Just getting boring old gits??

[mel]

We were in Florida for nearly 7 weeks in the summer, this would have been our 7th trip on the trot and Florida always fills us with excitement, however we were decidedly unimpressed there was 7 of us there ranging from 13-46 and we just felt we had seen it all...nothing was new...However!!! i am already considering going back next year to redeem ourselves....dont want a lasting memory of Florida being a let down....Has anyone else fet this or......are we just getting boring old gits???

[ellie]

Oh dear, Melanie. I hate to have to say it but you ARE turning into boring old gits!

May I make a suggestion, why not go at a different time of year? Halloween is great - all the parks have different activities and there is plenty to suit all ages. Our favourite is Seaworld, which is pretty tame, but we were encouraged to join in with all the Halloween activities and it was such fun! We each had our goody bags and scooped up the freebies (which we then gave to some children), and nobody made us 'oldies' feel out of place. Now if you want to be scared to death then you could try Universal at Halloween or Busch Gardens. I've never been but its supposed to be pretty scary. Alternatively you could join Mickey at his Scary Party at Disney - free hot chocolate and sweets I believe.

My favourite time would be Christmas, or just before, when all the parks are dressed with wonderful decorations and Christmas trees, and Mickey holds a special Christmas party, too. There are the Osborne lights at Hollywood Studios and a special extended firework and laser show at Epcot. The parks look quite different at this time of year, and it is even more magical. Of course, the new Princess area in Magic Kingdom is opening in the near future, so that is definitely something new to enjoy, and the decorations in this park must be seen to be believed - even the castle is draped with sparkling lights.

If you go at Christmas you can also explore such wonderful places as Blue Springs National Park where you can see manatees up close, and take a boat trip up the river to see lots of wildlife like alligators etc.

I have lost count of the number of times we have been to Orlando, but it has never lost its magic for us. I get goose bumps whenever I hear the music as I approach Hollywood Studios, and as for the fireworks at Epcot, they always make me feel emotional.

So come on, now. You are way too young to be boring old gits! Try a different time of year and see if you can rekindle the magic. And if you can't then I am afraid there really is no hope for you! [msnwink][]

[Pookie]

Have you thought about trying other parts of Florida, maybe the keys, the coasts either the Gulf side or East.

What about the panhandle, if you have 7 weeks to play with you could certainly see a very different Florida.

Lynne

[mel]

haha thanks Ellie-boring old gits it is!!
We went for halloween 3 years ago and loved it, loved the halloween night, the decorations etc so if we are going back thats the time of year we would be looking at.
Christmas however-that is another story we had been to disneyland paris very near to christmas a few times and loved it so much we thought we really must go to Florida for xmas, we stayed over in new york for a few days before and arrived in orando on the 23rd of Dec, what can I say? we bought tickets for universal and disney and the queues were so unbelievablly long that we ended up waiting on hardly anything and after being in the summer a few times an hour wait was normal to us, but the wait times were horrendeous! as were the wait for a table in restaurants, every journey took at least twice as long as usual due to the sheer volume of traffic and parking was a nightmare!!! Gosh I've just re-read m comment mus go to bed now with my horlicks and rollers in!!:/

[ellie]

Melanie, my preference would be to visit the parks before Christmas, and then stay away from the parks on Christmas Day. There are some great hotels that offer a Christmas Brunch where you can relax (and eat) all day in luxuriuous surroundings, with no washing up and no cooking. I agree that the crowds at Disney are horrendous on Christmas Day, and definitely not worth battling with. But we have visited Disney between Christmas and New Year and found it quite acceptable. In fact, we like to hop from one park to another, and usually manage to visit each one on the same day, and we have been able to do all the rides we wanted, even at this time of year.

Am sure you will have a great time at Halloween. And maybe you could combine it with a trip to the Gulf coast. There are some beautiful villas to rent down there, and the beaches are superb.

Enjoy your horlicks! [msnwink]

[Andrena]

Why not go in October during the Epcot Food and Wine Festival, or in the Spring during Epcot's Garden Festival. We never get tired of Florida. I agree that Christmas is pretty busy, but it is great fun. We often take the boat trip from Epcot and get off at each stop and visit all the hotels to view their wonderful decorations. Then we drive to all the other Disney hotels to view theirs too. All free and a great time, our kids and grand children just love doing that.

Andrena

[canarypam]

I think we have the feeling from time to time.
Try having a vacation without planning too much. Go with the flow.
You will find alternatives to do. Whilst you may wake up one morning and say we should go to Disney today and find the buzz has returned.
Planning is great for the first visit but there are many alternatives to fill the gaps if you do not take all the vacation up with Park days.

[Katys Grandad]

I love travel and holidays and take as many as I can afford throughout the year. I don't think there's anywhere I've been that I'd expect to spend 7 weeks in and not have the feeling you describe, especially if I'd also visited there for the past 6 years. I fit at least 1 US/Florida trip into my plans each year but I wouldn't want that to be the only holiday I take.

It may be heresy to say so on this site but have you considered going somewhere completely different next year to recharge your enthusiasm for Florida in the future?

Isn't absence supposed to make the heart grow fonder?

[hacoates]

I had that feeling a few years ago Mel and voiced it on here. I was shot down in flames for being an 'ol git too. I decided then that I would take a new look next time and do something we have never done before. We now do that every year - looking for something different to do.

I would suggest travelling out during the week after Thanksgiving when the parks are at their quietest and the Christmas decorations are up. Also, drive slowly around some of the suburban area streets and look at the houses - they are amazing (I would hate their electricity bills). The locals tend to "dress" their houses on the weekend after Thanksgiving.

If you really want to get into the Christmas spirit, go to Epcot in the evening and watch/listen to the massed choir of a 1000 voices and orchestra playing carols and telling the Christmas Story. Gets to me every time.

Have fun and be spontaneous.

[msmiff]

We usually visit twice a year (only 2 weeks at a time as work won't let us take longer 'till we both retire in 2014 [] )
So at least 40 visits !!!
Although we do still occasionally visit "the parks", we try to do / see something different each visit.
Bok Tower's gardens (for instance) - any of the various fresh-water springs.
Try Ca' d'Zan @ Sarasota & whilst there, Mote Marine....
St. Augustine's well worth a day out....
Fantasy of Flight's interesting....
Spend a few days down in the Keys... Bahia Honda is outstanding & the 7 mile bridge.........
Jacksonville's not too far if you B&B a night....
There are some really excellent art galleries dotted around - try Salvador Dali @ St Petersburg.....
It's easy to focus on Dizney, but there's far more to Florida than just a mouse..........