Orlando Travel Tips

Mardi Gras, a globally celebrated carnival, finds its vibrant home at SeaWorld Orlando in February 2024. 

The aquatic theme park proudly presents its extraordinary New Orlean’s inspired festivities—a fusion of culture and color that promises an unforgettable experience. 

Let the good times roll in a celebration that marries the depths of the ocean with the exuberance of a traditional Mardi Gras party. 

The annual Mardi Gras celebration at Universal Orlando Resort starts this month, February 3. This event strives to make it feel like an all-park party, from the decorations, street performers, delicious foods, to the full-on parade float complete with tons of beads.  

February is American Heart Month, and we’re all about finding different ways to ensure our hearts remain at their healthiest.

Get ready to rejoice once more at Rock the Universe, an annual Christian-rock concert held at Universal Studios Florida. 

Fans of this event are gearing up for an unforgettable weekend of worship at Florida’s largest Christian music festival taking place January 26 and 27, 2024.  

Whether you glide on ice with strength and grace or waddle awkwardly about like a penguin, there is no doubt about it – ice skating is fun. If you were worried you might miss out on ice skating while vacationing in sunny Florida, fear not. It may be warm outside but there are plenty of indoor and outdoor opportunities for ice skating in Orlando. Check out some of our favorite spots to enjoy this classic winter pastime all year long.

At Universal Orlando Resort, Christmas festivities are done a bit differently. 

It’s truly incomparable to anything else you can experience in the area –. Whether you’re hanging out with the Grinch in the afternoon, or reveling in a first-hand Hogwarts Holiday after sundown, unconventional Christmas is in this year– and it’s going to be epic.

November is all about good music and laughs at Hard Rock Live Orlando. With a variety of shows planned throughout each week, there’s definitely something for everyone.

Every year since 1924, people have tuned in to their TVs from all over the nation, joining millions of others in the streets of Manhattan to watch the seasonal spectacle that is The Macy’s Day Parade. 

While watching the parade from the comfort of your couch on Thanksgiving Day may be tradition, there’s another, more accessible way to see it thanks to Universal Orlando Resort. 

Trade in the freezing temperatures and unbearable crowds for palm trees and thrill rides at Universal Studios Florida, where Universal’s Holiday Parade featuring Macy’s brings an excerpt of the famous New York City show straight to Production Central.  

The spooky season is almost here — do you have your Halloween costume yet?

Here are four tips for putting together an unforgettable Halloween costume during your Orlando vacation.

Halloween Horror Nights (HHN) at Universal Orlando is one of the world’s best Halloween events for those looking for thrills and frights. This year, the annual event runs on select nights from Friday, September 1, to Tuesday, October 31, 2023.

Halloween is one of those holidays that is best celebrated as a family, but when you’ve got little ones who are still figuring out their feelings about the world, it can be tough. 

Events like Universal Orlando’s Halloween Horror Nights may be too gruesome and gory for younger kids to handle, and even ordinary haunted houses can seem too scary.

Universal Orlando’s fourth project Universal Epic Universe is underway and theme park enthusiasts are starting to get excited. 

Orlando knows how to celebrate Halloween in many freakishly different ways ranging from horrifying haunts to family-friendly festivals.  

But what about an event that is both frightening and family-friendly? Harry P. Leu Gardens responded with an inventive experience appropriate for both children and adults.

If you’re headed to Walt Disney World this summer or fall, bring your appetite. From July 27 to November 18, 2023, the International Food & Wine Festival will bring worldly cuisine, live music, and family-friendly activities to EPCOT.  

Sushi has been around for a long time — likely since the fourth century.  

But it wasn’t until the 1960s that sushi took off in California, and it would take another two decades for it to catch on across the United States. To give the dish broader appeal, the first generation of American sushi chefs made some changes. Gradually, chefs across the Western Hemisphere followed suit.  

Here are four ways in which Western sushi differs from traditional Japanese sushi.   

When it comes to fireworks celebrations, Central Florida shines bright. Almost every night the skies light up with multiple firework displays at world-famous theme parks. On July 4th you can expect even more dazzling displays as Orlando celebrates America’s independence. Check out our list of the many firework shows in Orlando for Independence Day.

Earlier this year, EPCOT debuted new names for its parking lots. While it’s a small change, it has caused a lot of excitement. Here’s what you need to know about EPCOT’s parking lot rebrand before you hit the road for Walt Disney World Resort. 

No Fourth of July celebration is truly complete without fireworks. Luckily, there are fireworks throughout the Kissimmee, Florida area on Independence Day 2023. Many of these celebrations are free.

Posted On: April 22, 2022

They’re family. Sometimes you get along with them better than your blood relatives and other human beings. They get you and they complete you. I’m talking about our beloved pets.

Summer is here, the season of longer days, cookouts, and blockbuster movies. But it’s also the season of sweltering heat, especially in Orlando. Luckily, the city’s world-famous theme parks are home to many refreshing and reinvigorating water rides. We’ve ranked them by how wet you’ll get, from a small splash to a super soaking.

When visiting Orlando, one can spot dozens of souvenir shops all along International Drive, within theme parks, and inside hotels. Walls lined with plushy Mickey Mouse dolls, racks of Spider-Man tees, buckets of decorative pens for autograph books, magnets…

Anyone even remotely familiar with American barbecue as a cuisine knows that there are several distinct regional styles. The competition between these regions for the best barbecue has been and always will be intense. Traditionally, barbecue hotspots have been places like Texas, St. Louis, Kentucky, Alabama, and the Carolinas. As the city of Orlando grows in size, so too does its presence in the world of barbecue, with several new entries to the local scene over the past few years.

The fast food innovators at Taco Bell have come up with another exciting creation, and it’s come to Orlando as of late September. This time, it’s not a unique menu item like the Crunchwrap or Doritos® Locos Tacos, but a new restaurant concept: Taco Bell Cantina.

It’s no secret that family vacations can get expensive. Once your flights to Orlando, hotel, and theme park tickets are all booked, there’s still the matter of meals. The average family of four spends about $132 on food per day during vacation per Credit Donkey’s 2022 review of vacation costs — and that’s not counting snacks for the kids or any unique cocktails you may want to try.

Universal Studios™ Orlando is nearly three decades old, and in that time, many things have changed. Only two attractions from the park’s opening remain, which are E.T. Adventure and  The Lost Rides of Universal StudiosUniversal’s Horror Make Up Show.

This October, country music stars will come together in Orlando at the inaugural Country Kicks Cancer benefit concert. The show raises money and awareness about cancer so we can one day give it the boot.

The “Bad Bunny: World’s Hottest Tour” will kick off in Orlando on Friday, August 5, 2022, at Camping World Stadium.

Hard Rock Live Orlando, located in Universal CityWalk, has hosted some of the biggest names in entertainment. From homegrown musical talent to some of the world’s top drag performers, the venue’s July 2022 lineup has something for everyone.

In its debut year 2020 (during the pandemic, nonetheless), the event brought in 92,000 guests and quickly captured the number one spot on USA Today’s list of the “Best Things to Do in December in Orlando.”

Hard Rock Live OrlandoHousehold name and “C­­ash Cab” star Ben Bailey is coming to the Hard Rock Live Orlando on Saturday, March 27, 2021, at 7:30 p.m. Buckle up for an evening that will have you laughing so hard that you’ll want to pump the brakes just to catch your breath.

Posted On: June 15, 2020

One of the most successful comedic entertainers in the world — whose films have, to date, collectively grossed over one billion dollars in box office sales worldwide — is returning to his roots by stepping back into stand-up comedy. On Saturday, July 25, at 8 p.m., actor and comedian Chris Tucker is scheduled to take the stage at Hard Rock Live Orlando with a set that is sure to knock the laughs out of everyone.

If your kids (and you) love LEGOs, there’s only one place to be this Independence Day: Red, White & Boom at LEGOLAND Florida Resort. The event features LEGOLAND’s biggest fireworks display of the year, plus many other hands on activities. Red, White & Boom is family-friendly celebration of Americana. Even the youngest family members will be able to join in the celebration as well as ride many of rides in LEGOLAND.

A Central Florida favorite since the early 2000s, The Orlando Watersports Complex (OWC) is a watersports park designed for wakeboarding, wake skating, knee boarding, and waterskiing – with a twist. Guests can be towed by suspended cables or by top-of-the-line Correct Craft boats. Now nearly 20 years old, OWC is well-established as a venue for riders of all levels. Whether you’re wanting to try watersports for the first time or you’re a seasoned professional, OWC has you covered.