Florida - the sunshine state!

The pressure was on. Friends had been or were going, and our children were repeatedly asking if we could go ‘one day’. Yes – it was the D word … Disney! So 5 years ago in a bleak October, we bit the bullet and I planned our trip. However, I knew that there was so much more to Florida than just Disney, so we decided to make it an extended adventure! We flew directly into Orlando and stayed in an apartment hotel just outside of the Disney Parks and close to the wonderful little town of Celebration. Originally founded by The Walt Disney Company in the mid 90’s, Celebration is a charming little town with tree-lined streets, captivating architecture and a welcoming mix of shops and restaurants. In fact, Celebration was named one of America’s 10 prettiest towns so well worth a visit. There was a free shuttle from our hotel to the parks, but we very quickly decided we would rather have our own car to arrive and leave when we wanted and have the freedom to explore without being tied down to shuttle bus schedule times. Driving is very easy in Orlando with big wide roads and the parks are very close with ample parking at each. The next 9 days were spent visiting all of the Disney Parks and Universal Studios, with a couple of days included at one of the water parks and at our hotel pool resting our legs. There is no denying, that even if you believe Disney isn’t your thing, you will feel the magic of this place the moment you walk through the gates. It has to be one of the happiest places on the planet! It turns even the most mature of adults back into children again … I’m not going to lie, a visit to these parks takes ‘a lot’ of planning with regards rides. Once you have purchased your Disney Passes, you are permitted to book up to 3 ‘fast pass’ rides a day. This is done by downloading the Disney App which gives you access to all the rides and it will very quickly become apparent which are the more popular. I strongly recommend booking your fast pass rides as soon as this opens to you, which is 30 days before arrival to the park for guests staying outside of Disney, or guests staying at the Disney Resort Hotel have privileged access to book fast pass rides 60 days before their check in date for the entire length of their stay. Food within the parks is fairly generic and rather expensive, so we made sandwiches back at our apartment and took these with us most days, along with refillable bottles of water which was a godsend. Once we had finished in Orlando, we headed west to the Gulf Coast of Florida for some beach time and adventure. Our first destination was Sarasota and a hotel directly on Lido Beach. We spent a few days relaxing on the white sandy beach and exploring the local area such as Bradenton and Anna Maria Island. Our next destination was the small and beautiful Sanibel and Captiva Islands, accessed by a causeway from Fort Myers. They are popular due to their low-key, quiet beach settings with pristine white beaches, coupled with a lush tropical environment. 15 miles of beach, 25 miles of bike paths (which our children loved), fish, birds and 250 types of seashell which you can spend hours collecting on the beach! There were some great, relaxed, family fun restaurants here although we were rather baffled being served huge chocolate muffins before our meal in replacement of a bread basket! After a few days of total relaxation, we hit the road again to the bigger town of Naples. So much to do here, lots of shopping, boat trips, markets, the beach and pier. The perfect place to wander and take it all in. Then just a couple of hours further on the road took us into the infamous Everglades. There was no way I was going to visit Florida without spotting a croc, and no better place to do this than the Everglades! Taking an iconic air boat, we ventured through swamps and cypress parks carefully looking for those peeking eyes above the water. As well as crocs, we saw an abundance of other wildlife. The children loved it and once back on land, they even got to hold a baby croc! The drive out of the Everglades was great and within a short time we arrived on the Florida Keys – Key Largo first stop. We made our way along the keys and over the 7 mile bridge towards Key West, stopping at various know tourist spots and other recommended sights along the way. Robbies – a well known fishing depot where we hand fed the enormous tarpon who arrived for their lunch. The ‘No Name Pub’– yes, that’s really what it’s called. Tucked away off the main stretch, this pub was a marvellous site, totally decorated with bank notes from all across the world! Theatre of the Sea – where it’s possible to learn more about marine conservation and see/swim with dolphins. We stayed in Key Largo, Islamorada and eventually Key West which is Florida's southernmost point, lying roughly 90 miles north of Cuba. Famed for its pastel-hued, conch-style houses, it’s very well known for it’s coral reefs and a great destination for diving and snorkeling rather than it’s beaches. Our last journey was heading back along the Keys and up into Miami. We arrived in a heavy downpour of rain, but this didn’t dim the vibe and lights of this city. We instantly understood why Miami is known as a party city, it oozed cool vibes and the trendy gang. Our hotel was directly on Miami Beach which was a perfect place to chill and people watch. We made the most of some last chance shopping and took a ride down Ocean Drive (singing The Lighthouse Family – why not!) before dropping our car back at Miami airport and flying home directly to London.