Best USA holiday with two teens

[couchparsnip]

Can mumsnetters inspire us? We have the chance to spend up to £6K on a once in a lifetime holiday next year. Where do we choose? The kids (13 and 15) want to visit Universal Studios in Orlando which is possible but is there another option we should consider?

For a nice change go here one evening, the car and bike nights are great even if you are not interested the atmosphere is great, live music in the street etc
myoldtownusa.com
We also had a couple of days off and drove towards Miami / Fort Lauderdale just to see a different area and have a rest
Stayed in this area
www.davie-fl.gov
This hotel
www.wyndhamhotels.com/laquinta/sunrise-florida/la-quinta-sunrise-sawgrass-mills/overview?CID=LC:LQ::GGL:RIO:National:53060&iata=00093796
Did some shopping here
www.simon.com/mall/sawgrass-mills
Went to this beach
www.hollywoodfl.org/1049/Hollywood-Beach

If it’s Universal they want, look very carefully into accommodation. Universal is really expensive, but a night on property will get you Express passes for two days (you buy park tickets on top) which are really worthwhile. And then you could spend time off property, maybe in a villa, and do other things in Florida that aren’t so crazily expensive.

What time of year are you thinking? It’s Disney World’s 50th next year and so it’s expecting crowd levels will be very high. I imagine that will spill over into Universal. Official date is 1st Oct but there haven’t been announcements for the plans yet.

You can also save a bunch by flying indirect or into Miami.

Also, be mindful Orlando prices (flights and accommodation) are generally higher in the summer. So if you’re limited to summer hols keep that in mind. Outside of the peak times you might get four return economy flights for around £2100 or so if you’re lucky (direct). One day park to park Universal ticket per person is around $180.

i'd take them hiking Utah Arizona Grand Canyon etc.

Why does USA have to mean Florida? So many wonderful things to see in this country and every time someone mentions coming to the US it’s always Florida answers.

BritWife Because the kids in the OP want to go to universal. It’s their choice. If I was like you I could come on here and say there are so many more wonderful countries, so why America? But I don’t, because you know.. different strokes and all that.

You asked for another option so I would say California rather than Florida. So much more to see and do. We went because the dcs wanted to but I surprised myself by loving it.

When were you thinking of going? Summer is pretty tough weather wise. How long are you going for?

You can zip by internal flights easily enough if you fancy going elsewhere - city or countryside?

Why not go to Universal Studios in LA instead and then do a California road trip? I know many people just love everything Orlando has to offer but I much preferred the Universal in CA as it is a working studio as well as a theme park.

Driving in LA is a bit of a nightmare due to traffic but so many cool places you could visit in CA. San Francisco, drive the state highway (great if you have watched “Pretty Little Liars”), hang out at Santa Monica Beach, go to San Diego. If you had a bit more time you could go to Yosemite.

If you plan it right and stay in just regular motels you should be able to do it on your budget. £6k for (assuming) four of you in Orlando won’t go very far. Having all that entertainment right there means you could easily spend £1,000 to £1,500 on passes alone.

Or drive down the east coast? Lovely trip to plan through 💓

California road trip starting in San Francisco then drive the Pacific Coast Highway to LA. Universal Studios there plus Knotts Berry Farm and Six Flags not too far either if the kids are big theme park enthusiasts

universal in CA is much smaller than FL and doesnt have all the same rides
ive been to both and much prefer FL

Limited to school holidays but that could mean Easter.
We like the idea of a CA road trip! Going to price that up

£6k won't go that far if there are four of you and you want to go in school holidays. I priced up two weeks in California for my family of 4 for 14 nights and struggled to get the price between £10k, but a few ways to shave money off - fly indirect, either SC or stay in basic, budget hotels, join loyalty schemes (the West Coast Wanderers and California Dreamers FB page has lots of help on budgeting), and keep days in theme parks to a bare minimum as they tend to run to approx. $100 per person per day unless you get 14-day tickets, which work out much cheaper per day than that, but depends how many theme parks you can cope with!

*below, not between

California and coast!
San Fransisco
LA-Universal and Disney World
Santa Monica
Santa Barbara
Monterey
Carmel
Lovely temperate climate

Disney great
Warner brother studio tour
Sony pictures
Walk of Fame

Lots of lovely scenery

Alternatively New York and tour of New York State

If you want Universal I would agree California over Florida but I would also second New York or suggest Washington DC or Texas both have so much for teens / older children.

Last Year we went to San francisco, Yosemite, the grand canyon, bryce canyon, Las Vegas and Zion national park last summer. It was amazing. Lots of people tell me 'you must see Disneyland' but let me tell you 'you must see Yosemite'. If you ever like standing outside it is mind blowing.

Have a look at the Exodus tour company for their family trip for ideas.

We went to Yosemite and Sequoia national parks- brilliant

Great contrast to the other Americana of Disney World

My 11 and 14 yr olds had a fab time at both parks and disney

Not cheap though

I always fly indirect when going to Florida as it works out cheaper. Flying into Miami/Fort Lauderdale/Tampa is also cheaper than Orlando if you don't mind the drive. I usually go in August and it is sweltering, the kind of humidity that takes your breath away.