Best Place To View the July 2010 Shuttle Launch? Also where to stay? (Orlando: sale, hotels)

[mkat321]

Let me start by saying I have read and enjoyed the other shuttle related threads. Very informative. I have about 3 more to read and will get to them shortly.

My family and I are talking about coming down to see the next to last shutle launch in July 2010. We'd love to come sooner but school and work commitments prevent it.

I will probably feel like this when I finish reading the last few threads but I have a few questions:

1. Which is the best place to view the launch? I've read Space View Park in Titusville elsewhere and Jetty Park seems to be popular here on CD.

2. What hotel would be the best for a family and condusive to an easy or brief drive to the viewing area? According to the review sites, the only two hotels for families with decent reviews are the Hampton and Fairfield as far as Titusville hotels. Is it possible to stay in one of the other nearby cities and still make it to the launch/park for a reasonable fee?

3. Aside from the obvious beach and NASA museum stuff, what non-Disney activities are available in the area that don't cost $$$ ? We're looking at arriving on the 28th and leaving on the 31st {praying the launch isn't delayed more than a day or two obviously b/c we only have so much vacation time we can afford to take}

Thanks in advance for any and all advice

[GLS2010]

Originally Posted by mkat321

Let me start by saying I have read and enjoyed the other shuttle related threads. Very informative. I have about 3 more to read and will get to them shortly.

My family and I are talking about coming down to see the next to last shutle launch in July 2010. We'd love to come sooner but school and work commitments prevent it.

I will probably feel like this when I finish reading the last few threads but I have a few questions:

1. Which is the best place to view the launch? I've read Space View Park in Titusville elsewhere and Jetty Park seems to be popular here on CD.

2. What hotel would be the best for a family and condusive to an easy or brief drive to the viewing area? According to the review sites, the only two hotels for families with decent reviews are the Hampton and Fairfield as far as Titusville hotels. Is it possible to stay in one of the other nearby cities and still make it to the launch/park for a reasonable fee?

3. Aside from the obvious beach and NASA museum stuff, what non-Disney activities are available in the area that don't cost $$$ ? We're looking at arriving on the 28th and leaving on the 31st {praying the launch isn't delayed more than a day or two obviously b/c we only have so much vacation time we can afford to take}

Thanks in advance for any and all advice

You picked a sketchy time to see a launch. July is when its hot humid and afternoon thunderstorms occur. So there is a pretty high chance that it could get delayed. I don't know much about the hotels in that area, if you want a lot to do during the times your not viewing the launch then i recommend staying at a hotel in the orlando area and driving over to the coast to see the launch. There is a lot of small non disney things to do in the orlando area. Pretty much anything.

[mkat321]

THanks

Yeah unfortunately that's probably the only shot we're going to get. The very-last one is in September and one of the hotels said they're already booked solid for the week leading up to and a few days after that one.

[TehB33nz]

I personally like Space View Park, I saw a night launch there in August and had to make 2 trips since the first one was scrubbed. The have a broadcast so you can hear what is going on with the countdown.... If you have the money, NASA offers a package where you can be bussed out to Challenger Parkway (I believe that is the name of it) which is suppose to be the best view you can get, and even if the launch is scrubbed the ticket is still good. It is definitely worth a trip to see the shuttle go off, especially since the Shuttle Program is being discontinued. I can't really give you advice on where to stay as I am not too familiar with the area but I hope that you are able to see the Shuttle launch when you come in July, I do agree though that Orlando is a good place to stay. It is only about a 45 minute drive out there and parking was not too bad, we paid $10 to park in a lot directly across from Space View Park. Make sure to get there really early though, we got to Space View Park about 2 1/2 hours before the launch when I went in August and there were already a good amount of people there. Hope this information is helpful. Good Luck!!

[FL Developer]

You could try to find a spot at Jetty Park, just south of the launch pad.

http://www.jettypark.org/

[Parrotrosie]

Just a note, the launch this week, on a weekday, at 2:30 , I believe it was Jetty Park, was full about 2 and a half hours before the launch time, and they believe they will get worse with that as the end launches get closer. Where ever you choose, it may be a full day event of just waiting in order to even get a spot anywhere for the last launch, if not longer...

[Metallisteve]

Buy a ticket through Kennedy Space Center. They bus out to the Nasa Causeway which is about 7-9 miles from the pad. You also get a day's admission to the Kennedy Space Center Visitor's Complex. Tickets usually go on sale through the KSC website a few months before the launch. This si the only way to get a guaranteed close spot, plus you don't have to put up with the drive sicne they bus you out there.

If you'd rather not pay, then anywhere along A-1A will be fine too. The Max Brewer Pkwy bridge and surrounding park is probably the closet you can get to the launch pad without being on NASA property. But be forewarned, there are hardcore launch viewers that get to the best spots very early (half a day or more). Be prepared to spend a full day at your viewing spot. Bring all the food and drinks and activities you can think of. There are usually port-a-pottie's set up at the popular sites. It's definitely a test of endurance...especially if it gets scrubbed and you have to come back and do it all over again! But the launch is well worth it.

[AnnFLRN]

My sister and I stayed at the Comfort Suites on Rte 50 and I-95. Very basic room, but the beds were comfortable, pillows good, and they had free breakfast. $100.00. Close to the road that leads directly onto Nasa Parkway. Advice is to buy tickets for KSC Visitors center. Around $60.00 each. Here's a picture of what Atlantis looked like from there
Picasa Web Albums - AnnFLRN - Launch of Atl...
It's definitely worth the trip. Awe inspiring!

[hgebel]

A great source of information on launch viewing in general (not just shuttle launches) is Ben Cooper's Launch Photography site. It has information on where to view launches from each pad. My favorite is watching the Delta-2 launches from the pier in Port Canaveral. Unfortunately there is only one left (in 2011) You can go straight to the information on where to view the launches.

-Harry

[Lakewooder]

I think we were along Phillps (401) Parkway for the night launch of Atlantis in 1997.

File:STS-81 Launch.jpg - Wikimedia Commons

A dream come true! A couple of years later my friend who was with me was dead, so I remember that so fondly.