I hope the title of this article explains a lot to you, namely the infamous “101” designation which supposedly is an old college course code for the most basic level of a subject area. That’s the idea with this article and this series in general: to give you a basic understanding of what the area is in terms of the tourism aspect.

While this is a Disney fan site, I think it’s important to expand our horizons and include what the entire area has to offer. After all, how many of us can honestly say that when we were in Central Florida, we didn’t go outside of Walt Disney World at all. While I know there are those who stick inside the arches for their entire vacation, it’s still to their benefit to know what are looks like from an overall standpoint, and as to where exactly Walt Disney World falls in the whole picture.

Now onto this first part of the series, where I thought it would be treason to not start out with the overall layout of the area. Therefore, let’s start out with the “tourism geography”, shall we?

To start things off, let’s talk about the different areas of Central Florida, shall we?

Please note: The black boxes represent (going clockwise) Walt Disney World, Universal Orlando, Downtown Orlando, and SeaWorld Orlando. Their sizes are meant to be approximations, and not actual representations. The Airport to the north is the Sanford/Orlando International Airport, and the one below is the Orlando International Airport. These figures were added to the image by myself.

The map you see above may just be the greatest map ever created for Central Florida tourism purposes. It was created by the Orlando-Orange County Convention and Visitors Bureau, which is a non-profit organization initially set up by the Orange County and Orlando Governments, which promotes the Orlando/Orange County area worldwide. In fact, if you want to get some great advice on your next vacation to the Orlando area for the only official source, check out their web site at www.orlandoinfo.com. They’re also responsible for booking the very large and beautiful Orange County Convention Center, of which the North/South Building is shown pictured below (there is also the West Build not shown):

But wait a minute, I’m getting off on a tangent here...

If we go back to the regional map, we’ll see that the tourism definition of “Central Florida” encompasses seven counties, namely Orange, Lake, Seminole, Osceola, Polk, Brevard, and Volusia Counties. By taking a look at the figures I’ve added to the map, you can see why most of time when folks are talking about tourism in Central Florida, they’re talking about Orange County.

That’s not to say that the other counties don’t have anything to offer.

Lake County is home to the “Mountains of Florida”...while not really “mountains” by any sense of the word, there are rolling hills in this county which is a rarity for a very flat and low lying state. These “mountains” have made the county a prime location for international Triathlon training, as well as a great place to experience the citrus era of Central Florida, as citrus groves once populated much of the area.

As you may have guessed as well, Lake County is named for its numerous lakes, over 1,400 to be exact. Take a look at www.lakecountyfl.com for more information.

Seminole county is reminiscent of more northern counterparts, as it is known more for its lazy rivers, lakes, and forested areas.

It has also came onto the Central Florida tourism scene by driving a significant amount of commercial aircraft traffic into it’s airport; so much so in fact, that the area has been forced to acknowledge that the Orlando International Airport is no longer the only major airport in region for attractions-bound travelers. You can check out all of the natural areas at www.visitseminole.com.

Osceola County is home to the cities of Kissimmee and St. Cloud, both of which I’m sure you’ve heard of before. In fact, their Kissimmee-St.Cloud joint marketing efforts are so effective, that most people traveling to the area think that they’re actually a hyphenated singular city! Their greatest effort, however, was to managed to take advantage of Walt Disney World’s position near their northwestern border and develop the Highway 192 tourist area, which is quite possibly one of the best areas like it in the region.

Also in the county is the Silver Spurs Rodeo, a Kissimmee tradition for over 50 years. Oh and by the way, don’t dare pronounce Kissimmee “Kiss-A-Me” or the locals will go nuts...it’s known around there as “Kissim-E.” If you think you can pronounce it right, head on over to www.floridakiss.com, partner.

Polk County is what I like to think of as the “great big open,” since it has large patches of natural Florida. Here, like Lake County, you’ll find the old Central Florida, or at least the cattle ranching part of it. Polk County has numerous nature preserves and ranches. On a much more exciting note, if you have been following the Cypress Gardens news as of late or are familiar with the old park, then you’ll know that it is currently being refurbished with new attractions thanks to the buyout of a very ambitious developer who also created the Wild Adventures Amusement Park in Valdosta Georgia.

For those who don’t know, Cypress Gardens is the oldest park in the State, and was famous for its lush manicured gardens, costumed southern belles reminiscent of the old days, and world class water skiing. So, if you’re ready to ride a rollercoaster next to some water-skiers and southern belles, then visit www.sunsational.org.

Next we take some high-speed action with a helping of fun in the sun, mixed in with more motorcycles than Orange County Choppers and West Coast Choppers combined. Of course, I’m talking about Volusia County, which is the proud home of The Daytona International Speedway (which holds the annual NASCAR Daytona 500 and the Pepsi 400), world famous Daytona Beach, and the annual Daytona Bike Week. They also have an interactive attraction next to the track called Daytona USA, which allows all of us race fans an opportunity to change tires in a pit crew, see up close how steep the banks are, and such.

Daytona is the only beach that I know of where you can drive your car right onto the beach, cruise down, and park if you like to. This is a slight homage to the old days of racing cars on nearby Ormond Beach, which gave way to the Daytona International Speedway being built in Daytona. In fact, NASCAR racing King Richard Petty (whose Richard Petty Driving Experience you can enjoy at the Walt Disney World Speedway adjacent to the Magic Kingdom parking lot) started his career racing on the beach there. If you’re ready to take in a race or the sun, steer towards www.daytonabeach.com.

If you looking for speed, but not necessarily on the ground, then you might be ready for an out-of-this-world experience in Brevard County, home to Kennedy Space Center. Kennedy Space center was the launching site for all NASA missions, including the Apollo 11 mission which placed the first humans on the Moon. Kennedy Space Center’s Visitors Complex has done a lot in recent years, including building the Saturn V Rocket Center, which houses a life-sized replica of the gargantuan rocket which carried all of the Apollo crews and their vehicles into orbit.

The Visitors Center has added a daily admission to its facilities, but the increased services and exhibits are worth the expense. When you go, however, go ahead and take the facilities tour: it’s the only way you can get into the restricted areas, and it’s a once in a lifetime opportunity to see the Shuttle Launch pads, landing strip, and the Vehicle Assembly Building. More important to us Disney fans is Port Canaveral, which is the home port for both Disney Cruise Line Ships; if you ever take a cruise on Disney Cruise Line in Florida, this is where you’ll be sailing from. Also in Brevard is Cocoa Beach, which is much more laid back beach than Daytona, and has the much-advertised 24 hour Ron Jon Surf Shop. If you wan to see why it’s “one of a kind”, then go to www.space-coast.com.

Now that we’ve seen some of the counties around Orange County and what they have to offer, what about Orange County, right? I mean, after all that is where all of the major attractions are, right?

Well, I’m afraid you’re going have to wait until next week, when I dive into Orange County (and a little of Osceola) and it’s regions that I call “Entertainment Districts.” Until then...

Thanks for stopping on by, and I’ll see you next week!