5 Local Attractions in Orlando Besides the Theme Parks

Here, its all about the city, Orlando. If you want to, you can go and check out these local secret places where you will enjoy yourself a lot.

Wekiwa Springs State Park

My only experience of Orlando so far has been through Playlist Live and the theme parks. This is totally different than what I expected. If you look at Florida from a map, you can see that so much of it is a giant wetland. There’s a crystal clear spring here that puts out beautiful water. There are a nice bar and a good vibe. It’s definitely not what I expected. I’m stoked to hop into the water because apparently, it’s 72 degrees Fahrenheit all year long.

Wekiwa Island, a secret spot in suburbia where all the locals go. First magnitude spring with 55 million gallons of water flowing out of it. It’s about 2 hours, or about 3 miles and just all kinds of amazing wildlife on the way. I just made it up to the springs, which are the source of the freshwater that is flowing through the river and it’s really beautiful.

It’s crazy to think that most of Orlando were built in the 1980s after Disney World was built in 1971. These lands have been the home of the Seminole Tribe for thousands of years. At first, it’s hard to see how you could survive here. But then, when you look more closely, there’s freshwater; there’s tons of wildlife, and it’s even possible to farm.

Foxtail Coffee

You should definitely try a siphon. It’s like a kind of chemistry experiment. This is a historic neighborhood called Winter Park, which is founded in the 1880s as a winter resort for people living on the East Coast. Siphon method, kind of a steampunk hunter’s version of making a coffee, and it is a really nice way to drink it. Definitely a much needed caffeinated break after paddling around all afternoon.

Jack Kerouac House

It’s the house of one of my favorite humans of all time: Mr. Jack Kerouac. This seemingly ordinary house is the former home of my favorite writer: Jack Kerouac. He was living here when he became famous for his most popular book: On the Road And it’s also where he wrote the book: Dharma Bums. Jack Kerouac was from a group of writers called the Beat Generation, basically, post World War Two. Instead of following the typical American dream, the Beat Generation took off across America to discover the truth of life through direct experience, self-reliance, and self-expression.

He moved there right at the beginning of September of 1957. Soon after that, he went to New York City because “On the Road” was about to be released and have a big party. He left here this kind of no-name writer. Of course, by the time he came back, he was a national phenomenon. The book was just a huge, smashing success right out the door. So, he became instantly famous.

Jack Kerouac is undoubtedly one of the most influential writers in my life. This is the house where he wrote Dharma Bums, which is my favorite Jack Kerouac book. I have not read this book for a healthy ten years, but to be in the place where it was written, feeling awesome. I really love about this house and this neighborhood is that we’re just surrounded by these big, beautiful trees covered in Spanish moss. It’s been turned into a writer’s residence.

Tako Cheena

They have some kind of Asian fusion tacos. Today Orlando is a diverse city. There’s a large Chinese population and also Latin population. One of my favorite things about this place is right when I walked in, I saw the masks, had a childhood flashback. They have the masks from “The Three Ninjas”.

Everything looks super good, and the smells coming off from the foods are incredible. It’s not just Chinese or Mexican, or Korean tacos, it’s kind of pan-Asian. Also, it’s got Indian dishes, Korea, China, and the result is just awesome.