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MORe Orlando Attractions

There’s so much more to see and do in Orlando. When you’re sick of parking trams and cattle queues, divert yourself with something new. Actually, something old—some of these places are among the original attractions that sparked the fertile vacationland that Central Florida is today.

International Drive Area

The attractions around International Drive aren’t plush—they’re convention-goer diversions and rainy-day amusements, mostly—but they are the stuff of a quintessential family holiday and they won’t break the bank. I-Drive is the only touristy area in Orlando where a car isn’t necessary, not least because the I-Ride Trolley (p. 271) will tote you along, if you’re tired of strolling.

Andretti Indoor Karting & Games AMUSEMENT CENTER   This booming, hectic, $30 million pleasuredome (with auto racer Mario Andretti as a partner) makes Dave & Busters look like a tea party: 100,800 square feet of climbing walls, ropes courses, laser tag, a full arcade with prizes (in the “Victory Lane”), bowling lanes, a restaurant, and a bar that overlooks it all. The booze flows, the music pumps, and the birthday parties for yelling grade-school boys roll non-stop. The centerpieces are its three multi-level indoor go-kart tracks using SODI RTX electric carts and designed by Andretti, with plenty of banked curves (closed-toed shoes required). From 4pm–7pm, bowling is just $5 per person/hour with free shoe rental.

9299 Universal Blvd, Orlando. www.andrettikarting.com.  407/374-0085. One race $22 adult and $15 riders shorter than 48 inches, other amusements charged separately (generally $10–$13 each, with packages available). Sun–Thurs 10am–midnight, Fri–Sat 10am–1am.

Chocolate Kingdom TOUR   Yes, they make and sell chocolate, but they also roast, skin, and grind the beans before your eyes using clunky antique equipment so heavy the floor had to be reinforced. All in all, the third-generation chocolatier who owns it and the national Schakolad franchise have put together a surprisingly educational guided tour, good for kids and with free samples along the way, based on the rich history of the cocoa bean. (Did you know the Aztecs wouldn’t let women eat them because they thought abstaining would keep them dull-witted and compliant?) Call ahead if you can so they’ll have a guide ready for you. There’s a second location at 2858 Florida Plaza Blvd., Kissimmee.

9901 Hawaiian Court, Orlando. www.chocolatekingdom.com.  407/705-3475. Adults $17, kids 4–12 $13. Tours daily 11am–5pm, closes at 6pm.

Crayola Experience ACTIVITY   When we were kids, the most fun we could have with a crayon was to peel the wrapper off—maybe eat one, too. Your kids, though, can scamper around a department-store-size fantabulous multi-station sensory playhouse where they may, among other things, print wrappers they write themselves, animate their drawings on giant screens, melt crayons into art, animate homemade puppets in a magic theater, frolic in a two-story playground shaped like crayons, color a printout of their own face, mess around on a giant Lite-Brite, and pitch an epic fit the moment you suggest it’s time to leave. Adults will first feel bitter jealousy and then nostalgia pangs of their receding childhood—Lemon Yellow, we hardly knew ye—but will probably then indulge in the adjoining shop (no admission required), which sells every Crayola product known to the world of little Picassos, including a wall filled with some 120 current colors, which they can bulk-buy in buckets.

Florida Mall, 8001 S. Orange Blossom Trail, Orlando. www.crayolaexperience.com.  407/757-1706. Admission $25, $3 discount online. Daily 10am–8pm (closes earlier in winter).

Fun Spot America—Orlando AMUSEMENT PARK   A recent recipient of immense investment and careful improvements, Fun Spot in Orlando, at the top of I-Drive, is Orlando’s largest (15 acres), cleanest, best-lit midway-style diversion. Although it became famous for its four Go-Kart tracks (concrete, multilevel; the Quad Helix’s stacked figure-eight turns make it a favorite, but the Conquest’s peaked ramp is a pip), the spacious grounds are also stocked with a two-level arcade, a scrambler and other carnival rides, plenty of snack bars, a Ferris wheel called Revolver (Charlize Theron rode it in Monster), and a section of kiddie rides. There’s also White Lightning, a smooth-as-silk wood-frame coaster (the only one in town); Freedom Flyer, a wee version of a hanging, foot-dangling train; and a few alligators on loan from Gatorland. The 250-foot-tall SkyCoaster is the second-tallest anywhere (the first is at Fun Spot’s location in Kissimmee, p. 174).

5700 Fun Spot Way, Orlando. www.fun-spot.com.  407/363-3867. Free entry. Pay-per-ride $5–$10, SkyCoaster $40, unlimited rides $50 ($45 online). Generally daily 10am–midnight, winter weekdays noon or 2pm–midnight.

Orlando Area Attractions

I-Drive NASCAR THRILL RIDE   A kids’ birthday party diversion with a go-kart track (a half-mile, 12 turns, three of them hairpin), snack bar, and arcade. It was Orlando’s first indoor track before Andretti (p. 161) stormed on the scene, but the vehicles are the thing here: Silent electric carts that go 45mph with state-of-the-art shock absorption and adjustable steering and seats.

5228 Vanguard St., Orlando. www.idrivenascar.com.  407/581-9644. $19 adult, $17 kids under age 16 for 16 times around; frequent discounts. No open-toed shoes. Minimum height 55 inches. Sun–Thurs noon–10pm; Fri–Sat 11am–midnight.

iFly ACTIVITY   In 2017, this long-running vertical wind tunnel opened a glassy new 14,000-square-foot facility. Visitors are strapped into jumpsuits and given a short training session on how to walk over the netting into the 125mph airflow. Mastering the necessary arched-back, splay-legged posture can be tricky, but should you fail, there’s a master diver with you to grab you by the sleeve and guide you into a series of adrenaline-fueled climbs and plunges. Or not—you can just hover there, if that’s what floats your butt.

8969 International Dr., Orlando. www.iflyworld.com/orlando.  407/337-4359. $70 for 2 1-minute flights, $112 for 4. Daily 8:30am–10:30pm.

Madame Tussauds TOURIST MUSEUM   The world-famous wax museum opened and Orlando outpost in ICON Orlando 360 (formerly I-Drive 360), a complex of shops and restaurants. It’s so silly and pleasantly touristy that it’s astounding it took so long. First, they try to get you to pose for a tourist photo, but skip that, because Tussauds is already essentially one extended photo op. As you go from room to room, you get right beside the few dozen full-size figures of current and historical celebrities, many of which are so lifelike that you’ll be astounded (Obama, Taylor Swift, Selena Gomez), and some so off the mark you have to check the signage to tell who it is (Madonna, Katy Perry). If the sign says they were “sculpted from a sitting” rather than merely “portrayed,” you know it’s more accurate. Midway through, you can pay $10 to create a wax cast of your own hand—protect it from the Florida heat thereafter if you do.

ICON Orlando 360, 8387 International Dr., Orlando. www.madametussauds.com/orlando.  866/630-8315. $28 adult, $23 child 4–12; discount packages available to add ICON Orlando and SeaLife Aquarium; frequent discounts online. Free parking. Daily 10am–10pm or midnight, depending on the season.

Magical Midway Thrill Park AMUSEMENT PARK   This small concrete area is built on adrenaline and rash decisions, blaring with rock music and heaving with idle youth. The most obvious generator of regret is the world’s tallest Slingshot ride ($25, not included on passes), a colossal fork strung with a pod. Two at a time sit inside and are catapulted more than 200 feet into the sky, wailing to wake the dead. Meanwhile, the skyscraping circular swing carousel StarFlyer is a pipsqueak compared to the new one a few blocks south (it may even be removed in 2019). The rest is dominated by two thunderous, wooden Go-Kart tracks (the Avalanche track has slightly steeper ramps than the Alpine), a few minor rides (cheerless bumper boats), and a dirty arcade. Its unsophisticated virtues are something 11-year-old boys idolize.

7001 International Dr., Orlando. www.magicalmidway.com.  407/370-5353. $8 Go-Kart rides, $3 midway rides, 3-hr. unlimited rides $25, all-day unlimited $32. Park, daily noon–midnight; arcade, daily 10am–midnight.

ICON Orlando AMUSEMENT PARK   You probably know it by its previous name, the Orlando Eye. After enduring a regrettable, stand-up “4-D Experience” (a mindless green-screen 3-D film of aerial footage of Orlando—Disney’s noticeably absent—that peppers you with mist), you board 15-passenger pods for your slightly quivering ride on the East Coast’s tallest (400 feet) observation wheel, which is constantly spinning at 1 mph for a 30-minute rotation. You’re too far to see into the Disney parks, but you do see the spires of Hogwarts at Universal Orlando, 2 miles north. It’s pretty enough, but any city would be at that height. Fun ride, odd spot.

ICON Orlando 360, 8401 International Dr., Orlando. www.officialorlandoeye.com.  407/370-5353. $28 adult, $23 child 3–12; discounts available to add Madame Tussauds, SeaLife Aquarium, Skeletons: Museum of Osteology, and the StarFlyer; frequent discounts online. Free parking. Sun–Thurs 10am–10pm; Fri–Sat 10am–midnight. Generally closed in early Feb for maintenance.

Orlando SeaLife Aquarium AQUARIUM   The McDonald’s of aquaria has some four dozen locations worldwide, and it’s such a success because it’s fairly well-stocked, theatrically lit, and charmingly designed: There are clear walkway tubes passing through huge tanks, for example, and kids can crawl under the moray eel habitat and see from “inside” the tank through bubble-like head spaces popping through its floor. SeaLife angles for kids in particular, what with the annoying voices of anthropomorphic fish delivering factual tidbits on the loudspeakers and the chipper docents sticking religiously to a corporate-approved script (“Here’s your Discovery Fact of the day!”) that pummels you with boasts about its good deeds of conservation. Concluding the self-guided tour of the 5,000-plus creatures (including jellyfish, small sharks, and clownfish) there’s a shallow touch tank where kids can pet live starfish. Adults will be satisfied in 30 minutes, but kids might prefer an hour.

ICON Orlando 360, 8387 International Dr., Orlando. www.visitsealife.com/orlando.  407/370-5353. $28 adult, $23 child 3–12; discounts available to add Madame Tussauds and ICON Orlando; frequent discounts online. Free parking. Daily 10am–10pm, last admission 1 hr. before closing.

Rainy-Day Mayhem

The massive Outer Limitz (6725 South Kirkman Rd., www.outerlimitzorlando.com;  407/704-6723), near Fun Spot America, and AirHeads (33 West Pineloch Ave., http://orlando.airheadsusa.com;  407/270-4611), south of downtown Orlando, are indoor trampoline-filled arenas where netting keeps your offspring from cracking their heads open as they bounce off walls and fling themselves into pits filled with foam blocks. At Outer Limitz, there’s basketball and dodgeball, too. That’s pretty cool, but high-octane teens might prefer slaughtering the undead at the walk-through shoot-‘em-up Zombie Outbreak, next to the Titanic attraction (7364 International Dr., www.zombieoutbreak.co;  407/745-4068, $25 for 15 minutes).

Ripley’s Believe It or Not! Odditorium TOURIST MUSEUM   The ticketed equivalent of a meme, Ripley’s is well-maintained and clean, but it’s too expensive for the thin diversion it delivers. Mostly it consists of optical illusions, vaguely ominous specimens from foreign cultures, panels from the old Ripley’s comic (does anyone under 60 even remember those?), and the odd coin-operated device. There are too many signs and fewer artifacts than you’ll be expecting, unless you count a portrait of Beyoncé made out of candy. Don’t set foot in it without harvesting coupons from any tourist brochure.

8201 International Dr., Orlando. www.ripleys.com/orlando.  407/345-0501. $22 adults, $15 kids 3–11. Free parking. Daily 9am–midnight, last entry 11pm.

Skeletons: Museum of Osteology TOURIST MUSEUM   The macabre, tchotchke-crammed gift shop entry beside ICON Orlando doesn’t do much to disabuse you of dread, but hidden within is a thoughtful and diverse museum of more than 500 animal skeletons huge and small, many mounted in detailed habitats with the right touch of whimsy. All of them were collected and painstakingly prepared by an osteological outfit in Oklahoma City, where an earlier version proved popular enough to warrant export here. It’s a particular fascination for kids into science or anatomy. What a lucky break—an Orlando attraction that actually nourishes young minds!

ICON Orlando 360, 8441 International Dr., Orlando. www.skeletonmuseum.com.  407/203-6999. $20 adult, $13 child 3–12, $4 discount online. Free parking. Daily 10am–10pm.

Orlando StarFlyer RIDE   As everyone knows, there are three necessary components to carnival thrills: height, speed, and flimsy-feeling restraints. The StarFlyer nails the trifecta. At 450 feet (your altitude will be about 350 feet), this 2018 erection is the tallest of the 35 such spinning swing towers around the world. The four-minute ride is able to go 60 mph but after many experiments in which customers fled traumatized, the proprietors settled on a top speed of 45 mph. It starts fast but slows down once your pants are good and wet, so there’s time to look around at that incredible view, the best in town. Never once does it seem possible that the chains are enough to support the weight of your two-person bench, yet they are, by several factors. And that’s what gives it a kick. No items, including sunglasses, are permitted on board (lockers are free), so if it’s very bright out, come back at night. There’s a bar at the base where you can toast whatever god you worship for bringing you back to the ground safely.

ICON Orlando 360, 8265 International Dr., Orlando. www.starflyer.com.  407/640-7009. $13 ride, $8 re-ride. Minimum height 44 inches/112 cm. Free parking. Daily 10am–2am.

Titanic: The Artifact Exhibition TOURIST MUSEUM   More than 100 genuine artifacts from the Titanic itself—a teak deck chair to cookware to tile fragments to a boarding card—give this permanent exhibition salt. For those interested in the topic, this theatrically presented museum, which walks guests chronologically from boarding to the abbreviated voyage to rediscovery, provides a balanced dossier of the sorry tale. There’s a little conflation of Hollywood storytelling with history (at the replica of the First Class Grand Staircase, a piano rendition of “My Heart Will Go On” repeats ad nauseam), but there’s still plenty of meat on this hambone. Join a regular tour, because guides are knowledgeable; after the tour, you can backtrack for closer looks. The 2-ton slab from the hull, cast in an eerie light, is a moving epilogue.

7324 International Dr., Orlando. www.premierexhibitions.com.  407/248-1166. $22 adults, $16 kids 5–11, senior $19.75. Daily 11am–10pm, last admission 8pm.

Spring training daze

Baseball is inextricable from Florida’s calendar. Way back in 1923, the Cincinnati Reds began spring training in Orlando at Tinker Field (which was only torn down in 2015), in the 1930s the Brooklyn Dodgers hit here, and the Washington Senators then arrived and stayed for the better part of half a century. A few teams in the so-called Grapefruit League (the Arizona teams are the Cactus League) still call Orlando or its environs their temporary home, and in the preseason you can watch them practice or play exhibition games. Unlike at season games, players often mingle with fans—in fact, some facilities were built to cozy proportions (leave the binoculars at home), with interaction areas where you can collect autographs from athletes before or after practice. Sometimes it feels like the spirit of old-time baseball, the one supplanted by high-priced players and colossal arenas.

Tickets (usually $15–$25) go on sale in January. Pitchers and catchers report first, in mid-February, and by the end of the month, the whole team is on hand. They play against other teams through March before heading to their home parks by April.

Atlanta Braves (Disney’s Wide World of Sports, 700 S. Victory Lane, Lake Buena Vista; http://atlanta.braves.mlb.com;  407/939-4263). Since they took up residence in 1997 at Walt Disney World, the Braves can brag about having one of the nicest and largest (9,500 seats) training stadiums under the sun, where they play 18-odd games.

Houston Astros (Osceola County Stadium, 1000 Bill Beck Rd., Kissimmee; http://houston.astros.mlb.com;  321/697-3200). The smallest training park in the Grapefruit League (5,200 seats—still hardly tiny) has hosted the Astros since 1985. Team members make themselves available for fan greetings in their Autograph Alley.

Detroit Tigers (Joker Marchant Stadium, Al Kaline Dr., 2301 Lake Hills Rd., Lakeland; http://detroit.tigers.mlb.com;  866/668-4437). Lakeland, between Orlando and Tampa on I-4, has hosted the Tigers since 1934, the longest relations for any major league team, and the team is such a local institution that their so-called “Tiger Town” training complex, built on the site of a World War II flight academy, has grown up with them.

WonderWorks TOURIST MUSEUM   You know it’s touristy because the facade looks like someone ripped a mansion out of the ground and turned it upside down. But the inverted motif doesn’t continue beyond its doors. Instead, you get about 100 hands-on curiosity exhibits not unlike what you’d find at a science museum or an arcade—cubicles simulating earthquakes and hurricanes, a bubble-making area, a kiosk where you can use Google Earth to find your house, lots of posters of optical illusions—all decently maintained and cheerful. Bring Purell because exhibits get smeary, your patience to combat field trip swarms, and lots of cash, because there’s a slate of add-ons like a ropes course, a “4-D” simulator chair, and an arcade that aren’t included in admission. Adults may find it cheesy but young kids love it, especially if they have a nascent interest in science—then again, they have no concept of the value of your hard-earned dollar. It’s mostly for rainy days.

9067 International Dr., Orlando. www.wonderworksonline.com.  407/351-8800. $34 adults, $25 seniors over 54 and kids 4–12, Extra charges for laser tag, ropes course, motion-simulator ride, games. Daily 9am–midnight.

North of Universal & Orlando

Holy Land Experience THEME PARK   The Trinity Broadcasting Network owns this peculiarly American park, a lightly patronized, heavily sanitized version of Jerusalem that has received a few refreshes in recent years but is still more popular with the devout than with casual tourists. The small property (that charges admission yet is exempt from property taxes) has no rides so must rely on presentations to fill the hours. Performance times are spread across the clock to force completists to purchase a second day, which isn’t necessary to do. For oddity, there will never be its equal. Will there ever again be a theme park where major attractions are an existential drama featuring the resurrection of Lazarus, a putt-putt course weaving through Bible stories, and a model of Jerusalem in the year a.d. 66? Biblical characters stroll around greeting visitors, while the nearby Scriptorium provides an automated 55-minute tour of a truly precious collection of rare specimens of Bible publishing history. It seems wholesomely innocuous until late afternoon, when it turns into a gory snuff show: An actor playing Christ endures a lingering beating and blood-spattered “crucifixion” by villainous Romans for an audience that holds up their palms in testimony. Entertaining people with execution is more Roman than most guests perceive. There’s no political context unless you can decode it: Recorded narration is all-male, Catholics are depicted as getting God wrong, and Christians always God’s chosen heroes persecuted by savages. If you have been to the real Holy Land, you will quickly grasp that this version of Israel is Hollywoodized and suburban, a costume-party catechism marrying the tone of Charlton Heston movies and the tenor of contemporary Christian music.

4655 Vineland Rd., Orlando. www.holylandexperience.com.  800/447-7235 or 407/872-2272. $50 adults, $35 children 5–17, kids 4 and under free. Free parking. Tues–Sat 10am–6pm.

Mennello Museum of American Art MUSEUM   The Mennello is a repository for the luridly vivid paintings of Earl Cunningham, a chicken farmer and folk artist whose conceptions sometimes seem refreshingly naive, and then a moment later become brazenly modernist. Cunningham, who died in 1977 while running a curio shop in St. Augustine, is now considered so important that the Smithsonian devoted an exhibition to him. The museum also hosts exhibitions of fine American folk art.

900 E. Princeton St., Orlando. www.mennellomuseum.com.  407/246-4278. $5 adults, $4 seniors over 59, $1 students, 18 and under free. Tues–Sat 10:30am–4:30pm; Sun noon–4:30pm.

There’s No Escaping Escaping

You’re locked in a room that looks like the set to a play—an office, a ship’s hold—and given the clues hidden there, you must solve puzzles, crack codes, and find the key to get back out within an hour. Don’t worry: There are no scary gotchas, and because of fire codes, the door’s not really locked. If you’re struggling with the mental challenge, staff is monitoring you via camera (don’t pick your nose) and can nudge you in the right direction. It’s much easier, and a lot more fun, to play with a group. Escaping has flooded the Orlando market, and while some locations put on games that look as if they were decorated using a gift card at Home Depot, real gamer love goes into creating these puzzles, so each one is unique. There may be an age minimum of about 12 and you’re allowed to fail (many do), but always make a reservation first. Alphabetically:

America’s Escape Game: 8723 International Drive, Suite 115, Orlando; www.americasescapegame.com;  407/412-5585. Rooms: White House, asylum, Egyptian tomb, hermit cabin (nearly impossible to solve), pandemic. $29–$39.

Breakout Escape Rooms: 8155 Vineland Ave., Orlando; www.roombreakout.com/orlando;  407/778-4562. Fairly near Disney. Rooms: Zombies (the hardest), spy, evil circus. $32.

Doldrick’s Escape Room: 2943 Vineland Rd., Kissimmee; www.doldricksescaperoom.com;  407/507-0506. This one near Disney isn’t a chain but a privately owned labor of love with high production values. Room: Bomb squad. $33.

The Escape Game: 8145 International Dr., Suite 511, Orlando; www.orlandoescapegame.com;  407/501-7222. Rooms: Mars, Western, art heist, terrorist threat, prison break. $32–$38.

Escapology: 11951 International Dr., Orlando; www.escapology.com;  407/278-1515. Rooms: Western, pandemic, Cuban missile crisis, drug lord, submarine, train murder, hackers. $30–$60.

The Great Escape Room: 23½ S. Magnolia Ave., Orlando; www.thegreatescaperoom.com/orlando;  386/385-8860. Rooms: Sherlock Holmes, nuclear crisis (most difficult), surgical emergency. $21–$28.

Lockbusters: 8326 International Dr., Orlando; www.lockbustersgame.com;  407/930-0822. One of the best-detailed choices in town, near ICON Orlando. Rooms: Serial killer, pirates, chopper crash, haunted manor (the hardest). $32.

Orange County Regional History Center MUSEUM   People who think Central Florida history began with Walt will have their eyes opened in this underrated museum in a handsome 1927 Greek Revival former courthouse. Head first to the fourth floor, where the timeline starts 12,000 years in the past and work your way down. In 1981, a high school student rooting through lake muck found a Timacuan dugout canoe from around a.d. 1000, and now it is proudly displayed, as are mastodon teeth, pots from 500 b.c., and a 12-foot-tall oyster midden. As you advance through time, artifacts keep coming: saddles used by the forgotten Florida cowmen (the swampy ground made meat chewy, which Cuban customers liked); recipes for Florida Cracker delicacies (Squirrel Soup, Baked Possum); artifacts from the steamship tourist trade (in the 1870s, the St. John’s River system was America’s busiest one south of the Hudson); and a wall of gorgeous vintage labels from the many citrus companies that once dominated the area. The exhibitions are noticeably conflicted about the growth explosion wrought by the theme parks—the “Building a Kingdom” exhibition was created without Disney funding so it would have the freedom to be frank. An interesting sidelight is the retired Courtroom B, a handsome, wooden chamber out of Inherit the Wind silenced by cork floors and emblazoned with the slogan “Equal and Exact Justice to All Men.” That was painted over the bench at a time when people were still being lynched here (there’s a KKK robe in a nearby gallery), and until as late as 1951 in Orlando, black mothers had to give birth in the boiler room of the hospital. Some justice was served here: In 1987, Courtroom B tried the first case in America in which DNA evidence obtained a conviction.

65 E. Central Blvd., Orlando. www.thehistorycenter.org.  407/836-8500. $8 adults, $6 kids 5–12, $7 seniors over 54, including audio tour. Mon–Sat 10am–5pm; Sun noon–5pm.

Orlando Museum of Art MUSEUM   Although this fixture of local pride is touted as de rigueur in much tourist literature, OMA takes less than an hour to see. Most of it is not particularly important, just high atmosphere, but of note are Robert Rauschenberg’s “Florida Psalm,” a collage paean to the state’s fading tourism emblems; Chuck Close’s 1982 portrait of his wife done in fingerprints, and John James Audubon’s Great Blue Heron. Temporary exhibitions up the par. Expect a pleasant outing, especially if you pair a visit with an amble around the surrounding Loch Haven Park, but not a milestone.

2416 N. Mills Ave., Orlando. www.omart.org.  407/896-4231. $15 adults, $5 college students, $8 seniors over 64, $5 kids 4–17. Tues–Fri 10am–4pm; Sat–Sun noon–4pm.

Orlando Science Center MUSEUM   The center is an excellent (if expensive) example of its type, and recent investment has bestowed it with some fun, large-scale set pieces that make it feel more like a hands-on play complex than an educational facility, including a giant network of tubes kids blow kerchiefs through; a three-level indoor playhouse; play troughs pumping with water; a toddler version of a citrus farm; and an outdoorsy-looking NatureWorks with baby gators, turtles, and snakes. However, in a town so crowded with amazing things for kids, if you have a good science museum back home, you could probably skip it.

777 E. Princeton St., Orlando. www.osc.org.  407/514-2000. Admission including exhibition $20.95 adults, $18.95 seniors age 55 and over and students with ID, $14.95 kids 3–11, including movies. Parking $5. Sun–Thurs 10am–5pm; Fri–Sat 10am–9pm.

Winter Park & North Orlando

Winter Park has long been a bastion of wealth, particularly from New Money families who failed to find favor among the Old Money of the North. Its expensive tastes are represented by its lakefront mansions, red-brick streets, and a few wrongly overlooked gems for true masterpieces.

A Town of psychics

George P. Colby was reared in the Midwest by Baptist parents, but incessant visions (and poor health) compelled him south, where in 1875, he came across land that, he said, appeared exactly as it had been shown to him by his spirit guide, Seneca. Soon after that, Colby enticed a group of refugees from chilly Lily Dale, New York—a town populated by spiritualists that still exists on the Cassadaga lakes outside of Buffalo—to join him in the then-rural wilds of Florida. The winter “camp” of Cassadaga (exit 114 from I-4; www.cassadaga.org) was born. Nowadays, its residents offer a daily slate of services, laying-on of hands, and readings. The anachronistic village 40 miles northeast of Universal is untouched by development, and only accredited mediums may live among the ramshackle 1920s homes and Spanish moss. Tree-shaded, whitewashed, and more than slightly creepy, Cassadaga, on the National Register of Historic Places, is a bastion of metaphysicality in a region otherwise devoted to Christian fundamentalism.

Before setting out, check the town’s website for the full list of events and psychics. When you arrive, consult the bulletin board in Cassadaga Camp Bookstore (1112 Stevens St., Cassadaga;  386/228-2880; Mon–Sat 10am–6pm, Sun 11:30am–5pm) to see which mediums are available to take walk-in clients for readings or healings. Everything in town, including gift shops for gemstones and talismans, is within a few blocks, so park and explore. Because the rent’s so cheap (the land is owned by the Southern Cassadaga Spiritualist Camp Meeting Association, which subscribes to a form of Biblical Spiritualism—Jesus is real, Satan isn’t), services go for a fraction of what they cost in the outside world.

Wednesdays from 7:30–9pm at Colby Memorial Temple, mediums deliver messages from deceased loved ones ($5), and Fridays (except the first Friday of the month) from 7pm to 9pm, there’s a workshop on how to be a medium yourself. Historic walking tours leave from the bookstore (Thurs–Sat at 2pm; $15), but the coolest ticket is the Spirit Encounters Night Photography Tour, Saturdays at 7:30pm ($25) where you bring your digital camera and go hunting for energy orbs. The next morning at 9:30, you can attend Lyceum—that’s Sunday School for spiritualists—before Healing Service and church at the Colby Memorial Temple.

Residents shoo away outsiders at 10pm, so the only way to linger at night is to stay at the town’s old-fashioned inn: the 1928 Cassadaga Hotel (355 Cassadaga Rd., Cassadaga; www.cassadagahotel.net;  386/228-2323; $65–$75 Sun–Thurs, $80–$90 Fri–Sat, including continental breakfast; no guests under age 21), run by the New Age sect of the town and widely said to be haunted. Rooms (the cheapest ones don’t have TVs or phone) are guaranteed to keep you anxiously listening for bump-in-the-night creaks. I asked the owner if I could take photos of the time-warp lobby. “Sure, you’re welcome to,” she said, “but most people get a kind of orb or white light instead.” I haven’t found those, but my shots did come out blurry. I’m just saying.

Charles Hosmer Morse Museum of American Art MUSEUM   The best museum in the Orlando area, and perhaps the finest in the state, presents an unparalleled cache of works by genius designer Louis Comfort Tiffany, from stained glass to vases to lamps, and even the lavishly decorated Daffodil Terrace and Reception Hall of his lost Long Island mansion, Laurelton Hall, and the bespoke fountains that ran through it. The Morse displays the best collection of Tiffany glass on the planet, including an entire room reconstructing the master’s tour de force chapel, made for the World’s Columbian Exposition in 1893. Once face-to-face with the uncanny luminescence of Tiffany’s best work, even those who previously knew nothing about him can’t help but come away dazzled. The museum’s founders also collected hundreds of other top-quality pieces from the Arts and Crafts movement, including sculpture, but the focus here is definitely Tiffany and his impeccable taste. Set aside an hour or more, though it’s easy to combine a visit with a stroll through Winter Park’s boutiques, because it sits among them.

445 N. Park Ave., Winter Park. www.morsemuseum.org.  407/645-5311. $6 adults, $5 seniors over 59, $1 students, free for kids 11 and under. Tues–Sat 9:30am–4pm; Sun 1–4pm; open until 8pm on Fri Nov–April. Free Fri 4–8pm Nov–Apr.

Cornell Fine Arts Museum MUSEUM   Rollins College, whose graduates include none other than Mister Fred Rogers, has long been a university of choice for parents with social aspirations for their children, and so it makes sense that its star exhibition hall would be bequeathed with such a fine collection in such a country-club setting. It’s too small to showcase its impressive holdings, so even remarkable pieces (such as Vanessa Bell’s portrait of Mary St. John Hutchinson) tend to rotate in and out of storage to make way for changing exhibitions, which spotlight a wide range of arresting works, from Matisse prints to 18th-century European portraits. Small but top-notch.

100 Holt Ave., Winter Park. www.rollins.edu/cfam.  407/646-2526. $5 adults, free for students, sometimes free thanks to grants. Tues–Fri 10am–4pm (Tues to 7pm); Sat–Sun noon–5pm.

South & East of Disney

Diversions get populist as you go south, and their character says more about eccentric Florida than imported wealth; two of Central Florida’s most authentic reptile parks are roughly between Disney and the airport.

Bok Tower Gardens GARDENS/HISTORIC SITE   About an hour south of Disney, the elegant, 250-acre gardens—designed by Frederick Law Olmsted, Jr., who worked on the National Mall and the Jefferson Memorial—are not often visited, which is too bad, because it’s a big reason you’re in Orlando at all: It was one of Central Florida’s first world-famous attractions. They’re genuinely tranquil and among the best surviving remnants of early-20th-century philanthropic privilege. The gardens (don’t miss the water lilies, big enough to support a child) and their 205-foot, neo-Gothic Singing Tower, safely behind a fence, were commissioned as a thank-you to the American people by a Dutch-born editor, Edward William Bok, publisher of The Ladies’ Home Journal and a pioneer in public sex education. Bok was buried at the tower’s base in 1930, the year after its completion and dedication by President Calvin Coolidge. The 57-bell carillon on the tower’s sixth level sounds concerts at 1 and 3pm daily, and although you can’t enter the tower, the 1930s Mediterranean-style Pinewood estate ($6 more; shorter seasonal hours) is open for tours. The sanctuary was enshrined in 1993 as a National Historic Landmark.

1151 Tower Blvd., Lake Wales. www.boktowergardens.org.  863/676-1408. $14 adults, $5 kids 5–12. Daily 8am–6pm, last admission at 5pm.

It’s Not on the Tourist Maps

The standard tourist literature won’t point them out, but pop history happened here:

1418½ Clouser Ave., in the College Park area. In July 1957, 9 months before the publication of On the Road, writer Jack Kerouac moved in with his mother, and he inhabited a 10×10-foot room with just a cot, a desk, and a bare bulb. Here, he wrote The Dharma Bums, an exploration of personal spiritual renewal through a connection with nature. By the time he moved out in the spring of 1958, he was a literary superstar. The Kerouac Project (www.kerouacproject.org) now owns the home and invites writers to live rent-free for 3-month working tenures.

Post Parkside, 425 E. Central Blvd., Orlando. This apartment building was once the Cherry Plaza Hotel. Here in 1964, LBJ was the first sitting president to spend the night in Orlando. And on November 15, 1965, while the hotel was still segregated, Walt Disney made his only public appearance in Orlando in its Egyptian Room, where he and Roy Disney announced their plans for “the equivalent of Disneyland” in Florida.

1910 Hotel Plaza Blvd., Lake Buena Vista. The very first building to be completed on Walt Disney World property was this low-slung glass-and-steel creation, considered painfully modern in January 1970. It was the Walt Disney World Preview Center, on what was then Preview Boulevard. Here, pretty young hostesses guided some one million visitors past artists’ renderings, models, and films promoting Phase One of the resort that was being constructed.

Ballroom of the Americas B, Disney’s Contemporary Resort, Walt Disney World. On November 17, 1973, President Richard Nixon gave his “I’m not a crook” speech to a convention of Associated Press editors here, throwing gasoline on the fire of Watergate and bestowing him with his catchphrase of infamy.

Disney’s Polynesian Resort, Walt Disney World. While on vacation on December 29, 1974, John Lennon signed the document that officially dissolved the Beatles forever. Disney isn’t positive which room he was staying in, but it’s thought it was a ground-floor corner room in what’s now the Samoa longhouse.

839 N. Orlando Ave., Winter Park. In March 1986, the Canadian rock group The Band was in the middle of a disappointing reunion tour. After playing the Cheek to Cheek Lounge at the Villa Nova Restaurant, which stood here, pianist Richard Manuel, 42, returned to his hotel room at the Quality Inn and when his wife briefly left the room, hanged himself. The lounge site is now a CVS drugstore and the motel site is now a Wawa.

Dinosaur World TOURIST MUSEUM   An only-in-America roadside attraction, this is not someplace to pass hours—one will do, but it’ll be a endearingly weird one. Kids like to wander the jungle-y plot, happening upon more than 100 life-size versions of various dinosaurs, some 80 feet long. A labor of love by a Swedish-born man and his family, it’s well kept, even if the foam-and-fiberglass models sometimes look more like aliens than reptiles. It’s easy to catch on the drive to Busch Gardens.

5145 Harvey Tew Rd., at I-4’s exit 17, Plant City. www.dinosaurworld.com.  813/717-9865. $17 adults, $15 seniors over 59, $12 kids 3–12. Daily 9am–5pm.

Fun Spot America—Kissimmee AMUSEMENT PARK   Fun Spot’s flagship property is near Universal (p. 162), but this southern outpost delivers the same well-kept carnival-ride playground experience. There’s a selection of basic rides that wouldn’t be out of place beside a circus (the Hot Seat swings riders on the end of a big stick), bumper cars, a wild mouse-style coaster Rockstar with spinning cars, and a few outdoor Go-Kart tracks (the 4-story Vortex has 32-degree banking, the world’s steepest, owners say). That 300-foot-tall skyline-scarring contraption is SkyCoaster ($40 a ride), which harnesses up to three would-be pants-wetters so that they’re face-down, hoists them backward, and swings them forward at 80mph like wingless hang gliders. It’s the world’s tallest. Don’t miss Mine Blower, a compact wooden coaster that makes a brief inversion. It only takes a minute, but it’s an epic minute. It’s the meanest jackrabbit of a coaster in Orlando. The downmarket Old Town complex (p. 176) is next door and is usually seen on the same visit.

2850 Florida Plaza Blvd., Kissimmee. www.fun-spot.com.  407/397-2509. Pay-per-ride $6–$10 (except SkyCoaster), unlimited rides $50 ($5 cheaper online). Free rides for another day if its rains within 90 min. of pass purchase. Generally daily 10am–midnight.

Gatorland ANIMAL PARK   Back in 1949, the reassuringly hokey Gatorland became Orlando’s very first mass attraction, featuring Seminole Indians wrestling the animals for tourists; the house-sized jaw at its entrance was a state landmark. Back then, Florida was crawling with alligators—you would see them basking by the sides of the roads—but these days, the reptiles have been mostly evicted by development, so sanctuaries like these are the best places to see the beasts, such as the resident diva, the 15-ft.-long, 1,400-lb. Bonecrusher II, in their ornery glory. Gatorland is rustic in an Eisenhower-era, family-friendly way, and easy to love. There’s a kids’ splash area (suit them up), and in recent years, a wading bird rookery, a petting zoo, a miniature train, and a five-stage zip line over gator ponds ($70; it’s a good time and guests who need accessible accommodations can also do it) were added. It also just created the (extraordinarily bumpy) Stompin’ Gator Off-Road Adventure (another $10), a tongue-in-cheek narrated ride in custom vehicles that jostles you around the overgrown back acres and crawls through the middle of a roiling gator pond. The core of a visit are the showtimes, when good ol’ boy gator rangers, buzzed on their own testosterone, wrassle, tickle, and otherwise pester seething gators, and for 10 bucks, they’ll bring your children into the fray—safely, with a wad of duct tape around the critters’ snouts—for snapshots. It’s cornpone fun and they know it; signage is full of gags and every show is staged to contain a fake near disaster to titillate and thrill tourists. Most of the fun is trawling the 110-acre plot on walkways and docks as the critters teem ominously in murky waters underfoot. Strategy: It’s easy to get the highlights in 2 or 3 hours, but don’t miss the Jumparoo, when gators leap out of the water for suspended chunks of chicken. Bring a fistful of extra cash if you’d like to partake of extras such as feeding gators, that photo op, and the train (or add a package to your entry for $7 more). And save a few bills for one of its 1960s-era vending machines which press a toy alligator out of injected hot wax right before your eyes—it’s just one of many unmissable throwbacks here.

14501 S. Orange Blossom Trail, Orlando. www.gatorland.com.  407/855-5496 or 407/855-5496. $30 adults, $20 kids 3–12. Free parking. Daily 10am–5pm; summer: Daily 10am–6pm.

Give Kids the World Village LANDMARK   Of the annual wishes granted by the Make-A-Wish Foundation and other wish-granting organizations for terminally ill children, half of them are to visit Central Florida. Make-A-Wish turns to this nonprofit to fulfill those dreams, which it does for 196 families at a time plus some 7,000 international families a year. No one is refused, and each family spends an all-expenses-paid week in their own villa, eating as much as they want (including ice cream for breakfast) and playing in a compound that looks like a second Magic Kingdom.

It’s the most magical place you never knew existed. The 79-acre, gated operation is its own fantasy world with a 6-foot rabbit mascot, Mayor Clayton, who provides nightly tuck-ins. Perkins Restaurants and Boston Market discreetly support the dining pavilion, which looks like a gingerbread house, and there’s an Ice Cream Palace where no child is ever refused a scoop. Christmas falls every Thursday, when there’s a parade, holiday lighting, and an appearance by Santa, who gives everyone a toy provided by Hasbro. The carousel is the only one in the world that a wheelchair can drive right onto, plus there’s horseback riding, a small-gauge train route, miniature golf, and more.

As you can imagine, it depends on volunteers—to the tune of 1,200 slots a week. You don’t have to commit to anything longer than a few hours and if you’re there for dinner, you’ll eat; just apply online about 2 weeks ahead and be at least 12 years old, although exceptions can be made for families who want to volunteer together. Universal Orlando offers a “Volunteer Vacation Package” ( 855/275-4955) of discounted 3-night hotel and park tickets for you and your family in exchange for 4 hours at Give Kids the World. Mornings or evenings are best because the kids want to spend their days at the theme parks, too. The workload is easy. That could mean turning person-size cards at the World’s Largest Candy Land game, held Sunday nights on a board measuring 14,400 square feet. You could help at Mayor Clayton’s surprise birthday party, thrown every Saturday, or at the “dive-in” movies screened weekly. You can spoon hash browns at breakfast (until about 11am), run the train, or serve dinner with a smile—the opportunities are virtually boundless and the staff matches talents with the right post.

Your mission is not to lavish pity or love, but to simply run the resort where families escape from hard times. You’ll be a host, not a nurse. Not every child is sick—their brothers and sisters come, too, and many of them are starved for attention after their siblings’ often long illnesses. You’ll find that the village is quite a joyous place as families are, perhaps briefly, liberated from the burden of their lives. A favorite part of Give Kids the World is the Castle of Miracles, where the rafters are covered with thousands of golden stars. Each star is affixed by a child on the last night of his or her stay. Years later, moms and dads sometimes return and ask to see, one last time, the star their child left behind.

210 S. Bass Rd., Kissimmee. www.gktw.org.  407/396-1114.

Machine Gun America AMUSEMENT PARK   You may find it in sick, poor taste that this pricey tourist attraction could exist just a few miles from the place where 49 people were gunned down on June 12, 2016. Yet here it is: A playground to spray bullets from weapons of all types and eras, many of which are not available to purchase anymore. It’s true that the staff, many of whom are ex-military, is assiduously responsible, knows its stuff, and puts you on a simulator before ushering you behind reinforced glass for your simulated slaughter. But you may find it disconcerting to see people firing not at a target symbol but at a figure of a human. You may bristle to see men who buy a cheaper gun package forced to wear a tiara and a sash by way of being ridiculed for not being manly enough for bigger weapons. And it’s hard to charitably interpret that the most expensive package ($800) concludes with customers being presented with their “Man Card.” International tourists are particularly transfixed by this violent American fetish, and many guests report leaving with kickback bruises—these are some powerful massacre weapons being used as playthings for thrills rather than in the context for which they were made.

5825 W. Irlo Bronson Memorial Hwy./U.S. 192, Kissimmee. www.machinegunamerica.com.  407/278-1800. Packages $100–$800. Sun–Fri 10am–8pm; Sat 10am–9pm.

Old Town AMUSEMENT PARK   Built to look like 4 blocks of a Main Street–style town, expect working-class Americana to the extreme: saloon-style bars, Old Glory T-shirts, and a gantlet of no-name stores peddling impulse buys from ice cream to fried food to gag portraits. Refined it ain’t, loud it is, but after years of decline it’s enjoying some investment and the Fun Spot, next door, has stocked it with a few carnival staples like a Ferris wheel and a haunted house. The real time to be here is after 4pm on weekends for its vintage car shows: muscle cars on Fridays, pre-1975 cars on Saturdays.

5770 W. Irlo Bronson Memorial Hwy./U.S. 192, Kissimmee. www.myoldtownusa.com.  407/396-4888. Daily 10am–11pm.

Reptile World Serpentarium ANIMAL ATTRACTION   Snake milking! What other enticement do you need? Truthfully, it’s more of an unassuming biotoxin supply facility—and venom-collection wonderland—than a zoo. Begun in 1972 to collect poison for medical research and to save the lives of bite victims, its location 20 miles east of Disney tempted its operators into joining the ranks of tourist attractions 4 years later, and daily at noon and 3pm, you can thrill (safely behind glass) as George Van Horn grabs deadly serpents, plants their yawning fangs over the venom-collection glass, and gets the creatures spitting mad. There are about 80 snakes on display (including a 13-ft. cobra and 11 types of rattlers) at any time, plus some baby gators and parrots, but obviously, this one’s about venom spewing. Gotta admit—that’s cool.

puttering around

Orlando is a world capital for miniature golf. Here, you play crazy golf under waterfalls, through caves, over motorized ramps, and even into volcanoes that “erupt” if you hit your shot. The coupon booklets print discounts for all but Disney’s courses; also check individual course websites for coupons.

Congo River Adventure Golf (www.congoriver.com): One of the best options, the challenging courses wind through man-made mountains speared with airplane wreckage—and there are live alligators in the pools! Play 18 holes for $13 adults, $11 kids. Two locations: 5901 International Dr., Orlando ( 407/248-9181); and 4777 W. Hwy. 192, Kissimmee ( 407/396-6900). Both open daily (Sun–Thurs 10am–11pm; Fri–Sat 10am–midnight). Discounts online.

Disney’s Winter Summerland (outside Blizzard Beach, Walt Disney World;  407/939-7529; $14 adults, $12 kids; daily 10am–11pm; 50% discount on the second round): Two cute 18-hole courses themed around Christmas. The Winter side, piled with fake snow, has more bells and whistles (love that steaming campfire and that squirting snowman). Combine it with Blizzard Beach without moving your car. Summerland beats the other Disney course, Disney’s Fantasia Gardens (same rates), themed to the movie Fantasia, with its two courses: Fairways and Gardens. The Fairways course has challenging shots; Gardens is sillier. Find it by the Swan and Dolphin hotel duo.

Hollywood Drive-In Golf (CityWalk Orlando, 6000 Universal Blvd., Orlando; www.hollywooddriveingolf.com;  407/802-4848; $16 adults, $14 kids 3–9; daily 9am–2am): The coolest 36 holes in town, CityWalk’s “haunted & sci-fi double feature” is kitted out, hilarious, and always surprising. Spinning vortices! Corkscrew ball elevators! At night, the lighting effects are impeccable. You can even download its own scorecard app and putt an eyeball.

Pirate’s Cove (www.piratescove.net): Navigate wooden ships—a newly installed one is life-size—and falls of blue-ish water. Choose Captain’s Adventure or Blackbeard’s Challenge. Two locations: 8501 International Dr., Orlando ( 407/352-7378), and 12545 S.R. 535, behind the Crossroads shopping center, Lake Buena Vista ( 407/827-1242). $12 adults, $11 kids 4–12; open daily 9am to 11pm; that second location may close soon, so check ahead.

Topgolf Orlando (9295 Universal Blvd., Orlando; www.topgolf.com;  407/218-7714; $30/hr until noon, $40/hour noon–5pm, $50/hr 5pm–close; Mon-Thurs 9am-midnight, Fri 9am–2am, Sat 8am–2am, Sun 8am–midnight). More than 100 bays on a multi-level driving range, gussied up with colored targets, food, and a bar. Balls contain microchips for instant scoring. Classier and exponentially more expensive than putt-putt, it’s one of dozens of worldwide locations.

5705 E. Irlo Bronson Memorial Hwy./U.S. 192, St. Cloud. www.reptileworldserpentarium.com.  407/892-6905. $11.50 adults, $9.50 kids 6–17, $8.50 kids 3–5. Tues–Sun 10am–5pm.

Kennedy Space Center

In the late 1960s, Central Florida was the most exciting place on Earth, thanks to the moon. Kennedy Space Center , which was established on Cape Canaveral in 1958 and ruled the tourist circuit with Disney in the 1970s, was eventually eclipsed by attractions based on fantasy. These days, it’s out of this world again.

KSC is on the Space Coast about an hour east of Orlando, and it’s worth the trip. Gray Line bus (graylineorlando.com;  407/522-5911) does a $109 day tour from Orlando, but for optimal touring, you really should drive yourself and start at opening time. At the main Visitor Complex, many are waylaid by the retired rockets, IMAX films, and simulators, but that’s not the best stuff—do them at the end of the day if you have time. Unless there’s an Astronaut Encounter going on—that’s an hour-long presentation in which an actual astronaut talks about their experience and answers questions—proceed instantly to the can’t-miss the Behind the Gates bus tour, which leaves every 15 minutes until about 2:15pm, and takes most people around 3 hours. Be warned that the last buses don’t leave you enough time to browse. Coaches, which are narrated by a live person, zip you around NASA’s tightly secured compound. Combined with the nature reserve around it, the area (which guides tell visitors is one-fifth the size of Rhode Island and is home to 16 bald eagle nests) is huge but you’ll be making one stop not too far away. You’ll see the launch sites used by the shuttle and by the Apollo moon shots, and you’ll receive an intelligent explanation of the preparation that went into each shuttle launch. You’ll buzz by eagles’ nests, alligator-rich canals, pads now leased by private space-mission contractors SpaceX and Boeing, and the confoundingly titanic Vehicle Assembly Building, or VAB, where the shuttle—which NASA folk call “the orbiter”—was readied. It’s just one story tall, but it’s a doozy: The Statue of Liberty could fit through those doors with 200 feet left over. The main bus stop, the Apollo/Saturn V Center, is themed “Race to the Moon” and begins with a mandatory 5-minute film and then a full-scale mock-up of the “firing room” in the throes of commanding Apollo 8’s launch, in all its window-rattling, fire-lit drama—to skip that 30-minute show and get to the good stuff, pass through. The adjoining hangar contains a Saturn V rocket, which is larger than you can imagine (363 ft. long, or the equivalent of 30 stories)—but the new SLS rockets are even bigger. Don’t overlook the chance to reach into a case to touch a small moon rock, which looks like polished metal. The presentation in the Lunar Theatre, which recounts the big touchdown, is well produced and even includes a video appearance by the late, reclusive Neil Armstrong. There’s a cafeteria here, and look around for retired engineers and astronauts who are often on hand to answer questions.

After that, hasten back via the bus to the Visitor Complex for the grand finale: The $100-million home of the space shuttle Atlantis. Without giving too much away, the way in which it’s revealed to you is probably the most spine-tingling moment in all of Orlando. Hanging 26 feet off the ground at an angle of 43.21° (like the numbers in a launch countdown), it’s still covered with space dust, and it now tips a wing at everyone who comes to learn about it on the many interactive displays that surround it. Don’t miss the commemorative Forever Remembered. Alongside favorite mementos provided by 11 of the 14 families of their crews, you’ll find respectful displays of a section of the hull of the Challenger, lost in 1986, and a slab of cockpit windows of the Columbia (lost in 2003), still encrusted with grass and mud from where it fell to Earth. You can also try the $60-million Shuttle Launch Experience, in which 44-person motion-simulator pods mimic a 5-minute launch with surprising (but not nauseating) clarity, and Heroes & Legends that tributes the 100-odd explorers in the Astronaut Hall of Fame. The entire state-of-the-art, hyper-engaging space shuttle section can easily consume 2 hours.

Increased Access to NASA Secrets

The end of the space shuttle program has enabled previously off-limits areas to be opened for visits. Availability shifts, but on a variety of additional “Explore” tours (generally $25 adults, $19 kids 3–11, plus admission), there’s always something that’s not on the standard KSC bus tour. You can visit the shuttle’s launch pad, the Launch Control Center used in the shuttle’s last liftoffs, the core of the Mercury and Gemini missions, and find out what NASA’s up to now, including the new SLS (Space Launch System) that will carry the new Orion module into space for longer trips than ever before.

Once you’ve completed the bus tour and Atlantis, it’s up to you whether you want to plumb the sillier, kid-geared business at the Visitor’s Complex. By this point, much of it will be redundant, and some of it is pure malarkey, but take the time to check the 42-foot-high black granite slab of the Astronaut Memorial, commemorating those lost; Early Space Exploration, where you’ll see the impossibly low-tech Mission Control for the Mercury missions (they used rotary telephones!), plus some authentic spacesuits from the Gemini, Mercury, and Apollo series. Astoundingly, the actual Mercury command building was torn down in 2010.

Daunted? You can prepare by downloading its free app, which helps you prioritize with maps and attraction descriptions. For lunch, though, you’re marooned. There is nowhere else to eat within a 15-minute drive, and food is horrendous ($8–$10 a plate)—hamburgers taste like they were surplus from the Apollo program. Come on, NASA. Hospitality isn’t rocket science.

Route 405, east of Titusville. www.kennedyspacecenter.com.  866/737-5235. Admission $57 adults, $47 kids. Handheld multimedia guide $9. Parking $10. Daily 9am to btw. 5 and 7pm, depending on the season. Bus tours every 15 min., last one usually 3:30pm.

Kennedy Space Center Special Tours

Astronaut Training Experience ACTIVITY   KSC dubs the program ATX, but you could call it Space Daycamp. You’ll test simulators of planet rovers, spacewalks, and Mars explorations and try a mock-up of a launch. Nothing is as intense as what astronauts experience, but it’s still plenty rigorous for most terrestrials, and the facilitators can answer nearly any question you can launch at them. You can also book one-off time slots on the simulators for $30–$40. For something brainier, the Mars Base 1 program ($150; 7 hrs. including lunch) casts your kids as true scientists running a research center on the Red Planet, from collecting plants to programming drones.

Be There for Liftoff

Although the Space Shuttle has flown into history, Cape Canaveral still launches unmanned rockets—SpaceX conducts spectacular liftoffs from pad 39A, where the Apollo missions launched. Because launches are often postponed, it would be dangerous to plan a trip to Orlando just to catch one, but then again, if there’s one when you’re in town, it would a shame to miss it, even if it means waking up at 5am. Kennedy Space Center maintains an updated schedule online at www.kennedyspacecenter.com/events and sometimes it arranges VIP seating at a safe distance. The general public is not permitted to flood NASA turf during the actual events, but Titusville, a town at the eastern end of S.R. 50, is a good place to get a clear, free view, because you’ll be across the wide Indian River from the pad. Even if you can’t leave Orlando for a launch, you can still see the fire of the rockets ascend the eastern sky from any east-facing window in town. Night launches are even more spectacular.

Astronaut Hall of Fame, 6225 Vectorspace Blvd., Titusville. www.kennedyspacecenter.com/atx.  866/737-5235. $175 age 14 and older, $169 age 7–11, includes admission to KSC, minimum age 7. 5 hr.

Lunch with an Astronaut    One of the coolest benefits of visiting the Space Coast is the chance to meet a real astronaut, many of whom have retired to the same area where they once worked. At times, you’ll have seen headliners such as Jim Lovell and Story Musgrave making the rounds. Typically, these guys (and a very few women) love basking in fandom and in reliving old tales of glory—and unlike out-to-pasture sportsmen, these old-timers really did risk their lives the way heroes are supposed to—so these small-group sessions are geared toward questions. Every month or so, KSC also mounts Fly with an Astronaut ($200 adults, $174 kids), during which an astronaut actually conducts your tour of the complex where they once worked.

www.kennedyspacecenter.com.  855/433-4210. $30 adults, $16 kids 3–11, not including required admission. Daily at noon.

Nightlife in Orlando

After nightfall, the exertion of visiting theme parks has turned most visitors into exhausted puddles, and the resorts mop up the remaining energy at their on-premises nightspots. Touring shows and concerts pop up at the gorgeous new Dr. Phillips Center for the Performing Arts downtown (www.drphillipscenter.org). But this is Orlando. Diversions get a lot more creative than that. These novel nighttime pursuits are worth the rally:

Enzian CINEMA   This thoughtfully programmed cinema would be the envy of any city in America. Before the movie, kick back at the Brazilian walnut patio bar, watching the sunset paint the Spanish moss red. Some of the drinks come from the private cellars of the Enzian’s founder, the granddaughter of an Austrian princess. The relaxation continues inside at a large single-screen cinema, where a selection of art films and documentaries is shown, plus Hollywood biggies. Unlike multiplexes, there aren’t rows of seats, but lollipop-colored levels of tables with cushy seating. Servers take your order (if you have one—eating’s not required) before the movie; after the lights dim, your meal arrives surreptitiously and the air fills with the aroma of popcorn and truffled fries. After the show, a 20-minute drive has you back at Disney World. 1300 S. Orlando Ave., Maitland. www.enzian.org.  407/629-0054.

Howl at the Moon Saloon BAR   The 17-strong chain is good fun: a saloon delivered as a theme park experience, where bands and dueling pianists whip up fun and the patrons, mostly over 35 and white, clap earnestly to the beat. 8815 International Dr., Orlando. www.howlatthemoon.com.  407/354-5999. Sat–Thurs 7pm–2am; Fri 6pm–2am; piano show starts 1 hr. after opening; cover $5–$10.

Icebar BAR   The gimmick: a bar made of 50 tons of ice, from the chairs to the frozen goblets. You’re loaned gloves and a cape for warmth. The Arctic cocktailerie is only the size of a hotel room, dotted with ice sculptures, and aglow with cobalt lighting; when you’ve had enough, there’s a larger, room-temperature lounge where you can continue the party. 8967 International Dr., Orlando. www.icebarorlando.com.  407/351-0361. $32–$42 including 2 drinks, $20 without drinks, discounts on packages online. Sun–Wed 5pm–midnight; Thurs 5pm–1am; Fri–Sat 5pm–2am. Kids 8 and older permitted 5pm–9pm, 21+ thereafter.

Kings Bowl Orlando BOWLING ALLEY   Like Splitsville at Disney Springs, this new-brew nightspot in the shadow of the Eye turns a bowling alley into an all-evening party, with 22 ten-pin lanes, servers delivering surprisingly decent food (from pizza to ginger soy glazed salmon), serve-yourself beer, shuffleboard, bocce balls, billiards, ping pong, and dancing. Some nights it’s for over-21s only, so if it’s your family night, check first. 8255 International Dr., Orlando. www.kingsorlando.com.  407/363-0200. Bowling $7–$10, shoe rental $5. Mon–Sat noon–2am; Sun noon–midnight.

Minus5° Icebar BAR   Put on your parkas, because it’s another frigid icebar. Orlando’s second ice bar, part of a chain with locations in Vegas and Manhattan, gradually changes color thanks to a flashy lighting system and ultimately, it depends not on local revelers but on convention crowds. Before 9pm, you can bring kids. Pointe Orlando, 9101 International Dr., Orlando. www.minus5experience.com.  407/704-6956. $42 including 2 drinks, $22 without drinks, kids’ version from $10, discounts online. Mon–Thurs 5pm–midnight; Fri–Sun 4pm–midnight.

Mango’s Tropical Cafe NIGHTCLUB   Mango’s is what it is. This Caribbean-inflected nightclub, a cavernous copy of the Miami original, is colorful, boisterous, calculated with every flourish for maximal are-you-having-fun-yet mass appeal, and surprisingly expensive but still full of frolic for those who’d rather be wearing a Carmen Miranda fruit headdress than a thinking cap. The multi-level party machine—humdrum food, overburdened staff, but effortful non-stop entertainment and flowing booze—is lousy for singles but popular among corporate groups, birthday parties, and bachelorettes who can’t get enough of the Michael Jackson impersonators and Celia Cruz tribute singers. For all that, it’s a new mainstay among the I-Drive nightspots, and it’s appropriate for children. You don’t have to eat to enjoy the show and you can stay as long as you like. 8126 International Dr., Orlando. www.mangos.com.  407/673-4422. Mains $28–$36, cover $5–$20 depending on capacity, valet parking $15. Daily 6pm–2am.

Orlando Brewing and Taproom BREWERY   Because it’s buried in an industrial area, you have to know about it to find it. There’s no food served, either, but that doesn’t mean there isn’t some delicious cooking happening. At least 35 organic beers (ales, IPAs, stouts—it changes according to how the brewers experiment) are on tap at 42°F (6°C) and served at a copper-top bar. Mon–Sat at 6pm, the owners grant a free 30-minute tour of the beerworks, where quaffs are made without pasteurization (like the Old World) for sale within 2 weeks. The bar area is simple but convivial, like a rec room your dad might have slapped up in the basement, uncluttered by TVs or pool tables. 1301 Atlanta Ave., Orlando (just east of the Kaley St. exit off I-4, exit 81). www.orlandobrewing.com.  407/872-1117. No food; beer only. Mon–Thurs 3–10pm; Fri–Sat 1pm–midnight; Sun 1–9pm.

Parliament House Orlando BAR/THEATER/DISCO   There are few American institutions quite like it. In 1975, a dying Johnson-era, 130-room motel was revitalized as an amusement megacenter for gay folks. Its rambling size—10 acres, including a beach on a small lake out back—justifies it as a hangout not only for gay guys, but also for the friends who love them, women who want to dance with them without being accosted, and open-minded straight guys. Think of it as a fabulous entertainment mini-mall: There’s the Footlight Theater for cabaret and drag hosted by longtime resident mistress Darcel Stevens; a diner; a pool; a disco, which gears up around 9pm; a video bar; and a scuzzy cubby called Western Bar, for leather-and-jeans-wearing guys who play pool. The scene is especially remarkable when you consider that its operators are a straight couple from Canada. It’s considered a nucleus of Florida gay life and increasingly one of the most vital and longest-lived landmarks of gay history—no matter how endearingly run-down it is. 410 N. Orange Blossom Trail, Orlando. www.parliamenthouse.com.  407/425-7571. Cover and hours vary.

Player 1 Orlando BAR   Right outside the Disney Springs–area of WDW is this spot where you can play video games all night long. Reasonable drink prices, a dignified beer selection (craft beer, even meads), and a huge inventory of totally free games for superfans and nostalgics alike (consoles to cabinet) make it a fun secret of the Orlando leisure scene—theme-park workers hang out here. All ages are permitted before 5pm, but kids under 18 must always have an adult with them. 8562 Palm Parkway, Lake Buena Vista. www.player1orlando.com.  407/504-7521. Cover $5, higher for those under 22 depending on the night. Daily 4pm–2am.

SAK Comedy Lab COMEDY CLUB   Too often, people describe improv comedy clubs as like “Whose Line Is it Anyway?”—only here, it’s true, because this is where Wayne Brady got his start, as well as his Let’s Make a Deal announcer Jonathan Mangum, SNL’s Paula Pell, and MADtv’s Paul Vogt. There’s improv and sketch comedy every day but Sunday, and earlier shows are more kid-friendly. The big improv battle is Saturday night’s “Duel of Fools.” 29 S. Orange Ave, Orlando. www.sakcomedylab.com.  407/648-0001. Cover $5–$18. Shows Mon–Sat btw. 7:30pm and 9:30pm.

Outdoor Orlando

Picture an old-fashioned steamship, not unlike the African Queen, puttering along a narrow river of clear spring-fed water beneath a cool canopy of Spanish moss. Alongside, a few docile manatees nibble contentedly on river grass.

It’s hard to believe, but that’s what Central Florida really is. Well, was. When you tire of artificial rocks that conceal loudspeakers, remember that Orlando was adored first for natural beauty. Developers cleared everything but the lakes, ripping out natural vegetation. (And people wonder why they feel so hot.)

Central Florida’s building explosion only kicked in a generation ago, and some people were smart enough to rope off land from destruction. Look around, and you’ll find examples of the land’s primacy—natural springs that Ponce de Leon once toured, swamps where alligators lurk beneath bladderwort and spatterdock, and marshy preserves thronged with migrating birds. And should all of that scenery bore, you can speed by it on bracing boat tours or observe it from above in a balloon or hang glider.

Blue Spring State Park NATURE RESERVE   You stand a fair chance of seeing manatees here, especially in the morning on a cold day. The creatures venture up the St. Johns River from the Atlantic Ocean to seek out the warmth of the springs of this 2,600-acre park, which maintain a constant 72°F (22°C) temperature even in winter. From mid-November through March 15, all boating, swimming, and snorkeling are suspended while the big guys (more than 75 in some years) are in residence. An exception is made daily at 10am and 1pm, when a 2-hour guided boat tour (www.sjrivercruises.com;  407/330-1612; $25 adults, $23 seniors, $18 kids 3–12) is given, and the park also coughs up a few nature trails and canoe rental. Find it 60 miles north of Disney from exit 114 off I-4; go south on U.S. Rte. 17/92 to Orange City, and then make a right onto West French Avenue (there are signs).

2100 W. French Ave., Orange City. www.floridastateparks.org/bluespring.  386/775-3663. $6 per car. Daily 8am–sundown; arrive early to avoid full parking lot.

De Leon Springs State Park NATURE RESERVE   Florida has some 300 springs, and 27 of them discharge more than 60 million gallons of pure water a day. In fact, Florida has more springs than any other American state, so it’s easy to conclude that natural springs are more authentically Floridian than pretty much anything else you might see in Orlando, and there’s no more enjoyable place to experience them than here. The Spanish, Seminoles, and pre-presidential Zachary Taylor all fought over this spot of land, and Audubon saw his first limpkin here. (Remember your first time?) It’s impossible to overstate the importance of the St. Johns River on the development of Florida—before rail, everybody used it—and, like the Nile, it’s one of the few world rivers to flow north, not south. On this segment of the river, there are 18,000 acres of lakes and marshes to canoe (boats can be rented by the hour), a concrete-lined area to swim in, and 6 miles of trails to forge as you try to spot black bears, white-tail deer, swamp rabbits, and, of course, gators. It gets cooler: At its general store–style Old Spanish Sugar Mill (www.oldspanishsugarmill.com;  386/985-5644; Mon–Fri 9am–3:45pm, Sat–Sun and holidays 8am–3:45pm), you make your own all-you-can-eat pancakes on griddles built into every table, but they can cook you other things, too). Niftier still, the designated swimming area beside the Griddle House is in a spring-fed boil—30 feet deep in spots—that remains at a constant 72°F (22°C), year-round. To reach it, take I-4 north, exit for Deland, and 6 miles north of Deland on U.S. 17 turn left onto Ponce DeLeon Boulevard for 1 mile. Get there early, because when the weather sizzles, it gets busy.

601 Ponce de Leon Blvd., Deland. www.floridastateparks.org/deleonsprings.  386/985-4212. $6 per carload. Daily 8am–sundown.

Harry P. Leu Gardens GARDENS   Botanical gardens seem dull on paper, yet once you find yourself within one, inhaling perfume and being warmed by the sun, you’re in no hurry to leave. So it is with this 50-acre lakeside escape just north of downtown that gives visitors an inkling of why so many Gilded Age Americans wanted to flee to Florida, where the fresh air and gently rustling trees were a tonic to the maladies inflicted by the industrial North. Here you’ll find Florida’s largest formal rose garden (peaking in Apr); a patch planted with nectar-rich blooms favored by migrating butterflies; a large collection of camellias that bloom in late fall; and the lush Tropical Stream garden, crawling with native lizards and opening onto a dock where freshwater turtles swim and ducks bob.
1920 N. Forest Ave. www.leugardens.org.  407/246-2620. $10 adults, $3 kids, free the first Mon of the month. Daily 9am–5pm.

Tibet–Butler Preserve NATURE RESERVE   Located more or less between Disney and SeaWorld (it’s incredible it hasn’t been turned into a golf course yet), it’s the closest to the parks: about 5 miles north of the Lake Buena Vista hotel area. The 438-acre spread is combed by 4 miles of well-maintained boardwalks and trails (which close when flooded) that will give you respite among the cypress swamps and palmetto groves that once dominated this area.

8777 C.R. 535, Windermere.  407/254-1940. Free. Sat–Sun 8am–6pm.

Wekiwa Springs State Park NATURE RESERVE   The closest major spring to Orlando (just 20 min. north, off I-4’s exit 94) is, despite encroachment by suburbs and malls, one of the prettiest preserves in the area. When you think of Florida, you don’t normally picture rambling rivers, but the 42-mile Wekiva (yes, spelled differently than the park’s name and pronounced “Wek-eye-va”) is federally designated as “Wild and Scenic,” meaning it hasn’t been dammed or otherwise despoiled by development, despite the fact it’s just northwest of Orlando’s sprawl near Apopka. The springhead, fed by two sources, flows briskly over rock and sand, and some people come to fish, but most agree that its canoeing is among the most spectacular in the state. Wekiwa Springs State Park Nature Adventures (www.canoewekiva.com;  407/884-4311) rents canoes and kayaks ($25 for 2 hr.). Developers would love to sink their bulldozers’ claws into this paradise; in fact, so much water is being siphoned from it that its flow is expected to diminish by 10% by 2025.

1800 Wekiwa Circle, Apopka. www.floridastateparks.org/wekiwasprings.  407/884-2009. $6 per car. Daily 8am–sundown; arrive early to avoid full parking lot.

Boat Tours

The real Florida Everglades don’t begin until south of Lake Okeechobee, which is why you’ll hear Central Florida referred to as the headwaters of the Florida Everglades. The waterlogged land is still home to a wide diversity of life forms.

BK Adventure TOUR   An hour’s drive from Orlando, you’ll find a mesmerizing natural phenomenon: dinoflagellate plankton that literally light up salty water in a glowing blue hue. In peak season, June to October, easy kayak tours bring visitors into the mystical spectacle (best with no moon) 3–4 times nightly.

www.bkadventure.com.  407/519-8711. Guided tours $55 adults, equipment provided. 90 min. Reservations required.

Central Florida Nature Adventures TOUR   Kayak tours take a little more elbow grease than your typical Orlando diversion, but the company has a menu of seven tours (most 2–3 hours) of varying difficulty, and they’re staged at prime waterways all around the area. Those include the Wekiva River, Rock Spring (45 min. from Disney), and Blue Spring (p. 183), where between April and November you can kayak in crystal clear waters right above fish and turtles; in winter, you share the spring with manatees.

www.kayakcentralflorida.com.  352/589-7899. Guided tours $64–$95 adults, equipment provided. Reservations required.

Boggy Creek Airboat Rides TOUR   Airboats use powerful, backward-facing propellers to skip through shallow bogs, and they’re a common form of eco-entertainment in Florida, particularly farther south in the Everglades. Though much wildlife is spooked by the din (you’ll get ear mufflers), water snakes and alligators appear too thick-headed to care, so you should see a few on one of the continuously running 30-minute tours—boat skippers will cut the engine and float near the critters. The boats don’t operate in the rain. The wildlife spotting is better in South Florida, but this still is a long-running crowd-pleaser. Coupons are commonly distributed. One-hour night tours ($54 adults, $50 kids 3–12) are also available, but require reservations; check the website for times.

2001 E. Southport Rd., Kissimmee. www.bcairboats.com.  407/344-9550. 30-min. tours $28 adults, $24 kids 3–12. Daily 9am–5:30pm.

Scenic Boat Tour TOUR   This Winter Park institution has been showing visitors glorious lakeside mansions since 1938, when they were in their heyday of attracting wealthy snowbirds from the North. Three of Winter Park’s seven smooth cypress-lined lakes, which are connected by thrillingly narrow, hand-dug canals, are explored in a 1-hour, 12-mile tour narrated by neighborhood old timers. The lakes are flat and relaxing, with plenty of bird life, and your guide will pay particular attention to the works of James Gamble Rogers II, a virtuosic architect responsible for many of the area’s finest homes. Among the high points is a glimpse of the modest condominium where Mamie Eisenhower spent her waning years and 250-year-old live oaks. You’ll find this charmer 3 blocks east of the shops on Park Avenue. Bring sunscreen: the pontoons are exposed.

312 E. Morse Blvd., Winter Park. www.scenicboattours.com.  407/644-4056. $14 adults, $7 kids 2–11. No credit cards. Hourly departures 10am–4pm daily.

Christmas Greetings

Christmas, Florida, a blip on S.R. 50 between Orlando and Titusville, usually isn’t much to write home about: farm supplies, roadkill. Unless, of course, it’s the holiday season, when people come from far and wide to give their cards a Christmas postmark from the local post office. You’ll find the P.O. at 23580 E. Colonial Dr./S.R. 50 ( 407/568-2941; Mon–Fri 9am–5pm, Sat 9:30am–noon).

Golf

Orlando is a golf town. This is truth despite the great damage courses do to an ecosystem as precarious as Central Florida’s. Some of the brightest names in the sport, including Tiger Woods, Annika Sorenstam, Ernie Els, and Nick Faldo, have called Orlando home, as does cable’s Golf Channel (which isn’t open to visitors). In January, the Convention Center is home to the annual PGA Merchandise Show (www.pgashow.com).

Every self-respecting resort has a course or three, as do luxe condo developments. There are some 170 courses around town, and the competition has caused rates to plummet in recent years, although some still command around $150. The booking websites TeeOff.com and GolfNow.com both sell discounted tee times, driving rates down further. Some courses give priority to players who stay in their hotels through advantageous tee times, early reservations privileges, or cheaper fees. Prices can be steeper in high season (Jan–Apr), and they may be lowest in the fall and early winter. They usually sink to about half the day’s rate for “twilight” tee times, which start around midafternoon. Club rentals cost $40 to $60. Reservations are all but required and most courses have a dress code and even an age minimum, so always ask.

Destination Courses

From pedigrees by well-known designers to clubhouses that operate more like spas, these fashionable courses are the theme parks of the fairway set. Tee time at these pricey greens fill quickly because the courses have national reputations. Count on paying about $10 per hole. Most of the big courses will now arrange to ship your personal clubs to the course in time for your visit, if you like.

Arnold Palmer’s Bay Hill Club & Lodge    Designer: Arnold Palmer, who owned it and built the golf school. This guests-only resort course rambles for 270 acres over lakelands and regularly receives the most accolades from experts. Palmer renovated the main course just before his 2016 death.

9000 Bay Hill Blvd., Orlando. www.bayhill.com.  888/422-9445. 27 holes.

ChampionsGate Golf Resort    Designer: Greg Norman. Headquarters of the 37-unit David Leadbetter Golf Academy ( 407/787-3330; www.davidleadbetter.com), this resort and handsome high-rise hotel is 10 minutes south of Disney.

1400 Masters Blvd., ChampionsGate. www.championsgategolf.com.  407/787-4653. 36 holes.

Mystic Dunes Golf Club    Designer: Gary Koch. Located 2 miles south of Disney, it has steadily won Golf Digest praise for its distinct character. Elevation changes up to 80 feet over the course of play and the grounds retain their mature oaks and wetlands.

7600 Mystic Dunes Lane, Celebration. www.mysticdunesgolf.com.  407/787-5678. 18 holes.

Reunion Resort & Club    Designers: Jack Nicklaus, Arnold Palmer, Tom Watson—three world-class designers’ courses, all a 10-minute drive south of Disney. There’s also on-site golf instruction with a staff of 11 teachers.

7593 Gathering Dr., Kissimmee. www.reunionresort.com/golf.  866/380-8563. 54 holes.

The Ritz-Carlton Golf Club Orlando, Grande Lakes    Designer: Greg Norman. Golf instruction at this very well-maintained facility is overseen by former PGA Tour player Larry Rinker. Family packages are available.

4040 Central Florida Pkwy., Orlando. www.grandelakes.com.  407/393-4900. 18 holes.

Shingle Creek Golf Club    Designer: Thad Layton, Arnold Palmer Design Company. A proud, Orlando-centered resort, Shingle Creek is home to a school overseen by Brad Brewer (www.bradbrewer.com).

9939 Universal Blvd., Orlando. www.shinglecreekgolf.com.  866/996-9933 or 407/996-9933. 18 holes.

Tranquilo Golf Club at Four Seasons Resort Orlando    Disney’s former Osprey Ridge course, an Audubon sanctuary 2 miles east of the Magic Kingdom, was redesigned by its creator Tom Fazio in late 2014. Each hole has four sets of tees to appeal to all skill levels, and there’s a fancy new 16-acre practice facility for drives, chipping, and putting training.

3451 Golf View Dr., Lake Buena Vista. www.tranquilogolf.com.  407/313-6880. 18 holes.

Villas of Grand Cypress    Designer: Jack Nicklaus. This club, right next to Disney in Lake Buena Vista, was noted one of Orlando’s best golf resorts by the readers of Condé Nast Traveler, who know about such things. Its New Course is Nicklaus’ salute to the Old Course of St. Andrews, Scotland.

One North Jacaranda, Orlando. www.grandcypress.com/golf.  407/239-1909. 45 holes.

Walt Disney World Golf Courses    Disney has been closing courses or parceling them to other resorts, but there are currently four left, including the Lake Buena Vista (once a PGA tour host), the recently refurbished Palm, and the Magnolia (the one with the sand bunker shaped like Mickey). Oak Trail (9 holes) is the better choice for family outings. They’re all run by Arnold Palmer’s company. Greens fees include golf cart, when available, and kids under 18 get half-off full tee time rates at the 18-hole courses. All courses opened with the resort in 1971, when golf was more important to the resort, and if truth be told, their maintenance is spotty. At Oak Trail, there’s a 9-hole course dedicated to FootGolf, which is scored just like golf except you kick soccer balls instead of swinging clubs ($22, about 2 hours).

Walt Disney World. www.golfwdw.com.  407/938-4653. 63 holes.

More Affordable Courses

Unlike the aforementioned courses, these don’t have big marketing budgets and they don’t always come attached to celebrity names, but they nevertheless are high-quality courses you can enjoy at sensible prices.

Celebration Golf Course    In the Disney-built town next door to the Disney-built world, English master designer Robert Trent Jones, Sr., and his son pocked their well-groomed course with water hazards on 17 of its 18 holes.

701 Golf Park Dr., Celebration. www.celebrationgolf.com.  407/566-4653. 18 holes.

Falcon’s Fire Golf Club    Designer: Rees Jones. Decently maintained and fairly priced (in the mid-$40s for prime tee times), this public course a few minutes east of Disney can be crowded, but holes are straightforward and a beverage cart makes the rounds.

3200 Seralago Blvd., Kissimmee. www.falconsfire.com.  407/239-5445. 18 holes.

Hawk’s Landing Golf Club    Because it’s part of the Orlando World Center Marriott resort on World Center Drive near Disney, it crawls with convention-goers who keep prices high. Water is in play on 15 of the 18 holes, and the par-71 course carries a slope rating of 131.

8701 World Center Dr., Orlando. www.golfhawkslanding.com.  800/567-2623. 18 holes.

Highlands Reserve Golf Club    This highly praised public course, with a fair mix of challenges and cakewalks, is a strong value, charging a top rate of $39, and its twilight rates kick in as early as noon. It’s about 10 minutes southwest of Disney.

500 Highlands Reserve Blvd., Davenport. www.highlandsreserve-golf.com.  863/420-1724. 18 holes.

MetroWest Golf Club    This Marriott Golf–managed course is the work of Robert Trent Jones, Sr., famous for tight greens protected on both sides by sand traps, trees, or water. It’s one of the city’s most popular courses, found less than 3 miles north of Universal Orlando.

2100 S. Hiawassee Rd., Orlando. www.metrowestgolf.com.  407/299-1099. 18 holes.

Orange County National Golf Center and Lodge    At this wide-open complex (922 acres, unspoiled by houses—atypical around here), holes have five sets of tees, allowing you to choose a game that ranges between 7,300 yards and a little over 5,000. Golf Channel’s Matt Ginella put it on top of his list of must-do Orlando courses. It’s just north of Walt Disney World and it’s cheapest early in the week.

16301 Phil Ritson Way, Winter Garden. www.ocngolf.com.  407/656-2626. 45 holes.

Royal St. Cloud Golf Links    Aiming to recall Scotland’s great links—there’s even a stone bridge that looks like it was built during the days of William Wallace, not in 2001—this affordable club, 25 miles east of Disney, has fairways that are noted for being wide, well groomed, and firm, and planners promise you’ll use “every club in the bag.”

5310 Michigan Ave., St. Cloud. www.royalstcloudgolflinks.com.  877/891-7010 or 407/891-7010. 27 holes.

Timacuan Golf and Country Club    There are five sets of tees, adapting this exceptionally well-groomed course from 7,000 to 5,000 yards, and unusually, designers were careful to leave its handsome Old Florida features (undulating fairways, Spanish moss, wetlands) mostly intact. Only 3 holes are riddled with water, which might make it easier for kids. The greens were renovated in 2013. Lake Mary is 10 miles north of downtown.

550 Timacuan Blvd., Lake Mary. www.golftimacuan.com.  407/321-0010. 18 holes.

Up in the Air

Florida is well suited to hot-air ballooning for many of the same reasons that it’s ideal for golf: flat, even topography and often placid morning weather. A trip involves a very early start—6am is common. You’ll be finished with your hour-long ride by the time the theme parks get cranking. If balloons don’t float your boat, there are other ways to see Orlando from up high as well.

Magic Sunrise Ballooning    More intimate than its supersized competition, with just two to four people in the basket with the pilot, this company, flying since 1987, greets landings with a champagne toast.

603 N. Garfield Ave., Deland. www.magicsunriseballooning.com.  866/606-7433. $215 per person for 2–4 people, $135 kids under 90 lb., no kids 5 or under.

Orlando Balloon Rides    In business since 1983, its flagship balloon, launched as the world’s largest in 2011, is 11 stories tall and its basket fits an incredible 24 people. Weekday mornings are cheapest.

2900 Parkway Blvd., Kissimmee. www.orlandoballoonrides.com.  407/894-5040. $195–$225 adults, $99–$109 kids 4–12, frequent discounts online.

Orlando Tree Trek Adventure Park    In some woods 3 miles south of Disney, nine elevated obstacle courses, from 10 to 40 feet off the ground and ranging from simple to tricky, challenge families to conquer their fear of heights while they puzzle how to navigate suspended obstacles. Sometimes you’re stepping on boards, sometimes wires, sometimes nets, but you’re always hooked into a safety line, and guides are always cheering you on. Budget two to three hours.

7625 Sinclair Rd., Kissimmee. www.orlandotreetrek.com.  407/390-9999. $55 adults, $33–$40 kids 7–11, based on height. Daily 8am–dusk.

Wallaby Ranch    In flat Central Florida, where there are no mountains that don’t contain roller coasters, hang gliders can’t soar from cliffs. Instead, they’re launched by ultralight “aerotugs,” to an altitude of 2,000 feet—with a GoPro capturing every squeal (another $40).

1805 Deen Still Rd., Davenport. www.wallaby.com.  863/424-0070. Tandem flights $175.

Shopping

Orlando is a hotbed for outlet activity, partly because international visitors, with their often-stronger currencies, are prone to buying frenzies. Like most modern outlet malls, not all of the items you find for sale here will have come from higher-priced “regular” stores; much of the stock has been specially manufactured for the outlet market (although Consumer Reports doesn’t think the quality is substantially different from retail). You’ll usually find prices between 30% and 50% off sales at retail stores, and after the holiday rush, discounts go deeper.

Florida Mall MALL   Judging by this mercenary sprawl a few miles southeast of Universal, the decline of the American shopping mall is a dirty lie. This rainy-day citadel is massive: 270 stores, everything recently renovated, with plenty of the usual suspects but also some unusual touristy perks like an M&Ms World shop, American Girl, and the Crayola Experience (p. 162). International tourists flock here to blow fortunes. 8001 S. Orange Blossom Trail, Orlando. www.simon.com/mall/the-florida-mall.  407/851-7234. Mon–Fri 10am–9pm; Sat 10am–10pm; Sun noon–8pm.

The Mall at Millenia MALL   Classier and more expensive than Florida Mall, the 150-unit center’s anchor stores include Bloomingdale’s and Neiman Marcus, but Disney Springs has pilfered a bit of its retail thunder. It’s a few minutes up I-4 from Universal. 4200 Conroy Rd., Orlando. www.mallatmillenia.com.  407/363-3555. Mon–Sat 10am–9pm; Sun 11am–7pm.

Outlet Malls

Orlando International Premium Outlets OUTLET MALL   At this stupendous 180-store (give or take) open-air village, you’re very unlikely to come away empty-handed or with a full wallet. Proprietors charge $10 for the best parking spaces, leaving the rest of the lot so jammed that it’s a misery to come. Still, nearly every conceivable brand has a presence here; the chief threats include Neiman Marcus Last Call—a clearance center that sells genuine department store castoffs from its namesake stores, Bergdorf Goodman, and the Horchow catalog—Saks Fifth Avenue Off Fifth, Victoria’s Secret, and Adidas. Hours are Monday to Saturday 10am to 11pm, Sunday 10am to 9pm. Weekdays are quietest. The website lists sales by store. 4951 International Dr., Orlando. www.premiumoutlets.com.  407/352-9600.

Orlando Vineland Premium Outlets OUTLET MALL   The owners of this open-air mall tout it as the most productive outlet center in America, with sales exceeding $1,000 per square foot among 160 stores. And it has made them greedy: They charge $10 for the best parking spaces and force families to fight it out for the scraps. Among the stores: Banana Republic Factory Store, Tory Burch, and Burberry. One popular shop, because it’s so close to the Mouse House, is Disney’s Character Warehouse, for cast-off official theme park souvenirs. Open Monday to Saturday 10am to 11pm and Sunday 10am to 9pm. It’s 10 minutes from Disney Springs; the turnoff is just south of I-4’s exit 68 on S.R. 535/Apopka Vineland, by Bahama Breeze. The I-Ride Trolley (p. 271) touches down here ostensibly every 20 minutes, or you can book the mall’s three-times-daily free shuttle ( 407/238-0703) at least an hour ahead at maingatetaxi.com. 8200 Vineland Ave., Orlando. www.premiumoutlets.com.  407/238-7787.

Lake Buena Vista Factory Stores OUTLET MALL   The third-best outlet shopping in town is a strip mall–style collection of about 50 stores. The offerings here, about 2 miles south of the Disney Springs gate, are not as shimmering as those at its two rival outlet malls, but they’re decent for kids. There are enough names you know (including Tommy Hilfiger, Carter’s for Kids, Old Navy Outlet, OshKosh B’Gosh, and Aéropostale) to warrant a quick trip. Theme Park Outlet has some bargains (half-price mugs, shirts, toys, and some souvenirs dated from a few years ago), and there’s a Travelex office for currency exchange. The mall provides a free daily shuttle to and from major hotels around Disney and I-Drive. 15657 S. Apopka Vineland Rd. (S.R. 535), Orlando. www.lbvfs.com.  407/238-9301.

Disney Springs

Disney Springs (www.disneysprings.com), until recently called Downtown Disney, is Walt Disney World’s outdoor center for shopping and restaurants—alas, just as expensive as elsewhere in the World. Its unwieldy layout ambles along the southern shore of Village Lake a few miles east of Epcot, connected to no theme park. A recent top-to-bottom renovation and expansion made it a new star, adding dozens of brand-name stores. The food is great but from a shopping perspective, despite the improvements, it’s still just a snazzy and overpriced mall. When lined up beside the four theme parks, I can’t say it must be integral to your Disney experience, but it without question has the best casual food choices in Disney World.

The district has four zones; because of the size, it’s helpful to know which one you’re heading for because the walk between them can be up to 15 minutes. The easternmost area is called the Marketplace, and it’s for Disney-themed shops of every type. The middle two zones are Town Center (the outdoor shopping mall, and where the bus stops are) and The Landing (waterfront dining and bars). The westernmost zone is the West Side, which leans toward nightlife and entertainment, with Splitsville Luxury Lanes bowling, and a 24-screen AMC cinema, as if you came to Disney World to go to the movies.

Parking is free in two state-of-the-lot structures (a third opens in 2019) with cool overhead lights indicating at a distance if the space below them is free. The “Orange” structure is most convenient to evening entertainment of the West Side, and “Lime” is closer to the restaurants of The Landing and the shopping of the Town Center and the Marketplace.

When it comes to shopping, the major shops at Town Center are not likely to tickle you much if you’ve ever been to a mall: Zara, UNIQLO, Lilly Pulitzer, Tommy Bahama, Under Armour, and UGG are among the additions—nice shops, but nothing you couldn’t find elsewhere. But shops at the Marketplace ( 407/939-3463) are the best place for Pure Mouse. Stores are themed for maximum souvenir sales, including one for toys and games (Once Upon a Toy), one for Christmas and holiday decorations (Disney’s Days of Christmas), one for high-end collectibles (The Art of Disney), one for kitchen tools (Mickey’s Pantry), one for urban wear (Tren-D), one for stationery and albums (Disney’s Wonderful World of Memories), and Disney’s Pin Traders, a hub for collectors of the park’s badges where you can also buy MagicBands. The most interesting is the Marketplace Co-Op, which contains some great mini-stores such as funky contemporary art versions of Disney characters at WonderGround, D-Tech on Demand for you-design-it smartphone cases and MagicBands (they cost twice as much as standard MagicBands, but for fans, the wide selection of more obscure characters is worth it), Centerpiece for Disney-retro homewares, Cherry Tree Lane for handbags, Twenty-Eight & Main for casual clothes with arcane Disney references, and TAG for travel gear. For the Disney fan, there’s a lot to discover.

The Marketplace’s tent-pole is the big kahuna of Disney merch: World of Disney, the largest souvenir department store in the resort. It’s a rambling cathedral-roofed barn stocked from rug to rafter with every conceivable Disney-branded item. You’ll find stuff here you won’t find at other Disney stores here or at home, especially if it’s a “park exclusive.” World of Disney may not carry items that might fit better at another store at the Marketplace (tree ornaments, for example, would be at Days of Christmas), so hunt around the area.

Very few Marketplace stores sell non-Disney plunder. Kids can’t be separated from The LEGO Store (still here despite the fact the toymaker now brands a competing park, p. 158), where children can play with kits for free, or Build-A-Dino which does for reptiles what Build-A-Bear does for teddies. Basin sells bath products for those teeny hotel room tubs.

Disney Springs

Bibbidi Bobbidi Boutique SALON   Little girls bask in the star treatment as they are lavished with glittery, pink makeovers as princesses from $60 (Crown Package with hair and a sash) to several hundred (the Castle Package adds gown, wand), overseen by a kindly “Fairy Godmother-in-Training” who sprinkles fairy dust. Warning: The dresses are hot and scratchy, so bring a change of clothes if the sun is strong. Boys are steered to the Knight Package ($16), where similar gender beauty roles are ascribed. There’s also a salon in the Magic Kingdom in the Castle, but you’ll need a park ticket for that and slots are scarcer. Try to get a morning appointment so your child has time to prance around the parks in all her fabulousness. Open daily 8:45am to 7:30pm. Once Upon a Toy, Marketplace. www.disneyworld.com.  407/939-7895. Ages 3–12, enforced. $60–$200. Reservations required.

The Pin Culture

One of the most special souvenir traditions on Disney turf is the collection of little enamel and cloisonné pins featuring every known character, ride, movie, and promotional event. Sometimes it seems it’s easier to get your hands on a pin than it is to find a bottle of water—there’s even a pavilion that sells nothing but pins at Disney Springs’ Marketplace. They are usually worn on lanyards, and when cast members clock in for their shifts, they replenish their pin supply at a special window in the backstage area—a dozen to a lanyard at all times. The rule is that if a cast member is wearing almost any pin you want (barring ones commemorating employment milestones), you’re allowed to ask them to trade it for one of your own and they’re not allowed to refuse if the pin is legit. Universal sells a fair supply, too, but the craze is fiercest at Disney, where the backings are shaped, of course, like a mouse head.

Other Interesting Stores

If you feel moved to learn more about Florida history, the bookstore at the Regional History Center ( 407/836-8594; p. 169) is a good start. You’ll find a well-stocked Barnes & Noble (Venezia Plaza, 7900 W. Sand Lake Rd., Orlando;  407/345-0900; daily 9am–10pm) among the terrific restaurants of Sand Lake Road west of I-4 and by the Florida Mall (8358 S. Orange Blossom Trail, Orlando;  407/856-7200; Mon–Sat 10am–10pm, Sun 10am–9pm).

Orange World SHOP   Agra has the Taj Mahal. Sydney has its opera house. Orlando has a 60-foot-tall orange. Back when most of this land was citrus groves, Hwy. 192 was the main drag into Disney, and this fruity folly was erected to induce dads to pull the station wagon over and buy a bag of citrus in a red mesh bag. Fruit changes by the season: Fall is for navel and ambersweet oranges, January sees honeybell tangelos, and February through May sees a procession of oranges, honey tangerines, and Valencia oranges; Indian River grapefruit is available year-round. A timeshare hawker tries to pitch, and shelves teeter with the sort of roadside souvenirs that time forgot, including shellacked alligator heads and local jellies. There are lots of schlocky, fluorescent-lit barns selling junky souvenirs around here—but this is landmark schlock. Open daily 8am to 9:40pm. 5395 W. U.S. Hwy. 192, Kissimmee. www.orangeworld192.com.  800/531-3182 or 407/239-6031. Daily 8am–10pm.

Cruises from Port Canaveral

Only four family-targeted lines sail from Port Canaveral (www.portcanaveral.com), an hour east of Orlando, and focus on short Bahamas and general-interest Caribbean itineraries—the upscale lines and routes leave from South Florida instead. Parking costs $17 per day—and there’s nothing to do around the port.

As usual, you won’t find many discounts from Disney, although MouseSavers.com tells which departures are going cheap. Quotes from specialty agents are often hundreds lower than those the lines themselves offer, and prices of $100 a night or less can be had if you book through a specialist. Check Cruise Brothers (www.cruisebrothers.com;  800/827-7779), and Cruises Only (www.cruisesonly.com;  800/278-4737). Don’t quit before you consult a terrific site called Cruise Compete (www.cruisecompete.com), on which multiple cruise sellers jockey for your business by offering low bids.

Carnival Cruise Lines CRUISE   Considered a bargain line, it’s noisy and atwitter with neon, like the inside of a pinball machine. Think “Real Housewives of the Atlantic Ocean.” Carnival is popular with families and there are few pretensions. Each ship has a twisting water slide that has also become a line signature. Carnival sails the Liberty on short Bahamas runs. The Elation does 3-night Bahamas or 4-night Eastern Caribbeans, the Breeze goes to the Caribbean for a week, and the Sunshine generally does Eastern Caribbean runs that take a week or more.

www.carnival.com.  800/764-7419.

Disney Cruise Line CRUISE   These high-quality, casino-free ships include character appearances, fireworks at sea, and top-drawer entertainment. The hallmarks are the kids’ program and a restaurant that changes from black and white to full color as you dine. Two of its four ships are here in 2019. The Dream makes 3-, 4-, and 5-night trips to the Bahamas, the Fantasy sails 3-day Bahamas runs and weeklong Eastern and Western Caribbean trips. Disney packages trips with theme park stays and provides seamless transitions between the two; although because it’s a Disney package, it won’t give you the best deal on the Walt Disney World portion.

www.disneycruise.com.  800/393-2784.

Norwegian Cruise Lines CRUISE   The middle-priced Norwegian has the kitted-out Epic (2010) for a mix of weeklong Western and Eastern Caribbean cruises and 3- and 4-night Bahamas ones plus the occasional 11-night Western Caribbean one. The newly refurbished Sun does trips of less than a week that include the Bahamas or Key West with an overnight in Havana. On that ship, you get free beverages, including booze, the entire trip. September is a quiet month, but the schedule is otherwise busy.

www.ncl.com.  866/234-7350.

Royal Caribbean International CRUISE   It’s the line for young couples and teens, with active diversions such as rock-climbing walls. It hits the sweet spot between the gaudy tackiness of Carnival and the twee branding of a shopping mall. The principal ships here in 2019 are the Voyager-class Mariner of the Seas and Navigator of the Seas making 3-night and 4-night Bahamas jaunts, but the goliath Harmony of the Seas (2016), fitting between 5,500 and 6,600 passengers and kitted out with state-of-the-art amenities, arrives in May to sell weeklong routes to both the Eastern and Western Caribbean.

www.royalcaribbean.com.  866/562-7625.