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The latest news from Floridamax...
THE COLD SNAP - YARDS
Many guests will be aware of the exceptionally cold weather (for Florida anyway!) that we experienced in Florida during early January. For almost a fortnight, the daytime temperature struggled to get over 50F (10C) and, on only one day during that period, did it reach the balmy heights of 60F (15C) – still well below the average for that time of the year. Whilst this made it disconcertingly uncomfortable for all those on vacation hoping for some warm winter Florida sunshine, of greater relevance was a spell of five consecutive sub-zero nights, with a record low one night, including the wind chill, of 19F (-7C).
The material consequence of these sub-zero nights was the serious damage caused to the yards. Many plants and shrubs have simply been wiped out and others have suffered, at the very least, serious damage from which they may or may not recover. So severe was the cold snap that even shrubs and planting usually considered hardy enough to make it through the odd freezing night suffered damage to some extent or another.
The grass everywhere suffered and went completely brown, although it is hoped that most lawns that were previously healthy will recover. Indeed, we are already getting new growth coming through which is lending a tinge of green to most lawns, but it is likely to be a couple of months before the lawns, of which we were so proud, are returned to anything like their former glory. Given time, we may see some level of recovery to affected shrubs and planting, but unfortunately this may not happen to a lot and, if it does, recovery may be slow. As we go into March and get a better idea of what we are confronting. For the moment however, and certainly until the possibility of any further frosts has passed, we can do little other than grin and bear it.
LEGOLAND IS COMING TO TOWN
Perhaps the most significant announcement on the Central Florida theme park scene for many a year, it was revealed last week that those magical little bricks are set to enhance the “to do” list for all visitors.
British-owned Merlin Entertainments Group, owner of the Lego theme parks around the world, is to open its second US Legoland (there is already one in California) here in Central Florida. The selected location is to be the now-defunct Cypress Gardens out at Winter Haven, which closed last autumn. Merlin purchased the site in January for $22.3 million and they intend to invest an estimated $125 million turning it into the world’s largest Legoland.
It is likely that many of the 50+ rides that formed part of Cypress Gardens will remain, even in modified form, as will the gardens and even the water park, although that may require a separate entry charge. It goes without saying that the usual Lego magic will be incorporated in the same way it is in their other parks – although expect everything to be bigger and better!
MCDONALD’S DOWNTOWN DISNEY
Whilst it may come as a surprise to many, the McDonald’s located at Downtown Disney is to close its doors for good on April 30th. Replacing it will be Pollo Campero, a Latin-inspired, fast-food chicken establishment.
NEW DINING TIP
Newly-opened at Pointe Orlando at the bottom end of I-Drive is the Funky Monkey Wine Company.
Branded as “stylish but unconventional”, Funky Monkey provides a mid- to upscale dining experience with more than 120 bottles of wine from around the world from which to select. Having recently experienced a most enjoyable evening there, I can vouch for it as an exciting new addition to the list of local eateries.
The dining menu is extensive and includes a large selection of sushi dishes, as well as a wide range of more traditional appetizers and entrees. Initial impressions of the food are very good and the service too appears to be top-notch. Not really suitable as a venue for families with children, for those looking for somewhere stylish and imaginative to enjoy an evening out, Funky Monkey comes highly recommended.
Expect to pay $20 to $40 per head for food. Wine prices start at around $35.
General information.....
VISA WAIVER CHANGES Commencing 12th January, 2009, all Visa Waiver Program travelers to the USA will be required to obtain an electronic travel authorization prior to flying. Travelers will need to log on to Electronic System for Travel Authorization (ESTA) web site (https://esta.cbp.dhs.gov) and complete an on-line application. This will prompt the person to answer a series of biographical and eligibility questions very similar to those that appeared on the old paper I-94W form. Applications are encouraged as early as possible and at the very least, no later than 72 hours before travel. A response is usually received within just a few seconds. Assuming approval is granted, this is valid for two years or until the expiration of the passport concerned, whichever comes first. It is valid for multiple entries into the USA. Stays of 90 days or less still do not require a visa. Travelers who fail to secure prior approval for trips after 12th January, 2009, may be denied boarding, experience delays at immigration upon arrival in the USA, or may even be denied admission to the USA.
VIEW THE INTERNATIONAL SPACE STATION AND SATELLITES FROM THE VILLA check out a wonderful website http://www.heavens-above.com which has detailed viewing into on ISS and all passing satellites and space junk. Simply register your location on the site.
FITNESS CENTRES Want to keep fit whilst you are on vacation? There is a new company called anytime fitness in Cagans Crossing, which is an 8 minute drive north on Highway 27. They specialise in 24 hour facilities and have a lot of equipment. They also do a package for vacationers. For further details please contact Heather Johnson at:
Anytime Fitness, 532 Cagen Park Avenue Clermont, FL 34714
Phone: 352-394-3339 Fax 352-394-3839
Email: clermontFL@anytimefitness.com Website: http://www.anytimefitness.com
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TEN TOP TIPS TO MAKE SURE YOU ARE THE FIRST IN LINE ON BUSY THEME PARK DAYS....
1. Make sure you purchase the tickets in advance, so you can go straight to the turnstiles and avoid long queues to exchange vouchers or buy tickets at the gate, (which almost always works out more expensive).
2. Get there early – at least 30mins before official opening time, as the parks may open earlier than the published times on busy days.
3. Do your homework and have a plan on what you really want to see and do before you arrive. If you have time you can always go on the other rides later.
4. As soon as the gates open head straight for the furthest point of the park, and don’t get side-tracked by the areas you pass through to get there, (as most people do).
5. Go straight on the most popular rides, and purchase fast-passes if available for the next most popular ride. Use the fast-pass system if the park offers this service, (where you book a slot to come back to the ride and walk straight on at your allotted time). The fast-passes are usually fully booked by late morning, and you can hold a fast-pass for one ride at a time.
6. Avoid eating between the hours of 12pm-2pm, as the restaurants are very crowded and the rides are not so busy, so use this time to do the rides. Have a big breakfast before you leave and you can have a late lunch when the restaurants are not so crowded and everyone else is back on the rides.
7. Try to leave the shows until the afternoon, as you will really need a break from the afternoon heat.
8. Try to buy any souvenirs etc. during the day as the shops are the most crowded at the end of the day when everyone is leaving. Most theme parks shops will keep the items you buy for you to pick up at the gate when you leave.
9. Stay until the park closes if possible as the crowds do thin out just after tea-time when the children start flagging and need to get to bed. If you have young children, try to leave the park for a couple of hours in the afternoon for them to have a nap and come back later when they have livened up again, (don’t forget to get a stamp or pass at the gate to allow you back in).
10. Finally, drink lots of water, (not fizzy drinks as they dehydrate the body), and enjoy it! Remember you don’t have to do it all in one day – it’s much less stressful for all of you, if you take your time, let the children play if they want to, and go with the flow. You can always come back again next year and do the rides you missed! Have fun!
ATTRACTIONS UPDATE
BUSCH GARDENS – A large (4-acre) area to the rear of the park has been redeveloped over the past 2 years and now goes under the name of Jungala. Jungala is probably best described as an adventure playground – with a difference. Here your playmates are the animals and your playground is their playground. On a more sedate level you can observe orangutans in their natural habitat from tree-top observation platforms, mingle with gibbons and flying foxes up in the Kula Canopy, learn all about the tiger’s fight for survival in Tiger Lodge and also get close-up with the tigers themselves on Tiger Trail, including watching them play in the water from an underwater viewing gallery. For the more adventurous and the thrill-seeker, Jungle Flyers is a zip-wire line with three different flight patterns above the tree tops and Wild Surge shoots you up four storey’s high out of the top of a waterfall and then straight back down into the crater below. If the kids have got too much energy left over, there is also Tree Top Trails, a three-storey high climbing area that takes you up and through the tree-tops on rope bridges, climbing nets, crawl-tubes, slides and a multi-level maze – oh and there is also the ubiquitous chance to get wet with bursts of water that shoot up from the ground.
DISNEY HOLLYWOOD STUDIOS – After what many would consider a period of relative non-activity, other than the recent name change, there are a few new things here. Toy Story Mania is another of the imaginative and high-tech genre of 4-D shows that most of the parks now have. It features all the principle characters from the hit movies in an interactive adventure that is sure to go down well with all ages. Opening right at the end of June is Journey into Narnia – Prince Caspian. More special effects and Disney Imagineering than a thrill ride, here you go on a guided walking tour through Aslan’s Stone Table Chamber, meet Prince Caspian and get an insight into the marvels of special effects movie-making. On the entertainment front, High School Musical 2 – School’s Out is a live-action stage show based on the smash hit Disney TV series – ask the kids, and especially the girls, if you are still none the wiser!
UNIVERSAL STUDIOS – The eagerly awaited Simpsons Ride is now open at Universal Studios and the massive media campaign to promote it seems to be working well. The ride is right up there at the top of the park’s most popular rides and, come peak season, I think it is fair to say that the lines and wait times will be extensive. This attraction replaces the old Back to the Future simulator ride and in essence it too is a simulator. However, things move on apace and particularly so in the area of visual technology. The screen onto which the movie is projected is an 80ft diameter dome at four times the resolution found in home theater TV systems and more than twice that used in digital cinema projections. The results are truly stunning. The physical aspects of the ride itself are not vastly different to most other recent simulators – good, but not to the point that they break much in the way of new ground. However, the visual delights are so extensive that you could ride here over and over and still be seeing a raft of new things on the screen. This ride will certainly go some way towards rejuvenating a Universal Studios that some were saying was falling a little behind the other parks. However, best make use of the Express plus ticket to avoid the long waits that are bound to be par for the course with any hit new attraction.
AN ALTERNATIVE DAY OUT - In a recent report from an acclaimed figure (dubbed “Doctor Beach”) noted for his annual grading of America’s beaches, Florida featured three of the 2008 list of top ten. For somewhere completely different, and certainly a break from the whirlwind of activity that underpins the theme park environs, why not try a day out to Caladesi Island, just north of Clearwater. Caladesi Island is a State Park which has the most divine pure white sands and warm, turquoise waters of the Gulf of Mexico lapping its shores. There are no roads, hence no vehicles, and the only way to reach its natural beauty is via boat. If you do not have your own salted away somewhere, the hourly ferry makes the 15-minute crossing for $10 (adult) and $6 (children 4 to 12) return. Visitors are only allowed to remain on the island for a maximum of 4 hours. Aside from the gorgeous sandy beaches and warm, calm waters, there is a nature trail across the centre of the island where you may see the ospreys nesting in the tree tops or fishing for food, the protected gopher tortoises and all manner of other sea birds.
Racing's North Turn Beach Bar & Grille commemorates the historic site with beachfront dining, racing photographs and memorabilia and dishes such as the Russ Truelove prime rib sandwich. You never know when you might find a NASCAR star sitting down to lunch at this popular spot. Another bite of culinary-related history occupies the circa-1925
For deeper seclusion with a taste of nature in your beach time,
Villa information....
POOL DOOR SECURITY - Most of the break-ins that occur in vacation homes are through the sliding pool doors. Although these are a weak point they can readily be made much more secure through the installation of metal security bars. For our guests security on the simple premise that prevention is better than cure, we will be installing security bars on all pool doors (or alternative security devices) as soon as possible.
VERTICAL BLINDS - In recent months we have experienced a high level of repairs to the vertical blinds. Whilst these blinds are notoriously temperamental and also more susceptible to damage as they age (they become brittle), a lot of the damage that is caused is a result of misuse. Whilst damage caused is usually accidental, it is in many cases completely avoidable. Although these vertical blinds are not the best design in the world, the fact remains that if operated carefully and correctly, they work fine and should provide a long operational life with only minimal servicing. The main cause of damage remains failure to rotate the blinds through 90 degrees before opening them, or alternatively trying to rotate them when they are not fully drawn closed across the door/window. Forcing the blinds results either in the small nylon gears at the top being stripped, damage to the vertical slats, or even a complete failure of the main shaft. The former two issues result in relatively minor charges, the latter often means an entire new track, which is a wholly different matter.
FLORIDA ATTRACTIONS - The choice of attractions really is endless:
- The Epcot Centre
- The Magic Kingdom
- Downtown Disney
- Gatorland
- Animal Kingdom
- Blizzard Beach & Typhoon Lagoon
- Islands of Adventure
- The film studios of Universal and Hollywood
- The Universal Studio's City Walk
- Wet n' Wild
- Sea World and Discovery Cove
- Aquatica
- Kennedy Space Centre
- Restaurants, Restaurants, Restaurants
- Golf Courses Galore!
- Lakes, Fishing, Watersports…
- And much, much, more......
For retail therapy, get set for great days out at Orlando's fabulous shopping malls. The Florida Mall or for real bargains try the Orlando Premium Outlets. Here you will find amazing bargains on designer brand names and sportswear at fabulous prices.
Do you play golf? Florida hosts some of the best golf courses in the world. Many of them open to the public to play on an ad hoc basis.
Fringed by over a 1000 miles of coastline, powdery white sands are baked by the Florida sunshine. An hour from Orlando you will find lively Daytona Beach and the surfers paradise of Cocoa Beach. Along the Gulf coast warm waters lap broad sands with beautiful stretches at St Petersburg Beach, Clearwater and Treasure Island.
Let’s not forget the weather. Endless days of fine weather and will a purported 360 days of sunshine a year. No wonder it is called the ' Sunshine State'. Dining out is a real experience and Orlando has a huge variety of restaurants to suit any tastes and budget. Whether you want fine cuisine or a simple burger all tastes are catered for. Not to forget Florida's famous all you can eat diners, burger joints, pizza parlours and delicious steak, rib and seafood restaurants. Be warned though, the portions are huge!
When the sun goes down there are always the Orlando nightspots to go and enjoy. The bars and clubs of Downtown Disney or Universals City Walk. An American car parade in Old Town Kissimmee then a wander through the streets looking at the craft shops. Not forgetting the wonderful fireworks at Epcot.
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