8 Hidden Gems and Quirky Places for Kids Near Orlando
Orlando is home to many incredible attractions for kids and families, from natural parks to theme parks and everything in between. As an Orlando Mom, I love SeaWorld and Gatorland visits just like the next Orlando Mom, but every now and then I feel like I want to do something just a little bit more…offbeat.
Enjoy discovering these uniquely quirky places to visit with kids near Orlando on your next ho-hum Saturday, and have the kids talking about all the kooky weirdness for weeks afterward.
In Case You’re Interested:
>> Super Fun Family Restaurants
>> Cheap Family Fun
>> Orlando Hotels with Waterparks
Hidden Gems for Kids in Orlando
Colonel Joe Kittinger Park
305 S Crystal Lake Dr, Orlando, FL 32803
This park, affectionately known amongst the Moms in my group as “The Airplane Park”, is cool and unique for its closeness to Orlando’s Executive Airport. Commuters will recognize this as the park with a giant fighter jet on a pedestal, towering over the 408 highway.
Kids will enjoy the playground and park spaces, which includes a picnic pavilion, where you can listen in on a loudspeaker that broadcasts what’s going on in the air traffic control tower. How cool is that!?
Watch planes taking off and landing and bring your aviation enthusiasts for a free and easy-going afternoon at the park.
Museum of Illusions
8375 International Drive Icon Park, Orlando, FL 32819
Next up – a museum to trick the brain and entertain everyone in the family on a rainy day. In many ways this museum mirrors the oddities found at Ripley’s, but on a whole different level. Optical illusion rooms allow for fun photo opportunities with friends, especially great for the tween and teen crowds.
Go for a fun family outing and enjoy creating quirky memories together! Located at ICON Park.
Bonus: Ages 4 and under are free! There is also free parking at the garage at ICON park on levels 4-7.
Orlando Circus School
6809 Visitors Cir, Orlando, FL 32819
This unique spot near I-Drive and Universal is really interesting for birthday parties, weekend classes or camps, and for the budding gymnasts in your lives.
Offering all manner of aerial circus training, kids can partake in aerial silks instruction, flying trapeze, aerial hoops, trampoline tricks and more.
Check their website for camps, classes and party details.
Wildflower Farm’s Baby Goat Events
2218 Carrington Dr, Orlando, FL 32807
Petting zoos are fun, and yoga is cool, but mix them together and you get…goat yoga!? This fun trend has been catching on, where little baby goats like to prance around the farm, stand on your back, or just hang and eat grass next to you.
Wildflower Farms amps up the quirkiness with baby goat events like reading with the baby goats, feeding the goats milk and grass, and even playing host to birthday parties, too!
What a fun way to do something just a little bit different on the weekends.
Vintage Amphicar Tours at Disney Springs
1620 E Buena Vista Dr, Lake Buena Vista, FL 32830
Located over by the Boathouse in Disney Springs, the Vintage Amphicar Tours are pretty darn unique. I can’t say I’ve met many opportunities to drive in an amphibious vehicle in my years of travel, let alone a totally tricked out classic car version of one.
Kids will lose their minds when they enter a pale colored, classic 1950’s style car and they drive right into the lake at Disney Springs. The tour then turns into a relaxing 20 minute boat ride, perfect at sunset before having a meal in the area.
Priced at $125 per car, it’s a bit steep but worth every penny!
Orlando Cat Cafe
532 Cagan Park Ave Suite 201-203, Clermont, FL 34714
Like goat yoga, the elusive cat cafe is a trend on the upward swing, and Orlando is catching on. With spots like Kitty Beautiful and Orlando Cat Cafe, families can have a refreshing beverage and a relaxing sit down with adoptable kitties.
It’s an adorable way to spend an hour or two with the family, and something your children will get to brag about later to their friends. Maybe you’ll even take home a new furry family member!
Related post: Cat Cafes in Tampa Bay
Cassadaga Fairy Trail
Chauncey Street &, Seneca St, Cassadaga, FL
Starting at the Cassadaga Bookstore and Welcome Center, get ready to do something really different and walk the loop trail at Horseshoe Park. The fairy trail is full of quirky little fairy houses, gnome retreats, butterfly photo ops and other spritely surprises.
It’s kind of like walking through someone’s very eclectic garden shop, but with a hint of fairy dust sprinkled on top.
Check out the truly unique town of Cassadaga when you are finished with the trail!
Snowcat Ridge
27839 Saint Joe Rd. Dade City, FL 33525
Hours are limited to Saturday and Sunday only, February – March 2025, more hours resuming in the winter season.
Snowcat Ridge is Florida’s only alpine snow park, offering a unique winter-themed experience near Orlando. It takes about an hour and a half to reach this snow park, but the variety of wintry attractions are worth a visit. Explore Snowy Slopes, a 400-foot-long snow tubing hill, and the Arctic Igloo, where kids can play in real snow and build snowmen. The Crystal Ribbon provides outdoor ice skating, while Alpine Village offers dining, shopping, and nightly light shows. With snow tubing, ice skating, and interactive winter fun, Snowcat Ridge is a quirky family-friendly destination.
Bringing all the offbeat charm, these quirky places to visit with kids near Orlando are a great start to unlocking the uniqueness that this “city beautiful” offers. So the next time the kids are saying they are bored and there is “nothing fun to do”, think outside the box with something just a little bit different.
