Orlando’s Museums

Sometimes it’s just too darn hot in the summer to be outside in Orlando. On those days when you’re sick of sweating, why not slip into the air-conditioned loveliness of Orlando’s cultural side by visiting one of the area’s spectacular museums. Inside Orlando‘s “Cultural Corridor’, an 8-mile (13-kilometer) stretch from downtown Orlando to Winter Park, there is a huge variety of museums, galleries and theaters ready to explore.

Albin Polasek Museum and Sculpture Gardens, listed on the National Register of Historic Places, showcases nearly 200 of his works in the Czech sculptor’s home, galleries and a 3-acre (1.2-hectare) garden in Winter Park.

The Charles Hosmer Morse Museum of American Art, located on the northern end of Winter Park’s shopping district, is home to the world’s most comprehensive collection of works by Louis Comfort Tiffany, along with many more late 19th and 20th century American art pieces. Visitors especially love the elaborate chapel interior created for a special exhibition in 1893.

Featuring European and American paintings, sculpture and decorative arts, the Cornell Fine Arts Museum, overlooking picturesque Lake Virginia at Rollins College in Winter Park is a site to behold.

The Mennello Museum of American Art, located in Loch Haven Park near other fine museums and performance houses, is known for its extensive collection of vividly colored folk art by painter Earl Cunningham.

Orlando Museum of Art in Loch Haven Park features traveling exhibitions and permanent collections by Central Florida artists, American and international artists. The museum also offers lectures, art appreciation classes and their signature 1st Thursdays event which showcases a new theme with works by local artists, live music and libations.

Besides a ton of engaging and creative exhibits to peruse, Orlando Science Center has a giant CineDome movie theater, an observatory and hands-on activities for children of all ages.

Besides new and permanent exhibits related to Central Florida, Orange County Regional History Center always has great events scheduled like their monthly Retro Game Night.

Albin Polasek Museum and Sculpture Gardens