evening showings of the two most recent movies in the iconic Potter series, “Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix” and “Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince.” You can watch those shows prior to seeing the new 12:01 a.m. showing of “Deathly Hallows.” The special ticket for all three Harry Potter films is just $20.

For discount Universal Studios tickets or discount Orlando theme park packages, please visit www.orlandothemeparkvacations.com.

The last Thursday of the month is always extra special at the Hard Rock Hotel at Universal Orlando Resort.

The hotel is pleased to present its monthly Velvet Sessions concert featuring Better than Ezra, September 30, 2010. The rock band is best known for its hits “Desperately Wanting,” “Good,” “Rosealia,” “In the Blood” and “Extra Ordinary.”

The Velvet Sessions series is open to adults age 21 and over. In addition to great music, the exciting evening offers uniquely themed specialty drinks and hors d’ouevres which are included in the price from 6:30 to 8:30 p.m.

Starting at 8:30 p.m., additional cocktails are available at a cash bar while the band takes the stage in the lobby of the Hard Rock Hotel at Universal Orlando. Parking is free at the hotel situated adjacent to Universal Studios theme park.

Admission for the Velvet Sessions concert evening is $35 in advance online or $40 at the door. For details, see www.UniversalOrlando.com.

Discount Orlando hotel accommodations and discount Universal Studios theme park tickets are available at www.OrlandoThemeParkVacations.com.

A wide variety of popular bands and artists have played Velvet Sessions in the past, including The Fixx, Psychedelic Furs, Everclear, Asia, the Romantics, Joan Jett, and others.

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.

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.

Another weekend, another concert in Orlando!

Fire up your summer at Universal Studios tomorrow night; catch the next entrée on the theme park’s ongoing Summer Concert Series schedule. June 26, it’s Earth, Wind and Fire taking the Universal concert stage.

After earning eight Grammy Awards, four American Music Awards, eight double platinum/Top 10 Pop albums, eight #1 R&B singles, a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame, a year 2000 induction into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and Lifetime Achievement honors from the NAACP, ASCAP and BET - Earth, Wind & Fire remains an inspirational and influential group in the music industry.

For more information on Universal’s Summer Concert Series, visit www.UniversalOrlando.com. For details on discount Universal tickets and discount Orlando vacation packages, go to www.OrlandoThemeParkVacations.com.

With the recent opening of The Wizarding World of Harry Potter, Universal has unveiled its latest epic ride, Harry Potter and the Forbidden Journey^TM.

The adventure begins long before you actually reach the ride. The ride queue is an adventure in and of itself. You’ll make your way through some of the familiar classrooms and corridors of Hogwarts^TM School of Witchcraft and Wizardry.

You’ll visit a variety of iconic locations from the Harry Potter movies, such as Dumbledore’s office, the Defence Against the Dark Arts classroom, the Gryffindor^TM common room, the Room of Requirement and more. Finally, you’ll reach the actual ride which takes you soaring above the castle grounds as you join Harry Potter^TM and his friends on an unforgettably thrilling escapade.

Along the way, you’ll come face-to-face with an array of magical creatures and events. Riders will come face-to-face with Harry, Ron and Hermione, visit the Forbidden Forest, get in the middle of a Quidditch match and even run into dragons and Dementors. It’s all part of the fun of a ride that features groundbreaking new technology to create a one of a kind moment of exhilaration.

For information on Universal’s Islands of Adventure and the Wizarding World of Harry Potter, go to www.OrlandoThemeParkVacations.com. Or visit www.WestgateReservations.com for discount hotel and resort accommodations or discount Orlando vacation package deals.