Leisure … more than a word, it's a lifestyle

Golf in Orlando

by Nigel G. Worrall

The sunny state of Florida with its lush green beautiful landscaped golf courses is one of the hottest sporting destinations in USA. Apart from its exotic tourist spots, Florida draws thousands of visitors every year simply because of the great golf experiences there are to be had. Golf in Florida is simply outstanding and here you can strike the balance between quality family time as well as enjoying your favorite pastime.

One of the highlights of a golf trip to Florida is the ability to rent a vacation villa or vacation home which is not only convenient but also economical. The facilities a vacation villa or home has to offer are quite incomparable with those which hotels offer. In a hotel you may feel confined to your room and other members of your party may be spread out on different floors with no common area for you all to have some  privacy; most vacation homes have private gardens and swimming pools attached which allow you privacy along with all the luxuries. Fully equipped kitchens complete with a pantry with your favorite food items, gaming rooms & LCD televisions with DVD libraries are just a few of their features. There is no compromise on services since most provide housekeeping, garden and pool staff and even an on request driver. All of this is available at great rates and often very much lower than compared to the cost of staying at a hotel and eating out on a daily basis. There are many options available to you throughout Florida and some of the best are located near golf clubs and provide a wholesome family vacation while enabling you to play some great golf in Florida!

Arnold Palmer’s Bay Hill Invitational

Of course, Florida is home to some of the best PGA golf tournaments and you will definitely be spoilt for choice heading out for a round of golf in Florida. Since professionals know the best, most of the golf courses in Central Florida have been designed by them to provide the golf enthusiast a true to life experience. Arnold Palmer, Jack Nicklaus and Tom Watson have each designed an 18-hole course at The Reunion Resort and Club of Orlando for instance. The main golf course, designed by Arnold Palmer, is simply breathtaking with a lavish landscape of natural preserve woods, water bodies and palm trees.

A rare opportunity to play one of the world’s most highly acclaimed layouts is available at Arnold Palmer’s Bay Hill club and this is the setting for The Bay Hill Invitational PGA tour event every year. This grand event sees many of the world’s greatest players compete against each other. Presented by MasterCard, the event in 2011 will be held between March 24 and March 27 and tickets are available online as well as at the Club. http://www.arnoldpalmerinvitational.com/

Disney’s World of Golf

Walt Disney World Resorts in Orlando is another popular golf facility and includes some of the finest PGA Tour Courses amongst its 6 golfing facilities. With perfect green lawns, hazardous obstacles and breathtaking landscapes there is no dearth of Disney’s magic at any of these courses. Even the golf carts here are up to date with technologies such as GPS tracking, making golf in Florida a truly modern day experience.

Eagle Pines is the popular Disney golf course designed by Pete Dye sprawled across 6,772 yards and boasts of many water hazards and Osprey Ridge, designed by Thomas Fazio is a one of Florida’s finest golf course spread across 7,101 yards.

Disney is also home to the PGA TOUR FUNAI Classic which is hosted on the Palm and Magnolia golf courses. The Palm is a great golf course for the intermediate to advanced player while the Magnolia, which derives its name from the various Magnolia trees spotted across the course, is home to the final rounds of the FUNAI CLASSIC. Slated to be held between Oct 20 and Oct 23 in 2011, tickets will be available online and also from Walt Disney World Resorts.

While most of Disney’s courses are designed keeping accomplished players in mind; families can still enjoy their part of the action at Disney’s Oak Trail which is a relaxing nine-hole course that every member of the family can enjoy.

Florida has many varied options for enjoying a round of golf and you’ll soon feel that golf in the Sunshine State is not just a sport, but truly a passion. It’s also the perfect place for a fabulous family vacation or a golf trip with your pals.

In perhaps the biggest upset in Walt Disney World Marathon history, Fredison Costa of Brazil upstaged fellow countryman Adriano Bastos to win the Disney Marathon on Sunday and abruptly end Bastos’ six-year dominance at Disney.

After finishing second to Bastos at last year’s Disney Marathon, Costa, 33, crossed the finish line first this time, posting a time of 2:21:15 to lead the field of more than 17,000 runners who ran through all four Disney World theme parks along the 26.2-mile course. Bastos, who had won the past six Disney Marathons and seven of the last eight, finished 15th (2:45:09). Michael Wardian from Arlington, Va., (2:27:37) was second followed by Paul Nielsen from Orlando, Fla. (2:31:45).

Leah Thorvilson (pictured above) from Little Rock, Ark., was the top women’s finisher (2:42:11), celebrating her 32nd birthday by pulling a mild upset of her own in halting Lisa Mizutani’s streak of back-to-back Disney Marathon women’s victories. Karen Simmonds-Brady from Auburn. NY, was second (2:51:14) and Jessica Crate from Melbourne, Fla., was third (2:51:53). Mizutani from Japan was 12th (3:02:34).

Costa, who now lives in El Paso, Tex., ran near the front of the lead pack early in the race, but then quickly charged into the lead well before the 10-mile mark and then steadily pulled away, winning by more than six minutes.

“I felt very strong the entire race, probably could have pushed the pace if I had to,” said Costa, who aspires to compete in the 2012 Olympic Games. “The weather was great and I knew the course very well after running here last year.”

Pat Bragassa of Rigby, Idaho., was the top men’s Masters Division finisher (runners age 40 and over) with a time of 2:38:41 and Myriam Grenon from Canada won the women’s Masters Division with 2:58:30. In the wheelchair division, Krige Schabort of Cedartown, Ga. (1:47:13) won for the third straight year, while Shannon Schaffer of Kissimmee, Fla. (2:47:39), was the first wheelchair woman to cross the finish line.

On Saturday, Tim Young of Rochester Hills, Mich., won the 13.1-mile Disney Half Marathon with a time of 1:05.35. Jenny Scherer, Delavan, Wisc., was the top woman finisher, posting a time of 1:17.35.

In all, runners from all 50 states and 60 other countries took part in a variety of Disney Marathon Weekend events, such as the Disney Family Fun Run 5K, Mickey Mile and Mickey Marathon Kids Fest and the Disney Half Marathon in addition to the Disney Marathon. And, once again more than 5,000 runners put themselves to the ultimate test — Goofy’s Race and a Half Challenge which involved running the half-marathon on Saturday and the marathon on Sunday.

Many runners are celebrating their accomplishments by participating in “Marathon Monday” — all runners who participated in the marathon receive complimentary entry into Walt Disney World the day after the race.

About runDisney
The runDisney series is a program of half marathon and marathon events that provide runners unique opportunities to run through Disney theme parks. Race participants also get to earn Disney-themed medals, experience legendary Disney entertainment and guest service, and ultimately celebrate their accomplishments with a Disney vacation. The original event in the series, the Walt Disney World Marathon Weekend presented by CIGNA, takes place each January and features both marathon and half marathon distances. Other races at Walt Disney World in Florida include the Disney Princess Half Marathon presented by Lady Foot Locker in February and the Disney Wine & Dine Half Marathon in September. The Disneyland Half Marathon takes place each Labor Day Weekend in California. More than 75,000 people participate in runDisney events each year.

Disney’s Half Marathon, which took place bright and early this morning, wasn’t without stargazing opportunities. Among the record-number 27,300 runners who took part in the event were three of the anchors from NBC’s “Today” show.

Natalie Morales was the first of the trio to cross the finish line and she was later joined by Meredith Vieira and Al Roker.

The half marathon is the second event of the major events that take place during the annual Disney Marathon Weekend. A full marathon takes place tomorrow morning. Approximately 17,000 runners will compete in that race.

More than 53,000 runners and 110,000 visitors in total are visiting Central Florida this weekend for this year’s Walt Disney World Marathon Weekend.

Disney says that four of every five registrants for this weekend’s events come from outside Central Florida. Between a third and a half of them have booked rooms in Disney hotels — and they will spend an average of three nights on company property. It’s good news for Disney and while they won’t provide more detailed figures, it says events such as the marathon weekend have significantly improved business during what are otherwise lean times of the year.

Due to the popularity, Disney has even added an ethical bribe for 2011 called “Marathon Monday,” in which racers will get a free theme-park ticket to use the day after the final race…if their legs will take them!

The Walt Disney World Marathon Weekend began in 1994 as a single-day event with about 5,500 runners. This year, it stretches across four days, with races ranging from a children’s “Mickey Mile” to today’s 5-kilometer race that starts at 7 a.m., ending with the 26.2-mile race Sunday that runs through all four Walt Disney World theme parks, Disney’s Wide World of Sports complex and several Disney resort hotel areas.

The average party size of each registrant is between two and two and a half people, as many racers bring families or friends with them and it is reported that more than 300 U.S. military personal in Iraq will take part in a Disney half marathon in Baghdad during the Walt Disney World Marathon Weekend.

The runDisney Heroes Race in Baghdad on Saturday will involve service men and women based at Victory Base Complex trekking 13.1 miles through the Iraqi desert while simultaneously more than 27,000 runners – a new race record – run the same distance during the Disney Half Marathon. Both races will be linked by satellite so runners and spectators at both events can view live video of each race.

Now all these people need to do is learn how to save money and run their way to a vacation home and relax in their own private swimming pool after the event!

Here’s the route:

Turns out butterbeer is just as popular with Muggles as with witches and wizards…not to mention Orlando area vacationers!

Universal Orlando officials said yesterday that the one-millionth mug of the delicious frothy, butterscotchy libation was sold over the holidays inside The Wizarding World of Harry Potter attraction… which is some feat considering it has only been open since last June!

The nonalcoholic drink, served cold or frozen, was inspired by the Harry Potter stories of J. K. Rowling,  whose characters regularly enjoyed a pint or two. Rowling approved the secret recipe for the butterbeer now served at the park.

The Wizarding World of Harry Potter, situated inside Universal’s Islands of Adventure theme park, has a been a sensation, boosting park attendance 36 percent in its first three months and regular two hour lines just to get into the section.

Here’s some video from the day I tried it out…

January is very often the month that the Disney team gets into action to spruce up some of their rides and attractions and this January is no exception. Here’s what’s going on and what you can expect:

Magic Kingdom_® Park: Splash Mountain will be closed January 3 through January 31

Disney’s Hollywood Studios™: Star Tours will be closed through May 16

Disney’s Animal Kingdom_® Theme Park: Kali River Rapids will be closed January 3 through January 29

Disney’s Typhoon Lagoon Water Park will be closed for refurbishment through January 15

Fairways Course at Fantasia Gardens will be closed January 3 through February 20

Disney’s Blizzard Beach Water Park Closing for Refurbishment Jan. 16

Universal Orlando has announced significant prices increases for two of its popular annual pass ticket choices. Orlando locals and frequent attendees to Universal’s parks can expect to pay $20 – $60 more per annual pass in the new year. The Power Pass, which does not include parking and features blackout dates, was $139.99 for Florida residents in 2010 and has risen by $20 to $159.99 in 2011.

Also added are several additional blackout weeks during the busy summer season at the Islands of Adventure theme park with the idea being  to limit attendance in the exceptionally busy Wizarding World of Harry Potter, which was overwhelmed with crowds in 2010.

The price of the Premier pass, which includes parking and features no blackout dates, has risen a whopping $60, from $289.99 for Florida residents to $349.99. This huge price increase is not unexpected given the popularity of the place since Potter opened but it’s still something of a risk for Universal to take and could well alienate the very people they rely on most during quieter seasons.

Universal Orlando’s Preferred pass remains unchanged in price and ss of today, renewal prices for the Premier and Power passes have not changed, remaining at $149.99 and $114.99 respectively but they could change at any moment. Passholders may renew up to 30 days prior to their pass expiration dates, so if you have a pass that expires within the next month, it might be a smart move to renew early and beat any potential price increases.

It;s interesting to see how Universal have moved to increase prices in this economy as  no additional benefits have been added to either pass. In fact, with the Power pass’s increased number of blackout dates, passholders will actually receive less for more money spent.

When you compare this to Walt Disney World, a Florida resident annual pass good for entrance into all of Disney’s Orlando theme parks with parking included costs $403.64, now just $53.65 more than Universal’s pass and Disney’s pass includes admission to four theme parks to Universal’s two.

If you average this out a new Florida resident annual pass for Disney’s parks averages out at $100.91 per park whereas Universal’s average is now $175 per park. It’s certainly a bold move for Universal to potentially price out their most loyal fans and we’ll just have to see how it all pans out.

Exciting times are ahead at Florida Leisure as the company today announces that it will shortly be starting an online TV show. The company has been excited by the reaction to over 100 videos it made of the Orlando area in 2010 and has decided to move forward by making a regular TV show featuring some of the cool things to do in the Orlando area.

The company is now in the process of looking to hire two or three presenters. If you or someone you know might be interested then make sure you contact Nigel@FloridaLeisure.com as soon as possible for more details in regard to the opportunity.

Also, if you live further afield but still want to be part of the team, then the company is also looking for Guest Bloggers to talk about their Orlando experience on a regular basis. So if you love Orlando and want to be a part of it on a regular basis just let us know!

Some great news was announced over the New Year period as the good folks at Fun Spot announced they are expanding their International Drive location. Here’s the announcement.

LOCAL AMUSEMENT PARK BECOMES “HUGE-ER”

Fun Spot Action Park, just off International Drive in Orlando, is growing. The 13 year-old, 5 acre park has just purchased an adjacent 10 acres to triple its size. Plans are being developed for the expansion of rides, tracks and jobs at the Orlando Park.

The new, expanded park will include more tracks, more rides, including some possible water rides, and a smaller version of the SkyCoaster thrill ride located in their Kissimmee Park. Paint Ball and batting cages have also been suggested but no commitment has been made.

With over a million visitors to its two parks, Fun Spot is becoming the largest of the second tier attractions in Central Florida. Known for their multi-level go-kart tracks, and value pricing, Fun Spot holds 4 U.S. patents on go-kart track design. It is locally-owned and family-owned. For several years, Fun Spot Action Park was named the “Best Budget Attraction” by the Orlando Sentinel.

In addition to the 5 acre park near Universal Studios, there is Fun Spot USA, a 10 acre park in Kissimmee near Walt Disney World. Fun Spot USA is expanding with a new Soaring Eagle Ride, Birthday/Meeting Room, and is planning on opening its first rollercoaster, a Wild Mouse ride, this March.

Exuberant owner and CEO, John Arie Sr stated “This dream of mine has grown far larger than I ever expected. I was set to retire but I wanted to do this for my family, for the employees, for the community.”

John Arie, Jr, the COO and television spokesperson said, “Everyone is talking about job creation, well we are doing it. We presently have 200+ employees. With this expansion we hope to add another 200. For us this expansion is Huge!”

Here’s some video of how the Orlando parks look today:

Not a good start to 2011 for Universal Orlando as reports are coming in of a fire at Islands of Adventure theme park which has been partly evacuated this evening after a fire broke out.

Flames and heavy black smoke erupted at Dudley Do-Right’s Ripsaw Falls, a water ride at Islands of Adventure, about 5:30 p.m., a Universal spokesman said. Two lagoons that make up the island where the ride is were evacuated, park spokesman Tom Schroder said.Toon Lagoon is there.

“We do have a fire,” Schroder. “We evacuated the entire island where the ride is.”

More news as we get it.