Best things to do in Florida

The world's largest vacation resort, Walt Disney World Resort features four theme parks, two water parks, five golf courses, and a sprawling shopping and entertainment area. The most visited resort on the planet, this vast entertainment complex attracts more than 50 million visitors each year. Developed by Walt Disney in the 1960s, the complex is now a self-contained city spread over an area of at least 171 sq km (66 sq mi). There are 24 on-site hotels. Grab a free resort map to plan out your days and evenings, balancing out shopping and entertainment with adrenaline-inducing roller-coaster escapades and calmer rides. Skip the long lines by purchasing your ride and show tickets in advance, and save money by making your dining reservations online.

Universal Orlando Resort inspires more than 7 million annual visitors to "ride the movies," offering a behind-the-scenes look at movie-making and TV shows. It features two theme parks, seven themed areas, numerous 3-D rides, hotels, restaurants, nightclubs, and shops. Created by one of the biggest film studios in the world, the complex provides a mix of rides, live shows, and costumed characters. As you walk around the centrally located lagoon, look for special appearances by Marilyn Monroe, Betty Boop, the Simpsons, Shrek, and Woody Woodpecker, the official mascot of the complex.

Hosting more than 8 million guests each year, Universal's Islands of Adventure ranks among the world's top theme parks. It features several distinctly themed areas, each with an eye toward adventure. You can explore a world of superheroes and cartoon characters on the park's roller coaster and train rides, or choose from a range of interactive live shows. As you journey through the islands, look out for Spider-Man, Harry Potter, and a slew of characters straight out of Dr. Seuss' imagination. The park includes several rest areas where you can sit down for a quiet meal or pick up a few souvenirs. Save money and time by booking your park experience well in advance. There's an on-site hotel.

Swim with bottlenose dolphins at Discovery Cove, a theme park that provides a more relaxing experience than the nearby mammoth entertainment complexes. You can interact with exotic birds in the free-flight aviary or explore the tranquil world of private beaches and heated outdoor pools. The park also contains a coral reef, where you can use the provided equipment to snorkel with thousands of tropical fish. To see the park's highlights quickly, take a boat ride down a tropical river running through the aviary and past sandy beaches, waterfalls, and rainforests. The park only admits a limited number of guests each day, so make your reservations well in advance.

SeaWorld blends elements of a theme park and marine life zoo. The vast complex also includes a 7 hectare (17 acre) lagoon and a tropical forest. See the famous killer whales in an arena show, or get a dose of adrenaline with a ride on an upside-down (floorless) roller coaster. To combine the best of both worlds, visit the oceanic water-coaster, featuring an 18 m (60 ft) vertical drop. You can also take part in the interactive deep dives, allowing you to have a safe, hands-off contact with sharks, stingrays, and sea lions. For something a bit more relaxing, enjoy one of many live shows, featuring choreographed performances with lights, music, dolphins, and costumed acrobats.

Take a look at a writer's creative space at The Ernest Hemingway Home and Museum, offering short tours of the house once occupied by the Nobel Prize-winning artist. Hemingway wrote some of his best works here, including the classics "The Snows of Kilimanjaro," "To Have and Have Not," and "Green Hills of Africa." Originally built in 1851 in the Spanish Colonial estate style, the house is 5 m (16 ft) above sea level, making it one of the highest sites on the entire island. Descendants of Hemingway's famous polydactyl cats (with six or more toes per paw) still roam the estate. Take a walk through the tropical garden, where the writer often entertained friends, or head inside to see Hemingway's writing desk, where he typed out the first drafts of many of his short stories and novels.

Hosting nearly 20 million guests each year, Magic Kingdom Park ranks among the most-visited theme parks in the world. Part of the world's biggest amusement park, which covers a vast area twice as large as Manhattan, this theme park is dedicated to fairy tales and Disney characters. The park's centerpiece is a replica of a fairy-tale castle from the 1950s' film "Cinderella." Six magical lands surround the castle, featuring boat and roller coaster rides, games, jungle cruises, train adventures, shooting arcades, and stage shows. Explore the themed lands of this wheel-shaped venue using Cinderella's castle as your hub. A narrow-gauge railroad runs along the park's perimeter and provides an excellent overview of the park before you start exploring.

The largest single Disney theme park in the world, Disney's Animal Kingdom Theme Park dedicates more than 200 hectares (500 acres) to the animal conservation philosophy once pioneered by Walt Disney. Divided into seven themed areas, the park blends elements of a theme park and zoo, offering rides through the diverse worlds of wild animals. You can go on a safari through Sahara or navigate a wild river in Asia, surrounded by zebras, lions, tigers, bats, iguanas, giant anteaters, wallabies, and other exotic creatures. Most animals are real, although some are animatronic. The park also offers an adrenaline-junkie's roller coaster, as well as carnival-style rides and games in an area designed to recall the roadside attractions once scattered throughout the country.

Sail along the scattered islands of Florida Keys before plunging into the alluring waters of the Gulf of Mexico on a snorkeling or scuba tour from Key West. With a variety of tours to choose from, you'll easily find one that meets your preferences. Whether you decide to spend a lazy afternoon aboard a schooner or fill your day with water sports--from kayaking to parasailing--snorkeling and diving alongside sea turtles, stingrays, dolphins, and manatees remains the focus of these tours that can last between 2 and 6 hours.