Hosting tons of family members can make the holidays stressful, especially when youre all cooped up inside for days at a time. While the gangs all here, you might as well show them what Orlando has to offer, especially if it means getting the hell out of the house. Here are some fun things to do with the extended fam.
Take a clear bottom kayak boat tour
Sure, a kayak is a kayak, but these unique transparent kayak tours are definitely worth sore arm muscles. Paddle over the crystal waters of Rock Springs, coast through the Winter Park Chain of Lakes, or take a bioluminescent tour; glow-in-the-dark waters and a clear kayak makes for an ethereal experience.
Photo via getupandgokayaking/InstagramCelebrate the holidays at Lake Eola
Every night through Jan. 6, you can catch a music and light show featuring the 72-foot Christmas tree and colorful fountain at Lake Eola. On certain weekend nights, you can even see live musical performances or a Holiday Movie In the Park, like the Nightmare Before Christmas showing on Dec. 22.
Photo via terryasprunger/InstagramGet your art fix at the Orlando Museum of Art
Contemplate historical and postmodern masterpieces, including the digital art exhibit from the Thoma Foundation – or spend the day sneaking Snapchats with the art, no judgment.
Photo via brittanylalloo/InstagramTake a day trip to the Central Florida Zoo
Feed the giraffes or visit the rhino encounter, but try not to psych yourself out too much if you make eye contact with a snake in the reptile viewing space. If you want to explore your inner Tarzan, try the ZOOm Air Adventure Park, where you can glide across the grounds in a zipline and obstacle course. As a bonus, live music and drinks are available for adults 21 and over after 5:30 p.m.
Photo via sippinondatlane/InstagramExperience Wekiva Island Winter Wonderland
Wekiva Island is much more than an Orlandoan-favorite watering hole, especially during the holiday season. Enjoy the beautiful lights, decorations and “snow flurries.” On Dec. 20, it’s combined with “Wine Down Wednesday,” so starting at 6 p.m., you can get in on a free wine tasting, too.
Photo via wekivaisland/InstagramHike a Florida trail without melting
Florida winter means lower temperatures and fewer mosquitoes, so you might as well go out and enjoy the wildlife in all its glory. There are tons of trails in the Orlando area for avid hikers and general nature lovers alike.
Photo via hyrojim/InstagramLace up and cruise at the Semoran Skateway
Boogie on down to the Skateway, lace up those skates and glide–or stumble, if you’re a bit of a beginner–around the rink. If you go on a Saturday night, you can catch the DJ dropping Old School Jamz.
Photo via tannerjonesfl/InstagramGet up early and go see manatees in the wild
Lower temperatures have manatees fleeing to warm-water rivers and springs. Get chummy with a sea cows on a guided boat tour, watch them from a boardwalk viewing area. If you’re feeling adventurous, take a self-guided tour with a canoe.
Photo via kaybear_/InstagramVisit Harry P. Leu Gardens
With over 50 acres of gardens to explore, you’ll never run out of roses, camellias and azaleas to sniff. It might be difficult to see all of the garden’s 12,000 plants in one visit, so it’s definitely worth a second trip.
Photo via shitgooose/InstagramCheck out the Tiffany Chapel windows
This chapel was originally exhibited in 1893 at the World’s Columbian Exposition in Chicago. Since then, it’s gone from being abandoned in a New York City basement to being bunkered at artist Louis Comfort Tiffany’s Long Island estate. The acclaimed chapel, in most of its original glory, is now open to public adoration at the Charles Hosmer Morse Museum, filled with Tiffany treasures of all sorts.
Photo via The Charles Hosmer Morse Museum of American Art/FacebookRent a Juice bike and explore the Orlando Urban Trail
The Orlando Urban Trail offers miles of great views, winding through the Downtown Orlando and Winter Park areas. For just 8 bucks an hour, you can rent a bike from the Juice Bike Share Program and see some of Orlando’s best sights, natural and man-made.
Photo via spankers/InstagramLearn a thing or two at the Orlando Science Center
The Science Center includes four floors of science exhibits that can be entertaining for the whole family. There are also science demonstrations and giant-screen films, included with admission.
Photo via orlandosciencecenter/InstagramTour the deep blue at Sea Life Aquarium
Walking next to a shark in the 360-degree ocean tunnel gives this place a wow factor whether you’re 9 or 99 years old. You can also pop in for daily talks about the Indian Ocean, stingrays, and more.
Photo via samfosheezy/InstagramCheck out Winter Garden’s cute little downtown
A quick trip west on the 408 expressway is all it takes to be transported to a historic downtown swaying with live oaks and Spanish moss. This town of just 34,000 has some Orlandoans giving up city life for small-town swagger, and Winter Garden residents are all too happy to show them the ropes. Take a tour of Crooked Can Brewing Company on a Sunday afternoon, or stop at the Downtown Winter Garden Splash Park for some kid-friendly fun.
Photo via crookedcan/InstagramSample some of the fresh fare at East End Market
A neighborhood market filled with food and other products from local farmers and artisans, East End is a great place to sample fresh food as well as attend food workshops.
Photo via ddunnin3/InstagramTake the scenic route on the Winter Park Scenic Boat Tour
For almost 80 years, this tour has given average folk like us a glimpse at one of Central Florida’s most expensive ZIP codes from the comfort of a pontoon boat. Cranes, alligators and the Rollins rowing team serve as enjoyable sideshows in this hour-long experience.
Photo via Winter Park Scenic Boat Tour/FacebookBowl a few frames at Colonial Lanes, one of the last real bowling alleys
Channel your inner Lebowski (order a White Russian instead of a bucket of beers, if you like), scarf a grilled cheese from the snack counter, then move into the dark, cave-like bar and take over the TouchTunes.
Photo via mrosenfeld40803/InstagramSing your heart out at Big Daddy’s
Big Daddy’s is one of the few bars around where you can still smoke inside, if that’s your thing – with a nice patio, if it’s not. It’s also home to a truly great (if tobacco-tonsiled) karaoke scene, so chug a brew and do some vocal warm-ups before you take the stage.
Photo via delmarprescott/InstagramGrab dinner and a movie at the Enzian
Skip the crowded, Slushee-sticky floors of the mall movie theater and enjoy a showing at the Enzian, where you can order a real meal and you won’t have to fight a stranger for cup-holder dominance.
Photo via enziantheater/InstagramExplore Ivanhoe Village
Once an unassuming stretch of old Orlando lakefront loaded almost exclusively with old furniture stores, the recent rehab of Antique Row transformed it into something organically (yet cleverly) fashionable. You can still check out some antiquities, but you can also pop into the novelty shops and craft bars for an artsy—and boozy—afternoon.
Photo via charm_fit/InstagramBar hop up and down Virginia Ave.
If you’re in the mood to knock back drink after drink, Virginia Drive is a good place to start. The Ivanhoe-Mills Quest, Orlando’s biggest and baddest bar crawl, has 27 stops, but you don’t have to hit all of them for a wild night out. GB’s Bottle Shop and Tasting Bar and Santiago’s Bodega are just a few of the popular spots.
Photo via orlandoissleeping/InstagramIntroduce your whole team to Double D’s
Gringos Locos is an Orlando staple, so it would practically be a sin to pass through the City Beautiful without munching on a Double Decker taco.
Photo via hellthyjunkfood/InstagramTake everyone to Gatorland, the most Florida theme park in Florida
Visiting the self-proclaimed “Gator Capital of the World” is one of the most Floridian things you can do, so you might as well drag your out-of-town fam for the experience. Aside from a petting zoo, animal shows, and a free-flight aviary, the park offers the Screamin’ Gator Zip Line, which stretches over seven stories high and 1,200 feet long.
Photo via gatorland_orlando/InstagramIf all else fails, take ‘em to Wall St. Plaza on a Saturday night
If you’re just looking for a place to nosh on some tasty apps and throw back some drinks, Wall St. is always there for you. The section of Orange Ave. that it sits on is blocked off to traffic on the weekends, so you can freely roam (or drunkenly stumble) around the area with your visiting squad and your fellow Orlandoans.
Photo via orlandoissleeping/Instagram
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