Cypress Gardens facts for kids
| Previously known as Cypress Gardens Adventure Park | |
| Location | Winter Haven, Florida, United States |
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| Coordinates | 27°59′24.41″N 81°41′30.66″W / 27.9901139°N 81.6918500°W |
| Opened | January 2, 1936 |
| Closed | September 23, 2009 |
| Owner | Adventure Parks Group |
| Operating season | Year-round |
| Attractions | |
| Total | 41 |
| Roller coasters | 5 |
| Water rides | 2 |
| Website | cypressgardens.com |
 Location in Florida
Location in the United States
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| Location | Winter Haven, Florida |
| Built | 1936 |
| NRHP reference No. | 14000152 |
| Added to NRHP | April 14, 2014 |
Cypress Gardens was a famous park in Winter Haven, Florida. It was a beautiful botanical garden and a fun theme park. It opened a long time ago, in 1936, and closed in 2009. Today, the lovely gardens are part of Legoland Florida.
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History of Cypress Gardens
Cypress Gardens was Florida's very first big tourist park! It opened on January 2, 1936. Dick Pope Sr. and his wife Julie planted the amazing botanical garden. Over the years, it became one of Florida's most popular places to visit. It was known for its exciting water ski shows, beautiful gardens, and special "Southern Belles."
The park was called the "Water Ski Capital of the World." Many new water ski tricks and world records happened there. During World War II, soldiers visited the park. Water skiing was introduced to entertain them. Many movies were filmed at the park too. This included parts of This is Cinerama, which was the first movie filmed in a wide-screen style. Also, Esther Williams filmed many movies and TV shows there in the 1950s and 1960s.
In the 1950s, the "Southern Belles" became a popular attraction. These were young women dressed in big, fancy dresses called crinolines. These dresses were like those worn in the old South. Later, a special boat called Miss Cover Girl was used for photos. The park became a popular spot for filming TV commercials.
Many famous people visited and even skied at the park. These included Elvis Presley, King Hussein of Jordan, and his son, King Abdullah II. The park also hosted a special TV show with Johnny Carson.
On April 14, 2014, Cypress Gardens was added to the National Register of Historic Places. This means it is recognized as an important historical place.
Legoland Takes Over
On January 15, 2010, a company called Merlin Entertainments bought Cypress Gardens. This company is one of the biggest theme park operators in the world. They wanted to use the land for the fifth Legoland park.
On January 21, 2010, Merlin Entertainments announced their plan. They said the park would become Legoland Florida. The new Legoland park opened on October 15, 2011.
Fun Rides at Cypress Gardens
Before it became Legoland, Cypress Gardens had many exciting rides. These included different kinds of roller coasters and thrill rides.
Roller Coasters
The park had several roller coasters for different ages.
- Fiesta Express was a small coaster with tight turns.
- Okeechobee Rampage was a junior roller coaster.
- Swamp Thing was a roller coaster where riders hung below the track.
- Triple Hurricane was a wooden roller coaster. It was named after three hurricanes that hit the park in 2004.
- Galaxy Spin was a spinning coaster where the cars spun around.
- Starliner was a classic wooden coaster that moved to Cypress Gardens from another park.
Thrill Rides
Cypress Gardens also had many other fun thrill rides.
- Delta Kite Flyers spun riders around while they were in a flying position.
- Disk'O was a ride where people sat on a large disc that spun and moved back and forth on a track.
- Pharaoh's Fury was a big swinging ship ride.
- Power Surge was a large ride that spun and flipped riders.
- Thunderbolt was a tall tower ride that dropped riders quickly.
- Yo-Yo was a circular swing ride that lifted riders into the air.
Images for kids
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Bill Reynolds and a Southern Belle
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Sign for Cypress Gardens
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Gardens
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Gardens
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Gardens
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Gardens – Mum Fest
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Gardens – Mum Fest
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Ski Show
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Boardwalk Carousel
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Splash Island Water Park Tonga Tubes
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Splash Island Water Park Polynesian Adventure
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Cypress Gardens Ski Show 1970
