dragonskeep

Sea world's water park Aquatica is getting mixed reviews. Wet-n-Wild has always been fun when I have gone. It isn't as pretty as Aquatica but has more rides. I would definitely consider Islands of Adventure if you have never been. The place is a little torn up right now with constuction going on but is still a great park, dont miss Spiderman if you go. There are a lot of resturaunts and clubs at City Walk which you have to walk through to exit the park. If you want to make it a long night you could have a good time there. Busch Gardens is a great park too. Have a great time in Orlando.

Make a short drive down I-4 and check out Del Frisco's. The best steak house in town IMO and located on Lee rd. Magical Midway has a huge Slingshot and the world's largest Star Flyer, both are pretty crazy. Fun Spot near Old Town Has a huge Sky Coaster, the single biggest thrill in the area. Lots of other stuff to do there too, go-karts, carnival type rides etc. If you like outdoors stuff take a day trip to Longwood and canoe down the Wekiva River. Wekiva state Park rents canoes and the river is beautiful. If you are afraid of alligators don't go because you will see them. Don't bother them and they won't bother you.

Fire!

I think I went to Islands of Adventure 10 times before it opened to the public, and maybe a hundred times since, so IOA followed by Cedar Point when I was a kid. Did anyone else attend the soft openings at IOA? It was just awesome, like having your own theme park.

Definitely space saving designs, so many parks will be using the remaining space more carefully. I would also expect to see Kuka robo coasters start to be in demand after Universal's 10 year exclusive runs out. I believe the Harry Potter attraction will take things to the next level just like Spidey did for dark rides. Large steel coasters will continue to push the envelope, the economy will return, and they are generally big hits for parks.

With respect to "Laser Snake Horse on Fire" we will no more soon, but the unique nature of this ride makes it an early favorite for me. Cedar Point may also build something so it surely is way to early to say. I just hope The Hollywood Rockit is mostly smooth and has good pacing, some of those breaking areas are a little concerning. Five trains, audio, video, concert lighting effects, state of the art LED's, tunnels, all on a coaster that doesn't have a single normal element in sight is pretty much everything great in the world. There have been rumors that external devices could be used to download music of your choice. People would abuse that right however so maybe not, would be cool though, and add another layer of inter activity. I don't suppose Judas Priest will be an option, too bad.

Unicorn will simply be re-themed to fit the Potter story, Buckbeaks escape or somthing like that. You can expect to see Hagrid's hut as the main themeing element, with changes to the train to look like a hippogriff.

I cant wait for the 09 trip announcements, hopefully a TPR trip is in my future. Have a great time guys.

I need to get to Hershey badly. Thanks for the report.

I am getting pretty excited about this thing. Orlando was in need of something other than a B&M. I do love the coasters we have here but variety is good too. Universal looks to have a winner on their hands. That non loop is going to be great and the dive through the firehouse at high speed is should be cool too. If the rest of the layout provides good thrills you could be looking at the best new ride for 2009. I hope it has some airtime.

I was out at the park last night, pretty sad to see the area back by DD. The Enchanted Oak was one of my favorite areas in any park. Even though I knew it was going to go , it was still shocking. When I heard J.K. Rowling was impressed by it I held out some hope it would just be changed a little.

WOW. I love the fair that comes to our area, but that is just mind blowing. Thanks for sharing. A TPR trip to one of these fairs would definitely be great. Note to self: start saving money now!!!

The weather in October and November is really nice. October has the added bonus of Halloween Horror Nights which is very fun. An Express Pass is an absolute must because the evenings of the event are quite busy. Check out Universals site for info on HHN. I would wait for Universals' Harry Potter area, Sea World Manta Coaster, and Universals' Hollywood Rip Ride Rockit coaster to open. Harry Potter will be the last to open and is currently scheduled for December 09, could be later though. The other two will definitely be open by summer of 09, and both look pretty awesome. If you want to get off the beaten path and see the "real" Florida, I would suggest Wekiva State Park. You can take a canoe trip down the Wekiva River, the scenery and wildlife are really cool if you like that type of thing. The park is in Longwood, just a short drive up I-4. If you like sports go see a Magic game. You can usually get a Ticket to most home games. The season starts October 31. Fun spot USA is a good bargain. Old Town and Magical Midway both have some crazy attractions if you want a big thrill. Hope you have a good time.

I always heard Gwazi was really rough, but I found myself needing to ride a wooden coaster badly so off I went. My rides on the Lion side were fun actually and I figured it's reputation was not deserved...however, the afternoon ride on the Tiger side was awful. I have never come off a coaster hating it except for that time. It sucked. I was actually pissed about it. Maybe I was over a bad wheel or something. I really cant overstate how painful and just pointless it seemed. Someone should go to hell for that.

Life should be enjoyed to the fullest. I hope you had fun.

Check it out if you get the chance. It will shake you to the core.

Does the Orlando Skycoaster count? That thing is wicked

I was there for a few days in June last year and had the time of my life. Thursday night I got 8 launches in a row and never waited more than 15 minutes. Dragster at night in the front row is just awesome. I caught a quick glimpse of the fireworks from the top, an image forever in my mind. It was truly one of the most enjoyable times I ever spent at a park. Seeing the pictures brought back some great memories. Thank you.

" It's not the biggest, it's not the fastest, but it's definitely the meanest." The Texas Cyclone Or maybe Wiener Looping, coming back through the station gave me a pretty good smack.

What I have heard is most of the skeletons will be removed from inside the castle. Other than that just some tents in the area in front and probably a newly themed gift shop. It wouldn't surprise me to see the color scheme of the trains changed. I don't think the ride will be closed for long, or at all during the re-theme. They will just set up a temporary entrance. However, it would be nice too see them re-paint the track because they did such a crap job of it last time. It is a shame to see The Enchanted Oak coming down, that area on a foggy summer night was spectacular.

I just had a freakin flashback. Was Bullet originally Wiener Looping at Boardwalk and Baseball? Sure does look like it. I rode it once, and it was weird.

The Dania Beach Hurricane. 100 times in four days. If you get a chance check this one out. Awesome.

My opinion: As you turn past Sinbad Heading towards Dragons you enter Harry Potter World. All of those games would be grabbed as well as Enchanted Oak and yes, Dueling Dragons. I think this quote in the Sentinel is referring to Dragons: "...Universal intended to leverage some existing infrastructure." He said that would have to include far more than a paint job and a new sign because too much was at stake. If you notice in the concept art I belive Dragons is vaguely represented under the word Harry. The clump of trees ( The Forbidden Forest ) is across from that . I believe that is the current location of the Oak. The area would continue past Flying Unicorn, bearing left (long and narrow back there just like the concept art ) and end at Hogwarts. I think the castle will seem somewhat distant because of this design, could be real cool at night .

The view from Ice side of Dueling Dragons is pretty sweet Magnum is about as good as it gets though.