Kissimmee Lakefront Park is a great place for families to visit for recreation and to enjoy the many popular events, festivals and concerts that are held there throughout the year.

Kissimmee Lakefront Park is situated on Lake Toho which is the second largest lake in Florida.  The park has basketball courts, a playground, a volleyball court and picnic areas with BBQ grills.  There is boating and fishing on the lake for water enthusiasts.   If you are a nature buff, you can take an excursion boat out to Cypress Island which offers visitors some gorgeous nature trails for hiking and exploring.  The beautiful ancient oak and cypress trees are part of the habitat of a number of birds including herons, osprey and owls as well as a good variety of other animals.  You’ll also see sheep, goats, llamas and emus grazing throughout the area.  Your family can enjoy airboat rides, swamp buggy rides, horseback riding, tubing, and water skiing during your visit.

Here are some of the annual events and festivals held at Kissimmee Lakefront Park that are fun for the whole family:

In January, you can attend the annual Sunshine Regional Chili Cookoff.  This event features competitors from all over the U.S. creating their signature chili recipes.  In addition to plenty of food, there is stage entertainment, arts and crafts, and family activities.

Caribbean Fusion is an annual event in March that offers Latin, Caribbean, and Hispanic music, food, arts and crafts.  There are plenty of stage performances and activities for the kids.

Music lovers will find many free concerts to attend at the park including the Concert in the Park series that features a performance by the Orlando Philharmonic and Jazzfest Kissimmee which showcases many jazz artists from the area as well as local high school jazz bands.

The 4th of July celebration offers families a fun day of live music, festival food, rides and of course a spectacular fireworks display to finish off the day!

In December, the Holiday Extravaganza is held.  This very festive event includes live bands, street performers, arts, crafts and food  vendors as well as  ice carving demonstrations. Winter comes to Florida with the 30 ton pile of snow known as “Frosty’s Playground.”  The climax of the Extravaganza is the “Festival of Lights” parade down Broadway followed by fireworks over the lake.

Admission and parking is free at all of these events.

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.

 BIG TOHO AIRBOAT RIDES

Big Toho Airboat Rides

100 Lakeshore Blvd

Kissimmee, Florida, 34741

Tel 321-624-2398

Big Toho Airboat Rides is very easy to find, and there is plenty of parking available. The rides depart from the public marina located on the northern tip of Lake Tohopekaliga (known locally as Lake Toho), which are the headwaters for the Florida everglades – the closest swamp and everglades area to Walt Disney World.  The little creek where the everglades actually start is seen on the tour.

The airboat pilots are experienced guides and US coast guard master captains, and operate 2 x 15-passenger boats, and 1 x 6-passenger boat, to accommodate either large groups or a family group wanting a boat to themselves.  The pilots are very knowledgeable about the area, its history and the environment.

It is an unforgettable chance to see the real Florida, and marvel at the breathtaking scenery and territory that can only be seen from an airboat.  As well as the thrill of skimming over the marshes, there is a slow trek through Shingle Creek, a very serene and beautiful expanse of water. Go early if you want to see lots of alligators, as come noon, they are often caught sleeping. There is also a wide variety of birds to be seen, such as eagles, osprey, sandhill cranes, and egrets, and wildlife such as wild deer and pigs.

Prices (@ Jan 09):

Adults: 1 hour tour                               $41.00

                         ½ hour tour                             $25.00

Children:           1 hour tour                               $31.00

 (3-10)            ½ hour tour                              $20.00

Under 3’s are free.

Night Tours:                                                     $60.00 (all ages)

Directions

About 3 miles past marker #15 on US192 going east, turn right at Space Coast Pkwy onto N Main Street for 0.6m, continue on Broadway for 0.3m, turning left at Ruby Ave for 0.2m, and finally turn right at Lakeshore Blvd.

Gator Hunting

For something a little different, they also offer gator hunting trips (when in season), for which you must have a gator hunting permit from the state of Florida – see website for further details, rates and trophy fees, and rates for observers only.