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Orlando Travel Guide

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2009 Halloween Theme Park Scare Guide: Halloween Horror Nights

Where: 6000 Universal Boulevard [map], Orlando, Fl, United States, 32819
October 6, 2009 at 9:28 AM | by markj | 0 Comments

At this year’s event you will be trapped by “SAW’s” maniacal serial killer Jigsaw, come face-to-fangs with “The Wolfman” and be chased by the twisted “Chucky” doll.    

And that’s just the beginning: All eight haunted houses, six scarezones and two live shows are inspired by blockbuster horror films. Until now, you’ve only been able to watch the action in horror films like “SAW,” “The Wolfman,” and “Chucky.” But at Universal Orlando’s Halloween Horror Nights, these films and more have been transformed into live experiences that put you in the middle of your worst cinematic nightmares.   

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Spend One Day Volunteering And Get A Free Pass From Disney

September 30, 2009 at 1:21 PM | by cmb | 0 Comments

Mickey's giving away free one-day passes to Disney's Theme Parks and all you have to do to get one is spend a day volunteering. Beginning on January 1, 2010, you can sign up to volunteer with any participating organization for just one day, and in return you will receive a one-day pass to any Disney park. Disney is hoping to inspire one million people to volunteer (and spend money at Disney World) next year.

If you're not sure how or where to volunteer, Disney has made it easy by teaming up with HandsOn Network, which links volunteers with more than 70,000 nonprofits across the country. Once you've completed your day of service, it will be verified by HandsOn and you will receive a voucher good for one day at any Disney park.

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Follow the 67-Day Adventures of Orlando's Smile Ambassadors

September 22, 2009 at 3:28 PM | by Heidi Atwal | 0 Comments

Donnie and Marie might be known for their wholesome perkiness, but they've got nothing on Orlando "Smile Ambassadors" Kyle and Stacey. The cheery duo—Kyle, a Broadway actor, and Stacey, who works with children—hail from New York and have been BFFs for a dozen years and counting. They applied and won their coveted position by submitting an audition video and essay to the 67 Days of Smiles contest, and their merry attitude was deemed good enough to represent the city of Orlando.

On their 67-day journey (they're currently 26 days in), the gleeful twosome are experiencing all of Orlando's 100 attractions, with blog entries and constant Twitter updates (@67days) documenting their every step.

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The Wizarding World of Harry Potter to Open at Universal Orlando in Spring 2010

September 15, 2009 at 11:45 AM | by juliana | 1 Comment

It's hard to believe anything good could come out of Draco Malfoy's mouth but today in a media webcast, Draco (aka actor Tom Felton) let us know that the Wizarding World of Harry Potter, a 20-acre "fully immersive" theme park attraction would be opening at the Universal Studios Orlando in Spring 2010. Muggles and Wizards rejoice!

Tom Williams, chairman and CEO, Universal Parks and Resorts was joined by Harry Potter films production designer Stuart Craig and show producer Alan Gilmore to give out a special sneak peek of the most anticipated theme park attraction since...hmm...maybe since Disney World opened? You all know how nutty HP fans get over the newest books/films. But imagine what they'll do to experience riding a Hippogriff or sending owl mail or exploring forbidden rooms in Hogwarts Castle?

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Could Steven Spielberg Bounce From Universal Studios To Disney World?

August 27, 2009 at 12:24 PM | by kjb | 0 Comments

We are already quite aware of the roller coaster delays at Universal Studios in Orlando, but at least we know it’s coming sooner than later. However, that might not be the case for those of us who love the rides from Steven Spielberg movies. See, the movie director extraordinaire is re-negotiating his contract with park officials—he’s got quite the lucrative consulting contract.

Right now, Spielberg gets a flat fee and a percentage of the cash brought in for attractions at the park. He signed the deal about 20 years ago, so you can imagine that his annual check has probably increased significantly. They never set an expiration date to the agreement, but as of June 2010, he does have the right to cut things off.

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Florida's Summer Is Sunny Skies With Chance Of Roller Coaster Delays

August 6, 2009 at 12:09 PM | by kjb | 1 Comment

We’ve been trying to plan a trip to check out Universal Studios' latest coaster at their Florida park for a while, but constant delays have left us less than thrilled. The summer is definitely approaching its end and we haven’t heard too much about this new roller coaster’s grand opening. Originally the thing was supposed to be thrilling folks around the Memorial Day weekend, but maybe Labor Day will be when we can welcome it into the world.

Apparently there’s been some issues with the lift, and the cars haven’t been making it all the way through the track. We love a little thrill, but we’d rather not be stuck upside down on a lift hill—so we say keep up the tests!

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Oops, They Did It Again: Disney Raises Prices On Theme Park Tickets

August 4, 2009 at 8:54 AM | by kjb | 0 Comments

Apparently the fact that the country is in a huge economic mess doesn’t seem to phase the suits at Disney. We understand that earnings were down this quarter compared to last year, and that you need more cash, but the ticket prices to your parks already cost a lot of money. Nonetheless, over the weekend the admission costs to Disneyland and Walt Disney World both went up by a few bucks, just like they have for the last couple of years.

If you have your heart set on heading to the mouse house in Florida this summer, a one-day ticket will now cost $79. This is an increase of $4 over the former rate, and once you add in the tax, you’re looking at well over $80 for a day with Mickey and friends. Like always, it pays to stay longer—they want to fatten you up on churros. The difference between a three day base ticket and a ten day base ticket is less than $30, but it will still cost you over $200 per person.

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Disney World's Monorail Has First Fatal Crash In 38-Year History

July 6, 2009 at 9:19 AM | by JetSetCD | 0 Comments

The long weekend wasn't kind to everyone off and about on their mini-trips. For those vacationing in Orlando at Walt Disney World, they awoke to the news that the park's loved transportation system, the Monorail, had crashed around 2am on Sunday and taken the life of one 21-year old driver. The news is that one Monorail malfunctioned and backed into another outside of a station.

Onboard at the early hour—who knew the Monorail even rain at the at that hour—were only 8 guests, including a family of six who were possibly too late partying at Chef Mickey's or Goofy's A La Carte Sandwich Shoppe. This marks the first fatal accident in the history of Walt Disney World's Monorail, which began its operations back in 1971.

Service on the Monorail was understandably shut down following the accident, but was back on schedule for rush hour later on Sunday as families headed home after the holiday weekend. And now for the token Simpsons quote: "Well, sir, there's nothing on earth like a genuine, bona fide, electrified, six-car Monorail."

Related Stories:
· Disney World monorail crash kills driver [CNN]
· Disney World monorail crash victim was working in his dream job [Orlando Sentinel]
· Disney World Coverage [Jaunted]

[Photo: weathermanfsu/TwitPic]

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Summer Concerts An Added Bonus At Universal Orlando

May 28, 2009 at 3:32 PM | by kjb | 0 Comments

If waiting in a long line for your shot to ride the Hollywood Rip Ride Rockit is not your idea of a good time at Universal Studios Orlando, then you might want to consider some of their summertime entertainment. The Summer Concert Series kicks off on June 13 with a concert by Jordin Sparks, and admission is included in your daily park pass—no need to shell out any additional cash.

Things continue with performances by LL Cool J on June 20 and Natasha Bedingfield on June 27. Even The O’Jays cruise into town over the Independence Day holiday weekend to help celebrate and kickoff the fireworks displays.

Apparently park officials aren’t too familiar with a calendar, as the concert series ends without anything else planned for July and nothing at all for August. Well, we guess it’s better than nothing.

Related Stories:
·Universal Orlando Summer Concert Series [Official Site]
·Theme Parks Are Cookin' Up Some Goods For Summer '09 [Jaunted]
·Theme Parks coverage [Jaunted]

[Photo of another Universal Orlando concert: divemasterking2000]

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Front Row at SeaWorld's New Manta Ride

Where: 7007 Sea World Dr [map], Orlando, FL, United States, 32821
May 14, 2009 at 4:14 PM | by juliana | 0 Comments

We're still obsessed with the World's Scariest Roller Coasters. Got any rides we should know about? Tip us off.

It may not be as gritty as Deptford, but the new Manta ride at SeaWorld is pretty sick. The ride soft-opened a few weeks ago and while it's not yet had its official opening (that will happen on May 22nd), a few people who have taken the ride have already filmed the experience on YouTube.

If you dare to ride the Manta, you can get a free pass to the front of the line on RideManta.com by doing a two social networking things like Twittering, YouTubing, Flickring or simply taking a quiz.

And you thought the ride ended when you made it safely back to solid ground.

Related Stories:
· Front row view of Manta [YouTube]
· Ride Manta [Official Site]
· SeaWorld Orlando Launches Manta, Its New World-Class Roller Coaster [Jaunted]

[Front door photo: Jeff Kern]

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A Rental Car Road Trip on a Shoestring Budget

May 11, 2009 at 1:59 PM | by pbb | 6 Comments

Jaunted editor Paul Brady is back on terra firma in the U.S. after nearly a year away in South America. So how did he get back here? By taking the ultimate road-trip. All this week, he'll be telling us just how he did it. Any questions or suggestions? Let us know.

There's something uncanny about planning a one-way road trip through the southern United States from an internet cafe in Cartagena, Colombia. But plan ahead you must, if you want to take advantage of the incredibly cheap one-way rental car deals out of Florida on offer right now.

Why the bargains? As the companies gear up for summer road trip season, they realize all their inventory is at Florida airports, dumped there by snow bunnies who drove down for sun and fun but flew back home. By offering super-cheap rides to people like me--north-bound drivers with flexible travel plans--they can easily repopulate the country with rentals.

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SeaWorld Orlando Launches Manta, Its New World-Class Roller Coaster

May 5, 2009 at 3:46 PM | by Omri | 0 Comments

It's tough to overstate the awesome awesomeness of SeaWorld Orlando's new Manta roller-coaster. The ride, which soft-launched last weekend and will soon be open to the public, has already been declared by the LA Times Travel blog to be the #1 new ride of the year.

There's 3,359 feet of tracks, a top speed of 56 mph, four inversions, and a max drop of 113 feet that all add up to two minutes and 35 seconds of face-down flying adrenaline:

Sometimes zoos and aquariums build less-than-electrifying rides to keep teenagers amused while parents and younger siblings wander around. Ferris wheels, slow-moving trains, bumper cars - these are standard fare. But that's not what's happening here.

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