Orlando is centrally located in the state of Florida. It's central location puts it within 50 miles of famous Florida attractions such as the Magic Kingdom in Disney World and the Wizarding World of Harry Potter at Universal Studios. Many of these attractions offer private group tours, which include behind-the-scenes walking tours.
A 24-minute-drive from Orlando, Universal Studios offers concerts, roller coasters, restaurants and a Wizarding World. Universal Studios allows you to pet dinosaurs while visiting Jurassic Park, lets you pretend you're Spiderman on a 3D ride and puts you in the middle of a comic book as you stroll through Kings Row. Universal Studios Florida and Universal Islands of Adventure are connected by a bridge, allowing you to spend the morning riding roller coasters, such as the upside down and twister coaster, the Hulk, or get wet while escaping from a T-Rex on the Jurassic Park water ride. If you're looking for something more low key, the Universal City Walk is home to shows by the Blue Man Group, and restaurants such as the Hardrock Cafe and Emeril Lagasse's New Orleans-style restaurant, Emeril.
Walt Disney World is located in Lake Buena Vista, Florida, approximately 20 miles southwest of Orlando. Walt Disney World is home to four theme parks; the Magic Kingdom, EPCOT, Animal Kingdom and Hollywood Studios. Each park offers something different. The Magic Kingdom includes Cinderella's Castle, the Spectromagic Parade held on Main Street U.S.A. every night, and Toon Town, where you can walk through Mickey Mouse's home and garden. To taste cuisines from all over the world, visit EPCOT (Experimental Prototype Community of Tomorrow), where you can visit Aladdin in Morocco, Beauty and the Beast in France and Peter Pan in England. There are 28 Disney resorts located on the Walt Disney Property; each resort provides a complimentary shuttle service to the theme parks.
Located in Cape Canaveral, the Kennedy Space Center is only 43 miles from Orlando. Kennedy Space Center is the site where space shuttles are launched on designated dates throughout the year. The Center provides daily tours through the flight facilities and through behind-the-scenes areas. During your visit you can view a space walk in the IMAX theater, tour the U.S. Astronaut Hall of Fame to experience a flight simulator, and participate in a question-and-answer session with a retired astronaut. For smaller children, there is also an on-site play dome where children can walk on the moon, sit in rockets and climb on moon rocks. To view a shuttle launch at the visitor's complex or NASA Causeway, specific launch tickets are required at an additional fee.
