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ARTS & CULTUREAs a destination, Central Florida is one of the world’s favorite places. But did you know that this tourism mecca is also a major center for the arts? Prepare to discover not only the art of Central Florida, but art, period. Start at the Salvador Dali Museum in St. Petersburg, home to one of the most acclaimed collections of a single modern artist in the world. Housing more than 2,400 Dali works, including paintings, illustrations and sculptures, the museum also features an outdoor “avant-garden” on the Tampa Bay waterfront.
Also in St. Petersburg, but on the other end of the artistic spectrum, are the works of glass artist Dale Chihuly, renowned for complex, multi-part glass sculptures and environmental installations. Presented at the Morean Arts Center, the entrance is announced by an iconic 20-ft sculpture created especially for the site.
People find themselves over-whelmed—maybe even overjoyed—at the scope and scale of works of art on the Ringling campus in Sarasota. The name “Ringling” may sound familiar, accompanied as it used to be by “Barnum & Bailey Circus.” Indeed, Sarasota was once the winter home of the famed circus, and it was where John Ringling retired, built an ornate bayside mansion and began amassing a world-class collection of works by the European masters.
Upon his death, Ringling bequeathed his estate and museum to the state of the Florida and the rest is art history, as the museum and campus have both expanded, now including more than 28,000 works from around the world along with a Circus Museum, the Historic Asolo Theater, lavish bayside gardens and the Ca’ d’Zan, former home of the circus king and his wife.
East of the Tampa Bay area, you can tour renowned American architect Frank Lloyd Wright’s “Child of the Sun” collection on the campus of Florida Southern College in downtown Lakeland. The largest one-site collection of Frank Lloyd Wright’s work in the world, it consists of 13 completed structures, including the Usonian House, finished in 2013 but based on a 1939 design. Both paid and self-guided walking tours are available.
Are there any other legendary artists represented in Central Florida? Glad you asked. In Winter Park north of Orlando, the Morse Museum hosts the world’s most comprehensive collection of works by Louis Comfort Tiffany (1848-1933), including the artist/designer’s jewelry, art glass, leaded-glass lamps and windows.
A world view of art combined with a local focus is the mission of the Appleton Museum of Art in Ocala, part of the College of Central Florida. In the horse-centric city of Ocala, it’s no surprise the Appleton also includes an equine art collection showcasing more than 3,000 years of history with works from around the world.
Serious art is seriously cultivated in Central Florida, but expect a touch of magic at specialty museums like the Wizard of Oz Museum in Cape Canaveral, where you’ll journey down the Yellow Brick Road with Dorothy, taking in a one-of-a-kind collection of rare and unique artifacts from the classic story’s remarkable history.
Art and culture take a festive turn at Central Florida’s many open-air arts districts, with Eau Gallie in Melbourne the perfect example of how art and artisans meet and mingle with music, crafts and food under the Florida sun.
If one word can describe the history of Central Florida, it’s “momentum.” And maybe “horsepower.” The Spanish introduced cattle and horses to the state, and Central Florida saddled up in a big way. By mid-century, Central Florida was second only to Texas in per capita value of livestock in the South.
In Lake Wales, Lake Kissimmee State Park’s 1876 Cow Camp Living History Reenactment brings this heritage to life with demonstrations of the early Florida cow hunters in an 1876-era cow camp, complete with a “cow hunter” who might be cooking, making coffee, tending to the cattle, or just resting up until it’s time to move on.
North of Kissimmee, Florida’s first thoroughbred horse farm opened in Ocala in 1943, and the thoroughbred horse industry was out of the gate. Today in Ocala/Marion County, more than 35,000 thoroughbreds are stabled at 600 horse farms that over the years have produced 45 national champions, six Kentucky Derby winners, 20 Breeders’ Cup champs and six Horses of the Year.
Guided horse farm tours are offered throughout the year, or you might get lucky and visit during one of the national and international horse competitions hosted annually in the “Horse Capital of the World,” the premier event being the HITS Ocala Winter Circuit, held mid-January through March every year.
Horsepower of a different kind took off in Florida when “horseless carriage” races began on the hard-packed sand of Volusia County’s beaches in 1903, ultimately leading to the birth of NASCAR—founded at the Streamline Hotel in Daytona Beach—and the creation of the fabled Daytona International Speedway, home of the Daytona 500.
But the fastest of all—taking off at a mind-boggling 25,000 miles an hour—are the rockets blasting off at the Kennedy Space Center on Merritt Island, launch point for the Apollo and Space Shuttle programs as well as government and commercial ventures. You can boldly go where…actually, where many others have gone before, at the Kennedy Space Center Visitor Complex, whose attractions include the U.S. Astronaut Hall of Fame, a Rocket Garden and dozens of immersive experiences and simulations.
West of Daytona, time slows down and may even reverse along the River of Lakes Heritage Corridor that threads through West Volusia as it follows the St. Johns River and its tributary lakes, connecting travelers to heritage and cultural sites in Old Florida cities and towns like Glenwood, DeLand and Cassadaga.
On the Gulf Coast, the Cortez Historic Fishing Village west of Bradenton is Florida’s oldest active fishing village, connecting the state’s historic past with current sustainable fishing practices. Founded around 1880 by fishermen from Carteret County, NC, these families have retained control of this village and still sustainably fish the Gulf. Cortez, on the National Register of Historic Places, is also home to the Florida Maritime Museum and delicious local fish restaurants.
Also in Bradenton, don’t miss the Bishop Museum of Science and Nature, the largest natural history museum on Florida’s Gulf Coast and home of The Parker Manatee Rehabilitation Habitat, which has rehabilitated more than 40 manatees and is currently home to three: Janus, Iclyn and Aria. Visitors can also learn about astronomy at The Planetarium and view fossil evidence of Florida’s earliest animal inhabitants. The earliest people on the peninsula start the journey through the centuries at the Tampa Bay History Center, set on the Tampa Riverwalk and including three floors of permanent and temporary exhibition galleries focusing on 12,000 years of Florida’s history.
Heading north along the Gulf coast, just north of St. Petersburg, you’ll come to the historic seaside village of Tarpon Springs, a tiny town of 52 in 1887 but expanding (like a sponge) after a group of Greek sponge divers and their families migrated to Florida in the late-1800s and early-1900s to harvest sponges, then stayed on to build a colorful community like nowhere else in the state. Today, in addition to colorful dockside attractions and eateries, Tarpon Springs is home to one of the state’s last working commercial waterfronts, and crowds gather to watch the sponge boats return with the day’s haul.
Just north of the Tampa Bay area is a veritable playground of outdoor adventures along Florida’s Sports Coast, which includes Anclote Key State Park and the towns of New Port Richey, Wesley Chapel, Dade City and Zephyrhills. Yes, you could spend your time relaxing on a beach, but this is no time to sit back, not when kayaking through mangrove tunnels, exploring underwater reefs or grabbing some air while cable wakeboarding.
And we haven’t even talked about the extreme sports yet—like skydiving over Zephyrhills, taking Motocross lessons in Dade City or hot air ballooning in Wesley Chapel. Relax afterward with some fresh-caught seafood paired with fresh-picked produce and a locally brewed beer.
Keep heading north along the Gulf, where the population decreases and wildlife increases, and the landscape expands into huge tracts of forestland and pristine natural springs. You’ve reached Citrus County and the towns of Crystal River and Homosassa, known as the “Manatee Capital of the World.” Every year these gentle giants migrate to perennially warm spring waters where you can not only view them but swim with them; experienced guides are on hand to make this unforgettable experience happen.
Citrus County is also the gateway to what’s been called “One of the 10 Coolest Places You’ve Never Been in North America”—Withlacoochee State Forest, Florida’s third largest state forest with thousands of acres of trails and caves to explore.
Also part of this spring-and-forest heartland is Florida’s Adventure Coast, which includes Brooksville and the vintage Florida attraction of Weeki Wachi Springs, whose underwater mermaid show has been thrilling audiences for more than seven decades.
In fact, inland Central Florida is an eco-centerpiece of parks, lakes, forests and preserves, with enough square mileage to let you disappear into the wilderness, while trails and campgrounds are never far away. Ocala National Forest alone features more than 600 lakes and rivers where visitors enjoy swimming, fishing, snorkeling and paddling, surrounded by migrating birds and some of the world’s rarest plants.
Charming Old Florida towns here provide a great base for exploration, including Inverness, Wildwood, Mount Dora, Leesburg and Ocklawaha, the latter featuring a fascinating historical footnote—Ocklawaha was the site of a shootout between federal agents and the “Ma” Barker gang in 1935.
Orlando may be known for its high-tech theme parks, but nature is a big theme here too at places like Gatorland, whose 110 acres are filled with thousands of alligators and crocodiles, a free-flight aviary, petting zoo, shows and a zipline adventure.
Keep going toward the Atlantic Coast and New Smyrna Beach, which combines an old-time Florida vibe with eco-experiences like an Outdoor Watersports Trail where paddlers glimpse dolphins at play in the shallows and pelicans building their nests in a rookery.
More encounters with nature are waiting at Canaveral National Seashore, longest stretch of undeveloped Atlantic coastline in Florida, where sea turtles lumber ashore to lay their eggs while rockets prepare to explore space at the Kennedy Space Center on Merritt Island to the south.
In addition to more than 300 bird species, scores of threatened and endangered animals make their homes at the Seashore, including the West Indian Manatee.
When the stars come out at night, so does the underwater bioluminescence—created by tiny organisms living in the waters of Mosquito Bay and other offshoots of the Indian River Lagoon, one of the most biologically diverse estuaries in North America. These tiny creatures react by glowing when a hand, or a paddle, slips below the water’s surface. See this phenomenon for yourself with BK Adventure, offering nighttime bioluminescent kayak tours—including clear kayak tours—through the Indian River Lagoon.
Continue along the Atlantic coast south of Melbourne to Sebastian…then make a right, because instead of the typical beach getaway, you’re going to enjoy a riverfront escape to incredible natural areas like St. Sebastian River Preserve State Park, home to rare grassy forests of longleaf pine. Miles of trails pass through flatwoods, cypress domes, sand hills and a beautiful strand swamp—all habitats sheltering native plants and animals.
Set between the Atlantic Ocean and the Indian River Lagoon, Vero Beach is laid-back, palm-lined and nautical, with gorgeous attractions like McKee Botanical Garden, where an 18-acre jungle landscape includes more than 10,000 plants, a children’s garden and events including the Annual Waterlily Celebration.
Relax and renew at the family-friendly Cypress Cove Nudist Resort in Kissimmee, featuring a 50-acre lake, onsite recreation and protected wetlands. In New Port Richey, The Hacienda is a classic 1927 Florida “pink” hotel, completely restored to its Spanish-Mediterranean splendor.