Press Release - Escape the Ordinary in Kissimmee’s Great Outdoors
Escape the Ordinary in Kissimmee’s Great Outdoors
KISSIMMEE, FL (Summer 2009) – Travel professionals know that only minutes from the well-known, world famous theme parks of Central Florida is a slate of outdoor experiences and adventures that promise to delight and thrill clients. With lakes and other natural attractions having prominence in Kissimmee and Osceola County, visitors will find themselves engrossed with experiences like hiking, canoeing and wildlife watching at the area’s varied preserves or nature based tour providers that help define Kissimmee.
Since Kissimmee’s Lake Tohopekaliga (better known as Lake Toho) is noted for largemouth bass fishing, clients can experience this first-hand at Scenic/Eco Lake Tours departing from downtown Kissimmee. Captain Rick can take clients out for a fishing trip, no matter their experience level, with tackle rods, reels and Florida Fishing license included in the fare.
For clients wanting to get out on the water but without a tackle box, Scenic/Eco Lake Tours continues to provide hour-long scenic eco tours. Clients learn the history of Lake Toho while immersing themselves in the sights and sounds of nature, with common sightings of bald eagle, sandhill cranes, egrets, otters and alligators.
Clients also might want to explore Makinson Island on Lake Toho. With hiking trails, primitive campsites and picnic facilities, this park offers a break from civilization as it is only accessible by boat. Scenic/Eco Lake Tours can provide transportation to clients who didn’t bring a boat along for their Kissimmee getaway.
For high-speed thrills on Lake Toho, visit Boggy Creek Airboat Rides. Here, clients embark on wind-in-your-face nature cruises, gliding across the water for close encounters with native wildlife, including regular alligator sightings! In addition to Boggy Creek’s popular continuous half-hour tours, clients may choose a longer, private trip on a 6-passenger boat where they can get even more up-close to the exotic birds and reptiles. Exciting one-hour night tours also are available, where clients skim across the marsh in search of the red eyes of prey-seeking gators.
Another thrill available to clients is the new Zipline Safari at Florida Eco-Safaris at Forever Florida. Joining the preserve’s horseback and coach safaris, this experience elevates guests 55 feet above the ground for a tree-top nature tour. Clients will enjoy the sensation of flight as they zipline over natural streams, wetlands and through an ancient cypress forest at speeds up to 20 miles per hour. The new Zipline Safari takes riders on a two-hour adventure beginning with a short hike along a scenic section of the Florida Trail to the launching point of the zipline course.
After more than 50 years, Gatorland remains one of Central Florida’s oldest and wildest theme parks. Clients are sure to experience a thrill-filled day of gators, man-eating crocodiles, colorful birds and slithery reptiles. A 2,000-foot boardwalk winds through a natural cypress swamp allowing a surprisingly close view of wildlife, breeding marshes, gator nurseries, and rearing ponds. A three-story observation tower provides a breathtaking view of the 110-acre marshland filled with the hungry mouths of its popular residents. The attraction is also home to Gator Gully Splash Park, a water recreation area.
Slightly off the main tourism thoroughfare of Highway 192, families can discover Green Meadows Petting Farm, where kids and adults can get up-close and personal with a plethora of creatures. From peacocks to ostriches, llamas to cows, interaction is the theme. Clients are invited to step inside of pens with goats, sheep and pigs. The overall experience is not only fun-filled but also educational.
For a natural thrill ride, clients may visit Horse World Riding Stables. Here, they can enjoy a trail ride at an appropriate skill level set on 750 acres of peaceful Florida countryside. Groups may add to their hour-long sandy trail excursion with hay rides, horseshoe pitching, volleyball or fishing. Horse World offers a picnic pavilion where clients can bring along their own food or arrange for catered barbecue.
Travel professionals find all of this and more when planning their clients’ travel into the heart of Florida. Kissimmee offers more than 47,000 choice accommodations that keep clients right in the middle of the action. For information on planning a stay, visit travel.FloridaKiss.com.