Mount Dora has a lively downtown and a well-preserved historic district on a pretty lake. It’s a walkable small town with good dining and shopping. We love the great kayaking and biking nearby.
Orlando/Central Florida
Central Florida Getaways
Things to do in Orlando and Central Florida, hiking, bicycling, kayaking and canoe, RV and tent camping, road trips, historic places and Funky Florida.
Outdoor adventures near Orlando theme parks: See the real Florida when visiting Disney
We know what the big draw is in Orlando, and it’s not nature. But it should be! Even if your destination is a theme park, here are 9 natural experiences and places that are memorable additions to a visit to Central Florida
For your Florida bucket list: A nighttime bioluminescence kayak trip is a summer thrill
On dark summer nights in the Mosquito Lagoon near Titusville, the water glows from bioluminescent plankton. Kayak tours help visitors see the spectacular light show.
Lake Placid Caladium Festival, July 24-26, 2026.
This small town festival celebrates a uniquely Lake Placid product: caladiums, a colorful plant grown commercially almost nowhere else. There’ll be music, food, a car show, arts and crafts and tours bus of caladium fields.
Circle B Bar Reserve: Lakeland preserve with shady trails reopens a favorite trail
All trails closed for months from last year’s hurricanes reopened this week. Twenty minutes off I-4 between Orlando and Tampa, this little-known wildlife preserve has been called “a free safari.” There are several shady trails for summer visitors.
Swimming and tubing is back at Blue Spring State Park in Central Florida
Just in time for summer, this clear cool spring has reopened for swimming, diving and tubing after more than a year. The park is home to hundreds of manatees in the winter.