Vacations Blog

Orlando Makes Kids Smile!

Building on the recently ended 67 Days of Smiles promotion, the Orlando/Orange County Convention&Visitors Bureau is offering kids between the ages of 13 and 18 to win an Orlando vacation.

This time Orlando CVB is teaming up with the Florida Film Festival and KIDS FIRST! to give away  an Orlando vacation for four.  The prize includes airfare, lodging for three nights, rental car, theme park tickets and full filmmaker passes for the 19th annual Florida Film Festival in April, in addition to having their short film premiered at the festival.

How do you (or your children) enter?

Make a three minute video that answers the question “Why does Orlando make you smile?”

AND be willing to pay $25 to enter.

Normally I’d warn people to run screaming from a travel contest with an entry fee, but the Orlando CVB is a respected organization that just finished up a successful contest – including awarding an all inclusive trip to Orlando.

In addition to the contest open to 13 to 18 year olds, there is another category for people 19 and over to enter with a short film answering the same question.  Entries for all categories must be received by January 11, 2010, and winners are expected to be announced sometime in February.

Get everything you need to enter the contest at http://www.kidsfirst.org/Orlando.html.

Photo credit: Britt Reints

Orlando Family Vacations

Orlando, Florida is well known as a family vacation destination.  However, one of the common misconceptions I hear from families is that they have to wait until the kids are “old enough to appreciate it” before they can invest in a family trip to the theme park capital of the world.

To a certain extent, I agree.  Places like Universal Studios and even Disney World are not great for kids under five.  They can’t go on roller coasters and a lot of young children are terrified of the rides that are supposed to be made for them.  My daughter was so scared of Magic Kingdom’s Snow White ride that we had to leave through one of the emergency exits.  And don’t even get me started on Universal Studio’s 3D Shrek experience.  (Note to attraction designers: small children are scared of the dark AND graveyards AND ghosts.  Duh.)

It makes sense to avoid these places until your children are old enough to appreciate the hundreds of dollars you’ll be spending in admission prices.

But what if you have one kid who is the perfect age to experience these things and another much younger child?  Can you plan an Orlando vacation that includes activities for younger children?

Absolutely.

Read More »

November 2nd marks the last and 67th Day of Smiles for Kyle and Stacey, two lucky travelers who’ve experienced just about everything Orlando, Florida has to offer – all on someone else’s dime.

Last spring, the Orlando Convention & Visitor’s Bureau announced their 67 Days of Smiles contest and promised two lucky winners the chance to visit Orlando for 67 days.  The idea was that it would take a tourist 67 days to experience everything that the Orlando area has to offer.  Kyle and Stacey were chosen for the job and have been recording their trip on the 67 Days of Smiles blog since August 28, 2009.

As a Central Florida resident, it’s been fun to watch all of the local places and activities that have been featured over the last two months.  Of course the pair hit the area’s most popular attractions, including Disney World, Sea World and Universal Studios.  But they’ve also introduced me to things to do in Orlando that I had never heard of, like the Orlando Shakespeare Theater.  I am an avid fan of live theater and had no idea this place even existed!

The 67 Days of Smiles web site has recorded over 67,000 hits and their twitter account has almost 1,000 followers.  The traveling duo has been featured by several media outlets, including the New York Times.  It appears that the promotion has been a success for the Orlando CVB, and the web site is now a great resource for Orlando residents and vacationers!

Photo credit: Orlando/Orange County Convention & Visitors Bureau.

All aboard!

Seriously, if you haven’t picked your pumpkin yet you’re about as big a slacker as the guy that waits until October 30th to write about a pumpkin patch.  Let’s not judge.

Besides, calling Remlinger Farms a pumpkin patch is like calling Neil Diamond a singer.  He’s an entertainer, people.  Remlinger Farms is pretty entertaining, too.

The farm is located in Carnation, WA and is a self-contained family destination, minus the lodging.  Luckily, Seattle is about 30 minutes away and they have a couple of motels along the freeway. Read More »

This is where the wild things are.

Tomorrow may be Halloween, but if your town is anything like mine the festivities will be in full swing tonight as well. There are neighborhood parties and pumpkins to carve and apples to bob. And there are costumed children everywhere.

What does that mean to you? It means that whichever way your travels may take you this weekend you need to play it smart. Cabs, buses, subways – these are good ideas. In fact, the best costume in the room just might be the designated driver.

But you knew that. Just keep your eye(s) on the other guy, yes, the one dressed as a keg.

Photos by Whit Honea

For more family-friendly travel photos visit DeliciousBaby’s Photo Fridays.

USS Arizona Memorial

Pearl Harbor is the #1 most popular tourist attraction on the island of Oahu, but that is not why I visited.  I’m not a history buff, or interested in war trivia, or necessarily drawn to hallowed ground, so that’s not why I went either.  I went because I know and love many men and women who have served in the Armed Forces.  I have dated them, sprung from their loins, even considered becoming one myself.  (That’s for a different website.)  And so when I had some time in my schedule on Oahu, I looked into visiting this national monument.

When I asked locals what I should know about going to visit Pearl Harbor, I was told without variation that I should “go early, to avoid the lines.”  The monument’s website is very clear about the process for your visit – pick up a timed ticket, wait in line, no bags or backpacks or even diaper bags allowed.  I succeeded in packing light, but not at arriving early.  I made it out to the visitor’s center at about 11:00 AM on a Friday in September.  There was no line.  I got a ticket for the tour starting in five minutes, so there was little wait.  And the center wasn’t very crowded, so the whole experience was…pleasant.

It is odd to say that this visit was pleasant because essentially you are visiting an underwater tomb. Read More »

Southwest Airplanes

For the last couple years, as many airlines have gone under, there have been that select group of airlines that have continued to grow and rise in popularity. Although considered a smaller airline compared to some of its competitors, Southwest Airlines has quickly risen as one of the most liked and most flown airlines, predominantly because of its customer service and low fees. Now, for only a couple days, you can fly for Southwest Air for even cheaper rates, as they’re offering steeply discounted fares for as low as $25.

Southwest has become quite popular and talked about among the major airlines over the last year because of its strong social media and customer service presence. Southwest is especially popular on Twitter, as it ranks high in popularity along with JetBlue with almost one million followers. Southwest is also preferred because of the perks it offers that other airlines do not. To this point, Southwest continues to offer complimentary snacks and drinks, while many airlines have started to charge for many food and drink options. Another major pain for travelers is fees for checking in baggage. This is a fee that Southwest waives, compared to many other airlines which are now charging for checked bags. Read More »

This is an American Airlines gate in the Seattle-Tacoma airport that was hand-decorated by American Airlines employees on their own time.  The gate is where one child’s dream vacation started earlier this month as they boarded their WishFlight. Read More »