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In Love with Florida(Sunday Mirror Via Thomson Dialog NewsEdge)IT'S steaming hot and overrun with mice, yet thousands of British couples go there on honeymoon every year. Where is it? Florida, of course. And it's hardly surprising the sunshine state is so popular with lovedup couples. It provides just about everything you could want for a romantic holiday. There's the Latin bigcity excitement of Miami, dreamy beaches and, of course, lots of other sweethearts - from Mickey and Minnie to Beauty and her Beast. Best of all, Florida is comfortably do-able within just two weeks, provided you know your way about. Which we didn't. Happily the Never lost navigation system in our Hertz hire car kept us on the right track as we travelled from Miami to Sarasota and Orlando. A honeymoon is a holiday to the way, giving my new six-footer husband Chris extra legroom in Virgin's Premium Economy cabin. It was also worth paying extra for smoothies in the lounge before take-off - all part of the recovery process after the Big Day. For sheer wow factor, choose a hotel right on Miami's glam South Beach - regularly voted one of the top 10 beaches in the world. We checked into the South Seas Hotel on Collins Avenue... where the beach was literally outside the back door. South Beach stretches for miles and the warm Gulf Stream waters flowing up from the Caribbean meant it was a perfect temperature for a dip. Lifeguard huts in pastel colours line the sand and are pieces of art in themselves. You can hire a sunbed or parasol, chair or cabana, but they cost a whopping 10 dollars (pounds 5.70) each - so spend the whole day on the beach to make the investment worthwhile. The hotel was also just two blocks from the world-famous Ocean Drive, where stars such as Madonna and will Smith can be spotted out on the town and there are more movie and rock stars than grains of sand on the beach. This has to be my favourite place in Miami, with its rows of pastel pink, aqua, blue and green art deco buildings by day and bright neon lights at night. It had a bustling, exciting atmosphere and people were dressed to impress. We had a lovely meal by candlelight at A Fish Called Avalon on Ocean Drive, where there was live background music. Starters were about $9 (pounds 5.20) and mains were $20 (pounds 11.40). Desserts were also reasonably priced - and exceptional. Our Neverlost steered us in a pretty straight course from Miami to Sarasota, about three hours away. The resort's amazing beach has sand like sugar between your toes and is fringed by grassy sand dunes. Near the beach is St Armand's Circle, a smart shopping and eating quarter. GO for dinner at Tommy Bahama's, which is a restaurant and shop selling clothes and home accessories. The decor is tropical, the food Caribbean. We tried Key Lime Pie for the first time... Mmm. After all our walking, our feet deserved a treat, so we headed to the mall for a foot pampering session - much more social than in the UK where you have to go in separate rooms! After this luxury we decided it was time to revert to childhood and hit the Disney parks. Neverlost brought us safely to Orlando's Magic Kingdomin two hours. We decided to spend the last few days of our honeymoon at a hotel within the Disney resort because it's just so convenient. You have free transport to all the Disney parks day and night, free parking, extra hours on the rides for Disney hotel guests only - and everything you need at your fingertips. However, make sure to choose at least a four-star resort for your honeymoon, because the others don't have king-sized beds! We stayed at The Port Orleans Riverside Resort, a grand Southern-style mansion with a river and parks. The bed was so comfortable you didn't want to get up in the morning, and there were his 'n' hers' sinks to avoid arguments over the bathroom. You need to plan ahead to make the most of your stay at Disney. Extended hours for resort hotel guests only happen on certain days and are well worth the effort of a slightly earlier rise. And use the Fast Pass system that lets you jump the queues. In the evening we visited Epcot for the Illuminations: Reflections of Earth firework display, which was out of this world. We ate authentic Italian at Epcot's L'Originale Alfredo di Roma Ristorante in the Italian area. It's a good idea to book ahead as the restaurants fill fast on firework nights. On another day we had lunch in Blighty, at the Rose and Crown pub in Epcot's United Kingdom zone - where it was great to speak to some people from Essex. WE also bumped into Mary Poppins, Eye-ore and Tigger, who proceeded to marry us all over again. Most of our evenings were spent at Downtown Disney, with shops, restaurants and clubs open until 2am. We had some great meals at Bongo's Cuban Caf, created by Emilio and Gloria Estefan. Of course there is more to Orlando than the Disney parks and the Neverlost system guided us to many malls and outlet stores. Then we crossed town to Universal Studios which was just like walking on to a film set. The park has an express ticket system, just like Disney's Fast Pass. However, if only one of you (in our case, Chris) wants to go on one of the rollercoasters, they can join the singles' queues - which move fairly quickly. One of our most memorable days in Orlando was spent at Discovery Cove. It was worth making the flight across the Atlantic just to swim with a dolphin there. Our day can only be described as magical. They only admit 1,000 guests per day so you have a great deal of personal service, about one member of staff to five guests. We opted for the honeymooners' package which included a dolphin swim, a private cabana with treats and lunch at the Laguna Grill. We swam with tropical fish and rays, then explored the lazy river and bird sanctuary. All you have to take is your swimwear. At the park you are given dolphin-friendly sunscreen, a wetsuit, toiletries, snorkel and mask. The water in the dolphin enclosure is freezing so do opt for the wetsuit. We spent time in our cabana on sunbeds, toasted with champagne and fed chocolates. I'm only planning on getting married the once... but if I had to do it all again I'd opt for a Florida honeymoon every time! |