Watch Out, Disney! Legoland Is Coming to Central Florida

January 21, 2010 at 2:20 PM | by kjb | 0 Comments

Cypress Gardens was Florida�s theme park hotspot before Mickey and company rolled into the state during the 1970s. Focusing on its gardens and water ski shows the park did its best to stay in business throughout some tough years. However, it appears now that 2009 was the last year for Cypress Gardens in its previous format.

Last week, Merlin Entertainments Group bought the rights to the park. They didn�t disclose pricing, but it probably was enough money to warrant one of those oversized checks. The Merlin group owns Legoland in California, and they also operate a few theme parks in Europe. We immediately were hoping that the park would get a Lego makeover, but it had been pretty quiet until yesterday.

The new owners are looking to transform what�s left of Cypress Gardens into a new Legoland. Someone at the Polk County tourism office apparently loves to click reply all, because an email about the top-secret plans was leaked. Merlin Group is expected to hold a press conference at some point today with Florida officials to announce the juicy details. We�re just hoping that even with tons of plastic pieces hitting the park that they�ll still retain the gardens, Southern belles, and water ski performances that made the place famous for decades.

Related Stories:
· Cypress Gardens Theme Park Purchased By New Owner [AP, via Miami Herald]
· Cypress Gardens To Be Turned Into A Legoland [AP, via Miami Herald]
· Theme Parks coverage [Jaunted]

[Photo: audi_insperation]

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Tags: Theme Parks / Amusement Parks / Florida Travel / Legoland / → All Tags