The Perfect Long Weekend in Mount Dora

We spent Thanksgiving of 2025 in Mount Dora and this Florida town charmed me and the entire family.  This was the entire extended family so we had a group of 25 of us.  We all rented bungalows except for two families that stayed at the Lakeside Inn.

Why we fell in love with where we stayed?

We stayed in an adorable vacation rental.  I loved the decor, she incorporated a dark purple through out subtly.  The home was comfortable and well appointed.  It was a three bedroom, two bathroom home with a comfortable living room, dining room and kitchen.  We hosted Thanksgiving for all 22.  Before hosting, I told the owners and they said it was our house while we stayed there.  Thanksgiving morning, I realized that I did not have a pan to cook the turkey in or an electric knife.  I messaged the owners and guess what?  They brought it over including a beautiful platter to serve it on.  It is seriously one of the nicest airbnbs we have stayed in.  The best part was that we were walking distance to the historic distric and to the other 2 homes our family members rented.

Things to See in Mount Dora

If you are visiting Mount Dora, this will help you plan your trip.  Here is everything we did during our stay.  We were there Wednesday to Sunday.

• Lakeside Inn is worth seeing and walking around.  It is on a huge lake and you can walk out on their docs and explore the property.  The Lakeside Inn is Florida's oldest continuously operating hotel, built in 1883, representing the last of Central Florida's grand Victorian-era hotels, having hosted famous guests like President Calvin Coolidge, and remains on the National Register of Historic Places, preserving its original charm and serving as a living piece of Old Florida history. 

• We had a great time with Premier Boat Tours.  We did a private 2-hour canal tour because there were so many of us, we took up the entire pontoon boat.  We brought our own drinks and good.  They took us into the canals and it was gorgeous.  The kids also enjoyed this and we had 4 kids ranginging in ages from 11-15 yo.

• One of my favorite things was Palm Island Park & Boardwalk: We strolled along the elevated boardwalk through an 8-acre nature preserve, offering great opportunities for bird-watching and spotting alligators amidst cypress trees draped with Spanish moss.  Definitely worth seeing.

• You have to see the famous little lighthouse at Gratham Point.  Located on Tremain Street across from Gilbert Park on Lake Dora, Grantham Point Park is sometimes referred to as Lighthouse Park.  You can stroll from here to the boardwalk with ease.  We grabbed a bench and sat and looked out for a bit, it felt relaxing to look out and see the boats coming and going.

• A must do is to just walk around the Historic Distric and go through the shops, we met some great shop owners and left with souvenirs.