TRAVEL: Beyond Florida’s fab theme parks

MILES and miles of sunny coastline, countless golf courses, fabulous festivals, a fantastic nightlife and the world’s best theme parks make Florida one of the few holiday destinations that can truly boast of having something for everybody.

As well as many of America’s most vibrant cities, the Sunshine State has also got some of its most charming small towns and the excitement generated at attractions like Walt DisneyWorld is in stark contrast to the tranquillity found in vast areas of unspoilt natural beauty, like the Florida Everglades.

The theme park capital of the world is jam packed with action and fun for families, couples and the young at heart.

With great year round weather, enough theme parks to fill a lifetime and shopping galore, an Orlando holiday is guaranteed to leave visitors wanting a return trip.

The ideal holiday is when you mix relaxation time with fun and there are some great beaches a short drive from Orlando like St Petersburg or Clearwater on the west coast, which has the warm, calm water from the Gulf of Mexico.

Daytona Beach on the east coast is just two hours way and fantastic for a few days downtime away the magical mayhem of those famous theme parks.

But it’s those legendary theme parks such as Walt Disney World, Universal Orlando Resort and SeaWorld that really make Orlando a destination like no other! 

Make sure to book attraction tickets in advance of travel with your tour operator to guarantee the best value and prices, and cut out all the hassle. 

Florida is huge. To give an idea, it takes around 14 hours to drive from Key West in the south to Pensacola in the north and there’s a whooping 67 counties in between.

The weather helps drive the state’s tourism industry with mild winters and hot, balmy summers ensuring there’s never a shortage of tourists.

Florida is best explored by car. Anybody over 16 with a full driving licence can hire one and a sat-nav will make finding your way on and off those scary freeways a breeze.

There’s more toll roads in Florida than in any other US state but the prepaid SunPass Mini Sticker transponder is not expensive and it’s available in most stores allowing visitors to avoid queues, as well as saving time and money.

Most Irish visitors head for the thrills and spills of the theme parks, and it certainly is a ‘must’ but more and more are taking time to explore Florida’s stunning coastline with its countless bays, inlets and islands.

Miami Beach has long been a haunt of the rich and famous but Palm Beach scores equally highly in the glamour stakes.

Fort Lauderdale is a popular spot for families, offering a wide assortment of sports and recreational activities while to the south, the fantastic Florida Keys provides a tropical climate, beautiful beaches and clear blue waters.

With no rip tides and a gently sloping shoreline, Fort Myers Beach on Estero Island in Lee County is perfect for young or inexperienced swimmers.

The beaches at nearby Sanibel Island are among the best in the world for collecting seashells and the shoreline at Savastian Inlet State Park that straddles Brevard County and Indian River County is great for kite flying and surfing.

If horseback riding on the beach rocks your boat, head to the coast north of Jacksonville for Amelia Island, one of the few places in the US where it’s allowed.

The coast – and the planet – feels like it’s a world away at the Kennedy Space Centre, where kids can tour launch areas, meet an astronaut for lunch and train in space-flight simulators.

It’s also got a brilliant kids’ play dome complete with moon-rock wall for climbing and plenty of tunnels to explore and the Hubble 3D movie narrated by Leonardo DiCaprio is amazing.

Tampa’s Florida Aquarium will get excited feet back on the ground, but not for long.

Kids aged six and up can swim with tropical fish while certified scuba divers can cavort with the big fish in Shark Bay.

There’s also Wild Dolphin Ecotours on Tampa Bay where more than 500 bottlenose dolphins swim.

There certainly is a lot in Florida beyond the theme parks.