That’s not an exaggeration. It's home to Disney World, The Wizarding World of Harry Potter, Universal Studios, SeaWorld, Legoland Florida and a whole lot more. This may make it feel like a magical experience for only those with small children, but the arts and culture scene, nightlife, and a ton of great restaurants and bars make it worth it for everyone. 

Orlando gets hot. Really hot. And with that heat comes humidity. It can be unpleasant and weigh you down. The payoff is a lot of sunshine, and morning storms that tend to burn off quickly. Residents have found ways to handle it, so where there's a will there’s a way but it’s safe to say that those who do not like warmer climates would not like this city.



It’s the Center of Fun

The Best Thing About Orlando?

Much of Orlando is of course theme parks and suburban sprawl to support the explosion in families that moved here. If you’re looking for nightlife and to be close to a commercial district be sure to choose wisely. There are areas with culture/shopping and good restaurants but outside of a few neighborhoods most of Orlando is suburban and quiet. Orlando does have an active outdoor culture, the weather, while scorching hot in summer, is very pleasant 9 months a year which means whatever you like to do outside of snow sports, you can do all year round here. 

If you're interested in checking out the happenings in Orlando here is the [**calendar of events**](https://www.visitorlando.com/events).

Lifestyle

Not shocking that tourism is the center of the economy in Orlando. At the high end of the tourism industry, there are good-paying professional jobs but the majority are low-paying service jobs, which means much of Orlando is lower-cost and rental-driven to accommodate the wage levels. 

Outside of tourism, there is a large industrial and tech sector economy. Digital media and software design are particularly strong in Orlando and there are also major international companies in the aerospace and defense industries. Overall the economy is strong and plenty of people move here for the inexpensive housing and job opportunities.

Major Employers include:

-**Walt Disney World Resort**: As the largest employer in the region, Disney employs approximately 75,000 individuals, primarily in the leisure and hospitality sector. 

-**AdventHealth**: A leading healthcare provider, AdventHealth employs around 37,672 people across various facilities. 

-**Universal Orlando Resort**: Another significant player in the leisure and hospitality industry, Universal Orlando Resort employs about 26,800 individuals. 

-**Orlando Health:** This healthcare organization employs approximately 24,978 people, and offers a range of medical services. 

-**Lockheed Martin**: In the aerospace and defense sector, Lockheed Martin employs around 14,000 individuals in the Orlando area. 


Worklife

If you don't like Sun don't move here. If you do, you will get your fill. If you hate Disney, don't move here, but if you like at least the idea of theme parks, then there's no better place on the planet. 

Sun and fun!

Why You Should Move Here Now?

**Anonymous**
Living in Orlando
4mo ago
🦉🦉🦉🦉

Many people will disagree but I love Orlando! I’ve lived in Florida my whole life and all across the state (Tampa, Jacksonville, Daytona Beach, Melbourne, Tallahassee, DeLand and Orlando). Out of all of these places Orlando is hands down my favorite.

Things to do:

Theme Parks - I have annual passes and we don’t ride much but we love to walk around, eat and check out different events.

Community Events - Between Orlando and all the satellite cities there are a ton of farmers markets, events and more.

Concerts/Comedy Shows - I feel like we attract some great bands and comedians.

Outdoors - Florida hiking is pretty lame but kayaking, water sports and nearby beaches are great. Plus we have quite a few springs around us.

Food - I travel a lot and I really think Orlando has a great food scene compared to many places. A lot of fusion and other interesting concepts.

Orlando metro area is massive and there are a lot of options. Just depends on what you want. A couple directions to point you in: If you have money Windermere and Baldwin Park. If you like a good bar scene and calmer vibes Sanford. If you want to live in decent communities with short commute to downtown Lake Mary, Altamonte Springs and Winter Park. Looking for dirt cheap housing for the area then Kissimmee.

I’ve been to Vegas a couple times now mostly for work but from what I experienced Orlando is definitely an upgrade unless you have a gambling addiction lol.

For more reviews of Orlando from locals check out: [**The Reviews**](https://lookyloomove.com/locations/orlando/reviews)

The City Beautiful 

Reviews of Orlando from Locals

**The Best Thing About Orlando?** It’s the center of fun

Orlando is the home to Disney World, The Wizarding World of Harry Potter, Universal Studios and more, which may feel like a magical respite only for those with small children, but residents enjoy it just as much. Disney properties and parks cut a large swath into Orlando, but a city also exists with its own assets, including good schools and roads. 

**The Worst Thing About Orlando?** It’s Not the Heat It’s the Humidity

Orlando gets hot. Really hot. And with that heat comes humidity. It can be unpleasant and weigh you down. The payoff is a lot of sunshine, and morning storms that tend to burn off quickly. Residents have found ways to handle it, so if there’s a will there’s a way but it’s safe to say that those who do not like warmer climates would not like this city.

**How You Living?** 

Tourists are a fact of daily life in Orlando and once you figure out how to navigate around them, Orlando can be a wonderful place to live. You can find entry-level jobs by the score, but there’s not a ton of higher-paying jobs, and the pay isn’t great compared to the cost of living. But there’s always something fun to do!

**Why You Should Move Here Now?** It’s sunny and fun 

You can’t move to Orlando without facing the reality of Mickey Mouse and obnoxious tourists, but those who like hot weather will enjoy being outdoors and the plentiful wildlife. 


Downtown is the hotspot for older Gen Z and younger Millennials. It’s where college students and professionals live so they can walk to class or to work. It also is home to some of the newest most interesting restaurant choices, plenty of bars and nightclubs so after work and on weekends you can get out for the night. Plenty of highrise apartment and condo choices at good prices for a big city make it affordable to boot!
- Downtown
- South Eola


Young Professionals

Downtown

If you want some action but want to be a bit removed from Downtown then look at South Eola. Just south of the business district it surrounds much of Lake Eola, so you get lots of water recreation, but it’s also filled with a cool mix of homes, high-rise apartments/condos and has tons of walkable dining, drinking, cafe-ing and shopping options. 
- South Eola


DINKs/SINKs

South Eola

Within the Colonialtown area sits the Milk District. A historic neighborhood filled with beautiful mid-century bungalows and lakefront botanic gardens. It’s also home to tons of bars, eclectic restaurants, boutique shopping and cafes that are owned by and/or cater to the LGBTG+ community in Orlando. https://www.outcoast.com/most-lgbt-friendly-neighborhoods-in-orlando
- Colonialtown/Milk District
- Delany Park
- Lake Eola Heights


LGBTQ+

Colonialtown

Baldwin Park is a good place for families to start their search if you like the idea of a neighborhood that feels like a part of the city but has the benefits of a suburb. It has its own town center with tons of shops, eats and drinks, all walkable from the apartments and homes in the neighborhood. It also has great homes, schools and 50 miles of walking, biking and hiking paths in the actual Baldwin Park. Mix in the live music, fresh produce and crafts at the Orlando Farmers Market, and you get a sense of the community vibe of the place.
- Baldwin Park
- Lake Nona
- Oviedo


Families

Baldwin Park

Hard to beat Florida for retirees and Orlando is no exception. South Eola is a great neighborhood to consider: lots of dining, shopping and entertainment in the most walkable neighborhood in all of Orlando. Not only are the houses great choices for retirees and empty-nesters but it has two of Orlando’s retirement communities: Baptist Terrace and the Orlando Lutheran Towers, for those who favor more structured environments. 
- South Eola
- Lake Eola Heights
- Lake Cherokee 


Retirees

Lake Eola Heights

Orlando

**Do I want to move to Orlando?!**
Anonymous
Living in Orlando
🦉🦉🦉

I’ve lived down here for 8 years now. It’s personally not one my favorite I’ve lived, but I am not typically in the norm. I’m more of a mountain guy, and not super interested in the beaches. Also prefer cold to hot (I miss snow, but I think I’m the only one!). I’m explaining my gripes mostly because they tend to not be shared, most people love being able to go outside year round and not deal with ice on the roads. I live in Winter Garden, a suburb just outside of Orlando, and really like it there. The small downtown actually has a lot of life and character. Downtown Orlando itself has a great night life and food scene. Then there’s all the parks. Lot of friends spend a lot of time there. Other than downtown (lots of neighborhoods around there that are great), Winter Garden, Winter Park, and Maitland are some other nice areas I’d recommend. Hope that helps some!

**Anonymous**
Living in Orlando
4mo ago
🦉🦉🦉🦉

Many people will disagree but I love Orlando! I’ve lived in Florida my whole life and all across the state (Tampa, Jacksonville, Daytona Beach, Melbourne, Tallahassee, DeLand and Orlando). Out of all of these places Orlando is hands down my favorite.

Things to do:

Theme Parks - I have annual passes and we don’t ride much but we love to walk around, eat and check out different events.

Community Events - Between Orlando and all the satellite cities there are a ton of farmers markets, events and more.

Concerts/Comedy Shows - I feel like we attract some great bands and comedians.

Outdoors - Florida hiking is pretty lame but kayaking, water sports and nearby beaches are great. Plus we have quite a few springs around us.

Food - I travel a lot and I really think Orlando has a great food scene compared to many places. A lot of fusion and other interesting concepts.

Orlando metro area is massive and there are a lot of options. Just depends on what you want. A couple directions to point you in: If you have money Windermere and Baldwin Park. If you like a good bar scene and calmer vibes Sanford. If you want to live in decent communities with short commute to downtown Lake Mary, Altamonte Springs and Winter Park. Looking for dirt cheap housing for the area then Kissimmee.

I’ve been to Vegas a couple times now mostly for work but from what I experienced Orlando is definitely an upgrade unless you have a gambling addiction lol.

**ArmadilloNext9714**
Living in Area
2y ago
🦉🦉🦉🦉

I love it. I’m 10-15 min from everything, including work so traffic doesn’t bother me. There’s so much going on around the city that it never gets boring.

One of our favorite things lately has been the after hours events at Leu gardens. Members get in to many of them for free (and membership is reasonable). You just have to show up early to get one of those spots. We’ve been loving their movie and jazz nights.

We have the annual 3 park passes for universal, and volcano bay is AMAZING during cold fronts (if it’s open). And this is coming from a native south Floridian. The water is heated and nobody is there. We went one day in feb when the high was about 70 (55ish for rope drop). The section we love to sit in was entirely empty. We were the first in the crazy lazy river and only saw one other group by the time we got out. We got on the water rollercoaster without wait and rode it multiple times without getting off. There were a dozen people in the wave pool at any given time and all other pools were basically deserted. Highly recommend. The first hour was uncomfortable if you got out of the water, but after that it was fantastic!

The restaurant scene here is unparalleled. There so much diversity and sooooo many options.


**Emperor_Neuro**
Living in area
4mo ago
🦉🦉🦉🦉

Orlando itself is pretty great. It sounds like you’ll probably wind up working on the west side of the city in Tourist Town, and you’ll probably want to find somewhere to live that’ll have an easy commute to that. Just be aware that everything in the southwest corner of town is completely dominated by the tourism industry, theme parks, and convention center. There will be a 10-20% premium on all dining and groceries because the primary clientele is transient tourists who don’t know better. Go to the east or north sides of town for a calmer, more affordable, and more local-culture driven scene.

Personally, I live out in Avalon Park on the very eastern edge of Orlando and I love it. I’m about halfway between the theme parks and the beach. There’s lots of parks and open space that are great to walk through, though nothing in the entire state of Florida offers what I’d really call “hiking” as opposed to “walks in the woods.” I’m originally from Colorado, so my hiking is different. Bear in mind that Florida is the flattest state in the country and the highest elevation point is only 300ft. There’s A TON of water sports, though. There’s more water in the city of Orlando than the entire state of Nevada. Fishing, boating, kayaking, paddle boarding, surfing, scuba … it’s all wonderful here. This state is also fantastic if you’re interested in golf.

Orlando, Florida

The City Beautiful

Looklyloo Score: 90