Disneyworld to Rainbow Springs

2-23-15 to 3-11-15

We left the Great Outdoors RV Resort in Titusville and drove west to Ft Wilderness, the camping area in Disneyworld. It's located just south of Orlando in Lake Buena Vista.

We were amazed at how large Disneyworld is and how much it has grown since we last visited it. There are many theme parks such as the Magic Kingdom, Epcot, several water parks, Animal Kingdom and Hollywood Studios. There is also a Downtown Disney with lots of shops and restaurants. Disneyworld now encompasses 40 square miles with about 30 different resort hotels.

We stayed for 4 days in the camping area called Ft Wilderness. There were about 800 camping spots, but they were arranged on different loops so you never felt that there were that many people. We were most impressed with the bus system. We did not have to use our car and we never had to wait more than 15 minutes for a bus. They have certainly learned how to control the crowds. And there were crowds. We decided to skip the Magic Kingdom and spend a day at the Epcot center. We like this theme park because it is not as crowded as the Magic Kingdom and has displays by different countries instead of kiddy rides.

The campground was nicely done, had full hookups, clean restrooms, walking paths and lots of activities for families and kids. The campground, as well as the theme parks were rather pricey. It's now $100 a day to get into the parks and that's what the campground also costs. An expensive vacation for families.

We left Ft Wilderness and drove a couple of hours north of Orlando and off of I 40 near the town of Donnellon, Fl. Our destination was Rainbow Springs State Park.

All of the Florida State Parks have been very nice. The sites here were fairly secluded and had water and electricity hookups. The bathrooms and showers are always very clean and are free. Many of the campgrounds also have a washer and dryer.

To our RV friends: if you are planning on visiting Florida, the best months are January through March. The weather is beautiful and there really aren't many bugs and mainly no humidity. That's why all the snowbirds are here, and to get away from their cold weather. However, the campgrounds are mostly full, mainly with snowbirds, so reservations well in advance are a must. The more popular campground reservations need to be made at least a year in advance.

Rainbow Springs State Park is divided into two parts. The campground is on the east side of the river and the headwaters and day use area are on the west side. The day use area has a walk through beautiful gardens and swimming and snorkeling in the emerald colored spring waters. Kayaking is very popular in all of the springs.

My sister Jane drove down from Jacksonville with her granddaughter to spend the night with us. We enjoyed showing them around.