Florida

Florida, known as 'The Sunshine State', is one of the most popular tourist destinations in the world. For families, fun-packed Orlando is the face of Florida that many people recognise, with its enormous number of theme parks, movie studios, water parks and entertainment facilities. For singles and young adults, it's all about Miami, with its sizzling beaches, naughty nightlife and spicy culture.

But there is certainly more to Florida than Disney World and South Beach. Winding waterways, freshwater lakes, hills, forests, exciting cities, 13,560km (8,426 miles) of coastline, countless bays, inlets and islands, and a legendary climate make this one of the most popular states - for visitors and residents alike - in the USA.

Florida can be divided into three main geographical regions: South, Central and North Florida. The epicenter of South Florida is Miami and Miami Beach, which have long been magnets for the rich, famous, young and beautiful. The Fort Lauderdale area is a popular spot for families, offering sports and recreational activities. Palm Beach represents a more genteel opulence, with storied families like the Kennedy's maintaining residences in the area. Further to the south, the Florida Keys archipelago offers a tropical climate, beautiful beaches and clear blue waters, while the Everglades National Park provides adventure seekers with air-boat rides and alligator tales. To the west, the southern Gulf Coast cities of Sarasota, Fort Myers and Naples serve up culture and tranquility alongside stellar sunsets.

Home to most of the state’s massive theme parks and tourist attractions - not to mention the scores of budget hotels, outlet malls, all-you-can-eat buffets and gaudy T-shirt shops - the Orlando area is the axis around which Central Florida revolves. Flanking the city to the east is the Space Coast, named for Kennedy Space Centre and its cadre of sky-bound rockets, and Daytona Beach, home of the hard-packed beach sands that spawned the auto racing industry. To the west of Orlando is burgeoning Tampa and St Petersburg, the main cities of the Gulf Coast, with miles-long beaches, theme parks and picturesque historical sites to offer visitors.

Tucked in amongst the rolling red clay hills and mossy oak trees of North Florida, the capital of the state, Tallahassee, is a popular university town strictly Southern in tone. Nearby, the beaches of the Panhandle, anchored by Pensacola in the west, have thankfully escaped the worst of the 2010 Gulf of Mexico oil spill. In the northeastern corner of Florida stands Jacksonville, an industrial center named after General Andrew Jackson. Nearby Saint Augustine is known as 'America's Oldest City' while Amelia Island is the only place in the country to have been governed by eight different countries during its history.

Between the cities, motorists can find stretches of windswept coastal highways, faded attractions from the early days of Florida tourism, perfectly planned orange groves and boiled peanuts sold by the bag. If lazing on the beach for an entire week is your thing, you’re well within your rights, but it won’t be because there’s nothing else to do in this fascinating place.