Visiting the state of Florida and have a thing for the odd and unusual? You certainly can get your fix with not just one but four different Ripley’s Believe It Or Not Odditoriums to experience. In Key West, Orlando, St. Augustine and Panama City Beach, you can get a glimpse of two headed animals, white buffalos, gold plated limos and many, many more incredible freakish oddities from around our world.
These are all part of an empire built by Robert Leroy Ripley, perhaps one of the world’s greatest adventure travellers. Ripley lived from 1890 to 1949 and is famous for creating the Ripley’s Believe It Or Not newspaper series featuring the odd and unusual from around the world. The first Odditorium opened in Chicago, Illinois in 1933 with locations in San Diego, Dallas, Cleveland, San Francisco and New York soon to follow. Of course, there’s also a Ripley’s Odditorium in Niagara Falls.
Key West Odditorium
Located on 108 Duval Street in Key West, Florida, this version of the Odditorium opened in 1993. Over 500 exhibits in 13 galleries are there for the viewing in the 10,000 square foot facility. Included are two headed animals, a shrunken human torso, a life size sculpture of the world’s tallest man and an extremely rare white buffalo.
This Ripley’s Believe It Or Not location is open 365 days per year from 9:00am to 10:00pm. Adults pay $16.99 to enter while children get a five dollar discount. Toddlers four and under enter for free. Like all Ripley’s properties, the price is discounted when tickets are ordered in advance online. Special rates are available for groups of six or more.
The Odditorium is located near the Key West Aquarium, Sunset Pier and the cruise and ferry port. It makes a great stop for cruisers in port for the day. Key West is western most inhabited island of the Florida Keys and covers 4.2 square miles.
Orlando Odditorium
Located at 8201 International Drive in Orlando, Florida, this Ripley’s location is right in between the Universal Resort and Disney World. Like Key West, the facility covers 10,000 square feet but there is more to see with 600 exhibits over 16 galleries. Like Key West, the Orlando Odditorium is open 365 days per year but with longer hours. The attraction opens at 9:00am and does not close until midnight.
A little pricier, entrance for adults is $19.99 while kids 4-12 pay $12.99. Kids three and under enter for free. Discounts when ordering online are decent with $3 off for adults and $2 off for children. Parking is free and group rates are available for ten or more.
Perhaps the highlight at the Orlando Odditorium is the legendary fertility statues. 2,500 women have claimed that touching the statues helped them get pregnant.
Panama City Odditorium
Located at 9907 Front Beach Road in Panama City Beach, Florida, this location is one of four Ripley’s attractions in the city. This location is open 365 days per year with varying hours. From Sunday to Thursday, doors open at 10:00am and close at 7:00pm. On Friday and Saturday, the hours are extended to 9:00pm.
Rates for adults are $17.99 while children 5-12 pay $12.99. Kids four and under enter for free. Group rates are available for ten or more. Some of the unique exhibits include a gold plated limousine and a life sized replica of a megaladon’s (prehistoric shark) upper and lower jaws.
Discounts are available when tickets are ordered online. Prices are even more attractive when bundled with Ripley’s other attractions in the area. The other three attractions include the 7D Moving Theatre, Marvelous Mirror Maze and Impossible LaseRace.
St. Augustine Odditorium
Since 1950, Ripley’s Believe It Or Not has been in St. Augustine, Florida. The Odditorium is located at 19 San Marco Avenue. There are 800 exhibits over 19 galleries with a total of 20,000 square feet in the three floor building.
Ripley’s St. Augustine is open 365 days per year from 9:00am until 8:00pm, with exception of Christmas Day when the hours are reduced to noon to 5:00pm. The lowest priced of the four Florida Odditoriums, adults pay $12.99 to enter while children 5-11 pay $6.99 and those four and under get in for free. There is free parking on site and, like the other locations, prices are discounted when tickets are ordered online.
Getting married? This Ripley’s location specializes in odd and unusual weddings. Ripley’s St. Augustine can accommodate up to 100 guests and the ceremony takes place on the roof of the main building.
Like Panama City, Ripley’s has other attractions in the St. Augustine area. These attractions can be bundled together in several different packages for reduced pricing.
