Be Entertained by ICON Park’s Thrilling Attractions
For several years as I traveled north or south on Florida’s Turnpike during the evening hours, a brightly lit wheel in the sky at ICON Park Orlando beckoned me to explore further, but I always kept driving past. This year, we made it our destination to see what this Orlando Icon was all about. Located in the heart of International Drive, ICON Park Orlando is a 20-acre, open-air, gate-free entertainment destination that offers more than 40 amazing restaurants, bars with live entertainment, boutique shops, and attractions. It is the perfect place to ride, dine, drink, and explore.
Star Flyer at ICON Park Orlando
First, it was time to feel the wind in our hair and the breeze on our faces as we soar through the air upon the StarFlyer. The ICON Park Orlando StarFlyer is the World’s Tallest Stand-Alone Swing Ride standing at 450 feet. Moving up and down and rotating around the giant tower at speeds of up to 45mph, no other attraction combines safety and thrills like the StarFlyer.
It is one of the tallest structures in Orlando with its neighboring Wheel at ICON Park running a close second at 400 feet high.
Madame Tussaud’s Wax Museum at ICON Park Orlando
See life-size figures of your favorite celebrities at ICON Park Orlando’s Madame Tussauds. Inside the wax museum, you can pose for photos with more than 200 lifelike models of A-list actors, sports stars, political figures, and more. Sit on stage with Oprah, take a punch from Muhammed Ali, or swing a golf club with Tiger Woods. If you want to experience making movies, star in them, or join the action heroes in saving the world, then Madame Tussauds has the perfect part for you! Stars such as Taylor Swift, Johnny Depp, and Jennifer Anniston are standing by and ready to meet you.
The museum splits up all its figures into different themed rooms & zones. You start off in the History & Leaders room where presidents & inventors live. Once you’re done, you then head to the Sports Arena, followed by the TV Studio, Music Room, and Movie Stars.
Unlike wax museums of the past, which separate its exhibits from guests, the Tussauds attractions allow visitors to walk alongside and pose with lifelike figures. We took so many pictures. You can put yourself in the scenes that made them famous.
Sea Life Orlando
Right across the complex from Madame Tussaud’s wax museum is the number one aquarium brand in the world. This 25,000-square-foot indoor Aquarium gives you a one-of-a-kind experience that will get you up close and face-to-face with amazing underwater creatures such as sharks, sea turtles, stingrays, sea stars, sea horses, jellyfish, and thousands of colorful fish!
Among the features of the Orlando aquarium is a clear 360-degree tunnel through which guests can pass and observe creatures swimming above and all around them, a floor-to-ceiling aquarium, bubble aquariums, interactive exhibits, and feeding opportunities. Animals on display include sharks, jellyfish, clownfish, and a giant octopus.
7-D Dark Ride Adventure
The 7D Dark Ride Adventure is a shooting game in a fascinating seven dimensions, including wind, movement, lights, smell, and sound. It is an interactive game like you’ve never experienced before. They have several different experiences that you can do.
You’ll be armed with special glasses and a zombie-fighting weapon for a virtual adrenaline rush that’s enjoyed from the comfort of a theater seat. You and your team will battle to defeat zombies, menacing robots, and other virtual villains. You can compete with the other players for points and bragging rights. Overall, the adventure is about 10 minutes long.
Arcade City
Arcade City has all of the classic and modern games you love in a high-energy, carnival-like atmosphere. There are tons of games to while away the hours. Inside this virtual playland, you can go head-to-head with your favorite opponent in a high-speed Mario Kart tournament or beat them at no-holds barred air hockey free-for-all. If you prefer going it alone, see how many points you get shooting hoops, skeeball, and the ever-popular Whack-a-Mole. The stakes are high as you play for tickets toward truly cool prizes, so bring your game face! Oh, and all the fun is not just for kids but adults too.
Museum of Illusions
The Museum of Illusions offers an interactive, immersive, and fun experience and is a perfect, unusual, and exciting place for all generations. Amusing and awesome tricks will teach you about vision, perception, the human brain, and science.
The Clone Table invites you to sit down with yourself. What appears to be a large round table is actually a circular clip, which reflects a full circle in two mirrors at an angle of 60 degrees. At the point of sitting down, you will be surrounded by 5 of your clones! I think I beat myself at a game of poker.
The Tilted Room shakes your faith in the laws of physics, as your brain and eyes make unconscious inferences about whether you are standing on a flat or a sloped surface.
If you love tricks and illusions, expect to be gripped and thoroughly amazed from the moment you enter the Museum of Illusions. The exhibits and experiments will blow your mind as they test your brain with photography, holograms, optical illusions, and perception.
ICON Park Restaurants
There is a wide range of fun restaurants to dine at in ICON Park. Among the many restaurants, we found the 300-seat Yard House, a chain known for its enormous selection of beers, in addition to the Yard House, the Tin Roof Orlando, is a bar that features live music. Nightly flamenco shows at Tapa Toro will have your toes tapping while you enjoy authentic Spanish cuisine. Enjoy the world-famous Swirl Margarita or a sizzling plate of mesquite-grilled fajitas at Uncle Julio’s Mexican Restaurant.
Brenda and I ate at the Yard House restaurant. I ordered a flight of 140 taps of local, craft, and import draft beers. I followed that with an order of Lobster Garlic Noodles. It has Maine lobster, shrimp, crab, shiitake mushrooms, honey, spinach, and parmesan over noodles. Delicious! Brenda had her favorite, the Macaroni & Cheese. Great food and Classic Rock. What more can you ask for?
From rock bands to country combos to flamenco dancers, there are tunes on tap for every taste at ICON Park. The Tin Roof combines live music and great food. The atmosphere is vibrant and friendly, and the food is fantastic. Just a few doors down you will find Blake Shelton’s Ole Red which offers some of the best country music acts in the country, although the real star here is their made-from-scratch fried chicken.
The Wheel at ICON Park
Now to the landmark that brought us here in the first place. Yes, we saved the best for last. The Wheel at ICON Park is one of the city’s most famous landmarks. The giant observation wheel elevates passengers 400 feet into the sky for some awesome panoramic views over downtown Orlando and Central Florida. From the top of this Observation wheel, you can see Walt Disney World and Universal Orlando. The Wheel’s thirty capsules can carry a maximum of fifteen people on one full twenty-two-minute rotation. It’s officially classed as an observation wheel because the motion is slow and steady – the only scary thing about this ride is the look-down!
There are some other areas around Orlando that we loved to visit as well. Blue Springs State Park gives you a natural Florida experience. There is nothing better than a dip in the 72 degrees (year-round) water. In the colder months, Blue Springs is a haven for the West Indian Manatee.
ICON Park is located at 8375 International Drive in Orlando, Florida.
