The Best Present

For my 21st birthday I was surprised with amazing opportunity to travel around America's very own sunshine state – Florida, for a 3 week stay in one the most Disney’s fuelled holidays I would ever have the opportunity to embark on.

I have never been to America before, so this was to be a unique trip of a lifetime that I would probably never have the chance to do so again with my parents.

The day before our departure we had opted to stay close to the airport, at a nearby hotel, which would save on stress of travel in the morning, as our flight was very early in the morning.

Above: Photo from our outbound flight

After an evening filled with excitement of our trip ahead, it was evident that we were not due to get much sleep that night, and we had to be awake in the early hours of the following morning at around 4am in order to catch our flight.

We opted for the Virgin Atlantic VIP lounge, which I would recommend for anyone to do, as there are many services on offer for its customers who choose to utilise such lounges. For an additional 20 pounds per person, you are given unlimited free Wi-Fi, unlimited breakfast bar services, comfortable seating away from the bustling crowds in the departure gates, and other amenities. The service that we received in the VIP lounge was excellent, everywhere was kept incredibly neat and tidy, with cleaners touring the tables every so often to wipe and clear away any rubbish or mess.

Our flight was on time and we were one of the first to the gate and one of the first onto the plane. We had opted for the extra leg room seats on our outbound flight, something that I would also recommend trying to do if you book your seats early enough, as the near nine-hour flight can really takes its toll on your muscles and joints, so having the option to spread out was very useful.

I think Virgin Atlantic were some of the best airline providers that I have travelled with. The plethora of services available during our flight were immense, and we had a lot to do and choose from during the long flight. This is incredibly handy for those travelling with children as it will give them something to do during the long-haul flight.

There were a number of movies, shows, music, games and so much more on offer during this flight, that it made me not want to get off the plane. I chose to watch Disney’s Moana, very fitting with the theme of where I was heading to!

After 9 hours, we finally touched down in Orlando and made our way into the most magnificent airport. It even had a water fountain!? When they say that America trumps Britain, they are not wrong. America is a step above what we have back in England in so many ways. The service and experience we had just in the airport alone, rivalled that of any that we had experienced back home in our local airports.

Above: Water fountain at Orlando International airport

After a short wait to retrieve our rental car, we then headed to the highway to find our lovely villa resort. Mind you, this was not an easy place to find or get into, which actually made it great for security purposes in some way.

We were staying in the Lake Buena Vista resort, which houses some amazing self-catered apartments in the Lake Buena Vista region, which was a short drive away from International Drive.

We were actually given an upgraded apartment due to a problem with our original apartment, which made for a very nice surprise indeed. The villa apartment was incredibly spacious and gave us all of the amenities that we needed. Not that we would be spending much time there, as we would always be on the run doing something new and exciting.

The Lake Buena Vista resort gives some amazing views of Orlando. We were situated on the 3rd floor, which gave us some great terrace views on a morning, as we would often watch the sun rise over the Lake.

Above: our villa resort

Above: Wildlife at Lake Buena Vista

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