Travel Tips Archives - Page 15 of 21

Busch Gardens Tampa Animal Tours

March 29, 2023 By Lindsay Leave a Comment

My mom and I were lucky enough to do several add-on Busch Gardens Tampa Animal Tours when we visited the park back in January. Today, I thought I would tell you what you can expect if you book one of these tours and provide a few tips.

Busch Gardens Tampa Animal Tours

You can see lots of animals with a regular ticket to this Tampa Bay theme park. So, don’t feel pressure to buy the add-on Busch Gardens Tampa Animal Tours. However, I can say from experience that these tours really add something to your theme park day. Plus, lots of these are unique experiences I’ve never seen at another theme park! Granted there is a penguin tour, which looks similar to the SeaWorld Orlando tour we did back in 2022. However, by and large, this park has lots of unique offerings!

Serengeti Safari

I think one of the must do’s when you visit this park is the Serengeti Safari! You can typically get this one for around $50/person, sometimes less, sometimes more. However, it’s the only place I’ve been to where you literally ride a truck out and get to hand feed giraffes! My mom and I absolutely loved this one! It’s so unique and fun! If we ever go back, we will be doing this one again.

I will say, the tours earlier in the day appeared to have fewer people on them. So, we will try booking one of those as our tour was completely full and there were a few too many people in our group in our opinion. Some people attempted to hog time with the giraffes and kept trying to film themselves with the animals instead of moving out of the way. Nonetheless, we were able to feed the giraffes and got awesome pictures from this experience!

Australia Insider

To be honest, my mom and I booked this one on a Black Friday promo and weren’t even sure what we booked. Haha! It ended up being really cool though. We got a personal tour of the Kangaloom area, including meeting some birds. Then, we got to feed some kangaroos! It was neat to hold a cup with food while a kangaroo approached and then put their paws on the cup too as they ate! This one is around $50, depending on when you do it. Personally, it’s only worth it if you are a fan of kangaroos and/or want to feed them.

Aldabra Tortoise

The other add on I was most excited for was the tortoise! I love turtles and tortoises! So, getting to feed and be up-close with one of the world’s largest tortoises was amazing! My mom wasn’t really looking forward to this one, but quickly found herself enjoying it! They remind me of dinosaurs with their ancient looking skin and bodies. So much fun! For around $20/person, it’s one of the more affordable options and it’s well-worth it in my opinion.

Hippo Insider

This one took us behind the scenes to a special area to pet a hippo! You don’t realize how big these creatures are until you are right beside one! I don’t recommend wearing long sleeves or anything fancy on this one though as the hippos secrete “blood sweat” which can stain your clothes! They hand you wipes immediately afterwards to clean your hands, but just something to keep in mind if you book this one. It costs around $40, but is a neat experience for sure!

Tips for Animal Tours

Look for deals. These tours can be pricey. We booked most of our experiences during their big Black Friday/Cyber Monday special. The Safari wasn’t on sale during that promo, so we used an annual passholder discount on it.
Make a schedule. Some of these tours are offered only 1-2 times a day. So, check out the various tours of interest and see if times conflict before booking them.
Arrive early. All but one of these experiences (the Australia Insider one) met at the same location towards the back of the park. The tour check in features a nice tent with some shade to wait for the tour under. They also have some free water you can drink while you wait. It was nice to sit and relax for a few minutes before our tours in this area.
Wear comfortable shoes. By this I mean closed toe shoes. You will want your feet protected from both animals and the environment when you enter an animal’s habitat. Trust me.

So, have you ever done one of the Busch Gardens Tampa Animal tours?

Spring in Pigeon Forge, TN

March 23, 2023 By Lindsay Leave a Comment

If you are wondering what all there is to do during spring in Pigeon Forge and Gatlinburg Tennessee, then I have the post for you! Keep reading to see where you should plan to visit on your trip!

Spring in Pigeon Forge

This time of the year is the perfect time to head outdoors and experience nature! That’s why the Great Smoky Mountains make a great travel destination! From a theme park to a bbq festival, there’s lots to do here!

Dollywood in Spring

There are actually two different festivals happening in spring 2023 at Dollywood, as I detailed in my spring at Dollywood post last week. Depending on when you go, you can experience the I Will Always Love You Celebration or the Flower and Food Festival! Check out my post to learn more about both of these exciting events!

Skyland Ranch

Last year, the first chair lift in Pigeon Forge opened! It’s at a place called Skyland Ranch! The chair lift should provide the perfect view of Pigeon Forge anytime of the year!

Spring Rod Run

Personally, I’ve never experienced this event. However, I know that it’s an extremely popular event. In fact, there’s a spring and a fall Pigeon Forge Rod Run! In 2023, the dates are April 13 -15 and September 14 – 16. So, if you are a car enthusiast, this may be the event for you!

Spring at Anakeesta

Another place I like to highlight for fun in spring in Pigeon Forge is actually in Gatlinburg. Anakeesta is a mountaintop attraction with several different events happening throughout the year. In 2023, you can experience the new nighttime event Astra Lumina! Then, April 14th through May 29th, they will have Blooms and Tunes happening! So, there’s something fun for everyone to enjoy! Personally, I enjoy just walking around and taking in all of nature’s beauty! I also love the gnome village!

Music in the Mountains Spring Parade

I’ve also never experienced this event. However, the Music in the Mountains Spring Parade is happening on April 28th at 5 PM on the Pigeon Forge Parkway! I imagine it would be a great way to enjoy spring in the Great Smoky Mountains!

Bloomin’ BBQ Festival

If you happen to be visiting the area on May 19th or 20th, then you are in luck! You can experience the awesome Bloomin’ BBQ Festival! There are several tasty bbq vendors as well as good bluegrass music to hear at this awesome event in Sevierville! I attended this event last year. Unfortunately, it was un-seasonably hot last year and I didn’t get to enjoy the music as much as I would have liked to. However, I absolutely loved the bbq I tried!

Spring in the Great Smoky Mountains

As you can see, there are so many things to do in spring in Pigeon Forge, Gatlinburg, and Sevierville, TN! So, which of these things have you or will you experience?

If you are visiting the area during other seasons, here are my other posts to help you plan:

Things to Do in Hershey, Pennsylvania

March 21, 2023 By Lindsay Leave a Comment

I was pleasantly surprised to learn that there are so many things to do in Hershey, Pennsylvania. I always assumed it was just the theme park. However, when I planned my trip back in 2021, I was happy to see there were so many options. Here are some of the things you can experience when you visit!

Things To Do In Hershey

While I was pleasantly surprised by the sheer number and variety of things to do in Hershey when I visited, I have to admit that I didn’t get to experience everything I would have liked. Unfortunately, things were still re-opening from the pandemic (understandable). So, while I wasn’t able to experience all of these things personally, I will give my opinion on the things I did.

Visit Hersheypark

I think I have to begin this post with the most obvious thing to do in Hershey, PA: visit Hersheypark! This is the wonderful theme park that is themed to the chocolate company! It’s one of the few parks I know of that includes admission to a zoo as well as a waterpark during the warmer months! There’s a lot to do here and you can easily spend a few days enjoying this place!

Hershey’s Chocolate World

Located right beside Hersheypark is Hershey’s Chocolate World! This is a must visit for any chocolate lover! In fact, I’ve already written an entire post detailing all of the fun you can have at Chocolate World! Again, I highly recommend spending a half to a full day here, depending on your interests. Such a fun and unique place!

Visit the Musuem

If you are a history buff, then you must visit the Hershey Story! It’s a museum filled with artifacts telling the story of Milton Hershey! They also offer some fun add-on experiences/classes here from time to time. I was very disappointed that I didn’t get to do one on my trip. However, I did enjoy visiting the museum as admission was included with our stays at the Hershey Lodge and The Hotel Hershey. You can click those links to read my reviews of those resorts.

Visit the Gardens

Staying at one of the official resorts also offers free admission to the beautiful Hershey Gardens! It’s hard to believe that the gardens were started when Milton requested a rose garden. Now, all of these years later it’s grown into this big, beautiful place! My mom and I enjoyed walking around here and just looking at everything! We especially liked the butterflies!

Get a Spa Treatment

This is one of those things that I wish I had done on my trip. I’ve actually never gotten a spa treatment. However, the idea of a chocolate spa treatment sounds appealing to me. Maybe someday!

See a Show

I didn’t realize it until we arrived, but there’s a theater as well as a few entertainment venues in Hershey, PA. You can catch a Broadway caliber show, a famous music act, or even catch a Hershey Bears hockey game! I recommend looking at the schedule of entertainment whenever you plan your trip!

So Much to See and Do

It would be easy to spend several days here and not do everything! There are just so many things to do in Hershey! So, have you done any of these things?

Spring at Dollywood

March 15, 2023 By Lindsay Leave a Comment

Now that it’s mid-March you may be wondering what you can expect during spring at Dollywood. I visited last year around this time, so I thought I would share some highlights of this season at the theme park!

Spring at Dollywood

In recent years, Dollywood has hosted different festivals depending on when you visit. There’s the classic Dollywood: Flower & Food Festival as well as the newer I Will Always Love You Music Festival. I’ve been lucky enough to visit the park for both festivals and will highlight some of the things at each of them in this post.

I Will Always Love You Music Festival

If you are planning to visit the theme park between mid-March and mid-April, then you can enjoy the newest event at DW: I Will Always Love You Music Festival. This event celebrates Dolly’s hit song! The park will be highlighting song writing as well as Dolly’s style of music in general during this event. In 2025, I wrote a I Will Always Love You Music Festival Guide detailing what fun there is to be had during this celbration.

Since this event celebrates the anniversary of the song being written, it makes sense that there’s so many performances to catch! Plus, the regular entertainment around the park will incorporate some of Dolly’s favorite songs into their performances! Check out the park’s schedule when you are visiting to see which special performances you can catch during this event.

There’s also some special event decorations in the Showstreet area as well as Market Square! You can also find and purchase some special event merchandise! Plus, there’s some special event foods throughout the park to sample! Overall, this is a great addition to the park.

Flower and Food Festival

If you are heading to Dollywood from mid-April to early June, then you can experience the beautiful Flower and Food Festival! This is a great event as there are so many great things to see and eat! I loved walking around and taking pictures of the wonderful Mosaicultures. Plus, don’t miss the wonderful umbrella sky! You can view both of these things as well as some food in my Instagram post below!

When my mom and I visited last year, it was a rainy day. However, it was still nice to walk around the park and take pictures. We really enjoyed getting a sampler pass and trying all different kinds of foods from the festival. You can see even more food in this other Instagram post:

Spring Fun

As you can see, there’s lots to see, hear, and eat when you take a spring at Dollywood visit! So, do you have plans to visit during either of these festivals? If not, I highly recommend visiting during summer at Dollywood! Additionally, Christmas in the park is awesome as is their Great Pumpkin Lumi-Nights!

Spring in Orlando Theme Parks

March 7, 2023 By Lindsay Leave a Comment

I know that lots of people plan trips to align with school breaks. So, I thought I would do a post highlighting the various festivals happening during spring in Orlando theme parks!

Spring in Orlando

March and April tend to be very popular times to visit the theme parks since lots of kids have school breaks. So, many of the theme parks have special events to give the crowds more to experience as well as to draw more people in. Here’s a look at those special events happening in spring in Orlando in 2023!

Flower and Garden Festival

Walt Disney World hosts the Epcot International Flower and Garden Festival every spring and it’s one of the most beautiful times to visit this park. In years past, I have loved walking around the park and viewing the topiaries. Disney brings out some of the same topiaries every year, however they also refresh a few and add a couple new ones every year. So, it never gets stale. This year, they added a Princess Tiana and Encanto topiaries! Plus, there’s loads of beautiful landscaping around every corner!

I would be remiss if I didn’t mention the food at this festival. Unfortunately, I don’t have as much experience in eating food at this festival as I do with Epcot Festival of the Arts. However, in 2019 I really enjoyed the grilled street corn and would love to eat it again! This festival does a great job of highlighting fresh, in season fruits and vegetables.

Not to be out done in the entertainment category, Disney also hosts the Garden Rocks Concert Series during this festival. Some of the performers I’d be quite excited to see. Others, I’m not as familiar with, but I’d be happy to give them a listen. Note: the last concert is on July 3rd.

If you are heading to Walt Disney World between now and July 5th, I highly recommend spending at least half a day at Epcot just for this festival.

Mardi Gras at Universal Orlando

I already wrote an entire Universal Orlando Mardi Gras 2023 Guide. So, you know that I’m a huge fan of this fun spring event. I also wrote a review of the Mardi Gras Float Ride and Dine add-on last month. If you are planning to visit Universal Orlando Resort between now and April 16th, then you too can experience Mardi Gras at UO! Unfortunately, the last concert has already taken place here. However, there’s still the awesome parade and great foods to try!

Spring at SeaWorld Orlando

Lastly, SeaWorld Orlando is hosting the Seven Seas Food Festival on Thursdays, Fridays, Saturdays, and Sundays until May 7th! If you are visiting this weekend or next, then you may also catch their St. Patrick’s Day Celebration as well! The park will also be celebrating Cinco de Mayo during the last weekend in April and first weekend in May. Both of those events will add some food and entertainment to the park.

Last year, I tried some tasty food at the Seven Seas Food Festival and really liked it. Unfortunately, we missed the Seven Seas Concert Series as we were tired from a full day in the park. The concert series is a mix of well-known artists, smaller bands, and tribute bands! I recommend looking up the schedule if you are heading there before May 7th.

Orlando Theme Parks in Spring

As you can see, all three theme parks celebrate spring with a special festival. So, which is your favorite spring in Orlando festival?

You can check out my other seasonal theme park guides here: