Formosa Gardens Estates is a small gated community of around 130 luxury vacation rentals located in Kissimmee, Florida. Only 5 minutes from Walt Disney Worlds main gate, Formosa Gardens is one of the most sort after communities for any Orlando theme park vacation. Only about 30 minutes from Orlando International Airport it’s nice to know that once you have left the airport you can be in the pool having a cocktail within an hour of arriving.

All of the Orlando vacation homes on Formosa Gardens have there own private pools and nearly all have spa’s. Most of the villas to rent on Formosa Gardens are larger than your typical vacation home and tend to have larger pools to go with it, many overlooking Star Lake which is in the centre of the community.

Map of Formosa Gardens Estates in Orlando, Florida

Formosa Gardens is an exclusive development of spacious homes ranging from a 3000 sq ft 4 bedroom homes all the way up to nearly 9000 sq ft  8 bedroom homes. Located on larger than normal lots these Florida vacation homes are a great place to stay if you want privacy and luxury all rolled in to one.

Formosa Gardens is located just off Highway 192 and less than 2 minutes to restaurants such as Outback Steakhouse, Carrabba’s Italian Grill, Millers Ale House (Sports Bar), Red Lobster and many more. There is also a supermarket at the local plaza as well handy shops such as a Walgreens Pharmacy, Walk-in Clinic, Pizza Parlour, Subway sandwiches and the usual burger bars. Everything is within 2-3 minutes drive of Formosa Gardens making it a great place for your dream Florida holiday.

Formosa Gardens Estate is less than 5 minutes to Walt Disney Worlds main gate which then takes you to all the Disney theme parks but you are also close to all the other Orlando theme parks with SeaWorld, Aquatica and Discovery Cove only 15 minutes away, Universal Studios and Islands of Adventure about 20 minutes. If it’s water parks you are after to cool down on a typical hot Florida summers day then Wet’nWild and Disney’s Typhoon Lagoon and Blizzard Beach are also about 15-20 minutes. Busch Gardens in Tampa and Legoland are the farthest parks from Formosa Gardens with these being about 60 mins away.

If you fancy a day trip to the beach you have Clearwater just past Tampa on the Gulf Coast which is about 80 minutes away and is great if you want still warm waters but if you are after surf then head to Cocoa Beach the home of the World famous Ron Jon’s Surf Shop and Cocoa Beach Pier. At both beaches you can hire jet ski’s, surf boards and anything else you are likely to need.

If you are not too tired from all the theme parks and fancy a night out then Formosa Gardens is also very close to Downtown Disney which has lots of restaurants like the House of Blues (which also has live music most nights), Wolf Gang Puck, Planet Hollywood and many more. It also has an AMC 24 screen cinema which also has in movie dining and a full bar. Opening in Fall 2012 is a new the Spitsville 30 lane 50,000 Sq Ft bowling alley. As you can see Formosa Gardens Estates is close to all the Orlando action but still very private if you just want to chill out by the pool.

On our web sites www.vr360homes.co.uk and www.vr360floridavillas.co.uk we have around 30 luxury vacation rentals on Formosa Gardens Estates all privately owned and locally managed. To check availability or to ask questions please contact the owners direct via the contact form or phone numbers on each homes listing page.

Below is just one of the luxury 6 Bedroom homes we have available on Formosa Gardens:

If you have stayed at Formosa Gardens before please let us know what you think and if you thought it was a good location for all the Orlando theme park attractions.

To find out more about renting one of these luxury vacation rentals on Formosa Gardens please visit are web sites where you can see lots of photos and also take a 360 Virtual Tour around most of the homes.

Formosa Gardens Estates Vacation Rentals – VR360homes.co.uk

Formosa Gardens Estates Orlando Villas to Rent – VR360FloridaVillas.co.uk

Anthropologie at the Mall at Millenia in Orlando Florida

We travel to Orlando, Florida a few times a year, but at the top of my personal shopping list is a browse round a small store in the Mall at Millennia called Anthropologie.  Located in a quiet corner on the ground floor of the mall, the seating outside will be full of husbands and boyfriends falling asleep as their partners are trying on stunning outfits!  The window displays are something to behold and admire, even before you enter the shop, changing with each season, they often use inventive ways to recycle old everyday items into stunning works of art.  It’s an interesting place to be swathed in lovely clothes and fabulous home décor.  A different world to all the chain brands you would normally see in the mall, Anthropologie is for those that want to stand out from the crowd.  I’m a huge fan of the knitwear, and make it a personal goal to finda new addition to my wardrobe with each visit.  The assistants in the store are very friendly, and only too happy to help put together an outfit for you, or run for a different size from the changing room.  For those looking for a bargain, you have to explore the ‘sale grotto’ at the rear of the shop, tucked away on the left hand side.  Enjoy! – Claire, VR360

The maiden A330 aircraft, named ‘Beauty Queen’ was Virgin Atlantic’s first long range twin engined aircraft and is the most efficient aircraft in its class today.   With UK Manufactured Rolls Royce Trent 700 engines, the planes will use 15% less fuel per seat than the airline’s A340-300 aircraft, delivering Virgin Atlantic’s commitment to flying a lower carbon fleet.

Virgin Atlantic’s A330 aircraft will no longer offer an Upper Class service, making more space on board for 59 Premium Economy seats and 255 Economy seats.  The remaining A330-300 aircraft will still offer the Upper Class service.

Virgin Atlantic’s A330 aircraft features a revolutionary new entertainment system by Panasonic.  The system uses the latest touch screen technology allowing passengers to scroll and swipe through over 300 hours of content, quickly and easily. Virgin Atlantic travellers flying on the A330 will be able to send and receive emails and texts on their Blackberries, handheld PDAs and other mobile devices.

Exciting news for those not travelling on the A330s;  Virgin Atlantic is spending more than £50 million pounds to refit 7 of it’s Gatwick based Boeing 747′s, the work started this month (April 2012) and will be finished in October with a team of 125 staff working over 95,000 hours to complete the job. Once completed these will be used on the Orlando route and will feature a new inflight entertainment system and new seats in economy and premium economy.

Virgin Atlantic Flight Tracker App now available from iTunes

Download Virgin Atlantic’s Flight tracker from iTunes

This is the entrance to the Highlands Reserve golf course community.

As you enter the Highlands Reserve community, passing the waterfall entrance, manicured lawns and flowering borders you drive down the wide palm tree lined boulevard and gain a sense of quiet and space.  Highlands Reserve is a large estate with smaller communities within it, each with an individual look and feel, most of which are named after famous golf clubs including, Birkdale, Troon, Gleneagles, Prestwick and the Belfry.  The homes are on large plots and not as close together as some other nearby communities.  Each home is privately owned and therefore furnished individually from it’s neighbour, with many of the Highlands Reserve villas, having either a forest, conservation or golf course view, which are great if you want to pop out in the evening and have a chip around, but don’t get caught by the ranger!!

A children’s play area near the entrance to the community, is ideal for the kids to enjoy, surrounded by forest offering some welcome shade.

Ideally located, next to Highlands Reserve is Berry Town Center, which offers a Publix supermarket, gas station, various take-aways and a few restaurants / bars.  Across the road from Berry Town Center, is a CVS pharmacy with RedBox, where you can rent DVDs for an evening of family viewing!

The Highlands Reserve championship golf course was built in 1998 by Mike Dasher and is not your typical Florida golf course due the fact that it is set on one of the highest areas in Florida which offers great views over the course and surrounding area. This par 72 6,647 yard golf course has pine tree lined fairways and very large fast undulating greens making it a great test for all skills levels. There is a large uphill driving range which runs parallel to the 1st hole so you can get a feel of what your first tee shot of the day will be like as well as a putting green right next to the first tee.

Personally I have found the course very generous from the tees with very wide fairways and only one water hazard on the 10th hole, but the greens are a different matter, they are very fast with lots of false fronts, side and backs so your iron play needs to be good and you need to know your yardages if you are going to attack the pins!

You can book tee times direct via the Highlands Reserve golf web site or maybe try Golf Now as they offer discount tee times which maybe cheaper than you can get direct.

Highlands Reserve is an easy 60 minute drive from the main Orlando International airport.

For more information about booking a Highlands Reserve vacation rental please visit the vr360homes.co.uk web site where you can contact the owners direct.

Other nearby community include:

• Tuscan Hills
• Ridgewood Lakes
• Windsor Hills

The Proper Pie Company is located on Highway 27, just 1.25 miles south of the I-4, a hidden gem to both tourists and residents. As the name suggests, this English style bakery whips up over 200 freshly baked pies a day.

With over twenty different flavors, from the traditional to the eccentric, there is a treat in store for every member of the family. Customary English favorites such as Steak and Guinness, Cornish pasties, and Steak and Kidney fill the shelves of the deli. They are accompanied by some more unusual, yet equally mouth-watering varieties like Chicken Curry, Shepherd’s Pie in a Pie, Chicken Cordon Bleu, and Beef Stroganoff, just to name a few. All of the pies can be left in the fridge for 4 to 5 days, and they all freeze well.

Other British favorites to be found in the shop are Banger Rolls (a mild pork sausage wrapped in pastry), Sausage Rolls (a home-made mix of sausage meat, onions and herbs wrapped in pastry), and Scotch Eggs. Additionally, The Proper Pie Company sells a large variety of hard to find British frozen goods. Both the English style sausages and back bacon are two of the bestselling items in the shop.

In addition to those, black pudding, white pudding, kipper and haddock fillets and English white bread are also available. If you’ve got a sweet tooth, you won’t be disappointed by visiting the Proper Pie. The shelves of the store are crammed with a huge variety of British sweets, with everything from Bounty to Yorkie to Refreshers. If you’re more of a savory person, there’s good news for you too. The Proper Pie offers an assortment of crisps, such as Walkers, Monster Munch, Hula Hoops, Twiglets and Quavers.

The shelves of the shop aren’t just filled with sweets and crisps though; they are chock-full of other English favorites. Items such as curry pastes, Shreddies, Pot Noodles, pickled onions, marmalade, baked beans and salmon spread will make you feel like you’re standing in the middle of a Tesco, not a bakery in Orlando.

During holiday seasons, such as Christmas and Easter, the Proper Pie provides the favorites that are often unable to be found. At Christmas time, mince pies, Christmas cake and selection boxes cram the shelves. Around Easter, chocolate Easter eggs are abundant, and the smell of Hot Cross Buns fills the air. The Proper Pie Company truly is a home away from home for all of your holiday cravings; be sure to make a stop there, taste one of their delicious pies and do a bit of shopping.

Located on Highway 27 in Davenport and close to many of the Orlando vacation rental communities such as Ridgewood Lakes, Southern Dunes, Tivoli Manor and many more.

For more information, visit www.theproperpiecompany.com

]]> http://vr360floridavacationrentals.com/2012/03/27/proper-pie-company-davenport-florida/feed/ 0 Florida Villas Meat Pie Cornish pasties Pies http://vr360floridavacationrentals.com/2012/02/27/one-more-disney-day-february-29th-2012/ http://vr360floridavacationrentals.com/2012/02/27/one-more-disney-day-february-29th-2012/#comments Mon, 27 Feb 2012 09:50:03 +0000 Florida Villas http://vr360floridavillas.com/?p=1390 ]]> To celebrate the leap year in 2012 Walt Disney World, Florida will be open for 24hrs from 6am on the 29th February.  Why not make a day of it and see if you can last the whole 1440 minutes at the park. Take this rare opportunity to explore the park at your leisure and enjoy everything the Magic Kingdom has to offer.

If you manage to go and last the 24hrs please let me know what is was like on the comment section below.

Further to this post a few days ago I have now added a video from the actual day so check it out below and maybe you can be there next time in 2016!!!

When ever the air temperature is below the temperature of the pool (85F on average) you are losing heat so it’s essential you put the pool cover on especially in January and February when the average day temp is 65F-70F and at night is can get in to the 30′s.

Most pool pumps run from 8-9am until 5-6pm and the pool heater will only run when the pump is on so over night the pool blanket is the only thing to stop you losing all the heat and it normally does a pretty good job but make sure it’s on properly.

One other thing to note is that most pool heaters are electric and not gas so they don’t have a flame. They take heat from the air outside (also known as heat exchangers) so if it’s very cold outside (below 50F) they may not produce any heat even if it runs all day.

So on cold days it’s even more important to keep the pool blanket/cover on when ever you are not swimming.

For Orlando Villas with a spa the process is the same so if you are trying to use it on a cold day/night it may take a long time to get hot if at all.

Highly recommended, is the clam chowder at the Boston Market restaurant, but make sure you get extra crackers (mine always get stolen by Claire!).

The Celebration Snow Fall runs daily from the 26th November to 31st December at 6pm, 7pm, 8pm and 9pm.

Below is a video from last year to give you an idea of what it’s like, sorry about the music but this was the best video I could find on youtube. If you have your own video that is better please let me know and I will add it.

9th Hole at Ridgewood Lakes Golf Club in Davenport Florida

Located in Davenport Florida and close to all the main Orlando theme park attractions Ridgewood Lakes Golf Course is a challenging par 72 layout with water on nearly every hole. Ridgewood Lakes is a semi private golf club which is open to the public and green fees range from $25 – $60 depending on the time of year with winter being the more expensive time to play.

Only 3 weeks until I am back there and looking forward to playing at Ridgewood Lakes in shorts and tee shirt so fingers crossed the weather is still nice and warm.

3rd hole at Ridgewood Lakes Golf Club in Davenport Florida

We have a large selection of Florida villas to rent on Ridgewood Lakes so check out our web site.

Fantasy Surf in Kissimmee, Florida is an adrenaline filled water ride and what a change from the theme parks? This week I went over to Fantasy Surf in Kissimmee  for some aquatic adventure fun and I really enjoyed it! Fantasy Surf hosts a great indoor water sport activity termed flowriding – fun for all ages you can slide, ride and surf the ultimate waves –  and its a safe and controlled environment so good for those new to surfing and want to try it out – but also great for practising tricks if you’re an accomplished surfer.

The impressive indoor FlowRider surf system is a real experience – like surfing, snowboarding and skateboarding rolled into one – set up on an artificial beach setting, the machine size is 32 ft wide and 49 ft in length and can allows 25-30 riders each hour. There are cushioned surfaces all around for safety and for those in your group opting out it’s still a lot of fun watching others develop their new or expert surfing skills!

Whilst you’re there you can visit ‘The Lull’ cafe for casual dining and shop for surf-style retail at the ‘Offshore’ store.

Fantasy Surf offers 30 minute sessions on the FlowRider waves for adults and children – minimum height requirements are 42″ – for bodyboard, 52″ for Flowboard. Its $25 for one adult session and $20 for one child session – but there are multiple session savings so check out Fantasy Surf – Ticket Prices for more details.

You’ll find Fantasy Surf located off Poinciana Boulevard between US HWY 192 and State HWY 535, open 7 days a week – Venue and cafe open from 7:30am and FlowRider from 9am – all closing 10pm

If you’re thinking about booking your vacation in Orlando – we have over 570 Orlando Villas available to rent for your perfect holiday – many with 360 degree virtual tours and all homes 15-20 minutes away from Disney and the main Orlando attractions. You can also keep up to date on Things To Do in Orlando here on this blog.