DK Travel : Orlando : Places of interest

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Colonial Lanes

For more than 50 years, the venerable Colonial Lanes has offered patrons the sociable and quintessential blue-collar pastime of bowling. This 32-lane facility is a friendly and noisy place to knock over a few pins, so rent some shoes, pick out a ball, and let the computer keep score – but bear in mind that league bowling takes over the place between 6pm and 9pm every night, so avoid those times, unless you’re happy to watch. After the game, the place to go is the Colonial Lanes Bar & Restaurant, parts of which resemble a giant sunken living room (with bartenders standing on a lower floor than customers). Drinks are cheap, and the concept of rounding off prices never caught on here, so don’t be surprised if your tab is a quirky $4.38.
Cornell Fine Arts Museum

The art collection at this museum, located on the scenic Rollins College Campus, is one of the oldest in the state. The range of European and American art – from the Renaissance to 20th century – is impeccably presented and of an unusually high quality for a small college art museum.
Daytona Beach

During the annual “Spring Break,” this legendary beach (just 90 minutes from Orlando along I-4) is the destination for thousands of vacationing college students, who drink and party until they drop. But sun and fun isn’t all that’s offered. Beach Street is lined with shops, restaurants, and clubs; and of course, there’s the Daytona Speedway, home to the Daytona 500 and other NASCAR races (see Speedweeks).
Deep Sea Fishing & Sightseeing

Land a whopper on fishing trips into the Gulf of Mexico. Commonly caught species include grouper, amberjack, and red snapper. Alternatively, there are sightseeing excursions that offer encounters with dolphins, sea birds, and, on occasion, manatees.
Discovery Cove

You might be in land-locked Orlando, but you can still fulfil those tropical island fantasies of swimming with dolphins and snorkeling over coral reefs if you check in to Discovery Cove. The dolphin swim is the biggest draw (each session lasts about one hour), but the white-sand beaches, snorkeling opportunities in fresh and salt-water lagoons, and soothing beach-resort vibe elicits just as much praise. Admission is not cheap (largely because there are never more than 1,000 visitors daily), but you get almost everything you need for the day thrown in, including sun block, lunch, and snorkel gear, as well as a seven-day pass to SeaWorld. This secluded oasis is not for everyone – kids might miss the lack of thrill rides – but for a unique beach escape that doesn’t require leaving Orlando, this is the place.
Disney-MGM Studios

A park that combines front-of-house fun with behind-the-scenes explanation.
DisneyQuest

This interactive, indoor theme park is divided into four zones and entertains adults as much as it does kids. Highlights of the Explore Zone include Pirates of the Caribbean: Battle for Buccaneer Gold, and Aladdin’s Magic Carpet Ride. The former puts you on the deck of a two-master schooner to play cat-and-mouse with foul-playing pirates and foul-smelling sea monsters. Aladdin’s Magic Carpet involves wearing a virtual reality helmet and taking a ride through the 3-D Cave of Wonders in search of the genie. In the Score Zone, it’s all about testing your game-playing skills. Don’t miss the Extraterrestrial Alien Encounter where you get to fly a space ship and blast gigantic robots, or the Mighty Ducks Pinball Slam, a life-size, sure-fire hit for pinball fans. The Create Zone unleashes the designer within: build your own roller coaster (and then ride it in a simulator), or take a short course in cartooning at the Animation Academy. The Replay Zone is filled with games where for an extra charge, you can win tickets that can be redeemed for prizes you can live without. Crowds are worse after lunch.
Disney’s Animal Kingdom Park

Disney’s fourth Orlando park is a place where elusive animals roam. (see Disney’s Animal Kingdom® Park).
Disney’s BoardWalk

Almost an accidental attraction, this is a re-creation of a 1940s seaside resort, complete with street performers, carnival games, great restaurants and bars. The ESPN Club is the perfect spot to draw on a beer and catch a major-league game on big-screen TVs.
Disney’s Wide World of Sports

Disney’s sports complex is the spring training home of Major League baseball’s Atlanta Braves (Feb–Mar) and minor league baseball’s Orlando Rays, a farm team for the Tampa Bay Devil Rays (Apr–Sep). It’s also a winter home for basketball’s Harlem Globetrotters. Other facilities in the 200-acre (80-ha) complex, which is used for all kinds of amateur sports and athletics, include: a fitness center; basketball, volleyball, and tennis courts; softball, soccer, and lacrosse fields; a martial-arts venue; and a golf-driving range. Disney’s Wide World of Sports is also the home of the NFL Experience. There is an extreme sports area catering for skateboarders, in-line skaters, and cyclists, which is now open for special events.