What's new

Florida questions

Martyn B

CF Legend
Are there any parks worth visting in Florida, other than the obvious?

I've looked on RCDB, and the only one that seems worth it is Cypress gardens, but that might not be open when I go next year.

So I'm just after some advice from people who have been and know where to go!

Thanks!
 

Aaron

Hyper Poster
Definitely get on down to "Old Town" in Kissimee. Depending on where you're staying it could be a bit of a drive, but it is worth it.

They Have;

Schwarzkopf travelling coaster (pretty intense layout!)
Bungee Ball (with a cheeky operator)
Drop Tower
Massive Go-Kart tracks
Haunted Walk Throughs
the worlds tallest skycoaster - 300+ feet
AND, Speed, which is the fastest accelerating ride in the world (as far as I know)

To be honest, it's worth it for the skycoaster alone, but the bungee ball and of course Speed, are awesome too.

Best to go during the day though, as at night it gets very busy and you can queue up to 2 hours for the big rides as they all have capacities of between 2-4, and their set-up times (harnessses and that) can be up to 15mins in themselves!

but yeah, do not miss Old Town!
 

davidm

Strata Poster
Cypress Gardens shut all its rides down a while back.

Nice lake and plants though....

(so no, Orlando and Busch it is, Miami (& Ft Lauderdale) is a big trek away south for the the other big ride in the state. Just over the border north is Wild Adventures and a bit further on, SFoG - thats a lot more than a day trip away from Orlando though (worth it though, SFoG is great), W/A not so much)
 

CMonster

Giga Poster
There are a few places on International Drive in Orlando that have cool go karts and shot towers and such, although they aren't really "parks." Then, of course, there is Wet and Wild and Adventure Island for water parks, and the disney ones. Disney Quest is something else to do, although not a park, it's quite fun, and you can build your own rollercoaster and ride it; it actually inverts and stuff.

Here's a list of Florida amusement parks: http://www.rcdb.com/r.htm?ot=3&ol=3180
 

Martyn B

CF Legend
Snoo, Dania beach, I'm confused?

Yes there's the Danis Beach Hurricane coaster at Boomers, Dania, yeah?

So on RCDB, their website says Boomers, FT Lauderdale, and they have "Roller coaster" - no Hurricane coaster?

Definitely get on down to "Old Town" in Kissimee. Depending on where you're staying it could be a bit of a drive, but it is worth it.

They Have;

Schwarzkopf travelling coaster (pretty intense layout!)
Bungee Ball (with a cheeky operator)
Drop Tower
Massive Go-Kart tracks
Haunted Walk Throughs
the worlds tallest skycoaster - 300+ feet
AND, Speed, which is the fastest accelerating ride in the world (as far as I know)

That coaster is Zamperla, not Schwartzy? And I'm not doubting as I have heard of this place before, but there's nothing on their website about Speed or the Sky Coaster?
 

Ben

CF Legend
I THINK Az means G Force, and is getting mixed up? But, regardless, I'm 99% sure it got removed anyway!
 

Snoo

The Legend
Martyn B said:
Snoo, Dania beach, I'm confused?

Yes there's the Danis Beach Hurricane coaster at Boomers, Dania, yeah?

So on RCDB, their website says Boomers, FT Lauderdale, and they have "Roller coaster" - no Hurricane coaster?

Yeah.. that's what I meant. Big fail on my part.

Also:

http://rcdb.com/4757.htm

:)
 

CedarPoint6

Hyper Poster
The G Force ride has been removed, that is correct.

The Old Town described above is not entirely correct. There are two parks side by side-- Fun Spot and Old Town.

At Old Town you'll find a Big Apple and Windstorm type coaster, a drop tower, some kart tracks, a 300+ft. slingshot ride.
Fun Spot has more rides including the Sky Coaster, larger multi-level kart tracks, a small kiddie coaster, and various other mild to thrilling rides such as a screamin' swing. Nothing groundbreaking, but still interesting.

Both of these parks operate on a ticket basis, although it's also possible to do a wristband at Fun Spot if you find multiple rides you're interested.
This area is looked on Highway 128, about 10 minutes down from Sea World.

Also of possible interest is Magical Midway, located next to Wet n Wild near Universal. This has another 300+ft. slingshot, a star flyer, and 3 multi-level go kart tracks.

Another Fun Spot park exists nearby with no notable rides except for very impressive kart tracks.


As for coasters, Dania Beach is quite the drive away (4-4.5 hours depending on traffic). Also keep in mind the route most taken is the Florida turnpike which is very expensive. Boomers has 4 miniature golf courses, a massive arcade, and a few small rides outside. The main attraction is Hurricane, which is actually quite a good ride. I did an all-day wristband for $12, which turned out to be a pretty good deal. It wasn't overly crowded during my visit although they did seem to wait about 5 minutes between dispatches.
For the credit whore, there is also a small kiddie coaster at a place called Uncle Bernie's nearby. It's inside a larger Flea Market/Junk Shop area called the Swap Shop. We went solely to ride the coaster and ended up paying $3 parking and $3 for the ride; not worth it by a long shot.

The is a Wacky Worm in Jacksonville; again 2 hours from Orlando and not entirely worth it. There is a small waterpark there that includes a bowl slide and master blaster if interested.

At the Lowry Park Zoo in Tampa there is a small coaster relocated from Wild Adventures. Again, not worth the price of admission just for that.

All in all, I'd recommend you stay with the big parks, although a side trip to Old Town for the Windstorm is very much doable if you want the credit (the ride is ok, nothing special). For thrills, the sling shots and sky coaster are the way to go outside the major parks although keep in mind they aren't cheap: $25 slingshot, $35 sky coaster depending on # of riders.
 

Martyn B

CF Legend
^ Thanks for all that. Think I will stick with the big parks, I just fancied visiting a proper American Park. Oh well there's hope for Cypress Gardens yet.

I only have 10 days, is that long enough to do the 8 main parks in September?

Also, as I only have 10 days, is it worth me going to Epcot?
 

CedarPoint6

Hyper Poster
^ If you're going to go to Disney, you might as well get the park hopper pass and just do all 4. I actually enjoyed Epcot quite a bit, just because it was different. I wish I could've seen more of the stuff there. Give a day to each Disney park at least... they offer a thousand different packages, so just go with one of the park hopper deals. And yeah, you should be fine in September since the rush is starting to die down. Universal can take a day for each park or one and a half of something if you're pressed for time. I'm sure you'll want re-rides. Sea World is a day park (although I could probably spend about a week. :p) Busch should also be a day park (hit Gwazi first). Sea World does offer a Busch Gardens shuttle, so perhaps inquire there if you don't wish to drive.
 

Martyn B

CF Legend
Ok, thanks again. What time are the parks open till in September? Late? If so that will help with the re-rides etc. We arrive at 1600 so thats only half a day (if the parks open late) and we leave at 1900, so thats kind of half a day too.

Might have to cram 2 parks in one day. I'd like to spend a day at Busch, Universal and Sea World, I'm not too fussed about Disney to be honest, We will go for sure, if we miss some, I wont cry over it.
 

marc

CF Legend
If you go last week September 1st week October you can do the Halloween stuff, its well worth it.

IoA and Universal were not open late when we went September 2 years ago, IoA shut at 6 and Universal 7.

MGM shut at 9, Animal Kingdom 5.

Magic Kingdom and Epcot were open until 11.

BGA 7, and you really do not need a day at Sea World.
 

CedarPoint6

Hyper Poster
marc said:
and you really do not need a day at Sea World.

Depends if you're just there for the rides. If you're there for the park (i.e. shows and exhibits), it will take a full day.
 

marc

CF Legend
When we went we done the shows and the rides and were finished by 2pm.

Actually yes you probably could count that as a day tbh.

That was in September as well.
 

Martyn B

CF Legend
Yeah I'm a theme park fan, its nice to have a high CC, but I dont just visit parks for the credits, I like to experience the park as whole experience rather than get the credits then run to the next park.

We will go to Florida again, so what ever we miss, we'll do next time. I just dont want to miss to much really, I'm really not fussed about Epcot due to all the things I've heard about it.
 

Ben

CF Legend
Now, I HATE Epcot, BUT, I will say this - with the time you have to play with - GO! It's really loved by a lot of people (for... some reason), and Mission: Space DOES kick a LOT of arse. Even if only for half a day or so, I would go.
 
Top