Legoland to open beach resort in 2017
WINTER HAVEN — There may be no actual ocean, but Polk County could soon be a destination for those looking for a beach getaway.
During a media session Wednesday, Legoland Florida announced an April 7 opening for Legoland Beach Retreat.
“This is really meant to be a fun-in-the-sun experience,” said David Brady, a spokesman for Legoland Florida. “It’s about toes in the sand and I think that’s why this theme stuck out far and beyond the other (ideas).”
The cost to stay at the resort will start at about $135 per night, depending on the season. There will be 13 individual coves and each will have a centralized children’s play area. The resort will have 83 bungalows and 166 rooms with each room sleeping five people. Each room will have a mini-fridge, a sink, an iron and ironing board, a king size bed, a set of bunk beds and a pull-out bed.
“We see this as ideal for larger families and groups traveling together,” Brady said. “You could reserve five or six bungalows right beside each other.”
Also at the resort will be a 45-foot tall Lego lighthouse with a rotating LED light. The lighthouse will essentially serve as a clubhouse for the resort’s guests with dining and shopping inside.
“We’ve already seen a seismic change in the five years we’ve been here,” said Adrian Jones, general manager of Legoland. “This is just another dimension that makes Legoland Florida and Winter Haven so unique.”
Inside the lighthouse will be a shopping area called “Palm Tree Traders,” a full bar called “Bricks Beach Bar” and a restaurant called “Sandy’s Castle Restaurant.” The restaurant will feature a complimentary breakfast buffet to guests for each night they stay. Jones said opening it to the public could be considered in the future.
“Here and now, it’s all about serving the guests that stay at the Beach Retreat,” Jones said. “We’re just going to wait and see what happens.”
The Beach Retreat will include a fake beach area around a 61,000-gallon heated pool. Throughout the day, there will be different pool activities such as bean bag tosses and hula hoop contests.
“Any time we can do creative projects with creative people, it’s fun for our team,” said Robert Lipscomb, CEO for Orlando-based contractor Williams Co. "Legoland has been great to work with and we’ve enjoyed the relationship."
One of the points of emphasis in creating the retreat is bringing a different feel than staying at the hotel. Whereas the hotel is a Lego-themed place to stay before visiting the parks, the Beach Retreat is meant to be more of a relaxing, outdoors venture.
“The hotel has been hugely successful,” Jones said. “We saw this plot of land and thought this would be really cool near the lake. Having more space allowed us to do this village concept.”
Lipscomb said Williams Co. is one of the oldest general contractors in the Orlando area, established in 1920 and employs about 100 people. Lipscomb said he has never worked on a project quite like it. Lipscomb said he’s looking forward to spending time there outside of work.
“It’s a constant chatter in the office,” he said. “We’re planning on bringing our entire company down here shortly after they open.”
— Mike Ferguson can be reached at Mike.Ferguson@theledger.com or 863-401-6981. Follow Mike on Twitter @MikeWFerguson.