Although Kissimmee is primarily known as the gateway to Disney (technically, the vast Disney property of theme parks and resorts lies in both Osceola and Orange counties), its non-WDW attractions just might entice you for a visit. They range from throwbacks to old-time Florida to dinner shows for you and 2,000 of your closest friends. Orlando is still one of the country's prime cattle producers, and the best sampling of Florida cowboy life is here during the Silver Spurs Rodeo in February and June.
With at least 100,000 acres of freshwater lakes, the Kissimmee area brings anglers and boaters to national fishing tournaments and speedboat races. A 50-mile-long series of lakes, the Kissimmee Waterway, connects Lake Tohopekaliga—a Native American name that means "Sleeping Tiger"—with huge Lake Okeechobee in South Florida, and from there, to both the Atlantic Ocean and the Gulf of Mexico.
