schumigirl
It's a bit of a roodie doodie word for lady parts
- Joined
- May 15, 2007
INTRO...........
Well, trips come and go so quickly.....can`t quite believe another year has passed and we were almost coming up to our long awaited trip to Royal Pacific, Universal and Orlando.
For those that may not know us, we are Carole and Tom........very happily married for 23 years......and we adore Royal Pacific, Universal and Florida. We have stayed exclusively in this hotel since 09, and we don`t care to stay anywhere else. Some people ask us why.......well, we feel so at home here and we are very pampered and taken care of while we stay. It`s a beautiful resort and has some amazing staff members who we have come to know so well and look forward to seeing them every year.
We also love Universal Orlando........love the parks, the rides and general atmosphere around the hotels and resort. We have no desire to go to Disney and won`t go to SeaWorld. So you may get bored if you read beyond a few days, as for some it may be a bit repetitive......and it probably is.....but it`s our way of relaxing we honestly never get bored of being there. Some people think they couldn`t spend more than a few days at Universal or even a week is too long.....not for us. As I said it may not be the most exciting trip report you`ll ever read.....but we loved every second.
This trip would be a little bit different this year from previous years...Our 21 year old son Kyle wouldn`t be joining us for the first time. He is doing his final year at University doing his Masters degree in Chemical Engineering, and University started 9 days before we were due home....so too much to miss. We had known last year this was a possibility, but the reality would be very different. So he would be staying home, but assured us he had plenty to keep him occupied preparing for start of his year. We didn`t hold out much hope for him giving the grass a last mow for the year........we had also set up Skype on my ipad and his laptop so we could see each other as well as talk.
So before we left RP last year we had this years dates sorted and booked....nothing like planning ahead from someone who doesn`t plan. When we got home we got flights sorted quickly.......we wanted specific dates so no hanging around waiting for bargain flights......once that was done we booked our overnight stay at The Radisson at Manchester Airport. This includes our parking for our car while we are away, so no worries about doing that separate. We stay here every year, it`s a nice hotel and attached to both terminals, so a very short walk in the early hours for our flight.
Other things we have to take care of is travel insurance and car rental. Travel insurance is a must for Brits coming to the States.......don`t care how much we pay, long as we have peace of mind we`re happy. American health care is scary for us Brits usually........and since I turned 40 prices keep going higher.......lol.......it`s a downward spiral!!!
Car rental.....we use the same company every year and with them we have a choice of companies at the airport. Usually it`s Alamo we like....but this year we decided not have our usual SUV.....so we ended up paying the cheapest we have ever paid for car hire.......last year we paid $1700 for an SUV.......so this year seemed a bargain. Americans seem to get car hire cheaper, I see people talk about a couple of hundred dollars for like a week........I wish!!!
Our 14 day tickets and our HHN RoF tickets we order direct from Universal. We get them delivered to our home as we prefer to the tickets in our little paws ahead of time. Worth the $19 delivery charge. We ordered them one morning and they arrived within 35 hours. Not bad.
One thing we never do is make dining reservations.......we eat when we want wherever we are, or are close to. This year we made one exception and that was for a belated birthday dinner at Ocean Prime in Dr Phillips. We had heard only good things about this place and in researching reviews I found one from someone I trusted implicitly.......so I knew it was going to be good.
We had gotten all our TC`s and small amount of cash months earlier when exchange rate was good. Even when it`s not so good, we still do ok. I remember fondly a few years back getting $2 to the pound.......that was a great exchange rate!! Still ok though.
The weeks leading up to any trip are a mix of excitement and nerves.......what can go wrong, will this happen, have I got that sorted out.........I try to remember as long as we have passports.....we`re good to go.....anything else we can deal with in America.......without Passports....we go nowhere. It goes so slowly, I think this is the slowest wait ever. Tom had four days off before we left this year too, I thought this would make time pass quicker.....it didn`t. Because we were so organised we had nothing left to do.
That is probably the limit to our planning........apart from looking at menu`s from around Orlando....we don`t just stick to the resort as 18 days is a long time, although not quite long enough.......we have no tips as to how to save a buck or where the best deals are or have coupons.......we don`t vacation like that....we do what we want when we want. Each to their own though.......
So hope anyone that reads it, enjoys it.........
Well, trips come and go so quickly.....can`t quite believe another year has passed and we were almost coming up to our long awaited trip to Royal Pacific, Universal and Orlando.
For those that may not know us, we are Carole and Tom........very happily married for 23 years......and we adore Royal Pacific, Universal and Florida. We have stayed exclusively in this hotel since 09, and we don`t care to stay anywhere else. Some people ask us why.......well, we feel so at home here and we are very pampered and taken care of while we stay. It`s a beautiful resort and has some amazing staff members who we have come to know so well and look forward to seeing them every year.
We also love Universal Orlando........love the parks, the rides and general atmosphere around the hotels and resort. We have no desire to go to Disney and won`t go to SeaWorld. So you may get bored if you read beyond a few days, as for some it may be a bit repetitive......and it probably is.....but it`s our way of relaxing we honestly never get bored of being there. Some people think they couldn`t spend more than a few days at Universal or even a week is too long.....not for us. As I said it may not be the most exciting trip report you`ll ever read.....but we loved every second.
This trip would be a little bit different this year from previous years...Our 21 year old son Kyle wouldn`t be joining us for the first time. He is doing his final year at University doing his Masters degree in Chemical Engineering, and University started 9 days before we were due home....so too much to miss. We had known last year this was a possibility, but the reality would be very different. So he would be staying home, but assured us he had plenty to keep him occupied preparing for start of his year. We didn`t hold out much hope for him giving the grass a last mow for the year........we had also set up Skype on my ipad and his laptop so we could see each other as well as talk.
So before we left RP last year we had this years dates sorted and booked....nothing like planning ahead from someone who doesn`t plan. When we got home we got flights sorted quickly.......we wanted specific dates so no hanging around waiting for bargain flights......once that was done we booked our overnight stay at The Radisson at Manchester Airport. This includes our parking for our car while we are away, so no worries about doing that separate. We stay here every year, it`s a nice hotel and attached to both terminals, so a very short walk in the early hours for our flight.
Other things we have to take care of is travel insurance and car rental. Travel insurance is a must for Brits coming to the States.......don`t care how much we pay, long as we have peace of mind we`re happy. American health care is scary for us Brits usually........and since I turned 40 prices keep going higher.......lol.......it`s a downward spiral!!!
Car rental.....we use the same company every year and with them we have a choice of companies at the airport. Usually it`s Alamo we like....but this year we decided not have our usual SUV.....so we ended up paying the cheapest we have ever paid for car hire.......last year we paid $1700 for an SUV.......so this year seemed a bargain. Americans seem to get car hire cheaper, I see people talk about a couple of hundred dollars for like a week........I wish!!!
Our 14 day tickets and our HHN RoF tickets we order direct from Universal. We get them delivered to our home as we prefer to the tickets in our little paws ahead of time. Worth the $19 delivery charge. We ordered them one morning and they arrived within 35 hours. Not bad.
One thing we never do is make dining reservations.......we eat when we want wherever we are, or are close to. This year we made one exception and that was for a belated birthday dinner at Ocean Prime in Dr Phillips. We had heard only good things about this place and in researching reviews I found one from someone I trusted implicitly.......so I knew it was going to be good.
We had gotten all our TC`s and small amount of cash months earlier when exchange rate was good. Even when it`s not so good, we still do ok. I remember fondly a few years back getting $2 to the pound.......that was a great exchange rate!! Still ok though.
The weeks leading up to any trip are a mix of excitement and nerves.......what can go wrong, will this happen, have I got that sorted out.........I try to remember as long as we have passports.....we`re good to go.....anything else we can deal with in America.......without Passports....we go nowhere. It goes so slowly, I think this is the slowest wait ever. Tom had four days off before we left this year too, I thought this would make time pass quicker.....it didn`t. Because we were so organised we had nothing left to do.
That is probably the limit to our planning........apart from looking at menu`s from around Orlando....we don`t just stick to the resort as 18 days is a long time, although not quite long enough.......we have no tips as to how to save a buck or where the best deals are or have coupons.......we don`t vacation like that....we do what we want when we want. Each to their own though.......
So hope anyone that reads it, enjoys it.........