Florida Posts

No Strikeouts for Baseball Celebrations. Visit to Knock One Outta the Park!

March 22, 2012 No Comments

In the spring a young man’s fancy doesn’t necessarily turn to love – it turns to spring training and Opening Day of the Major League Baseball Season.  This year, the World Series Champion St. Louis Cardinals will meet the Miami Marlins On April 4, 2o12.  Not only is it the first day of the season, but the Marlins will also christen their new baseball stadium, Marlins Park.  The stadium is state-of-the-art building with a retractable roof and natural grass turf.  What a great way to start a new season!  Recent history indicates that The Marlins have luck on their side since that last five out of six stadium christening games were won by the home team. Playing the World Series Champion Cards, the Marlins (72-90 last season) may need it. If you want to make history, travel to Miami and attend the opening day at the new stadium.

If you are more the parade/festival type, the Findlay Market Parade marches the Cincinnati Reds into their Opening Day on April 5th against The Miami Marlins.   There’s no other place to be in baseball than at a Reds’ Opening Day.  I doubt that there are few true Reds fans that have not been to at least one Opening Day, as its a staunch tradition celebrating 93 years.

This extravaganza all began in the late 1880s, when baseball teams promoted aggressively for attention and for fans. Parades were one way to garner that attention.  Over time, the Reds excelled and rose to the top as the King of Opening Day.  The team also has the rare honor of always opening its season at home, hence why that tradition has lasted so long.  Throughout the ups and downs of the team, there’s always been a parade and a lot of festivities prior to the first game of the season.  As Sparky Anderson, (Manager of the Reds at the time), said “It’s a holiday – a baseball holiday! Ain’t no other place in America got that!!”  

Also on April 5, Vin Scully will begin his 63rd year announcing the LA Dodgers baseball games when the Dodgers face the San Diego Padres.  Following the Dodgers from Brooklyn to LA in 1958, Scully boasts the longest, continual history of any broadcaster with one professional sports team.  Only Tommy Lasorda has been with the Dodgers longer! Talk about team loyalty! The Dodgers will face the Padres. And, who doesn’t enjoy listening to Scully announce each game? So, take a trip to San Diego and both watch and hear history through Vin Scully’s play by play.

On April 10, the Dodgers will face the Pittsburgh Pirates.  This will also mark the 50th anniversary of the Dodgers’ first game in Dodger Stadium.  So, in the course of 5 days you can take in a lot of Dodger history if you are a fan.  Make a trip of it.  Visit LA, take in the sites, and see some great baseball.

A truly big anniversary this year is when the Boston Red Sox celebrate Fenway Park’s centennial on April 20.  The team will face its arch rival, the Yankees.   It will be exactly 100 years to the day when Boston’s American League played the New York Highlanders for the very first game in the stadium.  The stadium was not yet complete when it hosted it’s first game.  However, the right field grandstand and the main grandstand around the infield structures were completed and still are use today.

The “Big Green Monster” (left field wall) was painted its traditional green in 1947.   The highest among current Major League Baseball Teams at 37’2″, the wall serves to not allow cheap home runs with line drives.  Batters can normally only get a double out of what would be a home run on other fields.  So, for a great step back in time head out to Boston for this once in a life time event.

The New York Mets and the Houston Astros will both celebrate 50 years of hard ball.  So, visiting either of these teams’ stadiums this year will be a real celebration.  Whether you live in your team’s town, or you have to travel to see the boys of summer, this year is full of celebration for America’s favorite pastime.

So, if you are going to travel, take your 7th inning stretch before you fly and check out our airport hotel partners on ParkSleepFly.com.    You can choose to stay before your flight, or after you return, get airport parking for the duration of your trip, and receive transportation to and from your airport terminal.  You’ll arrive relaxed and refreshed at the stadium since you had a good night’s rest the night before.  Whether you are a die hard Red Sox fan, or you love the Cardinals, you can always find a great rate with ParkSleepFly.  And, do your best impression singing “Take Me out to the Ballgame” for me at your favorite ball park.  Oh, and I’ll take a hot dog and a box of popcorn, too!

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Family Day – Spring Break – Travel Ideas and Beyond!

February 15, 2012 No Comments

Wow, it seems like the holidays just ended and now Family Day and Spring Break are upon us. Time to make some plans in a hurry. Even though Canadian winters can be a long, time passes by quickly and before you know it is time to take a break.

There are just so many options but so little time. Need some inspiration? A recent survey show that sounded top destinations Canadians love to travel to are:  New York City, New York, Orlando, Florida, Minneapolis, Minnesota, Fort Lauderdale, Florida, Las Vegas, Nevada, and Phoenix, Arizona.

Who doesn’t want to escape the snow and cold to warmer climates?  The vitamin D supply is running low, so why not go and soak up some naturally in sunny Florida or Arizona?  Dipping your toes in the Atlantic Ocean or the Gulf of Mexico is enough to cure some of those winter blahs.  After all, Family Day is about getting together, reconnecting, enjoying each other’s company – time away is a perfect solution.

I remember old family vacations. My mother was a school teacher and my dad had a knack of trying to teach us historical facts, that may or may not have been true.  However, it was more about being together for a few days and enjoying the time together.

So, if you are planning that special Family Day vacation or Spring Break, enjoy every minute and don’t get started off on the wrong foot with your family.  If you are making that trip across the U.S.-Canadian Border to the Detroit Airport, you already know what a hassle that can be.  The wait to cross the border alone can be over an hour.

No one, and I mean no one, wants to ride in a car with cranky kids in backseat asking how long  before you go through the border.  Then, you need to drive on over to DTW, find a parking space, wait for the shuttle, go through security again, then… wait for the flight.  And, you are doing this on a couple hours sleep.

Instead, why not book a park, sleep, and fly package at a hotel near the Detroit International Airport.  You stay the night before, after, or both.  Included in the package is a night’s lodging, parking for the duration of your trip and a ride to and from the airport terminal on the hotel’s shuttle.  All this for one low price.

Check out our website at ParkSleepFly.com.    We offer several hotels that service DTW.  The rates are reasonable and you can leave for your Family Day vacation or Spring Break rested and relaxed, even if the kids are keyed up.  Start your trip off right and stay the night before your flight!

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Orlando in October

September 24, 2008 No Comments

Unfortunately for Orlando, Florida, there has been a decrease in travel.However, for the traveler who has always wanted to visit Orlando, or for the traveler flying out of Orlando, now is a good time to book airport hotels.Perhaps you have family or friends who live in or near Orlando, Florida.Even if your flight arrives late at night, you can have a place to sleep without asking your friend or family member to drive to the airport at that late hour when you book a room at one of the many Orlando airport hotels on ParkSleepFly.Your friend or family member can pick you up the next morning, and they can pick you up from the hotel instead of the airport, saving the need to pass through parking security and potential morning traffic near the terminals.

If you’re flying out of Orlando, now is the time to book your trip.Rates are projected to remain low until the elections, meaning that the month of October is a good month for travel.For less than $130, you can get a room for two people and up to fourteen days of parking.If you need to park longer than fourteen days, each additional day is as low as five dollars.You won’t find a lower airport parking rate than five dollars a day after two weeks of free parking with one night at a hotel.This rate was quoted for a trip beginning October 1, at the AmeriSuites Orlando Airport Northwest hotel, which carries a three star industry rating and a four star customer rating, based on over ninety surveys completed by customers of ParkSleepFly after their trip.

What can you expect to pay if you book elsewhere?Your rate for one night at the Courtyard Marriott in downtown Orlando would be almost $180.The Courtyard Marriott carries an industry rating of three stars, just like the AmeriSuites Orlando Airport Northwest hotel, but you can expect to pay an extra $50, and it doesn’t come with parking.The least expensive parking rates if you park in one of the airport lots is $10 per day, or $140 for the two weeks.Add that onto the $180 and you can expect to pay $320 for a one night stay in a three star hotel and two weeks of airport parking.Remember that parking at the airport will cost at least twice as much per extra day as parking at the hotel you can reserve with ParkSleepFly.

Furthermore, you can’t reserve your airport parking with Orlando Airport; airport parking is on a first-come, first-served basis, which means you might not even find a parking space in the $10 a day lot, in which case you could expect your airport parking to cost $17 dollars per day, or over $230 for two weeks, just to park.