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The park that started Disney’s Florida empire combines fantasy, adventure, and the future in a package of rides and shows that focuses on Disney movies and TV programs. (see The Magic Kingdom® Park).

Lights, camera, action! Movies, TV shows and stomach-churning thrill rides come together in a theme park that sometimes also serves as a working studio.

Visitors are brought face to face with the wild world of animals, but this kingdom’s spacious environmental design doesn’t always offer a front-row seat. (see Disney’s Animal Kingdom® Park).

Inquiring minds love this Disney park, which features technology in Future World and the culture, architecture and enticing food of 11 nations in World Showcase. (see Epcot®).

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.

Universal’s top-of-the-pile theme park is a magnet for thrill jockeys, with some of the fastest, highest, and best rides in town. Be warned that 9 of its 13 rides have height or health restrictions, so it’s not for the young, weak of stomach, or squeamish.

What Disney can do, Universal can equal. The movie and TV themes here can make people’s wildest dreams come true or worst nightmares a (special effects) reality. From Jaws to Terminator, the silver screen comes to life.

Its laid-back pace, educational angle, and animal actors make this a popular stop for those wanting a break from the lines and stifling crowds at other parks. (see SeaWorld Orlando).

Some say it’s hard to beat Disney’s water parks, but this rival has the most thrills money can buy on the city’s water scene.

Trust the Caribbean menu and spirits to create some fun, but expect to wait up to two hours for a table.

The menu in this lofty space is Spanish tapas in name but more international in flavor, with such diverse nibbles as baked goat’s cheese, tuna sashimi, alligator bites, and snapper fingers. Performers (from sword eaters to artists at work) provide the entertainment.

This international TexMex chain serves scrumptious Cajun chicken sandwiches, margarita-grilled chicken topped with lime shrimp, and Cadillac fajitas with black beans and rice.

Enjoy songs and marshmallows around a campfire, which are followed by a different Disney movie every night. It is open to all – just park at the River Country entrance and take the bus to the party.

A 600,000-gallon (272,600-liter) floor-to-ceiling aquarium is a calming backdrop to this themed restaurant. Despite the high-brow, mainly fish and seafood menu, it’s very child-friendly. Try the sauteed rock shrimp in a lemon cream sauce. (see Coral Reef).

Suitable for families, the endless buffet isn’t fancy, but offers value for money and there’s bound to be something for everyone.

This place stands out in the city’s thriving Vietnamese area for its huge bowls of pho , fragrant soup brimming with meat, seafood, noodles, and spices.

There are two shopping options in Downtown Disney. On the glittery West Side is the massive Virgin Megastore, George’s Guitar Gallery, and more than a dozen one-of-a kind shops. The more serene Marketplace is highlighted by World of Disney (the planet’s largest Disney store) and the LEGO Imagination Center, a massive superstore.

This branch of Belz is not only the largest and oldest factory outlet mall in Orlando, it’s also one of the largest in the U.S.A. Located at the north end of I-Drive, the complex features more than 170 outlets in two fully enclosed malls and four annexes. The best stores focus on mid-line brands such as Nike, The Gap, Oshkosh B’Gosh, Puma, Dockers, Reebok, and Calvin Klein.

Sure, it’s a big enclosed suburban mall, but it’s also one of the best in Central Florida and hugely popular with visitors and locals. Stores include Dillard’s, JC Penney, Sears, Nordstrom, Lord & Taylor, and more than 200 others.

Kids love the play area, which has enough LEGO pieces to build almost anything. Inside, the cash registers sing as parents buy the latest Lego gadgets.

Pointe Orlando is a complex of shopping, dining, and entertainment venues. It offers something for everyone – a 21-screen cinema, a Wonder-works entertainment center, seven theme restaurants, plus more than 60 retail stores, including Victoria’s Secret, Abercrombie & Fitch, and lots of specialty stores. The landscaped outdoor layout makes this a pleasant place for a shopping spree.