5 Of My Favorite Places To Visit In The Central Florida Area With A Kiddo

[I want to preface this post by letting you know that this is NOT sponsored in any capacity. Just my 100% honest, genuine opinions based on my family’s visits to these locations this year.]

Looking for a few fun things to do in the Central Florida area with your kiddo(s) beyond just Disney & Universal? Here is a short list of a few of my favorite places to visit that are not only incredibly FUN, but also don’t break the bank or have crazy long wait lines:

LEGOLAND & The pirate Island Hotel: Legoland is actually located in Winter Haven, Florida, jussssst outside of Central Florida, but it’s one of my favorites so we are going to just ignore that little detail, okay? Upon arrival to the property, I was immediately BLOWN AWAY. No exaggeration, the property is incredibly fun with every detail created with children in mind. The hotel rooms are not only outstanding, having a separate children’s sleeping areas within the room, legos are naturally everywhere (other than the floor, of course!) and the level of detail put into the decor and the property as a whole, are truly outstanding! The entire property, even down to the bathrooms are focused on children more so than that of any hotel I’ve ever stayed at. There were so many fun little hidden details, from the fun music and lights within the elevators to the giant floating legos within the pools! If you haven’t visited Legoland & spent the night at its Pirate Island Hotel, YOU MUST. The hotel alone is a total GEM!

In addition to the Pirate Island Hotel, we also truly enjoyed our visit to the Legoland theme park. It is MASSIVE! In fact, it had so many things to do and see that we didn’t even get to it all in one day! I highly, highly recommend visiting the Legoland theme park and spending the night on property. You will not regret it and your kiddos will love every minute of it! Legoland also offers various seasonal themed celebrations that sound equally amazing! Personally, we are hoping to participate in their Halloween and Christmas activities this year!

Peppa Pig Theme Park: This quaint little theme park is nestled right onto the same property as Legoland, making it a quick 5 minute walk from the Pirate Island hotel to the park entrance. No joke, FIVE MINUTE WALK! Not only are the ticket prices incredibly affordable, this park is perfect for young children and completely catered to a young age group. In my opinion, kiddos under the age of 10 would enjoy this park the most. My 4-year-old was able to ride every single ride in the park (riding many of them multiple times) and absolutely loved the children’s splash pad area. The wait lines were never long, which made the park experience even more enjoyable! This park is truly something special and worthy of a visit, especially if you are already visiting Legoland or staying at the Pirate Island hotel. My daughter loved it and we will 100% be back!

Easter morning on our balcony suite at the Gaylord Palms! Such a magical way to spend a holiday!

Gaylord Palms Resort & Convention Center: This property is hands-down my favorite resort to stay in the Central Florida area. You can literally plan a getaway to this property and be fully entertained just by walking around in the massive atrium! There is not only a full waterpark on property, but also a spa, arcade & variety of restaurants and bars. I HIGHLY recommend planning your visit during their Halloween, Christmas or Spring celebrations because in my opinion, this resort simply can not be outdone during the holidays! The level of detail put into the decor and activities to make a holiday event special is AMAZING and the main reason why I will keep visiting this property time and time again! Check out my previous blog posts detailing each of my seasonal visits and the special events offered during those times! You won’t regret it and your children will enjoy the absolutely MAGICAL experience this property creates for them!

Crayola Experience: Quaintly nestled into the Florida Mall is the Crayola Experience. I must say, once we stepped foot inside, I was blown away by not only how large the property is (two stories!), but also the wide variety of activities there are for kiddos! Majority of activities are not only free, but also very interactive! From making our own crayons and personalized coloring sheets to having fun watching our designs come to life on a projected screen, we thoroughly enjoyed our visit! They also offer separate play areas for toddlers and bigger kids in addition to a cafe and even rooms available for reservation if you wanted to host a birthday party. I highly recommend making this a day trip, especially during the hot Florida months! It was a great way to beat the heat and have fun creating! Crayola Experience also offers seasonal activities, so we plan on returning to check out their holiday events this season!

The carousel within Sesame Street Land at SeaWorld Orlando

SeaWorld: Are you surprised a “major theme park” made it onto my list? I kind of am, but let me explain! As someone who’s grown up in the Central Florida area and has frequented every major theme park more times than I can count, I have become thoroughly impressed with SeaWorld and our experience as pass holders over the past year. Personally, I would take SeaWorld over it’s major competitors any day of the week- Especially when visiting with a kiddo. Why might you ask? Well, in addition to being ALLOWED TO USE A STROLLER WAGON, we typically arrive right when the park opens and are able to get onto any ride without a long wait!

Sesame Street Land (which is located within SeaWorld) is also 100% catered to young children, so there is a wide variety of rides, affordable food and interactive experiences for little ones that do not involve a 60-180 minute wait like certain competitor theme parks. I don’t know about you, but the last thing I want to do is stand in a line that is longer than 30-45 minutes for a ride- ESPECIALLY in the Florida heat. I just won’t do it. Don’t get me wrong, lines at SeaWorld CAN get long, but over the past year of being a pass holder and frequently visiting the park with my kiddo, we quickly realized that if we show up right at park opening and plan on leaving around 2-3PM or so, we beat all of the long lines.

Also, as platinum pass holders, the perks are simply incredible! Preferred parking, solid discounts on merchandise in stores, on food/alcohol, tons of free guest passes, incredible discounts for friends at all of their other properties (Aquatica, Discovery Cove & Busch Gardens), free animal encounters, unlimited visits to Aquatica and Busch Gardens and even additional discounts for their halloween events and other seasonal activities. I am also emailed monthly with a new “pass holder perk.” I just truly feel like SeaWorld goes above and beyond for their pass holders to make you feel valued, happy, and taken care of. One final fun fact- three platinum passes (their top tier pass) at SeaWorld are STILL more cost efficient and provide you with more perks than a SINGLE top tier pass at other major competitor theme parks in Orlando. You truly get a lot of “bang for your buck" in my opinion!

Btw, If you’re a fanatic of the major competitor theme parks, don’t come at me for this post. I like using my stroller wagon and don’t like insanely long wait lines or CONSTANTLY raising ticket prices for a decent theme park experience!

So tell me, which of these places in the Central Florida area do you think you would be visiting first? What are some of your favorites? Let me know in the comments!

Until next time!

XO, Nikki