When I traveled to FL I went to the Everglades. It's swamp land were Aligators live. It's totally awsome! You take air boat ride through the everglades. This si the place I went. http://www.evergladesholidaypark.com/gators.html

I'm a Floridian born and raised but I've never been to the Coral Castle. I recently saw a show about it and it's history is quite interesting. The guy who built it dedicated it to the love of his life, who jilted him at the altar, and it's completely made by him and entirely out of Coral.
Coral Castle

I have spent my whole life in either South Florida or Orlando. Here's my recommendations:
1) See the amazing wildlife in Florida. Blue Springs is probably the best place to go if it's winter. Everglades National Park is also awesome.
2) There is a restaurant called the Black Hammock. It is directly on Lake Jesup, filled with hundreds of alligators that you can see right off the dock. They also offer airboat rides and serve unique dishes like gator tail and fish legs.
3) St. Augustine is a MUST as others have said.
4) Kennedy Space Center (another repeat)
5) If you are feeling athletic, Orlando is the world capital of wakeboarding!!! Check out Orlando Watersports Complex to learn how and/or watch the pros!
6) If you MUST do Disney (I wouldn't recommend it), go to the Downtown Disney area or City Walk at Universal. You can walk around and window shop without paying an entry fee.

Enjoy the trip!!! You're sure to have fun no matter where you go!

You could rent a car and go to Coco Beach! It's incredible! The water is warm and the sand is soft. It's like the quintessential beach. http://www.ci.cocoa-beach.fl.us/

Reading all the comments on what to do in Florida only reminds me of what a great state we live in and the many things we have to do or see in our respective areas. As stated many times ... the Keys are gorgeous. Once you get away from highway US1 and its power-lines and neon signs, the beauty of the Keys shines. Biscayne bay is where I grew up and the mix of culture in south Florida and its coastal environment is what makes it such a great place. The beaches of west Florida (Siesta Key, Longboat) ... and the unique beauty of north Florida and the panhandle part of our state. How can you pick just one place to see?
Florida is know for its "attractions" and themeparks ... my pick for the number one most exciting thing to do in Florida ... FLY! Go for an aerobatic ride in an aerobatic plane in Orlando. Its an amazing experience and one I'll never forget. I kid you not ... you (or the pilot actually) will fly the plane backwards if can take it. Visit Keith Aviation Airshows or FlyMe its a "must do" at least once in your life! There are some of the companies videos on YouTube ... Flying Videos.

I grew up in FL, so I know the lay of the land pretty well.

If you're in South Florida, no one has yet mentioned checking out Worth Ave. It's a strip of very exclusive stores in Palm beach. It's totally free and you can check out lots of very expensive stores and people watch to your heart's content. You will see the very wealthy woman with the purse do if you sit and watch for a while! There are a few really cool little nooks tucked off the main strip. Could be interesting culture material. you can also see Trump's house Via Lago (i think that's how you spell it) which is about a mile south of Worth Ave.

If you're in Miami, South beach is the obvious place. But there is some really great cuban food in Bayside mall, which is on the mainland side of the bay. Don't forget to check out the art-deco style buildings - very cool!

If you're going to Orlando, you *must* see at least the magic kingdom park at Disney. Someone offered in an earlier post to get you tix for free - do it! The staff should have just begun putting up all the x-mas decorations in the parks and hotels. Remember, it's free to go to any hotels and look around! Also, I recommend seeing at least 1 fireworks display - disney does it like no one else! I'd vote for Wishes at the Magic Kingdom or Fantasmic! at MGM studios.

Also, Downtown disney is free to walk around in. Lots of disney merchandise, but there is one really cool thing: Zach, if you like Legos, there is a lego store there and sevral very cool lego sculptures incuding a sea dragon!

If you need a place to stay in orlando, you can often get last-minute deals via the internet or the tourist centers. sometimes you can get a room for about $30 that will sleep 4.

All the post so far have been the typicial "toursit" locations. Why not do something exciting, fun, and totally out of the norm.

I think they should visit C&R Motorsports Park in Palmdale, Fla. mudding on a atv, jeep, swamp buggy and what ever else we can come up for them to do.

They could spend the day with the gang from just-add-dirt.com and get in free to the facility and I know that we can come up with plenty of atv's for them to use for the day, and I know most of all the owners of the facility would love to have them here for the day. This could put a experience in their minds that will last forever.

My best best recomendation i can give is for the group pick up an issue of the local paper offering all the weeks unique activities available. there are 2 different and very informative papers out there and they are FREE caled "NEW TIMES" and "CITY LINK" it will give them much local information on what to do. from festivals to dining. they can be found at most newstands or in any lobby or foyer of most business.
how about a deep sea fishing trip off the coast of miami beach. there are 2 great guides (old man of the sea types) i know of that could take them to catch large fish (catch and release)and give them a tour of the many waterways of south florida for less than $150 for the whole group and would last more than 6 hours. plus the is ample room aboard for any camermen and crew
if not then check out a water taxi ride. it costs only $10/person for an entire day. the water taxi stops at a variety of stops throughout Ft. lauderdale and parts of miami.
In Miami, lunch in little havana is nice and would also be under $10.not much todo in that neighborhood and do not really recommend roaming about lost in that neighborhood unless invited. not bad just boring.
a walk on ocean drive is free and very picturesque. I would recomend a $5.00 rumrunner or a variety of other frozen drinks to top off a walk on ocean drive.
There is a shopping area in downtown miami called Bayside. Its not the shopping i recommend but the party boats available that will take them out for about $15-30/ person. some offer longer trips and food and beverages. some will even haggle their price.
let me advise you of some not so wonderful tourist spots that are out to take your tourist dollars to be wery of. The miami Sequarium, it is an oudated aquarium that is more of an eyesore than a attraction. the sea life in there is kept in bad condition and is overpriced.
Cocunut Grove is nice to visit but everything in the Grove is usually overpriced.
I am sure you know because this applies all over the world but avoid the taxis.
again i am sure you already know but it is very inexpensive and HIGHLY HIGHLY recomended that a van is rented. about $60 for a weekend, $150 for the week. and the car can be used to travel between Orland and Miami.
An airboat ride in the Eeverglades National Park is also a must. there are abundant guides that can be found in the new times or city link paper.
Some beaches are topless and some are even clothing optional so know when you are in rome.
Since they are going to vegas, i dont recomend any of the indian gaming centers even though they are the most popular places to visit. i would recomend a trip to either miami's or Ft. lauderdales JAI-ALAI center it is usually a $1 to get in has been part of the local heritage since the 1930's like racketball but with a wooden scoop called a canastas. its fast paced and worthy of a visit. If you ever watched the opening sequence to a Miami Vice episode it shows it.
hope this helps you enjoy your time here i love South Florida its a beutiful place to live.
I havent even mentioned the keys.(Key West)

After reading all the other posts, a few things stand out the most that i must agree on you visit.
i love the idea of the atv and off road stop. Growing up around the everglades calls for some off road adventure and it sounds like those guys offering you the offroad excursions would be good entertainment to film and would love to see those zany moments.

the other is Cape Canaveral. Something amazing about visiting the space center and the NASA center. Its something that can be understood by everyone on this planet. never can that place be overfilmed

the interstate is the quickest way between miami and orlando only 2-3 hours. but try jumping on A1A and taking that road to miami or orlando. it runs along the beaches of Fl. and has endless visual attractions.

my thoughts on disney. well its huge and amazing. thats a place thats been overfilmed but the actual expierience is unique. same goes for universal and busch gardens, seaworld. any of the countless waterparks. fun fun fun but not much on the tv entertainment since its been overdone.

dining is abuntant. seafood is the local flavor, in miami cuban is a must at least lunch. a cuban sandwich or a media noche are cheap and tasty. Cuban coffee, now that would be funny to watch them drink and then get all wired up. Then you can film little havana sped-up and capture it all in under a min. Opa has been mentioned a few times but thats typical greek dining not really a south florida tradition. just a fun place to dine.

I'm a recent transplant to central FL, living on an even smaller budget than you (believe it!) so I'll be interested to see what you come up with.

My favorite cheap-ish day is to head to a park and rent a canoe. Not as flashy as an airboat but you'll get to see a lot more wildlife and get a lot closer to animals on a canoe. And it costs less too! Pack a picnic lunch and make a day of it.

Maybe try some watersports. Windsurfing, kneeboarding, and all those other sports I'm too uncordinated to try seem to be really popular. No idea on price but worth a look.

If you happen to make your way into cental, inland, middle of nowhere florida, look me up. I might be able to hook you up with a cheap place to stay, or at least I can give you the grand tour of the preserve I work on. (I can't think of any reason you'd be in the neighborhood, but I thought I'd at least offer.)

South Beach is probably what Miami is most famous for. If you guys are looking for a workout there, you certainly won't be alone! The night life there is insane, so you really ought to check that out. But, if you're looking for a milder experience, be sure to steer away from that. It gets a bit crazy.

I have lived in orlando for my entire life and there is so much more then disney. Orlando has an amazing arts scene including an great art museum. Also there is the Orlando Science Center which is more fun then one person can handle. Also on thursday nights its fun to visit IBar downtown. They have an amazing indy night thats free if your over 21.

I would really like the TJs to see a little of the "real" Orlando. There is so much more to our town than Disney and the other theme parks. Downtown Orlando and it's surrounding areas is a great place to visit. Affordable places to eat in and around downtown include White Wolf Cafe (All the lunch entrees are between $6 and $10), Market Street Cafe, Le Croissant Shop, Paradise Island Cafe, and Pho 88 (as mentioned before). Things to do around downtown include the Orlando Museum of Art, The Orlando Science Center, The Bosendorfer Lounge at the Westin Grand Bohemian has free entertainment nightly, Wall Street,and Lake Eola Park is great for people-watching. Winter Park has the best Farmer's Market. Enjoy!

You cant visit florida and not visit the home of the Gators? Gainesville is only 2 hours (or less) from Orlando. Plus Nov 11 is one of the biggest games of the year (UF vs South Carolina)! Even if they cant get tickets to the game itself they should be able to go to a local sports bar near the campus and experience america's love of its college football.

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Originally posted by jenny36963:
They just have to go to the Everglades National Park or any of the national parks and preserves in the area. The area is composed of diverse types of landscape and seascape. They can go canoeing in the mangroves, slogging in the wetlands, visit Native American reserves, taking a buggy ride, and lots more. Besides, it's the only place in the world that has both alligators and crocodiles living in the same area!

Just to add to this theme. Billie Swamp Safari.