Florida Info We include on this page a few comments, suggestions and links to interesting web sites that may assist in organising or planning your holiday.   Flights   -   We ourselves usually fly Virgin from Gatwick to Orlando, if you can afford it the upgrade to Premium Economy is much recommended. Sometimes we book a fly-drive package with Virgin Holidays and sometimes we book with Virgin Atlantic direct. It pays to shop around to get the best deal.   We have though on occasions flown with United from Heathrow to Orlando, notwithstanding a change of planes in Washington. United are very good value if you are planning a multi centre holiday in the US as they do allow two free stopovers as part of some ticket prices. Their ‘air-miles’ scheme is also very good.   There are of course many other airlines flying to Florida and it would be good to shop around to get the best deal. It might be worth considering whether you wish to fly to Orlando (40 Mins drive from the house) or Sanford (1Hour drive from the house) or fly in slightly further away such as Tampa (approx.60 miles) or even Miami (approx 270 miles).   Car Hire   -   There are numerous car hire companies operating and you will again need to shop around to get the best deal, sometimes this may be direct with the car hire company, but there are also some very good deals with companies like LastMinute.Com, Expedia, uscarhire.co.uk  etc. that are worth checking out.   There are some six companies Alamo   -    Avis  -   Budget   -    Dollar   -   L&M  -   National having on site facilities at Orlando Airport and just a twenty yard walk from the main building, none of that struggling on and off of courtesy coaches with all those cases. Good to check if your booking will be with one of these.   There are also more than 20 to our knowledge operating off site.   Theme Parks and Tickets  - Magic Kingdom, Islands of Adventure, Seaworld, Busch Gardens and Discovery Cove are some of the most popular. You need to plan your time at the theme park’s though. If you have not been before it is difficult to appreciate their size and the amount of walking you will do and if you stay for the fireworks what a very long day you will have. We would recommend therefore that you do not plan to visit the parks on consecutive days, take a day off, see some of the other attractions Florida has to offer or visit one of the water parks.   We can arrange tickets to all the main theme parks at attractive prices, they will be delivered direct to you at the villa. Contact us for details.   Shopping/ Restaurants  -  There are numerous shops and restaurants readily accessible. A Publix supermarket is just outside the Highlands Reserve development for that day to day shopping and for those irresistible bargains!! The Mall at Millennia, the Florida Mall and a number of outlet malls are no more than 30 minutes or so away.  There is though more, more much more and an extensive range of Restaurants to suit all tastes   Tourist Information There are a wealth of websites out there with details on Florida, there is much more to the place than most people usually see. Try the Florida Tourist Board site www.flausa.com for lots of details.