How Kissimmee is taking family holidays to the next level

There are a handful of holiday destinations guaranteed to send children giddy with excitement. Florida is one such place, I discovered having told my six-year-old daughter Indiana that we would be heading to Kissimmee as a Mother’s Day treat. “Theme parks, alligators and we’ll have a swimming pool and bowling alley in our house?!” she marvelled when I broke the good news.

Kissimmee has long been a firm favourite with British families, and for very good reason. Situated just 25 minutes from Orlando International Airport, this feel-good city in central Florida has trip-of-a-lifetime in its DNA. As the vacation home capital of the world, there’s an abundance of over 50,000 family-friendly holiday homes, ranging from intimate two-bedroom condos to lavish 15-bedroomed extravaganzas, boasting basketball courts and tranquil spa rooms.

In Kissimmee, entertainment looms large. On the doorstep, you’ll find Florida’s headline attraction; the globally famous theme parks, which include Walt Disney World Resort, Universal Orlando Resort and LEGOLAND Florida. Suitcases packed, Indiana and I were ready for a serious dose of magical moments.

Following a nine-hour direct flight, where much to our delight the cabin crew were donning cute Mickey Mouse ears, we touched down in Orlando. Within an hour we were unpacking our bags at the first of our two Jeeves Florida Rental homes. Situated within the Reunion Resort, a gated community of rolling golf courses and shimmering backyard swimming pools, opening the door of the Treehouse Mansion felt a little like stepping inside a child’s wildest imagination.

At the heart of the villa was a soaring treehouse with shiny slides that beckoned Indiana, surrounded by bunkbed rooms for younger guests. Venturing to the villa’s top floor, we excitedly discovered an arcade room and a plush cinema area ready for the latest Disney screening, while on the ground floor, a swimming pool with a lazy river twinkled invitingly beyond the patio door.

But it was the moment when Indiana opened a door and found a vast laser tag area, the size of which could comfortably accommodate an entire classroom of children, that it dawned on me just how jaw-dropping this sleepover was going to get! Accommodating an impressive 36 people, the Treehouse Mansion is a wonderful choice for multi-generational families or friends, often working out cheaper than staying in a standard hotel for larger groups.

At daybreak the following morning, we eased ourselves into Floridian life with a visit to Boggy Creek Airboat Adventures. This woman-owned business offers regular boat tours across an immense lake, inhabited by floating waterlilies, exotic birds and the odd menacing-looking alligator. Gliding over the water in the flat-bottomed watercraft, to the hum of the propeller, was a surprisingly relaxed way to engage with the local wildlife and Indiana loved sitting at the front to spot crocs. Back on dry land, we attempted to strike it rich by panning for gems at the rickety wooden mining trough, leaving clutching a bag of treasured jewels as keepsakes.

Nowhere serves up a dinner theatre show quite like America, where stadium-sized attractions usually combine an entertainment spectacle with a multi-course meal. Hearing that Kissimmee had a Medieval Times Dinner and Tournament nearby, we headed there for dinner. With regal paper hats crowning our heads, we feasted on a banquet of roast chicken and party cake, as knights on horseback heroically battled it out in the arena before us. It’s worth waiting around after the show as the gallant actor offers audience members a meet-and-greet photo opportunity in the lobby.

Theme parks are the star of the show in Kissimmee, so the next morning we made our way to Universal Studios Florida for a red-carpet VIP tour experience. Over an all-you-can-eat buffet breakfast in Universal’s private dining room, we were introduced to Todd, our personal guide for the day.

Keen to check out Universal’s recently unveiled Minion Land, we beat the crowds and headed over to test out Despicable Me Minion Mayhem, a riotous 3-D super-villain ride, and Illumination’s Villain-Con Minion Blast, a gentle attraction using a moving walkway that’s perfect for younger children. Minion Land also has a canary-yellow-hued restaurant serving Minion-themed dishes such as Otto's Noddle Bowl and Bob's Teddy Bear Chocolate Cream Puff, plus stalls dotted throughout selling Kevin-inspired ice pops and enormous tubs of buttery banana-flavoured popcorn.

Spending the day with Todd was like being handed the golden keys to Universal. Not only did we skip to the front of the snaking queues, but often we were whisked through private backdoor entrances, catching intriguing glimpses of behind-the-scenes Universal. Meals throughout the day were included and we managed to cram in considerably more rides, including repeat spins on the crowd-pleasing Hagrid’s Magical Creatures Motorbike Adventure, than would have been feasible with a standard ticket.

That evening, we stepped into an equally enchanting fantasyland when we arrived at the Morlando Mansion, Kissimmee’s latest and most fabulous villa. Sleeping 40 people, this epic holiday home included a neon-lit bowling alley, an entertainment room with basketball hoops and retro arcade games, a cinema room featuring a sparkling star-strewn ceiling and a swimming pool with a cascading rock waterfall, fringed with swaying palm trees. At the beating heart of the luxurious mansion was a three-storey-high spaceship installation surrounded by galactic-inspired bedrooms, ideal for budding astronauts.

The only drawback to staying at Morlando was that with so much readymade fun on tap, getting Indiana to leave the house required some coaxing! Following negotiations and one final whoosh down the swimming pool’s slide, a visit to Cirque du Soleil’s recently unveiled show, Drawn to Life, eventually persuaded her. Located in a huge theatre in Disney Springs, an area lined with restaurants and shops, the show was a charming collaboration between the renowned circus troupe and Disney. Telling the story of a girl’s passion for animation, Drawn to Life was a gorgeous way to bring drawing to life for kids. They even invited the younger guests in the audience up onto the stage to create artwork, which was a trip highlight for Indiana.

Around half an hour away, we stopped off at the Crayola Experience, a hands-on hub of creativity that works well for children of all ages. Allow a few hours to do this crafty attraction justice, which includes stations where visitors can get their faces made into a colouring sheet and have their names printed onto take-home crayons. There’s also a café onsite and an indoor play area.

We couldn’t leave Florida, the alligator capital of the world, without a visit to Gatorland, a wildlife park that originally opened in 1949. Home to thousands of crocodiles and alligators, including rare leucitic alligators, this swampy attraction is the place to safely get up close and personal with Florida’s snappy residents. The truly fearless can even partake in feeding sessions, under the watchful eyes of the park’s guides.

Following a selfie at the vintage alligator mouth entrance, Indiana and I harnessed up and climbed to the top of a watchtower to test out the screamin’ ‘gator zipline, voted the best zipline in the country. Hitting a top speed of 30 miles an hour, we flew like birds over leafy treetops and an alligator breeding marsh, floating back down to earth with our hearts still pumping. It was yet another only-in-Florida moment, following an action-packed week in the Sunshine State. As Indiana and I headed back to the airport, we both agreed that when it comes to offering the ultimate family holiday, Kissimmee delivers.

How to do it:

For more information on family-friendly holidays in Kissimmee, visit: Experience Kissimmee

Jeeves Florida Rentals offers luxurious holiday villas in Kissimmee, including themed mansions. They also offer additional services such as private chefs, stroller rental, child care and grocery welcome packs: Jeeves Florida Rentals