Things to do / Travel Guide
With the year-round sunshine and two great coasts to enjoy, there's no shortage of outdoors fun to be had in Central Florida. While most people frequent the region's top attractions like the Kennedy Space Center, the theme parks of Orlando and Tampa, and the beaches of the Space Coast, the region in fact offers a wide variety of recreational opportunities to outdoors lovers. This is a picturesque land of lakes as well, and there are many small backwaters where you can explore what the region looked like before the Disney buildup.
Land-based Activities around Orlando and Tampa, Florida
You won't come across any mountains in Central Florida, but hiking through the region can return some fascinating rewards: a mosaic of habitats, like marsh and swamps, pine flatwoods, and hammocks crowd relatively small areas. In Tosohatchee State Reserve, you'll traverse these varied ecosystems while keeping your eyes peeled for bald eagles and hawks, otters and white-tailed deer, wild turkeys, and wild pigs. In Wekiva Springs State Park you'll see all these plus the occasional alligator to boot.
Many of these same parks and reserves are equipped with scenic mountain bike trails, giving you a panoramic and fast-moving view of nature. For city pedaling, Tampa's Bayshore Boulevard is a beautiful and scenic promenade along Hillsborough Bay. You'll pass many beautiful homes along the way, and behold stunning views of the city's skyline across the bay.
And while in Central Florida, you'd better hit the green, the region being a national hub for golf. If you arrive to the region by plane during daylight hours, you can help but notice how it's quite literally littered with dozens and dozens of golf courses! Your best bet is to steer your golf cart over to the ever-popular Orlando courses, like the Bay Hill Club's course. The Westin Innisbrook Golf Resort is another Golf Digest favorite.
Water Activities around Orlando and Tampa, Florida
Moving on to Central Florida's water activities, like fishing, it's good to remember that the area west of Orlando is covered with a large amount of lakes, some large, like Lake Apopka, some small like Lake Lucy. This is mostly shore-fishing territory, and the catches are usually catfish, bluegill, and sunfish. Of course, Central Florida is also a world-class destination for trophy bass fishing, as far down as Lake Kissimmee.
If sport fishing is your game, head to Cape Canaveral, where grouper, snapper, tuna, and sailfish are most sought-after. At Indian River Lagoon, on the shallows of quiet backwaters, search for elusive redfish, while farther out to sea you can catch yourself a king mackerel or strong cobia.
While not as famous as its southern neighbor, Central Florida offers some great diving and snorkeling opportunities as well. Over at Cape Canaveral, Melbourne Beach and Cocoa Beach will satisfy with shipwrecks and many natural ledges. Back around Tampa Bay, you'll have to choose between the extensive artificial reefs and spooky shipwrecks. There are schools and schools of fish scampering about these underwater objects, like barracuda, grouper, snapper, mackerel, and spadefish. Out of the wetsuit and into the fishing boat, you can try to catch yourself a tasty supper.
By kayak, you'll be able to circumnavigate St. Petersburg into Tampa Bay, with the Gulf of Mexico just to the west. At the southern tip of St. Petersburg you'll find the old Fort de Soto; you can explore the old fort, and breeze past the mangroves. Once inside Tampa Bay, there are a number of beaches you can run past to wave to the beachgoers. On the other side of the state, the Indian River is another favorite for kayakers, where you can spot dolphins and manatees beside you.
Hit the surf at some of the world-renowned beaches the region has to offer. Cocoa Beach is home to six-time world champion surfer Kelly Slater, and it's perfect for longboarding, with its slightly mellower waves. Sebastian Inlet, better known to surfers around the world as “the Inlet,” boasts the most consistent surf on the East Coast. First Peak is nothing but epic!
Central Florida from Above
You can't beat the two sunny coasts of Central Florida, or its lake-filled center. After you've had your fill of all the surface activity, be it within or outside the Disney mega-complex, take a ride to the sky in a hot-air balloon, or a thrilling freefall back down - skydiving. What a great way to cap off an outstanding outdoors vacation. Whatever you do, you'll always remember Central Florida as a happy place to reconnect with nature.
Outdoor Recreation in Orlando, Tampa, Cape Canaveral and Central Florida
Outdoor-Sports-Recreation
Merritt Island National Wildlife Refuge
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