What else is there to do in Orlando besides Disney and Universal?

[Feistygirl916]

Anyone have any ideas? 2 adults and 2 kids (age 5 and 6)

 

[SGMCO]

What About SeaWorld?
SeaWorld also has a new water park--Aquatica.

If you have never been to WDW--it is much larger
than Disneyland and is packed with things to do compared
to DL.
With 4 different Parks, all having unique shows and rides.
we always leave not covering all things there.

 

[Detailor]

Anyone have any ideas? 2 adults and 2 kids (age 5 and 6)

There are really a lot of things to do and see in the area. But the question for you is - what kind of things does your family like to do?

There are several websites that are devoted to promoting Orlando area tourism. Try http://www.orlandoinfo.com/family/ - part of the Orange County Convention Center and Visitor Bureau's site. The Kissimmee Chamber of Commerce also has a visitors' site... http://www.kissimmeechamber.com/visitor-center.asp. There are a lot of minor (compared with Disney, Universal and SeaWorld) attractions in the area, plenty of mini-golf opportunities, gardens, the Lake Eola city park in Orlando.

You might consider going outside of the immediate Orlando/Lake Buena Vista/Kissimmee are, too.

Visiting the beach - Cocoa Beach is the closest on the Atlantic side and there are a lot of beaches on the Gulf side (Clearwater, St. Petersburg, etc.).

A trip to Tampa - Busch Gardens, the zoo, the science museum, etc.

Visit a state park. We like Blue Springs State Park in Orange City, north of Orlando via I-4, where manatees are in residence when the water in the St. John River gets colder (roughly early November through March).

If you're lucky enough to be there when a shuttle is being launched from the Kennedy Space Center, driving over to the Merritt Island area to watch might be fun. And there's a national wildlife refuge nearby in Titusville. This area is close to Cocoa Beach.

Go up to Winter Park, just north of Orlando, and take the Scenic Boat Tour (www.scenicboattours.com) for a narrated tour of the area lakes and the canals that connect them. This is an old Florida experience that's world's apart from a theme park visit.

Visit the Celebration community - an community development original conceived of and developed by Disney but now an incorporated town that's independent of Disney.

Depending on the weather, a waterpark visit can be a lot of fun. There are two Disney waterparks, Wet 'n Wild on International Drive, and the new Aquatica by SeaWorld.

I hope that you find some interesting things to do!

Dick Taylor

 

[scammermom]

Gotta go to Gatorland! The kids will love it!
It's a nice half day attraction. Check out the website for discount coupons.

 

[kilee]

Aside from the other theme parks and water parks I was going to suggest Gatorland too. My son was 9 when he went and he loved it.

Also, there are a lot of dinner shows: Medevial Times and the Pirate Dinner show to name some.

We've rented jet ski's on Lake Buena Vista when we were there and had a blast. We've also done a helicopter ride. From which we could see Epcot and DTD.

There are lot's of mini golf, and go-kart places in the area. Along w/ the quirky museums like Ripley's and Wonderworks. Don't forget there are traditional museums too.

There is also a lot of outlet shopping to be done. Depending on the time of year you're going there is also the Ice show at Gaylord Palms that is supposed to be just beautiful.

Lastly, you could leave the immediate Orlando area for a day trip. You could go to the Kennedy Space Center. Also to Daytona to do the Daytona USA. My husband and son had a blast w/ all the interactive games there. Also on the Daytona Beach itself you could rent ATV's to ride on the beach. You could also visit the beach on either the Atlantic ocean side or over to the gulf.

I'd check out sites mentioned above. I look regularly at the www.goorlandocard.com site.

There is also the airboat rides

 

[Purseval]

When my kids were young they loved the dinner theatres and going on go-kart rides.