Florida

July 23, 2019 By Jen Leave a Comment

Taking the Shuttle to Shell Key Preserve

There is so much to do on the gulf coast of Florida. It’s hard to chose between sunset cruises, dolphin cruises, and all the different beaches. Finally we decided to take the shuttle over to Shell Key Preserve. The shuttle picks you up at Pass-a-Grille in St Pete Beach. We took the 10 am shuttle […]

June 16, 2019 By Jen Leave a Comment

Blue Spring State Park, Florida

Several years ago I discovered Blue Spring State Park in a Florida travel guide. I asked my friend Laurie, who was from Florida, if it was worth the drive. She immediately said “That’s the best part of Florida!” Although it took many Florida trips before I went and saw it I was really glad when […]

June 15, 2019 By Jen Leave a Comment

A Quick Visit to Everglades National Park

We had an extra day in the Miami area, so what better to do than see the Everglades for the first time? It was a hot day in June. In Miami it was high 90’s and it was even hotter as we entered the park. After a brief one hour drive from Miami we reached […]

December 10, 2018 By Jen Leave a Comment

Solo Trip to Disney and Universal Orlando Theme Parks

After many years of taking my kids to Orlando I finally decided to try a solo trip. Would the Orlando parks be as fun if I was by myself? I decided to take advantage of Universal’s buy 2 days get 2 days free ticket on Undercover Tourist. I also had one day left on a […]

October 18, 2016 By Jen Leave a Comment

Breakfast at Three Broomsticks in Hogsmeade

After a morning of riding the Hulk, Spiderman, and Forbidden Journey we were starving and it wasn’t even lunch time yet. I had read some great reviews for Three Broomsticks so we gave it a go at about 10:15 am. When we got in line there was a nice display of all the breakfast offerings, […]

October 18, 2016 By Jen Leave a Comment

A Visit to Moe’s Tavern at Universal Orlando

We have been to Universal Orlando many times and never went into Moe’s Tavern. I didn’t realize it was a huge Simpsons-based food court! I went to Duff’s Brewery first, which is a waterfront bar, and got a Duff beer. I don’t know why that was so satisfying, but it was. It tasted roughly like […]

October 18, 2016 By Jen Leave a Comment

Hogsmeade, Universal’s Islands of Adventure

Our first full day of vacation we went to Islands of Adventure! It’s one of our favorite Orlando parks. First we went on Hulk and Spiderman and then we went to Hogsmeade! The first thing we always do is ride Forbidden Journey. We love that ride. My favorite part is the Quidditch ride through the […]

October 17, 2016 By Jen Leave a Comment

The new Diagon Alley in Universal Orlando

This trip we got a 2 day plus 2 days free ticket to the Universal parks. It was our first time seeing Diagon Alley and it totally surpassed our expectations! First of all, it is not easy to find the entrance to Diagon Alley. Universal built a facade that looks just like a London Underground […]

April 16, 2016 By Jen Leave a Comment

A Day at Discovery Cove

Discovery Cove has been our favorite Orlando-area park since the first time we visited. The first time we visited was the only time we did the dolphin swim. We have been back twice for the resort day, most recently March of 2016 during spring break, the week right before Easter. This was the best decision […]

April 15, 2016 By Jen Leave a Comment

A Day at Canaveral National Seashore

We try to do something new every trip. We had never been to Canaveral National Seashore, and I had a valid National Parks pass, so off we went! This park only costs a couple dollars to get a carload in. I think it was $3 if you didn’t have a pass. We stopped at several […]