Lunch at Planet Hollywood

After searching fruitlessly for a Starbucks in the area for several hours, it was now approaching lunch time and I was getting very hungry.  I remembered when I was in Downtown Disney having seen a Planet Hollywood and really wanted to check it out. 

I headed to Planet Hollywood, which is only about 10 minutes from Cypress Pointe Resort , and was able to easily find a parking spot and was sitting down before I knew it.  When I first walked in I was overwhelmed by all the “decorations” hanging on the walls throughout the restaurant.  I grabbed a table in the bar and sat back, trying to take in my environment. 

My waitress came over quickly after I sat down, but I could barely hear her because the music was playing so loudly throughout the restaurant.  There were TVs everywhere showing clips of movies and other entertainment pieces, but again, I couldn’t focus on them due to the blarring music. 

I ordered a burger and a margarita and ate as quickly as I could.  Planet Hollywood, in my opinion, is a cool concept but just slightly missed the mark for me.  Now that being said, I am a fairly young girl, and enjoy high-energy places as much as any other 27 year old.  But, Planet Hollywood just didn’t do it for me.  There was WAY too much going on within the restaurant and the music was deafening.  I will say that the food was good and the service quick and friendly, but not a place I would choose to go back to. 

So, if you are looking to grab a quiet lunch with your family on your next Orlando vacation, Plane Hollywood is not the place to go!!!

The True Cost of a Vacation

Continued…

Did you know at the Glenbrook Resort a 7 bedroom home with a pool, if three couples decided to vacation together, has an average nightly rate (before taxes) of just $65 per couple?  At Windsor Hills, that rate per couple would be about $86 a night. Also many of the homes have private pools and spas so you and your friends can enjoy countless hours of swimming without “pool hours” to adhere to.  If you chose a home with a private recreation room, you could enjoy a relaxing game of pool, hours of Poker, and if it gets late, you can send the children to bed and not even have to hire a babysitter!  Imagine watching the “Big Game” on a 50′ inch flat screen!  How about taking all the kids to the resort’s on-site movie theatre for a movie day?  Eating at home is not only a less expensive alternative, it can also be lots of fun - you could have a ” make your own pizza and tacos night” and if there was a night you just didn’t feel like cooking, you could contact a vacation chef to prepare an incredible meal, like shrimp and artichoke linguine, chicken curry, or a roasted vegetable meatloaf for less than $5.50 per person.

 Orlando has some of the best attractions in the world and I’m certainly not suggesting avoiding them all together, but instead of going to a different attraction every day, choose just one or two, and make them the highlight of the week.  If you have children, have your children contribute to the cost of their ticket before you go on vacation.  Mousavers.com gives some excellent suggestions on how children can help you save for a vacation. One suggestion was, all “found” money goes in a vacation fund which could be a glass jar on little Suzie’s dresser.  If an average attraction ticket is about $70, a child could purchase their own ticket by saving just $12 a month for six months.  How special would that trip to Disney feel for a child who knows the value of hard work and the reward of saving ?

In these hard economic times, yes we have to make changes to our lifestyles and to our way of thinking, but sacrificing a quality vacation isn’t the answer and it certainly won’t bring relief. So, ask yourself?  What is the true cost of a vacation?  It’s not just money, gas, food and tickets - the value isn’t monetary.  In fact, it will cost you not to take one.

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