August 2009 Newsletter

Hi subscriber, welcome to the August 2009 newsletter of the Florida Review & Travel Guide.

Seat Belt Enforcement

From July 1, if you are stopped in a car without a seat belt, you can now be fined over $100 for each person in infringement.

Prior to July, you could only be fined if you were stopped for another offence but now the police can stop you if you are seen without your seat belt fastened.

Under the new laws, drivers and front seat passengers must wear their seat belts as must any minors under the age of 18 seated in the back.

Each year some 3,000 people die in Florida in car crashes and it is estimated about 60% of them were not wearing seat belts.

State Park Visitor Numbers

Florida has one of the largest state park programs (over 160 parks) in the USA and the Florida Park Service recorded a record number of visitors in 2008-09. Visitor numbers were up 3.5% on the previous period.

Over 21.4 million people visited the State Parks with Honeymoon Island State Park in Dunedin, just north of St. Petersburg being the most popular, second year running with 1.2 million visitors.

The other top spots went to:

• St. Andrews State Park near Panama City Beach, 910,000 visitors
• Bill Baggs Cape near Key Biscayne, 909,000 visitors
• Gasparilla Island State Park, Boca Grande, 846,000 visitors and
• Sebastian Inlet State Park, Melbourne Beach, 796,000 visitors

Shoreline Licences

From August 1, if you plan to saltwater fish from the shoreline (beach or a structure like a pier) you must purchase a licence.

For Florida residents, a licence will cost $9 for a shoreline fishing licence or $17 for a regular saltwater fishing licence.

For non-residents, short term and annual licences run from around $17 to $47.

There are exemptions such as fishing from your home using a line or pole, people over the age of 65 or under the age of 16, people on income support and active military personnel home on leave. Also licenced fishing piers have a licence to cover everyone who fishes from them.

Snake Bites

There have been a number of reported snake bites recently plus a tragic case of a two year old being strangled by a pet albino Burmese python.

It is worth remembering that there are around 45 species of snakes native to Florida of which six are venomous, namely the Southern Copperhead, Cottonmouth (Water Moccasin), Eastern Coral Snake and three types of rattler; the Dusky Pygmy Rattlesnake, Timber Rattlesnake and Eastern Diamondback Rattlesnake.

If snakes are disturbed they will most likely run away but if cornered or threatened they may attack. Whatever you do, do not pick up a snake, even if it appears to be dead.

For more information on Florida's "dangerous" native wildlife including snakes, click here.

Lightning Strikes

A tourist died on Melbourne Beach in July after being struck by lightning. He and his family were preparing to seek shelter when the strike occurred.

The National Weather Service advises everyone to follow the '30-30' rule.

When you see a lightning flash, count the number of seconds until you hear the thunder clap. If the time is 30 seconds or less, seek shelter immediately and stay sheltered until 30 minutes after the storm has passed.

To work out how far away the storm is, divide the number of seconds by five and that gives you the distance in miles, so 30 seconds equates to 6 miles.

According to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, you have a 1 in 5 chance of being killed if you are struck by lightning. So far this year, 22 people have died of lightning strikes in the USA.

Follow Us on Twitter

For those of you who use Twitter, you can now follow the latest news from Florida as it happens with us on Twitter, right here. Over the coming months we intend to rationalise our use of Twitter and RSS feeds to provide a single source of news updates.

Latest Hotel Deals

We are now subscribing to BookingWiz to give you the latest Florida deals each month.


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Gasoline Prices

Average pump prices in Orlando have fallen back about 20 cents in the last month to around $2.50 a gallon for regular.

You can always find the latest pump prices at GasPriceWatch.com.

TravelZoo Weekly Newsletter

Have you heard of the TravelZoo weekly top 20 deals newsletter? By signing up to their free newsletter, you receive their top 20 holiday deals each and every week with cheap flights, cruises and ferries, rail tickets, car hire, hotels and villas, tours and packages and last minute deals.

Each week, TravelZoo sift through 1000s of internet offers to bring you the best deals, no matter where you live.

$299 -- Weeklong Stay at Orlando Resort Near Disney-- As seen on Travelzoo's Top 20

Florida Books published in August

August sees the latest edition of the "big one" The Unofficial Guide Walt Disney World (reviewed below), the Rough Guide to Florida and Fodor's Walt Disney World with Kids plus a whole bunch more Florida 2010 calendars:

• Florida by Jim Ollhoff
• The Seminole Wars 1817-58 by Ron Field
• The Unofficial Guide Walt Disney World 2010 by Bob Sehlinger
• Greetings from Palm Beach, Florida, 1900-1960s by Donald D. Spencer
• 50s Roadside Florida by Donald D. Spencer
• The Florida Handbook 2009-2010
• The Rough Guide to Florida
• Fishing Florida: An Angler's Guide to More than 600 Prime Fishing Spots by Kris Thoemke
• Fodor's Walt Disney World with Kids 2010: with Universal Orlando and SeaWorld by Kim Wright Wiley
• Florida Travel Pack by Liz Booth
• Key West Hemingway: A Reassessment
• Florida State Seminoles Locker Room 2010 Wall Calendar
• Florida Gators - Box 2010 Box Calendar
• Florida State Seminoles - Box 2010 Box Calendar
• Florida Marlins - Box 2010 Box Calendar
• Florida Gators - Box With Sound 2010 Box Calendar
• Florida State Seminoles - Box With Sound 2010 Box Calendar
• Central Florida Knights - Planner 2010 Planner Calendar
• Florida Gators - Planner 2010 Planner Calendar
• Florida State Seminoles - Planner 2010 Planner Calendar
• South Florida Bulls - Planner 2010 Planner Calendar
• Central Florida Knights Message Board 2010 Wall Calendar
• Florida Gators Message Board 2010 Wall Calendar
• Florida State Seminoles Message Board 2010 Wall Calendar
• South Florida Bulls Message Board 2010 Wall Calendar
• Florida Gators 2010 Wall Calendar
• Florida State Seminoles 2010 Wall Calendar
• Florida Marlins 2010 Wall Calendar
• Florida Panthers 2010 Wall Calendar
• Florida Gators With Sound 2010 Wall Calendar
• Florida State Seminoles With Sound 2010 Wall Calendar
• Florida Gators - Mini 2010 Mini Calendar

All these books and more can be found in our new Florida book directories for US and UK visitors.

With the high price of food these days, it can become expensive to eat and drink in Florida's theme parks.

You can easily spend $50 or more on a meal for a family of four, with a burger costing around $8.00 and a single bottle of water $2.50.

When visiting Florida's theme parks you have several options when it comes to cheap food and drink:

• budget wisely and eat at the cheaper restaurants and food outlets
• bring food into the park with you (if allowed)
• eat outside of the parks
• simply cut down on how much you eat whilst at the parks !!

Budget Wisely at the Restaurants

It is possible to cut down on your food bills if you hunt out the cheaper food options. All the parks have the equivalent of fast food outlets where you can get a simple meal and drink but expect to pay around $10 a head.

Bringing Food into the Theme Parks

A few years ago, Florida's theme parks were very strict about bringing any food or drinks into the parks. These days, they are a bit more relaxed and most parks including Walt Disney World, Universal Studios and SeaWorld will now allow you to bring a reasonable amount of food and drink into the park with you.

Eat Outside the Parks

If you have a car, then why not consider taking a break from the park and eating at a nearby hotel, resort, local restaurant or your own private condo or villa.

Cut Down on How Much You Eat

When you see the number of overweight people in Florida, do you really need that second turkey drumstick!! Why not have a good healthy breakfast before entering the park and then eat dinner after you leave the park in the evening. In this way you only need to worry about lunch time and snacks throughout the day.

For more information on eating cheaply in Florida's theme parks including details about what you can bring into the parks, click here.

Universal Orlando have released the playlists that you will be able to select from when riding the upcoming new roller coaster, Hollywood Rip Ride Rockit at Universal Studios. The ride is due to open this Summer

Taking the idea of Disney's Hollywood Studios Rock 'n' Roller coaster a step further where you listen to Aerosmith through seat mounted speakers, on the Hollywood Rip Ride Rockit, each rider can listen to their own choice of music.

You can choose between five genres, each with six tracks. The genres are:

• Classic Rock/Metal
• Club/Electronica
• Country
• Rap/Hip-hop
• Pop/Disco

Most popular artists are the Black Eyed Peas with two tracks "Don't Phunk With My Heart" and "Pump It" plus a solo performance of "Glamorous" by Fergie.

Other classics include "I Will Survive" by Gloria Gaynor, "That's the Way (I Like It)" by KC and the Sunshine Band and "U Can't Touch This" by MC Hammer. So if you come across people imitating the MC Hammer dance, you will know why!!

For more information on Universal Studios Hollywood Rip Ride Rockit, click here.

Unofficial Guide to Walt Disney World 2010 by Bob Sehlinger and Len Testa is published by John Wiley & Sons.

Each year the unofficial "bible" to Walt Disney World continues to grow and is now up to 864 pages. It really is the definitive guide to the Walt Disney World Resort.

If you take your visit to the Walt Disney World Resort seriously then the Unofficial Guide to Walt Disney World is the book for you.

It is invaluable in helping you make better use of your time with hints and tips on how to beat the crowds and see the shows with the minimum of wait times. For example it will tell you the best places to go to watch the fireworks at EPCOT or the best vantage points to watch the Magic Kingdom parades.

Though it does not have some of the gloss and visual appeal of some other guides, what it lacks in colour photographs it more than makes up for in sheer volume of information and facts.

If anything, the book is perhaps too big and it can sometimes be hard to find what you are looking for. However it does make a great research tool to help you plan your day in advance.

There are also comprehensive one and two day touring plans for each park split by different types of family; for example those with small children, couples and seniors. These can be torn out so you can carry them with you rather than taking the whole book.

To read the complete review of the Unofficial Guide to Walt Disney World 2010, click here.

Disney Free Dining

Disney have been offering free dining for all guests who booked a five-night vacation package and this offer has now been extended. Bookings must be made by September 26.

If you book a five-night/five day room and Magic Your Way ticket package for stays between September 29 and November 24 or between November 29 and December 17 (black out dates over Thanksgiving and Christmas) you will receive free Disney meals.

Bookings for select Disney Value Resorts receive the Disney Quick-Service Dining Plan and for select Disney Moderate, Disney Deluxe or Disney Deluxe Villa resorts, you receive the Disney Dining Plan.

The Disney Quick-Service Dining Plan offers two quick-service meals and two select snacks per person per night plus a mug they can be refill as often as you like during your stay at any of the quick-service restaurants at your resort hotel.

The Disney Dining Plan includes one quick-service meal, one select snack and one table-service meal at up to 100 restaurants per person per night.

More Florida Residents Offers

Gatorland have extended their Florida residents summer offer until Labor Day. Between now and September 7, adult tickets cost $14.99 (plus tax) and child tickets $9.99 (plus tax).

To celebrate the 25th anniversary of Cirque du Soleil, Florida residents will be able to buy a second discounted ticket when they buy a full price ticket.

Between August 18 and October 3 (excluding September 20 to 28) for the 6 pm and 9 pm performances on Tuesdays through Saturdays, when purchasing an $83 ticket (plus tax) a second ticket can be purchased for $25 (plus tax), subject to availability.

Candlelight Processional at Epcot

Disney have announced a provisional list of narrators for this year's Candlelight Processional at Epcot.

The list includes Whoopi Goldberg, Vanessa Williams and Isabella Rossellini for the first time. Others who have narrated before include John O' Hurley, Steven Curtis Chapman, Andy Garcia, Abigail Breslin, Brian Dennehy, Edward James Olmos, Angela Bassett and Courtney B. Vance.

The event runs from November 27 to December 30.

FastPass at Animal Kingdom

As an experiment, Disney have introduced centralised FastPass ticket machines at It's Tough to Be a Bug where you can now get FastPass tickets for Dinosaur, Expedition Everest and Kilimanjaro Safaris.

Tickets will still be available at each of the rides but the idea behind the central location is to save people having to trek to the ride itself to get a FastPass ticket.

For more information on Florida theme parks, click here.

August and September 2009 desktop wallpaper calendars

The free Florida desktop wallpaper calendars are now available in widescreen format as well as standard format so if you have a widescreen monitor you can now download a new widescreen calendar.

Free desktop calendars for August 2009 (Bok Tower) and September 2009 (Cypress Gardens Wedding Pavilion) are ready to download now.

Note that some of the larger files can be up to 600k in size so if you are on a modem dialup line it will take a few minutes to download.

To view and then download the Florida free desktop wallpaper for August or September now, click here.

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 brochures where you will find information on many activities including golfing vacations, eco-tours, scuba diving and Caribbean cruises.

Read more...

In August, Florida school kids return to school after their Summer break,but there will be many out of state holiday makers around so the parks and beaches will still be crowded.

August is not only very busy but it is extremely hot so it pays to take extra precautions if you are outside for any length of time.

Following Endeavour's successful mission, at the Kennedy Space Center there are the possibilities of three launches in August though as usual, they are all subject to change.

The Space Shuttle Discovery is due to make the 30th mission to the International Space Station and there is also the chance of both a United Launch Alliance Delta 2 and a United Launch Alliance Atlas 5 launch.

For full coverage of August events throughout the State of Florida, click here.

Temperatures in August look like being well above normal with about average rainfall. Across the State you can expect daytime temperatures in the high 80s/low 90s.

In the north around Pensacola and Jacksonville, the month will continue to be a mixture of sunshine and showers with the occasional thunderstorm and high humidity. Temperatures will be in the high 80s/low 90s during the day with night-time temperatures in the mid/high 70s. It will be slightly warmer in the west during the night time.

Across the Central region, the weather outlook is similar but with more chance of rain. Temperatures will be in the high 80s/low 90s during the day, dropping to mid 70s over night.

Down in Miami and the Keys, again there will be thunderstorms and showers. Temperatures will be in the high 80s/low 90s during the day and high 70s/low 80s overnight.

To 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, click here.

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 © 2009, Stephen Downs, Florida Review & Travel Guide. All rights reserved. Please do NOT reprint or host on your website without explicit permission from http://www.floridareview.co.uk.

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