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Sometimes it feels like there's nothing free these days, especially in Florida, but Family Travel Forum has a few ideas.

After spending all or most of your money at the local theme parks, what do you do with the rest of your vacation? Families and others who find that being a tourist here is synonymous with thin wallets might consider the free sights in the world's premier tourist attraction. If you've visited lately, you might think any notion of free is a Disney fantasy. And don't misunderstand. While a lot of hotels and attractions have supposedly "free" offers, what they mean is that if you book, say, two nights in a hotel, you get a third night "free." Not accurate because you have to first buy two nights to get a third. What we're referring to here is really "free," no strings attached.

There's no better place to start than usually pricey Walt Disney World. Surprised? Take a trip to the attraction's BoardWalk near the Swan and Dolphin Hotels. It's reminiscent of Atlantic City's own famous wooden pathway. You can sit on benches and watch the passing parade.

More people watching? Posh Park Avenue in Winter Park is the area's version of Rodeo Drive with a leafy park where you can sit on benches, watch the passing parade of people and feed the squirrels. Remember as you go through the trendy stores that you don't have to buy.

No-Cost Galleries & Museums

There are things to see all year round at the Fort Christmas Historical Park & Museum (407/568-4149), which features a traditional Florida "Cracker" house and a replica of a fort built during the Seminole Indian Wars more than a century ago. Visitors can also view a sugar cane hill and historical farming equipment. Native American artifacts are among the attractions at the Museum of Seminole County History ( 407/665-2489), which also has a picture gallery, a country store and assorted historical documents.

You have to pay to get into many art centers, but not the cozy one at Rollins College in the area's premier suburb, Winter Park. Exhibits are top quality at the Cornell Fine Arts Museum ( 407/646-2526), which features 6,000 objects with the oldest collection in the state of European and American paintings, sculpture and decorative arts. It's open daily except for Mondays.

In nearby Eatonville, a town founded and inhabited solely by African-Americans, you can learn about its most famous resident at the Zora Neale Hurston National Museum of Fine Arts ( 407/647-3307). The well-known writer was a leading figure in the Harlem Renaissance. As a visitor, you might skip classes at the Maitland Art Center ( 407/539-2181), but the facility listed as a Florida historic site also has always-changing exhibits and attractive gardens that kids will enjoy.

Other free museums include the Bradlee-McIntyre House (407/332-0225), a 13-room Queen Anne-style home in the historic district of Longwood, another suburban area.

Not far away, there's also the Holocaust Memorial Resource and Education Center ( 407/628-0555), which takes visitors through the pre-World War II hardships of Jewish communities in Europe. Key events and documentary evidence are presented in multi-media form with many personal histories that vividly present the tragic events.

Folk art is the centerpiece of the Pine Castle Folk Arts Center in Orlando. The grounds and buildings provide visitors a look at the arts, skills, lifestyles and craftsmanship of early Floridians. Note that you need to call for an appointment to see the museum ( 407/855-7461). A further note about local museums: even the ones that charge often have free days or evenings.