Heading to Orlando and Bahamas soon. What to do?

[mrdc]

Well I will be leaving soon for Orlando and then the Bahamas and was wondering if there is anything that I should put on my “to do” list? I know while we are in Orlando that we will go to Universal and maybe the Magic Kingdom

. I don’t really care to do much Disney stuff since I have been there the last 4 years and I am getting tired of it. Wasn’t sure if there were any other attractions worthy of seeing.
I have been to the Bahamas several times but that was many years ago. I haven’t been there since Atlantis was built. I looked at things to do at Atlantis and they charge a lot!! I do plan to go snorkeling

but wasn’t sure if there were some other “to do” things that I shouldn’t leave out.
Any suggestions?

 

[lovethesea]

I would ditch Magic Kingdom and go to Sea World. I haven't been to the Bahamas in forever, so all I can say is have fun. The Atlantis property looks gigantic.
Have fun! Of course you have to take pics and post them.

 

[bionicarm]

How are you getting to the Bahamas? Sounds like you're doing one of those 'Stay And Cruise' packages with Disney. Are you going to Nassau or Freeport? I've never been to Nassau, but everyone I know that's gone says it's pretty much Atlantis. They do have one of those 'Dolphin Experience' excursions you can do. They also have a Mini-Boat excursion where you get his small two-person boat, and they guide you through mangroves, and you also get to do snorkeling off a reef. If you're staying in a hotel in Nassau, the best place to stay is the Comfort Suites next to Atlantis. It's like a third of a price for the Atlantis hotels, but if you stay at the Comfort Suites, they give you all privileges to the Atlantis compound (beaches, pools, water park, etc.) I was looking to go to the Bahamas with my family next week, but I found that they tax you for everything, and the food/drink prices can be outrageous. So we're going to Cozumel instead. Unfortunately, it appears there's some Tropical Depression/Hurricane heading right for the place.

 

[speg]

The magic kingdom is fun and I like how you can visit like 3-4 parks (in one day!) if you buy the all-park pass.
SeaWorld is amazing and they've been putting in some rollercosters for the last couple years to try and make it more attractive for certain tourists. I personally just enjoy the fish/coral/inverts. I could personally sit by the stingray tank and pet those things all day long....I'm a simple kind of man.
There are a lot of shops there that people love to go to.....I'm sure that the wife would be more interested in that!
Take a hour and a half drive over to Tampa and go check out the awesome fish store we've got.

 

[mrdc]

We have done Sea World the last few years too since I get in there for free. I may add it to the list since it won't cost me anything. The only reason Magic Kingdom is on the list is because that is the one place we weren't able to get to last year. My 9yo is the only reason I consider going.
We are going on a 4-day cruise leaving out of Port Canaveral. We will be going to Nassau and yep, Atlantis seems to be the thing to do. I was just looking at the the tropical depression and it appears that the Bahamas will be safe. Can't say for sure about Cozumel since it appears to be going west. Be careful in Mexico due to all the drug violence. The tourist towns seem to be safe since Mexico needs those towns to be up and running. You will see military all over the place with their machine guns. Don't rent the scooters either! So many tourists get hit by cars there when they rent scooters. The cruise folks always put out that warning.

 

[mrdc]

Originally Posted by Speg
http:///forum/post/3281508
Take a hour and a half drive over to Tampa and go check out the awesome fish store we've got.
That's a thought. I love petting the sting rays too. I want one of those hand held devices they use to test the water. It basically the size of the scanner thing wally world uses to check prices. Man that Sea World device can test everything. PH, ca, alk, temp, ... I probably couldn't afford one.

 

[speg]

I've seen a couple of those in some of my store catalogs but never one that does all-in-one...that would be worth whatever price rather than doing these stupid test vials.
Oh...Stay away from the Killer Whale exhibit...they've got one with a taste for blood...........who woulda thought a killer whale was dangerous?????

 

[lovethesea]

Sea World for free? Heck, do that. We pay half price, used to be free.

 

[aquaknight]

How many days would you be in Orlando? For a 9yo that's a little older, I bet they would have as much fun at Universal, then at the Magic Kingdom. Esp. if she/he is a Harry Potter fan, the new Harry Potter ride/section just opened up. It is spectacular

 

[beth]

I think there is a new Harry Potter Theme Park at Universal Islands of Adventure....if you like Harry.
If you haven't seen Bush Gardens, that may be a nice day trip to Tampa.
Disney water parks would be great this time of yr, if you haven't been. I like Typhoon Lagoon personally. Nice and cool there with lots of tropical foliage.

 

[speg]

Originally Posted by Beth
http:///forum/post/3281671
I think there is a new Harry Potter Theme Park at Universal Islands of Adventure....if you like Harry.
If you haven't seen Bush Gardens, that may be a nice day trip to Tampa.
Disney water parks would be great this time of yr, if you haven't been. I like Typhoon Lagoon personally. Nice and cool there with lots of tropical foliage.
The fish store is VERY close to Busch Gardens btw

 

[mrdc]

I was talking to someone today about Busch Gardens and I think it is on my list now. I will arrive in Orlando on Sat and leave on the cruise on Thurs. I can get into Busch Gardens for free to if its not too late to contact my Bud conection. I'm looking forward to Harry Potter because I loved the Simpsons ride last year. I like new rides.

 

[bionicarm]

Originally Posted by mrdc
http:///forum/post/3281729
I was talking to someone today about Busch Gardens and I think it is on my list now. I will arrive in Orlando on Sat and leave on the cruise on Thurs. I can get into Busch Gardens for free to if its not too late to contact my Bud conection. I'm looking forward to Harry Potter because I loved the Simpsons ride last year. I like new rides.
Where are you staying in Orlando?

 

[lovethesea]

Originally Posted by mrdc
http:///forum/post/3281729
I was talking to someone today about Busch Gardens and I think it is on my list now. I will arrive in Orlando on Sat and leave on the cruise on Thurs. I can get into Busch Gardens for free to if its not too late to contact my Bud conection. I'm looking forward to Harry Potter because I loved the Simpsons ride last year. I like new rides.

sadly they aren't Bud anymore. Half price maybe. My family loves Busch Gardens also, but didn't know if you get get to Tampa. A friend of ours just came back from Universal and said the Harry Potter exhibit/ride was NUTS, beyond NUTS. So crowded. They planned a huge family reunion over a year ago and of course was not aware of this Potter thing, much less when it was opening.

 

[mrdc]

JW Marriott Grande Lakes is where I am staying.
Busch Gardens is no longer owned by Budweiser? If not, well there goes my free admission. I was at Universal the month the Simpson's ride opened. I got to the park when it first opened and jetted straight to that ride. We rode it twice. Later that day I noticed the line for it was CRAZY long. I know the layout of the park fairly well now so we will get there again when they first open and then try to do the rides that we really enjoy first.

 

[bionicarm]

Originally Posted by mrdc
http:///forum/post/3281832
JW Marriott Grande Lakes is where I am staying.
Busch Gardens is no longer owned by Budweiser? If not, well there goes my free admission. I was at Universal the month the Simpson's ride opened. I got to the park when it first opened and jetted straight to that ride. We rode it twice. Later that day I noticed the line for it was CRAZY long. I know the layout of the park fairly well now so we will get there again when they first open and then try to do the rides that we really enjoy first.

If you only have one day to see Universal, I would check out of the Marriott on my last day, and check into one of Universal's On-Site Hotels (One is the Hard Rock). If you stay at one of their hotels, your room key is your 'FastPass' ticket to ALL the big rides in both Islands Of Adventure and Universal Studios. We surprised our two kids a few years back with a two day trip to Orlando (we were in Destin for vacation, and when we said we were heading home, we actually went the other direction to Orlando). We only had one day to see both parks. With our room key, we were able to skip every line that was 1 1/2 - 2 hours long, and go directly to the front of the line at a 'special' entrance. We never waited more than 15 minutes for any of the popular rides (Simpsons, The Mummy, Men In Black, Spiderman, Incredible Hulk, etc.) Without that 'pass', there's no way we could've ridden everything we rode. It was worth the extra $100 I had to spend for the room over an 'off-site' hotel.

 

[lovethesea]

Originally Posted by mrdc
http:///forum/post/3281832
Busch Gardens is no longer owned by Budweiser? .

sadly no. The new owners (they are a bunch of idiots imo) got rid of the theme parks to help pay the 50 billion back. Theme parks were so profitiable. He can get you half price tix, if he still works there.
If you go to Universal....run to Potter first, get it out of the way.

 

[mrdc]

Thanks for the ideas. I wished I had known about the Universal VIP coming with the hotel stay.
Oh well, I will remember that next time. I don't want to change hotels because I have something going on work related at my current hotel.
I will call my friend tonight about the Busch tickets. I will take half price all day long.
Do you know where the Harry Potter ride is in relation to an older ride?

 

[lovethesea]

apparently you can't miss it. It was built on about 20 acres if I remember reading about it. My friend said its like a mini town like in the movie. A few rides within that. Beyond packed when she was there, but it had just opened.
Yep, half price is better than full price any day. Great parks, but boy it adds up. So we don't complain. (free was good though)

 

[mrdc]

If I only could figure out how to make is a business expense ...