The city is located in the central region of the state, with a subtropical climate. Swamps are common in the region. Famous for its tourist attractions, such as Disney, Orlando received in 2012 more than 55 million tourists, making it the most visited city in the United States and the second most visited in the world. This makes it support an immense infrastructure of hotels, passenger cars and guides to meet such demand. The infrastructure for tourism is so great that the city has 100,000 hotel rooms available and 26,000 vacation rental homes, tourism employs 230,000 people in the region, with Walt Disney World being the biggest employer, with 56 thousand employees.

In addition to being a tourist hub, Orlando is also a financial center, currently undergoing a phase of intense growth, with numerous expansion projects underway. It is also considered for eight consecutive years a leader in care and research in the health area (Florida Hospital), has the second largest university in the state of Florida (University of Central Florida) and a team in the main American basketball league, the NBA ( Orlando Magic).

The city of Orlando is nicknamed “The City Beautiful”, and its symbol is the Linton E. Allen Memorial Fountain, commonly referred to as simply the “Fountain of Lake Eola” in Lake Eola Park. Orlando is also known as “The Theme Park Capital of the World” and in 2018 its tourist attractions and events attracted more than 75 million visitors. Orlando International Airport (MCO or OIA) is the thirteenth busiest airport in the United States and the 29th busiest in the world.

As one of the most visited tourist destinations in the world, Orlando’s famous attractions form the backbone of its tourism industry. The two most important of these attractions are Walt Disney World, opened by the Walt Disney Company in 1971 and located approximately 34 km southwest of downtown Orlando, in Bay Lake; and Universal Orlando Resort, which opened in 1990 as a major expansion of Universal Studios Florida. With the exception of Walt Disney World, the main attractions are located along International Drive, one of them being The Wheel at ICON Park Orlando. The city is also one of America’s busiest conference and convention cities; the Orange County Convention Center is the second largest convention facility in the United States.