Orlando Trip - Day 2 (Sun, Mar 2)

The kids didn't go to bed until after 1am on the evening of Day 1. So the hubby and I didn't get to bed until even later. We all sleep in Sunday morning as I feel EVERYONE should do at least one day while on vacation. We don't even get out of the bed until after 10am. Everyone finally gets dressed and we packed the kids carry-along bags for our first day at Universal Studios! We leave the villa and drive across the street to I-Hop. This is as good a time as any to point out that there are a myriad of yummy, delicious I-Hops in Orlando, FL. A couple of them are "meh", but most of the ones I've eaten in have the BEST food ever. Why do ALL of the I-Hops in Atlanta suck so bad??!! The best ones in Atlanta are about as good as the "meh" ones in Orlando. This is a major source of frustration. Moving on. We get a waitress with a New York accent thicker than Debi Mazar. I decide I love her based on this alone. GREAT food and service as always.

We leave I-Hop and drive 15 minutes northwest down I-4 to Universal Studios. (Tip: I bought 2-park, unlimited entry tickets for hubby, son, and myself. Only $83 per ticket, and the tickets are good for up to 7 consecutive days. A total STEAL!) We had a great day. It felt like there was no one at all in the park until later in the afternoon. We spent most of the day just enjoying the gorgeous weather and ambiance, but we also rode the Jimmy Neutron ride, Woody Woodpecker roller coaster, and had lunch at Nathan's Hot Dog stand. The kids got pictures with Spongebob, Dora, and Jimmy Neutron which was also fun! We decided that we would have to visit Universal Studios again the next day to take in some fun shows that we knew the kids would enjoy.

We get back to the villa by 6pm or so. We decide to just have dinner in the villa, and by dinner I mean turkey and swiss sandwiches with chips. We all get to bed much earlier this night, thankfully.

More tips: Most visitors to Orlando (and Florida in general) come from all over the country, not just the surrounding states. According to the Florida Bureau of Transportation, since most people have to work Monday through Friday, most of the travelers to Florida get on the road on Friday evening/Saturday morning. Most vacationers don't get settled in until early evening on Saturday. This means that if you were to visit the Orlando theme parks on a Saturday, the park would be a lot less crowded than some other days. Most vacationers wake up in Florida on Sunday morning ready to hit the parks. Sunday will be your most crowded day at any theme park. There is a different formula to take into account for Walt Disney World based on the fact that it consists of 4 separate parks. I'll get into detail in the *tips* section of the Day 3 post.