Friday, April 07, 2017

It’s a Large Room After All

One more article in my Orlando series has surfaced on the Girls That Roam website. I visited this hotel, oh, a few minutes ago now, but a little online investigation reveals that it’s all just as it was, so no worries.

This was one of those articles where I had to separate what I like from the mission statement of the hotel. I think it comes through that I didn’t care for Disney’s Coronado Springs Resort a great deal, but it’s a fine property. It’s just not for me. It’s meant to to be a family hotel, and for a family visiting Disneyworld, it’s fantastic. For the childless, queer, cranky woman traveler who would really rather be backpacking through Asia or sneaking into Cuba, not so much.

I don’t think very many people like me end up at family resorts in Orlando, so I imagine that on balance, most guests are quite satisfied with their stay at this property.

Thursday, March 30, 2017

Discovering What’s Real in the Home Town of Fantasy

Some time ago, I went on a press trip to Orlando, Florida, and had an unexpectedly good time. I say unexpectedly because, well, there’s no kind way to say this: I didn’t expect to have a good time. Theme parks don’t always do much for me, I dislike being hot, and the state’s medieval politics were a turn-off.

But, as tough of an audience as I was determined to be, Orlando won me over. Turns out there’s more to the city than theme parks, and even they weren’t so bad. (Well, except for SeaWorld. SeaWorld is an abomination. But the others were fun.)

There’s also more to the city than just the city, as the area outside of town is very unspoiled and wild. I went inner-tubing, nearly saw manatees, and did spot my first-ever bald eagle.

During my trip, I also ate well and experienced a lot of gay nightlife. In short, Orlando has a lot more to offer than I think a lot of coastal folks give it credit for. And if you’re interested in the long version of the story, here it is, courtesy of the Girls that Roam website.