How would you like to visit all of Orlando’s more than 100 Attractions in 67 days? Well that is what Kyle and Stacy are doing, sponsored by Orlando/ Orange County Convention and Visitor Bureau and 67daysofsmiles.com. Kyle Post and Stacy Doornbos were the couple chosen by 67DaysofSmiles.com to be their ambassadors in Orlando. They will experience all of Orlando’s attractions in 67 days.

Orlando has tons of fun and excitement, so some of you might envy Kyle and Stacy but I’m not sure I do. I know what it is like to go on vacation with a “Vacation Nazi.” Whether you like to go at a slower pace or faster pace, like Kyle and Stacey it’s all good as long as you are having fun. And since there is so much to see in Orlando I guess it wouldn’t hurt to have a tight schedule.

More articles to come detailing where Kyle and Stacy have been, you can follow Kyle and Stacy’s adventures here on FloridaForLocals.com or on twitter and look for Kyle and Stacy’s updates on the Visit Orlando Facebook fan page for chances to win some cool Orlando prizes.

On our first day, we got to go to Discovery Cove.  There’s so much great stuff to do there!  Snorkel next to sharks (don’t worry there’s glass between you), float down a beautiful river, feed tropical birds, and of course, swim with dolphins.

The only down side to Discovery Cove is that it’s not cheap.  BUT the admission includes EVERYTHING for the day.  All you can eat food and drinks, lockers, wet suits…  PLUS they only let in 1,000 people a day so it feels more like a resort than an amusement park. I’m a cheap Dutchman, but when I was there I kept thinking “man, in 5 years you wouldn’t really miss the money you spent but you would remember the experience forever”.  To me, that makes it worth every penny.

Gatorland
Ok, not gonna lie, we didn’t know what to expect from Gatorland (thoughts of Alligators in cages and road side attractions came to mind)…  but we were BLOWN AWAY!  It’s actually a really beautiful, well kept park with a huge nature preserve in the back.  The staff is so cool and feels like family (maybe a dysfunctional gator wrastlin’ family… but still).  We had so much fun!  GO TO GATORLAND!

The Holy Land Experience
On day eight, we went to The Holy Land Experience where they have live shows, exhibits and artifacts to create a living museum of biblical times. One thing we didn’t know before visiting is that they actually have the world’s largest private collection of biblical artifacts!

Forever Florida (Zipline)

Take a right on Holopaw rd. go just past rattlesnack ln. and you will be at Forever Florida. Yes it’s quite a ways out of town, but that’s the whole point. They call it a moonlight safari, and they weren’t exaggerating! To get out to the course our group (6 of us…never more than 10) took a short hike in complete darkness as our guides told us about the wildlife in the area. Then came the main event…zip lining! The zip line course is LONG…I’ve never seen anything like it before. There are 7 zips and two bridges in the course that is right at the tree line. My favorite part was zipping over ponds where I could see my reflection (it looked like I was Peter Pan). The zips themselves are up to 55ft high and you can catch speeds up to 35 mph. The only downfall to zipping at night is that you can’t see how high you are, which takes away some of the excitement. To fix this try to get your reservation for the first group to go out on Saturday nights, then you will be zipping as the sun goes down (so you can see how high up you are). Moonlight zips at Forever Florida are a great place to bring a date for a fun evening and for the month of September they are offering a special for Florida’s residents…check it out!

Boggy Creek Airboats
Today we got to feel like real Floridians as we took an airboat tour at Boggy Creek Airboats. We really loved it. It was the perfect combination of adventure, thrills and peacefulness. Our guide Jeff was really cool and he knew a lot about all of the local wildlife we got to see. For instance, did you know that Florida has the second highest Bald Eagle population in the US? We actually got to see a few of them, along with a ton of other birds, flowers and even wild gators!

Revolution the Off Road Experience

I bet you didn’t know you could do THIS in Orlando… Revolution the Off Road Experience has four wheeling, 4×4, dune buggying and more. It’s like the crazy cousin’s house that your parents wouldn’t let you go to until you were 16 (you have to be 16 to drive the 4 wheelers). I grew up with a four wheeler so it was really fun to get back on one and head back into the woods. You actually go on a guided trail with twists, turns, mud puddles and sand hills. Stacey on the other hand was more of a novice to four wheeling and she ran into a little mishap on the trail.

Sammy Duvall’s Water Sports Centre
Whew. Today was a full day! We started early parasailing at Sammy Duvall’s Watersports Centre just outside of the Magic Kingdom. What an amazing way to see Disney World. It’s technically the highest “ride” at Disney at just over 300 feet. That’s taller than the Statue of Liberty ‘yall! Even if you have been parasailing before, I guarantee you didn’t get this view! After that we got to ride Sea-D0os on a guided tour of Bay Lake and the 7 Seas Lagoon (the big lake in front of the Magic Kingdom). It was really incredible. We got to see Disney from a side that few people do (unless you take the tour too). We rode our Sea-Doos under the monorail, next to the abandoned “River Country” water park, and even got some inside Disney scoop. For instance did you know that the 7 Seas Lagoon actually used to have a wave maker that created waves big enough for surfing competitions? We also found the best place to see the fireworks show outside of the Magic Kingdom. But we can’t give away all of our secrets, to find that one out you will have to take the tour yourself!

Blue Man Group
I don’t even know how to describe this show. It’s like a combination of a rock concert, an interactive underground party and the three stooges all rolled into one LOUD raucous night! There were times that the music was so loud that it felt like it was actually coming from inside of me! I loved sittingnext to Stacey, and my parents and hearing my dad laugh at the top of his lungs at one moment, and my mom with a momento from the show (it’s very interactive) then hear my mom gasp with excitement the next. It was one of those shows that I kept looking at my watch, not because I wanted it to end, but because I was praying that it wouldn’t! Go see Blue Man Group. Take your kids, take your friends, take your parents because I guarantee they will love it (mine sure did).

DeLeon Springs State Park
This morning we headed about an hour north of downtown to DeLeon Springs State Park for some r&r in nature. The springs were first settled by Native Americans almost 6,000 years ago. Since then it has been a plantation, winter resort and now it’s a great place to spend the day with family. From homemade pancakes made right on your table, to kayaking, to Eco boat tours (and of course the continually 72 degree fresh water) DeLeon Springs is great place to unwind, cool down and just enjoy a day outdoors. This may not be the Orlando you get in a guidebook, but that’s the beauty of it: it’s a hidden gem.

Nickelodeon Hotel
One of the best parts about 67 Days of Smiles, and about Orlando itself is not only getting to do all kinds of fun stuff that make us smile, but also sharing those smiles with people that we love. Today my (Kyle’s) brother, sister in law and two adorable nieces came down to Orlando to share in the fun! I haven’t seen all of them since this winter, and my brother just got back from serving in Iraq as a Green Beret so just seeing them all was wonderful. What was even more wonderful was having a blast with all of them at Nickelodeon Family Suites!
This hotel has everything for kids, and kids at heart. We played in the enormous pool with tons of slides, got to watch an audience interactive Nick game show, experienced a 4D movie (my youngest niece Saedi was LOVING all the bubbles), ate a great meal complete with both kids meals and filet mignon! Then came the highest honer of the day: GETTING SLIMED!

Here’s a list of all the places recommended above and there is a map with directions and pinpoints below:

Discovery Cove 6000 Discovery Cove Way Orlando, FL (877) 434-7268	Gatorland 14501 S Orange Blossom Trl Orlando, FL 32837-6699 (407) 855-5496	The Holy Land Experience 4655 Vineland Rd Orlando, FL 32811-7339 (407) 872-2272
Boggy Creek Airboats 3702 Big Bass Rd Kissimmee, FL 34744-9331 (407) 344-9550	Revolution the Off Road Experience 4000 State Road 33 Clermont, FL 34714 (352) 400-1322	Sammy Duvall’s Water Sports Centre 4600 N World Dr Lake Buena Vista, FL 32830-8413 (407) 939-0754
Blue Man Group Sharp Aquos Theatre City Walk, Orlando, FL (407) 224-3200	DeLeon Springs State Park 601 Ponce Deleon Blvd De Leon Springs, FL 32130-3399 (386) 985-4212	Nickelodeon Family Suites 14500 Continental Gateway Orlando, FL 32821-5102 (407) 387-5437