A view to remember

This is a view that has sadly left Walt DisneyWorld... The view from the front cab of the Monorail

On the Express line heading past The Grand Floridan

The ride from the front cab of the Monorail  gave a unique perspective from the highway in the sky.

Arriving at the Ticket and Transportation Center

Right now only the Pilots of the Monorail get this view. Maybe someday guest will get this view again as well.

POR FAVOR MANTENGASE ALEJADO DE LAS PUERTAS

Dueling Dragons or Dragon Challenge

This is how the entrance to the Dueling Dragons at Universal Islands of Adventure use to look. 

I challenge you to a duel

Along came a Wizard and here is what his wand did.

Not only did we lose our heads, we don't duel now.

Which do you prefer?

My Top 10 (um 11) Roller Coasters

I love Roller Coasters and love to ride new and old ones. My top10 list is not static but is dynamic allowing for it to be changed after riding something new, either a new build or from a new park that I visit. The coaster doesn't  have to be a monster in height or bust records to be my favorite, though I love those one trick ponies, it's overall ride experience that places a coaster on my list. Coaster rankings are something that people will argue about and people will go to great lengths to promote their favorite coaster. I like to read other top 10 lists, not only to see what other people think, but to start a bucket list of coasters that I would make a trip to ride.

Here are my current  Top Ten Roller Coasters

Cheetah Hunt just under the Sky Ride hop. Great Family coaster

#10 is a tie between  Wild Cat-Cedar Point  and Cheetah Hunt- Busch Gardens Tampa..... Why the tie? The Wild Cat is a great, small, classic coaster the whole family can ride over and over. It has nice twist and turns, couple of nice airtime dips, there aren't too many out there like this anymore.This is a coaster my daughter and I make sure we ride every trip to Cedar Point.  Cheetah hunt is very scenic with quick changes of directions and bursts of speed. It makes you feel like you are a Cheetah on the hunt. I would consider this a family coaster compared to it's older sibling  that will come up later in the list. My 6 year old niece and 8 year old love this coaster. Look forward to riding this over and over again as a family.

Hold on as you drop into the underworld and world's longest tunnel on a roller coaster

#9 Hades- Mt.Olympus......The uniqueness of being submerged underground for long periods of time in the pitch black twisting, turning at 90 degree angles, and the two drops into the underworld, places this on my list. Hades is getting really rough even for a wooden coaster, the Wisconsin winters are not easy on this monster. Hades needs some love, but is worth a ride.

Gone from the Shores of Geauga lake but still thrilling people at Kings Dominion

#8 Batman: Knight Flight- Geauga  Lake/ Six Flags World of Adventure  now know as Dominator- Kings Dominion...... At Geauga Lake/ Six Flags World of Adventure, this had a wonderful location on the shores of Geauga lake. It was a great addition to the park offering a smooth ride, wonderful feet choppers being floorless, and having one MASSIVE loop.  I have not been fortunate enough to ride it in its new location, regardless if its near a lake or land locked, its gonna be a great ride.



#7 Manta_ Seaworld Orlando...... Theming , flying, g forces, and more theming make this the best flyer coaster I have ever been on. The beautiful Que helps to make the wait for this ride go. It is as fun to watch as it is to ride.

Beautifully themed flyer, very photogenic as I prove here with my camera skills

#6 Maverick- Cedar Point This coaster is the older sibling to Cheetah Hunt.  Many coaster enthusiasts jeered this coaster when it was announced. I was skeptical as well, but from my first ride, Maverick will probably always have a place on my top 10 list. This coaster doesn't need heights to give thrills. The airtime hills, quick inversions, beyond 90 degree drop, terrain hugging layout, and tunnel launch make this a must ride coaster.

I am not a professional photographer, but this shot of Maverick's first drop against  the twilight sky is almost as amazing as the ride.

The Top 5

Let's hang for a minute with  Sheikra  before we drop.

#5 Sheikra - Busch Gardens Tampa ......The first and only dive coaster I have been on. Nice concept, great build up. well worth the wait for any coaster fan.

This is only the First 3 hills..........

#4 Shivering Timbers- Michigan Adventure..... It's a rough tough out and back wooden roller coaster that has amazing airtime and doesn't let up until you hit the brake run, a shocking find at such a small park. This coaster dominates the skyline at Michigan Adventure and is very photogenic. Coaster fans would flock to Timberfest to get rare night time rides on this bad boy.... the only lights on the coaster come from the parking lot.....

Montu Can go under Ground, Raptor can only rule the sky

#3 Montu-Busch Gardens Tampa..... While  Raptor rules the sky at Cedar Point, this coaster beats the raptor hands down with landscaping elements, ride experience, and smoothness. By far the best inverted coaster I have been on.

Magnum diving into the sunset

#2 Magnum Xl-200- Cedar Point... Many have been built taller and longer, but the views and airtime on this first coaster to ever top 200 feet still can't be beat in my book.

















#1 The Beast at Kings Island....No matter what time of the day it's going to be hard to top this coaster. With a long ride time out into the woods and in a valley this coaster lives up to its name.  Not much of this coaster is visible from the park, the low lighting conditions, multiple tunnels and lifts make this a very memorable ride. I love night rides as well day rides on this classic. Love the howl through the helix!

The Beast will swallow you whole Day or Night!

I would enjoy hearing your list of top ten coasters leave a comment about them in the comment box below.

My Bucket List of Coasters I want to ride.

The coasters at Dollywood.
The Coasters at Busch Gardens Williamsburg.

Six Flags Magic Mountains' Coasters
HolidayWorld's Coaster Collection
Indiana Beach's Coaster Collection
Dorney Park's Coaster
Hershey Park's Collection
Kings Dominion's Collection
Carowinds Collection
Knott's Berry Farm Collection
X-Flight at Six Flags Great America
Dare Devil Dive at Six Flags over Georgia.
And the one that will be the hardest to achieve.... Hard Rock Park/Freestyle Music Park if it ever reopens.

Simplicity

 Without a doubt  you have seen this view if you have ever entered the Magic Kingdom.

Have you ever wondered why it called the Magic Kingdom? My explanation.....

Doh! I went right instead of left.

Next time turnaround and and take in the reaction of everyone everyone else when they get this view and it will help you understand the magic in this kingdom :)

Universal Orlando Partner Hotel: Holiday Inn &Suites Maingate

Holiday Inn & Suites Main Gate

Value, location, and quality are some of  the things I look for when  looking at a room for a vacation. Disney does a great job of offering their  guest a wide range of rooms to meet their guest needs. Disney resorts,even the value resorts, are by far some of the best quality rooms across the country. Adding in the location and the perks Disney resorts offer, you really can't go wrong staying on site. Universal Orlando on the other hand, has 3 elegantly themed hotels, great location, great perks, but the price can really stretch your budget. This is where Universal Partner Hotels  bridge the gap  offering a wider variety of room options and pricing. The Universal Partner hotels give Guest  a great value,quality room, along with some perks, and some offer really good locations next to Universal Orlando.

We wanted to make the most of our August 2011 trip to Florida. We wanted to make it a mega Central Florida trip allowing us enough time to do everything thing we wanted to do along with visiting places we hadn't been before. To do that, we opted to split the trip into two parts, Disney and then Everything else. In the decision to do this, we looked into staying at the Universal On-site hotels and decided that if we wanted to do as much as we could around the Central Florida area, we would have to opted for a Universal Partner Hotel. After much consideration, the choice was made to stay the Holiday Inn & Suites Main Gate Kirkman Road for our everything else part of the trip. Our Disney Portion would be spent at Disney's Port Orleans- Riverside, our family favorite.

Part of the Front Room of our Suite.  Nice sofa that folds out into a bed.

When it comes to the Holiday Inn & Suites Maingate, you really can't beat the location and the ease of access by car or by walking to the Universal Orlando Resort for an off-site hotel. Just remember parking is not free at Universal and the walk from this hotel  is a small trek. In order to get to either the Island of Adventure or Universal Studios you are going to have a journey through City walk,you can find out more about that here. 

The value of this hotel is marvelous. The beds are comfy. Check in and check out were a breeze and the hotel staff was friendly.We were even pleasantly surprised to get a free upgrade from a regular room to a Suite. The hotel has easy access to I-4, I Drive, and literally is right across the street from the Universal Orlando Parking Garages.The ease of getting to all the attractions in the Orlando attractions areas from this hotel is great. There is a TGIF Fridays attached to the hotel, a small gift shop, and a small pool. It is an older hotel, but was under renovation during our stay. We stayed in the portion of the hotel that had not been renovated, and while the hallways showed some age, the room was in very decent shape minus a few scoff marks on the wall.

A Glimpse at the Bedroom of our suite.

The room we had offered 2 queen size beds in one room, a couch that folded out into a bed in another room, 2 flat screen TVs, a full sized refrigerator, and a small kitchenette area with a sink and coffee maker. The view from our room was a sweeping view of parking lot that in a previous visit, 10 years earlier, used to contain a bungee swing.Now no signs of that exist.(Honestly, we were not here for the view)
 If you looking for an amazingly themed pool, spectacular views, or overly themed rooms; this hotel is not for you.You can pay for that across the street and  that is something I would do if I am going to have a short stay(one or two nights) and are just going to do special events that Universal Orlando has to offer(examples:Halloween Horror Nights, Summer Concert Series, Mardi Gras music series, etc.)or just feel the need to splurge. This hotel is a great value for families, extend or short stays, and the value increases substantially when you book a Universal Orlando package.Make sure you contact a a Universal Parks & Resort Specialist, like myself, to see what kind of package you can get for your stay here or at any Universal Partner Hotel or Universal On-Site hotel.

Based on what we wanted to do, the package we booked included the Orlando Flexticket Plus and Early Entry to the Island of Adventure for the Wizarding World of Harry Potter. The Orlando Flexticket Plus ticket option gives you unlimited admission and park hopping abilities for Universal Studios, Island of Adventure, Seaworld, Aquatica, Wet N Wild,Citywalk, and Busch Gardens Tampa for 14 days from the first use. An added bonus is that once you pay for parking for the day, if you save your reciept you don't have to pay for parking for the rest of the day, just show your flexticket and parking reciept to get readdmission to wherever you are headed after that first park of the day.(This was the terms of the ticket in August of 2011, parks included and parking terms can be changed at anytime.)


I would just offer 3 warnings about this hotel.
 #1Be aware there is a hard sell time share here. You will be informed that you have a welcome package with coupons and a map of area attractions awaiting for you in the front lobby. When you pick it up, the person tries to get you to commit to going to a time share presentation for a resort that is "close" to the Disney properties. Once again this happened in August of 2011, this may or may not still be there, this had not been there in previous visits.
#2 If your planing on using the shuttle to Universal, don't, it really is not convient and the times for pick up and drop off , from lack of a better word, SUCK. If you have a package that allows you early entry to the parks, you are either going to have to walk, drive, our get a cab.This not unique to this hotel, it a problem for all off site hotels since the transportation is not provided by Universal and is from an outside company.
#3 Be prepared to look for a parking spot. You are in competetion for spots with a rental truck company,  TGIF Fridays, and other hotel guest. It was frustrating at nights to come back and have to wait for a TGIF guest to leave so we could have a spot since the rental trucks took up a chunk of the parking lot.There was talks at the time we were there, that the rental Truck company was going to be told at the end of their contract, they would need find someplace else for their trucks because that portion of the lot is prime expansion property for the hotel.

Room Tip: Ask for a room that is not facing kirkman Road

First stay June 2000. Last stay August 2011