Day 1: Arrival
Are you itching for a staycation? Or ready for a Florida vacation? Recently I had the opportunity to stay at Wyndham Orlando on International Drive. I gathered my girlfriends together for a wonderful girl’s weekend! Check in was at 4 p.m., and customer service was magnificent! Masks are required in the lobby, and when inside any other building on the property. Our room was absolutely amazing! We had a two-bedroom overlooking the fitness center, two spacious pools & bar. The location is perfectly situated in the epicenter of Orlando’s ever-popular International Drive, one of the great benefits of Wyndham Orlando Resort International Drive is you can stay where you play! It is located near 1-4, Florida’s Turnpike, SR 528 and only 12 miles from the airport, it is easy to get there. It is in a walkable neighborhood, and the resort also offers complimentary shuttle service to Universal Studios, Islands of Adventure, and SeaWorld Orlando theme parks. The resort is also pet friendly!! If you like to learn more head to their website here.
After settling into the room, we headed to The Escape Game. It was just a five-minute walk from the hotel. We reserved our room a week ahead of time since all rooms are private for just your friends & family due to COVID-19. We chose the Special-Ops room, which is the hardest room! You only have an hour to figure out all the clues. We accomplished it in the nick of time with only three minutes remaining! Also, the room is never actually locked if you have an emergency or bathroom break. It was so much fun, and definitely worth it! Afterwards we headed to our reservation at The Sugar Factory. This restaurant has been on my must-do list for years!! We all ordered burgers and fries for dinner. For the fishbowl drink (that we shared), we ordered the Classic Watermelon Pina Colada, which was designed and tested by artist Bruno Mars. Then we had to have a desert to share, which was the Campfire Spiked S’mores Milkshake. Everything was delicious and I know I will be back again! We ended the night at I-Drive Star Bar which was on the way back to the hotel. It is the small bar next to the Orlando Star Flyer (the world’s tallest stand-alone swing ride). Great place for a nightcap!
Day 2: Icon Park & Ole Red
We started our morning with some yoga with the Mirror app workouts. My friend has the Mirror, which are live home workouts, and so we ended up using the app for a class. We may be on a vacation, but sometimes a quick workout can make you feel better after a long night of fun. For lunch we made reservations right next door at Cooper’s Hawk Winery & Restaurant. The restaurant has a wine tasting, and we did that after lunch. The tasting includes 8 wine samples for only $8! You definitely will be buzzed in 45 mins. Next, we ventured off to The Wheel at ICON Park. ICON Park is a 20-acre, open-air, entertainment destination with 40+ restaurants and activities. It is the perfect place to ride, dine, drink, and explore. The Wheel is the perfect ride to see the city at new heights! This stunning 400-foot-tall Observation wheel gives you a view of Orlando like no other and it only starts at $27.99 per person per ride. It can get busy at times, depending on what time you get there. On a Saturday at 3 p.m. we waited in line for forty-five minutes before getting into The Wheel. I highly recommend going when it’s not a busy time if you are in a rush. Before you jump on, there is the ICON Park Sky Bar downstairs where you can bring drinks on your ride. Made the ride worth it, especially since you do have your own private capsule! ICON Park has free parking in their secure, multi-level garage. Be sure to take advantage of their deals especially for Florida residents.
Later we went back to ICON Park for dinner at Ole Red, Blake Shelton’s new restaurant and bar. I heard about this restaurant on the radio last year and I always wanted to go! They play live music every day. Since they do not take reservations, I highly recommend getting there early since it took thirty minutes to get seated around 8 p.m. There is a dive bar outside which made the wait time to go by fast. We ordered some of their signature cocktails and delicious food! The Honey-Drizzled Skillet Cornbread & Nashville Hot Chicken Biscuit was a meal to die for! This last destination ended the weekend on a high note! It was the perfect girl’s weekend.
Day 3: Last Morning
It was our last morning before we had to check out and we didn’t want this amazing weekend to end! For breakfast we went to the hotel’s poolside grill called Gatorville Poolside Bar & Grill. The breakfast was great, we had a very relaxing morning until we checked out at 11 a.m. If you would love to book the hotel you can use the website here. You can save 20% off their best available rate with NO minimum nights required. If you are looking for a hotel that is affordable, location convenient, and family friendly then I highly recommend Wyndham Orlando International Drive! We can’t wait to book another staycation in the future!
