Ask any 10-year-old and they will assure you that Walt Disney World is the capital of Florida. For most families with kids or teens, this attraction is the No. 1 priority when visiting Florida. But it will take more than a weekend (or even a week) to cover Disney’s 47-square-mile kingdom. To make the most of your time, Disney has a free DVD vacation planner to help you map out the perfect trip.
“Most people don’t realize that Disney World is more than just the Magic Kingdom, says Dave Herbst, Walt Disney media spokesperson. “We actually have four theme parks the Magic Kingdom, Epcot, Hollywood Studios and Animal Kingdom two water parks Blizzard Beach and Typhoon Lagoon and Disney’s Downtown West End, Marketplace and Pleasure Island.
If you do plan to spend the majority of your vacation at Disney World, you will save time and money by staying at one of the 25 onsite hotels, which range in price and style from affordable to luxurious. Staying onsite offers several advantages: customized ticket packages, meal plans, hassle-free transportation between hotels and parks, and extended hours at the parks.
For a unique vacation experience, try Disneys Animal Kingdom Lodge. This luxury accommodation is surrounded by a 33-acre savannah with more than 30 species of African wildlife that can be viewed from your private balcony.
Some of the fun educational activities offered at the Lodge include animal tracking and safaris, African crafts and games, and folktales told nightly around the outdoor Arusha Rock fire pit. At Bomo Flavors of Africa, a family-friendly buffet offering breakfast and dinner, happy vacationers can experience cuisine from 50 African countries. Adults will enjoy the AAA Four-Diamond Jiko, The Cooking Place, which boasts the worlds largest selection of South African wines, as well as excellent multicultural cuisine.
Although Orlando is known for its great theme parks Disney, Universal Studios and Islands of Adventure, Sea World and Cypress Gardens (Orlandos very first theme park) the area offers a wealth of other fun and educational opportunities. Downtown Orlando is home to the Orlando Science Center with multiple floors of hands-on exhibits for kids, giant-screen films and the largest refractor telescope in Florida. And if you happen to be in town during basketball season, get tickets to see the NBAs Orlando Magic.
Interested in Biblical history? Orlando has a very unique theme park that will take you back in time 2,000 years. The Holy Land Experience explores the ancient city of Jerusalem through biblical exhibits, models and performances.
While Orlando boasts 52 million square feet of retail shopping and nine world-class malls, for kid-friendly shopping that will earn you a parent-of-the-year award, visit the 4,400-square-foot, free-standing LEGO Imagination Center and the largest Disney character store on earth, both located at Downtown Disney. Grab lunch at Bahama Breeze Island Grill and enjoy a tropical setting with an outstanding menu of fresh Caribbean-inspired dishes for adults and kids. Since you are in Florida, be sure to order their famous Rebeccas Key Lime Pie.
Several of Floridas state parks (161 in total) are within easy driving distance of Orlando and offer a variety of activities for outdoor enthusiasts. Blue Spring State Park, with the largest spring on St. Johns River, is a designated Manatee Refuge and winter home (mid-November to March) for a growing number of West Indian Manatees. Bring a picnic lunch and cool off in the 72-degree spring where you can swim, snorkel or scuba dive. Cabins are also available for overnight stays.
You don’t have to go all the way to the Everglades to experience Floridas wetlands and wildlife. Several locations in and around Orlando offer airboat rides as well as full and half-day fishing trips. Orlando is one of the most popular places in the world to go bass fishing, the home of the BASS Masters Classic and just got to visit place for any fishermen in the family is fun for the whole family.
Heres a wave of grown-up-style fun redefining the Orlando experience,” says Amy Scott, relations representative for the Orlando Visitors Bureau. “From trendy restaurants and couture shopping to brand-name luxury hotels and spas and a growing cultural arts scene, adults have a variety of sophisticated new experiences to indulge in.”
The Hyatt Regency Grand Cypress is one of those luxury hotel resorts that aims to be for adults what Disney World is for children. This 1,500-acre resort includes an equestrian center, racquet club, fitness center, lake, pitch and putt golf course, and a one-half-acre pool with several waterfalls and a swim-through grotto and bar. With 45 acres of natural Florida terrain, including a nature area and Audubon Walk with elevated boardwalk, you will find it hard to believe you are almost next door to Disneys Downtown area. While at the resort, dont miss the superb seven-course wine-pairing dinner at La Coquina Chefs Table a perfect spot for a romantic celebration.
Want an adult vacation that will allow you to bring your extended family? The Ginn Reunion Resort, located just six miles south of Disney World, is the perfect spot to satisfy everyones vacation itineraries. Accommodations include a choice of condominiums, villas and multi-family homes. The resort is within easy reach of the theme parks, yet miles away from the hustle and bustle. Guests enjoy three signature golf courses, a fitness center, tennis courts, a rooftop pool and lounge, a full-service spa and excellent food at Forte, a contemporary chophouse. Relax or play at the resort or spend the day away.
If your’e still a kid at heart and would like to enjoy some of the theme parks at a more leisurely pace, visit Epcot in the evening and take the 1.3-mile walk around the 11 countries in World Showcase. Stop for dinner in Germany to enjoy folk dancing and an oompah band, belly dancers in Morocco, or singing waiters in Italy. Be sure to stay for the IllumiNations nightly outdoor show of fireworks, music and laser lights.
Another option is Disneys Hollywood Studios and Universal Studios, both of which offer sights and activities for those who would rather skip the zero-gravity thrill rides. At Disney’s Hollywood Studios, stop in the Brown Derby Restaurant to view sketches of famous Hollywood stars and sample their famous Cobb Salad and Grapefruit Cake.
If you enjoy the nightclub scene, both Universal City Walk and Downtown Disneys Pleasure Island offer a variety of musical and comedy clubs. Two shows you wont want to miss are the famous Cirque du Soleil, La Nouba, with its mesmerizing acrobatics and stunning costumes (Disneys West End), and the Blue Man Group offering a unique evening of music, comedy and multimedia theatrics (Universal Studios).
Enjoy a traveling Broadway show or Orlandos own ballet, opera or Philharmonic orchestra at the Bob Carr Performing Arts Centre in downtown Orlando. The downtown area is also home to several museums, including the Orlando Museum of Art the Mennello Museum of American Art and the Orange County Regional History Center, a Smithsonian affiliate. Dont miss the Harry P. Leu Gardens, a 50-acre botanical park featuring the largest documented collection of camellias in the nation.
Take a day to get off the beaten path with a trip to the quaint, brick-lined town of Winter Park. Stroll down Park Avenue with its upscale boutiques and restaurants, and be sure to sample the famous chocolate popcorn at Peterbrook Chocolatier. Have lunch at Caf de France, a favorite with locals who appreciate its authentic French food and excellent service.
After lunch, visit The Charles Hosmer Morse Museum of American Art, which is home to the worlds most comprehensive collection of works by Louis Comfort Tiffany, including an elaborate chapel interior. End your relaxing day with a scenic one-hour boat tour on Lake Osceola.
Whether you plan to ride every theme park ride, explore the cultured side of the city or simply cocoon yourself at a luxury resort or enjoy a day of bass fishing on of the lakes, Orlando has it all!
The area in and around Orlando in the state of Florida is one of the most popular areas in the United States of America. Orlando has a population of almost 2 million people if the metropolitan area of Orlando. It is Florida’s sixth largest city, surprisingly but is the largest inland city in the state. Orlando is probably most known for Disney World, Sea World, Universal and it’s resorts. Also popular is one of the city’s oldest activities, a little thing called “Bass Fishing”.
Bass Fishing in Orlando is big business!
Bass fishing in Orlando is incredibly thrilling and sometimes life changing. Many anglers that have fished with BassOnline from all over world in search of that trophy bass almost always end up coming to Orlando because of the weather, the great amounts of trophy bass, and the wondrous scenery and great places to drop off the kids while hitting the lake looking for that bass to tip the scales.
Peak season for bass fishing in Orlando is around the start of the calendar year. Fishing reports of catching bass that weigh over 10 pounds in some of these incredible Orlando lakes like, Lake Toho is common! It is also a great season for catching large amounts of largemouth bass. The spawning for the bass in Orlando will also happen as this season kicks off which makes fishing a whole lot of fun!
A lot of people decide to use “bass fishing guides” when fishing in hope that they will be put on the best bass of there lives and be directed on techniquies while fishing lakes in Orlando. Bass Online Outfotters generally help people catch more fish than they would alone; sometimes up to two or three times as many fish are caught with other bass guides! Most of our bass fishing guides are somewhat legendary for how much they assist the customers in discovering huge bodies of bass filled waters and people hire these legends of the lakes all year long.
Most customer traveling to Orlando that go bass fishing, say it is one of the best things they have ever done. It changed there entire outlook on bass fishing, bringing home there largest bass ever caught in Orlando remains a dream no longer. Of course, that could be a dream or reality for some, but one thing is for certain: Orlando serves up some of the best fishing in Florida and the United States.
Thanks to Capt Todd Kersey for contributing this article to our Florida bass fishing blog:
See the list below for Florida freshwater fishing records for the entire state of Florida. The fishing capital of the world, these records include all freshwater species for which records are currently kept by the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission. It should be noted that these are hook and line fishing records only and do not include other records that may have been set by snagging, spearing, trolling, or netting.
Well this is my 4th day with Phillip and its going to be a good day on Lake Okeechobee. Yesterday we discussed all of the options for other locations to fish and explained that there was a tournament on the lake and asked he would be intersted in fishing it with me. He got really excited and almost yelled, yes I would love to!
My game plane was to fish down South where I’ve been catching some good fish first thing in the morning. We missed a few good fish, then Phillip new what to do with another bait of his own, he then caught the next fish it was about 3 pounds… good job Phillip, his first Okeechobee bass. After the bite slowed down we moved to a flipping area that I have but the fish did not bite so we moved to another spot, caught a few more fish to get our limit of just under 14 pounds. First place had 20lbs, Second was 14.8 and third was 14.4 and we came in fourth place that was good for 20 plus boat field.
Phillip was so happy about fishing his first tournament he decided to fish next Sunday tournament also.
He will be back next week for another 4 day sunrise to sunset trips.
If you are visiting South or Central Florida for work or vacation and want to experience the best bass fishing that there is to offer then please give us a call. We can be reached at (888) 629-BASS or email me…
The fishing in Central Florida is improving each day as anglers are catching nice bass in the 4- to 8-pound class and bluegills are still hitting.
Anglers are continuing to fishing at night around the full moon and are catching some nice speckled perch on minnows and large mouth bass on top water.
The Winter Haven Chain is giving up 10 to 20 speckled perch per angler who are using minnows for bait.
The best lakes for these panfish are Cannon, Jessie, Mirror and Hartridge. Bass are biting in Winterset, Summit and Lulu.
Plastic worms and/or live shiners are still producing the best results. Plenty of bluegill are still being caught on crickets out of Howard, Eloise, Jessie and Idyllwild.
Most are being caught in the evening just after dark while fishing on the bottom. Speckled perch also are being caught at night on minnows while drifting with minnows.
A few bass in the 2- to 5-pound class were caught during the week on plastic worms.
A few guides who fish on Lake Ashton, said speckled perch are hitting good at night on minnows. Bass are hitting spinner baits in the late afternoon when the wind blows. Bluegills are still being caught while fishing with crickets.
Anglers trying their luck at night for speckled perch in Lake Silver are averaging about 10 per boat while fishing with live minnows. There is plenty of bluegill action in this lake. Bass are hitting crank baits while slow trolling.
Guides reported last week bass were hitting shiners good at night on Lake Mariana. They caught five bass in less than an hour, with the largest tipping the scales at 11 pounds.
Try your luck this week in Lake Elbert with minnows as the speckled perch are beginning to hit in this lake while drifting at night. A few bass in the 3- to 8-pound range were caught on spinner baits in late afternoon. Bluegills are still hitting crickets.
To all bass anglers, if you considered yourself a “river rat,” you will be happy to know when fishing the north end of Okeechobee you now have the option of using the Kissimmee river again.
Anglers and boaters can now navigate north and south through the lock and weir during regular operating hours.
Those hours are Monday through Friday from 7 a.m. to 6 p.m. on weekdays year-round; 5:30 a.m. to 7:30 p.m. from March 1 to Oct. 31; and 5:30 a.m. to 6:30 p.m. from Nov. 1 to Feb. 28.
Farther north, the section of the river at the north end of the restored river is closed to boats.
For information, call the SFWMD in Okeeechobee at 800-250-4200 and in Orlando at 800-250-4250.
Today I had the pleasure of taking out Shawn and Kelly from Ohio out on the Okeechobee . We started out on the South end of the lake in a spot that I’ve been doing good in since the recent storms. So, we can fish in the grass again and Shawn which is a real good fisherman caught on to throwing the frog really good. The frog is a top water bait and all of our fish came off the frog on this day, we had about 20 largemouth bass with several fish over 5 pounds.
Below is a testimonial Shawn & sent after there trip!
Shawn and I wanted to let you know we had a wonderful time. It was Shawn’s dream to fish Lake Okeechobee for years and now I know why. When Capt Brett took us out he made sure that we did have the trip of a lifetime. It was really exciting seeing the size of these bass on Okeechobee, its just not what we are used to in Ohio. You could not have taken the smile off of our face that day. He is still talking about it and probably will for the rest of his life. We don’t get to vacation much, but he is already planning a trip back. Shawn is in love with the lake and BIG fish…ha ha and thanks to you guys I will get to vacation more often. I just wanted to let you know you completed a dream for us and we will be back every year. The guide service couldn’t have been any better, honestly it exceeded all of our expectations. Capt Brett is a great guy and fishing guide, he made sure we had an unbelievable time catching big bass. The fishing was just as unbelievable we can’t say enough.
Thanks again and hope to see you soon, again thanks for your wonderful service,
Kelly and Shawn Smith
If you are visiting South or Central Florida for work or vacation and want to experience the best bass fishing that there is to offer then please give us a call. We can be reached at (888) 629-BASS or email us fishing@bassonline.com
The St. Johns River, always beautiful, especially sparkles on a fresh fall day when the temperature finally dips into the 50s after a long, hot summer.
Thursday was such a day in Jacksonville and the river, indeed, sparkled.
The sight was a vivid reminder of why we must protect the city’s greatest natural resource, the St. Johns River.
As you know, battle lines have been drawn over a proposal by the St. Johns River Water Management District to withdraw hundreds of millions of gallons of water a day from the river to quench the thirst of overdeveloped Central Florida.
One of the first fights in that battle is over a withdrawal permit the district wants to give Seminole County.
That permit has been challenged by the Riverkeeper organization and the city of Jacksonville. A hearing is set for next Wednesday.
It’s important that none of the parties challenging the permit get cold feet. Even if the challenge is dismissed, that order can be appealed, which would delay the permit.
Delay is important for two reasons.
First, the district is in the process of conducting a two-year scientific study of what the environmental effects of withdrawing water from the river would be.
Beginning to withdraw water before knowing that impact would be ridiculous.
Second, delay is important because the focus of the debate is beginning to shift more toward where it should have been all along - - conservation.
The argument for withdrawal is this: Our main source of potable water is the Floridan aquifer, which is stressed because of the demands of growth.
For growth to continue, more water will be needed and the aquifer can’t provide it.
“It doesn’t have to be that way,” said Cynthia Barnett, a writer for Florida Trend and the author of Mirage: Florida and the Vanishing Water of the Eastern United States.
Barnett was one of the speakers at a forum on water issues sponsored by the Urban Land Institute that was held this week in Jacksonville.
Instead of finding more water to meet demand, a better approach is to reduce demand, and that can be done, Barnett said, even with a growing population.
A study just released by the U.S. Geological Survey backs that up.
The study found that between 2000 and 2005, water use in Florida decreased 9 percent while the state’s population increased 12 percent.
How could that happen? Conservation.
Barnett suggested a number of ways to reduce water use: low-flow toilets, use of gray water to flush toilets, more efficient ways of irrigating farmland, changing landscaping habits, better reuse of water.
“I would argue we are in control of this,” Barnett said. “A region can prosper while using less water.”
That’s certainly a better course than risking the health of the St. Johns River.
Both air and water temperatures are still in the high 80’s, the largemouth bass bite has been good to excellent from Lake Toho all the way down to the Kissimmee River. Because of moving water, the key as guides has been setting up on the outflow of the canals that connect the lakes.
Great numbers of bass are being caught over last week, although the size has dropped a bit in Kissimmee. We recommend setting up on the outflow points of the canals and working spinnerbaits, senkos or even crankbaits along the moving water.
When we find running water near any vegetation, you should find bait and bass. The flowing water is also creating bait schools, which in turn brings schooling bass to the surface early in the morning or later in the day.
While it is too early to really concentrate on crappie, the tasty panfish can be caught at the crack of dawn and will readily take a jig tipped minnow working around lily pads or submerged grass.
While this season is already setting up to be a good one, the additional water will help all of the Florida fishing!
Today I went out with Matt Dodge from Orlando, Florida. Because of the resent success we have had, we decided to head up to the “Big O” Lake Okeechobee . With the recent tropical storm Fay the rains have raised the lake back up over 14 feet. You can access the grass areas again where the bass really like to feed.
Matt and I decided to throw flapping shads, it’s like a rubber buzz bait. Simply just swimming it threw and across the top of the grass, it would cause explosions on the bait that would scare anyone that wasn’t dead already. It was just incredible, by the end of the day we caught over 40large-mouth bass up to 6 pounds.
What a great day, it is so good to see the lake back to it’s old standards!
If you are visiting South or Central Florida for work or vacation and want to experience the best bass fishing that there is to offer then please give us a call. We can be reached at (888) 629-BASS or email us fishing@bassonline.com
