If Disney rides don't fall within your idea of a workout, try hiking in Wekiwa Springs State Park, a 7000 acre (2800 hectare) piece of land a few miles north of Orlando with 13 miles (21km) of hiking trails. In Ocala National Forest, the Salt Springs area has a splendid 2-mile (3km) loop trail through a cypress forest. A 66 mile (106km) section of the Florida National Scenic Trail runs right through the Juniper Springs area. The 5 mile (8km) Cruickshank Trail surrounds a shallow marsh within the Space Coast's Merritt Island National Wildlife Refuge. It begins along Black Point Wildlife Drive.

Places to canoe include the Wekiwa Springs State Park, the Ocala National Forest and Mosquito Lagoon in the Canaveral National Seashore. There's good swimming in the Ocala National Forest at Juniper Springs, Alexander Springs, Clearwater Lake and Lake Dorr. You can also swim in Blue Spring State Park's 72°F (22°C) crystal-clear waters when no manatees are present. Apollo Beach and Klondike Beach at the northern end of Merritt Island have gentle surf and soft sand.

Orlando's festivals are not exactly major league, though it must be hard to organize a brouhaha in the shadow of a theme park that wants you to believe that every day's a holiday. The Silver Spurs Rodeo has been putting on a fine show since 1944, drawing 50,000 spectators and some of the top rodeo athletes to Orlando in mid-February and again in July. It's the largest rodeo in the eastern US.

EPCOT International Flower & Garden Festival is a big to-do at Disney World in mid to late April. The highlight of October is the Oldsmobile Scramble, when 100,000 amateur golfers putt it out at the Walt Disney World Resort. The Oldsmobile Classic for pros follows.