chocolate destinations

World of Chocolate Museum & Café – Orlando

The day we left Orlando from my very productive and fun business trip, we said goodbye to Disney World and headed out for one last adventure – a visit to the World of Chocolate Museum & Café.

Years ago, while working for a large chocolate manufacturer, I visited a chocolate company that had a great collection of old chocolate packaging and advertising. There were hundreds of antique tins, boxes, molds, and posters of chocolate and cocoa production from the early days through modern times. That’s what came to mind when I first heard that there was a chocolate museum in Orlando.

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Dolfin Chocolat Noir – Oranges Amères

Did you know there is a museum dedicated to Chocolate? Yes, it exists!

It’s not well-known around the Midwest where I’m from but if you visit or live in Orlando, Florida, you will certainly hear about it. It caught my mom’s attention when she traveled to Orlando this past June for a family member’s graduation.

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Winter Chocolate Events and Escapes

Feeling the winter blahs? You could hibernate with a cup of homemade hot cocoa. But, winter may also be a great time to enjoy one of a growing number of chocolate-related events out West. Below are some ideas.

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Cacao seedlings growing on Oahu are wrapped in plastic to protect the seedlings from the Chinese Rose Beetle.

Growing Cacao on American Soil

Did you know that there is an increasing amount of high quality cacao being grown in the United States?

We know there is a massive amount of chocolate being produced in the US, but until recently, there were no cacao trees being grown on American soil, and all chocolate being made in the US was made from imported cocoa beans. That is slowly changing.

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Exploring Cacao in Southern Belize

If you’re willing to fly over rain forests and aqua colored Caribbean shores in a small plane to learn more about chocolate, you may want to consider a trip to Southern Belize.

Why travel there? The Toledo District in Southern Belize has a rich cacao history (and an annual chocolate festival *). You can also experience chocolate as it originated hundreds of years ago, as a beverage and rustic confection, before European explorers arrived.

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Beverly Hills – A Chocolate Tourist’s Dream Destination

Two hours, seven chocolate shops. This is the promise of Great Food Tours’ chocolate tour in Beverly Hills, California.

A premise that begs many questions: What kind of chocolate? What is the dress code? Will there be hillbillies? Can I eat chocolate for two hours and still fit in my pants? Among others.

And as is the case with all adventures, the only way to get answers is to go out and find them.
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