OTHER ORLANDO ATTRACTIONS
Gator Jungle: (Christmas, 407-568- 2885) Cruise a true Florida swamp in a pontoon boat while hungry alligators glide through the waters below.
Gatorland: (Orlando, 407-855-5496) Watch gator wrestling and then sample some yummy smoked gator ribs or deep-fried gator nuggets afterwards. With more than 5,000 alligators and crocs slithering around, plus three action-packed shows, Gatorland is truly a reptilian environment.
Sea World: (Orlando, 407-363-2200) The world's largest marine-life park exposes visitors to an underwater world populated with whales, dolphins, sea lions, manatees, and otters. In Shamu's Happy Harbor see Baby Shamu and Baby Namu, the newest additions to the Shamu family, born September and December of 1993, respectively.
Universal Studios: (Orlando, 407-363-8000) Universal Studios delivers five-star fun. Three times the size of Disney-MGM Studios, this movie-and-TV-studio-inside-a-theme-park is filled with a number of actual movie sets. The Gory, Gruesome, & Grotesque Horror Make-Up Show reflects the studio's rich history as producer of the original Frankenstein, Wolfman, and Dracula films, and shows how they got their looks.
Rides capture the essence of films such as E.T., Earthquake, and King Kong. Some say the Back to the Future one is the best in Orlando. Jaws is the newest here.
Perennially summer, it's hot: So choose from among the three different water parks, and take the plunge. Wet 'n' Wild (Orlando, 407-351-1800), Wild Waters (Silver Springs, 904-236-2121), and Water Mania (Kissimmee, 407-396-2626) have flume rides, water plunges, wave pools, slides, and other aquatic pleasures.
THE GREAT OUTDOORS
UNIQUE TOURS
Old-Fashioned Air Boat Rides: (Christmas, 407-849-4016) Travel along the St. Johns River and view Florida's natural splendor. As you glide through marshes and over swampy waters in the four-passenger air boat (ear plugs, a necessity, are provided), you may see alligators, bald eagles, and other creatures.
Europa Fun Kruz: (Madeira Beach, 813-393-2885) Day and evening cruises course the Florida coastline between St. Petersburg and Fort Myers. All aboard for live entertainment, a buffet meal, and a Las Vegas-style casino with slot machines, roulette wheels, and blackjack and poker tables that open for wagering nine miles offshore.
Central Florida Balloon Tours: (Winter Park, 407-294-8085) Sail high above the ground in a balloon. Various tours include an early-morning Champagne toast before take-off, continental breakfast after the one-hour tour, and a "first flight" souvenir certificate.
Florida Seaplanes: (Sanford, 407-331-5155) Track Florida wildlife-deer, wild pigs and turkeys, and manatees-by air, passing over the St. Johns River, Leesburg, the Harris lakes area, and the Kissimmee River.
THE SPORTING LIFE
Bass Challenger Guide Service, Inc.: (Orlando, 407-273-8045) There's a large-mouth bass inhabiting the waters of Central Florida and just waiting to take the bait. Transportation and taxidermy are available upon request.
Grand Cypress Resort Equestrian Center: (Orlando, 407-239-4608) Horseback riding for adults and children. Instruction available.
GOLF
Golfers will find no lack of courses to challenge their skills. Guests of the Swan and Dolphin hotels have priority access to the five 18-hole golf courses and one 9-hole executive links course on Disney property. The following nearby resorts also welcome visiting players:
Cypress Creek Golf & Country Club: (Orlando, 407-351-2187) The par-72, 18-hole course extends 6,952 yards.
Grenelefe Golf & Tennis Resort: (Haines City, 813-421-5004) Three 18-hole courses range from 6,082 to 7,325 yards.
Mission Inn Golf and Tennis Resort: (Howey-in-the-Hills, 904-324-3101) There are two 18-hole courses: moss-draped El Campeón, which was built in 1926 and has elevations up to 85 feet, and Las Colinas, named best new resort course by a top golf magazine when it opened in 1992.
CULTURE AND ART
The Charles Hosmer Morse Museum of American Art: (Winter Park, 407-644-3686) Spanning the late 19th century through the early 20th century, the Morse collection focuses on American and European paintings, sculpture, and the decorative arts. Works from the Art Nouveau, Arts and Crafts, Abstract, and Edwardian eras prevail. Among the highlights are Tiffany lead-glass windows and lamps.
Cornell Fine Arts Museum: (Winter Park, 407-646-1526) See more than 4000 different works, paintings and sculptures ranging from the Renaissance and Baroque periods up through contemporary American and European art.
Orlando Museum of Art: (407-896-4231) A fine collection of 19th and 20th-century American works, as well as pre-Colombian and African art. For children, there's Art Encounter, an interactive exhibit.
Frank Lloyd Wright Collection: (813-680-4116) On the campus of Florida Southern College in Lakeland see 12 structures, the world's largest collection of buildings in one place designed by the legendary architect.
