Sitting here at momma’s house relaxing this final morning of 2011. We just got back from a week’s family vacation in Orlando. Maybe not the best time of year to go due to extreme crowds, but that where we decided to go.
Despite the crowds and traffic (and they both were severe at times), we found places where the crowds were smaller which added to the enjoyment of the place. We ended up avoiding most of the major parks and tried some different things. First up, we hit Epcot on Christmas Day. Yes, it was crowded, but we got there early and got in the better rides in the front section (Test Track & Soarin’) of Epcot.
In the afternoon, we had a late lunch reservation at the Rose & Crown Pub in the UK part of the World Showcase. We were seated outside right by the lake and away from all the crowds. The food was fantastic and the setting was wonderful. Our lunch reservation came with guaranteed seating at the Candlelight Processional, which was a Christmas concert held at the American Pavilion. Blair Underwood was our celebrity guest who read the story of Christmas while a full orchestra and choir filled in with wonderful Christmas Carols. It was a nice event and definitely felt like Christmas had arrived. After the concert, we walked around some of the other countries in Epcot’s World Showcase, but we were getting tired so we ended up leaving before the fireworks show.
The day after Christmas, we had reservations at Discovery Cove. This is a small SeaWorld Park that limits admittance to about 1000 people per day. Its expensive, but its a all inclusive type of park where the price of entry gets you a swim with dolphins, towel, mask & snorkel, breakfast and lunch (and snacks), and a seemingly empty park. The place was near capacity the day we went, but it felt empty. We floated in the lazy river through an aviary, snorkeled in a new and awesome reef with fish and stingrays, and then had our swim with the dolphins. After lunch we enjoyed some land time in the aviary, feeding beautiful and interesting birds. The weather wasn’t the warmest, but the lack of crowds more than made up for the feeling of having the place to ourselves.
We took the next day off, only heading to Universal’s City Walk for lunch and a movie. On the 28th, my niece really wanted to eat at Chef Mickey in the Contemporary Hotel, so we worked our way through horrendous traffic to see if we could eat there without a reservation. To our astonishment, we were seated in 5 minutes in a section where the Disney characters visited while we eat. My niece was in heaven, getting pictures with Mickey, Minnie, Pluto, Goofy & Donald. We read later that at peak holiday times, Chef Mickey usually needed reservations 180 days in advance. Boy, we were lucky.
After lunch, mom, my niece, and I went back to Epcot to just walk around the World Showcase. We took our time and enjoyed exploring all the countries and shops. We even got to see a great Mariachi band in Mexico and a street performer in Italy. It was crowded, but we just took our time and had fun. With that attitude, the park seemed a little less crowded.
Also with the Discovery Cove entry fee, we got free entry to one of the other SeaWorld Parks. We chose Aquatica, the water park, and went there on a final day in Orlando. Again, the weather wasn’t the best, but that only led to a near empty water park. We got there a little later in the day after the sun had warmed things up a bit and never had to wait in a line for a ride. Again, it was like having our own private water park and that was extremely nice after a long crowded week in Orlando.
It was a fun week in Orlando and I had a great time with my nieces and nephews and family. Photos coming in the near future.
