Orlando Travel Guide
I typically like to take an international trip during the summer, but with everything going on with COVID and the various travel restrictions, it forced me to look locally for a destination. Ideally, I wanted a location that would offer a decent amount of activities, coupled with a whole lot of relaxation. After scouring Airbnb for a couple of days, I found the perfect house to stay at, which is why I ended up planning a trip to Orlando. Luckily my good sis was down for the trip after showing her the Airbnb, so we booked our tickets, and I got down to planning our mini getaway. Sidebar: For any of my readers wondering what it was like traveling via a plane during Covid I will say it was not bad at all. The upside was that the plane was not packed, and getting through security was significantly faster than it was pre-COVID.
Where we stayed at: The Airbnb we stayed at was literally situated in the perfect location, and you can immediately tell that a lot of work and thought was put into the design of the house. The Airbnb is a guesthouse on the main property but was very spacious and modern for two people. The home offers amazing views of the lake from the bedroom and the dining area, but the pool and jacuzzi sealed the deal for me. You can find the link to the Airbnb we stayed here.
Activities: The attractions Orlando is well known for are Universal Studio and Disney World, but since we’re still in a pandemic visiting a theme park didn’t seem like the best idea, so I had to find unique alternative activities to do. High on my bucket list is taking a hot air balloon ride. I would be vacationing in Cappadocia and partaking in one of their dreamlike hot air balloon rides in my dream world, but if there’s anything 2020 has taught me is that tomorrow is not promised. My friend and I went on a sunrise hot air balloon ride with Orlando Balloon Rides and had a fantastic experience, so while I could not take my first hot air balloon ride in my dream location, I was able to take it at my dreamish price point. They had a promotion going on, which I believe they’re still offering, so we got our tickets at a discounted price, and the balloon wasn’t packed with a lot of people, which was plus.
The next day we did an 8 am kayaking tour with Get Up and Go Kayaking that ended with us in crystal blue refreshing water. This was our first time kayaking, and I am not exactly sure what I expected, but I certainly did not think it would be so labor-intensive. I was down for the count after 10 minutes, but our guide Ashley was excellent and made the entire experience fun from start to finish.
Some of the locals recommended going to Universal Boardwalk or Disney Spring, so we ended up going to Universal Boardwalk on our last day. Unless you intend to go on the rides, then I wouldn’t suggest going. The boardwalk only offers restaurants for a steep parking price of $26, so you would be better off finding somewhere else to eat if that was your aim in visiting.
Food: Below is some of the spots we ate at and others that were recommended.
Prato
Toro Toro
Tabla Restaurant
Reyes Mezcaleria
Th Robinson Cocktail Room
The Glass Knife
Morimoto Asia
Sixty Vines
Braccia Ristorante
The Briarpatch
