Orlando, FL - what's to do besides the Disney stuff?

[zenwhipper]

Folks- I'm heading to Orlando with the family for about a week. Their plan is Disney stuff 24-7. This is fine - but I need some other alternatives for fun and entertainment. Anybody have a list of must sees/must dos? How about good food, great bars? Any places to avoid? Is going to Daytona worth while? I have a car and lots of time. Any beach recommendations?

Comments are greatly appreciated! Thanks!

Scott

 

[beemerdons]

zenwhipper: Please help out your old Chandler - Arizona buddy, BeemerDonS! My Son Seth (13) is on his quarter break from sixth grade of Galveston Elementary School from Saturday, March 13 through Monday, March 29. I want to take him to Orlando Disney World for a week. If you don't mind sharing the info, any advice would be appreciated by Stanley Boys.

If it's more convenient to send me e-mails, please use [email protected] The Disney World Website was Total Overload!

 

[Fred W]

Golf?

 

[Patriot]

My family and I chose to do Orlando without Disney other than I drove a stock car at the Disney race track with the "Richard Petty" experience. I did that to qualify to go to Daytona and drive the high banks there.

Definitely go to Sea World. When you get there, go to the Shamu show and say hi to him for us.

We also did the expensive, but worth it if you can afford it, Discovery Cove and swam with a dolphin. Cyprus Gardens is nearby with great water skiing shows during the summer.

We did two dinner shows: Medeival something with horse and jousting, and Arabian nights horse show.

We did Gator World and there's a WWII and other airplanes museum. There's Ripley museum and other attractions like that. Kissemee is nice and we spent a day at the public swimming pool center there.

There's a couple of Water Parks and you can make day trips to Cape Kennedy, Daytona, and Tampa. Tampa, I saw the Holocaust Museum and the wonderful Busch Gardens.

I went to Barnes n Noble or Borders and got a book titled "Orlando without Disney" and it was a great help.

https://www.uptake.com/blog/family-things-t...orida_3317.html

Of the above, we did 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 9, 10 and loved every minute.

This was my wife, and my 2 daughters at the time 8 and 10.

Hope this helps.

 

[bob-st]

Mons Venus (nude lap dancing strip club) in Tampa?

 

[zenwhipper]

Mons Venus (nude lap dancing strip club) in Tampa?

ahh shucks... :blushing:

 

[BikerGeek99]

Emeril's in Orlando is always a good choice for food.

If you go to Daytona and are a race fan, take the track tour.

Then go up to Destination Daytona. It's like a mini-community exclusively for motorcyeles. Yes, mostly Harley, but they have another dealership that sells Ducati and Triumph on site as well.

If you like crab legs, go to the Charlie Horse - clicky.. It's on A1A in Ormond Beach. Mmm...

If you have time, go down to Kennedy Space Center. Give yourself plenty of time to do the tour - when the missus and I were there in March, we only had a couple hours set aside and it wasn't nearly enough time.

There's the Broken Egg in Sarasota - say hi to **** Vitale for me.

 

[Crash Cash]

If you do Kennedy Space Center, do the visitor's center as well as the astronaut hall of fame. They're very different attractions. Don't forget the visitor's center has the bus ride to see an actual Saturn V close up. You don't know how huge they are until you're 20ft from one.

The airplane museums are Fantasy of Flight, and the Ti-Co Warbirds museum.

Note that some of the stuff people mention are actually in Titusville/Cape Kennedy (90 miles) and Tampa (120 miles) and some distance away, and Disney is a good drive. There's not much actually *in* Orlando.

There's a large Salvador Dali museum in Tampa, if you're into that.

Going to Daytona is a waste of time, unless you want to hit Corbin seats or something like that, or spend time on the beach.

Oh and Mons Venus is famous because they allow you to touch... not that, erm, I know personally. Some friends go there a lot. Yeah.

 

[HaulinAshe]

Thee Doll House of Orlando FL

Perfume is so strong the T-shirt still smells.

 

[Fred W]

Oh c'mon boys... They don't even strip all the way in FL.

If'n you're gonna take the kiddies out for some nice, exotic entertainment, ya gotta go up to Montreal or down to Tijuana or sumpthin...

(just don't look anywhere above the shoulders)

 

[TCMike]

Cyprus Gardens is nearby with great water skiing shows during the summer.

FYI, don't go to Cypress Gardens. They shut the doors permanently earlier this year.

We have always run over to the space center area as a side trip. Hang out at the beach by Ron-Jon's, tour the space center, or there's a nature tour of the swamps around the center that I've heard good things about, but haven't done yet.

 

[SCWatts]

Daytona's worth it just to experience driving on the beach (daytime only now).

And I very highly recommend making over to Cape Canaveral for a tour - one of the best and most unknown "tourist" destinations. Very well worth your time! You'll get to see the "original" mission control building, seemingly a stone's throw from the launch pad used for our first manned (Alan Shepherd) space flight.

 

[wfooshee]

Oh c'mon boys... They don't even strip all the way in FL.
If'n you're gonna take the kiddies out for some nice, exotic entertainment, ya gotta go up to Montreal or down to Tijuana or sumpthin...

(just don't look anywhere above the shoulders)

BZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZTTTT!!! Thanks for playing!!!!!!

Not only is Mons Venus fully nude, the girls walk around nude while "soliciting" lap dances.

Or so I've heard.

The non-nude law in Florida is no alcohol sales with nudity. Any nudity ordinances are by locality.

On the I-75 on the way down, the there's a place south of Gainesville, can't miss it with all the billboards 100 miles in both directions, where you can eyeball some UF college girls who found a part-time job near school. Again, so I've heard.

I don't have any first-hand knowledge of any of this!!!!!!!

As for Orlando without Disney, The Kissimee area is crammed with stuff to do, and just about any of the dinner shows are great. I've seen Arabian Nights myself and enjoyed it immensely.

NASA is a short and very worthwhile trip.

Sea World was a monumental disappointment last time I was there, except for the Shamu show, and at those prices I'm never going back as long as I live. The other marine mammal show, which used to be a dolphin show, has been redone into some little girl's dream sequence with high divers, gay costumes, parrots flying around, and other stuff I gouged my eyes out to avoid. It's called "Believe" and is a complete and total waste of time, energy, and resources. There is nothing else at Sea World worth doing. Nothing. Well, there's a big aquarium with a glass tunnel you can walk through, and there's a stingray petting area for the kids. Also, active military get in free, with up to 3 dependants!

Their sister park in Tampa, Busch Gardens, is a must-see, but it's a serious trip from Orlando. No better place in the southeast for a roller-coaster fanatic, and the animal park is second to none. If you want Busch Gardens, count on 90 minutes drive each way from Orlando/Kissimee area. The military free applies here, too.

 

[beemerdons]

"..little girls dream sequence with high divers, gay costumes, parrots flying aroun.." I just bet RadioHowie has a season pass!

 

[Fred W]

Oh c'mon boys... They don't even strip all the way in FL.
If'n you're gonna take the kiddies out for some nice, exotic entertainment, ya gotta go up to Montreal or down to Tijuana or sumpthin...

(just don't look anywhere above the shoulders)

BZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZTTTT!!! Thanks for playing!!!!!!

Not only is Mons Venus fully nude, the girls walk around nude while "soliciting" lap dances.

Or so I've heard.

The non-nude law in Florida is no alcohol sales with nudity. Any nudity ordinances are by locality.

Ah yes. I forgot about that little detail. What a weird rule. :blink:

I guess the follow-up question is: What kind of a creepy sex addict goes to a place to watch women strip without at least having the pretense of being there to drink?

 

[Bustanut joker]

"..little girls dream sequence with high divers, gay costumes, parrots flying aroun.." I just bet RadioHowie has a season pass!

Season pass?!! Are you serious?

Howie cleans the private dancer areas for minimum wage an tips.. I actually think he'd do it for free the perv...

:jester:

 

[fljab]

I work at Kennedy Space Center (Note: the name "Cape Kennedy" hasn't been used in many years). You just missed the latest shuttle launch STS-129. Beautiful shot and on time for once! When are you coming? Next shuttle launch is Feb 4 IIRC; there are other unmanned shots going off alot of the time, just depends on your schedule.

Orlando theme parks? Haven't actually been inside the parks for ~15 yrs. The wife wants to go from time to time but the only time I tell her I'll go is superbowl sunday. I do get over to Downtown Disney/House of Blues from time to time, but that's about it.

I go to Daytona all the time, in fact there more than other places. I live in Northern Brevard County, so it's easier to go there for many things vs Orlando or Melbourne.

Post or PM me if interested in this area, I can tell you what I know of the local places to go depending on what you are interested in.

 

[zip]

If you do Kennedy Space Center, do the visitor's center as well as the astronaut hall of fame. They're very different attractions. Don't forget the visitor's center has the bus ride to see an actual Saturn V close up. You don't know how huge they are until you're 20ft from one.

Completely concur!!! Way worth the drive and the day.

 

[zenwhipper]

:clapping:

Ah good stuff mates! Thanks for the tips.

We are going over Thanksgiving week and while I don't have any chittlins, there is a 6 year old and a 11 year old + a couple parents obviously gung ho on the Disney stuff. I'll do Disney for a couple days and then the wife an' I will do some 'other things'. I'm thinking Cocoa Beach, maybe golf, might even drive up to Daytona and then up to St Augustine.

Thanks again!

Scott