spine=.819” 9th Edition Walt Disney World ® & Orlando $18.99 US / $20.99 CN / £12.99 UK ISBN 978-0-470-38224-0 Mingle with The Mouse at the Magic Kingdom. Swim with the dolphins at Discovery Cove. Search for the Yeti in Animal Kingdom. Travel the world at Epcot. Whether you’re looking for the wildest rides, the ritziest resorts, the most fun nightlife, the top water adventures, or the best shows, this friendly guide is the way to go! Get ready for a magical vacation Travel travel smart @ www.dummies.com • Down-to-earth trip-planning advice • What you shouldn’t miss — and what you can skip • The best hotels and restaurants for every budget • Lots of detailed maps With tips and recommendations from the experts at Open the book and find: Walt Disney World ® & Orlando 9th Edition Laura Lea Miller 1 1 27 27 98 98 98 19 41 19 17 17 275 95 95 4 4 75 75 75 75 Daytona Daytona Beach Beach Orlando Orlando Tampa Tampa St. Petersburg St. Petersburg Sarasota Sarasota Fort Myers Fort Myers Fort Myers Fort Myers Beach Beach Cape Coral Cape Coral St. Cloud St. Cloud DeLand DeLand Kissimmee Kissimmee Treasure Treasure Island Island Cape Cape Canaveral Canaveral Clearwater Clearwater Ocala Ocala Edgewater Edgewater Titusville Titusville Bradenton Bradenton Brooksville Brooksville Wauchula Wauchula Bartow Bartow Arcadia Arcadia Lakeland Lakeland Dade City Dade City Cross Cross Creek Creek Longboat Longboat Key Key Land O’ Land O’ Lakes Lakes Cocoa Cocoa Beach Beach Lake Lake Okeechobee Okeechobee Ponce de Ponce de Leon Inlet Leon Inlet Lake Lake Istokpoga Istokpoga Lake Lake Placid Placid Lake Lake Apopka Apopka Lake Lake Kissimmee Kissimmee Lake Lake Tohopekaliga Tohopekaliga Lake Lake George George A T L A N T I C A T L A N T I C O C E A N O C E A N K i s s i m m e e R i v e r P e a ce R iv e r T a m p a B a y Gulf Intracoastal Gulf Intracoastal Waterway Waterway W it hl a co o c h ee R iv er WALT WALT DISNEY DISNEY WORLD WORLD John F. John F. Kennedy Kennedy Space Space Center Center Cypress Cypress Gardens Gardens Universal Universal Orlando Orlando Busch Busch Gardens Gardens Canaveral Canaveral National National Seashore Seashore Chassahowitzka Chassahowitzka National National Wildlife Refuge Wildlife Refuge Withlacoochee Withlacoochee State Forest State Forest Lake Lake Woodruff Woodruff N.W.R. N.W.R. St. Johns St. Johns N.W.R. N.W.R. AVON PARK AVON PARK AIR FORCE AIR FORCE RANGE RANGE OCALA OCALA NATIONAL NATIONAL FOREST FOREST Homosassa Homosassa Islands Islands Fl or i da’s T urn p ik e Fl or id a’s T u rn p i k e Daytona Beach Orlando Tampa St. Petersburg Sarasota Fort Myers Fort Myers Beach Cape Coral St. Cloud DeLand Kissimmee Treasure Island Cape Canaveral Clearwater Ocala Edgewater Titusville Bradenton Brooksville Wauchula Bartow Arcadia Lakeland Dade City Cross Creek Longboat Key Land O’ Lakes Cocoa Beach Lake Okeechobee Ponce de Leon Inlet Lake Istokpoga Lake Placid Lake Apopka Lake Kissimmee Lake Tohopekaliga Lake George A T L A N T I C O C E A N K i s s i m m e e R i v e r P e a ce R iv e r T a m p a B a y Gulf Intracoastal Waterway W it hl a co o c h ee R iv er WALT DISNEY WORLD John F. Kennedy Space Center Cypress Gardens Universal Orlando Busch Gardens Canaveral National Seashore Chassahowitzka National Wildlife Refuge Withlacoochee State Forest Lake Woodruff N.W.R. St. Johns N.W.R. AVON PARK AIR FORCE RANGE OCALA NATIONAL FOREST Homosassa Islands Fl or i da’s T urn p ik e Fl or id a’s T u rn p i k e 20 km 0 0 20 mi S N W E Central Florida 15 50 46 46 46 50 50 4 4 4 4 4 441 441 441 192 192 192 417 528 408 429 429 426 436 436 434 434 408 528 417 417 424 27 17 92 17 92 17 92 17 92 438 438 435 482 439 439 441 50 527 528A 551 527A 527 15 530 535 KISSIMMEE Lake Butler Lake Tibet Lake Conway St. Cloud Davenport Intercession City CELEBRATION Ocoee Windermere Winter Garden Apopka Winter Springs Maitland Casselberry Altamonte Springs Winter Park Conway Mount Plymouth Wekiwa Springs State Park Florida’s Tu rn pike Orange Blossom Trail Wo rl d D r . O R L A N D O Orlando International Airport Epcot Magic Kingdom Downtown Disney Universal Orlando Citrus Bowl S emoran B l v d. C e n t r a l Flo rida G r e e n e w ay Orlando Sanford Orlando Sanford Int’l Airport Int’l Airport Lake Mary Blvd. Lake Mary Blvd. WALT DISNEY WALT DISNEY WORLD WORLD LAKE LAKE BUENA BUENA VISTA VISTA Intern a t i o n a l Dr. INTERNATIONAL DRIVE AREA Irlo Bronson M e m . Hwy. East-W e s t Expwy. Orange Blos s o m Trail Gatorland Orlando Museum of Art Bea c h li ne Expw y. Lake Jessup Sanford Lake Lake Apopka Apopka Lake Monroe Lake Monroe East Lake East Lake Tohopekaliga Tohopekaliga Lake Lake Tohopekaliga Tohopekaliga SeaWorld, Discovery Cove & Aquatica Disney’s Hollywood Studios Disney’s Animal Kingdom E ast-West E xpwy . Weste r n Bel tw a y Ce n t r al F lorid a G r e e n e wa y Lake Dora Lake Dora Florida’s Tu r n p ik e Florida’s Tu rn pike Orange Blos s o m Trail Orange Blossom Trail Intern a t i o n a l Dr. Wo rl d D r . East-W e s t Expwy. S emoran B l v d. C e n t r a l Flo rida G r e e n e w ay Ce n t r al F lorid a G r e e n e wa y Lake Mary Blvd. E ast-West E xpwy . Irlo Bronson M e m . Hwy. Bea c h li ne Expw y. Weste r n Bel tw a y Florida’s Tu r n p ik e Wekiwa Springs State Park O R L A N D O WALT DISNEY WORLD Orlando International Airport Orlando Sanford Int’l Airport LAKE BUENA VISTA INTERNATIONAL DRIVE AREA St. Cloud KISSIMMEE Davenport Intercession City CELEBRATION Ocoee Windermere Winter Garden Apopka Winter Springs Sanford Maitland Casselberry Altamonte Springs Winter Park Conway Mount Plymouth Epcot Disney’s Hollywood Studios Magic Kingdom Disney’s Animal Kingdom Downtown Disney Gatorland SeaWorld, Discovery Cove & Aquatica Universal Orlando Citrus Bowl Orlando Museum of Art Lake Apopka Lake Monroe Lake Dora Lake Jessup East Lake Tohopekaliga Lake Butler Lake Tibet Lake Conway Lake Tohopekaliga 5 mi 0 0 5 km N S E W WALT DISNEY WORLD & ORLANDO AREA spine=.819” ISBN 978-0-470-38224-0 Plan your trip with For Dummies Covering the most popular destinations in North America and Europe, For Dummies travel guides are the ultimate user-friendly trip planners. Available wherever books are sold or go to www.dummies.com And book it with our online partner, Frommers.com � Book airfare,hotels and packages � Find the hottest deals � Get breaking travel news � Enter to win vacations � Share trip photos and stories � And much more Frommers.com,rated the #1 Travel Web Site by PC Magazine 01_382240-ffirs.qxp 12/3/08 10:58 AM Page i Available wherever books are sold. Go to www.dummies.com or call 1-877-762-2974 to order direct. The fun and easy way™ to travel! U.S.A. Also available: Alaska For Dummies Arizona For Dummies Boston For Dummies California For Dummies Chicago For Dummies Colorado & the Rockies For Dummies Florida For Dummies Los Angeles & Disneyland For Dummies Maui For Dummies National Parks of the American West For Dummies New Orleans For Dummies New York City For Dummies San Francisco For Dummies Seattle & the Olympic Peninsula For Dummies Washington,D.C.For Dummies RV Vacations For Dummies Walt Disney World & Orlando For Dummies EUROPE Also available: England For Dummies Europe For Dummies Germany For Dummies Ireland For Dummies London For Dummies Paris For Dummies Scotland For Dummies Spain For Dummies OTHER DESTINATIONS Also available: Bahamas For Dummies Cancun & the Yucatan For Dummies Costa Rica For Dummies Mexico’s Beach Resorts For Dummies Montreal & Quebec City For Dummies Vancouver & Victoria For Dummies ™ 01_382240-ffirs.qxp 12/3/08 10:58 AM Page ii by Laura Lea Miller Walt Disney World ® & Orlando FOR DUMmIES ‰ 9TH EDITION 01_382240-ffirs.qxp 12/3/08 10:58 AM Page iii Walt Disney World® & Orlando For Dummies®, 9th Edition Published by Wiley Publishing, Inc. 111 River St. Hoboken, NJ 07030-5774 www.wiley.com Copyright © 2009 by Wiley Publishing, Inc., Indianapolis, Indiana Published simultaneously in Canada No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, scanning, or otherwise, except as permit- ted under Sections 107 or 108 of the 1976 United States Copyright Act, without either the prior written permission of the Publisher, or authorization through payment of the appropriate per-copy fee to the Copyright Clearance Center, 222 Rosewood Drive, Danvers, MA 01923, 978-750-8400, fax 978-646-8600. Requests to the Publisher for permission should be addressed to the Permissions Department, John Wiley & Sons, Inc., 111 River Street, Hoboken, NJ 07030, 201-748-6011, fax 201-748-6008, or online at http:// www.wiley.com/go/permissions. Trademarks: Wiley, the Wiley Publishing logo, For Dummies, the Dummies Man logo, A Reference for the Rest of Us!, The Dummies Way, Dummies Daily, The Fun and Easy Way, Dummies.com and related trade dress are trademarks or registered trademarks of John Wiley & Sons, Inc., and/or its affiliates in the United States and other countries, and may not be used without written permission. Frommer’s is a trade- mark or registered trademark of Arthur Frommer. Used under license. All other trademarks are the prop- erty of their respective owners. Wiley Publishing, Inc., is not associated with any product or vendor mentioned in this book. LIMIT OF LIABILITY/DISCLAIMER OF WARRANTY: THE PUBLISHER AND THE AUTHOR MAKE NO REPRESENTATIONS OR WARRANTIES WITH RESPECT TO THE ACCURACY OR COMPLETENESS OF THE CONTENTS OF THIS WORK AND SPECIFICALLY DISCLAIM ALL WARRANTIES, INCLUDING WITH- OUT LIMITATION WARRANTIES OF FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE. NO WARRANTY MAY BE CREATED OR EXTENDED BY SALES OR PROMOTIONAL MATERIALS. THE ADVICE AND STRATEGIES CONTAINED HEREIN MAY NOT BE SUITABLE FOR EVERY SITUATION. THIS WORK IS SOLD WITH THE UNDERSTANDING THAT THE PUBLISHER IS NOT ENGAGED IN RENDERING LEGAL, ACCOUNTING, OR OTHER PROFESSIONAL SERVICES. IF PROFESSIONAL ASSISTANCE IS REQUIRED, THE SERVICES OF A COMPETENT PROFESSIONAL PERSON SHOULD BE SOUGHT. NEITHER THE PUBLISHER NOR THE AUTHOR SHALL BE LIABLE FOR DAMAGES ARISING HEREFROM. THE FACT THAT AN ORGA- NIZATION OR WEBSITE IS REFERRED TO IN THIS WORK AS A CITATION AND/OR A POTENTIAL SOURCE OF FURTHER INFORMATION DOES NOT MEAN THAT THE AUTHOR OR THE PUBLISHER ENDORSES THE INFORMATION THE ORGANIZATION OR WEB SITE MAY PROVIDE OR RECOMMEN- DATIONS IT MAY MAKE. FURTHER, READERS SHOULD BE AWARE THAT INTERNET WEB SITES LISTED IN THIS WORK MAY HAVE CHANGED OR DISAPPEARED BETWEEN WHEN THIS WORK WAS WRITTEN AND WHEN IT IS READ. PLEASE BE ADVISED THAT TRAVEL INFORMATION IS SUBJECT TO CHANGE AT ANY TIME AND THIS IS ESPECIALLY TRUE OF PRICES. WE THEREFORE SUGGEST THAT READERS WRITE OR CALL AHEAD FOR CONFIRMATION WHEN MAKING TRAVEL PLANS. THE AUTHOR AND THE PUBLISHER CANNOT BE HELD RESPONSIBLE FOR THE EXPERIENCES OF READERS WHILE TRAVELING. For general information on our other products and services, please contact our Customer Care Department within the U.S. at 800-762-2974, outside the U.S. at 317-572-3993, or fax 317-572-4002. For technical support, please visit www.wiley.com/techsupport. Wiley also publishes its books in a variety of electronic formats. Some content that appears in print may not be available in electronic books. ISBN: 978-0-470-38224-0 Manufactured in the United States of America 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 01_382240-ffirs.qxp 12/3/08 10:58 AM Page iv About the Author Laura Lea Miller is a freelance writer based in Orchard Park, New York, though she’s spent countless hours scouring Central Florida’s theme parks, resorts, and restaurants over the years — both with and without her five kids. A family-travel expert who religiously makes an annual pilgrimage (or two or three or more) to the Land the Mouse Built, and who summers in nearby St. Augustine, she’s the author of Frommer’s Walt Disney World & Orlando 2009 and Frommer’s Walt Disney World & Orlando with Kids, as well as a con- tributor to Frommer’s Florida. She has even created a comprehen- sive Web site dedicated to family travel throughout Central Florida. Author’s Acknowledgments Thanks to Amy Voss at the Orlando/Orange County Convention & Visitors Bureau, Gary Buchanan at Walt Disney World, Rhonda Murphy at Universal Orlando, and Jacquelyn Wilson at SeaWorld. Thanks also to all those who took the time out of their schedules to help me with this endeavor. A special thanks goes out to my family, most especially my five children — Ryan, Austin, Nicolas, Hailey, and Davis — for all of their assistance in helping to research and write this book. Thanks as well to my agent, Julie Hill, whose constant encourage- ment, support, and enthusiasm keep me going. And, of course, a very special thanks to my editor, Naomi Kraus, whose continued support and encouragement as well as her exten- sive knowledge of all things Disney have made this book more than just a Mickey Mouse affair. 01_382240-ffirs.qxp 12/3/08 10:58 AM Page v Editorial Editors: Katie Robinson, Production Editor; Leslie Shen, Development Editor; Naomi Kraus, Project Editor Copy Editor: Anne Owen Cartographer: Elizabeth Puhl Editorial Assistant: Jessica Langan-Peck Senior Photo Editor: Richard Fox Cover Photos: Front: Kali River Rapids, Animal Kingdom (© Disney) Back: Incredible Hulk Coaster, Islands of Adventure (© ICIMAGE/Alamy Images) Cartoons: Rich Tennant (www.the5thwave.com) Composition Services Project Coordinator: Kristie Rees Layout and Graphics: Carrie A. Cesavice, Stephanie D. Jumper, Julie Trippetti Proofreader: Debbye Butler Indexer: Broccoli Information Management Publishing and Editorial for Consumer Dummies Diane Graves Steele, Vice President and Publisher, Consumer Dummies Kristin Ferguson-Wagstaffe, Product Development Director, Consumer Dummies Kelly Regan, Editorial Director, Travel Publishing for Technology Dummies Andy Cummings, Vice President and Publisher, Dummies Technology/ General User Composition Services Debbie Stailey, Director of Composition Services Publisher’s Acknowledgments We’re proud of this book; please send us your comments through our Dummies online registration form located at www.dummies.com/register/. Some of the people who helped bring this book to market include the following: 01_382240-ffirs.qxp 12/3/08 10:58 AM Page vi Contents at a Glance Introduction.......................................................1 Part I:Introducing Walt Disney World and Orlando...................................................7 Chapter 1: Discovering the Best of Walt Disney World and Orlando ................................................................................9 Chapter 2: Digging Deeper into Orlando ......................................19 Chapter 3: Deciding When to Go ..................................................26 Part II: Planning Your Trip to Walt Disney World and Orlando .......................................37 Chapter 4: Managing Your Money ................................................39 Chapter 5: Getting to Orlando ......................................................47 Chapter 6: Catering to Special Travel Needs or Interests..........54 Chapter 7: Taking Care of the Remaining Details ........................65 Part III: Settling into Orlando............................75 Chapter 8: Arriving and Getting Oriented ....................................77 Chapter 9: Checking In at Orlando’s Best Hotels ........................88 Chapter 10: Dining and Snacking in Orlando ............................129 Part IV: Exploring Walt Disney World...............169 Chapter 11: Getting Acquainted with Walt Disney World ........171 Chapter 12: The Magic Kingdom ................................................182 Chapter 13: Epcot..........................................................................201 Chapter 14: Disney’s Hollywood Studios....................................217 Chapter 15: Disney’s Animal Kingdom........................................230 Chapter 16: Enjoying the Rest of Walt Disney World ................243 Chapter 17: Shopping in Walt Disney World ..............................254 Part V: Exploring the Rest of Orlando...............263 Chapter 18: Universal Studios Florida ........................................265 Chapter 19: Islands of Adventure................................................281 Chapter 20: SeaWorld and Discovery Cove................................296 Chapter 21: Discovering Orlando’s Other Attractions ............309 Chapter 22: Shopping in Orlando................................................318 Chapter 23: Going Beyond Orlando: Two Day Trips ................326 Part VI: Living It Up After Dark: Orlando Nightlife .......................................333 Chapter 24: Taking In the Dinner Shows ....................................335 Chapter 25: Hitting the Clubs and Bars ......................................341 02_382240-ftoc.qxp 12/3/08 10:58 AM Page vii Part VII: The Part of Tens................................353 Chapter 26: (Not Quite) Ten Cheap Alternatives to the Theme Parks ................................................................355 Chapter 27: Ten Recreational Activities in Orlando..................359 Appendix: Quick Concierge..............................363 Index.............................................................371 02_382240-ftoc.qxp 12/3/08 10:58 AM Page viii