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Day trips out of Orlando

Hi all,
Husband and I (him 60, me 59) are going to Orlando the last week of February. We're staying at Disney and doing some Disney and Universal days but we'll have 2 days for non theme park things. We'll have a car. We like museums, general touristy stuff, shopping, perhaps an air boat ride. Willing to drive perhaps 1.5-2 hrs one way. We've already been to the Kennedy Space Center multiple times and to Cocoa Beach so we're not interested in those.

Any suggestions for how to fill those days? Thanks!

Posted by
27111 posts

Decades ago I made a business trip to Florida and had a little free time, which I spent on a day-trip to Winter Park. The Morse Gallery of American Art was a highlight, because it has some Tiffany glass. I also remember taking a ride on a small boat through the canals and on the lake(s). I don't remember any details, but I see that WP is very close to Orlando.

Posted by
786 posts

If you haven't done an airboat ride before, I highly recommend it. I'd always wanted to try it and last year we finally did it. We went with Boggy Creek Airboat Rides and it was great, fast and loud fun. They also have an educational Native American village at the site, which is pretty interesting.

Posted by
7049 posts

Winter Park is very close to Orlando and is a delightful place to walk and visit. It's very walkable and has nice museums including the Charles Hosmer Morse Museum of American Art (has Tiffany glass art) and the Albin Polasek Museum & Sculpture Gardens (beautiful place), as well as good restaurants and shops. Taking a boat ride on the Lake Osceola was also one of favorite activities. The town is a real treasure, definitely check it out.

Also if you like birds, I would highly recommend stopping at the Audubon Birds of Prey Center. Fascinating animals. I was able to see them up close at feeding time and it was a great experience.
http://fl.audubon.org/chapters-centers/audubon-center-birds-prey

Posted by
15003 posts

Gainesville. Two hours north. Home of the University of Florida. Museums, gardens, and you could walk by the football stadium to reminisce about the days when they actually had a team that won games.

Posted by
3754 posts

I recommend St. Augustine. Take I-4 northeast out of Orlando, when you merge with I-95, go north. Old Town St. Augustine has an old Spanish fort you can tour, Castillo de San Marcos (built 1672). It is on the waterfront overlooking the intercoastal waterway.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Castillo_de_San_Marcos
There are numerous old Spanish buildings from this time period which you can walk around and see. There is a trolley that takes you on a tour around Old Town if you want.
The Lightner Museum houses a collection of paintings, sculpture and porcelains.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/St._Augustine,_Florida
Drive across the bridge and you are near the St. Augustine Lighthouse which you can go up in to the top, for a view of the surrounding beach and inlet.
There are lots of great restaurants in the area, both at the beach, and on the mainland in Old Town.
We used to have a condo in the Cocoa Beach area and would drive up to meet friends from Ponte Vedra at St. Augustine for lunch or dinner. If you want restaurant suggestions, I will send them to you.

Posted by
7049 posts

St. Augustine is great, it's a bit further out from Orlando but definitely worth visiting. Without a doubt, I would pick Winter Park and St. Augustine to fill your two free days.

Posted by
13937 posts

You didn't mention whether you enjoy driving back roads but I'll just throw this out. You might consider the drive up to the Ocala National Forest and loop around by Alexander Springs or not quite as far north and go to Wekiva Springs. The natural springs in FL are amazing.

There is also Marjorie Kinnan Rawlings home at Cross Creek if you're a fan of her literature. Check on open times if you go. Back in the day it wasn't a State Park (which I see it is now) and the open days were weird.

Another thought on the west coast is Tarpon Springs? I will tell you that it has been nearly 20 years since I lived in FL and visited Tarpon but I used to go up there to eat a couple of times a year. Not sure what the current situation is though...

Looks like the Plant City Strawberry Festival doesn't start until March 1 so you'll miss that but Parkesdale Farms Market is open and they have delicious strawberry shortcake.

http://www.parkesdale.com/

Are you a fan of Frank Lloyd Wright? There is some Wright architecture on the Florida Southern College campus in Lakeland.

http://www.flsouthern.edu/visitors/fllw-visitors.aspx

(And yes to Frank, Go Gators...those were the days my friend...I was at the game when John Reaves hurled that pass to Carlos Alvarez in 1969...)