Our trip takes an extremely child-friendly turn when we flew into Orlando, Florida. After exploring and eating our way through busy and fast-paced New York City, and going through the historical monuments and museums of Washington DC, it’s time to hit the children’s most awaited part of the trip, the theme parks.
But first, our home for these next few days: the Four Seasons Resort Orlando at Walt Disney World Resort. It’s the perfect mix of a place that’s luxurious and magical at the same time. One look and I knew right then and there that this would be something that the grown ups and kids will both enjoy.
This resort brings the outdoors in which really sets the mood for a great escape, one that is away from the concrete jungle. (This was the view right from our bedroom window!)
And this is one of the many lobbies of the hotel, with tall palm trees and all beautifully lit up at night!
Fresh and colorful blooms in the lobby greet us every morning too.
And here is the actual (main) lobby that welcomes guests as soon as they enter… Light fixtures that sparkle!
Now, let’s move on to the main purpose of this trip : the wonderful world of theme parks!
Our first stop : Universal Studios Orlando.
We visited the Wizarding World of Harry Potter at Universal’s Islands of Adventure theme park to see the Hogwarts castle and explore Hogsmeade village.
It’s a fantastic experience for any Harry Potter fan. So much detail! It’s really like stepping into the Harry Potter Universe. The 2 of the best rides are here: “The Forbidden Journey” at Hogsmeade and “Gringott’s” in Diagon Alley.
Just look at how they built this place :
We visited much more than the Harry Potter world and rode a couple of rides, but this was the main highlight that no visitor to the park should dare miss!
And now from one magical world to another…the next day’s agenda : Disney World Hollywood Studios, where at that time we visited, (almost) the entire park was Frozen-themed — which made my little girl so giddy with excitement!
In fact, since she knew she would be meeting her favorite princesses here, she chose her blue dress carefully that morning to match Queen Elsa!
How thrilled she was to see Elsa up close waving right back at her!
Now, if you ask me what was this park’s major highlight (at least for our family) ? It is the show called : For The First Time in Forever : A Frozen Sing-Along Celebration, which was very interactive and that was held in a huge theater that had live actors on stage (good actors, if I may say so!). They retold the story in a very heartwarming and humorous way!
And of course, the most important part of this show is the sing-along : the songs of the movie Frozen were played and sang live on stage by the actors themselves, with the lyrics flashing in the background. This of course, made everyone – and I mean, everyone in the theater (and yes that includes me!) – sing their hearts out! 🙂
We only had 4 days in Orlando, and 2 out of 4 were spent in the theme parks. So on the 3rd day, we decided to just enjoy our time at the resort, Four Seasons Resort Orlando. The place is lush and beautiful and complete on its own.
It is ideal for families who want to recharge while the kids get to expend their energy in any of the play areas available. Here, they get to run and play to their hearts’ content, without leaving the premises.
Those who need to recharge, meanwhile, can find a spot to cocoon in.
I was very happy to see options as shelter from the hot and glaring Florida sun. (And believe me, it was really hot!)
But nothing beats being in the water to cool down. This, though, is my favorite part of the resort : the Lazy River.
I sat on the floater and went with the flow! (The water features a built in current that pushes you, or your floater around on its own. So you don’t really need to do anything and you just go around the whole humongous pool “floating”!)
Even at night, the premises are gorgeous and a joy to take in. I discovered these tree-lined pathways on our way back to the room.
We enjoyed the Florida sunset too from the rooftop.
And before we knew it, our time in Florida was up. And that was it, thank you for the fun and ejoyable time, Orlando! You turned us all into kids again and gave us a lot of happy memories to take home! 🙂
To see more of my Orlando posts, follow me on Instagram @thespoiledmummy, and search #TSMinOrlando.
Thank you to The Spoiled Mummy’s site partner, Smart, for making all my #EverdaywithTravel posts on Instagram and the blog possible. I am glad that I can rely on Smart’s efficient data roaming service all throughout my trip — now that’s the #SmartLife! 🙂 Check out their Free Instagram plan here: #SmartFreeIG.