ORLANDO, Fla. — If you didn’t know it already, Florida will soon be home to the first standalone Peppa Pig Theme Park.
The park, aimed at preschoolers and their families, will feature six new rides, themed play areas and a water-play area.
What You Need To Know
- Peppa Pig Theme Park will be a certified autism center
- It also will offer enhanced accessibility for children in wheelchairs
- The news was announced Tuesday at the IAAPA Expo in Orlando
- RELATED: First-ever Peppa Pig park taking shape near Legoland Florida
Currently under construction next to Legoland Florida in Winter Haven, Peppa Pig Theme Park is scheduled to open Feb. 24. And when it does, it will be a certified autism center.
The news was shared Tuesday during the annual IAAPA Expo in Orlando.
The park, which is owned by Merlin Entertainments, has partnered with the International Board of Credentialing and Continuing Education Standards (IBCCES) to get the certification.
The move is designed to ensure the park is autism-friendly.
As part of the certification, the park’s staff will receive autism awareness and sensitivity training. IBCCES will also review the park and its attractions to develop a comprehensive sensory guide.
Peppa Pig Theme Park will also have enhanced accessibility.
Some of the attractions have been designed to allow children who use wheelchairs to board without having to transfer from their wheelchairs. Peppa Pig’s Balloon Ride will have this accommodation. The ride vehicle was on display at IAAPA.
Peppa Pig Theme Park will also feature accessible attractions. The park’s Peppa Pig Balloon Ride was designed to allow visitors in wheelchairs to board the ride without having to transfer out of the wheelchair. #IAAPAExpo pic.twitter.com/wCNvUPnoCM
— Ashley Carter (@AshleyLCarter1) November 16, 2021
The park’s Muddy Puddles Splash Pad will feature a surface that’s specially graded for wheelchair use. And the water-play elements will be different heights to accommodate visitors of all abilities.
“Our teams are working diligently to find ways to make the attractions and playscapes across this park as accessible as possible,” said Rex Jackson, North America managing director for Legoland Florida Resorts.
Legoland Florida officials are also working with IBCCES to obtain autism-friendly certification for Legoland Florida Theme Park, Legoland Florida Water Park and its resort hotels.
They will join other companies that have made their theme parks more accessible, such as SeaWorld, which received certification for SeaWorld Orlando, Aquatica Orlando and Discovery Cove in 2019.