Welcome Center & FAQs

Thanks for joining us here on OrlandoInformer.com!

On this page you will find instructions for new users, followed by a tutorial on how to navigate this site. At the very bottom you can view our FAQ section or drop us a note via our contact form.

We look forward to helping you plan an incredible trip to Central Florida. And don’t forget to say hi on Facebook and Twitter!

All users

By using this site you agree to our Terms of Use & Privacy Policy.

Site navigation

Here are the basic instructions for making your way around OrlandoInformer.com. Please note that the menus may look slightly different as they will change over time.

How to navigate around the OI Universal Orlando Center

Anytime you are in the OI Universal Orlando Center, you will see a navigation menu similar to the image above. You can use the links in the menu to make your way around the major sections of the Center. Please note that because our Center has so much information, only the most popular category headings are included in the navigation menu. To see everything we have, click the Complete table of contents link in the navigation menu.

Many of the pages within the OI Universal Orlando Center will also have their own navigation windows, like the one you see in the image above. These navigation windows provide you with quick access to all pages in a specific section. In the example above you can see all the attractions inside Marvel Super Hero Island at Islands of Adventure. Clicking the Home link will bring you back to the Center’s main page.

OI Center breadcrumb example.

You will also notice that a breadcrumb above the title of all OI Center pages. This tells you exactly where you are in the OI Center. The breadcrumbs also function as links. In the example above, you can use the breadcrumb to jump back to the New York page, the Universal Studios Florida page, or all the back to the homepage for the OI Center.

You can move directly to the OI Universal Orlando Center from anywhere on our site using the OI UNIVERSAL CENTER button in the top navigation menu. That button is also a drop-down menu, which allows you to jump straight to some of the major sections within the Center.

Want to learn how to best use the OI Universal Center?

When you are done with this page, visit our new OI subscriber orientation.

How to navigate around the OI Blog and other parts of our site

The image above is our top navigation bar and it will appear at the very top of every page on our site.

FRONTPAGE — The frontpage button will bring you back to the very front page of OrlandoInformer.com. You can also click anywhere in the “Orlando Informer” header at the top of the screen to get back to the beginning. FRONTPAGE is also a drop-down menu with buttons for logging in, viewing your profile, and learning about OrlandoInformer.com.

OI UNIVERSAL CENTER — This drop-down menu gives you direct access to the OI Universal Orlando Center with a drop-down menu of its major sections.

OI BLOG — When you’re done exploring our encyclopedia of Universal Orlando information, visit the OI Blog to enjoy everyday coverage of Universal and of the rest of Central Florida, including Disney World, SeaWorld, and so many other great destinations in Orlando, Kissimmee, Winter Park, and more.

OI FORUMS – Our forums, also known as message boards, are a place for OI members to exchange ideas, advice, gossip and memories.

SHARE – Want to share your experiences in and around Orlando with our readers? Use this button to learn more about sharing, and also to access the stories that have been shared by other members.

Want to earn free access to the OI Universal Orlando Center or get paid for creating content? Both of these are possibilities. Use the links in the SHARE drop-down menu to learn more.

ASK -- The OI Answer service provides you with a resource for asking specific questions to help you plan your next visit to Orlando. Once your question is posted, it will be answered in less than 24 hours. Other OI readers also have the opportunity to answer posted questions, and you can help answer other people’s inquiries too. Use the drop-down menu to view all of the questions or review only the questions you have submitted.

Our search bar is located at the very end of the top navigation menu. Enter any search term you’d like and click SEARCH to get started. Results will be listed by relevancy, and your search terms are highlighted in red. Please note that the search function will also look through comments for you.

The image above is the navigation menu for the blog side of OrlandoInformer.com (also known as the OI Blog). These buttons give you direct access to our most popular blog categories.

Last but not least, you can always find the latest OI Blog posts, questions, comments, and answers at the very bottom of any page:

FAQs

The number 1 reason why new subscribers do not receive a confirmation email
or do not have full access to the OI Universal Center:

The email address associated with your PayPal transaction is different than the email address associated with your OrlandoInformer.com registration

For example, let’s say you had already registered for a free OI account, and when you did so you used the email address johndoe@lovesuniversal.com. Then later you decided to purchase an access plan to the OI Universal Center. When you made the purchase, you used your spouse’s PayPal account, which is associated with the email address jandoe@lovesdisney.com. When PayPal notifies our site of the payment, our site doesn’t know that the two email addresses are really for the same person. So, it will create a new OrlandoInformer.com account for jandoe@lovesdisney.com. That leads us to this question…

I just made a purchase with a PayPal account that is associated with a different email address than my OI registration. What should I do?

• This can be handled — no problem. Just drop us a line using the contact form at the bottom of this page letting us know you made the purchase and you would like it transferred to your existing account (be sure to include your current email addresses and OI username).
• We will get your purchase transferred in less than 24 hours (and usually much sooner), and then we will delete the new account that was automatically created. You will not have subscriber-only access to the OI Universal Center using your existing log in information until we have made the transfer.
• Alternatively, because a new account was created for the email address associated with the PayPal payment, you could go to that email inbox and get the new account credentials, and then log in using those new account credentials. However, if you do this, be aware that any activity you have conducted with your original OI registration (OI Blog comments, OI Forum posts) cannot be migrated over to the new account. If you decide to proceed with the new account instead of having us transfer the purchase between accounts, we would appreciate it if you’d let us know by using the contact form at the bottom of the page. Thanks!
• Please note that this issue only affects members who had already registered for a free OI account before they purchased access to the OI Universal Center. If you had not already registered for a free OI account when you made your purchase, keep reading…

The number 2 reason why new subscribers do not receive a confirmation email
or do not have full access to the OI Universal Center:

Your PayPal payment was processed as an electronic check — also known as an eCheck

From the PayPal Help Center:

• An eCheck is a payment that you make directly from your bank account.
• Just like a regular check, it usually takes between 3 and 5 business days for an eCheck to clear and the money to appear in the recipient’s PayPal account.

We are unable to grant you subscriber access to the OI Universal Center until we receive your payment. Because an eCheck payment will not appear in our PayPal account for 3 to 5 business days, you will not receive access for 3 to 5 days. This delay should have been communicated to you by PayPal during your transaction.

IMPORTANT: Did you mean to pay by credit or debit card, but somehow ended up paying with an eCheck? It is possible that the credit or debit card you have on file with PayPal has expired. If so, your PayPal payment may have defaulted to your checking account, resulting in an eCheck payment.

I just paid for an access plan with an eCheck, and I’m kind of bugged that I won’t get full access to the OI Universal Center right away. What can I do?

If you do not want to wait for the eCheck to clear, you have two options.

• First, you can go ahead and register for a free account on OrlandoInformer.com (if you haven’t already). To do so, make sure you register with the same email address you used for the PayPal transaction, and click here.
• While registering for a free account will not grant you access to subscriber-only content, it will allow you to leave comments on OI Blog posts and participate in the OI Forum, and your activities will be tied to your new account.
• Second option: If you need subscriber-only access immediately, then you will need to cancel the eCheck payment and initiate a new payment with a credit or debit card via PayPal. To cancel your original payment, please log in to your PayPal account and follow their instructions.
• Then, to initiate a new payment via credit or debit card, visit our sign up page: orlandoinformer.com/subscribe
• Should you decide you want to cancel your eCheck and initiate a new payment, please drop us a note using the contact form at the bottom of this page. We will make sure everything is cleaned up on our end, and if needed, a refund for the initial eCheck payment is processed as soon as possible.

Otherwise, you can simply wait 3 to 5 days for your eCheck to clear, and you will be contacted as soon as full OI Universal Center access has been added to your account.

The number 3 reason why new subscribers do not receive a confirmation email
or do not have full access to the OI Universal Center:

Your email system is blocking email communication from oi@orlandoinformer.com

You received confirmation from PayPal that your payment was successfully sent to us. If you already had an OI account before you paid, you double-checked that the email address associated with your PayPal transaction is the same as the one associated with your OI registration. Then you double-checked to make sure PayPal didn’t initiate an eCheck payment instead of an instant credit or debit card payment. Still, you’ve got no email confirmation from us — and you even checked your spam folder.

I completed the PayPal transaction successfully but I never got a confirmation with my username and password from OrlandoInformer.com. How do I fix this?

• Every now and then an email system will block email communication from OrlandoInformer.com. When this happens, you will not even be notified that an email was sent and blocked. If you have waited more than five minutes and still have not received a confirmation email from us with your new username and password, this is what has likely happened.
• But don’t worry! Just drop us a note using the contact form below and we will get the issue fixed in less than 24 hours (and usually much sooner).
• Please keep in mind that this only pertains to users who were not already registered with OrlandoInformer.com at the time they made their purchase. If you had already registered for a free OI account when you made your purchase, then your username and password remain the same, and you will be able to access subscriber-only content immediately. Just be sure you are logged in. (Unless, of course, your PayPal email address is different than your OI registration email address — in which case, see the “number 1″ reason above).

Additional FAQs

I purchased a recurring subscription and I would like to unsubscribe now. How do I do that?

• Easy. Just click the button below and follow the PayPal instructions. It only takes a few seconds.

IMPORTANT: For members with a recurring charge subscription, please be aware that unsubscribing immediately cancels your PayPal payment plan and your access to the OI Universal Center. We recommend that you do not cancel until after your visit to Universal. You never know what major changes may be announced tomorrow. (Everyone was shocked by the announcement of JAWS closing.) But more importantly, we’d love to have you stick around after your trip to share your thoughts about Universal’s attractions, and lend assistance to first-time visitors who can learn from your wisdom!

How do I change my password, upload my own avatar for site comments, or change my display name?

• All of these functions can be done on your profile page. You can also access your profile page anytime by clicking “My Profile” in the widget at the top-right of the page.
• Once you have made your changes, be sure to click the Update Profile button at the bottom of the profile page.

I just made a purchase. How do I get back to the Success page?

• You can return to the success page by clicking the SUCCESS button under STORE in the top navigation bar, or by following this link: http://www.orlandoinformer.com/success

I have successfully logged in but I cannot view the full version of the PDF file I purchased. How do I fix this?

• First, you can verify that your purchase was properly assigned to your account. To do so, click here to open your profile page (it will open in a new window). Scroll down to the Products owned section and see if the PDF file you are trying to view is listed. If so, it has been properly assigned to your account.
• Second, make sure your access has not expired. To check, look in the same Products owned section for the Expiry Date. Today’s date needs to be on or before the date listed. If it is…
• This means you definitely have access, so your browser is mistakenly showing you the Preview file, possibly because you viewed it before making a purchase or logging in. You now have two options:
• Number 2 – You can try clearing the cache of the browser you are using right now. Follow these instructions (link will open in a new window) if you’re not quite sure how to do that.
• Number 1 – You can try using a different browser on your computer to log in and view your purchase. A different browser should not have the PDF file Preview version already cached. Just be sure you are logged into OrlandoInformer.com on the new browser.
• Still not working? Send us a message using the contact form at the bottom of this post. We will get it fixed easily within 24 hours. Thank you for your patience.

I have a question about how to use this site that wasn’t answered here. What do I do?

• Just fill out the contact form below and we’ll get back to you in 24 hours or less, and usually much sooner!
• Please note that this contact form is for issues related to purchases or site navigation. If you have a question about visiting Orlando, please use the OI Answers service.