Visiting in the summer, done all the theme parks and water parks previously, wanted to try sonething different?! That maybe tourists often miss? Any suggestions? Also are those slingshots on the 192 good value for money/worth it? Thanks. Matt
Visiting in the summer, done all the theme parks and water parks previously, wanted to try sonething different?! That maybe tourists often miss? Any suggestions? Also are those slingshots on the 192 good value for money/worth it? Thanks. Matt
Some of our youngsters went on last week. They got the video and I enjoyed watching it. It looked really good fun if you are 15, but over very quickly. I will ask them when they get up what they paid for it.
Airboat rides are great if you have not done that, day at the beach , new Salvador Dali Museum in Tampa. Go to Raymond James Stadium for a football game, New Amway Arena for an event, Canoeing at Wekiwa springs, Have you checked out the Florida Guide here on the forums? There are some great ideas. Florida is just so great with so much more to enjoy than the theme parks. Your visits are just starting once you have done the theme parks. If you play golf you can try one of the many courses and of course there is lots of fun with all the crazy golf places.
Angela
if you fancy a day or two out try st augustine on the east coast it's a throwback to the colonial spanish past and some great quiet beaches
I'd second that. St Augustine is lovely and quite a different place to visit than elsewhere in Florida.
Originally Posted by Albert the Frog
Why not try a two centre holiday with a week in Orlando and a week on the Gulf Coast with it's beautiful near empty beaches. With plenty of golf courses, opportunities for fishing, hiring boats, canoeing, visiting State Parks to see Florida wildlife, retail therapy. Whatever makes a perfect relaxing week for you, you can usually find it.
Maureen Green
I ditto Mo's suggestion of a two center holiday.
I am finding more and more of our guests are opting to do this, it seems to offer the best of both worlds.
The gulf coast offers unique stretches of coastline from Clearwater south.
The Cape Haze stretch of coastline, is old world Florida with lots of barrier islands with deserted beaches just waiting to be discovered.
Boat hire is readily available with lots of marinas to choose from and boats can be rented for a half day or whole day, explore the barrier islands which skirt this magical coastline.
Or if preferred there are charters and these offer sunset cruises as well as half day or whole days.
Some of the local beaches are Stump Pass a state park with just sea oats and sand often Manatees and Dolphins are playing or swimming by.
Middle beach is also great for dolphin spotting early morning as they head towards Gasparilla Sound for breakfast.
Englewood beach is the best one for sunsets as then a short amble across the road for dinner.
Then there is Gasparilla Island the haunt of the rich but with 3 stunning beaches to choose from and South Beach is the best and even has the South Beach bar and grill a great way to finish off the day.
You do pay a toll onto the island.
The peninsular is a bit like a thumb sticking out into the Gulf and is midway between Sarasota and Fort Myers, so Sanibel is an easy day trip, pack up the coolers, chairs/towels/umbrellas and away you go.
There are many golf courses offering challenging rounds of golf.
Try kayaking through the blue water trails, bike trails, deep sea fishing, freshwater fishing,
A plethora of restaurants to suit all pockets, from the humble hamburger to fresh fish and seafood.
And not forgetting the hunt for sharks teeth which should keep you occupied for hours.
Some ideas other than Disney are the State Parks - there are so many to choose from and we have personally been to Homossassa state park and Blue Springs. If you google Florida state parks, you can get a list of them and they let you know what activities are at the particular park - we went Kayaking in one and you can take your own picnic or have a BBQ. There is also Revolution off road, where you can rent an ATV or a Dune buggy - we had a fantastic time doing this with older teenagers and family last year. You might want to ask the ticket guys to look into this as it is very popular. Or there is Florida ecosafaris, where you can do a zip-line ride or cypress canopy cycle. I have just booked one of these for my daughters birthday, so will let you know what it is like and perhaps the ticket guys can look into selling this on the the site too. Disney and Universal are fantastic, but if you love Florida and have been back several times, it is good to know there is a lot more out there than 'just' the theme parks. I also agree with the airboat ride - wonderful day out especially when you have a mother gator out there protecting her young!
Jan and Tony
Orlando Villa Management
On of our favourites State Parks is at De Leon Springs. It has some lovely walks, a natural spring swimming pool and small museum. They also offer eco boat trips and we have seen sme wonderful wildlife on one of these trips and the captains are very knowledgeable. The best part is the restaurant where you can cook your own pancakes on a griddle in the middle of your table.
Never done an airboat actually! I'll look into all these ideas thank you, do you have to take your own bbqs to the state parks? or are they provided?
The state parks provide the BBQ grills but you need to take your own coals
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