Merritt Island, FL Outdoor Activities

Norm White has more than 25 years of bicycle-industry experience under his spandex waistline, and puts his know-how to work at Daytona Bicycle Center, which he cofounded with his wife, Carla. The Whites outfit cyclists with an array of bikes for all riding styles and maintain the shop's inventory with comprehensive repair and maintenance services. Pedal-powered contraptions produced by Trek conquer roads, races, and mountain trails, and accommodate riders of all experience levels and ages. Before making a purchase, clients can take bikes for a spin to make sure that the saddle is comfortable, the gears change smoothly, and the wheels stay on. Each new bike comes with a free tune-up, and subsequent maintenance packages can be purchased for everything from basic adjustments and cleanings to complete disassembly. The shop also dispenses high-quality parts and biking apparel, such as shoes, gloves, and robotic legs that pedal for the biker.

Inspired by his own love of exotic cars, Joe Sabatini's Festivals of Speed has been parading a fleet of the world’s snazziest automobiles before crowds at several fancy Florida hotels and resorts for a full decade. His who’s who list of cars includes vintage and contemporary models from Porsche, Lamborghini, Bugatti, Rolls-Royce, and Aston Martin, some so frighteningly aerodynamic that the wind refuses to blow on them. All rest in silent repose, waiting to be unleashed to qualified drivers through a special Ride and Drive program.

To complement the automotive elegance, the event planners have made arrangements for soft jazz, luxury lifestyle displays, and sumptuous snacks perfect for tossing to Bentleys as they hop up on their hind wheels. The festival also attracts speedy species of watercraft, aircraft, and custom motorcycles, as well as classic and restored cars submitted by local auto enthusiasts. Alongside its vehicle lineup, the festivals also showcase jewelry, fine art, real estate, and culinary gems to cater to all manner of luxury aficionado.

The Jewish Community Center of Greater Orlando was founded to give those who share the Jewish tradition a communal setting in which to exercise, play, and learn with one another. Between them, the two locations boast full fitness facilities, tennis courts, and an outdoor pool. Group exercise classes and a gymnasium aid adults in acquiring fitter bodies, and sports leagues provide a venue for grownups to compete and ceremoniously dump sports drinks on each other. The center also puts on its own full-blown theatrical productions.

The center’s staff tailors certain events to the needs of senior citizens, helping them with exercise regimes such as yoga. Staff members also assist the Senior Nite club in organizing trips to new restaurants or the theater and help pintsize guests by helming a preschool, kids' camps, and extracurricular programs. Staffers can even pick up youngsters from school and ferry them to one of the facilities for afterschool development programs, which, like backyard mazes, are designed by the child’s parents to challenge young ones.

Constructed in 1886, the residence now known as Haunted Grimm House sheltered the Grimm family funeral business until a triad of unfortunate events—the stock-market crash, a Grimm son's gradual descent into insanity, and a murderous butler—brought the clan to a macabre end. Nearly 100 years after the house's construction, the Old Town council⎯afraid to tear the building down lest they rouse wrathful spirits⎯decided to open the two-story home for tours.

…Or so visitors to Haunted Grimm House are told before embarking on 10- to 15-minute treks through the spooky structure's more than 4,000 square feet. Via winding corridors, patrons peek into the Victorian-style dwelling's 20 rooms, which claim to teem with ghouls, monsters, and chiropractors extracting the chills from spines.

The balmy April air seems warmer as sonic webs of reggae and island music weave their way throughout the Martin County Fairgrounds. Backed by a laid-back symphony of live steel drums and vocals, visitors to the third-annual fete wend through merchant stalls and scope out displays of marine-themed art and new and used fishing or boating equipment, including rods, kayaks, and lures flavored like medium-rare worms. A public boat auction draws bids on new and used watercrafts, while an antique boat show recalls seafaring days of yesteryear. A host of sage boating and fishing gurus helm workshops and seminars throughout the festival, waterlogging attendees’ neurons with nautical topics. To prevent growling stomachs from interrupting precious boat-gazing time, festival chefs whip up toothsome seafood to remind eaters of their love for the sea and quests to eat every inch of it.

Operating daily from 9:30 a.m. to 4 p.m. in the winter, the cozy, heated trolleys at Old Town Trolley Tours pick up and drop off riders at 18 stops throughout the city. Riders can hop on and hop off at their leisure, with trolleys frequenting stops every 15–20 minutes. With ticket in hand, trolley riders will also receive a well-stacked coupon card and free admission to Boston's oldest surviving public building, the Old State House Museum, which has outlived both gravity and Washington's wooden molars. Other stops include the New England Aquarium, the Boston Skywalk Observatory, Fenway Park and the Boston Children’s Museum.