On our road trip to Florida from home in North Carolina, Orlando was one of the cities we visited.
If Orlando is where you’re staying on your Florida trip and want to do some exploring outside of the city, then we recommend doing this by car.
These are a few places you can visit on an easy day trip from Orlando that are within an hour’s drive or less.
Lake Buena Vista
Disney World circa 2012
When people hear about Orlando, they typically think about Disney World. I don’t blame them, we all grew up relating Orlando to Disney World through TV and movies.
But, did you know that Disney World isn’t in Orlando? It’s in the city of Lake Buena Vista which is owned by Disney!
If you are a huge fan of shopping, dining and entertainment – this city is for you. There are plenty of it to keep you amused without having to go to Disney World.
(And if you’re a huge Disney fan – do go to Disney World, don’t skip it!)
Merritt Island
N-A-S-A
This is where Kennedy Space Center is located and we highly recommend visiting if you are a fan of space (like me!) or in need of something different other than visiting a theme park. The Kennedy Space Center Visitor Complex is my most favorite attraction out of all of Florida!
You could easily spend a day, maybe even two days, to get a full experience. The coolest thing about it, is Kennedy Space Center is a real, working NASA field center. And if the timing is right, you might be able to witness a rocket launch.
Merritt Island is also a National Wildlife Refuge making it a home for various species of birds, plants, reptiles (yes, that means gators!) and other animals.
Winter Haven
Tristan posing with Lego Movie 2’s Emmet and Lucy
The biggest attraction here is LEGOLAND Florida which Tristan enjoyed as a huge LEGO fan! But if you’re not a fan of theme parks, Winter Haven is also known for its beautiful nature.
In nearby Lake Wales, the Bok Tower Gardens is known for its serene landscape and 205 foot tower called the Singing Tower. It houses a carillon (set of musical bells) that play the most enchanting tunes. This YouTube video gives you a fascinating insight about the tower and gardens.
Daytona Beach
Meshach and I first visited Daytona Beach in 2012 (pre-Tristan days) and on this Florida trip we brought Tristan who really loved it! This time we stayed there for a week but if coming from Orlando as a day trip, it’s a great place for a beach day.
Not only that, it’s also home of the famous, Daytona 500 at Daytona International Speedway which we were able to tour on our visit. If it gets too hot at the beach, we recommend at least taking their 30 minute Speedway Tour – the open air tram actually takes you around the race tracks! Cool, right?
St. Augustine
The historic city of St. Augustine
We visited St. Augustine on a different visit to Florida and we loved it! It has so much history on every corner and so much to do that I suggest making it an overnight trip if you can so you can get a better feel of the city.
It’s a longer drive than the other day trips I mentioned (2 hours from Orlando to St. Augustine) so if going for a day, you should leave early in the morning to make the most of your day. The day will be long but worth it!
For more information, check out our St. Augustine City Guide.
Where We Stayed
We stayed at Wyndham Orlando Resort International Drive on a hosted media visit. There are 613 non-smoking rooms, onsite restaurant Gatorville Bar & Grill, lagoon, outdoor play set for kids, fitness center, sauna, two pools and a hot tub.
The property has a convenient location within a few minutes walk to ICON Park. We did not get tickets to visit this time around, but from the hotel grounds we could see a cool view of the ICON Wheel and Orlando StarFlyer which were especially nice when lit up at night.
Also numerous dining and entertainment options that are stretched along the I-Drive strip (including Chili’s where we were addicted to their 1800® Stay-Cay ‘Rita!). You could also reach The Mall at Millenia from the hotel in 10 minutes. We ate at their P.F. Chang’s twice for dinner, it was so good!
Chili’s 1800® Stay-Cay ‘Rita
From here, you can easily drive to Orlando’s main attractions such as Sea World (15 minutes), Universal Studios (15 minutes) and Disney World (20 minutes). So this location is great if looking for a place to stay to do easy day trips or theme parks for the day. Which we were able to do while staying at Wyndham I-Drive.
If you don’t want to drive to the theme parks, a complimentary shuttle to Universal Studios and Sea World are offered to all guests but operates during certain times of the day. So please check with the concierge desk for pick up and drop off times.
If you want to visit Disney World on the shuttle, that route is not complimentary. You will have to pay a fee of $16 per person for a round trip ticket.
Also there is a $26 daily resort fee per room that covers internet, parking and the complimentary shuttle routes.
King size bed
Kid-friendly bunk beds in their Family Fun Suite
Contemporary decor throughout the rooms
Discounts: Wyndham is offering our readers a 20% discount off their Best Available Rate with no minimum nights required.
Please note that we always encourage you to do your own research online and make the decisions that are best for your situation when looking for places to stay, eat, and visit on your travels as prices and ratings often change and everyone has different experiences.
Are you a fan of theme park day trips and if so, where have you been? Or can you recommend other places to day trip from Orlando that may help our readers? Comment below and share this post!
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