Who has been to Orlando, FL?

Question

Tell me about your experience, good or bad...I just got back from there and it was awful.

Almost every aspect of the trip was terrible, except for the place we stayed. Disney & MGM had more shops than rides or other entertainment & the wait to do anything was ridiculous; traffic was unbelievable (and this is coming from someone who lives in the DC area); and anytime we tried to go out to eat, the wait was a minimum of 45 mins., no matter what night of the week. The entire city was crowded to the max, everywhere. To top it all off, it rained the entire time we were there.

Answer 1

Orlando is the epitome of what is wrong with our world. No culture, no quality, everything is about profit and pavement. You might as well just give someone your money and get back on the plane, because you aren't going to leave there with anything of value.

Answer 2

Your experience in Orlando could easily suck if you are a first timer and don't know much about what's going on. I used to live there so for me it wasn't a tourist issue. Living there had it's ups and downs and could definately be hectic and times,however, I took many great experiences from living there, not to mention it was nice to know people there cuz now I can get the hook up everytime I want to go and visit. I can take, what would normally be to others, a $2,000 + vacation for only $600-$700. If you know the right places and right times to be at them your experiences could surely be better. So the next time you want to take a vacation to Orlando (if this experience didn't spoil it for life) get some tips from people who live and work there or have at least been there enough times to know. But for now, I will give you a few easy tips......Don't go during peak times of the year or in August when Florida is at it's hottest. Don't over rate Disney cuz then you will just be let down. Do the rides you think you will like most first thing in the morning before the sun beats you down and you get crancky from waiting. (and about waiting, there is no good amusement park that doesn't have rediculous lines so if u REALLY can't handle it pay the extra money to get the by-pass lines pass) Don't waste time at "novelty restaurants where you wait for hours to overpay for food that ain't usually that great anyway. Stick to fast food to save time and money for more important things. Try ,even, to eat breakfast and dinner in your hotel if it has a kitchen. And next time, try Universal, they are better in my opinion. That is about all I can come up with right now cuz it is 2:30 in the morning and I am going to bed. Hope I have helped and if not at least been somewhat amusing.

Answer 3

Disney is the best. I am sorry that you had a bad experience. The first time I went was in 1987. We went with my sister & her husband. I also had an awful time. It was July, it was HOT! My sister lived in Florida at the time, and considered herself the ultimate tour guide. They dragged us from one side of the park to the other. At one point my son, who was 5 yrs old at the time, wanted to ride the carousel. Her response was, there are carousels in Rhode Island (where we live). I had to say WAIT! We are on vacation, if the kid wants to ride it, he is going to ride it!(that is a typical moment from that vacation, there were many others)

I didn't go back until 2004. It was also April/May. This time I went with my OTHER sister. Let me tell you, it was a totally different experience. We went to the Disney parks & Universal. It was the best time ever. We relaxed and enjoyed everything we did & saw. If we had a long line to wait in, we spent the time planning what we would do next, or we got FASTPASSes and shopped or grabbed a snack until it was time to return to the ride. That was great because when we got off the ride, we could continue on and didn't feel like we missed anything while standing in line.

Last year we went in September, and this year we are going in September also.

I hope you don't let the one bad experience taint your opinions forever. Maybe you could choose a different time of year to go again. Maybe you could plan more, but be flexible. There are many things people miss while rushing from one attraction to the other. One of the most enjoyable experiences we had was when we came across some street performers in Epcot. We simply stopped and enjoyed the show.

Answer 4

Just have a good sense of direction or a compass - It is easy to loose your sense of direction around Orlando . If you are at Disney they have good maps so you should be OK there--I had my 21 yr old daughter reading a map and I made the grand 360 degree tour of Orlando trying to get to the airport on time lol. Study mapquest before you go. Take plenty of toll money if you take the new tollway I was on lol. If you are into wine and have a half day or so take bee line highway to Lakeland Winery south of leesburg. Its great wine and an excellent tour - some weekends they have free live music and you can send some wine home, or as we did take it on the airplane as long as it is sealed. I put it in overhead lugage compartment lol. A point about Disney to fully enjoy yourself don't try to see everything in one week it is a lot to take in- plan a later trip and enjoy yourself while your there( Epcot is more for the adults and nice too.)
Just a political statement if I am permited - my relatives ive in Orlando and home school their kids since the public schools are not very good at all. I think this is true of many locals in our country that needs to be addresed.

Answer 5

You have to keep in mind that Orlando and that whole area is a big tourist area so there's going to be traffic and crowds and all that. Also, in Florida it rains a lot. If you know that and are ok with that you'll have fun. I love going to Orlando and Disney and Universal, it's one of my favorite places to go and I know that that I'm not going to be the only one there so it will be crowded especially in the summer.

Answer 6

Orlando means Disney...We went in late March and again a Columbus day long holiday....we rented a time share villa with four rooms and had the luxuries of home at the Vistana!!!! It was the way to go....able to eat light breakfast, get out early, visit Disney, return about noonish for lunch and go for a swim in heat of the day....dress up and go to back to the park for the cooler evenings...done with 8, 11, and 14 year olds...good age...
The Contemporary A frame hotel is great to stay at too...the monorail goes through it and you can ride to the park at anytime.....nice place!!!!!
WHY DID YOU HATE IT???

Answer 7

You don't say why it was bad. I've been twice and each time was great. The first the weather was alittle on the cold side but still was great fun doing Disney, Epcot, Universal and also MGM. I'm a kid at heart.

Answer 8

I went there, got lots of fun and experience.. hope to visit again...there's much to do even at night around parks but not lot chance to go around Orlando..just on tour..

I went to Disney in Anaheim and Disneyresort in Tokyo too..

Answer 9

Company paid for trip including disney and passes so it didn't suck. It was fun cuz it was a bunch of people from work and no spouses. If I were paying I would have spent the money on hawaii.

Answer 10

born in orlando. i live on the west coast now, but i do visit often. i always have a good time there. but i expect everything that you mentioned. any major city you visit is going to be like that, i have the same trouble in D.C. if you don't like the traffic and long lines, you should vacation in west virginia.