We just wanted to bring to everyones atttention regarding the Disney Ticket scams which are taking place all along Highway 192 and International Drive. Our friend who works in Disney has just sent us an  E Mail to warn all of our guests of the latest events at Magic Kingdom.

”Hello Mary,  - I would just like to pass along the latest news regarding the resale of Disney tickets so that you may pass the information onto your guests.

Disney are finally wiseing up to the crooks that resell tickets and many tourists are quite angry that the have been taken by these less than scrupulous people.

Disney no longer does what is called level 3 entry so each and every person now must have a ticket that matches their finger and ID is benificial for at least the adults.

Orange County Sheriffs are on stand by to arrest the people selling the tickets, a lot of them come right into the park after they have sold them at kiosks on Hwy 192 & International Drive so they can then get the tickets back from the guests and sell them again.

Today we saw and caught one of these people and after watching her for awhile and seeing how many times she tried to get the family bunch of people in the officers arrested her and counted the tickets she had in her possession. She was then charged with 20 misdemeanors. She also got charged with tresspass and if she came back on Disney property she will be arreseted and taken to jail.

Now as for family coming to Florida - IF they happen to buy from these people there is likely nothing that can be done for them and they will never see their money again nor will they get into the Park. Something to think about before they purchase their bargain tickets”

This really points out the chance you are taking when buying these tickets. We have forwarded the E Mail to all of our coming guests. So our advice is to makes sure you get all of your Park Tickets from a Reputable source or Outlet. It seems to us that the packages for Park tickets here in the UK appear to be the best value in any case???

Hope this saves a family the cost, embarassment, anger and having to explain the the children that they can not get in when they visit Disney.

Regards,

Mary & Larry

We are presently over at our villa and have seen on TV and newspapers the crackdown on Park Ticket Booths making large reductions on Gate Prices.There have been several arrests at booths, especially on International Drive and Highway 192.

The scam is the booths offer these tickets by purchasing tickets with unused days left on visitors tickets for a measly few Dollars. They then attempt to clear the fingerprint security with detergents. Howeever, the security at the Park Gates can identify this and you are refused entry without any exception. When you return to the booth where you bought the ticket, they have a preset jargon refusing all responsibility and you are left both out of pocket and ticketless.

To avoid the disappointment and anger for your family having to go through this ordeal we really think all tickets should be purchased from reputable companies.

The booths which remain are usually attached to some timeshare and you have to go on a tour usually last 4 hours or more.

Hope this helps new visitors make the right decision and go on to have a great fun Holiday.

Mary & Larry

Make sure you have a go if you are an avid golfer

Universal.

You can get three types of passes.

Power pass $139.99 this includes both the studios and islands of adventure but has some black out dates.

Preferred pass $199.99 again entrance to both parks, free self parking 10% discount at universal store in the park and dining discounts of at least 10% in City walks.

Premier pass $279.95 same as above but includes free valet parking or preferred parking.

You can get discounts on other parks such as wet and wild for tickets and discounts on special events such as the Halloween nights.

Check out the universalorlando.com website for more details. They do have specials at times we got a 2 year preferred pass for the price of one year back in september 2007, so fantastic value.There are other discounts come with the passes but too many to mention here.

Disney world.

Annual park pass $499.49 ($440.91) includes all 4 main parks for a year.

Water park pass $106.45(child $85.73)

Premium annual pass $637.94 ($562.32) includes 4 parks,water parks,world wide sports and Disney Quest.

There are again benefits such as 10% of merchandise at Down Town Disney, dining discounts, 10% off at virgin and again free parking which this saves you $12 each time you visit which mounts up over a holiday!! You can also get discounts on disney hotel room rates.The other advantage is that you get around a $50 discount if you renew your passes on renewal.

Seaworld/Aquatica/Busch Gardens.

Seaworld annual pass $99.95 or two years for $149.95

Seaworld & Aquatica $179.95 or two years $269.95

Seaworld,aqatica,Busch Gardens $219.95 or two years $329.95.

Again they offer discounts once in the parks free parking, discount on merchandise and discount on dining and a discount on Discovery cove tickets.

If you buy any of the passes do not forget to check the pass holder benefits as the additional discounts in the parks and related areas can really mount upand save $$$.

I normally book my park tickets over the net with one of the big named companies. I usually pay by credit card in sterling and have the tickets sent directly to my home address. This year I used the link on the Silver Creek web site to Billy Boy’s Discount Tickets! I think the prices were very reasonable and found a deal for a seven day ticket to Universal Studios and the Island Of Adventure. I had the option of paying in pounds or dollars. I have an American credit card and decided that this was the best and cheapest way to pay for the tickets. The tickets would not be sent to me direct, but would be collected on my arrival at the Parks by entering your credit card into one of the many machines at the entrance. I was a little sceptical about this, but on my arrival I had my tickets in seconds! This was a very easy and painless exercise and would be quite happy to recommend this company. We spent 5 days using the two parks and had a really good time, I am sure further articles will follow on this topic, but If I have one thing to add about a weeks holiday in Florida and that is a week is just not long enough especially with the kids!

What parks do we want to visit?

Plan what you want to do first of all (there is a free planning guide on our website - link above) Most people visit for 14 days and fitting everything is impossible in one visit. Disney alone has four major parks, an interactive theme park, water parks and evening entertainment.

Are you willing to stay in one park all day or would you prefer to ‘hop’ from one park to another? ‘Hopping’ between parks is a good way to see as much as possible but, if it’s your first visit you will find plenty to keep you occupied for a whole day at each of the major venues. However it is a useful ticket if you plan to visit, say Animal Kingdom during the day and then watch Fantasmic at MGM in the evening.

Do you intend to come back to Orlando in the future?

Some tickets will expire within 14 days of your starting to use them but if you pay a little more for your tickets they will never expire. So with the former you have to ‘use them or lose them’.

How much can you afford to spend?

Purchasing more days works out cheaper per visit, so buying a ticket which gives you 7 or 10 days in the parks can cost less (per day) than a 3 or 4 day ticket.

Do you plan to do just the major parks or visit the water parks, Pleasure Island etc as well?

Disneys’ ‘base’ tickets will just get you into the major parks but their ‘water park fun and more’ tickets will also get you entrance into the likes of Blizzard Beach, Disney Quest and Pleasure Island.

As an example (correct as at 30th December 2007):-

A 4 day ‘water park fun and more’ pass would give you four extra visits to the smaller attractions for just $49 more than the cost of the base ticket. By the way Disney are currently throwing in a 5th day at a major park with their 4 day tickets. A ticket to one water park alone is $39.

Tickets for Universal Studios and Islands of Adventure can be bought separately. However, if you are planning to visit both check out the 7 day pass which is cheaper than two one day passes and you can move between the parks during the day. By upgrading to a 4 or 5 day flex ticket you can use the ticket to visit Busch Gardens, Wet n Wild and Sea World as well.

If swimming with dolphins is your thing then book into Discovery Cove. A ticket here will get you into Sea World later in your stay.

Bear in mind that in most of the parks you will be charged to park your car ($12 in October 2007). However, you can leave the park and return later in the same day without paying again.

There are lots more attractions than just those mentioned above. For more information on buying park tickets visit http://www.silvercreekvillas.com/tickets.php

As we had purchased a 3 or more day card we also got a free dinner show included. (Make sure that you book the show for one of the days that you intend to use the card). There is usually a choice of 2 or 3 different shows.

We booked to see The Arabian Nights Dinner Show and what a great night we had, the food was great, the drinks unlimited, (beer, wine or soft drinks), and the show was fantastic.

Once you use the card for the first time the countdown starts and the card expires 14 days from the first activation, you can use each of the remaining days at any time within the 14 day window. During a days use you can visit as many of the attractions listed in the guide book as you like. For a full list of the places you can visit have a look at the Go Orlando Card website. Many of the big names are there - Kennedy Space Centre, Gatorland, Fun Spot Action Park, Cypress Gardens……..the list just goes on and on. The card is also valid for a huge amount of special offers and discounts at many shops and attractions for all 14 days after the first activation of the card, again full details are on the website and in the free guide book issued with the card.

You can pack a lot into one day if you plan it carefully, this is what we did with the card:-

Day 1:-

• Cypress Gardens Adventure Park
• TIP - If you take your entrance ticket to guest services you will get a second days free admission for any time in the next 7 days so you actually get 2 days for the price of one!
• Splash Island Water park at Cypress Gardens
• Congo River Adventure Golf

Day 2:-

• Forever Florida Eco-Safaris
• Gatorland
• The Haunted Grimm House
• Congo River Adventure Golf
• Arabian Nights

Day 3:-

• Fun Spot Action Park
• Ripley’s Believe It or Not!
• Titanic - The Experience
• WonderWorks
• Congo River Adventure Golf

As you can see from the above we packed a lot into each of our Go Card days! If you check the guide book and plan carefully you can do a great deal in one day and get fantastic value for money. We were very impressed with the card and will be purchasing one again on our next visit as there are still many more attractions for us to visit.

If you are still a bit unsure, why not try a 1 day card and use it on the International Drive area attractions, as per our day 3 above. It is easy to hop from one attraction to the next and cram lots into one day with very little travelling between venues. Check the opening times and the times you can use the card and leave the late opening attractions until last.

Once you have tried a 1 day card I am sure the next time you go to Florida you will be getting an Orlando Go Card with at least 3 days on!