Military Families: Florida is the Place to Vacation This Summer

Summer vacation is now upon us. What better time to take the family on a vacation? Being a military family, I can understand the financial strain many of face when considering vacation spots. I have done quite a lot of research and found many places that have free or deeply discounted prices for places to vacation at. While, there are literally thousands of places that offer some sort of discount for military and their families, I have tried to find the best discounts and compile them here. Here in Florida, there are a plethora of places catering to the military and their families. I will now take you city by city with many of the great deals I have found!

Tampa: Busch Gardens Africa is the ultimate family adventure park offering an array of fascinating attractions based on exotic encounters with the African continent. A unique blend of thrilling rides, one of the country's premier zoos featuring more than 2,700 animals, live shows, restaurants, shops and games, Busch Gardens provides unrivaled "real" excitement for guests of every age. -Busch Gardens Website

Adventure Island Water Park is 30 acres of water-drenched fun in the sun features the ultimate combination of high-speed thrills and tropical, tranquil surroundings for guests of all ages. Within a soothing Key West atmosphere awaits an unrivaled blend of slides, corkscrews, water falls, a wave pool, children's water playground and other family attractions such as outdoor cafes, picnic and sunbathing areas, gift shops, and a championship white-sand volleyball complex. -Adventure Island Website

Anheuser-Busch Adventure Parks is sponsoring Busch Gardens and Adventure Island Water Park in a wonderful promotion, they are giving away 4 free one day tickets to all active duty military and dependants. You can view more info about their promotion at Here's To the Hero's. Any active duty, or drilling reservist, or National Guardsman is entitled to free admission under the Here's to the Heroes program. He or she need only needs to register at the entrance plaza of participating parks, and show a Department of Defense photo ID. As many as three direct dependents of military personnel also are entitled to free admission. Dependents may take advantage of the offer without their service member, though an adult must accompany minor dependents.

While in Tampa, you can stay at the MacDill Inn on MacDill Air Force Base. Their rates are between $28 and $43 a night. Call early since they fill up quick!

Orlando: SeaWorld Orlando is the world's premiere marine adventure park with 200 acres of world-class shows, thrilling rides and unforgettable animal encounters. More than 80 million visitors have explored the mysteries of the sea with up-close animal interactions and exhilarating thrills. New state-of-the-art rides such as "Kraken" and "Journey to Atlantis" twist, turn, and drench guests with unprecedented thrills, while amazing animal encounters include killer whales, dolphins, sea lions, stingrays and more. - SeaWorld Website

SeaWorld is also in theAnheuser-Busch Adventure Parks promotion and are giving away 4 free one day tickets to all active duty military and dependants, and the same eligibility rules that apply with the Busch Gardens and Adventure Island Water Park deal. No special arrangements need to be made, simply show up at ticket counter and show them your DOD ID card.

There are many inexpensive hotels in Orlando that offer free shuttle service to SeaWorld as well as many other Orlando attractions, contact you local MWR for these great lodging deals!

Cape Canaveral: The Kennedy Space Center has acres and acres of launch pads to visit, and a wonderful museum dedicated to the past, present, and future of Space Exploration. You can also view 4 shuttle and rocket launches this summer during your stay. The Kennedy Space Center has deeply discounted tickets, but you must get them at your local MWR Office, since these tickets are not sold anywhere else.

While you are visiting The Space Complex, make sure to stay at The Space Coast Inn on Patrick Air Force Base in Cocoa Beach. They are right on the water with gorgeous views from almost every room, lovely beach areas for families to play, and their rates are only $24 - $43 a night!

Ft. Myers: Fossil Expeditions run by Mark and Marissa Renz, provide private digs for families to discover and keep dinosaur bones and teeth! They are giving deeply discounted rates to all military families. They have hike in tours or kayak in tours depending on the age of the children. They do their fossil hunting along the Peace River, and provide all the permits and equipments needed to dig for fossils. What a great trip for a budding paleontologist!

All of these places deserve a big salute for their generosity towards military families. They all definitely have my business!!

For more ideas on Florida Vacation tips, check out Fun in the Sun by Ms. Rhodes, Keeping Busy in Florida by Ms Shiflett, and Florida Summer Festivals by Mr.Merz.