Hey there, fellow travelers! Today, we visit Orlando, Florida! The home of Disney World is an insanely popular travel destination. As you know, here at Wolters World, we like to prepare travelers with the good, and the bad, of visiting a new travel destination. So these are the five things you’ll love, and the five things you’ll hate when you visit Orlando, Florida.
Love #1: Orlando Theme Parks
Orlando is the home of Disney World, Epcot Center, Animal Kingdom, Universal Studios and so much more! Whether you are visiting Orlando parks with young kids, older kids or no kids, there are theme parks you will enjoy. Not to mention the water parks!
The Don’ts of Visiting Disney World
Hate #1: Orlando Traffic
Driving in and around Orlando is a frustrating experience especially on Interstate 4. Depending on when you are driving through Orlando, the interstate is either a parking lot of stop and go traffic, or a race track of cars going way too fast. Throw in the fact that many of the drivers are tourists and don’t know where they’re going, and driving in Orlando is just not a fun experience.
Love #2: Orlando Activities
In addition to Orlando parks, there are casinos, professional sports teams and beaches that are just a day trip from Orlando. Some of the theme parks have a nightlife area, like Downtown Disney, where you can visit nightclubs or see shows like the Blue Man Group or Cirque du Soleil. There are so many Orlando activities, you can easily fill a weeks’ vacation.
Hate #2: Tourist Crowds
It’s not just at Disney; there are tourist crowds everywhere in Orlando. In addition to clogging the roads with traffic, the restaurants are packed, the theme parks are packed, parking lots are packed. Summer and Christmas are the two busiest times of the year in Orlando, but there is hardly a “low season” in Orlando.
Love #3: Orlando Transportation
A lot of the theme parks and hotels offer free shuttles, which makes getting around Orlando very easy. Orlando also has a ton of direct flights to cities around the US and internationally, so you can often get a great deal on flights to Orlando. If you stay at a Disney property, they have so many transportation options, you won’t even need a vehicle during your Orlando vacation.
Hate #3: Service in Orlando
Once you venture outside of the theme parks where customer service is a top priority, you’ll be surprised at the poor service you receive elsewhere in Orlando. Either we are really spoiled by the Disney service or they have hired up all the good people because service is really lacking everywhere else in Orlando. They do have to deal with a lot of tourists, which is understandably frustrating. If you know any locals in Orlando, ask them where they like to eat so you can avoid the tourist trap restaurants.
Love #4: Orlando Weather
There’s a reason all of these tourist activities were built in Orlando. The weather is pretty good compared to other parts of the United States. It’s entirely possible to have 70-degree days in January. If you’re from the Midwest or any snowy region, you’ll really appreciate the warm weather of Orlando.
Hate #4: Orlando Weather
Yes, Florida is known for great weather, but it’s not always the best weather for being outdoors. If you visit Orlando in the summer, it’s very hot and humid and you can expect to be a sweaty mess all day if you are doing anything outdoors. They also have random afternoon rain showers and thunderstorms that come from nowhere, soak you and your belongings and then move on as quickly as they arrived. Winter in Orlando can be all over the place, from cold to warm.
The Don’ts of Visiting Florida
Love #5: Orlando Tourism Infrastructure
Orlando was built for tourism. It’s not a city that happened to become a tourist destination, it exists for tourism. So, the Orlando tourism infrastructure is really great, from the transportation we already mentioned, to having hundreds of hotels and restaurants to choose from.
Hate #5: Prices in Orlando
Orlando is not a cheap vacation. Between Orlando hotels, Orlando parks, parking, shopping and eating out, you will end up spending a lot of money on your Orlando vacation. While you can sometimes find deals on Orlando hotels, without having a real “off-season” you’re not going to find rock-bottom prices in Orlando.
Orlando is a great place, it’s expanding a lot beyond just theme parks, so there are tons of fun things to do in Orlando. The “hates” are really just things to have a heads up on rather than a reason not to plan an Orlando vacation. Want more tips for planning a US vacation? Check out these other blog posts: