The Kennedy Space Center
Florida Guide > Days Out
Kennedy Space Center has to be one of the most famous places in the world and to be so close and not pay it a visit would be criminal!
It is only about one to one and a half hours drive away from Orlando so can be a fascinating day trip. It may not appeal to everyone or all ages, but I have yet to meet anyone who did not enjoy it, especially small boys and their Dads.
Take a bus tour to all areas of the space center and everything is explained in great detail. All the most important areas for example, the launch pad, mission control and the building where the rockets are built, are all visited and the public are let off the bus to explore with or without a tour guide.
The hall where you can view space memorabilia including space capsules and actual duplicate rockets, which are always built as spares in case the first rocket is faulty. The gift shops too sell wonderful momentos of your tour. What little boy (or big boy) would not love a souvenir from Kennedy Space Center or even a junior space outfit. They even sell the dry packet food that astronauts eat during a mission. (I wouldn’t recommend it for lunch though)! !
The part I liked most was my visit to the IMAX theatre to see a movie of a launch taken from inside a rocket. The sight of the rocket leaving the earth as viewed from the rocket is absolutely breathtaking and often moves people to tears. There is a choice of two films to see but I can only comment on the film of the launch as I have not seen the other one.
If you are able to visit when a rocket launch is due, then you can watch history being made. It is a spectacle not to be missed, even if it is a night launch, and will stay in your memory for ever. You can buy tickets for a seat to view the launch although you would need to book well in advance. However, do be aware when booking a ticket, that the weather could cause the launch to be postponed and they do not offer refunds. I have seen several now and have usually managed to get a good spot to see the launch from either Cocoa Beach or Titusville. You will get just as close as in the space center itself.
On our last launch we only decided at the last minute to go and just drove straight to Titusville, pulled up on the side of the road, got out of the car and the launch was about thirty minutes later. So you can be spontaneous without having to wait for hours just to see it. I even saw one as I was driving to Miami from Jacksonville and again just got out of the car and watched.
So don’t miss it if you get the chance, you can talk about it for years.
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