As you get near to Daytona but before you reach the “Racetrack” there is the biggest Farmers and Flea market for miles on the right. It is all under cover and all aisles have ceiling fans to keep you cool while you shop.

There are numerous aisles with something for everybody. Lots of motor bike gear of course, lovely leather coats, shoes, etc but prices much lower than the tourist areas. We brought lots of t-shirts, towels and items for our villa. We had a hummer car and that was full by the time we came out. There are also lots of places to eat in there and much cheaper than in Daytona.

It was just a short drive to the beach and for $5, you can park your car on the beach all day. The ice cream van goes up and down so there is no need to leave the beach to buy ices for the kids. There are even mini 3- wheel cycles for the kids to hire to use on the beach.

After unpacking all the gear, the kids were off with their boards to the sea. It was a bit rough that day but very warm. After a while, they all seemed to be having so much fun jumping the waves that I  thought I would join them. We were all having so much fun that none of us noticed a huge wave coming at us until it landed on top of us all and we were thrown over.

We came up laughing and then I realised that my cap was not on my head and neither were my prescription sun glasses. !!Now Daytona is a very long beach and we went up and down there looking in the hope that they would have been washed up. No such luck. My advice to anyone going with prescription glass on holiday to Florida is to pack a spare pair or you will be like I was for the last few days………Very short sighted.

Kissimmee Old Town, on the shores of Lake Tohopekaliga (Lake Toho, to you and me) is well worth a visit. And if you want to impress the locals, do pronounce their city’s name correctly, with the stress on the second syllable - “Kissimmee”.

Kissimmee (previously known as Allendale) was incorporated as a city in 1883. It was the heart of cow country and the sound of the men “cracking” cow whips led to them being called “Florida Crackers”. Ranching and citrus packing remained an important part of the local economy until the opening of Walt Disney World in 1971. After that, tourism took over, although cattle ranches still operate nearby.

The Kissimmee downtown area is a bit of real genuine Americana, and is pedestrian friendly. Yes - you can park your car and actually walk around streets full of brick buildings, boardwalks, shops and restaurants. Currently the Kissimmee downtown area has several restaurants, an art gallery, photographers, and a number of retailers selling clothing, music, art, antiques, video games, and furniture; plus lawyers, doctors, accountants, architects, printers, beauty & barber shops.

We came across the Farmers’ Market which operates at Toho Square on Thursdays from 7 am to 1 pm. It is modest in size but has lovely fresh produce for sale.

And if you are looking for some good ol’ “down home” cookin’ and a bit of old time service, do what we do, and eat at Joanie’s Diner at 120 Broadway, Kissimmee. You will not be disappointed with the food or the friendly service. It’s where the locals go.

Should you be in Kissimmee in the evening you can also go on ghost walks, and hear tales of the “headless horseman”, the “hanging tree” and the “ghost of the lake”.

A lot of money has been poured into the area for improvements, and a lot of the historic houses in the roads leading down to the lakefront have been renovated or rebuilt and are well worth a look. Also on the road down to the lake is the very quirky “Monument of States”.

Down at the Lakeside, you can walk along a long promenade by the lake which has piers, bait shops, boat slips and marinas. Chill out, watch the fishermen, or take an airboat ride, daytime or night time. There’s also a lot of green space for relaxation down by the lake, with playgrounds, picnic areas and bike paths, all well used by the locals at the weekend.

Do have a look at Kissimmee. It’s well worth it.

Andy Brownlie

Our family villa is located on the Indian Point sub division in Kissimmee and is only 8 miles from the Disney World theme parks. As most people don’t know much about Kissimmee itself, here is a little information about the City and it’s history.

Kissimmee is 17 miles S of Orlando, and 68 miles E of Tampa.  It’s located in Osceola County in Central Florida along the shore of Lake Tohopekaliga, which is locally referred to as Lake Toho. It has a large Hispanic population which includes a large number of Puerto Ricans.

Kissimmee History

The area was established in the mid-19th century and was known as Allendale. Kissimmee was incorporated as a city in 1883. Hamilton Disston was mainly responsible for the initial growth of the municipality. His large drainage business was located in Kissimmee. Disston had a contract with Florida to drain the southern portion of the state, in return for owning half of the acreage he successfully drained.He also deepened the Kissimmee River, so products could be shipped into the Gulf of Mexico and points beyond and  became one of the largest single landowners in the nation.

The Kissimmee shipyard produced steamboats to transport people as well as goods for Disston’s dredging and land speculation enterprises. The steamships lost a significant amount of business due to the popularity of trains for transporting people and goods. The Kissimmee area became a prominent location for raising cattle.

In 1884 W.B. Makinson, Sr. opens Makinson Hardware in downtown Kissimmee, which remains Florida’s oldest operating hardware store.

 Disney World opened in 1971 and tourism and development became the main factors for the economy and the cattle industry decreased in importance.

 In 2004 (while our family were at our villa) Hurricane Charlie caused major damage to homes and buildings. Luckily our villa only suffered superficial damage.

Kissimmee Activities

The Osceola County Softball Complex is a popular location and includes five quality softball fields. The Austin-Tindall Regional Park is popular for sports activities.

The city features a large water park and numerous golf courses including Kissimmee Golf Club, Ginn Reunion Resort Golf Course and Kissimmee Oaks Golf Club.

 Excellent fishing opportunities are available at Lake Toho.

Visitors have opportunities to take a tour of the region’s working cattle ranches and the Boggy Creek wetlands.

Close by, Lake Buena Vista is popular for outdoor activities. The Kissimmee Chain of Lakes is well known for its largemouth bass fishing. Residents and visitors can easily take day trips to Melbourne Beach and other shoreline destinations.

Kissimmee Attractions

• Oldtown.
• Osceola Centre for the Arts.
• Osceola County Historical Society & Museum.
• The Houston Astros participate in Spring Training in Kissimmee at the Osceola County Stadium.
• Silver Spurs Arena is popular for concerts and other events.
• Warbird Museum restores World War II aircraft to flying condition. Tours are available of the work shops, planes and aircraft which are being restored.
• Osceola County Historic Courthouse.
• A world of Orchids.
• Green Meadows Petting Farm.
• Pirate’s Island Adventure Golf.
• Jungleland Zoo.

We very often drive to St Cloud which is an easy run on the 192 and you get to experience a much laid back way of life. During our last visit we came across a free local paper that I think is worth its weight in gold. It’s called “Orange Peel Gazette” and it advertises itself as “The hottest little paper in town”.

It has a mind field of information in it plus articles, adverts and quiz’s.  Local handy men are cheaper to hire and as a property owner, invaluable for finding local business that are just a phone call away and who actually turn up to give you a quote.

We were looking through and found this brilliant Seafood restaurant, called “One Eyed Grouper”.

It’s on Canoe Creek Road, behind Winn-Dixie Plaza and is open 7 days a week. You can get, oysters, grouper, clams, crab, and even gator bites, they also do burghers and ribs for the kids if they do not want to be adventuress enough to tackle the gator bites. (I love them)

They also do an “All you can eat” Fish and fries at $9.95 before 6pm. Mondays special is dinner for two at only $11.99. Very good value for money and you will definitely need a siesta around the pool after trying the all you can eat.

This little paper gives you everything from local barbers, locksmiths and where to get your BBQ apron embroidered.

One I liked the best was an article about  what to do if you are ice fishing and your car breaks through the ice in water more than  fifty feet deep. “Remember to exhale slowly as you descend to avoid bursting your lungs. Also to watch out for “Walleye” and if possible, note their approximate depth and what they are feeding on”!!

Last thing you would be able to do when your freezing cold, wet, and fighting for breath is to watch for Walleye!

Pick a paper up the next time you drive through St Cloud, you will be fascinated by it.

Jackie Wakelin

Surrounding the villa is conservation woodland and “Poohshouse” backs onto it. From the pool area you can see the beautiful butterflies and numerous red admiral birds feed from the bird feeder. Buzzards fly high over the area and an owl or two has been seen on the branches of the trees by the pool area as well as the small eagles. it is so relaxing to get up early morning and sit with your coffee and listen to the birds and the wild life.

In October, the houses are decorated in the Halloween theme and we have to make sure that we have plenty of sweets ready as the whole estate gets involved and whole families come dressed up, knocking at the door to “Trick or treat”. So far we have been lucky not to have had a trick played on us. (Thank heavens for Wall Marts endless supply of sweets, dressing up masks and witches hats, which I might add is open 24hrs of the day).

In December the whole estate comes to life again with all the villas decorated with twinkling Christmas lights over bushes and candy stick lights in the ground, there are blow-up snowmen, and even reindeers on the roof. Each year there seems to be competition to see who can get the brightest of displays and all friends and neighbours get involved in decorating the houses.

On New Years Eve we all head off to Disney for the New Years Eve firework display. AMAZING NIGHT although very packed it is nice to see the firework display and the excitement for both adults and children.  

Wal-Mart Supermarket

Locations –

1.        Corner of 192 and Bass Road Close to the villa.

2.        Corner of North Poinciana Boulevard and 535 (near The Official Ticket Center)

Target Supermarket.

 Please note Super Targets sell fresh food

Locations –

1.      Super Target between 192 Market 13 and 12 past Sam’s club

2.      Target - East on Highway 192 on left near K Mart and Home Depot.

Publix Super Market

Locations –

Corner of 192 and 535 (marker 12) in the Shopping Plaza

Between Marker 8 and Marker 9 near and on the same side as Bennigan’s

Restaurants & Fast Food Outlets

These are just a small selection of Restaurants along the Highway 192

Before Marker 15

Outbacker Steak House -Casual dining steak restaurants with an atmosphere suggestive of the rustic Australian outback

Between Markers 13 and 12

Applebee’s - Applebee’s® was founded in Atlanta, Georgia, by Bill and T.J. Palmer. The Palmers envisioned a restaurant that would provide full service, consistently good food, reasonable prices and quality service in a neighbourhood setting.

Between Markers 12 and 11

Smokey Bones - Smokey Bones has a wide variety on their menu. There is the “traditional” (usually slow-smoked) barbeque menu, including burgers, chicken and BBQ Baby Back and St. Louis Ribs, as well as a line of salads, other non-barbeque entrees, and desserts.

Cattleman’s Steak House

Taco Bell

Pizza Hut

Between Markers 11 and 10

Perkins - Family restaurants that feature in-store bakeries and serve a variety of distinctive entreés

Ramono’s Macaroni Grill - serves a wide variety of Italian food and offers a children’s menu.

Cracker Barrel Store & Restaurant

Uno Pizzeria, Restaurant – Famous for Chicago Style Deep Dish Pizza but also offer a varied menu

Chili’s Grill & Bar, Restaurant - Offers both Mexican style food and typical American food. Includes fajitas, quesadillas, salads, baby back ribs, buffalo wings, grilled shrimp

Longhorn Steak House – Capture the flavour and fun of the wild west. Great steaks, burgers and fresh salads. We really enjoy the fresh bread delivered to your table.

Between Markers 9 and 8

Bennigans - Neighbourhood American tavern with an Irish twist, includes appetizers, sandwiches, steaks and lots more.

Logan’s Roadhouse – Well known for mesquite-grilled steaks, chicken, fresh burgers, baby-back ribs, seafood, and specialty salads. Enjoy the bottomless buckets of in-shell peanuts.