Orlando and Clearwater with 2 young kids

BenEadir

Hi all,

I've reviewed some of the other threads about Orlando and got lots of good info on the different parks, where to eat etc but a lot of the info is adult centric.

Myself (40), wife (39), son (7) and daughter (3) are arriving in Orlando July 14th and returning to Dublin on the 24th. We want to spend a few days in Orlando focused mostly on the kids doing the parks etc and then drive down to the Clearwater area to have a chill out few days by the beach. Thinking of renting a car (convertible or not???) at the Airport and staying in Orlando for 3 full days (Tues to Thurs) and then driving to Clearwater either Thursday evening or Friday morning.

My specific questions are:-

1. Recommendations for where to stay in Orlando? Thinking of booking here. http://www.floridaysresortorlando.com/suites.html Has anyone been or can recommend anything more suitable for us?

2. Is 3 full days in Orlando and 6 in Clearwater the right split or should it be 4/5?

3. What car rental to use and should we go for the convertible (kids would love it) or a regular car? I'm a bit concerned luggage space in the convertible would be a bit small but more importantly I have this notion that we'd be very exposed in a convertible both in terms of a car crash and/or being mugged. Am I being stupid/paranoid?

4. Best kid centric parks to go to? I'm pretty fixed on Sea World and Islands of Adventure from what posters have said elsewhere but should Disney be the 3rd and final choice as we only have 3 days? Could we really go to Orlando and not go to Disney? (We might go to Busch Gardens when we are in Clearwater as it's close enough should we fancy more thrills!!)

5. Is Clearwater the right chill out beach type destination given we have to drive back to Orlando to fly home?

6. Can anyone recommend where to stay in Clearwater or somewhere similar/better?

This is a once in a lifetime holiday for the kids (won't be kids forever) so I really want to get as much right in advance as possible.

Many thanks to those who take the time to share your knowledge and experience with me on this.

Regards,

Ben

rossie1977

i can't answer all these questions but i can try with one or two

1.Where to stay should be based on what parks you expect to visit. I have stayed in a hotel with my friends the two times i have been to orlando so i cannot help with villas.

2.personally i would go 4/5, once you take out the day to get there you would only be left with 2 days in Orlando which is very short

4.Seaworld is an excellent kid centric park loads of great shows everyone will enjoy; islands of adventure is more geared towards adults and teenagers with 70mph rollercoasters and massive water rides, there ain't many kiddie rides in IOA (there is one island geared towards the younger kids but the problem is most of the big rides have a height limit of 1m 40cm which is 4ft 8. Same problem with Busch Gardens, the height limits will probably stop the kids riding the huge rollercoasters

Disney would be my choice for kids, animal kingdom is busch gardens without the rollercoasters (they have smaller ones). Magic kingdom at Disney would be first on the list to bring children. To answer your question yes you can do orlando without disney quite easily but you guys will have a better time doing disney imo. Seaworld, Animal kingdom and magic kingdom would suit you better.

6.Daytona beach is nice and only 45 minutes northeast of orlando. Huge 25 mile long beach there

pebbles21

hi i have been to orlando five times in the last three years so heres my two cents

1.car hire go to www.yescarhire.com there an uk based company who deal with alamo and their rates are the best ive had i went for a lurxury car and got a chrysler300s for approx 400 euro for two weeks(btw when you get to alamo desk they will try sell you more insurance etc..just say no very firmly as you dont need any more than you have paid for

2 disney seems to be the place to go for your family regarding their ages
you should go for a seven day park hopper pass so you have the choice of magic kingdom,animal kingdom.mgm studios,epcot and also disneys two water parks blizzard beach and typhoon lagoon

3.i stayed at a hotel in international drive the first time and found the accomodation very cramped just two beds and a bathroom and when it rains (it will very heavy at times when your there)kids are bored silly so would you not consider renting a private villa they are very reasonable and you have 3/4 bed rooms loads of space your own pool and most have games rooms to keep kids happy plus after a day in the park all you want to do is sit back relax in your own luxury house

4.i wouldnt really bother staying in clearwater theres not that much there imo the beach aint that good either anyhow you can chill out at any of the waterparks or your own pool(if you go for one)

5.once you go you will get the buzz and more than likely go back again and if you do it wouldnt be a bad idea to buy a ticket at disney thats cost around 100 dollars which means you can use your current tickets again next year instead of forking out again

hope some of this helps

AdrianII

we are planning the same trip in july, we will be there from the 11/7.

1. Loads of places to stay, very cheap aswell. the travel agents advised us to stay along or near international drive. So we booked into the marriot around there, appro - 50 euro a night

2. Not sure how long is enough we are having 5 nights as we want to drive to the space center. But i imagine 3 days at the parks is enough

3. Not sure about renting a car, we will do this when we arrive in orlando

5. were staying in clear water, there are loads of places do a quick search on hotels.com. the travel agent advised clear water as the beach and sea is nicer as it is the gulf of mexico - its more tropical besides the atlancic ocean which can be quite rough.


Enjoy the trip any way and i hope these comments help

BenEadir

Hi Rosie, Pebbles and Adrian, thanks for the info. Much appreciated.

Spent a week in Daytona 10 years ago before we had kids and it was a blast so just looking for a chill out 'family' week now messing about on the beach and strolling around looking for restaurants at night. If we get withdrawal sympthoms from the action in Orlando we can always head for Busch Gardens.

Adrian, I really don't want to stay in a hotel in Clearwater. I'd much rather a holiday home of some sort (condo or house) and have found plenty of options on www.vrbo.com if you are interested. Much better value than a hotel IMO.

Does anyone know what the height restrictions are for most of the "junior" rides i.e the ones for kids who are not toddlers but not big enough for the full on adult rides? My 3 year old daughter is 100cm (39 inches) tall and brave as a lion so mad to go on everything she can and my 7 year old son is 125cm (49 inches) tall. Will they be big enough for most of the Disney rides?

Regards,

Ben

rossie1977

your son is tall enough for all disney rides expect 1 in the parks proper (disneyquest is in downtown disney), your daughter misses out on a most of the bigges like thunder mountain, Splash Mountain, soaring, Star Tours and tower of terror, Stitch's Great Escape by 1 inch, maybe they will let her on if she is 40 inches in shoes.

http://www.wdwinfo.com/wdwinfo/height.cfm

even if they don't she is still eligible for most of magic kingdoms attractions http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Magic_Kingdom_attraction_and_entertainment_history

islands of adventure and universal height requirements, men in black is horrible anyway http://www.universalorlando.com/hours-information/height-requirements.html

busch gardens http://www.bgtguide.com/general/heightrequirements.php

BenEadir

Adrian,

Just booked a one bedroom suite for 7 nights at www.royalnorthbeach.com for €840 all in inc taxes. Looks like just what we want in Clearwater. Hope it is!!!

Ben

TingTong

I would not be waiting to book a car until you get there. The rental companies have you were they want you and will roast you. Book before you go and you will save money. we use www.carhire3000.com we find them the cheapest and you can go with Alamo through them.

BenEadir

Hi all,

Hotels and car hire sorted for both Orlando and Clearwater so thanks to all for your tips and recommendations etc.

Arriving into Orlando late afternoon on Mon July 14th and driving to Clearwater late Thursday evening so three full days trapsing around. Given that the kids are 3 and 7 the basic plan is Tuesday in Walt Disney, Wednesday in Sea World and Thursday in Walt Disney again with shopping/eating/entertainment in the evenings.

Can I ask two more questions for those who know what it's like to bring kids to Orlando?

1. Is the Walt Disney, Sea World, Walt disney the right mix?
2. Where and when should I buy tickets and what type of tickets should I get?

Looking forward to your continued advice.

Ben.

TingTong

We go over every year and consider ourselves seasoned pros at this stage. For the kids I would do Magic kingdom and Animal Kingdom leave the other two parks until they get older. SeaWorld is cool, whatever you do dont miss the Shamu killer whale show or the Dolphin show you can take or leave the other shows here. we had our 1 year old with us last November and her little eyes just lit up with the excitement.
It might be asking to much but you can by hopper tickets and go between the two disney parks in one day, you'll need all your stamina for that. We buy all our tickets at www.officialticketcenter.com we find them the cheapest by far, they are located on highway 535 close to disney. They will deliver your tickets to your hotel door if you wish.
Have a good one, we are going over again ourselves in September for a while, cant wait.

BenEadir

Good advice TingTong, much appreciated.

Can't believe a two day pass for Disney and a one day pass for Sea World for 2 adults and t kids is over $800!!! Man that's expensive + I'm sure they will milk us good for food, drinks, extra's, souviners etc when we are there.

This is getting expensive.

Ben

TingTong

the parks are expensive but they are actually worth it when you are in there. you can bring in food into disney and drinks also. you can bring it in in a cooler to keep it fresh. you are not allowed to bring in coolers into seaworld or busch gardens so we freeze the sambos the night before and wrap in foil they are just right by lunch time. By the way all your beer is free (no limit)in the hospitality area in seaworld!

AdrianII

Glad you got the accomidation sorted

this is the site im looking at for the attractions

http://www.touramerica.ie/attractions.php