Amelia Island-Not Just Another Florida Island

One summer while staying on Jacksonville Beach, we decided to take a drive up the coastline along Florida A1A. At one point of our journey, we had to board a ferry called Saint Johns River Ferry to continue our trek. The scenery was beautiful and the beaches great. There was a stretch of beach in Little Talbot Island State Park onto which we drove our four wheel drive vehicle. Driving along the surf was an exilerating experience. From there, we continued northward on Florida A1A and crossed a bridge that took us to Amelia Island. Up till then, I didn't know Amelia Island existed.

Amelia Island is the southernmost of the barrier islands stretching along the coast from South Carolina to Florida called the Sea Islands. It is south of Cumberland Island, Georgia. It is considered the only community in the United States to have experienced life under eight different flags. The island has a long and illustrious history that goes back 4,000 years. Amelia Island has a natural deep harbor on the north end of the island, which provided easy access for smugglers, pirates, and assorted sea captains.

Today, Amelia Island attracts a wide variety of recreational and commercial activity. For the vacationer, it features activities from golf and tennis at world-class resorts to kayaking, sunset sails and horseback riding on the beach. It has river cruises and charters, fishing, a museum, a community theatre, and walking tours of Historic Fernandina Beach. Or maybe you just want to take a quiet walk to enjoy the unique variety of birds and wildlife. To top it off, there are the 13 miles of beautiful, sandy beaches for taking in the warm Florida sun either to lay out on, walk on, or collect seashells.

Amelia Island offers a 1350 acre beach resort called Amelia Island Plantation. The resort offers four Audubon International certified sanctuary golf courses, 23 Har-Tru tennis courts, holistic spa, shopping village, year around youth programs, Nature Center, and Segway tours. Plenty of other resorts and hotels to choose from.

Walt Disney World Florida and Star Wars Weekend

If you love Disney and are a Star Wars enthusiast then you will like this. Star Wars Weekends is an annual summer special event at Disney's Hollywood Studios theme park that celebrates George Lucas' classic sci-fi movie series. Join Jedi Masters, Sith Lords and Star Wars celebrities for special shows, presentations and memorabilia. In addition to all of the entertainment, there are plenty of conversations, autograph sessions and motorcades with the celebrities and creators of the Star Wars galaxy. All of this fun is at Walt Disney World Florida.

Dates:

May 22, 2009 - May 24, 2009

May 29, 2009 - May 31, 2009

June 5, 2009 - June 7, 2009

June 12, 2009 - June 14, 2009

Trivia fact:

Star Wars and the Walt Disney Company have a long history together. Star Tours first opened in Disneyland Park in California on January 9, 1987.

For More Disney information go to Vacation Rick Travel.

Tokyo Disneyland New Attraction-Monsters Inc, Ride and Go Seek!

If you like Disney and like learning about updates of new attractions and rides, you will be interested in this update. You may not be planning a trip to Tokyo Disneyland Resort, but it is always fun to see what is going on around the world at the Disney Properties. April 15, 2009 is the grand opening of Disney/Pixar film "Monsters, Inc" themed attraction called "Monsters, Inc. Ride and Go Seek" at Tokyo Disneyland. Mike, Sully and their monster friends are entertaining the human girl Boo with a game of hide-and-seek, but the nasty Randall is trying to spoil their fun. Board the Security Tram into Monster City, and see what happens to their lively game! Check all the attractions and resorts at Vacation Rick Travel Tokyo Disney.

Visit The Georgia Aquarium, Atlanta-Titanic Aquatic

Georgia Aquarium is the world's largest and most engaging aquariums. You are invited to experience the mysterious, tragic story of one of the most famous ships in history through the new Titanic Aquatic. This new Titanic exhibition brings to life the story of the fated Titanic through authentic artifacts and hands-on interactive experiences. Titanic Aquatic includes a vast collection of more than 190 artifacts recovered from Titanic’s debris field including 40 that have never been seen before. In addition to recovered artifacts and dramatic room recreations, the exhibition will engage visitors through interactive displays and captivating high-definition video presentations on Titanic’s construction, maiden voyage, tragic sinking and recovery of authentic artifacts. This exhibit opened august 22, 2008 and has been extended till Sept. 7, 2009. for more information on this and more go to Vacation Rick Travel the Atlanta page.

New-Simpsons Ride-Universal Studios

Voted World's Best New Attraction for 2008 by the readers of ThemeParkInsider.com. The Simpsons Ride is a new addition to the Universal Studio Hollywood collection of attractions and rides. You are there right alongside Homer, Marge, Bart, Lisa and Maggie as you enter through the carnival-like midway. Once you board your vehicle you’re in for one surprise after another as you embark on a wild, over-the-top ride through the park… flying, floating, and more or less crashing your way through Krustyland’s kiddie attractions, stunt shows, and thrill rides. Visually stunning, a total blast, tons of thrills and fun. You must be 40" tall to ride. Take a trip to Universal Studios Hollywood and check it out. Visit Vacation Rick Travel for travel information and accommodations.

Hollywood Rip Ride Rockit-New Roller Coaster

Universal Orlando is putting music into motion with the launch of the new Hollywood Rip, Ride, Rockit roller coaster in the spring of 2009. On this multi-media coaster riders pick the music that fills their ears as they scream high above the streets of Universal Studios Florida theme park, while on-board cameras capture every moment of their pulse-pounding experience. Once the adventure is over, riders can take the video of their experience, edit it and send it to their friends! If you a roller coaster enthusiast and need to experience what the latest technology in roller coaster design has to offer than this is your next stop.

Ride features:

• speed 65 mph
• Orlando's tallest-17 stories
• multi-sensory, high tech experience
• the most personlized, uniquely customizable, and immersive roller coaster
• never before done elements in a roller coaster
• the world's first non-inverting loop

Travel information, vacation packages, accommodations go to Vacation Rick Travel or Charleston Travel Site.

Treehouse Villas at Disney’s Saratoga Springs Resort & Spa-Scheduled to open the summer of 2009!

Treehouse Villas at Disney’s Saratoga Springs Resort & Spa will mark the newest phase of what has become the largest Disney Vacation Club resort. This new phase will revive Walt Disney World "treehouse living," a cherished tradition from 1975-2002. While crews are replacing villas of the '70s with brand-new vacation homes, Imagineers took special care to honor the original octagonal design. As a result of replacing the old villas, 5,178 tons, or 65.22 percent, of materials from demolition were recycled, including concrete and metals.
Each stand-alone Treehouse Villa will come together like a giant 3-D puzzle to ensure both superior quality and environmental sensitivity making this phase unique as respects its contruction process. Great "lengths" have been taken to ensure every vacation home runs smoothly. Consequently, there are 87,858 lineal feet, or 16.6 miles, of wire for fiber optics, copper, telephones and CATV.
The Treehouse Villas at Disney’s Saratoga Springs Resort & Spa will give guests the opportunity to experience "glamping" or "glamorous camping" with stand-alone vacation villas. All of this is just around the corner from Disney Downtown. Highlights are as follows:

• 60 three-bedroom homes, elevated 10 feet off the ground on pedestals and beams.


• Offer modern luxeries such as cathedral ceilings, a full kitchen, granite countertops, flat screen TVs, and even a whirlpool tub.


• Will sleep nine.


• Three bedrooms and two baths.


• Master bedroom-queen. Second bedroom-queen. Third bedroom-bunk. Living room-queen size sleeper sofa and sleeper chair.


• Interesting fact: Disney Vacation Club has doubled its membership since 2004 to include more than 350,000 individual members from each U.S. state and approximately 100 different countries.

Disney's Pleasure Island phased out-New Attractions Planned!

Pleasure Island of Walt Disney World that caters to young and restless clubbers, has been phased out and is being retooled or "reimagined."
The Downtown Disney area will have new shopping areas, eateries and other attractions.
The 8 Trax, The Adventurer's Club, Mannequins Dance Palace, BET Sound-Stage Club, Motion and The Comedy Warehouse are now closed.
New features are being added, including attractions such as a hot-air balloon and a dinosaur-themed area. But mostly, Pleasure Island will be changed into an eating and shopping area.
A Disney spokeswoman said, "It's been a very smooth transition. We made the announcements early enough in June to provide pass-holders a long enough time to make arrangements."
The changes are based on surveys taken where people responded with a desire for more broad-based dining and retail opportunities.
Attractions being tweaked or added include T-Rex: A Prehistoric Family Adventure, scheduled to open late 2008. The dinosaur-themed family eatery will serve lunches and dinners featuring life-sized animated dinosaurs.
Several new restaurants opening early 2009 in Downtown Disney will feature Central and South American cuisine, specialty drinks and live music along a lake waterfront.
All of this is being done to introduce more family oriented entertainment.
Pass-holders to Pleasure Island have can get a refund on their passes, a prorated amount. Go to any guest relations location or vacation planning booth at Disney World or call (407) 827-2281.
Holders of premium annual passes will be able to play a round of golf at Disney's Oak Trail Golf Course for the inconvenience. To make tee times, which are required, premium pass-holders can call (407) 939-4653 or go to http://www.disneyworldgolf.com/.

Disney Update: New Attraction!

New atracttion at Disney's Hollywood Studios-Toy Story Mania. This is an interactive ride you and your family will immensely enjoy. It is inspired by Disney Pixar's Toy Story film. The lines are long so get a FastPass. If you decide to wait in line you will have plenty of time to do some people watching or engage in some light conversation. Close to the end of your wait you will be entertained by a robot Mr. Potato Head who will talk to you and even ask you questions. Finally, your wait is happily coming to an end and it is now time to get ready to board the ride. You will grab a pair of 3D glasses before boarding the 4D attraction ride vehicle that will take you through a series of midway-style games. Highlights are as follows:

• Games are hosted by your favorite characters including Woody, Buzz, Rex, and Hamm. Your spring-action shooter will launch virtual darts at balloons, rings at aliens, eggs at barn-yard targets and more!


• Certain targets trigger fun surprises.


• You compete for high scores.


• Its never the same experience twice and is another great reason to visit during the Year of a Million Dreams!

Click on this link http://toystorymania.com/, you and your kids will have fun with this site!

Disney Update: American Idol coming to Disney's Hollywood Studios in January 2009!

The American Idol Experience will provide guests the opportunity to watch, vote and perform at Disney's Hollywood Studios at Walt Disney World Resort. If you’ve ever dreamed of becoming part of the American Idol phenomenon, then “Welcome to Hollywood!” You can live the dream at The American Idol Experience!

Click on the link below for more information and interactives:

http://disneyworld.disney.go.com/wdw/special/americanIdol/?id=AmericanIdolExperiencePage

Long weekend at Disney!

Long does not mean time dragged on as in "It was a long day." Long refers to more than a two-day weekend. Any long time spent at Disney is fun time. Of course, this is from Vacation Rick's perspective. Disney is kind of a family tradition for us.

We stayed at The French Quarter in Port Orleans with a river view this time around. Everyday walking to and from our room we were greeted by the scent of jasmine that covered the landscape along the walkways. The accommodations were pleasant and comfortable. The pool was simple. The restuarant where we got the quick meals could improve on their service. I will cut them some slack since they deal with alot of people in a typical morning on a holiday weekend. It was just one morning where the servers were somewhat rude and unfriendly, but everyone has an off day once in awhile.

Our first day we went to Animal Kingdom. Highlights: Expedition Everest and Killmanjaro Safaris ride. We didn't stay long, took in what we wanted to and went back to The French Quarter and swam in the pool and enjoyed the sun. Time for dinner, we went to the new restuarant in Contemporary called The Wave. Excellent choice. At night went to Magic Kingdom because it stays open the longest. Highlights: Pirates of the Caribbean, Big Thunder Mountain Railroad, Splash Mountain, Haunted Mansion, Buz Lightyear's Space Ranger Spin, and the Monsters Inc. Laugh floor attractions. Always enjoy the Monster Inc, very funny.

Second day weather started out good, went to Blizzard Beach to spend the bulk of the day in the water and on the slides. Highlight: Summit Plummet. This was the very first attraction we went to. Stood in line for a long time, but was worth plunging 120 ft almost straight down at 55 mph covering a distance of 360 ft. Next was Teamboat Springs. Twelve hundred feet of white water and rushing waterfalls make the twisting, turning journey from the top of the mountain to the bottom. Alot of fun for the family. It was on this ride storms began to move into the area. Then we floated on Cross Country Creek, a river that flows around the whole park. This is a ride you can take your time on and enjoy the water. Watch out for the water falls and sprays, the water is very cold. It was now time for a snack and it started to pour rain with lighning and thunder. The attractions were closed and we left the park, went back to our accommodations for a few and at dinner time went to Animal Kingdom Lodge, ate at Boma, a buffet. Great place to eat. After Boma's we went back to Magic Kingdom for the evening, took in more rides. The highlight was the fireworks at the end of the night. A must see.

On day three we went to Disney's Hollywood Studios formerly MGM. It was very crowded. Twilight Zone was first on our list and then Rockin' Roller Coaster, not my choice, been on it, wanted to go on something else, but had to give in to the majority. The highlight was Toy Story Mania, a new attraction. We waited in line for over an hour because Fastpass ran out for the day. Recommend getting Fastpass for this attraction. It was well worth the wait. Great fun!!! A 4D adventure. A must do for the whole family. In was afternoon and we went to Epcot, always my favorite. Highlight: Turtle Talk with Crush. You must take your young ones to this attraction because it is the best. It is an interactive and alot of fun. For dinner we ate in England at Rose and Crown Dining Room and had fish and chips and my son had lamb for the first time. Enjoyed the meal. Next, went on Test Track and then Spaceship Earth. New features with an interactive. Finally we went on Soarin' located in The Land. You enjoy a panorama of California landscapes that gives you the feeling of flying. To close the day we watched the fireworks and laser light show. End to a great time at Disney.

We had alot of fun. Suggest getting the meal plan , it is well worth the expense. Disney is always a great experience, even greater when you share it with your loved ones. Vacation Rick is a kid at heart.
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