Florida is beautiful, but if you want to enjoy it to the fullest, it’s best to plan. Whether you’re traveling by plane or car, there are several things you can do now that will make your trip smoother and less stressful. The following tips will help you start planning your Florida vacation so that everything goes smoothly when your day finally comes!
Decide on your destination and start planning.
Grab a drink and sit down with the family. It’s time to start planning your trip! First, choose a destination. Do you want to go somewhere warm and snorkel? Or maybe visit some local attractions? Florida has both options available—and more! Once you’ve decided what type of vacation you want, research the weather in that area and make sure it matches your needs. If it’s too cold for swimming or just too hot outside, maybe try another state like California or New York City.

Once you have chosen where you will be going (or if there are multiple destinations), research what activities would be most enjoyable at those locations. Are there museums nearby? Are there parks full of animals? Is there shopping at every corner? Knowing what activities will be available can help keep everyone happy during their trip, which helps prevent boredom from early on into the vacation day(s).
Start planning 3-4 months before your departure.
Start planning about 3-4 months before your departure to save money. It’s better to plan early and make changes if needed than to wait until the last minute and hope for the best. Plan to know how much time you need at each park and plan accordingly. Once you have a rough idea of what you want to do, begin searching for deals on flights, hotels, and theme park tickets!
Book your flight early for cheaper fares!
Booking your flight early can save you money and help you get the time and seat you need. If you are booking a vacation, booking at least 3 months in advance is best because most flights sell out quickly if not booked early enough. There will also be cheaper fares, making your trip more affordable overall!
Save extra cash by staying at a cheaper hotel/motel room, or consider house rentals or booking through Airbnb.
If you’re on a budget, staying at a cheaper hotel/motel room is probably not your best option. You can also consider house rentals or booking through Airbnb. Ensure you know the cancellation policy and check with them before deciding where to stay.

Make sure you have internet access so you can use it whenever necessary. This will help in case there are troubles with your flight or other travel plans that need changing because of bad weather conditions or something else unforeseen happening on your trip. You should also ensure access to kitchen facilities so you can store food and make meals without having too much cost involved in eating out every day while traveling around Florida’s many attractions!
Bring a map and ensure access to roadside assistance information in case of trouble during the drive to your destination.
- Bring a map and ensure access to roadside assistance information in case of trouble during the drive to your destination.
- If possible, bring someone who can navigate and help with directions, especially if this is a first-time trip for you or your driver.
- Make sure you have access to a phone. Data roaming charges are very high, so it’s best to buy an inexpensive pre-paid phone from one of the major carriers and then purchase minutes as needed for calls and texts (you should be able to get prepaid cards at any gas station). A smartphone with GPS would also be helpful but unnecessary if all else fails.
- Bring along an iPhone car charger or similar device so that you don’t run out of battery when using GPS navigation apps like Google Maps or Waze while driving around town looking for attractions (essential if there are children in tow). You may need more than one car charger depending on how many devices need charging at once – it might be worth purchasing an adapter kit like this one so that all types of plugs can fit into each socket at once without needing extra adapters!
There are dozens of theme parks in Florida. Purchase park tickets ahead of time.
There are dozens of theme parks in Florida. Purchase park tickets ahead of time. Buy your tickets online and ensure you have a valid ID when you get to the ticket booth. You can buy tickets for specific dates or the most popular rides at each park to reduce your wait time.
The weather can vary, so plan the activities you’d like to do each day based on the weather forecast.
Planning a trip to Florida can be tricky, as the weather varies. However, if you plan your activities based on each day’s forecast, you’ll have a much better time!
- The best times to visit Florida are late winter and early spring (from March through May). This is when temperatures are milder, and most attractions will be open.
- The second-best time for visiting would be late summer or early fall (late August through October). Temperatures are still warm enough for swimming, but there won’t be as many crowds at theme parks or beaches.
- If you’re looking for something more adventurous than theme parks or beaches, try visiting during winter (December through February) when many outdoor activities are available year round!

Plan an itinerary that allows you to return home within 4-5 hours of your arrival time if flying back home, or at least 2 hours before airport/airline check-in times if driving.
If you’re flying out of Orlando and taking a connecting flight, it’s essential that your itinerary allows you to return home within 4-5 hours of your arrival time. If flying back home, or at least 2 hours before airport/airline check-in times if driving.
If you are flying into Orlando International Airport (MCO), the best way is usually by plane via MCO International Airport in Terminal A. Many shuttles can take you there from different areas around town, including Kissimmee and Celebration (which are both close by).
Planning for Florida early will help you save money and enjoy your trip more!
There are many reasons to plan. For example, if you plan, you can avoid stress and wasted time. You also won’t risk getting lost or missing out on an opportunity to experience something that might only be available at a specific time of year. Planning also gives you more flexibility in choosing the best ticket prices because they tend to fluctuate based on when they’re sold (e.g., sales earlier in the season mean cheaper tickets).
If booking hotels or renting cars online isn’t your thing—or if it just doesn’t seem plausible given how busy life can get—you could try visiting an agency close by before heading south: There are plenty of travel agents who have been around long enough to know what works best for each client’s needs!
Conclusion
Hopefully, you now feel confident to plan your trip to Florida. It can be a bit overwhelming initially, but the more research and planning you do, the better off you’ll be! Remember that some of these tips may not apply to every situation (for example, if renting accommodation from an owner or Airbnb), so make sure to look at each one carefully before making any decisions. We hope this article has given you some great ideas for preparing yourself for your next vacation at our beautiful state parks and beaches!
-
From Army Barracks to $3,400 a Foot: Bal Harbour Shops Mall in Florida
The Seaside Mall That Shouldn’t Have Worked Bal Harbour Shops didn’t begin as a luxury mall. In fact, the ground beneath it once held a U.S. Army barracks and POW camp. That was before Stanley Whitman paid $2 per square foot for the land in 1957, a record price for retail property at the time.…
-
What Aventura Mall in Aventura, FL, Got Right That Others Missed
Still Standing, Still Expanding In South Florida’s fast-flipping retail world, very few places stick around long enough to define their surroundings. Aventura Mall did more than that. Since the early 1980s, it’s stayed a fixture, growing while others folded, adapting without flattening its original identity. Shoppers still walk past the shell of what used to…
-
Sarasota County Courthouse, Sarasota, FL: Where Old Florida Still Breathes
Old Sarasota, New Hopes: The Courthouse That Watched a City Grow Sarasota County Courthouse does not blend into the background on Main Street – it holds its ground. Mediterranean arches, sun-bleached walls, and a tower rising above traffic, the courthouse looks back at nearly a hundred years of local ambition. Built while Sarasota was reaching…
-
Mall Dreams Failed Twice Before Dezerland Park, Orlando, FL Arrived
A Place Where the Past Keeps Changing There’s a building along International Drive that never seems to tell the same story twice. Long before Dezerland Park Orlando started pulling families in for go-karts and classic cars, the same address meant different things to different people: a shopping trip, a movie, maybe a hunt for sneakers…
-
The Real Story Behind the Haunted St. Augustine Lighthouse in St. Augustine, FL
Light on the Dunes Long before tourists lined up for sunset photos, a different kind of watcher stood on the edge of Anastasia Island. The tower, in its early shape, wasn’t built to impress—it was built to warn. To mark the inlet. To keep ships upright and crews alive. These were the first layers of…
-
Dadeland Mall in Kendall, FL: From Open-Air Plaza to South Florida Giant
Back When the “D” Still Meant Dadeland: A Mall That Outgrew Its Era Dadeland Mall is older than most of the people who shop there, but it has never stayed still. Sitting between US-1 and the Palmetto Expressway in Kendall, Florida, the mall grew from an open-air plaza into a multi-level commercial anchor that now…
-
Belleview-Biltmore Hotel: Gilded-Age Giant in Belleair, FL, that Refused to Disappear
At first glance, the building didn’t look like it could accommodate a full trainload of New Yorkers in Florida, but that’s exactly what happened. When Henry B. Plant opened the Belleview Hotel in January 1897, he didn’t just add another stop to his railroad network—he built a wooden giant with views across the Gulf of…
-
2025 Check-In: Melbourne Square Mall in Melbourne, FL Is Still Holding On
1982 Entry into Melbourne’s Trade Scene Melbourne Square opened in 1982 at 1700 W. New Haven Avenue, west of downtown Melbourne, Florida. It wasn’t the city’s first enclosed retail center—that title went to Brevard Mall, which started operating in 1962—but it was the larger of the two from the outset. The land under Melbourne Square…