Know anywhere good to visit whilst on holiday in Florida??

chillidoggy

Neil said:

KSC and Gatorland.

Airboat ride on the Everglades.

If you are a petrol head, Daytona Beach, but it's a bit like Southend!

Oh, I forgot about Daytona Speedway. Yes, if you're a petrolhead, then it's well worth doing the tour of the museum, and having a look at the circuit. While I was there, you could pay a drive a NASCAR car round the track, or be driven by an instructor. The track is fucking massive, and the banking is so steep you'll struggle to walk up it!

And it's worth driving over to St. Pete's on the Gulf coast just to GET IN THE SEA, cos it's like a warm bath.

Also at St.Petersburg is the Salvador Dali museum, which if you like Dali, is well worth a visit.

bobliefeld

Universal Islands of Adventure is decent if you like theme parks, as is Busch Gardens.  Last time I went (6 years or so ago) the main Universal park was a complete dive.  

They'd just got rid of the Back To The Future ride (which was old but charming) for something forgettable..I think The Simpsons?  It was a really cheap redesign, still basically the BTTF ride but painted up a bit.  Everything there seemed ancient and falling apart.  The Terminator thing was really impressive when I was a kid but now the 3D cinema tech they use is really out of date and the actors weren't great.

Wet N Wild is essential if you're not scared of slides taller than most english buildings.

Moss

I went this Easter and these are the places I'd recommend:

Guitar:

George's Music was the only guitar place I went to but the guys were great and they let me play a $6000 Custom Shop Les Paul when buying an EHX Soul Food! I also went into a run down little pawn shop which had 2 60s Fenders (a Jag and a Mustang) for $200 each - not buying them is my biggest regret of the year

Not guitar:

- Universal was my favourite park - I'm a Harry Potter fan so all that stuff was amazing as well as several great coasters (the Hulk one is immense). The Citywalk bit outside is great for restaurants (I can seriously recommend the big Mexican place). I'd recommend at least 1 whole day for each half of the park and we did 2 evenings when the atmosphere is completely different and the queues are much shorter. 

- Busch Gardens is pretty good, especially as it wasn't too busy when I went - Sheikra is probably my favourite coaster ever (I rode it 6 times over the day). The park is a bit more chilled than the other main ones and the animals are lovely but we pretty much exhausted it in a day.

- Seaworld is really nice although after watching Blackfish, I do question their ethical standards to the dolphins and whales. If you ignore the shows, it's probably the most modern feeling park and all of the fish and animals are lovely (especially the manatees!). The rides are pretty good too. We did one full day here and an afternoon/evening without feeling that we'd exhausted everything.

- Kennedy is an absolute must! The new shuttle exhibition is something I'll never forget and a tour is basically essential (especially with a self-provided soundtrack of Public Service Broadcasting). The Saturn V centre is amazing, as is the Mercury launch centre. The one complaint I had was that we could only do one day there so missed a fair bit.

- We did one day at a mall, which was OK and I got 2 pairs of Levis 511s for $30!

- An airboat ride is pretty much essential - we used these guys and they were great.

- Finally, it is important to have a couple of days away from touristy stuff - we did a couple of nice walks around some nature reserves.

Stevepage

bobliefeld said:

Universal Islands of Adventure is decent if you like theme parks, as is Busch Gardens.  Last time I went (6 years or so ago) the main Universal park was a complete dive.  

They'd just got rid of the Back To The Future ride (which was old but charming) for something forgettable..I think The Simpsons?  It was a really cheap redesign, still basically the BTTF ride but painted up a bit.  Everything there seemed ancient and falling apart.  The Terminator thing was really impressive when I was a kid but now the 3D cinema tech they use is really out of date and the actors weren't great.

Wet N Wild is essential if you're not scared of slides taller than most english buildings.

Universal has changed since opening up it's new Harry Potter area. I went earlier this year and thought it was much better this time round compared to the previous times I've been. To the OP if it's just you and a partner, hire a Mustang. It's worth it. If you have a family, get a Chevrolet Tahoe or Suburban. I hired a Suburban last time and while it's enormous it's one of the best cars out there. Loads of room, incredibly comfortable and a nice big V8 to see you cruising with no effort needed.

ToneControl

these later ideas make it sound more interesting

I'd be with a 12 & 14 year old & Mrs

I don't want to do kiddie theme parks for more than 1 day in 14

I saw some homes in the sun show that featured a more arty town (as a contrast to Disney central) I have no idea  where though now

rossyamaha

Another mention for Georges off International Drive. I went as a kid and they had a Delorean in the middle of the store. Actually bought my first pedal (Crybaby) there which I still have. There was a sci fi store right next door too. Loads of vintage Star Wars stuff and I also got to meet David Prowse and Kenny Baker purely by chance. 

boogieman

St Pete's is quite arty. It's got Art Deco buildings, very pretty town on the coast.

chillidoggy

TBH, there's so much cool stuff to do, it's best if you leave any kids behind!

Neil

boogieman said:

St Pete's is quite arty. It's got Art Deco buildings, very pretty town on the coast.

If you are an Art Deco fan (I am) you cannot beat South Beach Miami.

Absolutely beautiful location. No wonder it features in so many films, ads etc.

chrispy108

Stevepage said:

strtdv;877324" said:

Kennedy Space Centre is worth a visit.

Its now incredibly expensive too. I drove all the way there from Davenport and turned around when i saw the price. They upped the price last year

That'll be because they opened the Shuttle display. I can't wait to get back out there again to see it, but it'll be a while.

boogieman

Neil;878456" said:

boogieman said:

St Pete's is quite arty. It's got Art Deco buildings, very pretty town on the coast.





If you are an Art Deco fan (I am) you cannot beat South Beach Miami.



Absolutely beautiful location. No wonder it features in so many films, ads etc.

Yup. Shame a lot of the rest of Miami is nasty.

Evilmags

Neil;878456" said:

boogieman said:

St Pete's is quite arty. It's got Art Deco buildings, very pretty town on the coast.





If you are an Art Deco fan (I am) you cannot beat South Beach Miami.



Absolutely beautiful location. No wonder it features in so many films, ads etc.

Finally a sensible choice. Hang out their and stare at Latina women. Much more interesting than hanging out with the overweight in the US equivalent of benidorm.

crunchman

chrispy108 said:

Stevepage said:

strtdv;877324" said:

Kennedy Space Centre is worth a visit.

Its now incredibly expensive too. I drove all the way there from Davenport and turned around when i saw the price. They upped the price last year

That'll be because they opened the Shuttle display. I can't wait to get back out there again to see it, but it'll be a while.

When we were there, there was supposed to be one of the last Shuttle launches but it got postponed.  I was a bit sad about that.

ToneControl

I will do a week near Orlando, 

was looking at Clearwater area too, but in the end booked a week in St Augustine, the oldest town in the USA, 1565 I think

Sounds like Georges is good. Any tips for where to buy second hand gear would be welcome

ToneControl

Moss said:

I went this Easter and these are the places I'd recommend:

Guitar:

George's Music was the only guitar place I went to but the guys were great and they let me play a $6000 Custom Shop Les Paul when buying an EHX Soul Food! I also went into a run down little pawn shop which had 2 60s Fenders (a Jag and a Mustang) for $200 each - not buying them is my biggest regret of the year

Not guitar:

- Universal was my favourite park - I'm a Harry Potter fan so all that stuff was amazing as well as several great coasters (the Hulk one is immense). The Citywalk bit outside is great for restaurants (I can seriously recommend the big Mexican place). I'd recommend at least 1 whole day for each half of the park and we did 2 evenings when the atmosphere is completely different and the queues are much shorter. 

- Busch Gardens is pretty good, especially as it wasn't too busy when I went - Sheikra is probably my favourite coaster ever (I rode it 6 times over the day). The park is a bit more chilled than the other main ones and the animals are lovely but we pretty much exhausted it in a day.

- Seaworld is really nice although after watching Blackfish, I do question their ethical standards to the dolphins and whales. If you ignore the shows, it's probably the most modern feeling park and all of the fish and animals are lovely (especially the manatees!). The rides are pretty good too. We did one full day here and an afternoon/evening without feeling that we'd exhausted everything.

- Kennedy is an absolute must! The new shuttle exhibition is something I'll never forget and a tour is basically essential (especially with a self-provided soundtrack of Public Service Broadcasting). The Saturn V centre is amazing, as is the Mercury launch centre. The one complaint I had was that we could only do one day there so missed a fair bit.

- We did one day at a mall, which was OK and I got 2 pairs of Levis 511s for $30!

- An airboat ride is pretty much essential - we used these guys and they were great.

- Finally, it is important to have a couple of days away from touristy stuff - we did a couple of nice walks around some nature reserves.

thanks for this

where was the pawn shop by the way?

Were you convinced the 60s guitar were genuinely old?

stickyfiddle

The can't-miss stuff for me would be watching some racing at Daytona and all the Kennedy/NASA stuff. 

Moss

ToneControl said:

Moss said:

I went this Easter and these are the places I'd recommend:

Guitar:

George's Music was the only guitar place I went to but the guys were great and they let me play a $6000 Custom Shop Les Paul when buying an EHX Soul Food! I also went into a run down little pawn shop which had 2 60s Fenders (a Jag and a Mustang) for $200 each - not buying them is my biggest regret of the year

Not guitar:

- Universal was my favourite park - I'm a Harry Potter fan so all that stuff was amazing as well as several great coasters (the Hulk one is immense). The Citywalk bit outside is great for restaurants (I can seriously recommend the big Mexican place). I'd recommend at least 1 whole day for each half of the park and we did 2 evenings when the atmosphere is completely different and the queues are much shorter. 

- Busch Gardens is pretty good, especially as it wasn't too busy when I went - Sheikra is probably my favourite coaster ever (I rode it 6 times over the day). The park is a bit more chilled than the other main ones and the animals are lovely but we pretty much exhausted it in a day.

- Seaworld is really nice although after watching Blackfish, I do question their ethical standards to the dolphins and whales. If you ignore the shows, it's probably the most modern feeling park and all of the fish and animals are lovely (especially the manatees!). The rides are pretty good too. We did one full day here and an afternoon/evening without feeling that we'd exhausted everything.

- Kennedy is an absolute must! The new shuttle exhibition is something I'll never forget and a tour is basically essential (especially with a self-provided soundtrack of Public Service Broadcasting). The Saturn V centre is amazing, as is the Mercury launch centre. The one complaint I had was that we could only do one day there so missed a fair bit.

- We did one day at a mall, which was OK and I got 2 pairs of Levis 511s for $30!

- An airboat ride is pretty much essential - we used these guys and they were great.

- Finally, it is important to have a couple of days away from touristy stuff - we did a couple of nice walks around some nature reserves.

thanks for this

where was the pawn shop by the way?

Were you convinced the 60s guitar were genuinely old?

It was just off International Drive IIRC. They just 'felt' old - if they were fakes, they probably wouldn't have been in such bad condition!

Fortheloveofguitar

+1 for George's music on I-Drive. Alex and Jason are great in there and always happy to help and a warm welcome every time.

Guitar center is like PMT Brum, arrogant and very unhelpful.

gusman2x

Neil said:

boogieman said:

St Pete's is quite arty. It's got Art Deco buildings, very pretty town on the coast.

If you are an Art Deco fan (I am) you cannot beat South Beach Miami.

Absolutely beautiful location. No wonder it features in so many films, ads etc.

Pretty sketchy on a Sat night though. We stayed in one of the Deco ones (the one next door to the one in Scarface where the boy gets chainsawed). Prob would want to spend more than a day or two in Miami. But I also reckon it's one of those places you'd enjoy a lot more if you were there with someone who knows it.

Neil

gusman2x said:

Neil said:

boogieman said:

St Pete's is quite arty. It's got Art Deco buildings, very pretty town on the coast.

If you are an Art Deco fan (I am) you cannot beat South Beach Miami.

Absolutely beautiful location. No wonder it features in so many films, ads etc.

Pretty sketchy on a Sat night though. We stayed in one of the Deco ones (the one next door to the one in Scarface where the boy gets chainsawed). Prob would want to spend more than a day or two in Miami. But I also reckon it's one of those places you'd enjoy a lot more if you were there with someone who knows it.

It can be sketchy in a lot of US cities on a Saturday  night.

I just love South Beach though.

Fabulous beach - across the road from Ocean Drive and plenty of interesting shops where I like to search for old wristwatches (plentiful around there) in and around Washington and Lincoln.

Although not Art Deco I love the Fontainbleu where you can recreate the original card school scene from Goldfinger.