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Eco-tourism resort nestled among Fla. theme parks
By Betty O'Neill-Roderick
Special to the Beacon Journal
Published on Sunday, Oct 12, 2008
ORLANDO, FLA.: In Central Florida, amid all of the amusement parks, there's an eco-tourism resort called Grande Lakes Orlando, where visitors can still squeeze in a ''summer'' getaway during its second annual ''Endless Summer Event.''
Grande Lakes is nestled between a Greg Norman Signature Golf Course, the Ritz-Carlton and JW Marriott. It is two miles away from Sea World and its newest venture, Aquatica Waterpark, and Discovery Cove, where guests can swim with the dolphins and get up close to tropical fish, bat rays and other denizens of the deep.
On the western side of the resort, partially hidden by Florida cypress trees and Spanish moss, is Shingle Creek, part of the Kissimmee River water system and the freshwater supply to one of the largest U.S. national parks, the Florida Everglades. When Florida's frequent summer rains swell the creek, a flow system allows water to infiltrate 13 lakes on the northern border of the resort. Water is naturally purified through a linear pond system and returned to the creek on the southern border.
Sarah Oxford of Grande Lakes Outfitters gives interpretive eco-tours by canoe or kayak on Shingle Creek. Visitors learn about the history of the creek, which was once used to transport cypress trees to South Florida. Today, alligators, bald eagles, osprey and barred owls make their home along the creek. Visitors can expect to spot many of Florida's native fish species, such as the Florida largemouth bass, bowfin, the sailfin catfish and the spotted tilapia.
Grande Lakes Outfitters offers fly-fishing excursions on the 40-acre Shingle Pond on a remote section of Grande Lakes. Guests board Hyde-Drift boats with a guide and fish the private waters for largemouth bass. They can spin or fly-fish two miles of Shingle Creek on the headwaters to the Everglades. They might spot white-tailed deer, wild turkeys and even a bobcat roaming the shoreline.
A two-day Orvis fly-fishing school is also available. Its owners say the resort was developed with conservation in mind. There is on-site composting and recycling. The resort has been designated as a Certified Audubon Cooperative Sanctuary.
A self-guided nature walk and jogging path surround the JW Marriott hotel.Guests follow a mascot owl named Simon through two butterfly gardens and on to a kitchen garden, where chef Melissa Kelly grows vegetables and herbs on-site for use at Primo, the signature restaurant.
All of the restaurants use
organic ingredients in their menus, and have partnerships with area organic farms to provide fresh home-grown food.
Guests can tour the resort on a four-wheel ''surrey with a fringe on top'' or by bicycle, or they can grab an inner tube and cruise a lazy river that meanders through five lagoon pools accented with cascading waterfalls. Kids' activities include sand art, swim races, making tie-dyed T-shirts, shell art, and feeding the koi fish in Grande Lake.
The Ritz Carlton Spa features packages for ''Girlfriend Getaways,'' complete with organic citrus treatments. Happy hour at the spa is every Tuesday, and guests can indulge in a mint chip ice cream pedicure.
The Golf Club, Spa and Grande Lake Outfitters are open to the public; it's not necessary to be a resort guest to use them.
A ''Give-Back Getaway'' is also available; guests follow the conservation staff into the wild to help create habitats for wildlife and support Audubon of Florida. Volunteer activity is seasonal and ranges from planting cypress trees, making shoreline structures, and adding aquatic plants, to building wood duck nesting boxes. For more information about a Give-Back Getaway, call 407-393-4900.
The Marriott and Ritz Carlton offer ''Endless Summer Specials'' for long-weekend getaway travelers. Stay two nights and get the third night free; or stay three nights and get the fourth free. Until Nov. 15, there are a variety of outdoor activities and special events, such as Disney's annual Epcot International Food & Wine Festival, which runs through Nov. 9.
For more information and reservations, call 407-206-2300, or visit http://www.grandelakes.com/.
During the Endless Summer event, many of Orlando's top attractions offer two-for-one tickets. Orlando's Magical Dining Month has more than 50 restaurants offering prix fixe dinner menus for $19 or $29. Foodies can experience well-known restaurants such as Emeril's Orlando and Emeril's Tchoup Chop, Mama Della's Ristorante, Roy's Hawaiian Fusion Restaurant, and the Oceanaire Seafood Room and others. For more information about Magical Dining, visit http://www.orlandoinfo.com/magicaldining.
AirTran Airways offers nonstop flights from Akron-Canton Airport to Orlando, Fla. For a flight schedule, call 800-247-8726 (AIR TRAN) or visit http://www.airtran.com.
ORLANDO, FLA.: In Central Florida, amid all of the amusement parks, there's an eco-tourism resort called Grande Lakes Orlando, where visitors can still squeeze in a ''summer'' getaway during its second annual ''Endless Summer Event.''
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