Surrounded as it is by wetlands (bring your mosquito spray), lounging lakeside is one of the primary pleasures in Orlando. There are plenty of spots in the City Beautiful for visitors to tip back a cold one, listen to music or even venture out onto the water. Here are seven of our favorites.
This casual bar and grill right on Lake Eola offers a view of the downtown city skyline, as well as great food and Wednesday night trivia with a $75 cash prize. If you’d rather get out on the water, you can rent a charming swan-shaped paddleboat right in front of the Relax Grill for $15 for a half hour.
For a quintessential central-Florida lakefront experience, you can’t miss the Black Hammock on Lake Jessup, known famously as the state’s most alligator-filled lake. Begin by taking an airboat ride to view said reptiles in their natural habitat before you belly up to the Lazy Gator Bar for a beer. Finish the experience with a meal of fried gator tail, if you dare.
Julie’s Waterfront, an Orlando classic on Lake Jennie Jewel, is pure old-school Florida. Sit inside on vinyl chairs and look out over the lake with the comfort of the AC, or head out onto the veranda for live steel-drum music and a fish fry every Friday night.
Rub shoulders with Winter Park’s society-types at the upscale Hillstone restaurant on Lake Killarney. Happy hour offers the best people watching, with Winter Park’s elite chatting each other up at the bar. If you prefer scenery of the natural variety, there’s outdoor seating for great sunset views.
If you prefer your boat rides without a set of noise-canceling headphones, the Winter Park Scenic Boat Tour offers an intimate pontoon-boat journey through three of Winter Park’s chain of lakes. Beginning on Lake Osceola, the hour-long, narrated tour offers backyard views of some of the neighborhood’s toniest mansions.
Just minutes from the action at the theme parks, the Marriott Bohemian Hotel sits on tiny Lake Rianhard in Celebration, which began life as a Disney planned community but has morphed into a (somewhat Stepford-like) neighborhood. The hotel sits within walking distance of the restaurants in Celebration’s town center; or try the elegant onsite Lakeside Bar and Grill, which hosts a free Jazz Meets Motown event every Monday night from 7 to 10.
Filled with cutesy antique shops and snowbirds on vacation, charming Mt. Dora is a 40-minute drive northwest of downtown Orlando. Settle in for a gorgeous sunset on the deck at Pisces Rising, overlooking Lake Dora, where seafood is the specialty of the house.
