I am going to Orlando for business. I will be free on a Saturday and Sunday and will not leave Orlando until Monday.

An ideas on what I can do that is not related to WDW?

thats a pretty general question but here's some suggestions........

night life- church st./orange ave area downtown...after 11pm

outdoors- day trip to st. augustine; cocoa bch; blue springs st. park;wekiva springs st. park

antique shopping- orlando ave

non-disney tourist- wet & wild waterpark; international drive has some "bungee jumping" type attractions. also air boat rides; alligator parks; dinner theatres; kennedy space ctr. the list goes on....check your hotel for brochures

upscale shopping-park ave. in winter park

If you like roller coasters, Universal's Islands of Adventures has some of the best in the world. If you like movies, Universal Studios is cool. City Walk at Universal and Downtown Disney have some night life, but I prefer downtown Orlando for that.

Absolutely go to Murder Watch Mystery Theatre Saturday night. It's a dinner theatre at the Grosvenor Hotel that is a musical/comedy/mystery. Excellent buffet, very entertaining!

We were just in Orlando for a few days and decided not to step foot in Mickey territory. I had a great time at Sea World. They have a couple of rides(Kraken rollercoaster was the best) and if you get there early you can ride several times in a row without a wait.
We took a few minutes to sign up for one of the in depth tours they offer. I think the cost was $7.95 or so for the hour long tour. We chose Polar Expedition. They take you behind the scenes to see the polar bears, the beluga whales, and the penguins...and we each got to pet a penguin at the end of the tour. It is blessedly cold in the penguin house (49 degrees!).

I'm a sucker for the Shamu show and they have a great set-up now to keep people amused while they're waiting for the show to start. Very funny stuff!

I can also say now that I've seen manatees and fed and touched a stingray- I never thought that would happen!

We were in Orlando in June and went to Discovery Cove which I loved. Even if you don't do the dolpin experience, you will have a great time just snorkeling with the stingrays, soaking up the sun, they give you a great lunch and a pass to Sea World

I am going in October for business and I understand the Church Street location is being closed down. Will somebody verify? Anyway, It has to be an amusement park then or travel to St.Pete or Daytona and go to the beach.

I recommend seeing the Cirque du Soleil show while you are in Orlando.
A.M.

for eric..........

church street itself is still open. you're talking about the area of church st. w/ the "old west" theme. it has several shops; some bars/resturants/shows and a 3 level mini-mall w/ shops & a video arcade. this attraction has been purchased by a foreign company and they shut down some of the attractions (bars & shows) w/ plans to reopen them w/ a different theme. there is a seperate group of stores nearby and some of them have closed also. beyond this area, there are several bars and resturants before reaching the orange ave intersection (where most of the action is anyway).

my favorite church st. watering hole is latitudes...a roof top, island/tiki bar..check it out.

There is a boat tour through Winter Park that is very pleasant. you get some history of the area as well as being able to see incredible homes along the shores a various lakes. i don't know how to get in touch with the tour operators but it departs off of Interlachen (Road, Drive, Ave?) which is about two blocks east of PArk Avenue, where the shopping is. Combine the boat tour, lunch and some shopping for a fun day.