We’ve been to Clearwater Beach a few times; it’s a really good place to balance out a really busy few days doing theme parks. There are plenty of places to stay near the beach, and lots of things to do – although it’s also good for a slower pace of life enjoying the sunshine! In terms of things to do, I recommend the Clearwater Marine Aquarium – a nonprofit organisation dedicated to the rescue and rehabilitation of a variety of sea creatures like dolphins, turtles and manatees. Clearwater is a great place to go on a boat trip – the Gulf of Mexico is a prime dolphin watching hotspot and there are loads of tours for it. The Sea Screamer is fun, or if you want something calmer, Little Toot Dolphin Adventures get brilliant reviews. For food, we love Crabby Bill’s at nearby Indian Rocks beach!
Travel info
Getting around
Where to stay
Outside Orlando
Getting to Florida
Flights
Flying into Orlando is super straightforward. Most big UK airports have flights which go there, it’s usually direct, and there’s a lot of choice in airlines with most (including British Airways and Virgin Atlantic) flying direct to Orlando International from Gatwick, Heathrow or Manchester. TUI fly direct into Melbourne from Doncaster and sometimes have really good deals, and there’s a new low cost transatlantic airline called Norse Airways which is starting operations this summer – they don’t currently have routes from London to Orlando but these will probably be available soon so worth keeping an eye out.
There are a few options when it comes to airports to fly into – Orlando International (MCO) is going to be your best option. It’s around 15 miles to Disney and Universal, or about 20-25 minutes’ drive. This makes it easy to get a taxi or public transport too, if you’re not hiring a car. There are two more options which are technically Orlando airports – Sanford, and Melbourne. Sanford is closer, about a 45 minute drive away, and Melbourne is about an hour and 15 mins. You’ll need a car or a taxi for either of these. Other airports outside of Orlando are Tampa (1h 20m away), or Miami (3h 15m) – which is a long way but can be worth it for a flight deal!
Speaking of flight deals, I’ll be keeping an eye out for bargains between now and the wedding and sending out relevant info when I find them. If you want to be included on the mailing list for these, sign up here (or as part of your RSVP):
Packages
There are a lot of components to booking a trip to Florida. Flights, accommodation, getting around, ESTAs, theme park tickets and otherwise planning an itinerary. If you’re not necessarily bothered about getting the biggest bargain or you’re happy to pay a bit extra for convenience, it might be worth looking into booking a package holiday instead. Having said that, you can sometimes get really great deals on packages which end up working out cheaper even when you add in park tickets, so it’s worth keeping an eye out on websites like Hot UK Deals or Holiday Pirates. Places to look include:
If you’re determined to do Disney in its entirety, they sometimes offer really decent deals which include all your accommodation, food and park tickets as a package deal, and it can work out significantly cheaper than booking separately. At the minute they’ve got one with gives you dining credit and park tickets as part of your package, plus a gift card to spend on site – worth looking into if this is the route you want to take.
ESTAs
Then just a note on ESTAs – you don’t need a traditional visa to enter the US, but you do need an ESTA (Electronic System for Travel Authorization). This costs $21 per person, lasts for 2 years, and needs applying for a couple of weeks (at least) before you go. It’s extremely straightforward and is all done online – you don’t need to print anything out. You can apply for your ESTA here.
Getting around
Car Hire
Car hire is going to be the easiest way to get around once you’re in Florida. Most places you can stay come with ample parking so you don’t have to worry about that, and it gives you the freedom to easily travel to see things a little further out if you want to. If you’re going to spend any time staying somewhere other than Orlando, I’d suggest you need to hire a car – public transport in the tourist areas is much better than elsewhere in Florida.
Driving in Florida is simple – the roads are clear, wide, well signposted and easy to navigate, and other than a couple of differences (driving on the wrong side of the road/car and being able to turn right on a red light), the rules are pretty similar to those in the UK. You don’t need any special permits – your full UK license is enough, although you do need to be over 25 unless you want to pay a big premium.
In terms of actually hiring a car, I’d use a comparison site like Skyscanner, Kayak or Travel Supermarket. Don’t be scared of the smaller car firms which are a shuttle bus away from the airport – they’re often a lot cheaper than the likes of Hertz or Avis – just make sure you look at the reviews and go for a company that looks positive overall. We’ve used Andy at Discount Florida Car Hire a couple of times and really recommend.
Prices are high at the minute so it’s worth waiting and keeping an eye out closer to the time if this is the route you want to go down. Right now, for a mini 4 seater you’re probably looking at around £250 for a week – go up to a full size 5 seater with a bigger boot and you’re looking at around £300 – £350. If you want to have fun, a convertible Ford Mustang or similar could be about £500. When choosing the size of car you want, bear in mind how much luggage you’ll have – a 4 seater car probably won’t have space for 4 big suitcases. It’s also worth shopping around for cashback or any deals or discounts you can find.
Public Transport or Taxis
As long as you want to stay in the Orlando area, public transport is a great way to get around. Disney operate free buses through the whole of Disney World – regardless of whether or not you’re staying onsite – so it’s easy to get between the hotels, parks and Disney Springs. To get from the airport, you can buy a ticket for the new Sunshine Flyer, which will take you straight from Orlando International to Disney.
If you’re staying on International Drive or nearby, you can use the I-Ride Trolley which is super cheap and runs all day; it’ll set you back $12 for a weekly pass and goes all the way from the outlets at Vineland Avenue right up to Universal Studios, with loads of stops in between. Bus services operated by Lynx are also frequent and cheap – you can use Google Maps to plot your routes but they operate right up to all the major parks and tourist attractions. Also worth bearing in mind if you’re staying in a hotel – lots will offer free shuttles to the parks, so if this is something that would be useful it’s worth looking for when booking.
Your final option for getting around Orlando is using ride sharing or taxis. This is often the easiest option when visiting theme parks, and when you factor in the cost of parking, can actually be pretty reasonable depending on where you’re staying. Uber and Lyft both operate in Orlando – I’d recommend downloading them and having them set up before your trip, just in case you want to use them.
Where to stay
With so much choice of accommodation in and around Orlando, it can be hard to choose. You can opt for a private villa (this is what we do), stay in one of the many hotels, or if you want to go all-out-Disney, you can stay onsite with them. Whichever you pick, you’ll probably want to choose somewhere in Kissimmee, Lake Buena Vista, Celebration or Four Corners rather than Orlando itself for ease – most of the tourist attractions are located a few miles south of Orlando city centre so these are all closer and have loads of accommodation options.
- Private villas
This is the option we go for when we go to Florida. As we travel as a family of 6 adults, it works out way cheaper than booking hotel rooms, and it’s also great because it gives you the option to cook instead of going out for dinner every night. There are thousands upon thousands of villas available within 15 minutes of the theme parks; they’re all kitted out nicely and they pretty much all have private swimming pools – nice to spend a morning at a theme park and then come back and chill by the pool in the hot afternoons!
Villas will be easier if you choose to hire a car, but as long as you book one not far away from the parks, you could easily get taxis around (and to be honest, the cost of this probably wouldn’t be much more than the costs of parking at the theme parks).
In terms of finding a villa, you’ll be spoilt for choice. Try the below websites and use the filters to find what you want (I’ve saved the links on villas with wi-fi and a pool for a week in May, for 4 adults – so feel free to tweak). The gated communities are always really nice, and if there’s a group of you, getting a villa with a pool table is always fun!
- Walt Disney Resort
If you want to go all-out-Disney on your trip, you can’t beat staying onsite. It’s not a particularly budget way to do your holiday but some of the hotels are spectacular, and if you keep an eye out, sometimes there are good deals to be had which include park access and dining (I wouldn’t personally book a stay at Disney without the dining plan included (unless I’d won the lottery, would probably do it then)).
The dining is meant to be extremely good – worth having a read on some of the online forums if this is the route you want to go down, because it can get a bit complex with reservations! The DIBB is great, and worth having handy when planning your trip regardless of whether or not you want to do Disney. Disney also make it really easy to get around – the bus service operates throughout the whole resort for free, and will drop you off at any theme park or other destination you need.
Disney offer a whole different host of hotels for different budgets. The Value Resorts at the lower price points are extremely family-friendly, then they have the Moderate range, and at the top end they have the Deluxe options which are really incredible – the savannah view rooms at the Animal Kingdom Lodge are firmly on my bucket list.
- Other hotels
If you’re travelling as a couple and don’t want to hire a villa or stay at Disney, booking a hotel would probably be your best option. There are hundreds of hotels either on or nearby International Drive, and they all have super easy access to the parks (some come with those aforementioned free shuttles – worth looking into), plenty of restaurants nearby, and a whole host of other things to do, all with easy taxi/walking/public transport access. You can also book self-catering hotels which are a nice halfway point between getting your own villa and staying in a hotel.
You could alternatively choose to stay onsite for Sea World or Universal if you want to – staying in a Universal hotel (such as Hard Rock or Cabana Bay) gives you perks like early park access which is a good way to get ahead of the queues and the hottest part of the day. Some people choose to stay in a Universal hotel just for a night or two, to get these perks, and spend the rest of their holiday elsewhere.
Outside Orlando
There’s of course far more to Florida than just theme parks and shopping. If cities are your thing, try heading down to Miami and spending a few days there; if you’re more into beaches, relaxing and wildlife then try our recommendations below. Florida has a whole host of coastal towns and cities to explore, and if you fancy a road trip then the Florida Keys are the closest thing you’ll get to the Caribbean without actually being in the Caribbean.
- Tampa & Clearwater
- Cape Coral
Cape Coral is around a 3 hour drive from Orlando, but it’s well worth visiting and spending a few days there if you want a longer holiday. We last went to Florida in 2018 and we spent a week doing the parks etc. and then a week in Cape Coral and it was a great balance. Recommendations include a tour of the Wicked Dolphin Rum Distillery – this is free (although you’ll 100% buy a load of rum) and is a really fun way to spend an afternoon. We also loved kayaking in Pine Island, and following it up with a meal at Blue Dog Bar & Grill, which Charlie reminisces about almost daily. Octagon Wildlife Sanctuary is also well worth a visit – they’re currently still closed from Covid but will hopefully reopen soon.
- Cruises
If you think a cruise might be up your street, Florida is a great place to be. Most cruise lines operate a whole host of cruises from various ports in Florida, and they can be anything from a 3-night Bahamas sampler cruise to a full, multiple-week cruise of the Caribbean. Our favourite is Royal Caribbean and they have loads of cruises leaving Florida in May/June next year – click here to take a look. These can be a relatively inexpensive way to extend your trip, with 3 or 4 night cruises available for around £350pp (all food included) or 7 night cruises for £500+.
