Gatorland facts for kids
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Gatorland entrance
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| Date opened | 1949, 76 years ago |
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| Location | Orlando, Florida |
| Coordinates | 28°21′21″N 81°24′14″W / 28.3557°N 81.404°W |
Gatorland is a fun theme park and special wildlife area in Florida. It covers about 110 acres and is located just south of Orlando. A man named Owen Godwin started Gatorland in 1949 on land that used to be for cattle. His family still owns and runs the park today.
Gatorland is known as the "Alligator Capital of the World." It is home to thousands of alligators and crocodiles. You can even see rare white alligators, called leucistic alligators, here!
The park has many exciting things to do. You can walk along a boardwalk over a marsh where alligators live and see them from an observation tower. There are also zip lines where you can fly over the gators! You can take an off-road swamp vehicle tour, or ride a miniature train. Don't miss the alligator feeding shows and alligator wrestling shows! Gatorland also has an aviary (a big bird enclosure), a petting zoo, and educational programs. A part of the park was even used to film the 1984 movie Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom.
Gatorland helps to rescue alligators that cause problems for people. Instead of being killed, these alligators get a new home at the park. Gatorland also takes care of the live alligator display at the Gaylord Palms resort in Kissimmee.
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Riding the Gatorland Express Train
The Gatorland Express is a fun train ride inside the park. It's a narrow gauge railroad, which means its tracks are closer together than regular train tracks. This train ride first opened in 1961. It was originally called Ol' Iron Horse Express until 2001.
Gatorland says this train was the very first amusement ride in Central Florida. The first train engine was used until 2000. It is now on display for everyone to see. A new train engine was bought in 2001 and is now used for the rides. There is a small extra fee to ride the Gatorland Express.
The 2006 Fire at Gatorland
On November 6, 2006, a fire started at Gatorland early in the morning. It seems a heating pad in the gift shop caused the fire. Firefighters quickly put out the flames. Sadly, the gift shop was completely destroyed, and some walkways also burned.
A four-foot crocodile and two six-foot pythons died in the fire. However, all the other animals were safe. Birds that were usually near the shop were moved to the aviary and were not hurt.
Gatorland reopened less than three weeks later, right after Thanksgiving. The park's walkways and animal displays were still safe. A new, two-story gift shop and offices were built. They opened on May 22, 2008, and still feature the famous alligator's mouth entrance.
Soaring on the Zip Line Ride
In the summer of 2011, Gatorland added an exciting zip line ride. This ride lets you soar high above a pool full of alligators! It also goes past several other attractions in the park.
The zip line is about 1,200 feet long and is several stories high. To ride, you need to be at least 37 inches tall. In 2016, Gatorland made the zip line accessible for people using wheelchairs, which was a great improvement!
Discovering Gator Spot
Gatorland opened a special area called Gator Spot on May 11, 2015. It is located at the Fun Spot America theme park in Orlando. This attraction cost $1 million to build.
At Gator Spot, visitors can hold, take pictures with, and even feed alligators. The most famous alligator there is named Bouya. Bouya is a leucistic alligator, which means he is white with beautiful blue eyes.
Images for kids
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Dozens of alligators in the breeding marsh
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A rare leucistic alligator
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The current Gatorland Express train engine
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An alligator feeding show
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An alligator wrestling show
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