Rawhide (a western-themed park and attraction) is turned into Doomtown for the annual Halloween Show, complete with amazing stunts, explosions, and special ghoulish characters like Digger Payne and Dr. Morbius (the town mortician).  Take a ride on the Train of Terror, enjoy the characters, and visit two spoooooooky haunted houses.

Doomtown at Rawhide is open Wednesday & Thursday, 5:30 – 10 pm; Friday through Sunday, noon – 10 pm.  The Crypt Haunted Houses at Rawhide is open Friday through Sunday through October 19th, then Tuesday – Sunday through Halloween weekend.  The haunted houses are open 7 – 10 pm.

Admission to the haunted houses:  $12 for a one haunted house, $16 for both, and $23 for both haunted houses and a Rawhide Town Pass.

Rawhide is located just south of Phoenix’ Sky Harbor Airport, and easily accessible from the surrounding area.

NOTE:  This is a live action show, designed to be scary.  Consider if it is appropriate for your children.

Photo credit:  SXC

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Post from: Fly Away Cafe

The indoor roller coaster ride is based on the upcoming Warner Bros. movie, The Dark Knight, featuring Batman and The Joker.  You can enjoy the thrills of an adventure ride and fight crime in Gotham City all at the same time.

The ride will be at the theme parks in Jackson, New Jersey, Gurnee, Illinois, and Agawam, Massachusetts.

Check it out!

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Post from: Fly Away Cafe

Today is Admission Day for Florida, our 27th state, admitted to the Union on March 3rd, 1845.

Florida is located in the southeastern part of the country, with the Atlantic Ocean flanking one side, and the Gulf of Mexico the other.  Ponce de Leon named it, and many believe that it was in Florida that he claimed to have found his fountain of youth.

Before the formal declaration of Civil War, Florida seceded from the Union, and became a founding member of the Confederate States of America.  Full representation was restored in 1868.

For much of its existence, Florida was the least populated southern state.  By the mid-20th century, however, many residents were leaving the frigid weather of the northeastern US, looking for the temperate climes found in Florida.  Today, Florida is the second most populated of the southern states (behind Texas), and is the fourth most populated state in the country ““ quite a turnaround.

The capital city is Tallahassee, the largest city is Jacksonville, and the largest metropolitan area is Miami.  Other large cities include:  Tampa, St. Petersburg, Hialeah, Orlando, and Ft. Lauderdale.

Tourism is the largest industry in the “Sunshine State,” as Florida is known, in large part due to its warm, tropical weather and hundred of miles of beaches.  There are scores of amusement parks, and supporting businesses, including Walt Disney World, Universal Studios, Busch Gardens, SeaWorld and others.

For such a sunny state, however, Florida has its share of extreme and severe weather.  Central Florida is known as the lightning capital of the United States, the state has the highest average precipitation of any state in the country, and tornadoes and hurricanes have become an all to frequent occurrence.  On a brighter note, however, snow if very, very rare.

Trailing tourism in the state economy is agriculture, mainly citrus fruit (oranges, grapefruit, tangerines), but also sugarcane and celery.  Other Florida industries include phosphate mining, and the aerospace industry.  Cape Canaveral and Kennedy Space Center (photo of launch pad at right) are both located in Florida.

While rich in many things, Florida has its share of poverty, too.  The 2002 Census revealed that Miami was the poorest city in the United States.  By the time of the 2004 Census, they had moved up a little, to the third poorest city.

I’ve been to Florida many, many times, primarily visiting the Miami and Orlando area.  In fact, I’ll be in Florida again this month, and am looking forward to the respite from the unseasonably cold Seattle weather.  Here are a couple of my favorite things to do when I’m in Florida:

• Tours of Kennedy Space Center
• Looking at memorabilia at the Astronaut Hall of Fame
• Shopping at Ron Jon’s Surf Shop
• Wading in the Atlantic Ocean and frolicking on the sand in Cocoa Beach (anyone else out there remember Cocoa Beach from the television show “I Dream of Jeanie?”)
• People watch along Ocean Drive in South Beach

Of course, there are still lots of things left on my list of things that I’d like to do or see:

• Take an airboat ride in the Everglades
• Spend some relaxing time in the Florida Keys
• Visit the Salvador Dali Museum in St. Petersurg

What are your favorite things to do in Florida?

Photo credit:  Launch pad, Miami Beach

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Post from: Fly Away Cafe

If you’ll be in the Scottsdale (Arizona) area, check out the Convention and Visitors Bureau website, and download a few travel podcasts before you go.  You can play the podcast on your computer or mp3 player.

There is a downloadable map of downtown Scottsdale, and one for the greater Scottsdale area.  The podcasts corresponds with various stops on the map.  Follow the driving tour and discover the history and culture of Scottsdale, along with discovering its architecture, art, sports, and the drama of the Sonoran Desert.

Here a sample of what’s available:

• Saddle Up in the West’s Most Western Town
• A Cactus League Blooms in the Desert
• Fabulous Fairways and Bountiful Trails
• The McDowell Sonoran Preserve
• The Panoramas of Pinnacle Peak Park

Arizona is on my list of places to get back to this winter, and I’m already checking out places that I want to visit.  I think I’m moving the McDowell Sonoran Preserve to the top of the list.

Photo credit:  flickr

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Today’s Halloween idea came from my friend SP at Southern Byways. 

There is actually a Halloween Theme Park ““ called SCREAMS, located in Waxahachie, Texas, 30 minutes south of Dallas/Fort Worth.  Every year over 60,000 visit during the month leading up to Halloween.

SCREAMS opened in 1996, and stakes its claim as the World’s Largest Halloween Theme Park.  A separate, child-friendly area called Spooky Hollow is available for children.  Still, the park advises that some children may be sensitive to the eerie environment.

The park contains four Haunted Houses, all four of which are included in your admission price.  You can go through them as many times as you wish, so arriving at the park early is definitely a plus.

• Castle of Darkness is the park’s most popular haunted house.  It’s a 6,000 square foot medieval castle, complete with twisting corridors and creatures of the dark.
• Terror Visions in 3D requires visitors to put on 3D glasses before entering.  Here you’ll find clowns and a funhouse that becomes your worst nightmare.  And that 3D technology makes everything seem so real!
• The Arcane Asylum demonstrates what happens when the inmates really do take over. 
• The Black Hole is a time travel journey that let’s you visit the age of dinosaurs (that T-Rex is pretty fierce), Ancient Egypt, and Jack the Ripper’s London, The only way out of this time travel vortex is through the Black Hole.

Also included with your admission price is admission to the Maze of the Macabre (can you find your way out?), the Ghoulish Graveyard and Spooky Hollow (for children ages 12 and under).  Other attractions within the park require an additional charge.

SCREAMS is open until October 28th.  from 7 pm-1:30 am.  On October 29th it is open from 11 pm.  Admission is $19.99, children under age 6 are free.  Group rates are available ($16.00) for groups of ten or more.

Post from: Fly Away Cafe