Hot spots: Indoor attractions offer cool-down options
Yes, it’s crazy hot outside. But yes, there are options to steaming and standing in line for a ride. Orlando has many indoor attractions to fill the overheated vacation and staycation time. Here are five combo packs that offer direct sunlight only whilst you are moving from the car to the gate.
Merlin minds
Icon Park offers several 1-2 attractions punches, but consider a stroll through Madame Tussauds Orlando then winding through Sea Life Orlando Aquarium. They’re both in the large building at the base of the Orlando Eye, so there would be no heat or rain to fret about in between stops. All three of those attractions are owned by Merlin Entertainments, so there are ticket bundles available.
Tussauds features wax-based replicas of famous folks ready for their close-ups and your selfies. A recent addition is a new version of Taylor Swift, one of 13 poses created for Tussauds outlets worldwide. Sea Life is home to creatures such as sharks, turtles, stingrays, jellyfish and seahorses, and the structural highlight is probably the Ocean Tunnel that gives dry landers an all-around look at underwater life.
Merlin also runs Sea Life Florida Aquarium, which opened next door to Legoland Florida in Winter Haven earlier this year.
More info: madametussauds.com and visitsealife.com
Go: Karts and cars
At Dezerland Park, which bills itself as Florida’s largest indoor attraction, double up on driving-related activities. The building houses electric Go-Kart courses, including a major hairpin. Nearby is the Orlando Auto Museum with 2,000 vehicles worth $200 million. Some are old and rare, some are big-screen famous and others are just, well, unusual.
Those attractions are separately ticketed. There are additional Dezerland options, such as bowling, axe throwing, pinball, laser tag, movie theaters and Jumpstart, which blends sports and trampolining.
More info: dezerlandpark.com
Old and new tech
More than a century ago, the Titanic, a modern sea-going marvel, sank in the Atlantic. Some 200 items (and replicas) from the liner are on display at Titanic: The Artifact Exhibition, including a formidable chunk of the ship’s actual hull. The attraction recently added a black-glass necklace recovered from the ocean floor and thought to be another possible relic from the ship.
Tech today allows adventure in a headset. Moving south down International Drive from the Titanic attraction is Sandbox VR, newly opened at Pointe Orlando. The attraction features headsets and full-body motion capture for experiences titled “Squid Game Virtuals,” “Amber Sky 2088” and “Curse of Davy Jones.”
More info: titanicorlando.com and sandboxvr.com/orlando
Visitors weave through Ripley’s Mirror Maze. (Courtesy Ripley Entertainment)
Believe it times 2
It’s odd, and that’s OK. The Ripley’s Believe It or Not Museum has a slew of items related to heaven and Earth, including a room devoted to the freak show that is Florida. But there’s also movie-making tributes and Feel Far Out, a space section, that shows off a 3,197-pound meteorite as well as a “Star Wars” lightsaber wielded on screen by Luke Skywalker.
Its next-door neighbor is sister attraction Ripley’s Mirror Maze, which messes with your mind with reflections (and reflections of reflections) and LEDs that distort the pathway through.
Not coincidentally, Ripley’s daily cartoon for Monday told us that “the human brain is less capable of complex decision-making when it’s too hot outside.”
More info: ripleys.com
Escape from I-Drive
Two Orlando museums have fresh offerings, though walking between the two would not be recommended this week.
The Orange County Regional History Center presents “Orlando Collected,” a gathering of items related to pop culture, politics, parks and more in honor of the 150th anniversary of the city’s founding. This Friday, the downtown museum has a “lunch and learn” session on the making of the exhibit.
Meanwhile, Orlando Science Center (about 2.5 miles to the north in Loch Haven Park) has four levels of exhibits and films plus its current exhibit called “DC Superheroes: Discover Your Superpowers.” Capes are provided.
More info: OSC.org and thehistorycenter.org
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