Things to do on your Florida vacation that your preteen won't hate. I will be sharing with you our 5 days in Orlando Florida.
On our Florida vacation we tried to pack as much as possible into 5 days. There's just so much to see and do in Florida. I tried to fill our itinerary with things we could not experience in California. We took our trip to Florida in the month of May just before Florida schools let out for the summer. The weather was perfect and I found that there were way more deals on Groupon for things we wanted to do and that the park prices were cheaper during this time.
On our first day we explored WonderWorks and the Chocolate Museum & Cafe. I found deals for both on Groupon. There's a parking garage right next to WonderWorks where you can park for $10 for the day.
WonderWorks is very interesting. It's a mix between a Dave & Buster's and a hands on Science Museum. It's 3 different floors. The first floor was science, second had some hands on activities and the third had laser tag, 4-D simulator and an indoor ropes challenge. WonderWorks is good for kids 6 and up. You can use your ticket to come and go all day long. We played for a bit then went for lunch and came back again.
There's also a mall right next door. We grabbed some lunch at Pizza@ where you can build your own pizza for $8. One pizza was more than enough for 2 people. This is perfect if you don't want to do a big expensive sit down lunch.
In that same mall we also met the wonderful Concierge Margoth Delamota from iTouch Orlando who hooked us up with some free IRide Trolley tickets for the day. She's for sure the lady to talk to if you are looking for any discounts for parks and museums you want to do in Orlando. You can reach her at 407.591.1199 or Margoth@iTouchOrlando.com.
The IRide Trolley was great. It takes you to all the parks and everything on International Drive. We took the trolley to the Chocolate Museum. It's $2 a ride or $5 for the day.
The Chocolate Museum Tour is a 45 minute tour with tastings. They have 25 solid chocolate sculptures. You will also learn how chocolate is made and learn the history of cacao. I do recommend this tour for older kids, maybe 7 and up. In the Cafe you can buy chocolates they make there and the hot chocolate is really good that they sell in the cafe. They will give you a sample of the hot chocolate to try as you leave the tour.
Here's some other things you can also find on the IRide Trolley route.
On day 2 we explored Gatorland . We absolutely loved this park. You can bring in your own packed lunch and snacks if you want. As you walk into the park they have a fishing pole stand where you can buy fish to feed to the gators. We paid $5 for 3 fish and a pole. You can also go to the back of the park and pay $3 for 5 turkey dogs to feed to the gators.
They have 3 different shows for you to attend during the day at different times. The first one was the Up Close Encounter show, where you get to meet all kinds of different animals way too up close. I recommend you sit more to the back if you don't like nature that close to your face.
You will also get the opportunity for $5 to hold and get your photo taken with the big yellow snake Cuddles. They are really good at letting you take your own photos too. If you don't feel like paying the extra cost they have a cool fake version of Cuddles where you can also take photos.
Our 2nd show was the Alligators: Legends of the Swamp show. In this show you will pick up very helpful tips in case you are ever attacked by an alligator. You also have the opportunity to get in the ring with an alligator for a photo. The cost was $10. I can tell you it was $10 well spent, because my daughter will talk about this for years to come. You just have to love the OOH S#it!! expression on her face when she's holding on the this alligator all by herself. I will be honest, I was freaked out and proud all at the same time.
The last show was the Gator Jumparoo show. You want to make sure you get to the show early so you can get an up front view of the show. If you have really little ones make sure you get over to the glass window side for them to see. In this show you will see gators jump out of the water for food. I for sure thought someone was going to lose a hand or two. I do recommend getting to the park really early and seeing the first set of shows from 10:45 am to 12:30 pm before it gets too hot.
On the Swamp Walk, make sure you keep an eye out for snacks and other wild life.
You can also find all kinds of other animals in the park that you can feed and pet. Make sure you bring your quarters for the food dispensers around the park. Just watch out for the big white birds they almost took her finger off. I don't really recommend feeding them, they can be a bit mean.
These little birds were really a lot of fun to feed, even though they kept trying to loosen her shoes. You can buy bird feed for $2 inside the cage. Just make sure you watch where you step because there are little birds everywhere.
Gatorland also has a Screaming Gator Zipline where you soar 70 feet up in the air over the gator cages. You can also do the Off Road Adventure where you get to ride in a monster truck in the backwoods through real Florida wetlands and into a huge pond of alligators. This day was truly filled with lots of adventure.
Now moving onto day number 3. Off we went to Clermont where we found the Showcase of Citrus. Here we learned all about Florida oranges and honey in a 1 hour tour around their farm in a big monster school bus. Our guide was a real hoot. He even gave the kids a chance to drive the big monster school bus. I think he made every kids day on that bus because it's not everyday you get the opportunity to drive a monster truck. I must admit, I was a bit jealous.
When we got back, there was lots of free tasting you could try at their store, from honey to hot sauce. Each honey had it's own unique taste.
Make sure you take some time to walk around the property. They have lots of fun photo opportunities.
We stopped for lunch at the Fish House (110 FL-50, Clearmont 34711) and had some of the best fish and chips I have ever had in the US. It's right by the gas station and easy to miss.
We also stopped at The Presidents Hall of Fame but didn't go in, because I spotted a big snake near the door. It's Florida and it's hot, so you need to watch for snakes everywhere.
You will also see the Florida Citrus Tower next door. You can pay to go up in the tower and take an overlook of hundreds of lakes. The tower was one of Florida's first attractions built in 1956.
By this time we were so hot that we just had to stop for some ice cream right down the street at Twistee Treat (700 US-27, Clermont, FL 34711). The kids cup swirls were only $0.99. That was more than enough before the heat melted everything.
On day 4 we went for an Around the World Coke tasting in Disney Springs at the top floor of the Coca-Cola store. For $8 you get 2 trays of 16 different Coca-Cola drinks from different countries. I recommend only buying 1 tray because they were horrible and we threw most of it away. We also got the float try and that was really good.
Make sure you drop in on the 2nd floor to say hi to the Coca-Cola bear and take your photo with him.
We also enjoyed a wonderful lunch at The Boat House. Their crab cake was really good.
You will find restaurants like Rain Forest Cafe and T-Rex there too.
You will need to use the My Disney Experience app to reserve a table or you will never get in. The best part is parking is free at Disney Springs.
For dessert, we tried out the Sprinkles Cupcake ATM. That was something fun and new that we don't get to see everyday.
On our last day in Florida we went to Universal Studios to check out Harry Potter World. We got the 1-day 2-parks ticket so we could go on the Hogwarts Express. The train takes you from one park to the other and you need a hopper ticket to go on it. When planning your day to Universal, I recommend picking a rainy day. That's when the park will be the least busy.
Out of the 2 parks at Universal Studios, we enjoyed the one with Diagon Alley the most.
Diagon Alley was nice for getting away from the heat because it was mostly shaded. Make sure you don't miss it and walk right past, because there are no signs telling you where to find it. When you see the purple bus you know you have found the entrance to Diagon Alley.
You can also exchange your money for Hogwarts money that you can spend anywhere in Universal, even the downtown. $10 is the lowest amount they will exchange for you.
If you are looking for a wand, Ollivanders is the shop for you. It can get pretty busy in there, so they also have wand stands outside the shop . You looking at about $50 a wand. Your wand includes a map showing different spots where you can cast magic spells with it.
Don't forget to grab your ice cold Butter Beer while in Diagon Alley or Hogsmeade. We really like the frozen butter beer. Heads up, it's really sweet, so one was more than enough for the 2 of us to share.
If you're like us and don't enjoy rides that make you sick, you can ask to just do a walk through Hogwarts castle. I recommend it. The castle was pretty cool inside.
If you brought your own lunch into the park like we did, Springfield is a good spot to sit and enjoy it. You will find tables under shade right outside Moe's.
If you have little ones and want to get out of the heat a bit and rest your feet, head over to Barney's Backyard. They have an indoor play room with air-conditioning and nice clean bathrooms right next door.
We collected pressed pennies all over Florida, they make for cool inexpensive souvenirs from all the places we went.
Florida was truly a lot of fun. There was so much more we still wanted to do, but we just ran out of time. We cannot wait to go out there again soon. I really enjoyed driving around with almost no traffic and loved the low gas prices, but for now we have to say Goodbye and head back to California.
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