Remember those colorful blocks use for constructing little buildings to house the yellow plastic flat-headed figures? Well, get used to seeing them, because in late 2011 the Orlando area will be home to a Legoland theme park!

Merlin Entertainment Group purchased the land that is home to the 145-acre Cypress Gardens, in Winter Haven, about 30-45 minutes from Orlando. And they are planning on integrating certain Cypress Gardens attractions with what will be the world’s largest Legoland. This way they will ultimately be able to offer an attraction that encompasses, water rides, gardens, and of course the rides and attractions found at Legoland itself.

Merlin Entertainment Group could’ve just built an entire theme park from scratch but that costs too much. So instead they opted for renovating Cypress Gardens.

Some reasons this might be a good thing:

• Popularity with Legoland California, which opened in 1999, and has been voted the country’s best children’s theme park for six years in a row by Amusement Today.
• Brand recognition. Most people seem to be familiar with what Legos are and will have a general idea of the park’s theme as well as some curiosity as to what it will be like.
• Location. Since Winter Haven is near both Tampa and Orlando, the park can entice locals from both cities as well as all of the visitors coming to both areas.

Possible drawbacks:

• Distance from Orlando. Sure, the ride might only be 30 minutes, but in terrible I-4 traffic this ride could last two hours. And until the park has established itself, visitors might not be quick to drive all the way to Winter Haven just for one attraction.
• Target group. Though the target visitation is families with children ages 2 to 12, it might help if Legoland makes an effort to appeal to different groups as well. Maybe offering some sort of nostalgic enticement for anyone who grew up playing with Legos… will they do it? Maybe!

So, what differentiates this park from other Orlando theme parks?

Well, there’s that obvious factor of the theme… there aren’t any other Legoland parks in Orlando, or anywhere in Florida for that matter. And admission will be cheaper than most Orlando theme parks, instead being more inline with the price of admission to Busch Gardens which is about $10 less than the Orlando parks. Senior discounts and annual passes will also be offered. And the park’s target visitors primarily include families with children between ages 2 and 12.

Then there are things like the more than 50 planned rides, shows and attractions. And, most unique of all will be the mind-blowing Lego models and other interactive elements.

If any of this seems familiar to you, it may be because you’ve already checked out a Legoland park in another state or because you’ve been to the Lego store in Orlando’s Downtown Disney. Here you can get a glimpse of some idea types of large Lego structures that will be prominent throughout Legoland Florida.

A plus for the Polk County and Orlando-area residents is that there will be more job openings too. And hopefully the opening of Legoland will propel a thriving tourist hotspot that draws more visitors not only Winter Haven itself but also to the Orlando area.

Now the question is: will it all be worth the multi-million-dollar investment?

We’ll just have to wait and see!

This article was provided by Orlandovacationhotels.com your source for the best deals on Orlando hotels.