Keen shoppers should take a trip to the new Winter Garden Village, just a short drive from the Orlando tourist area. The journey should take 20 - 30 minutes depending on your starting point.
To get there take the 429 western beltway from Interstate 4. This is a toll road and you will pay 2 separate $1 tolls from the I4 to Winter Garden Village exit.
Leave the 429 at the 535 Vineland Rd exit and at the bottom of the ramp turn left. The shopping village is immediately on your right.
The village is divided into three different areas, The Exchange, The Groves and The Crossing.
In the Exchange area you will find many of the large stores, Super Target, Bealls, Jo-Anns and Marshalls to name but a few. If the man in your life starts to complain then pack him off to Sports Authority, Best Buy or even Lowes!
For the home you will find some beautiful things in Haverty's or World Market and the villa owners friend, Linens 'n Things.
Another store worthy of note for ladies is Ulta, selling all manner of perfumes, cosmetics and hair care products.
The Groves is almost a shopping centre within a shopping centre. It is far more intimate and is situated in the heart of Winter Garden Village. here you will find smaller boutique style shops and one or two restaurants / eateries. many shops here sell good quality clothing and footwear; Anne Klein, Jos. A Banks, Chicos, American Eagle and Nine West all feature. There are also speciality stores such as Victoria’s Secret, Kay jewelers and Pac Sun.
For refreshment in The Groves area try the Mexican restaurant Amigos, 5 Guys Burgers and Planet Smoothie. The Bonefish Grill is yet to open.
The Groves is home to a history walk which honors individuals in the community who have had an impact on the area over the years, it also houses The Grand Fountain, the Clock Tower and The Fowler Porch which are all part of the Winter Garden Village public art programme.
Finally The Crossing Area lies on both sides of the main rd (Daniels Rd) and is made up mainly of banks and restaurants.
There are fast food outlets such as McDonalds, Quiznos and Chick Fil A, restaurants such as Longhorn Steak House, Chilis, Mimi's and Romano's Macaroni Grill to name but a few and a couple of my favorite treats, Starbucks and The Cold Stone Creamery.
This article is not intended as a comprehensive list of all the outlets at Winter Garden Village and merely serves to give the reader an idea as to what is on offer.
The shopping area is all outdoors and is open seven days a week. There is plenty of parking available.
If you want to combine a trip to Winter Garden Village with an afternoon or evening trip to the Disney area, there is no need to go all the way back to highway 192. Between the two toll plazas you will find Walt Disney World signposted, leave the 429 here and it will bring you straight on to Disney property.
Just as a post script we got fantastic views of Magic Kingdom fireworks on the way back. The perspective is totally different from that seen in and around the parks and we were able to see the glow of the fireworks as they shot into the air before exploding. The distance between the launch of the smaller lower fireworks and the massive explosions that fill the sky was quite marked and they came from 2 clearly different launch sites. I will certainly put a whole new slant on the Wishes display the next time I see it from The magic Kingdom!
To get there take the 429 western beltway from Interstate 4. This is a toll road and you will pay 2 separate $1 tolls from the I4 to Winter Garden Village exit.
Leave the 429 at the 535 Vineland Rd exit and at the bottom of the ramp turn left. The shopping village is immediately on your right.
The village is divided into three different areas, The Exchange, The Groves and The Crossing.
In the Exchange area you will find many of the large stores, Super Target, Bealls, Jo-Anns and Marshalls to name but a few. If the man in your life starts to complain then pack him off to Sports Authority, Best Buy or even Lowes!
For the home you will find some beautiful things in Haverty's or World Market and the villa owners friend, Linens 'n Things.
Another store worthy of note for ladies is Ulta, selling all manner of perfumes, cosmetics and hair care products.
The Groves is almost a shopping centre within a shopping centre. It is far more intimate and is situated in the heart of Winter Garden Village. here you will find smaller boutique style shops and one or two restaurants / eateries. many shops here sell good quality clothing and footwear; Anne Klein, Jos. A Banks, Chicos, American Eagle and Nine West all feature. There are also speciality stores such as Victoria’s Secret, Kay jewelers and Pac Sun.
For refreshment in The Groves area try the Mexican restaurant Amigos, 5 Guys Burgers and Planet Smoothie. The Bonefish Grill is yet to open.
The Groves is home to a history walk which honors individuals in the community who have had an impact on the area over the years, it also houses The Grand Fountain, the Clock Tower and The Fowler Porch which are all part of the Winter Garden Village public art programme.
Finally The Crossing Area lies on both sides of the main rd (Daniels Rd) and is made up mainly of banks and restaurants.
There are fast food outlets such as McDonalds, Quiznos and Chick Fil A, restaurants such as Longhorn Steak House, Chilis, Mimi's and Romano's Macaroni Grill to name but a few and a couple of my favorite treats, Starbucks and The Cold Stone Creamery.
This article is not intended as a comprehensive list of all the outlets at Winter Garden Village and merely serves to give the reader an idea as to what is on offer.
The shopping area is all outdoors and is open seven days a week. There is plenty of parking available.
If you want to combine a trip to Winter Garden Village with an afternoon or evening trip to the Disney area, there is no need to go all the way back to highway 192. Between the two toll plazas you will find Walt Disney World signposted, leave the 429 here and it will bring you straight on to Disney property.
Just as a post script we got fantastic views of Magic Kingdom fireworks on the way back. The perspective is totally different from that seen in and around the parks and we were able to see the glow of the fireworks as they shot into the air before exploding. The distance between the launch of the smaller lower fireworks and the massive explosions that fill the sky was quite marked and they came from 2 clearly different launch sites. I will certainly put a whole new slant on the Wishes display the next time I see it from The magic Kingdom!