We hope everyone is well? It’s been a few mad and nerve wracking weeks all over the planet, hopefully we are seeing better times ahead. (Fingers crossed!)
This week’s blog is inspired in part by the lovely folks at the Duo podcast. Their latest one had me thinking whilst I was walking and listening to it. They were taking about the funny things you do on holiday, what little traditions you may have while you are there or the first things you do when you get there.
So! Let’s get into our traditions! As a couple we love the whole feel of Orlando and Florida. The pace, the people and the way of life suits us down to the ground. We love the little random shops you will find while walking about or the cafes that seem to be hidden away but serve some of the best food and drinks you’ve ever had.
We have a main tradition that on the first “proper” day of the holiday (usually a Sunday) we MUST visit our all time favourite breakfast spot…Cracker Barrel. This little oasis of Americana on route 27 in Davenport is up there with the best restaurants in the area. Not just because the food is good, I mean REALLY GOOD food, but it’s also the staff. They are without a shadow of doubt some of the nicest folks in the business, from a “how y’all doin?” to the service and the general ambiance of the place. You know its good when it’s full of locals at 8am (you can spot them a mile off, they only ever use a fork! No knife for cutting here). The phrase ‘killing you with kindness’ should be used when eating here, the portions are great and the coffee will keep you buzzing all day. It’s our ‘must do’, and we normally hit it at least twice more during the break. Do yourself a favour and pop in.
Travelling day, as we arrive, we usually head to our accommodation, have a quick look around, drop the luggage and then head straight back out to get some basic supplies for the villa or hotel fridge. Now you may have heard of the supermarkets in the U.S. and lots of folks cannot believe the tales about them til they visit… Walmart and Publix are the main two in the Davenport/Disney area, and they are as different as chalk and cheese. Let’s stroll over to Walmart first. The one we visit is just off Cagans crossing and the store is huge. We mean it. We normally spend the first 30 mins in-store just seeing what’s been added, new canoes? new beauty spa? trying to find a bottle of milk under a gallon? It’s an adventure that’s for sure. One of our fave things is getting people who have never visited for the first time to go and look for a huge bag of Cheetos, or the famous yard of bread. Literally a loaf nearly 2ft long. Madness. You’ll find all the essentials in here, even bargains Like the famous BLUE POP! aka Powerade that keeps me energised all day. This sells for nearly $5 in the parks, admittedly its quite a big bottle, but in here the same bottles are 99c. So fill ya trolley and stick them in the fridge ready for the park the next day. That’s what I always do. The shops have some brilliant deli counters as well so you can pick up lots for the villa or room and save a bit of cash if you want to take sandwiches into the park. Personally we don’t, the thought of carrying around sandwiches in the Orlando heat fills me with dread! I’d rather buy a snack and let it keep me going till my meal later. But it’s horses for courses.
Over at Publix this is a totally different kettle of fish. It’s like an indoor farmers market. Lovely, relaxing and, like the girls from the DUOpodcast said, they must shine the apples on the fruit stands. Publix is more like our Sainsbury’s (?) it’s a bit more posh, less manic and the choice of healthy food is far more wide ranging. Like Walmart they have a deli counter where you can get all manner of snacks and meals. One fave is the premium Steak Sub with Fillet cuts. For my money the best chicken tenders I’ve had in Orlando have been from here. Shopping here is a different as they seem to stock less bulk items and sell normal size packs (well, normal for the U.S.A). I was thinking of banning Tracey from here, as every time she popped in she came out with Krispy Kreme doughnuts! She kept saying “someone stop me from buying them” but when I did she went mad at me. Women!? So supermarket ritual done – onto the Parks
While at the parks we have little things we like to do to start the day, mine is to pop into Starbucks and get a Large Flat White. These are delicious! I love me a flat white at the best of times but in the U.K. we only get one size, these bad boys in Orlando on the other hand are the best! Get one on the way into the park, slurp it down and get ready for the hit of caffeine. You’ll be skipping around the parks in no time. Over in City Walk in particular we love to get a Flat White from Starbucks and pop over the road to Cinnabon for a sticky bun. This is a caffeine and sugar overload and the crash later on is well worth it. Last visit me and Ashley did this and when I came back with the bun Tracey said “why didn’t you get a small one”… I had. It was still big enough to share with 4 people. (Stops to wipe drool of keyboard). At some point in the holiday too we’ll absolutely have to get a hot dog from Casey’s Corner. Lots of choice and a pretty reasonable snack and Tracey is happy now they do a vegan hot dog so it’s one of our must-do’s.
We also always have one afternoon set aside to watch the parade in Magic Kingdom. Quite often when the parade is on the ride queue times go down, and so more often than not we use that time to go on a super popular ride, or nab a table at a super busy restaurant. But the parade is a must-do at least once as you get that full Disney magic warm fuzzy happy place feeling, so one day in our 14 day schedule we’ll head to Magic Kingdom specifically for the purpose of pulling up a kerb and watching the parade.
One place we have to go every time we visit is Celebration. Now if you have never visited the Town of Celebration then you are missing out, situated just outside WDW off the 192, it’s a picture postcard American town made real. I t is stunning. Just the right amount of traffic, shops are always inviting and the owners are genuinely interested in talking not just selling, this place is a lovely way to spend a few hours after a park visit. If you just want to pop into a restaurant or bar on the way back you cannot do better than Celebration. Eat at the diner then stroll over to the lake and sit in a rocking chair and watch the ducks swimming past – it’s a great way to relax. If you had to try and describe the Southern States of America, or how it looks you could just show them a photo of this town. White picket fences and painted houses look stunning in the Floridian sunshine. Mind you, last visit the local Sheriff was stopping us walking on one side of the road, when we asked what was going on he just pointed at the gator basking on the grass verge. It couldn’t be anymore Florida if it tried. *side note, we rapidly crossed over when we saw it – the deputy on the other hand as just waving his hat at it and telling it off.
Another of our fave things to do is have a good drive around. Florida is the perfect State for this. We know a lot of folks do not like driving in Orlando, and thats cool. We on the other hand love it. Straight roads, blue skies and the radio on, what’s not to like? Each time we visit we have to go over to Clearwater beach. This is a stunning beach that goes on for miles. Rent a cabana and just chill with the sound of the waves and the kids playing. This is just like Miami (if you squint that is) beach front hotels and bars, huge side walks so you can amble about and take in the sights. We always go on a dolphin spotting trip, these are a really good way to spend a few hours and see some of the sights. The last time time we went on it the Captain took us all around the houses of the rich and famous before scooting out into the bay and trying to see if the dolphins wanted to play, and they did! A better sight will not be seen than a dolphin jumping alongside the boat in the wake!
If you get the chance to drive there just do it. The roads are really easy to navigate and the signs are a doddle to follow, just beware of the toll roads that appear from nowhere though. They can catch you out if you have no change.
No trip to Orlando for us is complete without a drive down International Drive. I cannot believe just how much this has changed over the years. It was getting quite rundown and seedy a few years ago, but thankfully money has been spent on it and its a different place now. Loads of new bars an restaurants and shops. You have Icon Park where the Orlando eye is, and the Starflyer, if you do one thing on I-drive you MUST go on the Starflyer. 450ft tall and the views are out of this world! The other great thing about I-Drive is the shopping. If you want outlets or other stores you are never far away, just don’t bother with the Dollar store. We were told about this place by Tracey’s aunt – she was raving about it, “everything is a dollar!” Wow we thought lets have a look…oh my days… it was like the pound shop but worse! All they had were plastic bits of tat and picnic stuff. That wasn’t the worst part of it, “everything a Dollar” ok…plus tax! So if you went in with a dollar you still couldn’t buy anything!! (Saying that I had a cracking pair of tweezers that I still use to this day) $1 = $1.07!!
We also absolutely always have to go the the Malls and the outlets. We are both into shopping and we both head for different shops to each other but the same ones we each always go to. For Tracey she’ll head to Forever 21, Victoria’s Secret, Sephora, Aeropostale and Old Navy Store for her year’s supply of gym wear. Me I head out to a couple of watch shops I like, various sports stores, the Disney Character Warehouse stores and my absolute favourite Under Armour. We always go to these places! It’s a real excitement as we head into them to see what’s on offer. We tend to wander off on our own and then meet up at the end of the mall or outlet and see how many bags we’ve each got! Whilst we’re at the Mall at Millenia we always go to The Cheesecake Factory. This is another one of our must-do evening trips – a little wander round the Mall and then a gorgeous meal at The Cheesecake Factory. The menu is a book and there’s a massive choice, the portions are huge too. We always make time for a trip here, every visit.
So there are a few of our rituals, must-do’s and traditions. We do lots of new things each time we go, we make sure we try a new place or restaurant or experience, but there are a few traditions that we keep for every single trip – makes us feel like we’re back home, where we belong, especially the arrival day and day one traditions.
I hope we’ll be in our usual spot at Cracker Barrel or ordering our hot-dogs in Casey’s Corner, or on our kerb in our favourite spot in the Magic Kingdom, with an ice-cream waiting for the parade. It’s hopes and dreams like this that keep us going during these difficult times. Stay safe all of you lovely folk – until next time.
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