Orlando for Grownups

Forget Cinderella Castle. With kids back in school, this city shows its mature side

Illustration by John Hendrix for TIME

Orlando, FLA.: You're thinking roving packs of sunburned children who let their ice cream drip on your toes as you wait to ride Space Mountain. You're thinking overpriced hot dogs and hotel pools crammed with little kids leaving warm spots. All true, but the city has also quietly become a favored destination for adults traveling without kids. Some 54% of adults who visit the city now do so without children--66% if you include convention attendees, according to travel researcher D.K. Shifflet & Associates.

Sure, a lot of adults go to Orlando to indulge in creepy Disney nostalgia. (Grown men should not...

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