Attractions in Altamonte Springs
Altamonte Springs is part of the Greater Orlando Metro area, a suburban city just to the north of downtown Orlando. Surrounding cities include Winter Park, Maitland, Longwood, Lake Mary and Apopka.
The History of Altamonte Springs
The city was founded way back in 1879 when a business man from Cincinnati, Dr. Washington Kilmer, settled in the area naming it after the area in New York where he grew up. About ten years later a small group of businessmen from Massachusetts also settled in the area and gave the area its present name: Altamonte Springs. They thought the area would be a great spot for winter tourism so they purchased a huge parcel of land on the shores of Lake Adelaide. The Altamonte Hotel was built which features a horse-drawn tram from the hotel to the local railroad station. The hotel registered its first guest in 1883 and flourished for many years, however it burned down in a horrible fire in 1953.
The citrus groves and pineapple plantations attracted thousands of agricultural workers to the area, and this resulted in the town rapidly growing in size. In 1921, Altamonte springs became a town and it was incorporated as a city in 1967.
Great Schools
One of the reasons that families choose the Altamonte Springs area is because of the great schools which are part of the Seminole County School System. The immediate area is serviced by five elementary schools, two middle schools, and three high schools.
Additionally, there are six private schools and Seminole State College of Florida. A few miles away, is the largest university in the United States, the University of Central Florida, home of the UCF Knights. Rollins College in Winter Park is one of the country’s finest private Liberal Arts Universities.
The Attractions
The Central Florida weather is another huge draw to the area surrounding Altamonte Springs. In the winter, you can expect average temperatures around 72 degrees. Get your water bottles out and ceiling fans cranked up for the summers. Average temperatures between June and early October hover around 92 degrees with high humidity. You can also count on a lot of thunderstorm activity in the summer months because of the combination of high temperatures, the crazy humidity and the sea breezes that arrive in Central Florida from both coasts. Central Florida, which includes Altamonte Springs, has more lighting strikes than any other place in the while country. In fact, Central Florida is often referred to as the “Thunderstorm Capital on the USA” and sometimes “Lightening Alley”.
One of the major attractions in Altamonte Springs is Cranes Roost Park and Cranes Roost Lake. An outdoor hub of local activity there has been named “Uptown Altamonte” which is the central business district. The area includes two large apartment complexes with plans for additional condos coming soon. It has a vibrant mix of mixed use retailers and restaurants. The park itself is very popular for outdoor art and food festivals including the famous Red Hot and Boom celebration every July 4th. Directly across the road the Cranes Roost Park is the Altamonte Mall, one of Central Florida’s largest shopping malls. It includes an 18 screen movie theatre.