Going abroad next year!

[kiltman]

Hopefully going to Florida for the first time on holiday next October. probably the Orlando area. Im going to take a day out and get the train or whatever down to sarasota to hopefully see the cgc building and have a look inside (knowing me i'll get lost and end up in Mexico rather than sarasota)

 

Anyways the point of this thread is, apart from the usual stuff you can do in Orlando Florida is there anywhere else you guys have been thats nearby that would be wicked to check out? Plus any comic book shops in the area would be nice too

 

Im already excited!

[tth2]

Hopefully going to Florida for the first time on holiday next October. probably the Orlando area. Im going to take a day out and get the train or whatever down to sarasota to hopefully see the cgc building and have a look inside (knowing me i'll get lost and end up in Mexico rather than sarasota)

 

Anyways the point of this thread is, apart from the usual stuff you can do in Orlando Florida is there anywhere else you guys have been thats nearby that would be wicked to check out? Plus any comic book shops in the area would be nice too

 

Im already excited!

If you're going to Florida for the first time, why are you going to Orlando unless the main objective of your trip is to see Disneyworld or play a lot of golf?

 

Miami and the Keys, man! That's where the sun, sand, hot babes and happenin' clubs are.

[kiltman]

well i will be going to disneyworld no doubt, and sea world and all that jazz. (Not the golf though, used to play that but gave up) but we are hopefully going for 2 weeks (thanks to my girlfriends mum for the cash) and i don't plan on going to disneyworld for 14 days. Im not sure i could handle that much Mickey.

[awe4one]

Miami and the Keys, man! That's where the sun, sand, hot babes and happenin' clubs are.

 

Take it from a Miamian, the city isn't all that it's touted to be. Outside of South Beach, there's not much to offer except crowded public beaches, the Seaquarium (if you been to one you've been to them all), and a great zoo. Getting to those places is a major pain in the @ss as traffic in Miami is terrible which I liken to traveling in a 15 mile bus zone for what seems like unending miles.

 

The Keys on the other hand is where it going on. Just absolutely beautiful. I'd suggest not going all the way to Key West as that's a tourist trap. Unless of course, you fancy 2nd rate "pirate museums" every other street or want to visit the fort which is probably the coolest thing in the city. Regardless, you can do both in a day trip. Make your stop in Islamorada or even Marathon. It's less crowded, the beaches are the same (even better in my opinion), and you aren't bombarded with clueless tourists. That's where the local South Floridians go and for good reason...

 

Jim

[tth2]

Miami and the Keys, man! That's where the sun, sand, hot babes and happenin' clubs are.

 

Take it from a Miamian, the city isn't all that it's touted to be. Outside of South Beach, there's not much to offer except crowded public beaches, the Seaquarium (if you been to one you've been to them all), and a great zoo. Getting to those places is a major pain in the @ss as traffic in Miami is terrible which I liken to traveling in a 15 mile bus zone for what seems like unending miles.

 

The Keys on the other hand is where it going on. Just absolutely beautiful. I'd suggest not going all the way to Key West as that's a tourist trap. Unless of course, you fancy 2nd rate "pirate museums" every other street or want to visit the fort which is probably the coolest thing in the city. Regardless, you can do both in a day trip. Make your stop in Islamorada or even Marathon. It's less crowded, the beaches are the same (even better in my opinion), and you aren't bombarded with clueless tourists. That's where the local South Floridians go and for good reason...

 

Jim

Good points, Jim, but looking at this from the perspective of a tourist from cold and wet England coming to Florida for the first time, wouldn't it be almost criminal NOT to hit Miami for at least a little while? South Beach is definitely worth hanging out at for a couple of days, particularly if you can stay in one of the art deco hotels lining the beach to really soak in the ambiance. Going to Little Havana and getting some great Cuban food is also worthwhile.

[BlahBlahBlah-migration]

Jacksonville Florida has a great selection of dive bars that are actually populated by people who aren't (at least downtown and riverside) and a few comic shops here. Beaches are never really crowded either.

[drbanner]

Hopefully going to Florida for the first time on holiday next October. probably the Orlando area. Im going to take a day out and get the train or whatever down to sarasota to hopefully see the cgc building and have a look inside (knowing me i'll get lost and end up in Mexico rather than sarasota)

 

Anyways the point of this thread is, apart from the usual stuff you can do in Orlando Florida is there anywhere else you guys have been thats nearby that would be wicked to check out? Plus any comic book shops in the area would be nice too

 

Im already excited!

 

Unless you're really excited about seeing the CGC operation, I would highly recommend heading east from Orlando and visiting Daytona, Ormond, New Smyrna Beach (and Cape Canaveral/Cocoa Beach?) in lieu of going to Sarasota and the Gulf beaches (although Siesta Key and Oscar Scherer State rec area are supposed to be nice). The Atlantic Ocean is a lot closer and easier to get to than the Gulf of Mexico.

 

And unless you have kids, Universal Studios kicks Disney's boo-tay in the theme park category - Universal Islands of Adventure has a Marvel Super-hero area with killer rides.

 

Also, the public transportation system in the US is pitiful compared to what you're used to in the UK, so "catching a train" from Orlando to Sarasota may not be as easy as you think.

[namisgr]

Anyways the point of this thread is, apart from the usual stuff you can do in Orlando Florida is there anywhere else you guys have been thats nearby that would be wicked to check out?

 

 

The Everglades. Unique, amazing, vanishing...

[kiltman]

Hopefully going to Florida for the first time on holiday next October. probably the Orlando area. Im going to take a day out and get the train or whatever down to sarasota to hopefully see the cgc building and have a look inside (knowing me i'll get lost and end up in Mexico rather than sarasota)

 

Anyways the point of this thread is, apart from the usual stuff you can do in Orlando Florida is there anywhere else you guys have been thats nearby that would be wicked to check out? Plus any comic book shops in the area would be nice too

 

Im already excited!

 

Unless you're really excited about seeing the CGC operation, I would highly recommend heading east from Orlando and visiting Daytona, Ormond, New Smyrna Beach (and Cape Canaveral/Cocoa Beach?) in lieu of going to Sarasota and the Gulf beaches (although Siesta Key and Oscar Scherer State rec area are supposed to be nice). The Atlantic Ocean is a lot closer and easier to get to than the Gulf of Mexico.

 

And unless you have kids, Universal Studios kicks Disney's boo-tay in the theme park category - Universal Islands of Adventure has a Marvel Super-hero area with killer rides.

 

Also, the public transportation system in the US is pitiful compared to what you're used to in the UK, so "catching a train" from Orlando to Sarasota may not be as easy as you think.

 

Thankfully no kids. And Universal will definetly be on the list of places to go. My g/f will no doubt still drag me to disney world :'(. Cheers for the info though!

 

How bad is the train system in america? I mean here in the uk you can boo ka train to almsot anywhere and get there easily. The trains may be slow but are usually reliable.

[namisgr]

How bad is the train system in america? I mean here in the uk you can boo ka train to almsot anywhere and get there easily. The trains may be slow but are usually reliable.

 

What train? Unless you are in the Northeast, fuggetaboutit! You'll want a car for two weeks in FL.

[drbanner]

How bad is the train system in america? I mean here in the uk you can boo ka train to almsot anywhere and get there easily. The trains may be slow but are usually reliable.

 

Bad...nothing like in the UK (I lived in Cambridge for six months). I suspect there isn't even train service from Orlando to Sarasota. In fact, I've never even ridden a train in the US (outside of public transportation within the larger cities like Chicago, NYC, and Atlanta). You're pretty much going to have to rent a car if you plan on leaving Orlando.

 

However, most of the hotels/resorts have free shuttle services to the theme parks and I believe you can get around Orlando itself via bus. "Church Street Station" is sort of an entertainment type area in downtown Orlando with bars, clubs, live music, dancing, etc.,. that might be worth a look if you guys are looking to party it up a bit, and there's a similar area near Disney (Downtown Disney/Pleasure Island).

[chromium]

Went to Fla. a few years ago, drove from Orlando down to the Keys, in about 10 days. Stayed in Miami for a while at the "Deezerland" Rock'n' Roll hotel and then drove back up along the Gulf.

 

Tried to visit all the nice and all the touristy places as well, went to a couple of theme-parks, liked Universal and Epcot the best.

 

Cocoa beach was a lot of fun, driving a car on the Beach and visiting all the biker shops in Daytona was pretty neat too.

 

Marveled at the Moon rocks at Cape Canaveral (dunno why, but they impressed me more than the parked Space Shuttle)

 

Enjoyed the high life of Palm Springs for a couple of days and loved driving along the beautiful coastline

 

 

Drove down to Key West just to ask my now wife to marry me on the pier during the world famous sunset. Sure the place was crowded with sun-worshipers, but when I got down on my knees in front of the whole crowd I did get loud applause (and a faint "yes" from my wife). On the way back had some key lime pie and Crab Quiche in Marathon.

 

 

Spent a single night in the Everglades, as one of the few tourists in the single hotel smack in the middle of the National Park.

When the sun went down, we knew why nobody was about, August is bug-season in the Everglades and our gang got viciously attacked. We didn't sleep a wink and in the morning couldn't even stay to enjoy the park as two of our party were pretty sick from the mosquito bites and we had to take them to see a doctor.

 

The last part of the trip was 4 days in the sand around Tampa as we needed to relax after our hectic Florida invasion.

 

Loved Florida and can't wait to go back one day. Happy Trails Kiltgirl !

[chrisco37]

Banner is correct. Ditch Disney and hit Universal. But, as he said, make sure it's the "Islands of Adventure" theme park and NOT Universal Studios. That place sucks worse than any park I've ever been to. So boring. Not one "thrill ride" in the place. At least Disney has "Space Mountian".

[chromium]

Banner is correct. Ditch Disney and hit Universal. But, as he said, make sure it's the "Islands of Adventure" theme park and NOT Universal Studios. That place sucks worse than any park I've ever been to. So boring. Not one "thrill ride" in the place. At least Disney has "Space Mountian".

 

wash your mouth out with soap (or that white powdery stuff you guys get at the trailer park).

The Back to the Future ride at Universal is one of the best rides in the world

[greggy]

Banner is correct. Ditch Disney and hit Universal. But, as he said, make sure it's the "Islands of Adventure" theme park and NOT Universal Studios. That place sucks worse than any park I've ever been to. So boring. Not one "thrill ride" in the place. At least Disney has "Space Mountian".

 

wash your mouth out with soap (or that white powdery stuff you guys get at the trailer park).

The Back to the Future ride at Universal is one of the best rides in the world

[chromium]

Banner is correct. Ditch Disney and hit Universal. But, as he said, make sure it's the "Islands of Adventure" theme park and NOT Universal Studios. That place sucks worse than any park I've ever been to. So boring. Not one "thrill ride" in the place. At least Disney has "Space Mountian".

 

wash your mouth out with soap (or that white powdery stuff you guys get at the trailer park).

The Back to the Future ride at Universal is one of the best rides in the world

 

and the same goes for you too

[drbanner]

Banner is correct. Ditch Disney and hit Universal. But, as he said, make sure it's the "Islands of Adventure" theme park and NOT Universal Studios. That place sucks worse than any park I've ever been to. So boring. Not one "thrill ride" in the place. At least Disney has "Space Mountian".

 

wash your mouth out with soap (or that white powdery stuff you guys get at the trailer park).

The Back to the Future ride at Universal is one of the best rides in the world

 

There's also a new ride at Universal that's really cool, but a little short - "The Mummy". It replaced the old "King Kong" ride...thankfully!

[chrisco37]

Banner is correct. Ditch Disney and hit Universal. But, as he said, make sure it's the "Islands of Adventure" theme park and NOT Universal Studios. That place sucks worse than any park I've ever been to. So boring. Not one "thrill ride" in the place. At least Disney has "Space Mountian".

 

wash your mouth out with soap (or that white powdery stuff you guys get at the trailer park).

The Back to the Future ride at Universal is one of the best rides in the world

 

There's also a new ride at Universal that's really cool, but a little short - "The Mummy". It replaced the old "King Kong" ride...thankfully!

 

I'm sticking by my initial statement. Universal Studios SUCKS!!!!!

 

Back to the Future is the only thing even close to a thrill ride, but it's just a fancified IMAX.

 

No roller coasters at all. Nothing that moves faster than 5mph. $50 down the drain. And, to make it worse, you can look across the lake and see "Islands of Adventure" in all its glory.

 

The following is a breakdown of the attractions at Universal Studios:

 

Terminator Experience - Sounds cool, right? Wrong! Lame arse 3-D (ooooh!) and live action show. About 15 minutes of wasted time. D-

 

Back to the Future - the "highlight" of your day at the Studios will be this ride. But, it's all false motion. B-

 

Earthquake - Where to begin? Ride moves all of 30 feet. Cars shake. Fake arse movie set breaks apart. Scary! F

 

Jaws - Well, it's better than Jaws IV: The Revenge. D-

 

Twister - Stand in the same place and watch how they make disasters come to life with special effects magic. Bill Paxson makes a surprise appearance! Woohoo! F

 

Kilty, avoid the Studios. Go to Epcot.

[deathlok]

How bad is the train system in america? I mean here in the uk you can boo ka train to almsot anywhere and get there easily. The trains may be slow but are usually reliable.

 

What train? Unless you are in the Northeast, fuggetaboutit! You'll want a car for two weeks in FL.

 

Just remember that we drive on the correct side of the road. (that's the right)

[kiltman]

How bad is the train system in america? I mean here in the uk you can boo ka train to almsot anywhere and get there easily. The trains may be slow but are usually reliable.

 

What train? Unless you are in the Northeast, fuggetaboutit! You'll want a car for two weeks in FL.

 

Just remember that we drive on the correct side of the road. (that's the right)

 

The correct side? Ohhh i like that one! Thats like saying the stars and stripes flag is for canada