March 2012
Issue 41
Epcot International Flower and Garden Festival 
March 7 – May 20, 2012
The Epcot International Flower & Garden Festival is a spring special event filled with Disney character topiaries, a colorful array of flowers, gardens, live music and special presentations. It’s where Disney springs to life!
A little gardening magic will go a long way when an eight-foot-tall floral Sorcerer Mickey topiary holds court at the entrance to the 19th Epcot International Flower & Garden Festival March 7-May 20 at Walt Disney World Resort. Standing atop a 12-foot-tall floral mountain cliff and towering above the park’s front-entrance topiary bed, the commanding Sorcerer Mickey will direct a riot of color in the manicured shapes of dancing broomsticks, buckets, mushrooms, hippos, alligators and elephants straight from the classic Disney film, “Fantasia.”
The front-entrance floral spectacle will welcome guests to a festival packed with new displays, featured speakers and hands-on fun for all ages. For 75 festival days, Epcot guests can explore topiaries and gardens; learn planting, style and design techniques and rock to the tunes of popular Flower Power concerts.
Popular bands of the 1960s through the ’90s will rock the open-air America Gardens Theatre every Friday, Saturday and Sunday. The Flower Power concert series will welcome back 20th century pop favorites this year when Jose Feliciano, Chubby Checker and The Wildcats, Paul Revere & the Raiders, Davy Jones and seven other bands rock the America Gardens Theatre with their timeless tunes.
Show Times: 5:15 p.m., 6:30 p.m. and 7:45 p.m.
Schedule of Performers:
March 9 – 11: Jose Feliciano (Light My Fire)
March 16 – 18: Starship starring Mickey Thomas (We Built This City)
March 23 – 25: The Guess Who (American Woman)
March 30 – April 1: The Spinners (Cupid)
April 6 – 8: Chubby Checker & The Wildcats (The Twist)
April 13 – 15: Paul Revere and the Raiders (Good Thing)
April 20 – 22: The Turtles featuring Flo & Eddie (Happy Together)
April 27 – 29: Chuck Negron former singer for Three Dog Night (Black & White)
May 4 – 6: The Orchestra starring former members of ELO (Don’t Bring Me Down)
May 11 – 13: Herman’s Hermits starring Peter Noone (I’m Henry VIII, I Am)
May 18 – 20: Davy Jones (I’m a Believer)
Epcot admission is required. Entertainment dates and performers are subject to change without notice.
Don’t miss out as Mardi Gras continues through April 14th! |
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Join the fun as the streets fill with beads, bands and a rocking parade at Universal Studios. Enjoy authentic cuisine and musicians, along with party bands and artists you’ll love to jam with. At 8 p.m. on event nights, the parade winds its way through the streets, offering dazzling floats, colorful costumes, towering stilt walkers, outrageous street performers and float riders tossing beads at the crowd. Concerts begin after parades.
Mardi Gras is included with park admission.
The streets fill with beads, bands and a rocking parade, celebrating Mardi Gras every Saturday and other select nights
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Arnold Palmer Invitational Golf Tournament-March 19 – 25, 2012
The Arnold Palmer Invitational brings together some of golf’s greats for this premiere event on the PGA Tour. Competitive play begins Thursday, March 22, at the demanding layout of Bay Hill.
Ticket prices vary: $15 youth 13-17 (12 and under free); $45 any one day ticket.
Limited on-site parking; free shuttle buses from Universal Studios available with ticket purchase. (Parking is $10.)
The Arnold Palmer Invitational is one of the premiere-event jewels on the PGA Tour.
Bay Hill Club & Lodge
9000 Bay Hill Blvd
Orlando, FL 32819
Get Ready For Easter Now!!!!
There is usually a “meet and greet” with the Easter Bunny at Magic Kingdom during the week prior to Easter at Tour Guide Gardens, adjacent to City Hall.
Disney does not offer an Easter parade or decorations in the parks. However, in 2011 Disney offered a special “pre-parade” featuring Easter Bunny and Mrs. Bunny. The “pre-parade” was offered ONLY on Easter Sunday; 15 minutes prior to the park’s 3:00 pm Celebrate a Dream Come True parade.
Some of the Disney hotels offer egg hunts, etc. to their guests. If you are staying at a Disney hotel, inquire at the front desk when you arrive.
There are special meals available at certain restaurants on Easter Sunday (which in 2012 will be on April 8). An Easter Brunch is usually held each year at the Epcot World ShowPlace located between Canada and the United Kingdom pavilions. Regular Epcot admission is required. You can reserve holiday meals up to 180 days in advance by calling (407) WDW-DINE (939-3463).
Note that “holiday pricing” (i.e. higher prices) will be in effect for some restaurants (particularly the buffets and character meals) for the two weeks on either side of Easter. Other restaurants may charge a premium on Easter Sunday, so be sure to ask when booking reservations.
Religious services are held on Easter Sunday only in the Fantasia Ballroom at the Contemporary Resort. Catholic Mass is held at 8:00 am and 10:15 am. A Protestant service is held at 9:00 am. You may not park at the Contemporary for these services, so to get there; you must do one of the following:
- take the monorail to the Contemporary
- take a boat to the Contemporary
- take resort transportation (monorail, boat or bus) to the Magic Kingdom and transfer to a shuttle bus serving the Contemporary resort
5th Annual Easter Eggstravaganza – APR 23
Noon – 3pm
$3.00 per person
Make sure you bring your Easter basket. Don’t miss the annual visit from the Easter Bunny and an Easter Egg Hunt. The whole family is invited for an afternoon of fun, entertainment, games and much more. Plenty of kid’s games, candy, prize giveaways and raffles.
Babb Landing at Shingle Creek Regional Park
2491 Babb Rd.
Kissimmee, FL 34746
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International Carillon Festival at Bok Tower Gardens
From March 3-11, world-renowned carillonneurs will perform daily concerts. The Visitor Center features historical exhibits on the history, construction and sound of the carillon from 9 a.m. – 5 p.m.
Performance Schedule
Saturday, March 3
11 a.m. – Malgosia Fiebig, 1 p.m. – Geert D’hollander, 3 p.m. – Sue Bergren Sunday, March 4
11 a.m. – George Gregory, 1 p.m. – Malgosia Fiebig, 3 p.m. – Geert D’hollander Monday, March 5
1 p.m. – Sue Bergren, 3 p.m. – George Gregory and Julianne Vanden Wyngaard Tuesday, March 6
1 p.m. – Malgosia Fiebig, 3 p.m. – Dennis Curry, 7:30 p.m. – Geert D’hollander Wednesday, March 7
1 p.m. – Dennis Curry, 3 p.m. – Geert D’hollander Thursday, March 8
1 p.m. – Malgosia Fiebig, 3 p.m. – Dennis Curry Friday, March 9
1 p.m. – Sue Bergren, 3 p.m. – George Gregory and Julianne Vanden Wyngaard Saturday, March 10
11 a.m. – George Gregory, 1 p.m. – Sue Bergren, 3 p.m. – Malgosia Fiebig Sunday, March 11
11 a.m. – Geert D’hollander, 1 p.m. – George Gregory, 3 p.m. – Dennis Curry
About the Carillonneurs
Geert D’hollander’s many areas of musical study in Belgium include piano, chamber music, choral and orchestral conducting, fugue and composition at the Royal Conservatory in Antwerp, and carillon at the Royal Carillon School in Mechelen. He was first prize winner in about 30 international competitions for carillon and/or composition. In 2008 he was awarded the University of California Berkeley Medal for “Distinguished Service to the Carillon”. Last year he won the prestigious Dutch “ANV-Visser Neerlandia Prize” with his carillon composition “Ciacona”.
There Were Bells on a Hill………….. 
FLAstay.com is your one source for the purchase, sale and renovation of Disney area real estate and vacation rental properties. Since 1990, we at FLAstay.com have honed our skill, expertise and knowledge in the unique Disney-area resort market. If you are a buyer or investor, our agents are here to represent you through the entire transaction.
flastay.com
Visit Our Websites!
To help you and your family relax and enjoy all the festivities, Florida Deluxe Villas provides luxury accommodations in the Disney area and has been for over 22 years. We pride ourselves on honesty, integrity and ability to match our customer’s specific requirements. Due to the relationships we have built with our property owners we are able to offer you, our customer, quality and a variety of accommodations at affordable rates, rates that we believe cannot be beaten!
floridadeluxevillas.com
Don’t forget to stop by our office at 2914 Vineland Road, Kissimmee, FL 34746
to purchase all your attraction tickets!
Winter Park Sidewalk Art Festival 
MAR 16 – MAR 18
The entire family can enjoy There will be clay, digital art, glass, jewelry, and many more art categories. There will also be a Children’s Workshop Village where the children can create their own masterpiece.
Friday and Saturday, 9 a.m. to 6 p.m.
Sunday, 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.
Admission: Free
Explore a variety of visual arts at one of the nation’s largest and oldest juried outdoor art festivals
Central Park
507 N. New York Ave
Winter Park, FL 32789
Enjoy a doggy day in Celebration! Previous festivals have included pet look-a-like contests, doggie and human fashion shows and the Celebration Doggie Train. Event will feature vendor booths selling pet products as well as offering information about dog nutrition, health and pet adoption. This holiday season, buy malarone to prevent malaria and other pest diseases that you can catch.
Admission is free.
Spend some time with four-legged friends at this canine-centered event!
Downtown Celebration
Easter Egg Hunt at Green Meadows Farm – MAR 29 – APR 08
Admission: Free
Celebrate the Easter holiday with a fun and adventurous Easter egg hunt. 
Green Meadows Farm
1368 S. Poinciana Blvd
Kissimmee, FL 34746
BikeWeek at Daytona Beach – MAR 9 – MAR 18
Known as the “World’s Largest Motorcycle Event,” this 10-day annual festival returns to Daytona Beach. As the bikes roar into Central Florida, so do the activities for motorcycle aficionados, including shows and exhibits, concerts, racing at Daytona International Speedway and festivities on Main Street.
Events are throughout Daytona Beach.
The “World’s Largest Motorcycle Event” roars in to Daytona Beach for 10 days
St. Cloud Spring Fling-MAR 30 – APR 1st 
Enjoy a family-friendly event featuring various outdoor activities, just in time for Spring! Watch exciting wakeboarding competitions along with other weekend festivities, including a car show, Corn Hole competition, arts & crafts and more.
Admission and parking are free.
Boat races are the highlight of this celebration
St. Cloud Lakefront
1104 Lakeshore Blvd.
St. Cloud, FL 34769
