Orlando makes Lonely Planet's Best in Travel Top 10 Cities Worldwide for 2012 (Beverly Hills: hotel, neighborhoods)

[Pete C]

First Boston Globe, now Lonely Planet praising Orlando for its non-Disney, 'hip' local city vibe. Keep on hating people...these new articles just prove again and again that most visitors are pleasantly surprised at what ELSE Orlando offers in terms of culture, food, and atmosphere in our local neighborhoods.

Lonely Planet’s Best in Travel: top 10 cities for 2012

9. Orlando

This should be a great year for Orlando as it’s hosting the 61st NBA All-Star Weekend (25 and 26 February). The hippest sporting event in the USA , it brings much of the basketball and music worlds together for slam-dunk contests, after-hours parties and concerts, as well as the all-star game itself. Most visitors will head for the theme parks but it’s worth poking around the city, too. Keep an eye on the boho ‘Milk District’, a neighbourhood on the rise with its motley crew of eateries, bars serving microbrews, bookshops and tattoo parlours, just a short drive east of downtown. Orlando, hip? Who knew?

[Crane's Rooster]

Wow that is an impressive list to be in the company of. Hope this lockout ends soon so we won't have to wait another 2 years to showcase downtown. I'm sure if it goes forward this year, people will be talking about All-Star weekend for years to come. Even in places like the Staples Center, you can't walk out of the Arena and into the after party, you would still have to drive out to Beverly Hills and other parts of LA. It's gonna be wild to go watch the Slam Dunk contest on Saturday night and than walk directly to the afterparty on Church St. or Orange Ave. It's going to be insanity that weekend. Not to mention the boost to our local businesses.

[lr5497]

WOW!! That's an impressive list to be part of!! Although lately I've come across many European tourists who want to travel to different sides of Orlando to exprience something more unique.

[jeepin101]

My family loves Orlando not just for theme parks but the city itself,Clean,Freindly,Always things to do

[Bbiddle87]

Gotta love good ole Orlando, people can talk all They want but this is a great city, no doubt about it! Glad to see us getting some good recognition.

[OrlFlaUsa]

Wow thanks so much for posting this!! I was out tonight enjoying this AMAZING weather in our great city and was writing posts in my head the whole time. My favorite part is where they say: "Orlando hip, who knew?" Why you ask? Because I absolutely love it when people discover the real Orlando and are impressed. No Orlando is not the biggest, most cultured, hippest, uber liberal, PHD sporting, super cosmopolitan local, such as what is found in New York, LA, Chicago, Boston, or even Portland and Seattle, but man do I love how it isn't any of those places and how it takes on an identity entirely its own. People assume Orlando is just the Attractions and Disney since that is what they see and a big part of Orlando for sure, but for every action there is an equal and opposite reaction, and Orlando takes that philosophy and runs with it. I feel like for every hotel or strip mall t-shirt shop that opens on I-Drive, something great is born in the real Orlando, just north of Conroy Rd.

[AONE]

I'm glad they too see what a great place Orlando is. I've been to 3 of the cities, guess I have 7 more adventures ahead.