Elite Golf Courses and Poolside Fun at Family-Friendly Resort

The splashing explosion radiating from a cannonball dive into one of Reunion Resort's many cerulean pools absorbs into a tranquil silence before it has time to reach the verdant, rolling hills of the resort's championship golf courses. While wee ones saturate the warm air with poolside peals of laughter, a lush pasture of open fairways, greens, and palm trees awaits golf-minded vacationers. Two of the courses' clubhouses are located steps from the 11-story Reunion Grande tower, granting golfers immediate access to courses dreamed up by legends Arnold Palmer, Tom Watson, and Jack Nicklaus. Each set of 18 holes presents players with a different challenge, from the Palmer course's hilly, rolling terrain to the smooth and flowing Parkland-style of the Nicklaus course dotted with lucent water hazards. Although the Watson course is best known for inspiring creative solutions and high-risk shots, each course requires a strategic mind and offers up breathtaking natural landscapes, 15 varieties of native grasses, silky azaleas, and vibrant camellias.

The Reunion Grande ziggurat anchors the sprawling resort, rocketing up 11 stories in the heart of all the action. Mirroring the graceful beauty of the surrounding grounds, individually decorated Estate Villa suites provide tasty bits of eye candy characterized by expansive and spacious layouts and private walk-out balconies. Plush king-size beds sport velvety, quilt-top comforters in the master bedroom, and a pair of double beds in the second bedroom shepherds weary travelers toward deep slumber. The kitchen is equipped for culinary battle with granite countertops, stainless-steel appliances, and a full supply of utensils and pancake catapults.

Not to be outdone by the resort's land-based amenities, the forces of water reel in guests with 10 refreshing swimming pools scattered across the grounds. A short skip from the suite delivers younglings and the young-at-heart to Reunion's Water Park, an aquatic collection of cool baths, a flume ride, and twisting water slides. Reunion's lazy river also cuts a watery swathe into the park, allowing yellow donut inner tubes and their captains to cruise past cascading waterfalls, sun chairs snoozing under umbrellas, and leafy palm fronds extending toward the sun. While lolling by the water, guests can sip fruity libations or frequent poolside restaurants and their enticing neighbors, including a white-sand volleyball court and serenity-inducing spa.

Orlando, Florida: Amusement-Park Thrills and Cultural Gems

With no other spot in the country capable of rivaling Orlando in theme-park abundance, the city is filled to bursting with family-friendly amusements. Thrill seekers are only a 15-minute car trip from the southern border of the Walt Disney World campus, rife with theme parks, water parks, and spinning teacups. A 25-minute ride up I-4 brings travelers to the gates of a handful of Universal theme parks, such as Universal Studios and Islands of Adventure, featuring The Wizarding World of Harry Potter. Travelers looking to escape the hurly-burly of tourist-packed attractions can light out for calmer territory, basking in Orlando's fine restaurants, shopping, and low-key destinations. Whether it be a countryside hot air balloon ride, an epic mini-golf tournament among friends, or a family-style tapas dinner, there's certain to be an activity to suit every traveler in this mecca of entertainment.