DisLove E68 Lauren and Tanisha from Orlando Sanford International Airport

In this special episode, Vanessa and Kris interview Lauren and Tanisha from Orlando Sanford International Airport.  The airport is "Simpler. Faster. Better." offering nonstop flights from over 75 destinations on Allegiant.

Learn about their recent $60 million renovation project which will be completed later this year and hear how you can make your family's trip to Orlando stress-free and safe by flying into Sanford.

For all the latest news about our episodes follow us on Instagram @dislovewithvanessaandkris.

Transcript

Vanessa Ferguson  0:05  
Welcome to the does love podcast with Vanessa and Kris. I'm Vanessa Ferguson and

Kris Johns  0:09  
I'm Kris Johns,

Vanessa Ferguson  0:10  
we'd like to welcome you to show number 68. And for any listeners joining us for the first time, our show features things we love it Disney, and then each episode we have a guest who creates Disney magic for our listeners at home or on their Disney vacations. from vacation planners to product producers, our guests can bring Disney Magic into your life. And as a reminder to our listeners, we appreciate if you can take time to leave us a review on Apple podcasts or any other platform where you listen. We always give these listeners shout outs on future episodes of the does love podcast. We appreciate anyone who's able to take time to leave a customer your rating as well. That just helps more listeners find us in the future. And on today's show, we are going to be joined by Lauren and tonisha from the Orlando Sanford International Airport. We are super excited to have them on the show. It's a special episode to share about traveling from that airport to and from that airport and Sanford is our airport of choice. Isn't that Kris?

Kris Johns  1:07  
Exactly right. Vanessa, you know, we fly. We live in Michigan, we fly directly from Bishop airport in Flint. We take a direct and Allegiant straight to Sanford in it's awesome because we're able to get in and out of the airport so quickly. And so we initially flew in Orlando in the past, but now we fly dedicated into Sanford.

Vanessa Ferguson  1:25  
And they'll be talking about two with the ending of the magical Express at the end of 2021. It just makes more sense to be able to fly into Sanford you're gonna have the better experience and ease of transportation as you head back to Disney or wherever your destination is throughout Central Florida. So we are excited to hear from Lauren and tonisha and can't wait to share with you all about Orlando Sanford International Airport. We would like to welcome Lauren and tonisha to the show today they are with Orlando Sanford International Airport. And they're going to tell us all about the experience of flying in their Sanford is actually our airport of choice. So we are really excited to hear from them today.

Lauren Rowe  2:08  
Thanks for having us. We're happy to be here.

Tanisha Morris  2:11  
Last we're very excited to join you today.

Vanessa Ferguson  2:13  
Awesome. So of course we'd like you to just for people who've never been there before. Could you tell us a little bit about Orlando Sanford International Airport.

Lauren Rowe  2:23  
I think people don't realize that we have this gem of an airport, about 40 minutes north of Orlando International Airport. So what happens is people fly in direct, which is why it's great because you can get a direct flight straight into the airport, you get off the plane, you get straight to your car, and you go on down to the parks. And I think that people don't realize how quick it is. And where it is. Like I said it's about 40 minutes north of the actual Orlando International Airport. But it's a better option for people because it's so much quicker to get in and out of. And it's usually more cost effective for most families. And it's a great place for people to go if they want to come into the park. So I really think people need to understand just how great it is to have this little airport 10 selves basically for sure.

Kris Johns  3:18  
Thank you and then friggin for our friends who have not flown into Sanford before, what can they expect what their experience is compared to other options in Central Florida.

Lauren Rowe  3:29  
I think the biggest part of flying into Orlando Sanford is the ease of use. Right? So first of all, all of the flights are direct, which makes it so much easier. So when people are flying from their city of choice to Orlando Sanford, there's no connection, right? It goes straight to the airport. But then when you get there, the great thing is you actually have very easy parking, very easy help when you get into the area when it comes to driving or any of that and then when you get there, you're going straight to the parks. I feel that people think that when they get there they feel like it's just so much more you know user friendly. It's not a huge airport. You're not taking shuttles for sure. Yeah. to where you want to go, right. Yeah, you get there, you park you you get to your your gate Gatwick in a few moments, and then you're done. Airports getting in and out.

Tanisha Morris  4:38  
Well and also to just to piggyback off of what Lauren said. And we are also a to terminal airport. So it kind of traveling is already so stressful when you get all the signs and all the terminals and all of the gates and while we are a nice sized airport, it's just two terminals. So you really can get to where you're going very easy.

Vanessa Ferguson  4:58  
And that is how To us, I know there's been days where we're flying home and we have to be to work at a certain time, it's nice that we know we can go in, get on our flight very quickly be home in a couple of hours where we're in Michigan. And that direct flight is nice, same thing going down, we're able to work all day we get on a direct flight, and we're in Orlando in a couple of hours. And that's made it so much easier for our travel, we used to go to the larger airport. And like even where we live, we're about an hour away from the Detroit airport. But we fly from Flint, Bishop airport, because just like Sanford, it's just that ease of getting in and getting out. And so that's something that we ourselves, have really enjoyed with our travel the last few years as well. Now, we were there in March. And I know there were some things happening at the airport, then and some new things have happened even since our last visit there. So could you tell us, what are some new things that have been happening at the airport over the last year,

Lauren Rowe  5:54  
we have a new terminal expansion, which has added a huge amount of ticket counters. So in general, when people show up to actually check in, they're going to feel a very safe in the fact that there's a lot more space. So that's the one thing that's been I think, really great. On top of that, we have new gates that we've actually implemented that will be used soon. And we have consolidated check in and ticketing and security. So when folks go through, they're going to feel like I said very safe, because you just have a lot more space. And we know when during the pandemic space really counts. Yes,

Vanessa Ferguson  6:35  
yes.

Tanisha Morris  6:38  
And then also, just to add on to what Lauren said, we were a big family airport, something else that we've added to the airport recently, were breastfeeding pads from the modifieds. This is great for new moms that they need to go in and, and you know breastfeed their their newborns, they have seen wishing they can close the door, take care of your baby in private. And as you can imagine, us being based in Orlando, pretty much receives so many. But also in the age of COVID, we've also tried really hard to make the airport safer for our passengers. And by doing this, we've added a bunch of different touch list options. One of the biggest options was our parking, we added a new technology Yeah, Port reef technology in which it completely touchless license plate recognition. So you do not have to go to the kiosk, we have one if you choose to. But you don't have to go to the kiosk. You can do it from your phone and pay and go.

Vanessa Ferguson  7:40  
Really nice. And I know that you mentioned to that there is a special plane that people can see at the airport you were telling us about

Lauren Rowe  7:48  
Yeah, we have a new terminal is actually exhibiting a PV one venture, this is a world war two airplane that was restored by local veterans, mostly Wow. And it was restored over 15 years. And they took a long time, a lot of care. And it's sitting up on this shelf. At the new terminal. We believe that it is the largest plane to sit in an airport terminal and the world. So we're really very proud of it. And it's super exciting to see it up there. It's just a lot of fun. And we actually have the people keep taking selfies of it and, and and pictures of it because it's just a really cool homage to the past. And again, it's just really, we were we were a Naval Air Station before we were Sanford International Airport. So we weren't had legally her station before that. And so it's very exciting to see people so excited about the fact that we that's what we did before we were an actual commercial airport. Wow.

Tanisha Morris  8:57  
And something else, I don't know how we forgot to mention this. But we also have four new gates coming to the airport, which is going to be amazing for passengers. It's going to be amazing for airlines. It's going to really give people the opportunity to fly in and experience the Orlando Sanford International Airport travel experience.

Lauren Rowe  9:17  
I think it's just really important that we that we get the word out that this airport is such a better option. Really want to do family travel. It really is. You get there direct, you get in your car, you get there, and there's no actual major like on the you know, we have to get on the shuttle and it is so much quicker. And that's why we try to get everybody to understand that this airport is perfect for families, especially for direct flights, where there's no connection In this pandemic, we know that connections are scary for people, especially when they have to go through really, really crowded large airports. That's not what what's going on here. You get on the flights, you get here and you're done. Right? Very, it's so much a better option for families, as they're traveling in the next couple of months. Well, even

Vanessa Ferguson  10:23  
we last March, we're there right before things shut down. And we were traveling with my parents and our daughter was two years old at the time. And we flew in to Sanford because we knew we had that direct flight. So less time for our daughter, my dad's a nervous flier, so it was easier for him. And then that was the great thing we landed, they were able to get the bags and I walked over, I had the car, I got our car rental, and I was back over before they even had all the bags out, too, so fast and easy. And that made it a lot less stressful when you're traveling, especially with a group or even like if you have kids or a larger family group going along, like you said, and even now it's even more important with things related to the pandemic.

Lauren Rowe  11:06  
Like rambley, the direct flights are huge. I really do. I mean, nobody wants to sit in a plane, a huge airports with a connection with 1000s of people when you can just get from one point to another very quickly, very safely. I mean, that's what we're all about.

Kris Johns  11:25  
In the morning, you have the big piece about you know, from point A to point B, roughly, I know how far is it from If I were you know, Feigin and we fly out of Flint Bishop airport, how far from the gate to the baggage claim and from the baggage claim to the car rental? Would you estimate it be like in maybe in yards?

Lauren Rowe  11:47  
What would you say? I mean, I would say like, from the baggage claim to?

Kris Johns  11:53  
I mean, just to jump in? I mean, correct?

Lauren Rowe  11:57  
I don't I don't know.

Kris Johns  11:59  
I was trying to find the right piece. Cuz I don't know, in minutes wise. I mean, I think again, as you know, the Dan of the trip, where my primary responsibility is luggage in getting the car rental. I know, you know, the one thing that I've loved about flying into Sanford is just from getting off the plane, my wife took care of our child getting to the luggage in in from the luggage or outside. And then there's a cut, you know, I would say less than a football field away. We were to our car rental choice, and then I'm picking it up. And I think the other side is, you know, for the folks who are maybe not familiar, where is Orlando? We're seeing it in reference to overall Orlando area.

Lauren Rowe  12:34  
So okay, here's the thing. First of all, let's talk about the SF Bay. We are SF Bay, which is our airport code monthly. And we are simpler, faster, better. You've already demonstrated the fact that we're simpler, faster, better, right. So when will you get to our airport, getting the whatever you need to get to the parks, to get to your destination is already better. Right. Right. And most people think about the so let, let's talk about this first. Most people think about the parks, right? Yes. But you have to remember, we're only 30 minutes away from one of the best beaches in Florida. Right? Yes. 30 minutes away from Daytona Beach, in New Smyrna Beach, some of the most beautiful beaches. So you will leave our terminal and go left. Boulevard, you will be in one of the most beautiful beach towns in all of America in 30 minutes. Right, right. So people forget that we are very close to New Smyrna Beach, to Daytona Beach, to the beaches that people really love. I mean, that's one of the things. And the other thing you mentioned was the fact that what's it like if you live and you have to go to the Disney parks, again, it's about ease, comfort, making sure that you're very, very happy as you're going through the process. Right. You could go to Orlando International Airport, you could get a rental car, and you could sit there for hours just waiting. Yes. Yeah, that's not our experience, our experiences. You're right, get off a plane, walk 10 minutes across the street. You're right there at the rental car, you get your rental car, you get your rental car, you're out of there, and there's nothing comparable.

Kris Johns  14:40  
Exactly. I would also even add to you mentioned the beaches. You know, we did a Disney Cruise in December of 19. And so for us, you're exactly right. So instead of heading into Orlando, we just took a beach toward the Atlantic side and we were to Titusville you know, really very quickly for our port destination.

Lauren Rowe  14:58  
Yes, we're very close to the beach. says I mean like it just, if we when we, when we in Orlando To be honest, my husband and I, when we go to Orlando we drive right out the airport. Right. Right. Yeah, right. It's very close. Very, very close.

Vanessa Ferguson  15:15  
Now what if I were looking to find a Sanford? What are the airlines that do come in direct?

Tanisha Morris  15:22  
At this time we have Allegiant airlines. There are only airport at this time due to COVID. Some of our airlines did have to take a step back because it was an international airline. But we are definitely hoping to bring new airlines so the airport for our passengers. Perfect.

Vanessa Ferguson  15:40  
And what are so I know there's a long list of destinations that you can arrive to Sanford from but in general, where are some of your major hubs of people that come from airports across the country?

Tanisha Morris  15:54  
Oh, boy, we have over 75 non stop destinations. Yeah, over. And I don't think people realize that, that even though we're a small airport, we just have so many destinations. Some of our favorites are Nashville, Tennessee, Asheville, upstate New York, from Syracuse, Albany and Antonio. Yes. We're super excited about a new destination that we're starting, actually on June 4. Key West Florida.

Vanessa Ferguson  16:25  
Oh, nice. And that's a long drive. We've driven that from Orlando, it would be much better on a flight.

Lauren Rowe  16:34  
We were trying to say why drive eight hours would go in one.

Vanessa Ferguson  16:37  
Yes, exactly.

Kris Johns  16:39  
It took us legitimately two hours just to get through Miami.

Tanisha Morris  16:42  
Yes. Oh, boy. Yes. So I do hear it's a beautiful drive. I've heard that. But I'm more of a convenience type of girl. So I'll take the one hour flight correct. We've

Vanessa Ferguson  16:53  
done that drive once that was enough.

Kris Johns  16:58  
And then with that, you know, you mentioned you know how Sanford is simple, faster and better. Where can they go online to find more information about the airport and the destinations that Allegiant flies from?

Tanisha Morris  17:09  
So they can go to our website, www dot right sfb.com. There, we have listed all of our destinations. Something fun we do on our blog is we highlight different destinations. We call a destination of the month, oh, prayers, some of our Florida for some of our Florida passengers, who sometimes want to escape the float who want to escape Florida, you can go and enjoy a weekend away or a week away whatever type of vacation they would like. But everything is on that website. Why isn't he calm? Awesome. And

Vanessa Ferguson  17:41  
we will make sure to share that in the show notes and promote that out on Instagram and other social media platforms. So thank you so much for joining us today.

Tanisha Morris  17:51  
Yes, and while we're speaking my social media, I would just love for everyone to follow our social media handles. We're very active. We do some giveaways on social media. So you can get lucky and we just do a lot of different things in the airport. So it's always fun to follow us and see what's happening. You might end up lucky in a week where we're having something fun happening in the terminal. But our social media handles on Twitter, it is sfb_airport.

Vanessa Ferguson  18:18  
Okay.

Tanisha Morris  18:20  
And then we also have a Facebook account, which is at fly Sanford. And we are new to the Instagram family. So please join us and follow us at fly SFB. Awesome.

Kris Johns  18:35  
Perfect. Thank you. And again, we're going to be flying down to Sanford in September. And so I think again, just in closing, I'm a primatologist, I'm interested in logistics and I can think just the one side is before you know flying into the other airport it typically it takes a long time to get off the plane just to even see daylight. The one thing I love about Sanford is that you get off the plane within within less than 10 minutes. You're outside. In really, by the time you get to Lake Buena Vista. I mean, the advantages of flying into Stanford are just so numerous

Vanessa Ferguson  19:02  
and flying home to fly home. Yeah, makes it so much easier then to Well, thank you so much for joining us. We appreciate you both taking time with us today.Thank you so much for having too much.

Thank you again to Lauren and Tanisha for joining us today. We are super excited to be flying into Sanford later this year. And hope all of you can make a trip there very soon as well. And now on to our two minute trivia and our wisdom from Walt quote Kris, you are up with our trivia.

Kris Johns  19:31  
So for this, we've talked a lot about airports. Yes, that is true. And you're probably you know that Walt Disney has an airport or did corral Disney World airport and it was active, really up until the late 90s. Okay, and then as of 20 December 2017. It really serves just as an airport. But here is the trivia. It is nicknamed the singing airport. Because the runway features a set of grooves and when driven over By the plane at 45 miles an hour. The grooves sound out this popular Disney song. Are you serious? This is this one. According to Wikipedia,

Vanessa Ferguson  20:11  
yeah. Okay, um,

Kris Johns  20:15  
and let's just say this is probably the most iconic Disney song. I'll give you a hint.

Vanessa Ferguson  20:20  
Okay, um, the song from the Mickey Mouse Club, like the MICKEY. Is that is not correct now. Oh, um, I have no and most iconic to me would be the Mickey Mouse Club When you wish

Kris Johns  20:39  
upon a star. So yes, that's true. That's according to Wikipedia. And again, the airport was built in 1971 to serve, you know, getting smaller planes. But then as MC to grow and grew. And of course, Sanford, which became a far better option for travelers, it just kind of fell out of use. And so as a result, there's really been no commercial use since the early 1980s. Okay, and then since then, it's really been just used as a parking lot just correct. In so yeah, it's just one of those things. And it was a case where it just initially there was bigger plans. But just the fact of having airplanes kind of fly that close. And they just, I think with the noise a number of things that but again, When you wish upon a star,

Vanessa Ferguson  21:25  
very interesting, I wonder if you go over it with a car doesn't make them.

Kris Johns  21:29  
Wheel plane a car? Yeah, exactly. Are you going 45 miles an

Vanessa Ferguson  21:33  
hour. Very interesting. Well, today, we talked a lot about innovation that's happening at the Sanford airport. So I thought this was kind of a cool walk, quote, to end with the era we are living in today is a dream of coming true. And that's just really true to see all of the innovation and things that are happening even during this time. So great to see the new things that are happening at Sanford. And then of course, as we look towards the 50th for Walt Disney World later this year, we just are really looking forward to all the new things coming around. So thank you again for joining us on this episode of The does love podcast with Vanessa and Kris. I'm Vanessa

Kris Johns  22:10  
and I'm Kris.

This podcast is not affiliated with the Walt Disney Company or its holdings and it is intended for entertainment purposes only.

Transcribed by https://otter.ai