How safe is Orlando (North Mills Avenue and East Colonial Drive)?

June 10, 2019 8:38 PM

I'm thinking about visiting Colonial Photo and Hobby in Orlando, which is at the intersection of North Mills Avenue and East Colonial Drive with my 16 year old step-daughter. As well as visiting the store we might go to the Starbucks a couple of blocks south of and maybe explore a bit - is this a terrible idea? Are there any areas in walking distance that we should particularly avoid? Bonus points for geeky or cool things to do/visit/see within walking distance of Colonial Photo and Hobby. TIA!
posted by Chairboy to Travel & Transportation (4 answers total)

I visited Orlando with my kids this spring and one day we went to eat at Mamak restaurant, which is right near the place you're asking about. The area seemed completely safe, nothing at all to alarm our rural Vermont sensibilities. And the restaurant was really good, so you might check it out. We also got good macarons from a little place nearby.
posted by Redstart at 5:51 AM on June 11, 2019

Orlando native here. That area is safe to walk around crime-wise but the roads are very busy.

If you are up for a little driving, you may also enjoy Skycraft Parts & Surplus, which is north on Fairbanks. If you are more arty, a Sam Flax is a 10min walk east. Make sure you bring umbrellas as our rainy season is pretty bad this year.

Colonial Photo is right in the center of Little Vietnam, so there is a lot of good food. There are several bubble tea places, King Bao is cute for a bite. If you don't mind walking a bit more, Tako Cheena to the north has great eats.
posted by Wossname at 11:09 AM on June 11, 2019

Skycraft is a must see
posted by patnok at 1:33 PM on June 11, 2019

Thanks everyone - we went to Colonial and then had coffee and macarons at Chewy Boba - will definitely check out Sci-Fi City and Skycraft next time we're in the area!
posted by Chairboy at 4:09 PM on June 11, 2019