Orlando, Florida - Attractions

Major Attractions

Orlando is one of the biggest tourist destinations because of the nearby theme parks and resorts. Close to International Drive is Universal Orlando Resort, which includes two theme parks, three hotels and a large shopping district. SeaWorld Orlando is a marine theme park featuring Kraken, the biggest rollercoaster in the Orlando area, as well as Believe, the all-new Shamu adventure. About 40 minutes outside of Orlando is the well-known Walt Disney World. Comprised of four theme parks, two water parks, dozens of hotels, three shopping and dining districts, eight golf courses and much more, it is the largest privately managed tourist destination on the planet. Not far from Disney World lies the Alligator Capital of the World: Gatorland. Also, don't forget about water park Wet 'N Wild, located right on International Drive.

• Disney World — The world famous attraction is actually located 35 miles south of Orlando, in a city called Lake Buena Vista.
• Universal Orlando Resort, International Drive, +1 407-363-8000, [1]. 9AM-(closing times vary from 6PM-10PM). Discounts are given for purchasing tickets online.
• SeaWorld Orlando, SeaWorld Drive, +1 407-351-3600, 1-800-327-2424, [2]. 9AM-(closing times vary from 6PM-10PM).
• Aquatica — A new water park by Sea World.
• Holy Land.
• Gatorland, 14501 South Orange Blossom Trail, +1 407-855-5496, 1-800-393-JAWS, [3]. 9AM-5PM.
• Wet 'N Wild, 6200 International Drive, +1 407-351-1800, 1-800-992-WILD, [4]. Hours vary, check online or call for hours while you are planning on visiting.
• Discovery Cove, 6000 Discovery Cove Way (just off Central Florida Parkway, next door to SeaWorld), +1 407-370-1280, [5]. Everyday 9AM-5:30PM (open until 9PM on selected evenings). Younger sister park to SeaWorld lets you get even closer to the sea life allowing you to swim with fish, stingrays and the park's main attraction, Bottlenose dolphins. This unique Orlando attraction is sold out most days, despite its high admission price, partly due to the fact that admission is limited to 1000 guest per day but admission does include all your equipment, food, drink and 30 minutes interaction with the dolphins in the water. $259-279 ($159-179 for non-dolphin package).
• Cocoa Beach Sportfishing Charters, 800 Scallop Dr, 1-321-848-2662, [6]. Orlando's closest deep sea fishing charters leaving from Cocoa Beach, Port Canaveral and only 45 Minutes East of Orlando. Catch dolphin, wahoo, sailfish, grouper and many others. Children Welcome.

Minor Attractions

• Mary, Queen of the Universe Shrine, 8300 Vineland Avenue, +1 407-239-6600, [7]. This extravagant Catholic church has become a tourist attraction in itself, thanks in part to the millions of Catholics from around the world who visit it and the rest of Orlando every year. Note: It is not a parish, therefore it cannot perform weddings, funerals, or baptisms.

• Rock Springs Run Kelly Park, 400 East Kelly Park Road, Apopka, [8]. Beautiful natural springs with lazy river that you can tube down, crystal clear water.

Museums

• Cornell Fine Arts Museum, Rollins College. Features items from Cornell's renowned permanent collection. Admission is free.
• International Trolley and Train Museum — Features 14 model railroad trains with sound and lighting traveling through an indoor garden with 12 foot (4 m) high mountains, waterfalls, and more than 30 trestles and tunnels. Also on display are toy trains from the 1920s to the present. Visitors can catch a ride in a California Victorian-style half open/half closed trolley or the 5/8-scale replica of an 1880 locomotive (a Mason Bogey) with its passenger cars.
• The Holy Land Experience — A biblical theme park and museum complex.
• The Orange County Regional History Center — Features exhibits and artifacts from the earliest days of the region to the modern day. Includes information on everything from the time of the Seminole Indians to the founding of the city to the Civil Rights era to the Disney period to today.
• The Orlando Museum of Art — Ongoing exhibitions of American portraits and landscapes, American impressionist works, and art of the ancient Americas.
• The Orlando Science Center — A 207,000 square foot (19,000 m²) hands-on learning center with hundreds of interactive exhibits for visitors of all ages. Images surround visitors on the giant screen of the Dr. Phillips CineDome. Other attractions include the Body Zone, teaching health and fitness, as well as an observatory. The center has the largest refracting telescope in Florida.
• Ripley's Believe It or Not! Orlando Odditorium, 8201 International Drive, +1 407 363-4418, [9]. Located in a building artfully constructed to appear as if it were collapsing to one side. Visitors can explore bizarre artifacts, strange collections, weird art/hobbies (for example, check out the 3/4-scale model of a 1907 Rolls Royce Silver Ghost automobile made entirely of matchsticks and glue), and interactive exhibits in sixteen odd galleries. Seriously schlocky, yet fun.

Gardens & Parks

• Arboretum of the University of Central Florida — An arboretum and botanical garden covering 80 acres (32 hectares), it contains more than 600 species of plants, including more than 100 bromeliads, in cultivated gardens. Its cultivated areas currently include a Conservatory Compound, a Bromeliad Sanctuary, Cycad Garden, Fern Garden, Palm Collection, Rose Garden, Swamp Habitat, and Wetland Plants Display.
• Harry P. Leu Gardens, 1920 N Forest Ave, +1 407-246-2620, [10]. Daily 9AM-5PM except Christmas Day. Beautiful landscaped gardens and lakes set in nearly 50 acres of land, featuring flora gathered from around the globe since 1936 including the largest rose garden in Florida and America's largest Camellia collection outside of California. Leu House, Harry P. Leu's former home set within the grounds and dating back to the 1880's, has tours every 30 minutes around its museum illustrating Florida living at the turn of the 20th century (closed during July). You can get married in various places in the gardens and there are special events held throughout the year. $5 (free every Monday 9AM-noon).
• World of Orchids — Featuring thousands of blooms in an enclosed tropical rain forest. World of Orchids is a working greenhouse shipping orchids and other plants nationwide. A greenhouse covers nearly an acre (4,000 m²), and in this controlled climate of warm, humid air some 1,000 orchids are displayed in a natural jungle setting, with streams, waterfalls, and squawking parrots. World of Orchids also has a 1,000 foot (300 m) long boardwalk meandering off into nearby wetlands. Admission is free.