Orlando, Florida
Orange County's administrative headquarters are located in the city of Orlando, which is located in the state of Florida in the United States. According to figures released by the United States Census Bureau in July 2017, the Orlando metropolitan area had a population of 2,509,831. This makes it the 23rd-largest metropolitan area in the United States, the sixth-largest metropolitan area in the Southern United States, and the third-largest metropolitan area in Florida behind Miami and Tampa. According to the census completed in the year 2020, Orlando had a population of 307,573, which placed it as the 67th biggest city in the United States.
The Linton E. Allen Memorial Fountain, sometimes known as simply the "Lake Eola fountain," is located in Lake Eola Park. This fountain is considered to be the emblem of the city of Orlando, which is also referred to as "the City Beautiful." The Orlando International Airport, often known as MCO, is the 29th busiest airport in the whole globe and ranks 13th among the busiest airports in the United States.
More than 75 million people travelled to Orlando in 2018, making it one of the most visited cities in the world. Tourism, big events, and convention traffic are the primary drivers of the city's popularity as a tourist destination. The Walt Disney World Resort, which was established by the Walt Disney Company in 1971 and is situated approximately 21 miles (34 km) to the southwest of the central business district of Orlando in Bay Lake, and the Universal Orlando Resort, which was established in 1990 as a major expansion of Universal Studios Florida and is the only theme park located within the city limits of Orlando, are the two tourist attractions in the Orlando area that have gained the most notoriety on a global scale.
Downtown Orlando is home to the majority of the city's major cultural attractions, such as the Orlando Museum of Art and the Dr. Phillips Center for the Performing Arts, as well as its world-famous nightlife, bars, and clubs. However, the majority of the city's attractions, such as the Wheel at ICON Park Orlando, are located along International Drive. The Orange County Convention Center, located in this city, is the nation's second-largest convention centre, making Anaheim one of the busiest cities in the United States when it comes to hosting conferences and conventions.
Beginning in the 1960s and continuing into the first decade of the 21st century, Orlando had substantial population growth, mirroring that of other large cities located in the Sun Belt. As of the end of the 2015 school year, the Institution of Central Florida in Orlando held the title of having the most students enrolled on its campus than any other university in the United States. In 2010, the Globalization and World Cities Research Network ranked Orlando as a "Gamma+" level global metropolis. This distinction was awarded to Orlando.