This summer, turn off your radio or iPod and head to Universal Orlando - there, you’ll be able to hear some of today’s hottest recording artists during a brand new summer concert series. Live at its new outdoor Music Plaza underneath the Hollywood Rip Ride Rockit, the park’s first-ever Summer Concert Series will rock Orlando with four of the biggest names in pop, hip-hop, and R&B. Guests will be able to top off their day at the park with these sizzling performances, which will begin Saturday, June 13 and continue each Saturday night until July 4.

The Summer Concert Series will feature Chart-topping, multi-platinum, Grammy Award nominees and winners. First to perform on June 13 is American Idol winner Jordin Sparks, whose self-titled album has sold more than a million copies. Following Sparks on June 20 will be LL Cool J, with more than 15 million records sold and 20 singles on the Billboard charts. Then on June 27 comes Natasha Bedingfield, who can boast album sales of more than 10 million, and on July 4, the Summer Concert Series closes with Rock ‘n Roll Hall of Famers The O’Jays.

These hot concerts will take place at Universal’s brand new Music Plaza, which debuted earlier this year during the Mardi Gras festivities. Designed in the spirit of the Hollywood Bowl, this state-of-the-art outdoor music venue features a 2,400 square-foot performance stage, a 15,000 square-foot viewing lawn, and two 20-foot-tall projection screens so that no one will be able to miss a second of the show, no matter where you’re standing.

“Our Music Plaza has quickly become Orlando’s perfect place to enjoy great music outdoors,” said Jim Timon, senior vice president of entertainment for Universal Orlando Resort. “Our Summer Concert Series will continue that tradition – and be an amazing experience for everyone from dedicated music fans to families wanting a great way to end their day in the parks.”

Plus, a little birdie told us that towards the end of the Summer Concert Series, there’s a good chance you’ll be able to catch a great concert and ride the brand new Hollywood Rip Ride Rockit, which is slated to debut early this summer – perhaps on the 4th of July?

The only thing better than hearing incredible music at the end of a great day at Universal Studios or Islands of Adventure is knowing that you didn’t have to pay anything extra for it! The Summer Concert Series is free with admission to Universal Studios, so all you need to do to get access to the hottest performances of the year is get your Universal Studios tickets from DWTickets.com. Start planning your summer fun at the park now!

Before you know it, the end of May will be here, and with it, the end of the International Flower & Garden Festival at Epcot. If you haven’t seen this colorful compilation of flower fun at Walt Disney World, you definitely should – there’s plenty to see and hear, from the whimsical character topiaries and beautiful gardens to the sounds of the Flower Power concerts. We’ve been covering highlights of the festival throughout its duration, and as its last few weeks approach, we bring you one more – the gardens of the World Showcase.

At the Flower & Garden Festival, one of the most fun activities is spotting your favorite characters and Disney films represented through displays like the Pixie Hollow Fairy Garden and the “Cinderellabration” topiary. But Disney has also taken special care to pay tribute to different landscapes around the world, and guests can see this when they visit the 11 pavilions of the World Showcase. There, gardens tell each country’s story in blooms and provide continuity and transition from one nation to the next.

At the Mexico pavilion, for example, landscaping represents the country’s two regions, the jungle and desert. Facing the Mayan temple, guests will see tropical plants and flowers commonly found in the jungle, such as the floss silk tree, often endowed with springtime blossoms and oddly-shaped fruit. Epcot gardeners have been careful to make this garden look “unmaintained” to make it appear more like a genuine jungle.

“We wanted to steer clear of creating a ‘perfect’ landscape and use irregular spots of colorful flowers to give it a more exotic look,” says Eric Darden, Walt Disney World horticulturist.

A similarly natural look has been created in the China pavilion, where the grass isn’t mowed and plants are more haphazardly placed than in Western landscapes, in accordance with Chinese gardening. Water is an essential element in every Chinese garden, and at Epcot, ponds lie still with water lilies blooming atop. Older looking trees, like a weeping mulberry, have also been added to give the garden a mature look, which the Chinese appreciate.

By contrast, the garden at The American Adventure pavilion is much more organized and formal, designed in the style of old colonial architecture and landscapes. A predominant color scheme of red, white, and blue flowers abounds, accompanied by sycamore trees whose branches interlace overhead.

“This pavilion is by far the most formal, with its soldier-like rows of magnolias, boxed hedges and precisely planted annuals,” Darden said.

Meanwhile, at the France pavilion, guests will enjoy light and airy gardens reminiscent of Parisian park. An allee (avenue or pathway) of trees has been created with Natchez crape myrtle, similar to the linden trees they’re originally composed of in France. And in Le Notre Garden, 985 shrubs have been crafted into the shape of a French symbol, the fleur-de-lis.

The international gardens of the World Showcase are maintained by a horticulture staff of more than 50 gardeners and experts. And if you want to see all of them while learning about the process behind their assembly, check out the “Gardens of the World” tour. A three-hour walking tour through the World Showcase for guests 16 and older, it provides an in-depth look at the styles of landscaping in each pavilion.

Be sure to check out the International Flower & Garden Festival soon before it ends on May 31. The festival is open to all guests with regular Epcot admission, so get your Walt Disney World tickets here on DWTickets.com to begin exploring the world’s gardens at Epcot.

Roller coasters enthusiasts are eagerly awaiting the arrival of the Hollywood Rip Ride Rockit at Universal Studios Orlando, the newest attraction to be added to the park since The Simpsons Ride. And though they’ll have to wait a little while longer – the coaster’s opening has been delayed until this summer with the earliest opening likely in June – we’ve got a few extra juicy details on the Rip Ride Rockit to tide everyone over until then.

We’ve already mentioned on this blog that the Hollywood Rip Ride Rockit (HRRR) will be one of the most technologically advanced coasters in Orlando, with the ability to choose the ride’s soundtrack before boarding, watch your experience on video after riding, and even edit and send that video to friends. But that’s just the tip of the iceberg when it comes to this exciting new coaster, which will feature plenty of moves and maneuvers that are sure to get your heart pumping.

First, the HRRR, once completed, will be the tallest, largest, and fastest X-CAR style roller coaster in the world. Having an X-CAR vehicle – which is more maneuverable than other coaster vehicles and uses innovative, less restrictive restraints – makes the HRRR capable of moves other coasters aren’t. It also allows for more vehicles on the track, ensuring a whirl of non-stop movement.

Some of that movement takes place during six special maneuvers on the HRRR, three of which have never been built before. Those include the Double Take, the world’s first non-inverted loop; the Treble-Clef, where the track bends to form the shape of the musical symbol by the same name, and the Jump Cut, a spiraling negative-gravity move. Other fun maneuvers to look forward to on the Rockit include a 17-story high vertical lift, a drop into an underground chasm, and an inclined loop with a 150-degree banking turn. Riders will also get to soar 33 feet above the ground at a 95 degree angle over the crowd as they wait in the ride’s queue.

Here’s a fun fact – the HRRR features 3,800 feet of steel track, and believe it or not, work first began on it not in the US, but in Munich, Germany last summer. More than 60 sections of track and 200 columns were completed overseas, then packaged into 120 containers and loaded onto ships for transport to the US. They arrived in Savannah, Georgia and then made the trip by road to Orlando, where they were placed in a holding area so the build-out could begin.

Now, it’s just a matter of waiting while the track is completed, and almost all of it is in place. In the meantime, we suggest planning your Universal Studios vacation as a way to pass the time and get excited for the park’s newest and most exhilarating roller coaster yet. Start by looking at the discount Universal Studios tickets on DWTickets.com to begin preparing for your first ride on the Hollywood Rip Ride Rockit.

You’ve been waiting all spring, and now, SeaWorld Orlando is rewarding you for your patience. The aquatic theme park will be opening its new roller coaster Manta early for a special sneak preview this Tuesday, May 5 (Cinco de Mayo). Manta will open at noon that day, as well as every day afterwards through the week until at least the following Sunday, May 10. Though guests should be prepared for periodic closures, it’s still a great chance to ride the ray before it officially opens.

Manta’s official opening date is May 22, but rumors have been circulating for a while now that the ride has come together so quickly and so well that guests will likely get to ride it for limited hours leading up to May 22.

“A lot of the locals and residents want to experience this before summer,” said SeaWorld spokesperson Nick Gollattscheck.

The sneak preview announcement was actually first made by Shamu via Twitter, who pronounced, “I have decided to open Manta early. Tuesday, May 5 at noon. Yes, I have that kind of pull. When you speak of me, speak well.” Needless to say, Shamu’s not a modest killer whale.

Manta will be a first for SeaWorld in many ways – though it’s not the park’s only roller coaster, it will be the first flying roller coaster of its kind in the park and in the world. Riders will begin by climbing into traditional seats and harnesses, but soon enough they’ll see what makes the ride so special as the entire seating assembly rotates forward, positioning riders horizontally.

From there, they’ll soar over the park like a Manta ray, flying headfirst at 56 mph. The coaster features a track-twisting pretzel loop, in-line spins, a close call with a waterfall, and a wing dip just inches from the water that throws out a 14-foot high, 60-foot long spray of water.

Adding on to the incredible experience is Manta’s aquarium; while waiting on line for the ride, guests will get a glimpse into the underwater worlds of tropical fish and rays. Floor to ceiling aquariums will showcase rare leafy sea dragons, colorful clownfish, and mysterious sea anemones. Smaller guests will even get to ‘pop up’ into an aquarium and come face-to-face with the aquarium’s inhabitants – which include three hundred rays and a massive Pacific octopus, which creeps along the interior of Manta’s saltwater habitat.

“Manta takes what SeaWorld does best – animal encounters and thrill rides – and blends
them to create something you can’t find anywhere else in the world,” said Dan Brown,
SeaWorld Orlando’s general manager. “Manta’s actually the next generation of what makes
Orlando so much fun. Orlando is the must-do vacation this summer, and Manta is the must-see.”

So what are you waiting for? Get your first look at the must-see attraction of the summer, and grab your discount SeaWorld tickets from DWTickets.com. We can’t imagine a better way to celebrate Cinco de Mayo than by riding a manta ray at SeaWorld.