Travel Photos and Travel

One of my favorite places in the world is New Zealand. It’s a country filled with friendly locals and amazing natural beauty. After I saw Lord of the Rings, I dreamed of going here because the scenery just looked stunning. The more I researched my trip, the more I realized that this country was built for outdoor activities. It seemed like every suggested thing to do or see involved nature somehow. Now, I can’t say that I am a big outdoors person. I like the creature comforts of home and I hate to camp. (I love flush toilets).

But when I heard of things like kayaking in parks, and bungee jumping in canyons, and tubing down a cave, I though well, I guess if I am going to try to do one of these things, doing it in a country like New Zealand will be the best place. Yet the more I looked into everything, the more I realized that these activities were going to cost me a lot of money. New Zealand may be beautiful but it is also expensive because there’s just too much you want to do. Luckily, I found good New Zealand holiday packages that combined a lot of activities and costs to help me visit the country and save money.

The packages were definitely cheaper than if I had priced everything out on my own and I would suggest you look into them if you are planning a trip.

And New Zealand?

It was beautiful. I had so much fun. Everything you read about the country is true. I had really high expectations for the country. People always told me how amazing it was going to be and that it will be more beautiful than anything I had ever seen. So the expectations were very high.

It lived up to it though. I had a lot of fun hiking across the Tongariro Crossing.It’s a one day hike that took about 8 hours to do and I got to see Mount Doom on the way. My legs killed the next day and it was hard to walk for a few days. (I’m out of shape!) I really enjoyed the Waitomo Glow Worm caves, seeing dolphins, hiking glaciers, and doing a wine tour on the South Island.

New Zealand was simply amazing.

For families holidays present one major problem: catering to everyone’s needs all of the time. Keeping the kids entertained and finding time to unwind yourself can prove near impossible, which is why Florida seems to be a perennial favourite with British families – offering the best of all worlds. Florida villa holidays are particularly popular and finding the right location to make your home is not difficult. Orlando villas offer easy access to the theme park capital of the world, while Florida villa holidays based on the nearby Space Coast offer the best of several worlds. The climate is the first pull, sub-tropical to tropical, which almost guarantees that you will have sun every day and temperatures that can’t be beaten. When it comes to action-packed holidays and plenty of breathing space, Florida is the place to go.

Out of this world
Space is central to Florida. The Kennedy Space Center is located close to Orlando, which is well known for its array of theme parks. The visitor centre and attractions at the Space Center offer an incredible opportunity to engage the kids in a theme park experience that might even involve a little education – not that they are likely to notice. Featuring daily ‘chats’ with real, live astronauts, alongside the opportunity to view former craft that have travelled to the stars – well the moon at least. The Kennedy Space Center also offers the chance to view the instantly-recognisable launch site of the shuttle, and although the shuttle programme is at an end there are still opportunities to witness launches of unmanned rockets from this famous landmark.

Naturally attractive
The Space Center is located on Florida’s ‘Space Coast’ which also offers the unexpected opportunity to visit some of Florida’s truly wild places. The Space Coast is renowned for more than just its astronomical achievements. The Canaveral National Seashore is described as one of Florida’s last undeveloped seafronts on the east coast of the state. Thanks to the needs of the Space Center itself this region of coastline has remained intact – offering a real chance to experience this unique landscape in its most natural state. The 72 miles of coastline that make up the Space Coast offer a vast range of tranquil beaches and small attractive and lively towns with a thriving arts scene and plenty of eateries displaying the best of Floridian seafood. If your tastes veer to recreational shopping the Space Coast boasts a range of unique shopping experience from galleries and studios to antique shops and more. For those who like their activities a little more, well, active, water sports – especially surfing – are a speciality of the region. The range of activities makes the Space Coast a great base and accommodation ranges from excellent hotels to beautiful Florida Villas.

Not forgetting the theme parks!
OK so out-of-this-world space centres and untouched shorelines aside – the Space Coasts closest city is Orlando – the world capital of the theme park. In the interests of catering to the needs of all the family the Space Coast and Orlando offer an incredible chance to mix relaxation with high-octane thrills for the kids (and secretly the adults as well) in the form of the area’s well-known attractions. From Disneyworld to the recently-opened Wizarding World of Harry Potter – at the Universal Studios theme park – the choices are endless. Only 35 miles from the Space Coast, Orlando offers the chance to combine the best of this planet and a couple of others thrown in.

Accommodating choices
Getting there is straightforward enough today – with a range of package deals on offer from major airlines and airports in the UK. Orlando and the Space coast offer just about every range of options you can hope for in accommodation. From high-class hotels to apartment or Orlando villas; resort parks are great for families offering onsite entertainment and care arrangements for kids when you really do need a little breathing space. Villas in Florida are a great choice and Orlando villas or Space Coast villas can offer make an ideal base for exploring the best that a Florida has to offer.