Getting There By Air:Orlando International Airport (MCO) Tel: (407) 825 2001 (general enquiries)
or 8463 (flight information).
Website:
www.orlandoairports.net Orlando International Airport is located 14km (9 miles) southeast of Orlando city center and some 35km (22 miles) east of Walt Disney World Resort. It serves both domestic and international destinations.
The airport is consistently voted number one for customer satisfaction in the USA
and facilities include a 446-room Hyatt hotel, 100 shops and restaurants, a full service bank, a hair salon and spa and a post office. Six car hire companies (including
Alamo,
Avis and
Budget) operate direct from the airport, with many more operating outside the airport.
Mears Transportation (tel: (407) 423 5566; website:
www.mearstransportation.com) offers a shuttle service from the airport to all the area’s hotels.
Orlando Sanford International Airport (SFB) Tel: (407) 585 4000.
Website:
www.orlandosanfordairport.com Orlando Sanford International Airport is located 29km (18 miles) to the north of Orlando. It has become a major UK gateway for many of the main British tour operators, and in the last few years has also been developed by various US low-cost carriers. It is much more limited in its scope and services but processes new arrivals extremely quickly compared to Orlando International. There are several car hire companies operating here, including
Alamo,
Dollar and
Hertz, and another more based beyond the airport, while there are numerous taxi and shuttle companies offering round-trip transportation to the hotels, including
Mears.
Getting There By Road:Hire cars are almost omnipresent in Orlando and companies like
Alamo,
Dollar and
National have some of the biggest fleets in the world here. Basic car hire is quite cheap - although various taxes and fees can add considerably to the price. UK nationals must remember to bring both parts of their driving license if they have a photo license. Seat belts must be worn at all times, front and back, and child seats must be used for under fives. Local speed limits vary from 55-70mph (88-112kph) on the motorways to as low as 15mph (24kph) in built-up areas (notably near schools).
Florida in general is served by two main motorways - I-95 from the northeast, and I-75 from Canada and the Midwest, both of which run down either coast, plus I-10, which runs the full width of the USA from Los Angeles to link up with I-75. You can reach Orlando from I-95 or I-75 via I-4, which runs east-west through central Florida. Almost all the attractions of Orlando can be reached via I-4, while Highway 192 is the main route immediately to the south serving the Kissimmee area. The (toll) Central Florida GreeneWay (417) then circles a large part of Orlando and is useful for reaching both airports.
Greyhound (tel: 1 800 231 2222; website:
www.greyhound.com) offers daily services from Jacksonville and points north, as well as from Miami.
American Coach Lines (tel: 1 800 488 6876; website:
www.americancoachlines.com) offers charter bus services from Maryland, North Carolina and Georgia to Orlando and Florida.
Getting There By Rail:Amtrak (tel: 1 800 872 7245; website:
www.amtrak.com) provides the main rail link to Orlando, with a direct service to downtown Orlando, plus Winter Park, 16km (10 miles) to the north, and Kissimmee, from New York, Philadelphia, Baltimore and Washington DC. The Silver Service operates daily from the northeast; since Hurricane Katrina, Sunset Limited from Los Angeles extends east only to New Orleans.
Getting Around:Public TransportThe rather plodding
Lynx bus system (tel: (407) 841 5969; website:
www.golynx.com) is Orlando’s only public transport, but it covers most of the city, Orlando International Airport, the theme parks and most of the main tourist areas. The routes (Links) are symbolised by pink paw-print signs. One-, seven- and 30-day passes are available, all of which represent significant savings if you take more than two regular-price journeys a day. Link 51 runs from the airport to downtown Orlando; Link 42 goes from the airport to International Drive, Link 50 runs from downtown to Disney’s Magic Kingdom; Link 56 runs from Kissimmee’s Highway 192 to the Magic Kingdom; and Link 38 runs from International Drive to downtown. In addition, many hotels offer free shuttle service to the theme parks, and all Disney resort properties offer complimentary transportation (bus, ferry or monorail) to the Disney parks.
In downtown Orlando, the free
Lymmo bus service operates around the city center. On International Drive (one of the main tourist thoroughfares), there is also the
I-
Ride Trolley (tel: (407) 248 9590; website:
www.iridetrolley.com), a cheap bus service linking all the main hotels and points of interest. There are one-, three-, five-, seven- and 14-day passes available, all of which represent great savings on individual journeys.
TaxisTaxis are common in all areas. Three of the biggest taxi firms are
Star Taxis (tel: (407) 857 9999),
Diamond Cab Co (tel: (407) 523 3333) and
Yellow/
City Cab (tel: (407) 699 9999).
Driving in the CityMost attractions are well signposted and easy to find on Orlando’s road system but traffic can be very heavy on key routes in the morning (0800-0930) and evening (1600-1800). Motorway I-4 is the key east-west route but should be avoided at rush hour, while International Drive can also be seriously congested in the evening. Universal Boulevard is a good alternative. To the south, Highway 192 is the main route to Disney from the busy Kissimmee area, but (toll) Osceola Parkway is often a better bet.
Car HireAs mentioned above, this is a huge area for car hire and there are rental offices all over the main tourist areas.
Alamo (tel: 1 800 462 5266; website:
www.alamo.com) and
Dollar (tel: 1 866 434 2226; website:
www.dollar.com) are easily the two biggest companies in town.
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The Columbus World Travel Guide has been published for 26 years and is sold in over 90 countries worldwide.
Word Travels is a comprehensive travel guide covering hundreds of cities and holiday resorts in more than 125 countries.
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