First time in Orlando, staying in Kissammee area

Morlock

Hi all , its our first holiday in Orlando , we will stay in a house in Kissimmee and I was wondering if you had any tips , Im stressing about driven everywhere,
If you can advice me on some areas :

• Driving from Orlando airport to parks , vacation homes
• Driving to / from Kissimmee to the parks (Universal and Disney) is it a nightmare or ok
• Walmart, can we get Irish style butter (wifes request)

All advice taken happily

sideswipe

Don't stress about the driving- the roads are great and everything is well sign posted. Do get a sat nav, rather than renting with the car it's cheaper to buy one with up-to-date maps, Walmart or Target are usually good for that. In relation to butter- bring some with you but hide it from customs, down the underpants usually works :P
Seriously though shop in Publix rather than walmart for food, much better selection of everything and also 'real food' I find.

Just one more tip re driving- if you wear your watch on your left hand switch it to your right while driving over there as a trigger to remind you what side of the road you should be on, sounds weird I know but it works, especially in unmarked road situations such as car parks petrol stations. Enjoy.

iusedtoknow

Morlock wrote: »

Hi all , its our first holiday in Orlando , we will stay in a house in Kissimmee and I was wondering if you had any tips , Im stressing about driven everywhere,
If you can advice me on some areas :

• Driving from Orlando airport to parks , vacation homes
• Driving to / from Kissimmee to the parks (Universal and Disney) is it a nightmare or ok
• Walmart, can we get Irish style butter (wifes request)

All advice taken happily

DO NOT BRING BUTTER. It's illegal to bring dairy products into the country.

Most stores (trader joes for one) have kerrygold.

sideswipe

iusedtoknow wrote: »

DO NOT BRING BUTTER. It's illegal to bring dairy products into the country.

Most stores (trader joes for one) have kerrygold.

Oh come on...... it was a joke, who in their right mind would try to bring a block of butter to a tropical climate:rolleyes:

iusedtoknow

sideswipe wrote: »

Oh come on...... it was a joke, who in their right mind would try to bring a block of butter to a tropical climate:rolleyes:

you'd be surprised

InTheTrees

Morlock wrote: »

If you can advice me on some areas :

• Driving from Orlando airport to parks , vacation homes
• Driving to / from Kissimmee to the parks (Universal and Disney) is it a nightmare or ok?

All advice taken happily

The roads are big and wide and smooth and americans drive like old people in big ponderous slow vehicles. They will also be very forgiving...generally. There's parking lots with big wide spaces everywhere too.

Honestly, if you've driven in Dublin you'll be fine in the USA even on the other side of the road. The only thing is dont expect other drivers to be paying much attention. Mirrors, signals, lane discipline, and all that arent really used much. Dont expect it, and dont react when it doesnt happen. You'll have people slam on the brakes right in front of you, then turn, with no signalling. And thats normal. But the pace is so slow so if you're alert you'll be fine.

Another tip for being on the other side of the road is; The Driver is always in the middle of the road. In other words if you're driving along and the kerb is at your shoulder and your passenger is out in the street then something is wrong.

Also there's many other Large Retail stores besides WalMart. Walmart is really the bottom of the barrel.

Ilovelucy

Prefer Publix to Walmart and you can get Kerrygold there.

Munstermissy

I bring Butter all the time to the U.S. Never had an issue once in the last 20 years��. I would have 4 or 5 large tubs at a time. You cannot bring meat.

deadybai

Cant go wrong with Winn Dixie for groceries

Bayberry

Now that you've got all that sorted out, make sure that you put Gatorland on your to-do list! A trip to Orlando isn't complete without it!

iusedtoknow

Munstermissy wrote: »

I bring Butter all the time to the U.S. Never had an issue once in the last 20 years��. I would have 4 or 5 large tubs at a time. You cannot bring meat.

Well you've been breaking the law and I fully expect you to hand yourself in

This is direct from the horses mouth

Animal Products and Animal By-Products:

Meat, milk, egg, poultry, and their products, including products made with these materials, such as dried soup mix or bouillon, are either prohibited or restricted from entering the United States, depending on the types of animal diseases which occur in the country of origin. Fresh (chilled or frozen), dried, cured, and fully cooked meat is generally prohibited from most countries. Canned meat is allowed entry, except beef, veal, lamb, mutton, venison, elk, bison, etc., from countries affected by bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE).

Biology and food weren't my best subjects at school - but seeing as butter is a product made from Milk...it isn't allowed in

thisistough

Morlock wrote: »

Hi all , its our first holiday in Orlando , we will stay in a house in Kissimmee and I was wondering if you had any tips , Im stressing about driven everywhere,
If you can advice me on some areas :

• Driving from Orlando airport to parks , vacation homes
• Driving to / from Kissimmee to the parks (Universal and Disney) is it a nightmare or ok
• Walmart, can we get Irish style butter (wifes request)

All advice taken happily

If you're doing to Disney get the 'Unofficial Guide to Disneyworld' book, it's really helpful! There's also a kids version by kids which is great!

naughtysmurf

Take the south exit out of MCO, much quieter drive to Kissimmee, follow the signs for Tampa / Disney, it a partially tolled road, it's pretty much a straight run

Where in Kissimmee is your rental home? If taking the Celebration exit, it's unmanned so you will need correct change, ask for change at first toll both after leaving airport
Kissimmee is close to the Disney parks, as said all well signposted, Universal & Seaworld etc, straight run north on I4, taking appropriate exit

D

TingTong

Morlock wrote: »

Hi all , its our first holiday in Orlando , we will stay in a house in Kissimmee and I was wondering if you had any tips , Im stressing about driven everywhere,
If you can advice me on some areas :

• Driving from Orlando airport to parks , vacation homes
• Driving to / from Kissimmee to the parks (Universal and Disney) is it a nightmare or ok
• Walmart, can we get Irish style butter (wifes request)

All advice taken happily

We have a home over in Kissimmee. I would concur with most of the info here but if it is your first time driving over there I would stay of the Interstate 4. It's a free for all on that road. Having said that I love it. If you tried some of the stuff that goes on on that road back here you would be hauled by the cops. If you travel on highway 535 and 536 from Kissimmee it will bring you to Disney and Universal. We have even found a way of getting free parking at Disney ($18 per day). OP, PM me and I will give you directions from the airport on the non-toll roads to get to Kissimmee. It's a more sedate drive compared to highway 417.

marob1969

Morlock wrote: »

Hi all , its our first holiday in Orlando , we will stay in a house in Kissimmee and I was wondering if you had any tips , Im stressing about driven everywhere,
If you can advice me on some areas :

• Driving from Orlando airport to parks , vacation homes
• Driving to / from Kissimmee to the parks (Universal and Disney) is it a nightmare or ok
• Walmart, can we get Irish style butter (wifes request)

All advice taken happily

Just back from Kissimmee area where we spent 17 days in Disney and Universal. Its very close to Disney, but away from Universal (about 20min drive I guess, depending on traffic).
Get a Sat Nav, end of story. Borrow one before you go (with a USA map on it) or buy one in Walmart and you will always have it then. Its easier to drive in Orlando than in Dublin as far as I am concerned, once you have the Sat nav.
Walmart have Kerrygold (and spreadable butter) and IMO they are better value than anywhere else for the essentials. Gifts for home, T shirts, mugs, pens etc are in abundance and much cheaper than in the parks where you will be fleeced.Bring as much food and drinks (not in glass bottles as they search bags and that is what they are looking for) as you can into the parks also as the food and drink is expensive.

fabvinny

do get a sat nav,we stayed there a few years ago and i was a nervous wreck about driving there but it was no bother. most of the parks are only about a 20 minute drive from kissimmee. publix is a good place to get your groceries,we took a picnic basket into most of the parks as the food in the parks is very expensive. be sure to visit downtown disney,and kissimmee itself. would love to be heading back there!

Widsy97

I live in Orlando, the drivers are horrific - mostly because there are so many tourists and old people on the roads.
I brought black pudding in from home, they didn't catch it. Be grand!

Bowlardo

planning to go end of December beginning of january and do universal.
Would it be taking to much to hope to do a road trip to Keywest and would it be worth it?

Widsy97

Key West, and the Florida Keys in general, are stunning. Absolutely beautiful down there. But, you'd want to allow around 7 hours to drive down. It's a long way from Orlando.

irishgeo

anyone going to orlando should really try to get in NASA Kennedy Space Center. About hours drive to it.

I had a great time last year, get there early as there is loads to see and it closes at 5pm.

slave1

Lucky to spent a month in Kissimmee each of the last 5 years, here at the minute. If you're bringing a Sat Nav then pull in when just outside the car rental area as it will take a fair while to get first signal, set it to miles and U.S. Voice before leaving Ireland. Driving is fine, just get into the middle land and stay there until you settle down, tolls are manned and give change of $20 or lower. Around Kissimmee are Walmart, SuperTarget and some outlet stores, Nike outlets essential. Legoland is a very underrated and quiet waterpark. You can turn right on a red light in Florida if safe to do so as long as you come to a complete stop first. Don't do the silly drop off and long drive round Disney and cut back road to save parking, I know it and having been to Magic Kingdom nearly 15 times with the kids have seen folk caught doing it and ejected. Get to bed early, get up early and keep your clock in that fashion as early to the parks is by far the best single piece of advice I can give. Checkout the dibs.co.uk, by far the best resource at your disposal...don't get overwhelmed with the planning either

slave1

Eat at Wafflehouse!!!