Car hire is without doubt one of the most important elements of any holiday in Florida. It provide visitors with the total freedom and flexibility to do as you wish, when you wish to do it. Many holiday makers still opt out of hiring a car of their own for a number of reasons, one of which is cost.

With commission adding an average 15% to Florida car hire rates, our commission free offer means that you could make a significant saving on our already competitive rates, all of which include all insurances, with the option of upgrading to include extra named drivers and an initial tank of fuel.

To illustrate the potential saving to you, we have conducted a comparison of quotes, obtained from a number of popular Florida car hire websites, with that from Direct Villas Florida car hire.

The quotes are based on a 2 week rental of a 4dr intermediate vehicle, which accommodates 5 passengers, traveling with 3 large and 2 small items of luggage. The relevant dates are in high season 2012, arriving 21st July, and departing 4th August from Orlando International Airport.

Commission free & ABTA bonded car hire from Direct Villas Florida costs  £252.  This includes;  Loss Damage Waiver (LDW), Liability Insurance Supplement (LIS), Third Party Liability, Unlimited Mileage Tax & Surcharges, Airport Fees and Vehicle Licensing Fees (VLF), CFC and Homeland Security Fee, One free Additional Driver. This is a saving against our usual price of £296.47.

An optional upgrade of £50 is available, this will provide you with; The ‘Platinum’ Package Which Includes Zero Excess, 4 Unlimited Drivers and the First Tank of Fuel!

So how does that compare to other Florida car hire websites? Well the most expensive of the four other websites used for our comparison, provided the same vehicle at a cost of £338.20 with the cheapest costing £302, thereby providing a saving of at least £50.

To get your commission free Florida car hire, follow these 2 easy steps;

• Book your Florida rental villa via Direct Villas Florida.com.
• Contact us with the name & reference No. of the rental property booked, details of the airport or other location where you wish to collect and return hire vehicle, your arrival and departure dates and the size of vehicle required including the number of doors. We will then provide you with your commission free quote. It really is that simple!

All quotes outlined in this article were obtained on 27/12/2011, and were accurate at the time of authoring. The quotes were obtained in the usual manner using each service provider’s website. Please note that drivers under the age of 25 will incur an extra cost due their age. American residents are not eligible for this offer.

From the front, you get the feeling that this is somewhere special for cigar lovers, with locals and visitor’s alike sitting at the shaded tables enjoying their recent purchases along with a cool drink or two.  You have already smelt the woody and distinctive aroma of fine cigars as you enter the building. To the is a small bar area serving local and international alcoholic drinks, a large screen television keeps the patrons interest as they too sit and relax with their choice of cigar. To the right is where the fun is a huge area dedicated to cigars and everything to do with storing, preparing and smoking them.

Whether you are the type who is inspired by the size and shape of a cigar or its manufacturer, you cannot help but admire the scenery and its scent The  humidors are a work of art, the cigar cutters range from the ordinary to the ultimate, both in price and appearance, but the main attraction is without doubt the thousands of cigars, all beautifully presented and clearly marked with their respective prices. As you would expect the price range covers both ends of the cigar spectrum as does the range, which popular names such a s Cohiba, Romeo & Juliet and Davidoff sharing floor space with some of the lesser names.

The staff all wearing the Corona Cigar uniform are quietly helpful and very knowledgeable about their stock, to the point that after a few precise questions they can help you find just what you are looking for. This is not a place where you experience aggressive sales techniques, this is a place of peaceful reflection, and somewhere relaxation is the order of the day. There is something for everyone’s taste and price range at Corona Cigars, which provides a great alternative to the many other Orlando attractions.

Many credit cards service providers make a charge for any transactions made outside the purchaser’s country of origin; this is called a foreign transaction fee, and is normally in the region of 2.75% of the total purchase price.Some of you will already thinking that this charge is both unfair and excessive, however this charge which allows the card company to cover their expense for turning the foreign currency back into that of your own currency, is far less that what is called the Dynamic Currency Conversion.

Quite simply this potential charge can occur when a consumer makes a purchase using their credit card and either chooses to do so in his/her currency having been asked by a member of staff or no such request is made by the retailer and the charge is automatically applied. At that charge, is a whopping 4%.

The problem here is that it is the retailer who benefits, as they levy the charge at a rate determined by them! And even though the legislation states that a consumer must be asked in what currency they prefer there purchases to be paid in, this may often not be the case.

If you are caught out by this unscrupulous behaviour, the consumer is well within their rights to request the payment be cancelled and completed in the local currency.

Dynamic Currency Conversion is operated in many countries throughout Europe and the United States Of America.There does not appear to be a specific type of retailer who operates this process, and as such you should ask for the payment to be made in the local currency as you go through the payment process.

My advice though before you rush out and fill your pockets with a whole host of different cards, is this;

1.      Speak to your current card provider(s) and ask them what their rate is on that day. Then use the likes of the Travelex web site to make a comparison.
2.      Confirm what charges if any you will incur when using your card abroad.
3.      Confirm the level of insurance is provided for items bought with the credit card, and what if any is the excess charge.
4.      Then if you are happy to proceed to use their card on holiday, inform them of your departure and return dates, this helps avoid those embarrassing occasions when you are at the till with a queue behind you only to be told by the cashier’ Sorry your card has been rejected” It also helps your provider identify any potential fraudulent usage after your return.

Remember many retailers in Orlando and Florida require any payments being made with a credit card to be accompanied with photographic identification. Whilst this may seem a bit of a bind, it is actually set up and operated in a way so to prevent the fraudulent use of credit cards, and remember if you are asked what currency you want the transaction in, ALWAYS choose the local currency, doing so is cheaper and saves you incurring extra charges of around 4%

Offering visitors a total of 14 consecutive days entry from the date on which each ticket was first used, it is easy to see both the Orlando Flex Ticket and Flex Ticket Plus as a economical way in which to visit up to six very individual Florida theme parks, however as you would expect the key is in the number of times you use your ticket(s).

With adult prices for an Orlando Flex ticket starting at only £166, the Orlando FlexTicket is an affordable way to see and visit the many fabulous Orlando Theme Parks.

Although my family and I have flown to Florida on numerous previous occasions, we have never flown with Virgin Atlantic. That was until July 2010 when we flew direct from Manchester to Orlando International.

 Previous years have seen us fly from our local airport into Gatwick for our onward flight into Orlando, however since BA lost the domestic route to Fly Be, it meant that we would have  to endure a bus transfer between Heathrow and Gatwick to pick up our onward flights both on the outgoing and return journeys.

 We decided that this would detract from our normally enjoyable flights, and so decided to book with Virgin Atlantic, whose price for an economy fare was comparable to those of BA with the inclusion of a domestic flight.

 The following account is based on my personal experience, opinions and comparisons between Virgin Atlantic and British Airways.

 The first notable difference was in the online booking process, the Virgin Atlantic web site provides a far slicker, welcoming and informative way of planning and booking the various services you require. Unlike the bland British Airways web site, this appears clinical and quite matter of fact in comparison.

During the time leading up to the date of departure, Virgin Atlantic sent a number of emails informing me of various addition services such as car hire, which when bought under the Flying Club program provided a return of 2 miles for every pound spent.  Again these were friendly and worthwhile.

24 hours prior to departure, the online check in opened, we had previously chosen our preferred seating, however it was during the online check in procedure that it became apparent that only a limited percentage of seats are available during this process, and that if someone chose completing it before me could request and be given our preferred seats. The moral of the story is if you are going to use this option, do it as early as possible.

 Having arrived at the airport with our printed boarding cards in hand, we made our way to the baggage drop off area. This is a streamline process which allows passengers to expedite their way to the departure lounge by allowing them the option of cutting out the need to join the lengthy ques.

Arriving at the gate, the huge 747-400 named English Rose, stood waiting for its passengers to board. Stepping onto the aircraft however was rather disappointing, I had expected in keeping with the Virgin brand, a vibrant and modern interior, instead what I saw a mixture of red, grey and purple seats. It was apparent that this particular aircraft was somewhat dated, this was reinforced by the very old in seat screens, and broken and cracked arm rests.

This was a stark contrast to the many Boeing 777 aircraft used by British Airways, which I have to say have always been nothing but uniformed and in a very good state of repair. I am aware that the Boeing 747’s have been in service a lot longer than the 777; however it was still a disappointment coming from Virgin.

Taking off on time, the 8 hour journey began, and moments after take off the screens flashed to life allowing passengers to tune to their preferred av channel. To my surprise however there were no games, even though Virgin Atlantic s web site stated that even in economy cabins the entertainment included video games, something which is only available to World Traveller plus passengers and above on British Airways flights. Another advantage BA had over the Virgin system was that passengers could view their programme or film on demand and could pause it should the need arise. Virgins system was quite antiquated in that the recordings were shown on a loop and could not be paused.

 To some this may be a minor point, however over the course of a long haul flight, the functionality on the British Airways aircraft really comes into its own, and provides a truly personal service by allowing passengers to view what they want when they want. British airways won this challenge hands down.

 I had heard nothing but good reports about the service provided onboard Virgin Atlantic flights and I have to say I agree, however at no time did I hear it mentioned, that refreshments were available throughout the course of the flight from the galley area, something which normally encourages passengers to rise from their seats and walk to the galley, which leads me onto another area which was lacking, in flight wellbeing.

  I am sure that a large number of passengers are aware of the risks of DVT (deep vein thrombosis), however I think it is important to make mention of how to minimise the risk throughout the flight. In comparison, BA actually has a video presentation of how to reduce the risks of DVT, which I am sure, is taken on board by a large number of passengers.

 The food on board the Virgin Atlantic flight was in keeping with ‘aeroplane food’ as my children call it, as were the drinks, although having requested a whiskey and dry ginger I was pleased to see the alcohol being poured from a bottle instead of those small bottles provided by BA. However I have to say that ‘White Label’ whiskey is no comparison for a ‘branded’ whiskey! So all in all, the refreshments and food served by the two carriers are comparable to one another.

 The Virgin Atlantic crew worked tirelessly throughout the flight, and I have to say they were in my opinion more approachable to some crew which I have experienced on British Airways flights. For some reason the BA brand seems to encourage a slight arrogance within some of its staff. It’s a real shame, and detracts from the passenger experience.

I suspect that a passengers first consideration when comparing different carriers, is the cost and locality of the departure airport. There after I would expect the priorities would move towards the likes of the in flight service and entertainment Although  British Airways’ fleet of Boeing 777 aircraft provide a a greater level of in flight entertainment and enjoyment as a result of the younger age and better condition of the aircraft, I would put Virgin Atlantic slightly ahead on the level of in flight service provided by the more approachable cabin crew.

 I hope this helps, and look forward to reading details of your experiences of these two high profile carriers