Florida Villa to Rent

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Five Bedrooms/Four Bathrooms, Private Pool, Lake View, Free WiFi + Fantastic Resort Facilities!

Our new luxury townhome with 5 bedrooms & 4 bathrooms (2x Masters with en-suites) will sleep 10 people in superb comfort. There is a well-equipped kitchen located adjacent to the dining area, with seating for 10. Flat screen TVs in every room, a multi-region DVD player and an Xbox are provided for your home entertainment. Free WiFi is also available. The property has its own private heated pool and patio area with a covered Lanai.

Located in one of Florida’s premier resorts, Paradise Palms is a gated community offering all the amenities you’d expect in a 5-star facility, including a pool, game room, fitness room and movie theatre. The grounds are beautifully landscaped and there is a poolside Tiki Bar and shop. The resort also offers a shuttle service to many of Orlando’s attractions at an additional fee.

Paradise Palms resort is just minutes away from Orlando’s main attractions. Walt Disney World is just a 10 minute drive and Universal Studios, Seaworld, Wet ‘n Wild, Legoland and other attractions are easily accessible. Highway 192 is just a couple of minutes away and here you will find an amazing range of grocery stores, other retailers, restaurants and bars.

If you are looking for a florida villa to rent, look no further. Check our booking calendar to see if your dates are available and give us a call to confirm your booking.

Selected Articles

Florida Villas - Beaches – Panhandle

This is the second in a series of articles looking at the Floridian beaches. This article will focus on the beaches in the Panhandle.

Compared to the East and West coasts, the Panhandle is a lot less crowded, although that is starting to change over time. Panama City is probably the most popular and comes closest to beaches elsewhere in Florida, but the majority of the rest are much quieter, while still maintaining their beauty. Due to its location, the Panhandle is very popular with holiday makers from the Midwest, as driving to it is less daunting than to other parts of Florida. Similarly visitors from Canada can be found there in substantial number.

The Emerald Coast – which is made up of Destin and the Fort Walton region. Instead of the large villas and townhomes favoured in other parts of Florida, it is common to find small cottages here. The Victorian style community, Seaside, attracts many visitors due to its quaint, old-fashioned style while in reality only being a few decades old. Grayton Beach State Park is a point of local interest impressing with its natural beauty.

Pensacola – a tourist hotspot (in Panhandle terms at least), Pensacola can be found on Santa Rosa Island and contains a buzzing centre packed with bars, clubs, shops and restaurants. A quiet alternative to Pensacola can be found in the Gulf Islands Natural Seashore, in total made up of over 140 miles of shoreline, home to a vast array of bird species.

Panama City – as mentioned above, this is one the busiest of the Panhandle beaches, with fantastic beaches and a renowned diving scene. Be warned, during peak holiday times this place can get very busy!

There is more to Florida than just beaches try our article What is there to do in Florida?

Driving in Florida

Unless you are actually staying at one of the in-house hotels at Walt Disney World, or at one of the hotels on International Drive, the likelihood is that you are going to need a car. European holiday destinations tend to be resort based where it is entirely possible to do all the things you want to do without ever jumping in a car. This is not the case in Florida, at least not for most people. The majority of visitors see their Florida holiday as being a mix of visiting theme parks, shopping and, at least occasionally dining out. While it is possible to do all of these things using taxis and courtesy buses, you are going against the grain of the way America in general and Florida in particular are set up. Florida is a very car-centric society, with much of its recent development being focused on tourism, and all of the tourist attractions are located off the motorway network. The following are a few tips about driving in Florida compared to the UK.

Hiring a Car

Although cars can be hired from a multitude of places in Florida, for those arriving from the UK, arranging for car hire from the airport makes sense. If you are doing so make sure that you do not consume alcohol excessively on the flight as Florida’s drink-driving rules are as tight as they are in the UK. Just about all cars are automatics and it is important to make sure that you hire one large enough for your needs. It is not much good hiring a vehicle with just enough room for everyone in your party, but not enough room for their luggage as well!

Rules of the Road

While most of the driving rules in Florida are common to those in the UK, there are some key differences, and the main ones are highlighted below;

Driving on the Right - As is common with many parts of the world, Americans drive on the right side of the road, and this is the most striking difference when driving in Florida. All cars are set up accordingly, with left-hand drive.
Turning Right on Red – Another noticeable difference from the UK is that you are allowed to turn right on a red light, providing it is safe to do so, and there is no specific indication that you are not allowed to. You must not just sail through the red light, you should come to a temporary halt first.
Lane Discipline – you should always indicate if you are changing lanes, but under-taking is permissible so be alert to the possibility that someone is under-taking you when changing lanes.
Speed Limits – these are clearly shown and should be followed. As mentioned above, drink-driving rules are strictly enforced and the limit is lower than in the UK. You are not allowed to have open containers of alcohol in the car at any time. If you get pulled over by the police, wait in your car until told to get out a police officer. Carry documentation with you at all times, including your driving licence and any rental agreement.
School Buses – If you encounter one that is stationary and its lights are flashing (they are hard to miss as they are bright yellow), do not overtake. This applies even if they are on the opposite carriageway.
Poor visibility – always have your headlights on during poor visibility, particularly if it is raining.
Wider Roads – lanes are wider than in the UK, which makes driving a little easier (unless you are passing between two large trucks, when they don’t seem very wide at all!). Similarly, parking spaces are bigger to accommodate the generally larger American car.

Florida Villas - Gatorland

This is the first of a series of articles looking at things to do around Kissimmee, once you have exhausted the main theme parks, Disney or otherwise.

Alligators are one of the distinctive features of Florida wildlife and it is common to see alligators as you are out and about. Even our resort of Paradise Palms has a few warning signs dotted around! A good half-day out can be had at Gatorland , an alligator focused theme park and nature reserve.

Gatorland was founded by Owen Goodwin over 50 years ago (1949) and is still owned and maintained by members of his family. The theme park is among the most visited in Central Florida, and is good value for money compared to some of the more pricey alternatives.

The park contains several hundred alligators and crocodiles and there is ample opportunity to get close up and personal, if you desire. As well as the more sedate educational aspects of the park there are a couple of shows well worth seeing. Alligator wrestling (rather him than me!) gets one of the keepers into a ring with a large gator and there is the Gator Jumparoo where a host of large alligators leap out of the water to grab chicken carcasses tied to a line, leading to an absolute feeding frenzy.

To get another view of alligators and their environment take a stroll along the boardwalk through the natural swamp area (110 acres) which contains breeding marshes and alligator nurseries. There is also a three storey observation platform giving a fantastic view across the whole park. This swamp area was used for filming sections of Indian Jones and the Temple of Doom.

Younger visitors may well enjoy cooling off in the Gator Gully Splash Park, although it might be wise to have a change of clothing to hand, because they will get very wet! For a more leisurely pursuit, you could try the narrow gauge railway which tours around the park giving an alternative view of some of the attractions.

Finally, for those of a more adventurous spirit, there is a zip-line which takes you more than a 1000 feet across the breeding marsh at nearly 60 feet and 30 miles an hour.

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