The Hard Rock Hotel at Universal Orlando Resort welcomes Eddie Money as the featured performer in the hotel’s monthly rock n’ roll cocktail party, Velvet Sessions. 

The Velvet Sessions party is held the last Thursday of every month and combines creative cocktails with live music from some of the world’s hottest rock bands and performers.

Eddie Money is best known for hits like, Two Tickets to Paradise, Shakin’, Take Me Home Tonight, Walk On Water, Think I’m In Love, Baby Hold On, and I Wanna Go Back.

Admission for Velvet Sessions with Eddie Money is $50 and includes FREE drinks, hors de oeuvres, and warm up tunes from 6:30 - 8:30 pm. There will be a cash bar and additional rock music from 8:30 pm on.

To attend a Velvet Sessions event, you must request an invitation online at http://www.universalorlando.com/.  Please note that Velvet Sessions is restricted to those age 21 and older.

Top Chef is coming to CityWalk at Universal Orlando Resort on September 23 and 24.  Come enjoy live cooking demonstrations with your favorite cheftestants from Bravo’s Top Chef television show.  Daily showtimes: 10:30am, 12:00pm, 1:30pm.

You can also shop for Top Chef gear, get autographs, sign up for a raffle, and check out interactive kiosks during this total Top Chef experience!

Admission is free, but tickets are limited.  Get your free tickets one hour before each show in front of the Plaza Stage.

Halloween comes early to Orlando.  All of central Florida’s major theme park players offer frightening or fun Halloween activities.  From Disney’s fun-filled event to Universal’s annual fright-fest, there are plenty of Halloween happenings for everyone!

DISNEY:  Mickey’s Not-So-Scary Halloween Party

Celebrate a most magical Halloween at Disney’s Magic Kingdom! Come in costume and trick-or-treat for candy and goodies with all of your favorite Disney Characters, all dressed in their finest Halloween outfits. With special entertainment, this not-so-scary party is no trick - it’s a real treat!

Event Highlights:

• Mickey’s “Boo-to-You” Halloween Parade
• Trick-or-treating throughout Magic Kingdom® Park at numerous locations.
• Happy HalloWishes fireworks spectacular - where the Disney Villains go trick-or-treating in the sky!
• Characters decked out in their favorite costumes - so wear yours, too.
• Some of the most popular Magic Kingdom attractions.

Event Dates:

September 19, 23, 26, 28, 30

October 2, 4, 7, 9, 13, 16, 19, 21, 23, 24, 26, 28, 30 (Oct. 31 sold out)
SEAWORLD ORLANDO:  Halloween Spooktacular

Enjoy an underwater fantasea at SeaWorld Orlando, where you can trick-or-treat with friendly sea witches, octopuses, mermaids, pumpkin fish and more.  Come in costume and play with sea fairies, learn from a “school” of fish or dance with an ice witch.

Event Highlights:

• Festivities are included with park admission and begin at 11 am
• Enjoy 15 “treasure stations” with treats galore
• Sesame Street “Countdown to Halloween” live musical stage show with Elmo, The Count and other Sesame Street pals
• Strolling Entertainment

Event Dates:

October 4-5, 11-12, 18-10, 24-26, 31

UNIVERSAL STUDIOS FLORIDA: Halloween Horror Nights

Nowhere to turn. Nowhere to hide.

On select nights in September, October, and November, come face to face with your deepest fears as Bloody Mary brings history’s most terrifying urban legends to life. Inside the haunted houses or on the darkened streets, there’s nowhere you’re safe in the most immersive horror experience ever. If you survive, you can experience it all - only at Universal’s Halloween Horror Nights, the country’s premier Halloween event.

Event Highlights:

• More Scare Zones
• More Scare Actors
• More haunted houses
• All new live shows

Event Dates:

September 26-27

October 2-5, 9-12, 16-19, 22-26, 29-31

November 1

 Hard Rock Live® at Universal CityWalk offers a variety of upcoming musical options.  The concert lineup includes the following:

9/9/08              COMMON & N.E.R.D. 8 pm

9/14/08            Children of Bodom 6 pm

9/20/08            Classic Albums Live - featuring Boston 7:30 pm

9/26/08            Nick Swardson 6:30 pm

10/3/08            Joel McHale 7 pm

10/21/08          Alanis Morissette 7 pm

Music lovers will also want to mark Sept. 25 and Oct. 30 in their calendars.  Those are the dates slated for the next two versions of the popular Velvet Sessions…Orlando’s only rock ‘n’ roll cocktail party held the last Thursday of the month (Nov/Dec excluded) at the Hard Rock Hotel.

At the Portofino Bay Hotel, you might feel as if you’ve just stepped directly into one of the beloved stories of Dr. Seuss!

The Cat in the Hat^TM, Horton Hears a Who^TM, The Grinch^TM and The Sneetches^TM smile back at you as these Dr. Seuss stories come to life in three dimensions at the Loews Portofino Bay Hotel at Universal Orlando®. The new Dr. Seuss Kids’ Suites are an immersive, larger-than-life experience that integrates the adventures of Seuss Landing^TM at Universal’s Islands of Adventure® theme park right into the hotel.

The two-room suites offer plenty of space for the whole family at 650 sq. ft.: a king bedroom for the adults and two twin-sized beds in the children’s portion of the suite. Plus, parents appreciate the added feature that only allows access from the children’s room into the adult’s room, not into the hallway.

Special kid’s suites accommodations are also available at the other on-site hotels including new Jurassic Park-themed suites at Loews Royal Pacific Resort and music-inspired kids’ suites at Hard Rock Hotel at Universal Orlando.

Step into the action and excitement of the hottest movies to hit the big screen this summer at Universal Orlando Resort where you can “ride the movies!”

And right now you can get a double dose of one popular movie adventure.  First you can plunge into darkness on Universal Studios’ popular thrill ride, Revenge of the Mummy® roller coaster.

Then after a full day of fun at the theme park, head to the adjacent CityWalk Universal Cineplex 20, an AMC Theatre® to experience Universal Picture’s thrilling new The Mummy: Tomb of the Dragon Emperor starring Brendan Fraser and Jet Li, opening August 1. 2008.

The songs that move you. The faith that fills you. It all comes together in one weekend at Universal’s annual Rock the Universe extravaganza, September 5th and 6^th.   Some of the biggest names in Christian rock take the stage at Universal Studios to the joy of thousands of believers enjoying a weekend of soul-stirring music right next to the action-packed thrills of the number one movie and TV based theme park in the world.

Scheduled performers for Sept. 5 include Switchfoot, Reliant K, Newsboys, Skillet, Grits, Group 1 Crew and New Method.  Artists slated to perform Sept. 6 include Third Day, Jars of Clay, Jeremy Camp, Stellar Kart, Leeland, This Beautiful Republic and Special D.  In addition to these musical guests, the event also features two special celebrity guest speakers and a Sunday morning worship service on Sept. 7.  Scheduled to speak are AJ Styles of TNA wrestling and Head, former heavy metal guitarist and founding member of the band, Korn.

Bring your Nintendo^TM DS to Universal Studios Florida and be one the first to try out The Mummy^TM: Tomb of the Dragon Emperor Video Game Demo, based on the upcoming theatrical movie release on August 1st.

Guest can visit the DS download station, conveniently located at The Arcade - Next to The Mummy Ride.

About the Game:
Follow Rick, Alex, and the rest of the O’Connell family across exotic locations in their adventures to save the world (and each other) from the evil plot of the resurrected shape-shifting Dragon Emperor of China.

Play as Rick or Alex, depending on the particular level of the game, and lead the rest of the O’Connell family on an epic adventure to stop a new Mummy nemesis, the evil Dragon Emperor. Throughout your mission, you will actively pursue and fight off supernatural enemies and ancient Terracotta warriors utilizing a variety of combat moves and weapons. You will avoid dangerous traps, explore ancient tombs, discover spectacular mausoleums, and reach the great heights of the Himalayas while on your quest stop the evil Emperors’ master plans.

Two of Orlando’s biggest contemporary christian music events set to return on Sept. 5-6, 2008

 Universal’s Rock the Universe

Rock your soul with an exciting weekend of pulse-pounding, feel good, music and thrills at the annual Rock the Universe celebration at Universal Studios.  Slated for Sept. 5-6, 2008, this amazing Christian rock weekend brings a long list of top Contemporary Christian performers to the Universal stage, including: Switchfoot, Reliant K, Newsboys, Skillet, Grits, Group 1 Crew, New Method, Third Day, Jeremy Camp, Jars of Clay, Stellar Karl, Leeland, The Beautiful Republic and Special D.

Disney’s Night of Joy

Get out your calendars and circle these two rockin’ days to celebrate Faith in 2008: Friday, September 5, and Saturday, September 6! The music moves to Disney’s Hollywood Studios^TM for the first time, where some of today’s most powerful voices in Contemporary Christian music will take to the stage for this popular event.

In over 20 years, the Night of Joy events have featured a long list of Grammy and/or Dove Award winners and played to a combined audience of nearly one million people. This year’s event will again bring out the best with performers that include: Chris Tomlin, MercyMe, Rebecca St. James, BarlowGirl, Matthew West, Rush of Fools, Brandon Heath, Britt Nicole, Casting Crowns, TobyMac, Fred Hammond, Marcos Witt, Mandisa, Aaron Shust, RED and Pure NRG.

The centerpiece of the Hard Rock Hotel in Orlando is the 12,000 square foot pool - complete with a beautiful sandy beach!

Hang out at the beach and soak up the sun for the day. Your favorite tunes fill the air, plus the pool features an underwater sound system so you’ll never miss a beat.

For an extra “cool” time, try renting one of the pool’s private cabanas, which come equipped with a ceiling fan, a plasma TV, wireless internet, and of course, a server to bring you drinks all day long!

For the full rock n’ roll experience you can even upgrade to a themed cabana and spend the afternoon in “The Yellow Submarine” or Stevie Wonder’s “Musiquarium.”

The massive pool also features an underwater stereo sound system, interactive play area for children, a 260-foot water slide, 2 Jacuzzis and a sand volleyball court.