Top 10 Florida Vacation Tips For Families
Travelling to Florida as a family is like a dream for many. Florida is a truly magical place to go to and taking your children makes it for me. On a more practical side though there is a lot of planning and thinking to do about going to Florida as there is just SO MUCH to do. We have therefore come up with a Top Ten Florida Vacation Tips For Families to try and help with a way to plan your trip and make the most of your time in Florida. These are not in a specific order but are just suggestions for things to think about:
- Plan, plan plan - If you have not been to Florida then you have been thinking about this holiday for a long time. When you get there it will be even better then that. There are so many things to do and no matter how many times you have been there is always more to do then time there is. As a starter you should look at days you will be there and the parks you want to visit to check off the major items, if nothing else to help you choose the ticket options
- Disney Tickets - Once you know how many days you are looking to spend in the park pre buy a Disney package ticket (7 or 14 days). When you are in Florida you will find you are spending on lots of things food, toys etc because you are only in Florida once – Therefore it is a great idea to pre buy these tickets so that they have been budgeted, the Premium tickets are valid for 14 days and so will last the holiday. The tickets allow entry for all Disney parks including water parks and more then 1 park in a day and so ideal for going back for fireworks. You can get Tickets in the UK Here
- Walking - There is a lot walking on a Florida holiday. Whilst there is always transportation between hotels if you are staying at a Disney hotels or often villa owners will have a car there is still a lot of walking once in the park as an example there will be a walk from the car/bus to the entrance then depending on the park, for example the Disney Kingdom there is a walk and wait to get on the boat over to the park. There is then a walk from the boat to the second entrance and then of course walking around the park all the day. If you have small children plan on a shorter day if you want them to keep going every day and allow for a late start if going to an evening show. Whilst at the park you can hire a pushchair (stroller) but of course can take your own as well (also not included as luggage on the plane) and so make sure you take it so small children can recharge as you go round.
- Downtown Disney and Rainforest Cafe - This is a great location for some shopping but there is also a great cafe called Rainforest Cafe. Technically it is just a cafe but it is themed along the rainforest them and is a fantastic experience for smaller children with regular thunder storms going around the cafe, and watch out for the animals…….
- Harry Potters Wizarding World - This is the latest major attraction in Florida and is located at the Universal parks. No trip to Florida can be complete without visiting Harry Potter world with so many new attractions and rides to have your opportunity to be Harry Potters helper…
- Rest Days – Whilst looking into the planning of your holiday and knowing that there is so many things to do, that it is still important to try and have at least 1 rest day. If you are in a Disney Hotel or a villa it is a good idea to have a family day by the pool or somewhere quiet with a chance to relax in a non moving way. We found that this offers the opportunity to have proper one to one time rather then always chasing the next ride or queue which is all about planning.
- Nasa Kennedy Space Center & Cocoa Beach – The Kennedy space centre is a great visit for those that look into the sky and well worth a trip, however with smaller children there is limited things to keep them interested and so w would recommend combining a trip to the Space Centre with going to the beach for the afternoon. The best and closest beack is Cocoa beach, this is a massive sandy beach and ideal for some familly playing, there is also the famous Ron Jon Surf Shop and so get some great kit from the shop and have a fantastic beach time.
- Try and Keep Kids Routines – If you have smaller children you will get more out of the holiday as a happy family if you try and keep your routines. As an example when we, as a family with a 3 year old, went to Disney we returned back each day at the same time (and hour after normal time in the UK) and had the same routine of tea, play, bath and bed. This gave our son the knowledge of the days structure and we had no problems with sleeping children and he was always ready for the next day and behaved as he was not over tired.Â
- Water Parks - These are great days out. If you have got a Disney park such as the Premium Ticket then it may be a great idea to go to 2 parks in 1 day. The Disneys Blizzard Beach Water Park is on our opion the best water park to go to for the slides and rides, this parks offer a great selection of rides such as the super high speed ski jump appearing water slide for the older children (yes adults included) and a selection of water ring rides which allow even for full families to ride together. Later in the day you could then go to the Disney Typhoon Lagoon where the pace is a bit slower. Both parks have a smaller kids area so there is always somewhere to go for the smallest of children all with Lifeguards and so a great chance make the most of the water. If your child is not sure about water then this is the best opportunity to get the used to water in a fantastically themed water park.
- What time of year to go to Florida - This is a tough one to decide and is often dictated to you by work commitements / school holidays etc. There are a few things to check when planning when to go to Disney in Florida. If you can then trying to avoid school holidays will save you money and a LOT of time, when in school holiday the queues for rides become very long. In the summer holidays the tempreture can get quite extreme, on the plus the big parks are good an ensuring main qeueuing areas are under cover and even have mist sprayers to keep you cool. If you have a school that does allow time off then it is often a accepted for a holiday such as Florida to allow children out as it is often a once in a lifetime holiday as well as offering the children a lot more education per day then a day at school depending on the year the children are in. – We have always travelled in September with children allowed out of school, weather still great and prices and people in parks quiter it has been ideal. We should say that September is the start of hurricane season and we have had a threat or 2 of a hurrice we have yet to be involved in once. Before booking your holiday check the weather, the school holiday dates and also public holiday in the US espcially Spring Break as this is when Florida is taken over by Highschool Children.
If you have any suggestions or recommendations then please feel free to drop us a line (villas@floridapremiervillas.com)Â or make a comment. we are happy to update this article or generate new ones.
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