So fate has brought you to Orlando, but you don’t have a lot of money to spend. Orlando has long been a place where cruise ships dock and the money that is aboard these cruise ships descends upon the city, but doesn’t just have to be this way. A good time can be had in Orlando on a shoe string budget too if you follow a few of these suggestions.

Accommodations

A lot of visitors to the city like to stay at one of Orlando’s resorts, which are often right next to Disney World and Universal Studios, this is a no, no for budget travelers. Just a few miles away from Orlando’s marquee attractions are much more reasonable priced hotel rooms and even a smattering of hostels. If you come to Orlando out of season too you can also find even better deal on budget and premium accommodations.

Visiting the Attractions of Orlando

Naturally people who visit Orlando want to enjoy going to Disney World and the other attractions near it too. Shopping online for various special savings for park entrance is always a good idea. When you have paid for your tickets to enter Disney World you must do your best to maximize the time you have there. A few suggestions how to do this include showing up really early and visiting the most popular attractions then before huge line ups development. When the major crowds are there that is the time to enjoy the less popular rides. Bring your own picnic lunch with you as eating in Disney World is basically a rip off and will spend your days meal money in one meal.

Places to Eat

The main concern of the budget traveler in Orlando is to visit the major theme parks that drew them to Orlando without breaking the bank on the over priced foods there. Now we aren’t saying that a person should starve themselves as not all these costs can be avoided, but some planning ahead trying to eat meals before entering or even bringing a lunch can really help offset trip costs. A travel tip is to eat a large breakfast then just try to snack – maybe even with your own snacks – inside the parks.

More Tips to Save

A few more tips on how to enjoy Orlando includes considering buying an Orlando GO card, for allotments of one to seven days, that provides free and reduced price and often free admission into Orlando’s different attractions. Though Orlando is best navigated by a rental car it also an option as well to get a bus pass and get around that way to save on money. Under no circumstance cheap out on sunscreen as the intense Florida sunshine can and will burn you bad and ruin a trip. It costs a little to get there, but be sure to visit things in and around the Orlando area like Cape Canaveral’s Kennedy Space Centre and the nearby Dali Museum in St Petersburg Florida.

It’s hard to imagine going travelling without a camera. Despite the huge volume of photos online covering virtually every inch of the planet a million times over, you’d still be considered crazy if you went on a trip and didn’t take some pictures of your own. Some people will say what’s the point when everything has been photographed to death but in the end, it’s your trip and you need to capture it as you see it, not to add more photos to Google images.

So what makes the right camera for travelling? For some it might be the same old one they’ve always used – why mess with perfection, right? Others might decide a new trip deserves a new camera and go for something with all the bells and whistles… and there are a lot of bells and whistles. Here are a few pointers if you are looking at getting a new camera for your upcoming adventures that will last you well beyond your return.

Size

While size isn’t the most important option for quality pictures, it is something that factors hugely into travelling. Do you want it to be something you can slip into your front pocket or lug around your neck/in a carrying case? You might be amazed at how great the pictures are from a small digital camera as opposed to an enormous SLR, but if you’re moving at a slower pace you might not mind the extra baggage.

Battery Life

Many cameras these days use relatively the same lithium battery but depending on the camera’s features and how often you use it, you could have it drained in less than a day. It’s never a bad idea to have a spare battery on hand, but see how many of your camera’s features can be turned off or put on power saver mode to really maximize your battery life.

So many to choose from!

Lens

After lighting, the lens really is the most important factor in taking good pictures but that’s not to say you can’t get remarkable shots with your camera phone, providing you’re not going to blow them up to poster size or anything like that. If you’re a professional or someone who knows what they are doing and likes taking pictures, there is no substitute for the right lens, but 95% of the population out there will be just fine with the one that’s included.

Extras

Red eye reduction, video mode, geo-tagging, wifi – there are an uncanny number of options open to you with a new camera, many of which you may never use but sound really fancy in the store. If you’re someone who knows the difference between macro and micro, you might scoff at any of these ‘extras’, especially if all you really want is good lighting, but hey, to each their own! Personally, I love being able to take little videos on the fly, even if their quality isn’t the best, and would never get a camera that didn’t let me do so.