Central Florida with not much time or money...

[BrownStreak]

I was asked to present at a seminar in South Beach in March which just happens to fall during my Spring Break- but it is only from Wednesday or Thursday through Sunday. I was hoping to fly in/out of Orlando the Friday night before and then rent a car so I can hit some of the parks and then drive to/from South Beach.

 

This gives me Saturday, Sunday, Monday, Tuesday, and maybe Wednesday to work with. As far as what I haven't done/have done:

 

Islands of Adventure- Never been there

 

Universal Studios- New to me= Simpsons, Men in Black, Rip Ride Rockit, Mummy, Tornado, and maybe a few more

 

Sea World- New to me= Kraken, Atlantis, Manta, Wild Artic, maybe a few shows

 

Animal Kingdom- Never been there

 

Disney Studios- New to me= Rock'n'Rollercoaster, Fantazmic, maybe a show or two

 

Epcot- New to me= Test Track, Nemo, Mission Space, Univ. of Energy with Ellen in the pre-show, new Spaceship Earth, new Journey into No Figment, Soarin' over a different state than you are currently in

 

Magic Kingdom- New to me= Pooh, Philharmagic, Buzz Lightyear, Aladin's Carpets

 

Money is definitely an object (as opposed to not being one)- so what can I realistically get done with four or five days (I could maybe leave earlier on Friday and get a 6th day)

 

Any suggestions on types of tickets or suggested itineraries would be much appreciated!

[FeelTheFORCE]

As for Universal and IOA...you shouldn't have trouble in March. I went to IOA and Universal in May and the parks were empty. If there, by chance, is some freakishly large group there or something, just buy an express pass and you can easily skip all lines and easily do everything in half a day.

 

As for the other parks, I have no idea. The last time I was at Disney I was 8, which was over 10 years ago, and I've never been to Sea World.

[testtrack321]

If your money is really limited, you might want to stick to one set of parks (UO/IOA/SW or the Disney Parks) since you can usually buy multiday, park hopper tickets, for cheaper than single day tickets. A 5 day pass to Disney parks will cost less per day than a 4, etc.

 

Also, buy your admission prior to leaving from AAA or any other places you might be part of. They'll knock money off of tickets, food, and hotel reservations.

 

Also, if you go between Disney and Universal, you'll need to spend money on a cab or rent a car, as opposed to just staying at one or another.

 

March in Disney is light, as long as you go early, otherwise you'll start to hit spring break/Easter crowds.

 

Personally, IOA is Amazing, but I find that I can spend days at the Disney parks yet I grow bored of Universal quicker. But it's up to you!

[doom1001]

Universal has a deal online right now of $99 unlimited visits for a week or two.The cheapest you'll find a one day ticket to Sea World is probably like $60.There's also the Orlando Flex Ticket which is unlimited visits to both Universal parks,Sea World,Aquatica,Wet n Wild and you also include Busch Gardens for around $235 up to $280 depending if you include Busch Gardens.Disney pretty much doesn't have much in the way of deals with their Magic your Way tickets which could cost you $80 for one day but if you buy 10 days it's $250 or so,plus you could add the park hopping option for $50 to your ticket so you could visit multiple parks in one day,for example a one day park hopper would be $130 but a 10 day park hopper would be $300,the more days you buy the less you pay per day.

[FeelTheFORCE]

^ I'd like to add that the purchase of a flex ticket also includes free shuttle service to Busch Gardens, and probably Sea World as well.

[monsterfan99]

^ The flex ticket of Universal (both parks), Sea World, Busch Gardens and two water parks is 280. This also includes CityWalk, the shuttle to BG and is good for 14 days. The thing that is the killer is it does not include parking.

[Sir Clinksalot]

Cross your fingers and hope Universal does another of their "Free Ticket" promotions during the Super Bowl.

[larrygator]

^ The flex ticket of Universal (both parks), Sea World, Busch Gardens and two water parks is 280. This also includes CityWalk, the shuttle to BG and is good for 14 days. The thing that is the killer is it does not include parking.

 

I'd say the "killer" is $280 for someone with no money.

[FeelTheFORCE]

^ The flex ticket of Universal (both parks), Sea World, Busch Gardens and two water parks is 280. This also includes CityWalk, the shuttle to BG and is good for 14 days. The thing that is the killer is it does not include parking.

 

I'd say the "killer" is $280 for someone with no money.

 

Yeah, the parks in Orlando are difficult to do if you're not on a planned vacation...or at least more difficult than hitting up a local Six Flags or Cedar Fair park while you're in the area on business. While parks like IOA, Universal, Sea World, Busch Gardens, etc. can usually be accomplished in one day, it usually takes a couple visits for you to actually get your money's worth, in my opinion, assuming you pay full price. In my opinion, spending only 3/4 of a day at Universal and IOA after spending $100+ for entry isn't enough to justify that purchase.

[BrownStreak]

Thanks for the info so far. One of my questions is if I got a Disney Park Hopper Ticket- could I hit the attractions that are new to me at say MK and Epcot in one day- or more likely MK and MGM in one day (since neither has added that many major attractions since I was last there).

 

For example could I hit MK early on say Saturday and get a flash pass for Pooh and the go do Lightyear and Philharmagic while waiting for my time to come up and then do the new Haunted Mansion while I wait for a flash pass time at Big Thunder. And then still have time to commute over to the Studios and do ToT and RR...

 

Then Sunday at Epcot/AK

 

Monday any Disney I have missed and then start on IOA or USF

 

Tuesday/Wednesday IOA/USF

 

As for Disney I am really only definitely wanting to hit the newer stuff.

[ginzo]

^That sounds like a pretty reasonable plan. Though you might consider doing UO/IOA first (aka the weekend) as Disney usually gets the bigger crowds.

 

It's pretty easy to park hop at WDW when you have a car. Though, if you're really broke, you can possibly park at Downtown Disney for free and take the buses around WDW. This would take a lot of time though.

 

Also, be sure to hit Midway Mania at MGM. It's surprisingly good.

[Sir Clinksalot]

I would certainly say that MK/DHS in the same day would be the better option than MK/EPCOT.

 

If your staying on property and one of the mornings your there is EMH at the MK, I would FOR SURE utilize it.

 

Disney Day One:

During the EMH you should have NO problem getting Pooh/Philharmagic/Buzz done. I would do them in that order to (Pooh/Phil/Buzz). Then head over and do Mansion and Big Thunder when the park opens. You should have no problem getting those two done within an hour after the park opens, if not less.

 

If you are not staying on property and/or not utilizing EMH, do NOT got to MK the day of morning EMH. It's crazy about 2 hours after the park opens on those days. But I would follow that same order but you have to get there at park opening.

 

Then I would drive over to DHS and get a FP for Tower and ride RnRC using the single rider line. I'm pretty sure they still have it, anybody confirm?

 

If all you want to do at MK/DHS are those few things you could concievably be done by noon or 1:00pm and spend the afternoon at EPCOT to be quite honest.

 

I'm asssuming you'll have a rental car as well. For the MK you can park at any resort if your staying on property. I would park at the Poly and then take the hotel monorail or a boat over to the MK rather than using the TTC parking lot/monorail. Or you can park at the Contemporary and walk to the MK.

 

After you leave MK, if your sure your going to end your day at say EPCOT, park at EPCOT, take a boat to DHS and then back to EPCOT when your done.

 

Day Two:

 

Honestly, many people don't like DAK, but since you haven't been there, I'm going to really suggest you taking the time to explore the park. It's AMAZING!!!

 

When the rope-drop happens most people will go to the left towards Africa. You go to the right through Asia and walk past Dinoland and the Nemo building. Cross the bridge and get a FP for Everest. If the line isn't long, ride it. If it's more than 20 minutes already, head straight for the safari and ride it.

 

After the Safari, use your FP on Everest. They do also have a single rider line. Head over to Dinoland and either ride or get a FP for Dinosaur. There are also two credits in the Dinoland USA part (the spinning mice).

 

As for shows, Nemo is NOT to be missed. It's quite simply the best theme park show I've ever seen. And I'm not a huge fan of theme park shows. Lion King is good, but if I only had the time for one, I'd go with Nemo. The Bird show is also good.

 

Also, take some time and explore the trails around the Tree of Life, it's simply AMAZING.

 

I would at least give DAK until 1:00 or 2:00 and then head back over to EPCOT for the rest of your afternoon/evening.

 

Sure, it's a very fast-paces schedule, but you should be able to do all of that considering you only are giving yourself 2 days.