Florida 2019 – The Adventure Begins!

Sunnydown School prepare for their Trip of a Lifetime! 

14th September 

Everyone arrived at Gatwick Sofitel Hotel and after a delicious dinner, headed off to their rooms for a good nights sleep.

Tomorrow brings a day of excitement, as the journey to USA begins!

Good night ! 

😎🇬🇧✈️🇺🇸🌭🍟🍓🍎🍏🍽

Sunday 15th September 

After a delicious breakfast ‘The Green Team’ headed over to Gatwick for our flight to Orlando USA!🇺🇸 

Along flight, but all the boys enjoyed some great films and loved being invited to the top deck by the Captain when we landed in Orlando airport. Some budding captains took the wheel! 

We collected our suitcases, picked up our Mini bus and 4×4 and headed across to our homes for the next 10 Days! 

An amazing surprise greeted the boys- Thank you Donna and David- they loved their gifts ! 

Pizza was served for dinner and then time for bed- everyone was very 💤! 

Tomorrow brings a day at Discovery Cove! 

Monday 16th September 

Today saw our group head over to Discovery Cove, for a day spent on the amazing beaches and Cabbana’s! We started with breakfast and then a swim along the Lazy River. We were treated to a visit by a trainer and a small Armadillo! So Cute! All the students loved this little creature and many stroked it! We all got to the chance to become dolphin trainers and swim with a dolphin! Such a special experience 🐬🐬. Snorkelling the coral reef, watching sharks and Manta Rays, feeding the birds- a really action packed day and one all the students will remember! 😎😎😎🐬🐬🐬😎😎😎😎

Tuesday 17th September

What an amazing day filled with adventures!! VIP’s at Universal Studios! We were met by our Guides, Demi & Brian, who guided us around the park, so that the children saw the best of everything! We were treated to Breakfast and Lunch at La Bamba private Dining and also had a private meet & greet with The Simpson Family! The brave ones rode lots of rides – Men in Black, The Mummy, Transformers, Shrek and much much more!! Some even went on The Rocket Roller Coaster, at the end of our day! We are so lucky to be treated as VIP’s by some very special friends, here in Orlando! The day was wrapped up with Dinner, Italian Family style dining at Buca Di Bepo! All the boys were a credit to their school today! Good night everyone! 

Wednesday 18th September 

After a relaxing start and a chance to spend some time at the house, we all headed over to Boggy Creek to experience the huge shallow lakes and an airboat ride! The boys met a few baby Gators and saw the variety of wildlife on these huge lakes! Everyone enjoyed speeding across the water and lily pads! Our day ended with some pool time and dinner back at the house. 

😎😎😎😎😎😎😎😎😎😎😎😎😎😎😎😎😎😎😎😎

Thursday 19th September

Today is a Disney kinda Day! After a later start, we arrived at Disney for Midday. We entered the park on the Monorails, which went through the middle of a hotel. All the students had a great day, with lots of exciting rides on Splash Mountain, Buzz Lightyear, Thunder Mountain and Space Mountain. An early dinner with the Winnie the Pooh Characters, was the icing on the cake!  We even had time to ride, Its a Small World- Tom’s favourite! 

A return trip across the lake by paddle steamer, ensured the students had the best view of the Finale Fireworks! What an amazing day ! 

😎🇺🇸🎢🎠🏰

Friday 20th September

Our second day at Universal, saw the ‘Green Team’ head over to Islands of Adventure. Brian and Demi our guides, took us for breakfast and the the day began in the Park. Harry Potter and Hogsmead was the first stop. The whole group enjoyed a ride on the new Hagrids motorbike and sidecar- Thrilling!  Spider-Man and King Kong were also a great hit with the boys!  We all enjoyed lunch in the Three Broomsticks followed by a private meeting with some Marvel Superhero’s!  The Hulk roller coaster challenged even those with the strongest stomachs! A fabulous day was topped off by dinner at the park . We are so grateful to Denise and all the team for making our visits so special and helping us make memories for the children that will last forever ! Thank you ! ❤️

😎🎢😎🎢😎🎢

Saturday 21st September

Everyone enjoyed a more restful day. Breakfast at the house, a little swimming in the pool and some shopping. The students then visited Madam Tussauds and the Sealife centre. The day was rounded off with a competitive game of Bowling at Splitsville in Disney  Springs- which we all enjoyed! Dinner for The Green Team at Chef Art Smiths Homecomin Kitchen was delicious. Some tried the famous Buttermilk Chicken – which they loved! A huge Thank you must go to Frank at Splitsville and Jimmy from art Smiths for looking after us all so well this evening! Another amazing fay here in Orlando Florida! Good Night everyone!

*************************************************************************************************************

Sunday 22nd September

Legoland !

What a brilliant day- we started with a water ride, where the students got the chance to spray the adults with water from their boats! Great fun!  Tyler showed us around the park, where the students started experienced  VR rides, The Flying School, Lego Movies and so much more! Lunch was followed by the water park. Everyone enjoyed riding the slides and flumes, lazy river, wave pool and splash zones. Just what we needed to cool us down, the students were so lucky to be given some gifts to take home and remember their visit to LEGO land Florida! 

Our evening was completed with a Thank You dinner, when the adults got the chance to say a very big Thank You to all our amazing Florida family – without them, we would not be able to give 8 children, this incredible Trip of a Lifetime ! 

 Monday 23rd September

Seaworld- another day filled with adventures ! Dolphin and Killer Whales Shows, Flamingos, Parrots, Manatees, Turtles, Tropical Fish, hundreds of penguins- just a few of the things we saw today! All of this was wrapped up with  a serving of Roller Coasters, water rides and the day was topped off with large ice creams all round !  Our last evening in Orlando was spent at Planet Hollywood! A real treat for everyone, with great food, music and some magical memories made! 

🍽🇺🇸🐬🦈🐊🦜❤️🇺🇸

Tuesday 24th September

Our last day here in Orlando Florida! A great group of students from Sunnydown School! They have embraced Florida life and all the experiences here! Its been a pleasure to have them join us for this, our 15th Year! A special mention must go to Paul, Emma & Tom from the school, who have ensured the boys were well cared for at the house- a mammoth task when you are  doing all that washing and getting 8 boys ready each morning!

Today we are cleaning the houses, packing and then will have a last lunch together and present each student with an award!

A really big Thank You goes to all our amazing Florida friends and supporters- without your ongoing support we would not be able to offer the Life Changing experiences that the 8 Students have enjoyed this year!

Ann Parris needs a special mention too, as she organised the whole trip from start to finish- as the saying goes- behind a good man, there is always an amazing lady!!