Indiana Beach Amusement Resort.... An Oasis in Corn Country

The Norway Dam that creates Lake Shafer

Indiana Beach Amusement Resort, maybe you have heard of it, maybe you haven't. It has been in  Indiana's corn country and out in the middle of nowhere since the 1920's. It sits next to and on top of Lake Shafer, an artificial lake that was formed with the creation of the Norway Dam on the Tippecanoe River. With the formation of this lake, an oasis rose in an area full of corn farms, drawing many families to the area to snap up this newly created waterfront property for summer vacation homes. Back then one family saw the potential of this newly created water front property and literally built a beach to provide a place for people to enjoy water activities. This was the modest beginnings of Indiana Beach, which since then has grown into "Indiana's largest Resort and Vacation Playground" advertising over 40 rides and attractions, games, fine dining, dancing, an exciting Waterpark, and six roller coasters.

One of the few highlights of the trip to Indiana beach

As mentioned before, Indiana Beach is in the middle of nowhere, making it a boring trip through corn country on two lane roads and through small towns. Occasionally in the small towns there will be interesting sites or signs. One that stood out was near Knox, Indiana  pointed out it was 1080 miles to DisneyWorld. Wish we would have gotten a picture, but we were on limited time and on a mission to see what has made Indiana Beach thrive in the middle of corn country.  Adding to fuel the desire to visit this amusement resort is that this park could easily be on the verge of extinction.

Corn as far as the eye can see

This assumption  is based on the sudden closure at the end of the season of 2011 and protest by former employees claiming the new owners are being lax on safety and maintenance of the rides. I will get to that more later.

After making our voyage through the back country roads and small towns we arrived at Indiana Beach about an hour after opening and had no issues finding parking. As matter of fact, we had our choice of parking spots on this sunny and hot Saturday Morning. The empty parking lot lead us to believe this place was going to be deserted, but as we were stepping out of the truck, buses began to arrive. My  wife quickly got sun-blocked up and we made a bee line for the ticket booths.

Nice picture spot, love the t-shirt

We were warmly greeted  near the ticket booths and directed to specific lines because certain booths could  take cash only due to debit/credit card machines not working. Machines like that go down all the time so no big issue. A major issue we found out later in the day, there are no working ATM machines at Indiana beach, there haven't been for sometime. So if you want to play the carnival games, bring cash.
 Stepping up to the ticket window,  there was a sign posted that The Splash Battle was not working along with the parks signature coaster, the Hurricane Hoosier. So in theory, there were 38 other rides and attractions and 5 other roller coasters we could challenge. We had decided earlier in trip that we were not going to go to the water park because of time constraints and really wanted to explore the rest of the park because there was the real of threat thunderstorms ending the day even earlier than we had hoped. So we purchased our pay one price for rides only wristband which was decent value of $24.95. To include the water park the price would have been $34.95 or if you didn't want to do either the rides or water park, you could purchase a $2.00 boardwalk admission. Wristband on, we head through the south entrance to the park.

The south entrance to the park is across a suspension bridge(the longest in Indiana, or so Indiana Beach claims)  making for a very picturesque view with the Hurricane Hoosier roller coaster that dominates the shoreline. As a matter of fact, this is the view given in  brochures making the park look amazing. The Hurricane Hoosier looked like a fantastic out and back roller coaster over the water making  it unique, but as the sign stated at the ticket booth, it was closed.  After crossing the bridge, it became obvious how old the park was and we got  our first glimpse of how it would prove very difficult for people with mobility problems to enjoy the park. In our opinion, this park needs to work harder on being ADA compliant, it looks like the very minimum has been done just to pass guidelines. To reach the park from the south entrance over the bridge there is very steep slope on to the ground of the park.This would be very difficult for someone in a wheel chair or on crutches.

This picturesque view from the south entracnce

We did quick size up about the lay out of the park heading from the south end to the north end and the layout is a jumbled mess. Space is limited and rides are shoe horned into odd places. It felt and looked like a carnival came to town and this was were the rides came to die. A coat of paint can go a long way. We began to think the former protesting employees were right about there being safety issues in the park. Rides were rusty and signage out of date. It literally looked like a project was started and left unfinished.

A solitary hole from a golf course that has vanished.

To cement this opinion, a few of  the biggest signs were, signage laying all over the place, one hole, presumably the last hole, of a miniature golf course, just left to sit all by itself, and also signs that could have been easily painted over that had old information stating in order to ride the ride proceed "across the street to purchase tickets". There have been no single ticket sales in nearly 2 years.

The Hurricane Hoosier  is built over the water in places.

In all, there were some really decent hidden gems in this park. The Cornball express and Steel Hawg where very nice roller coasters. The Cornball Express has some great pops of airtime in its tight configuration. This would easily be a great wooden coaster if it were maintained better, it was by far one of the roughest roller coaster I have ridden, but not the roughest in the park. The Hurricane Hoosier did indeed open later in the day, but besides it being scenic and unique by being built over the water, it was very rough(the roughest in the park) and boring.  Steel Hawg was short, but enjoyable steel coaster with an fun 111 degree beyond vertical first drop. It definitely is re-rideable but with it's relativity short ride time and lack of excitement after the first drop, it could get boring quickly. A classic and must see attraction here is Dr. Frankenstein's Haunted Castle. This is a very nicely done haunted house that uses black light and the element of surprise to send chills, giggles, and screams through this haunt. The downsize to Dr. Frankenstein's Haunted Castle it is an up charge attraction.

Dr. Frankenstein's Haunted Castle it is worth the up charge to experience

The largest attraction to Indiana Beach is by far it's location on and over Lake Shafer. Now that we have been here, we won't make a special trip out of our way to go back. If for some reason when we are traveling somewhere and this is somehow on the way(it is out in the middle of nowhere), we would stop because it could make a nice break in the day. I must mention, based on what we saw. We would never pay for the water park. It was very small, the slides looked beat up, and lack variety. We easily did this park in a few hours and missed out on two of the six coasters because of thunderstorms. The thunderstorms also brought to our attention that there may be poor policy for weather. We saw lighting and it took them over 15 minutes to spread the word to all of the rides to close.We were in line for a coaster and were the last ride shut down, the other coasters and rides had closed long before the one we were at did. Instead of the employees seeking shelter from the intensifying storm, they huddled together in the middle of the street to talk. Not much longer after our ride was closed, lighting hit so close to the boardwalk, it took out their security radios and computer systems for the stores, it also had people screaming and hitting the deck. I would agree that this park could use some better maintenance on their rides which could increase safety. There is potential here to be a great small town amusement park as is there the equal potential of this park closing it doors forever.

 Here are some more photos for your enjoyment of Indiana beach

It's not every day you can have a party in the water next to
a roller coaster.

Welcome

Steel Hawg's beyond Vertical drop

The kiddie area at the water park.

Could someone please fix this sign,it is supposed to be a historic place to eat

This must be in the doghouse,
 it was separated from the rest of the park

Cabanas for purchase.

Na, I will pass.

The Original since 1975...and good

Bumper Cars

Tilt-a-Whirl

Nice old fashioned dark ride, updated with a shooter game.

Inside the Den of Thieves 

Backside of the water park.

The Sea Dragon

Rides out over the water.

Skeleton Band From the haunted house

There is a restaurant under that coaster.

Flume in between Cornball Express and Hurricane Hoosier

The beach at Indian beach, ith the water park in the background.

Steel Hawg. Nice Drop

Tilt-a-whirl from up above.

more aerial views

aerial view of part of the park.

How many roller coasters can you count?

very nice, unique family antique cars over the water. 

Aerial view of Splash Battle that  has not operated in some time. 

carnival bi-planes for kids.

Kiddie ride cars...paint please?

Kiddie Ride shoe horned under a roller coaster, some steps and behind a cookie vendor.

Kiddie land stuck under the coasters.

Kiddie ride

The train, there really is no line here just some paint  to show you  where you should stand.

It is a pizza place, no its a hot dog place, oh forget it  just leave the sign we will get it next year.

Up charge Ropes course at the south end.

Hope you enjoyed our photo journey, tell us what you think about Indiana Beach.

The Disney Dining Plan...Is it worth it?

The views in this post are based Dining plans that have been offered in the past at Disney World. Disney does reserve the right to change a dining plan option or restaurants included in the dining plan at anytime. 


"Is the Disney Dining Plan worth it?" The simple answer is yes, but there are pros and cons to each dining plan and here I will try to explain all of those that I have encountered.

Back in the day, when I was a wee lad, I would visit Disney World with the Boy Scout Troop that I was apart of. The Leaders of the Troop budgeted money for each scout to have a food allowance each day as part of the trip cost and would distribute it each morning to each scout. This is was my first introduction to a food budget and a very primitive dining plan. That food allowance per day was $10 and over the years would be raised as the cost of food rose. By the last trip I took as a scout, the food allowance per day was $20. I could eat like a king on that food allowance back then, not so much now at Disney or other theme parks for that matter. Yes, one can still plan a food allowance per person, per day which some people enjoy doing. At the same time, opting into a Disney Dining plan can take care of the budgeting and offer you a fairly decent amount of freedom and selections of food while on your vacation at Disney World. You have to eat and drink while on vacation; this is pretty straight forward. Eating and drinking is also something that can break the budget on a vacation. Choosing how you will dine at Disney World depends on several factors that should include your dining style, the amount of food that you are accustomed to eating, and the amount of research you have done on the pricing of food on and off the Disney Resort Property. Disney has taken those factors into consideration and offers a few different dining plans that can be a part of your stay at Disney World.(Disneyland offers a different type of dining plan not discussed here.)

In order to understand the Disney Dining plans, I will break down what Disney considers a food type or restaurant style. This is a general overview and specifics can be provided upon request and are provided to you in advance of booking a package with a dining plan and is explained at check in as well.

Quick Service- This is going to be your no frills basic fast food type style of food with some nice surprises thrown in(waffle sandwiches) but generally include food from soups, sandwiches, salads, pastas, fish, chicken, and meat entrées. Think of this as a walk up to a counter and order just like you would at fast food type restaurant and in most cases, but not all, larger portions of food.

Table Service- This is a type of meal you will have a waiter or waitress serve you at a table. The name is kind of straight forward and at this level the food will be like  standard chain restaurant offerings but much better quality with preparation and cooking generally supervised by a real live breathing chef.Character dining(well worth it) and buffets are in this category

Signature Dining- Signature Dining is going to be the upscale(some have a dress code, most don't) extremely popular restaurants that come with larger price tags. There are some Character Dining options at this level because of popularity and location( think Cinderella's Royal Table).

Snacks - There is plenty of junk food and other food stands spread out serving ice cream, funnel cakes, candy apples, turkey legs,etc.     The brochures for the dining plans will outline what you can use as a snack if you are on a dining plan and those stands will be marked with signage also.

Now comes the more difficult aspect of the Dining plans. How do you choose if you should have a dining plan and which plan is for you? That will be based on how much you want to pay, what you want to eat, and how much you think is too much or too little food for you and your family. This is all in the eye of the beholder and only you know your family and their eating habits. Disney understand one size doesn't fit all and to help you with this, Disney offers a couple of different plans. Note if there is a free dining plan promotion taking place, it may or may not be the best deal out there, this is where a travel agent, like myself, comes in handy.

The plans are: 

Quick-Service Dining Plan
Standard Dining Plan( my recommendation)
Deluxe Dining Plan

Breaking down each plan based on the 2012 options for an adult

Quick Service Dining Plan-
For each NIGHT of your stay you will receive a credit(non-cash value) for:
2 Quick-Service Meals per person on the plan, used per person, at quick service restaurants that honor the dining plan.
On the dining plan a quick service meal would be:

For Breakfast -1 entrée or 1 complete combo meal and 1 single-serving, non-alcoholic beverage
For Lunch and Dinner- 1 entrée or 1 complete combo meal 1 dessert 1 single-serving, non-alcoholic beverage
1 Snack per person on the dining plan, per night of stay.
1 Resort-Refillable Drink Mug Per Person

Use them any way you like to until you use your credits up, if you don't use them, you lose um.

Standard Dining Plan-My recommendation

For each NIGHT of your stay you will receive a credit(non-cash value) for:
1 Quick-Service Meal per person on the plan, used per person, at quick service restaurants that honor the dining plan.
1 Snack per person on the dining plan, per night of stay.
1 Table-Service Meal per person on the dining plan, per night of stay. Which would  include1 entrée,1 dessert (lunch and dinner only),1 single-serving, non-alcoholic beverage or 1 full buffet(character meals are table service meals)

1 Resort-Refillable Drink Mug Per Person

Deluxe Dining Plan- This is a lot of food!
This option offers 3 meals per person, per night of stay for those on the plan
Those meals can be either table service meals or Quick Service meals, your choice!( but they must be on the list of restaurants that honor the dining plan)
2 Snack per person on the dining plan, per night of stay
1 Resort-Refillable Drink Mug Per Person

This is a basic breakdown of the 3 most common Dining plans that Disney has offered over the years, there are a couple of other package options but those include other upcharge items on top of the dining options.


Now that you see what the options are, here is a general list of pros and cons I have come across.

Major PROS for all of the dining plans is that it is paid for already once you have checked in and each person on the plan gets a resort refillable mug,a great souvenir.( The mug was added to the dining plan in 2012 and is a much welcomed addition)

Major Cons for all the Dining Plans are if you don't use it, you lose it! The price can be a con but you are going to pay for food one way or another why not in advance?

Major Pros of the Quick Service Dining Plan are that even for picky eaters, there is a wide selection of options. You can get in and out of locations quickly. All of the Food Courts in the resorts accept the quick service plan because they are quick service locations and you can use snack credits here as well.(Makes for a nice quick breakfast before the parks or nice after park snack) It's a decent amount of food because the portions are bigger than most fast food places. Cheapest of the plans!

Major Cons of the Quick Service Dining Plan  include that it might not be enough food for you. You are on vacation and might want a nicer meal, that will have to come out of your pocket(A Table Service Meal for a family of 4 can easily cost $150).

Major Pros of the Standard Dining Plan  are that some character meals are participants in the dining plan and the memories that come from this type of  meal last a lifetime.To super-size this pro, if you choose a participating character meal, it is paid for and character meals are expensive! Some buffets are a part of the table service meals, offering a wide variety and vast amounts of food! Signature dining meals can be a part of this dining plan, they use 2 table service credits, but again, it is paid for already. Finally,there is a lot of food with this plan, the snacks might even prove to much.

Major Cons of the Standard Dining Plan could include that  you could have dining options for table meals limited if you don't make advanced dinner reservations. You may have to end up paying for another meal if you use 2 credits on a signature dining option.Table service meals will eat up time in the parks, plan at least at the minimum of 1 hour for table service meals. Tips at some table meals are not included read the fine print, don't stiff the waiter or waitress, that is just not cool.


Major Pros of the Deluxe Dining Plan are that this plan has more than enough food for most people and allow for more flexibility in how dining credits options can be distributed between the types of food/restaurant types than the other two plans discussed. You can have a table service meal for every meal if you like and shoot for more signature dining meals if that is what you desire. You are less likely to run out of meal and snack credits. You could technically try to have every meal be a character meal.

Major Cons of the Deluxe Dining plan are that it is expensive. If you don't make advance dining reservations, your options can become limited, especially for the signature dining locations. Most signature dining locations fill up180 days in advance! You are more likely to have meal and snack credits lost if you don't use them. If you only use the meals for quick service meals, you might be better off just using the quick service plan and buying that extra meal a day. This is expensive but you may come out ahead in the long run depending how you use your credits!


As you can see, Disney has some great options for you when it comes to Dining plans. Based on my experience with the dining plans, this is something I will include on my family trips whenever staying at the Disney World Resort. It makes budgeting for a trip much easier and gives me a piece of mind while on vacation that my food is paid for in advance. This lead to less stress and more time to enjoy the park! So, tell us what has your experience been with the dining plans Disney offers?

Port Orleans Riverside

The Colonel's Cotton Mill building

Over the years that I have traveled to Disney World, I have stayed in several resorts ranging from the value resorts to the Deluxe Magic Kingdom Resorts as well as Fort Wilderness. While Fort Wilderness for many years became the default location for our family to stay, in the mid 1990's a new resort became our go to resort and home while at Disney World. We established our home resort under its old name and still cherish it under its current name. The hotel I am referring to is that of Disney's Port Orleans Riverside. From our first visit there, when it was relatively brand new operating under the name Dixie Landings, to our last trip, where I got to introduce my wife and step-daughter to not only Disney World, but to our home with in Disney World, Port Orleans- Riverside in the Alligator Bayou.

Nice towel art greeting on check in

                  One thing that when planning a trip to Disney World I have ingrained in my head is that, you are not there for the room, you are there for the parks. A big reason for this is because, in all honesty, all of Disney Resort Rooms are of far better quality than any chain hotel out there and it is not just because of the intricate themeing given to each resort on the exterior and interior. The original plan for our last trip was to be at Disney for as many days as possible, as inexpensively as possible.  This planning involved pricing a package that was going include a stay at one of the All-Star resorts. Since my wife hadn't been to Disney ever, that she could remember, I had been talking to her about the different level of resorts and the difference between the resort amenities. While doing this, we were drawn to Port Orleans Riverside and while discussing what we wanted out of this vacation, our first anniversary,  the perfect package became available to make stay at Disney Port Orleans Riverside.  So the package was booked.  Now with the forums and such today, after booking the resort, I was cruising the net to see how much had changed at the resort since the last visit my daughter and I had there. I really began to wonder what had happen to this resort, a resort with a fishing pond, nice main pool know as ol' man Island, the scenic  food court, comfy rooms with trundle beds, southern charmed and relaxed atmosphere, and scenic boat ride to Downtown Disney; because the forums were and are full of people trash talking the resort and the employees that work there. Things ranging from their trips had been ruined because a maid didn't make them towel art to beds that were not even fit for 3rd world countries and once someone would say something positive, a triad of trolls would trounce that person. Doubt weighed heavily in my mind that the resort would live up to the expectations my wife was getting from me and my daughter about our home at Disney. The doubt was so much about the shape of this beloved place was in,  that it lead to both my wife and I thinking it may be best to just switch resorts because of all the negatives out there about this place. 

Sassagoula River Port, my daughter has a flip flop in there.

 Hope prevailed though and we gathered that sense of home from the second we pulled into the check in gate with the rental car and proceeded to the main check in building.  The negative thoughts the forums have given, began to melt away as we walked up to the online check in counter. Looking around, the place was just as I had remembered it. The nice scenic "port" out the window, where on our first trip my daughter sent a brand spanking new flip flop to water grave when she was 3 and still remembers and laughs about, was teaming with activity and looked even more lush as the foliage has really taken off.  Walking the trails to our room, had an even better calming effect and the negative vibes we had gotten began to melt away even more.  Then upon opening the door to our room, being greeted with a Mickey towel art on the bed, we felt home. This was enhanced by the peaceful view from our balcony.  We knew we had come to the right place.  My wife even wrote this about why she loved this resort. "What I liked about Port Orleans Riverside... I liked how it felt very secluded, even though we weren't, everything was just a short walk away. I liked how easily we could get lost on the trails, and how if we had, had time we could have spent hours in the pools, or gone fishing. I liked how the bus stop for all the parks was just a short walk away, and at most we waited half an hour for a bus. I also liked how when it was time to go back, there were multiple stops so we could choose to go to the main building or our stop. The food choices were also great, we had quite a few choices to choose from, no matter the time of day. This place is tranquil as if it were from a different more relaxing world."

Magnolia Bend Mansions with Royal Rooms

Alligator bayou cottage buildings

 Here are some of the facts for this resort.  There are two sections one being the Alligator Bayou cottage themed buildings and other being the Magnolia Bend mansions themed buildings. The Magnolia Bend section now house the Royal Rooms and are a must for those that love the royal treatment.

All sections are connected to the main building by scenic shaded walkways and well manicured lawns depending on which sections you are coming from. The bayou has water gardens outside most buildings are very relaxing to watch. The Colonel's Cotton Mill building houses the Resort's Main Lobby  where you'll find a variety shopping, dining and entertainment including an Arcade. At the  center of the resort  there is  the 3.5-acre Ol' Man Island is encircled by a bend of the Sassagoula River. It features an extensive pool complex, a wooded playground and an old-fashioned fishing hole where you can grab a cane pole and go fishing for a while. Here you can also catch a boat to downtown Disney on the Sassagoula River that takes you past Port Orleans French Quarter, golf courses, the tree top villas, and other great Floridian scenery, can be very romantic at night. It really is a relaxing ride and a must do.

Sassagoula River boat ride to Downtown Disney

 The rooms in the alligator bayou will allow you to sleep up to 5 guest, there are two full size beds and a pull out trundle bed.  For those that like to exercise there is a nice recreation trail for jogging or you can even rent bikes for a ride. For a nice couples night out or family bonding experience you can have a nice dinner at Boatwright's Dining Hall a shipyard-themed casual restaurant with  Southern-style cuisine as well as American dishes permeated with the south. Once dinner is done you can hop a horse drawn carriage for a peaceful ride down the scenic Sassagoula River.

Views from the Sassagoula River.

Approaching Downtown Disney from the Sassagoula River.

 

Fulton's Crab House from the boat.

This place is truly our home when we stay at Walt Disney World, I would defiantly recommend any family try it to experience this wonderful resort.

The Weather and your Central Florida Vacation

Disclaimer: The suggestions in this blog posting are just that suggestions.You should always follow the Directions and Warnings given by Weather Professionals and Medical Professionals . 


Like it or not, weather can have profound impacts on your vacation. It can leave you with a blistering sunburn, soaking wet, cold, injured, or even killed. Knowing this, it is always important to watch the weather when you are on vacation. In just about every state there is the cliche saying, "If you don't like the weather in(insert location name here), wait 15 minutes and it will change." Knowing the location you are traveling to can give you a good idea on what to expect, but  Mother Nature loves to throw you a curve ball and it always seems to happen when you are on vacation.

The weather even has effects on Pooh's friends.

 
Here are some things to take into consideration when traveling to the theme parks in Central Florida.

Obey the signs, they are there for a reason.

• Florida is the Lightning Strike Capitol of the United States. While the number fluctuate every year, the numbers are the usually the highest in Florida for people struck by lighting. On our 2011 trip in August, we were across the street at SeaWorld when 8 people were injured at Discovery Cove by a Lightning strike. These people were "lucky" they weren't killed, but less than a month later at Adventure Island in Tampa, an employee evacuating a slide was killed by a lightning strike. Lightning is not something to mess with, so take cover when lightning is in the area.

• Hurricane season in the Atlantic begins June 1st and ends November 30th. While these dates are significant, hurricanes can strike Florida before and after these dates, but if you are planning to travel to Central Florida during these times, make sure you check your Trip Insurance policy and your destination’s policy about their procedures dealing with Hurricanes. Here is Disney's Policy. If you happen to be in the area when a Hurricane strikes, don't be that guy thinking they can get the vacation videos or photos of a lifetime, leave that to the weather professionals and news stations. Follow instructions given to you by officials and most importantly stay safe.

Even though it's pouring, not the best time to hop in the pool.

• Tropical Storms and Tropical Depressions can be just as bad as a Hurricane. Tropical Storms are well-organized storms with tight rotation and low centralized pressure with measured wind speeds of at least 39 mph. Once it has reached this point, it is assigned a name. They can dump a lot of rain in a short span of time, trigger tornadoes and fierce lighting.

 
 

Storm Heading in over Contemporary from Poly's Dock.

• Pay close attention when watches and warnings are issued; The National Weather Service issue these watches and warnings when conditions are favorable for the development of storms that can produce Tornadoes, hail, damaging winds, and frequent lightning strikes. There are several apps for phones and tablets now available that allow you delayed radar information, this is one of the few reasons I agree with having one of these devices with you on your trip. Also remember just because you are familiar with how storms travel in your neck of the woods doesn't mean you can predict the direction of a storm or how quickly it is moving when you are at a theme park.

•  Just because it's cloudy and cool that doesn't mean you won't get sun-burnt. Always lather up with sun screen. I have been on trips where I have gotten a blistering sun tan, VERY painful. Bring along a hat and sunglasses as well. Hand held fans can be helpful and so can the little mist sprayers, but remember when you add water to your skin; it can magnify the sun rays causing severe burns or even wash away your sun screen, so make sure you continue to lather on the sun screen throughout the day.

 

Afternoon shower building and heading towards EPCOT

Storm about to unleash heavy rain and lightning at Riverside.

• In the spring, summer, and fall months plan for at least a thunderstorm every day. Sometimes they happen in late afternoon and are brief, but they can pack a wallop and bring torrential downpours when they strike. On our last trip, one evening we got 4 inches of rain within a half hour. The paths that formed the lines for the Tower of terror were literally small rivers. The storm formed nearly on top of the Disney property and came with little warning. The line for Tower of Terror was 20 minutes, when we got in line the skies were clear, by the time the doors opened on the drop shaft for our ride, the sky was so thick with rain you could not see more than 5 feet out of the tower. Even though we had planned for rain every day by having all our valuables in zip lock bags in our water proof back pack, I ended up losing my phone to the rain because it was in my pocket.  These storms do wonders for clearing out Theme Parks though. Remember Outdoor attractions will close in certain weather conditions. Some attractions will stay open if there is just light rain with no lightning, but remember riding a roller coaster in light rain may feel like you are getting a chemical peel from those rain drops.

See it does snow at Disney World

• It is going to be Hot and Humid. Plan on the heat because it can be very hot no matter what time of the year you travel. While the late fall and winter months can be very frigid and darn cold (it can snow and freeze iguanas out of the trees), it can be very warm also. With the warm comes high humidity. When these two combine it can aggravate health conditions (asthma, common colds, elderly, infants, and other ailments) so take a break in the heat the day. Make sure you are staying hydrated, find air conditioned retreats, and do more activities when it tends to be cooler like early morning or at night.

After the storms, some nice photo ops can happen

• The weather will cause travel problems. Just because it is sunny in Florida doesn't mean it won't affect your flights. Weather may delay or cancel flights into Central Florida. While a storm in New York, Chicago, Denver, or any major hub will cause hic-ups across the country. Foggy conditions in portions of Florida cause roads to be closed by  brush fires or thick fog.  Torrential downpours from storms can leave I-4 at a standstill. There is even what is called Florida Ice on the road that can happen in long dry periods. Roads can become very slippery as if you were driving on ice.

Remember you are on vacation and weather will be part of your vacation. There is plenty of indoor activities and rides that you can partake in during bad weather. Make sure you make the proper preparations for all types of weather, even for the sunny days.  Have fun, don't become a statistic. 

My Top 5 Central Florida Non-Roller Coaster Rides

My Top 5 Central Florida Non-Roller Coaster Rides

Disney and Universal really know how to immerse guest in ride experiences. They really excel in the dark ride genre.Their immersion for their rides comes in story lines, preshows(the detail put into the lines and waiting areas), and also in the technology that make their rides thrilling and appealing to all ages. These are the rides I feel are at the top of the game in all of central Florida and possibly across the United States.

5) Star Tours 2- The first trip was great, humorous and memorable. Now with multiple story lines and 3D, this ride has gone to a whole new level. Disney and George Lucas have done wonders with this re-imagined ride. The story lines are randomly chosen so it make re-riding this ride a must. The preshows areas are amazing and humorous with homages paid the original Star Tours. This is must for any Star Wars fan! Who am I kidding, you don't need to be a Star Wars fan to enjoy this journey.

MIB the ride at Universal Studios Orlando

4) Men In Black- This is a great interactive shooter ride. Universal Studios take the humor from the movies, adds a nice story line for theme park visitors, and sends riders shooting and spinning through town under siege. Everyone emerges as a hero with fun and surprise awaiting you around every corner.   Men in Black will beckon you to re-ride and best your last score or see what you missed and make your opponent's car spin. There as scenes and characters from the movie in the preshow line, including the worms. While some may argue that Toy Story Mania is better, Men in Black has more depth and discovery than Toy Story Mania. Suit up and see if you have what it takes to Save the city.



3) Twilight Zone Tower of Terror. It's a classic dark ride combined with drop ride. It may not have the towering heights that some drop towers have, but it sure to give you plenty of air time and different drop sequences, something those other towers can't do. Themeing of this ride is by far one of Disney's best in all of the parks. There are great visual effects and I just love when the star field opens and the dropping and lifting begins. Be sure to try the penny trick.(Drop me a line and I will let you in it.)

What's up with that guy in the center...oh wait that's me.

Have fun storming the castle!

2) Harry Potter and the Forbidden Journey- It's Harry Potter goodness and an over all great experience. To take it all in you need to ride it several times. I recommend sitting on the far right hand side, that is if you like dragon breath. The one flaw I see in this ride is that  you do have the same story over and over and over again. This is something Disney has been able to out do Universal with when Star Tours 2 opened. That doesn't make this a horrible ride, it is by far one of the most interesting and fun rides out there. Make sure you look closely at the mist from the Dementor, you will see your own face. Oh if your afraid of spiders, you might want to skip this ride. The line is very entertaining as well. Since the line moves at different rates, you may not get to see all of the stories or spells that are cast. For example, once in the room where you meet Harry and gang, it started snowing and other times we got to see some interesting happenings from the paintings that are hung through out the line.

1)The Amazing Adventures of Spider-Man- This ride just got a digital upgrade(which I won't be able to experience until the fall) and is getting rave reviews! This ride was getting rave reviews even before the digital upgrades. Harry Potter may be the new kid in town, but this ride in my opinion offers a more multi-sensory trip. This ride can leave you disoriented,feeling toasty from real flames, and allow you to battle side by side with Spider-Man against some of Marvels most fearsome Villains like Doc Oct and Venom. Universal has a winner on their hand here!




The Amazing Adventures of Spider-Man has a big brother and technology upgrade out there that just opened up out in California. Transformers:The Ride. Ride reviews have been phenomenal about this new version of the Spiderman ride as Transformers. Maybe someday it will show up at Universal Orlando?


What are you favorite Dark Rides? Who do you think has the better rides?

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