Welcome to the January Newsletter
Hi Subscriber, welcome to the January 2012 newsletter of the Florida Review & Travel Guide.
Hopefully you have all enjoyed the festivities over the last few weeks and we’d like to take the opportunity to wish everyone a very happy New Year. At long last there seems to be light at the end of the tunnel as 2011 has shown a distinct improvement for Florida’s tourist industry.
There have been a great many new rides and attractions opened during 2011 and more are planned for 2012/13 with Universal throwing out teasers about what might be happening with Harry Potter in Orlando.
Rumoured Test Track Refurbishment
Touringplans.com are covering the story about the potential refurbishment of the Test Track ride at Disney’s Epcot. Rumours are that is will be closed from April 15 to September 21, 2012 for a complete rework.
As part of the refurbishment, the pavilion will be sponsored by Chevrolet rather than General Motors as a whole and the existing Test Track vehicles will be replaced by Chevrolet inspired models. Back in August 2011 a few new sleeker cars were spotted on the tracks wearing Chevrolet badges and Tron inspired graphics.
Android Apps
SeaWorld and Busch Gardens have both announced the availability of their mobile apps to run on Android smart phones. Previously they were only available on Apple iPhones.
Read more about mobile apps for Florida’s theme parks.
Parks Reach Capacity
Yet again, all of Florida’s main theme parks reached saturation point.
Most of Florida’s major theme parks reached capacity crowds in the period between Christmas and the New Year with wait times of several hours on the more popular rides. Even Legoland Florida reported capacity crowds in its first ever Christmas season.
January will see a return to more manageable levels as many vacationers depart after the holiday season but if you are quick you can still see a few of the holiday celebrations.
Soft Drink Wars
The Coca-Cola and Pepsi brands have always fought for the exclusive rights to sell their brands in the major Florida theme parks. Up until recently Coca-Cola have held sway at both Walt Disney World and Universal Studios and Pepsi have reigned supreme at SeaWorld and Busch Gardens.
On January 1 that all changed when SeaWorld and Busch Gardens both switched allegiance and replaced Pepsi by Coca-Cola. Legoland Florida is now one of the few parks where you will find the Pepsi brand in Florida.
Latest Hotel Deals
Amongst the travel offers in January, there are plenty of deals to be had including 3 star hotels in Pensacola from $67, 3 star hotels in Miami Beach from $96, 4 star hotels in Orlando from $52 and the Radisson Resort near Disney from $62. Other deals include:
There are many more good deals this month as tour operators continue to offer discounts, so if you are planning a vacation to Florida during 2012, then let the Florida Review & Travel Guide help you on your way.
This is just a small sample. To see the rest of the great deals and more, check out our late Florida deals page.
Gasoline Prices
The average pump prices in Florida has held steady at $3.31, the same as last month for a gallon for regular.
You can always find the latest pump prices at GasPriceWatch.com.
High Speed Ferry
A new high speed ferry service has started between Fort Lauderdale and Freeport in Grand Bahama. The Pinar del Río operated by Balèaria Bahamas Express is a modern catamaran which can reach speeds of 32 knots and will make the crossing daily except for Wednesdays.
The service takes just two and a half hours each way but unlike some previous ‘day trips’ to the Caribbean, the Bahamas Express does not feature a casino or buffet. The ship is a purely passenger ferry and offers on board entertainment, a lounge, bar and shop.
Prices start from around $100 (plus a $25 operational charge) for a same day Economy return trip which gives you around six hours shore time in the Bahamas. You can also purchase First Class tickets which offer better seating and more space and tranquility.
The Bahamas Express leaves Fort Lauderdale at 10:00 am and arrives in Freeport at 12:30 pm. The return journey leaves Freeport at 7:30 pm arriving back in Fort Lauderdale at 10:00 pm.
Passengers should allow at least an hour to clear customs and immigration before boarding. Don’t forget you will need a passport that is valid for a least a month to make the journey.
Note that you are allowed two items of hand luggage free of charge and you can also purchase baggage locker space for an additional fee on the outbound journey.
Further details including ticket availability and pricing can be found at the Bahamas Express web site.
Looking Back On 2011
One of the great things about Florida as a holiday destination is that things are always changing. Attractions come and go but there is always something new happening.
Preliminary statistics show that visitor numbers are up on 2010, as Florida slowly picks itself back up following the economic downtown.
New rides and attractions
2011 has been a great year for the theme parks with many new attractions and rides opening and many more in the pipeline.
One of the big highs for 2011 was the re-opening of the former Cypress Gardens under its new guise as Legoland Florida. Following years of uncertainty and neglect, one of Florida’s earliest theme parks now has a new lease of life under the Lego brand. Lego is already planning to re-open the adjoining water park and build at least one resort hotel over the next couple of years.
2011 has been the year of the zip line. Several new zip lines opened including Zip Orlando close to the Green Meadows Petting Farm in Kissimmee, Old Town also in Kissimmee, Gatorland and Fantasy of Flight.
Over at Busch Gardens the new Cheetah Run roller coaster and associated themed areas opened for the Memorial weekend.
Following the amazing success of The Wizarding World of Harry Potter, Universal have continued their development plans. The Jimmy Neutron’s Nicktoon Blast attraction was closed in preparation for Despicable Me and now Jaws is also to close to be replaced by an as yet unknown attraction.
Read all the highlights of Florida in 2011.
The Complete Walt Disney World 2012
The Complete Walt Disney World 2012 is written by husband and wife team, Julie and Mike Neal and the first edition was published in April 2007 as The Complete Guide to Walt Disney World.
The book has been completely revised again for 2012 with an extra 20 pages and includes details of what’s new at Walt Disney World and articles on saving time and money, which are particularly relevant today plus over 530 colour photograghs.
Over the years the Neals (who now live in Celebration right next door to Walt Disney World) have visited Walt Disney World an incredible 1,500 times to produce this beautiful guide book. Though this is not an official guide book, like the Birnbaum series, they have clearly been given access to many areas of Disney.
Julie has researched and written the text whilst Mike has taken the sumptuous colour photographs used to illustrate the book.
The whole book has a glossy magazine feel with lots of double page spreads, lavishly illustrated throughout with over 530 photographs, a large increase on previous editions.
Read our complete review of The Complete Walt Disney World 2012.
Hogwarts Rumours
Following the announcement that the classic Jaws ride along with the surrounding Amity themed area will close at Universal Studios on January 2, rumours are already beginning to fly about what will take its place. The Jaws ride was one of the parks original rides when it first opened.
At a press conference when Universal confirmed that they would be opening a Wizarding World of Harry Potter at Universal Hollywood, they also stated that they will “significantly expand” the Wizarding World in Orlando in the next couple of years but they have given no further details at this time.
The launch of The Wizarding World of Harry Potter within Universal’s Islands of Adventure has seen attendance records soar by 30% compared to only 6% at Universal Studios so there is a possibility that part of Harry Potter might come to Universal Studios as well.
Potter rumours include the construction of the Ministry of Magic, the Diagon Alley and using the Hogwarts Express train to transport guests between the two parks.
Splitting Harry Potter between the two parks would dilute the attraction of one park over the other and some guests might resent having to buy tickets to both parks, but it could result in increased multi-day ticket sales, particularly for Universal Studios.
Rather than spill over into Universal Studios, they might simply replace one of the other lands within Islands of Adventure such as the remainder of the Lost Continent in much the same way as they did to create the Wizarding World in the first place. This would leave the Jaws attraction available for another possibility such as the Transformers ride that is currently being built in both Hollywood and Singapore.
One thing that is certain is that Despicable Me will open at Universal Studios in 2012.
Read more about The Wizarding World of Harry Potter
Free Monthly Desktop Wallpaper
January 2012 and February 2012 desktop wallpaper calendars
The free Florida desktop wallpaper calendars are now available in new widescreen and netbook format as well as standard format so if you have a widescreen monitor or a netbook you can now download a new widescreen calendar. From July we have introduced some additional sizes for widescreens.
Free desktop calendars for January (Streets of America at Disney’s Hollywood Studios) and February 2012 (Clyde and Seamore Show at SeaWorld) are ready to download now.
Note that some of the larger files can be up to 1mb in size so if you are on a modem dialup line it will take a few minutes to download.
Click to view and then download the Florida free desktop wallpaper for January and February now.
Also don’t forget if you are looking for inspiration on what to do on your Florida vacation, why not take advantage of our collection of free Florida brochures where you will find information on many activities including golfing vacations, eco-tours, scuba diving and Caribbean cruises.
January Events
Following the capacity crowds at most of the theme parks between Christmas and New Year, once the holiday season ends, the theme parks will start to get quieter again.
Early January sees the last of the holiday season attractions and events at the theme parks coming to a close but if you hurry you will still be able to catch a few of them.
Some of the other Florida events in January include the Walt Disney World Marathon Weekend at Disney’s Wide World of Sports Complex. For warbird fans, the Collins Foundation will be touring a number of airfields in Florida with their B–17, B–24 and P–51.
Noticeable artists on tour in Florida this month include The Temptations, The Pointer Sisters, Bob Seger, Evanescence, Gregg Allman, Jimmy Buffett, Red Hot Chili Peppers plus the Wicked stage show and Ringling Bros. And Barnum & Bailey Circus.
Looking further ahead, in February there are a number of shows including Andrea Bocelli, Gladys Knight, Kelly Clarkson, Paul Anka, the Jersey Boys stage show and the special Cirque du Soleil - Michael Jackson The Immortal.
And don’t forget that you can purchase Spring Training baseball game tickets for when Spring training starts in late March.
Read the full coverage of the latest events throughout the State of Florida or view a comprehensive list of upcoming Florida concerts.
Weather Forecast
January is the usually coldest month of the year in Florida and temperatures will be around seasonal average except for the Panhandle where it will be above average for the time of year. Across the State, rainfall will be below average.
In the North around Pensacola and Jacksonville, the month will start out with plenty of sunshine with the occasional shower, particularly on the East coast. Daytime temperatures will be in low 50s to high 60s. Overnight temperatures will be in the low 30s to 40s with the chance of freezing conditions on the East coast.
Across the Central region, the weather outlook is better with fewer clouds and rain. It will also be warmer with temperatures in the mid 50s to low 70s during the day with mid 40s to low 50s overnight.
Down in Miami and the Keys, the weather will be cloudier. Temperatures will be in the mid 60s to mid 70s during the day and mid 40s to low 60s overnight.
Check out the rest of the weather for all of Florida including a live weather map, monthly temperature and rainfall charts across the State and the latest hurricane news.
January Books
A small collection of books are published in January, including several in the “Images of America” series plus a few more that have slipped through the net. Follow the links to read our reviews.
January Book List
- Howey-in-the-Hills by Peggy Beucher Clark
- Everyday Adventures: A Florida Outdoors Guide by Terry Tomalin, Jane Edwards
- War on the Gulf Coast: The Spanish Fight against William Augustus Bowles by Gilbert C. Din
- Palmetto by Merab-Michal Favorite
- Tavares by Bob Grenier
- Ecology and Conservation of the Sirenia: Dugongs and Manatees by Helene Marsh, Thomas J. O’Shea, John E. Reynolds III
- Fort Myers Beach by Mary Kaye Stevens
- Fastest Driving Route to Florida by Paul White
- Delaplaine’s 2012 Guide to Key West & the Florida Keys by Andrew Delaplaine
- Northwest Florida Wine Tour by Pamela Watson
- The Stapleton 2012 Gay Guide to Key West & The Florida Keys by Jon Stapleton
- The Complete Walt Disney World 2012 by Julie Neal, Mike Neal
- Winging It Again!!: Florida to Alaska and Back by Marguerite and William Spicer
We plan to bring you a newsletter on the first day of each month with details of upcoming events and news from across Florida.
Copyright © 2012, Stephen Downs, Florida Review & Travel Guide. All rights reserved. Please do NOT reprint or host on your website without explicit permission from www.floridareview.co.uk.
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