Cypress Gardens Adventure Park
Cypress Gardens Adventure Park quiet simply has something for everybody and most of it is very good! From world renowned botanical gardens to daring, gravity-defying feats on ice and water, the park is able to blend both and it’s quite the combo! A couple of times a day the roar of powerful speedboats fills the air, as the cast of the world famous Cypress Gardens Water Ski Show strut their wet stuff! By contrast beautiful 'Southern Belles' stroll the grounds despite the heat and hundreds of beautiful butterlies flutter quietly by at Wings of Wonder.

Wild Adventures on the other hand is all about exhilarating rides suited for the littlest thrill seekers right up to the boldest adventurers! Best of all there are hardly any lines! The classic Starliner wooden roller coaster clackety clacks up the hill before hurtling delighted guests over dozens of hills and bunny hops. Toddlers will love the carousel and the Citrus Line Railroad . Teens have plenty to yell about on Power Surge and the latest screaming swing ride The Gauntlet!

Furry friends appear at various locations and Keeper Talks are a fun and educational way of keeping up to date with the animal world. After you’ve had your fill of rides and shows escape to the refreshing fun of Splash Island water park (seasonal), included in your park admission!

Discovery Cove
With admission limited to around a thousand people a day (advance reservations only), those lucky enough to get in will have the interactive experience of a lifetime. A very high staff to guest ratio ensures you get lots of attention and our undercover reviewers were made to feel very special despite the presence of several hundred guests spread around the park. First class changing rooms with towels, lockers and showers are available for everyone as well as a convenient swipe card for any purchases.

Before anyone gets wet, you are introduced to the trainers who go over some dolphin anatomy, explain what your day will consist of and, show you a video on the lives of wild dolphins. Your prep-talk over, you then head across a white sandy beach, complete with sunbeds and umbrellas, to the main lagoon. There you are introduced to your dolphin hosts. After a kiss and a cuddle (don't be shy now!), you make your way out to deeper water (flotation jackets are provided) where you finally get to be towed around by one of these amazing creatures. Specially designed equipment is available for the disabled to enjoy this attraction with ease (call for details). The official photographs of your big moment are not exactly a bargain but hey, how often do you get to take a picture with a really big fish? (Yes, we do know that a dolphin really isn't a fish.)

Spend the rest of your day relaxing on the beach, cooling off under waterfalls, stroking some huge (and harmless) rays, and snorkeling alongside shoals of tropical fish. Sharks and barracudas can also be encountered while swimming (don't worry they are behind glass) and the exotic bird encounters in the free flight aviary are quite something to experience.

A one week pass for SeaWorld® Adventure Park is included in the admission price as is a very pleasant lunch.

Kennedy Space Center
Budding astronauts and their parents will thoroughly enjoy a visit to the Kennedy Space Center. It's an hour from Orlando and well worth the drive. It comprises 70 plus acres of space hardware, artifacts from four decades of space exploration, lots of excellent exhibits and some superb film and video presentations. Inside the main visitor complex your first stop should be booking one of several spectacular IMAX movies, along with a bus tour that will take you to view the Space Shuttle launch pad from the observation gantry and the gigantic Vehicle Assembly Building. The Apollo/Saturn V Center is also a scheduled stop and features the most awesome piece of hardware you'll ever get to stand underneath! The final item on the tour is an impressive close-up look at the International Space Station (a fascinating peek at your tax dollars at work!)

After the film and the tour its time to take in the rest of the visitor complex. Start with the Shuttle Launch Experience. On this must-do ride you'll find out just what it's like to blast off into orbit. Superb special effects and intense sound make this a life-like simulation - and watch out, this take-off is verticle! Astronaut Encounter is a unique live show featuring face to face question and answer sessions with real astronauts! It's all very inspirational stuff! The Rocket Garden is worth a look as it contains many very interesting space projectiles (how on earth did those things ever fly?) and right next door is a space shuttle mock up. All this however, pales by comparison should you get lucky and your visit coincides with an actual launch. It's worth noting that younger kids might space out on some exhibits - if that's the case check out the Children's Play Dome. However for most kids of school age, it's one of the best science lessons they'll ever have!

Silver Springs
Silver Springs was definitely at the front of the line when Mother Nature was handing out raw natural beauty. The springs themselves are the source of the Silver River, a gloriously unpolluted glassy ribbon that winds it's way throughout the park and is home to all kinds of wildlife - this includes several troops of Rhesus monkeys who reportedly escaped from a movie set! The film in question was Tarzan, and several features starring Johnny Weismuller were indeed shot on location here in the 1930's and 40's. Take the Fort King River Cruise a journey through 10,000 years of Florida history. Then head over to the world famous Glass bottom boats where you’ll have a chance to feed the fish and do some gator spotting!

Fantastic Fountains Water Show features thousands of gallons of water cleverly cavorting in perfect time to popular music, while Wilderness Trail tows you off into the Florida backwoods in search of a little adventure.

The Lost River Voyage includes a visit to a wildlife outpost to where a naturalist will clue you in on the various breeding and rehabilitation programs. Back on solid ground there a several good animal shows featuring the cute, the cuddly and the somewhat scary. The Birds Of Prey Show, Birds of The Rain Forest Show and the Reptiles Of The World are all entertaining and educational. Take the kids over to Kids Ahoy! Playland for a slide, a ride and a bounce. For a great view of the entire park hop on The Lighthouse Ride. Once you get over the complete absence of animatronics you'll have a delightful day out!

Gatorland
The Gatorland theme park is located in the Alligator Capital of the World, FLORIDA! Gatorland is known as Central Florida's Best Half Day Attraction!

Orlando's best half day attraction keeps getting better! Gatorland now offers ADVENTURE TOURS . Getting back to nature is the focus of these expeditions. From trainer For A Day to thrilling airboat rides, these exciting activities are a sure way for you to get involved with the beautiful Central Florida outdoor environment.

Wow... That's Big! Visitors can marvel at the size of Jimmy, one of two giant Aldabra land tortoises who now call Gatorland home. The Aldabra tortoise species is one of the largest in the world, and Gatorland's newest additions Jimmy and Dean weigh well over 600 pounds each and are thought to be between 80 and 100 years old. These gentle giants are vegetarians, and are native to the Aldabra Islands in the Indian Ocean. You'll be sure to enjoy all there is to do at one of Florida's oldest theme-parks-Gatorland.