Ideas for Orlando

[WAMomzart]

After our cruise of the Eastern Caribbean, our ship gets into Port Canaveral at 9 am, and our flight leaves Orlando at 9 pm that night. We were thinking of renting a vehicle for the day and want to go to Harry Potter World at Universal Orlando. I've been told it takes about 45 minutes to get from Pt Canaveral to Orlando. Has anyone done this before? Do you think we will have enough time to enjoy HP World and still get to the airport on time?

 

If this doesn't seem reasonable, do you have any other suggestions on how to spend the day either at Pt Canaveral or in Orlando?

Thanks!

[Steviewonder1]

Not really as you really need another day to do that. First if the ship docks at 9AM, you will not get off with first off before 10AM or later, add time to get your luggage, find a cab to go to the Car rental place and then drive the B-Line Expressway (528) to Universal Orlando thru 4-5 toll booths to I Drive to Universal. That is mid afternoon. Get into the park and wade thru the folks that are already there and time flies. Get back into the Rent-a-Car and drive back to the airport drop off point, then take the bus to the airport and you really need to get to The Orlando Airport (MCO) 2 hours before your flight and you are out of time before you leave the Ship Dock. Been to Orlando and the docks and it is a time killer. Best thing is to get off the ship last, take a bus to MCO, check your luggage and find your Airlines Crown Room and sit, snack and drink and watch one of the TV's. Any other version will not work time wise. What are you going to do with all your luggage??

Edited January 13, 2014 by Steviewonder1

[WAMomzart]

Not really as you really need another day to do that. First if the ship docks at 9AM, you will not get off with first off before 10AM or later, add time to get your luggage, find a cab to go to the Car rental place and then drive the B-Line Expressway (528) to Universal Orlando thru 4-5 toll booths to I Drive to Universal. That is mid afternoon. Get into the park and wade thru the folks that are already there and time flies. Get back into the Rent-a-Car and drive back to the airport drop off point, then take the bus to the airport and you really need to get to The Orlando Airport (MCO) 2 hours before your flight and you are out of time before you leave the Ship Dock. Been to Orlando and the docks and it is a time killer. Best thing is to get off the ship last, take a bus to MCO, check your luggage and find your Airlines Crown Room and sit, snack and drink and watch one of the TV's. Any other version will not work time wise. What are you going to do with all your luggage??

Thanks for the info. I had a feeling that we wouldn't have time to go to HP World, but we are not interested in spending a good chunk of the day at MC0. Maybe we can spend a bit of time hanging out in Cape Canaveral. Does any have any suggestions for things to do, good beaches, restaurants etc at Cape Cavaveral.

Thanks!

[pedirn]

Cape Canaveral has Spaceport. Not sure of the pricing but it is a great way to spend 5-6 hours touring the space center. Just remember to allow plenty of time to get to MCO as you will be traveling during rush hour. There are also some nice relaxing restaurants on the waterfront where you can eat, drink and watch the ships sail out for their next cruise.

[reallyitsmema]

After our cruise of the Eastern Caribbean, our ship gets into Port Canaveral at 9 am, and our flight leaves Orlando at 9 pm that night. We were thinking of renting a vehicle for the day and want to go to Harry Potter World at Universal Orlando. I've been told it takes about 45 minutes to get from Pt Canaveral to Orlando. Has anyone done this before? Do you think we will have enough time to enjoy HP World and still get to the airport on time?

 

If this doesn't seem reasonable, do you have any other suggestions on how to spend the day either at Pt Canaveral or in Orlando?

Thanks!

I wouldn't try to do Harry Potters world, too much money to spend most of the time waiting in line. I would rent a car for the day so you can stash the bags in the trunk and I would head to Downtown Disney. No admission charge, lots of shopping and restaurants. Easy to waste part of a day there. Other option is a day room at the hotel in MCO. Hang out at the pool all day, shower, grab something to eat and then fly home. Those rooms go for around $100 for the day.

[donaldsc]

 

If this doesn't seem reasonable, do you have any other suggestions on how to spend the day either at Pt Canaveral or in Orlando?

Thanks!

 

The space center at Cape Canaveral.

 

DON

[cb at sea]

None of the theme parks would be a good choice...you simply need more time! I would compare the cost of getting an earlier flight to any other choices! If you can't get on an earlier flight, I'd look into a day room at a hotel with pool and amenities! I know from experience that trying to "kill time" with no place to "call home" is the absolute pits.

[WAMomzart]

Thanks for all of the suggestions!

I didn't mention it before, but I use a mobility scooter (due to MS), sowe also need to factor in accessibility to places we visit. There will be 5 of us: my husband and I, our 12 year old daughter and my parents. We are also considering Cocoa Beach. Any thoughts or suggestions?

thanks

Donna

[PattyG12]

I think it's definitely do-able. When on the Freedom we got off the ship by 8 am and were in Orlando by 9. We did go to Universal studios, had a great time, had an early dinner and then drove to the airport, dropped off the rental car and made our flight at 8.

 

We did the self debark from the ship, carrying our luggage off before they started calling numbers.

[BeagleOne]

I'll second (or third or fourth) the Kennedy Space Center suggestions. Great way to spend a day, a bus tour is included in the admission, and if you're fans of the early space program (Mercury and Gemini) there is a tour you can book ahead of time for an additional fee. There is an IMAX theater and a great gift shop, and the regular bus tour includes the Apollo display and visitors' center.

 

Their website says every tour bus has a wheelchair lift or people can ride the bus without one and use wheelchairs that are available at each interim destination. IDK about mobility scooters but the website has a phone # and email address for more information. Temporary handicapped parking permits are available at the ticket booths if you want to get one. Closing time varies depending on time of year but you will still have time to catch your plane, especially if you check in ahead of time.

[JanineM]

Go to the beach. Have a leisurely meal. Visit Ron Jon's. The beach is pretty nice, and several of the parks have ramps.

[agargoyle]

I was going to suggest Jetty Park until you mentioned the scooter. The boardwalk does not go all the way to the beach. There is nice fishing pier that would be accessible to the scooter. I have seen manatee, turtles, porpoise from the pier.

 

http://www.jettyparkbeachandcampground.com/

 

Does the cruise line offer a tour? That would help with the luggage issue.

 

Another choice - stay on the ship for as long as you can and then explore the airport. I have found most large airports now are quite interesting and have lots to see.

 

http://www.orlandoairports.net/

 

 

Good luck with your plans.

[Hydrokitty]

I'm throwing my vote with the Cape Canaveral crowd!! Keep in mind that while it might take 45 minutes to get to Orlando from the pier, it will take another 45 minutes to get from Orlando to the theme parks.....all of them. Then you have to find a place to park your car, take the tram to the actual entrance, buy your ticket, then walk or make your way to HP section and by this time it will be mid-afternoon and you haven't even started yet. You'd have to leave theme park by 5 p.m. to drive 45 minutes back to Orlando, turn in the car and get to your airline by 7 p.m. to make it through security, etc. for your 9 p.m. flight. Cape Canaveral is doable in one afternoon, not far from the port and about a 60 -90 minute ride to MCO. It's also very scooter friendly with most everything being accessible on wide concrete paths. There is a bus tour out to the launching site and I would bet money they have buses that are equipped to take motorized wheel chairs since it's a federal facility. It has something for everyone, the space junkie and the space moderately interested! There's a restaurant for late lunch before your flight and of course, shopping.

[WAMomzart]

Thanks for all of the feedback. We have decided to hang around Cape Canaveral for the day.

[WhiskeyPoet]

I'm in on the Downtown Disney crowd, but then again I'm a Disney nut!

 

Depending on what day you get here, HP world may even be full. I've been to Universal twice now where you needed to make reservations to return to that section at a specific time for crowd control.

 

HP world is also one of the most visually stunning places I've ever been, and you don't want to waste your three hours at the park (at 100 bucks per person, not a great rate for a short day) standing in line for that one ride, if you make it into the HP world at all!

 

I recommend taking your time and enjoying your last day of vacation, not wasting it on rushing and lines.

 

 

 

 

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[nolesrule]

You have to go see Atlantis at the Kennedy Space Center Visitors Complex.

 

[Sherlock43031]

forget the theme park idea there's just too many variables for it to workout. rent your car take a1a up the coast stop at surf shop or two, have a nice lunch at one of the dives along the coast, then just south of Daytona you can take route 4 directly back to Orlando and the airport.

[Jillbus]

I would definitely go to Kennedy Space Center. You also get in free to the astronauts Hall of Fame with paid admission to the space center, which is right on the road that leads to the space center. I was just there in the last year and its awesome. Plus now the new Atlantis exhibit is open.

 

 

After our cruise of the Eastern Caribbean, our ship gets into Port Canaveral at 9 am, and our flight leaves Orlando at 9 pm that night. We were thinking of renting a vehicle for the day and want to go to Harry Potter World at Universal Orlando. I've been told it takes about 45 minutes to get from Pt Canaveral to Orlando. Has anyone done this before? Do you think we will have enough time to enjoy HP World and still get to the airport on time?

 

If this doesn't seem reasonable, do you have any other suggestions on how to spend the day either at Pt Canaveral or in Orlando?,.

Thanks!

[dkjretired]

If you get off the ship early it is doable especially if it is at a quiet time of the year in Orlando. If during the summer or holidays it would not be fun. Also, are you aware that HP is a part of one of the universal studios, you can't just go to HP without paying for the park which is about $100pp.

[nkereina]

I agree with the others on the "no" for Harry Potter. Not only is it a big expense for a short amount of time, but you really need to be at Universal at park opening to fully experience HP World, and not spend the day waiting in lines.

 

Downtown Disney is a good suggestion, but also about 30 minutes out of the way past the airport.

 

I personally love the shopping in Orlando - between the outlets and Mall at Millennia, I get my fill of stores I love that we don't have in our area.

 

Call me crazy, but we did not love Cape Canaveral/Cocoa Beach. Maybe it's just where we stayed, but we felt the area was a little run down and other than some souvenir shops and Ron Jon's, there wasn't much else to do. This being said, we had zero interest in Kennedy Space Center and it was too cold to spend the day on the beach.

[Jujubiee2014]

Op I don't know if you already went but we got back from a cruise

10 days ago. Flight left out of MCO around 830 p.m.

 

Like you we we were wondering what to do and i really didnt want to spend

theme park dollars for a few hours. However my kids begged to go to Universal to see Harry Potter again. We were there by 11 and by 5 they were

ready to go. They had rode EVERYTHING minimum 4 times and spent quite a while including lunch in Harry Potter park.

 

Don't know why but the park was bare. (this was Thu)

[kimlovesfl]

What time of year are you traveling? I work at Universal Studios, so I am very familiar with how long things take, what the lines will be like, etc.

 

If you are ONLY planning to visit Wizarding World of Harry Potter, you will probably have time, but keep in mind that, during spring break and other school holidays, the wait to ride Harry Potter and the Forbidden Journey can be close to 2 hours; Dragon Challenge usually has a minimal wait, and Flight of the Hippogryff, being a low-capacity ride, often has a 40-45 minute wait even on slow days. To save time, you can go through single riders on Forbidden Journey, but then you miss a good deal of the amazing queue line.

 

Also keep in mind that parking costs $16, and admission for a one-day, one-park ticket, including tax, is about $100 per person. This is a LOT to spend for a short period of time. Drive time from the port to Universal is 45-60 minutes, another 5 minutes of so to park, and a good 10-15 minute walk from the parking garage to Potter, which is in the back of Islands of Adventure. Another 10-15 minute walk back to the car, 20 minutes to the airport, dropping the rental car off, etc.

 

I would consider either booking a vacation here in Orlando (Diagon Alley opens this summer), or booking a hotel either the day before your cruise, or the day after you disembark. Cabana Bay is opening next month, and it will be a moderate-priced hotel on-site at Universal, offering family suites, with the added bonus of early park admission, one hour before park opening to regular guests.

 

If you have any more questions about Universal, please feel free to ask me.