Jan 20, 2012
Almost everyone you talk to about Orlando says, "Go to Gatorland!" None of them mention it has a theme song though!
*Get admission to Gatorland with an Orlando multi-attraction pass from Travergence.
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Almost everyone you talk to about Orlando says, "Go to Gatorland!" None of them mention it has a theme song though!
*Get admission to Gatorland with an Orlando multi-attraction pass from Travergence.
A Forgotten Orlando Attraction
It features players jumping off walls trying to catch a projectile moving at over 100 miles per hour. And clubs where it is played encourage you to bet on it. How can a sport with so much speed and gambling have such limited popularity? Once able to easily attract crowds of thousands at venues across the US, Jai Alai's popularity doesn't extend much outside of Florida nowadays.
Jai Alai is commonly described as the fastest ball sport in the world. Gameplay involves players using a wicker basket glove to catch and throw a ball, which typically reaches speeds of about 140 miles per hour (225kph), inside a three-walled court called a fronton.
Orlando Jai Alai almost closed in 2009, but it has managed to survive long enough to celebrate its 50th anniversary this year.
The future of Jai Alai as a spectator sport, however, still appears dire. Orlando Jai Alai is often very empty and it is brutally criticized on its own website as a stinking dump that shouldn't be bothered with. It's not just fans that have turned away from the sport though--the fronton is also having a tough time attracting players.
There are lots of reasons not to go to Orlando Jai Alai; the venue is smelly and empty, the players supposedly aren't as good as they used to be and its not really close to any other attractions. There is at least one compelling reason to take in a match next time you're in Orlando though: you may never get another chance to see this unique foreign sport that somehow managed to briefly captivate an impressive, enthusiastic American fan-base. Think of it as a smelly history lesson.
*Use Travergence to find other things to do in Orlando.
Fave Five Travel Articles From This Week
Here's what we enjoyed reading this week:
Can a Hotel Room Ever Be Too Big? via USA Today Travel
10 Questions to Ask Before Booking Your Next Family Trip via National Geographic's Intelligent Travel
How Technology Will Take the Stress Out of Travel via Wired UK
"Ultra-Aware" Customers are the Future of Travel (interview with Johan Svanstrom of Hotels.com) via CNNGo
30-Story Hotel Built in 15 Days via Huffington Post Travel
Fave Five Travel Articles From This Week
Here's what we enjoyed reading this week:
Insider Travel Tips From Campaign Reporters via The New York Times
Goodbye TripAdvisor, Welcome to Verified Reviews on Expedia via Tnooz
Video Reveals What Happens When Your Bag Goes Behind the Rubber Flaps at Check-In via The Daily Mail Online
Southwest Airlines Fights New Airline Advertising Rule via Dallas News
How to Travel With Friends and Family Without Killing Them via Wanderplex
[Hans Christian Andersen] was a skittish traveler who always packed a heavy coil of rope in his trunk in case he needed an emergency fire escape.
MSNBC
Travergence is Looking For Guest Bloggers
Hi there dudes and dudettes. Travaergence is looking for guest bloggers to write about San Francisco, Orlando, Hawaii and British Columbia. Any takers? Email [email protected] if you're interested.
Want to Be Healthy? Travel.
Not that you need another incentive to travel, but I've got one for you anyway. More vacation time may lead to better health. What's that I hear bellowing back from the webosphere? A deafening deluge of "duhs"? Allow me to go on.
Given the purpose of many trips is to put a little juice back in the ol' batteries, it's no surprise a recent survey of American travel behaviour discovered "81% of travelers feel energized . . . after returning from a leisure trip." What does make you sit back and go "huh" is the finding that travel "heightens creativity" and "may even resist Alzheimer's disease."
The findings of this survey make me think of the value of shutting your brain off every once in a while. Let me clarify. Your brain is never really "off" while traveling, but it doesn't have to work as hard as it may work in other situations. Sitting on a beach, or casually chatting with the locals in a new town doesn't exactly require a lot of mental stamina.
The great thing about shutting your brain off with travel, versus say shutting your brain off by viewing a Twilight marathon, is you might actually learn something while your mind is resting. When you come back home you're a little wiser and your rested brain is ready to start firing on all cylinders again. Sounds healthy to me!
A Lesser-known Disney World Secret
The "most magical place on Earth" is also, apparently, the most magical wheat-free place on Earth. Forget splash mountain, the fireworks, or all the lions and wildebeest roaming around Animal Kingdom--Disney World is a celiac's paradise.
The customer service described on gluten-free websites is seriously next level (one guy talks about a buffet chef personally walking him through every item and pointing out what was safe).
PassPorter.com has a helpful post about where to eat gluten-free at Disney World. So does AllEars.Net
If you want the buffet guide treatment, email [email protected] about 72 hours before your trip.
*Book admission to Disney World from Travergence!