Orlando, FL - What's there besides Disney?

[rene']

My family is planning a trip to Disneyworld next September. We are able to use my IL's time share, so I don't think we will be staying on the Disneyworld site. If that's the case, I want to find some other things to do. We will probably go to Disneyworld for 2 or 3 days, but would like to take in some other sites as well. Especially the beach, my DD's are dying to see the ocean.

Any ideas are appreciated!
Thanks!

[Mrs. M.]

I am not into Disney, but I really loved Sea World.

[juliemag]

Universal Studios is there too. Plus several good malls. Orlando really has everything.

You're not too close to the beach if you are going to Orlando, just in case you wondered. Orlando is in the middle of the state. I figure it's a 1.5-2 hour drive in either direction to get to a good beach. :)

[rene']

Thanks Mrs. M - we would definately like to see Sea World.

juliemag - Universal Studios would also be something we would be interested in. And thanks for the info on the beach. I didn't know how close it would be, but we will probably take a day to see it.

[bunny nose]

Most beaches are about an hour or so drive. But if you are making a day of it, it is worth it. You have Universal and Sea World as others have said. There is also a water park I believe. I can't think of the name of it, but it was on I Drive (International Drive) There is also a Medievel Times and many other dinner-show types of places. Also Old Town on 192E. It is a little shopping area that also has some rides and stuff for kids to do- if you are bringing kids. I love it there. Its an outdoor area, so don't leave it for a rainy day.

If I think of anything else I will come back.
Karen

[bookworm]

If you're heading to the beach, you could go to the Kennedy Space Center. It's near Cocoa beach.

If you enjoy shopping, there are a couple of "outlet malls" (plazas, really) in addition to the traditional malls.

[bellaprincess]

Hi ,
I live in Orlando and thought I might give my suggestions.

Like others said, I would definately visit the 2 Universal Parks and Seaworld. If you are into water parks, Wet n' Wild is on International Drive less than 5 minutes from Universal.

If you are into shopping ( or even for browsing around on a rainy day), there are lots of places to go! Here are my suggestions:

1. The Milenia Mall off I-4 on Conroy Rd. is just beautiful! The mall is only a couple of years old. There have quite a few upscale stores there( Neiman Marcus, Saks, Gucci, etc.), but they also the standard mall stores like Express, Gap, Ann Taylor, etc. and nice restaurants like P.F. Changs and Cheesecake Factory. http://www.mallatmillenia.com/html/

2. Orlando Premium Outlets are not to be missed! This is a nice outdoor shopping center. They are further west off I-4 in Lake Buena Vista. I have found great deals there at Banana Republic, the Nike outlet, and especially at the Coach outlet store.
http://www.premiumoutlets.com/outlets/outlet.asp?id=17

3. The Florida Mall on Sand Lake Road and Orange Blossom Trail is next on my list. This is a big mall with lots of great stores and our only Sephora in Orlando!
http://www.simon.com/mall/default.aspx?ID=139

4. Waterford Lake Town Center may be a little out of the way, but it is a very nice outdoor mall, with restaurants and theaters and it would give you a chance to see the other side of Orlando ( my side!). We also have an Ulta beauty store here!

5. Prime Designer Outlet Centre ( formerly Belz Designer Outlet Centre), Prime Factory Outlet World (formerly Belz Factory Outlet World ), and Festival Bay. This is where most people visit for shopping while in Orlando because they are on Int'l Drive very close to one another. I only like the Prime Designer Outlet Centre because of the Ann Taylor outlet, the Camille le Vie store, and the other Coach outlet store. Festival Bay is ok, their movie theaters are nice and there is a Cold Store Creamery inside! I don't really care for the Prime Factory Outlet World.

As for the beaches, there are Daytona, New Symrna or Cocoa Beach on the Atlantic side about an 1 to 1.5 hour away. I personally prefer the powder white sand beaches and clear water on the Gulf Side so I recommend Clearwater or St. Petersburg which are 1.5 to 2 hours away .

Ok, I hope that info helps! If you need any restaurant reqs or have any other questions, please ask! :)

[rene']

bunny nose Thanks for the info! The medieval times place sounds like fun.

bookworm I had thought about the Space Center. I have two daughters, but I think they and my DH would still be interested in seeing that. Thanks!

bellaprincess I will definately be hitting you up for more info later. The powder white sandy beaches sound more like my style, too!

Thank so much!

[rene']

O.K., does anyone have any inside info on Discovery Cove? This is going to be the one major splurge that I want to do because my daughter's LOVE dolphins. It looks like the only packages they have are the non-dolphin swim, the all-inclusive package and the sleepover package. Has anyone done any of these packages and how was it?

[meagle]

O.K., does anyone have any inside info on Discovery Cove? This is going to be the one major splurge that I want to do because my daughter's LOVE dolphins. It looks like the only packages they have are the non-dolphin swim, the all-inclusive package and the sleepover package. Has anyone done any of these packages and how was it?

I was going to pop in and suggest Discovery Cove. DH and I visited there in November 2004 and did the 'non-dolphin swim' package and we loved it. Well, I liked it but DH was in heaven as he loves fish and birds. We were considering the dolphin swim/all-inclusive package but wanted to check it out to make sure it wasn't "too hokey" - we will probably do it next time we are down there, though, because it looked cool. The park is beautiful - be sure to book early because they only let 1,000 people in per day and the dolphin swims are a bit more likely to sell out ahead of time. Even though it's a splurge, it's well worth it because 1) you get "free" lunch (and it's very yummy), 2) the bathrooms are nice for a park, 3) you get admission to Busch Gardens or Sea World for each person who went to Discovery Cove for the 7 days after your visit. Unfortunately, DH and I did DC on our last day in Orlando, but we were able to spend a couple hours at Sea World that day before it closed. Also, you get a photo of your party and use of snorkeling gear for the day. I'm not really into snorkeling, but I enjoyed the "lazy river" immensely. Basically, the park is divided into three major areas - the aviary, the lazy river, and the salt water snorkeling area. There is also a sting ray pool. HTH - let me know if you have any other questions!

[rene']

meagle Oh my gosh, thank you! That is definately going to be a "splurge" for us because I think our DD's will absolutely love it. We are going to do the all-inclusive package and get the tickets for Sea World. I think we are going to wrap their tickets up with a bow and tell them it's their Christmas present from us. We want to surprise them.

Thanks so much for the info. It's definately going to be a "do" for us!

[Wrighty26]

I pretty much could have written exactly what Bellaprincess wrote :)

If you ARE going to check out the East coast beaches-- New Smyrna Beach and Ponce Inlet are definitely your best bets. As for the west coast-- any beach south of Tampa is gorgeous!

If you are going to venture towards the west coast-- remember that Tampa has Bush Gardens, which is also fun :)

It sounds like you have plenty of time to plan-- who knows, something new could pop up between now and next September!!

[rene']

*bump*

meagle ~ Do you know how far in advance I need to get the Discovery Cove tickets?

bellaprincess ~ I'll take that restaurant info now. We will have our two daughter's with us (8 & 11), so nothing romantic needed.:p

Wrighty26 ~ What is there at Busch Gardens? I've heard of it, but really have no idea of what all is there.

TIA!

[bellaprincess]

Hi there,
Ok, here are some ideas below.
HTH!
:)

I think Bahama Breeze is really good and you could find things on the menu for the girls to eat. I personally love their west indies patties appetizer, the jamaican grilled chicken with mashed sweet potatoes and black beans, and the chocolate tres leches cake! There is one right by the Orlando Premium Outlets in Lake Buena Vista and another one on International Drive.
http://www.bahamabreeze.com/menus/

If you would like to eat seafood, I recommend Dixie Crossroads. The original location is in Titusville, but they opened a location in Orlando on International Drive.
http://www.dixiecrossroads.com/orlando/index.html


Universal's Citywalk has some fun dining choices also such as Jimmy Buffett's Margaritavilla and the Hard Rock Cafe. I think the burgers and sandwiches are good at HRC and the portions are pretty big.
I believe the parking is $7 during the day and free after 6pm. http://www.usf.com

Downtown Disney has the Rainforest Cafe and Planet Hollywood. The parking is free there all day. I think kids would enjoy the Rainforest Cafe since the inside is supposed to look like an inside of a rain forest with figures of animals, but I really don't care for it that much.

The Milenia Mall has a Cheesecake Factory, a PF Chang's, and a California Pizza Kitchen among other restaurants. The portions are huge at Cheesecake Factory, enough for 2 people to share 1 sandwich or entree. They have very good sandwiches and the cheesecakes are so delicious!

I also like PF Changs. I always order the steamed peking dumplings, combination fried rice and a slice of their great wall of chocolate cake ( it is more like a huge chunk of cake!). You can find the menus to those 2 restaurants here:
http://www.mallatmillenia.com/html/default.asp?id=1&category=restaurants&store=275

If you want a splurge, I recommend Texas de Brazil on International Drive. It is pretty pricey there, but it is all you can eat and the food is awesome! It is a Brazilian style steakhouse.
I took my boyfriend there for his b-day in February and since I had signed up on their website, I had been sent a buy 1/ get 1 dinner coupon. If you are going in Sept. , I would suggest signing up and putting an early Sept. date as your b-day so they will send you a coupon good during your visit. :)
They give you a "stop/go" pass to put on your table so the waiters will know to stop as they walk around with skewers of different types of grilled meats. They have a buffet of sides that include salads, shrimp, cheeses, breads, soups, rice, potatoes, yuca( a starchy vegetable), black beans, and baked banana with cinammon.
http://www.fishbowl.com/clt/tdb/lp/join/join.asp

If you want good old North Florida style barbeque, I would suggest eating at a Sonny's.The prices are so reasonable there and they always have all you can eat specials or you can even make whatever you order all you can eat for a few dollars more.
Their fried okra and baby back ribs are awesome. I also like the boneless breast of chicken. Their entrees come with a side of baked beans or coleslaw(get the beans, so good!), baked or sweet potato or fries, and 2 slices of garlic bread. They have barbeque sauces on the tables for your food and my favorite is the "sweet" sauce. There is one out by me in East Orlando near UCF, but I am sure you could locate one closer to where you are staying on their website.
http://www.sonnysbbq.com/pages/menu.php

I also really like Bupa De Beppo. Their portions are family style and HUGE! Everything is really delicious there, but my favorite is the spaghetti and meatballs. The meatballs are wonderful and the size of a baseball! There is a Buca De Beppo in the Florida Mall near the Nordstroms. http://www.bucadibeppo.com/fd_index.asp

[rene']

Thank you bella!

[kimbyj]

My cousin is getting married this weekend. A few of us out of towners have decided to take her out for a mini-bachelorette party on friday night (wedding on Sunday). Since I don't know ANY of her friends down there and she only moved there a short time ago, I was wondering if anyone here could suggest places to go.

I don't think she is into the stripper/male review thing (although if you know of it please list it just in case - also if you know a place my DH can take her Future DH). I was thinking that we could go out to a fun place to dance and have some drinks. Nothing to cheesy, nothing to wild and nothing too young - we are all over 30 (most of us are over 35...). Just fun dance music. Any ideas? Thanks!

[Wrighty26]

A few places I have been to that are fun-especially for a bachelorette party!:

These are all in Downtown Orlando:

Antigua - Saturday night is "Ladies 80s"... It's free drinks til 1 (I think) and it's all 80's music.

Latitudes/Big Bellies/Chillers - Latitudes is bar on top of a roof-- they have drink specials too (I think it's 2 for 1 from 11-1 or something). Latitudes is my favorite place to go, I think because it's outside and they play a good variety of music. Big Bellies is the bar downstairs from Latitudes and it's more of a beer/pool bar. Chillers is the club-- and it has frozen drinks like at Fat Tuesdays. Usually, if you go early enough (before 10) you can get free cover for all 3 bars (I'm not sure if they do this every weekend or not).

Wall Street - This is actually where I ended up during my bachelorette party. There are several bars-- and you pay one cover. They usually have a live band that plays outside between the bars. Some of the bars include Wall Street Cantina, One-Eyed Jacks, Tiki Bar, Monkey Bar, and Singapore Slings (the "dance" club). The only thing I don't really like about Wall Street is that they usually don't have many drink specials (unless it's happy hour). When I would go out with my friends, we would usually hit Latitudes first and then go to Wall Street.

Bar Orlando - Some people love it, some people hate it, but I always have a good time when I go to Bar-- though I admit I haven't been in a while (a couple of years)! We ended up at Bar Atlanta for a friend's bachelorette party and had a blast :)

Some other good places that aren't downtown:

Howl at the Moon - http://www.howlatthemoon.com/orlando_tonight.html They used to have one downtown, but they closed it :( They did open a new one, but it's off of I-drive (International Drive). It's a piano bar-- I've never had a bad time at a piano bar!

City Walk @ Universal Studios - I find it a little pricey-- but if you are over by Universal Studios it's worth a trip. They have Pat O'Brians, Margaritaville, Bob Marley's, and a dance club called "The Groove."

There are a ton more places... I'll try to come by and post a few more later today!

Oh and rene', I'll post some info on Busch Gardens too!

[bellaprincess]

Kimbyj: What kind of music do you like? Hip hop, techno/house, top40...?
I think Michelle had some great suggestions for fun bars. I would add Sky60 on Orange Ave.( a rooftop lounge with a South Beach type feel and house music) and also Rythym& Flow downtown ( an upscale lounge) to the bar list.
As for clubs if you want to dance, here a few downtown I would suggest:
Club Paris ( dance/top 40/some hip hop), Tabu, Zinc Bar. Most of the clubs in Orlando won't let you in sneakers or shorts, but some jeans, a cute/sexy top, and heels works!

I also really really like the Blue Martini at the Mall of Milenia on a Saturday night. I think it stays open till 2 am and they have live music and a dj sometimes and it is very upscale. If you go there, I would dress up a bit more than the other places downtown.

As for male strip clubs, I don't know of any! For the guys, there are a couple: Rachels, The Diamond Club, The Doll House .... but since I have never been to any of these I don't know if they are "good," but if there are girls dancing sexy I sure the guys would like it!

[Darlene&Scott]

Bar Orlando is closed.:o

Howl at the moon is open on I Drive though!:D

Man-ass can be found in Clearwater/Tampa area LOL;)

[Wrighty26]

Man-ass can be found in Clearwater/Tampa area LOL;)

LMAO!!

[bellabonga]

I second the Bahama Breeze! Love it there and my DD loves it there too because of the live music and the opportunity to dance. :D

Universal Boardwalk and especially Jimmy Buffet´s Margaritaville is a must too.

I really like Winter Park since it´s so quiet and European. There is a small park where dozens of squirrels run around - too cute! And you can take a boat tour in Winter Park on a lake which I always wanted to do but never came around to.

Florida Mall is nice for shopping, Millenia Mall is more for looking (at least if you are on a budget). We also go to the Premium Outlets and Belz Outlets every time we are in Orlando.

If you go to Tampa, you could visit Tampa Zoo. We loved it and I think it won a prize as the best zoo in the USA 2004(?).

Apart from that there are lots of things to do with children around International Drive (Mini Golf, water parks etc) and in Kissimmee.

[Amanda77]

I second the Bahama Breeze! Love it there and my DD loves it there too because of the live music and the opportunity to dance. :D

Universal Boardwalk and especially Jimmy Buffet´s Margaritaville is a must too.

I really like Winter Park since it´s so quiet and European. There is a small park where dozens of squirrels run around - too cute! And you can take a boat tour in Winter Park on a lake which I always wanted to do but never came around to.

Florida Mall is nice for shopping, Millenia Mall is more for looking (at least if you are on a budget). We also go to the Premium Outlets and Belz Outlets every time we are in Orlando.

If you go to Tampa, you could visit Tampa Zoo. We loved it and I think it won a prize as the best zoo in the USA 2004(?).

Apart from that there are lots of things to do with children around International Drive (Mini Golf, water parks etc) and in Kissimmee.


I live in Winter Park, so I obviously agree with Bellabonga. :D The park is called Central Park and is along Park Ave. There are a lot of boutiques and restaurants, and a few national chain stores like Gap and Williams Sonoma. It is a lovely area with a lot of neat old beautiful homes. There are a few museums, a scenic boat tour, Rollins college (voted one of the top 10 most beautiful campuses in the country).

We just went to the Tampa Zoo (Lowry Park) and it is a fantastic zoo! So much better than the Central Florida Zoo. There is also an aquarium there which is great, the Museum of Science and Industry which has some cool exhibits and Busch Gardens. Busch Gardens has several roller coasters, a few water rides, a big kids play area and lots of animals. It has an African Theme, so there are lots of tigers, giraffes, elephants, monkeys and such. It is a great place with a ton of stuff to do.


SeaWorld is great. DS is 2 and loves it! Also usually less crowded than the Disney Parks.

Cocoa Beach is less than an hour away and is nice. Kennedy Space Center is there as well and has some neat things to do.

There are also several natural springs and rivers which are fun for swimming and canoeing.

[ruledbymercury]

I also live in the Orlando area. Since I didn't see it posted yet, I just had to suggest Cafe Tu Tu Tango on International Drive. It's my favorite resturant ever!!! It's decorated like an artists loft and they have artists around the restaurant actually painting and sculpting while you eat! The walls are covered with their art and it's all for sale. Every so often they have stilt walkers, flamenco dancers, belly dancers, and magicians perform around the restaurant. These little performances are quite random, so you never know what you're going to see when you're there. They always have a tarot reader too, who will read your tarot for free (just put a buck or two in her tip jar). The food is served tapas style. Basically you order lots of small plates of food and everybody shares. Everything is delicious! Since the place is loud and festive, and there's so much going on, it's great for kids. You'll all have a great time. :)

[LyLMyssChaos]

People have already posted so many great ideas. Some other suggestions that we loved while in Orlando:
Ripley's Believe It or Not
Wonderworks (http://www.wonderworksonline.com/): It looks like an upside down mansion and was a ton of fun, there are a bunch of interactive things to do there; "landing a space shuttle," "feeling an earthquake," a bubble lab, a bunch of virtual reality stuff, etc.
Race Rock Restaurant (http://www.racerock.com/): It's an all motorsports themed restaurant (nascar, monster trucks, motorcylces, etc.) and my DH LOVED it!!
Gatorland (http://www.gatorland.com/): You can hold alligators, feed alligators, see crocodiles, see all types of exotic animals, and they have a petting zoo. We actually spent half a day there when it was just DH and I.