Legoland Florida is laying off more than 200 employees—most of them from its entertainment department.
In a notice filed with the Florida Department of Commerce, Legoland announced that 234 employees will be permanently let go from the Winter Harven park starting March 25. The affected employees are a mix of full-time and seasonal workers.
Most of the affected positions listed in the notice include entertainment performers, stage managers, technicians and entertainment associates. The cuts also impact non-entertainment positions, including a sustainability manager, a retail supervisor and operations managers.
The move is part of “operational changes” that will help the company “elevate the guest experience in 2025,” a spokesperson said in a statement to Theme Park Decoder.
“The decision to reduce the size of some of our teams was undoubtedly difficult, but these changes will also allow the Resort to operate more flexibly and responsively in a competitive market,” spokesperson Julie Estrada said.
Legoland Florida will still offer entertainment, but Estrada added that company will also be working with a third-party company for some of its entertainment.
“We will continue to have a core in-house entertainment offering, which we will scale up to meet our brand and guest experiences during the year,” she sad. “This will include working with a global leader in this sector—who will be providing employment opportunities—to bolster our entertainment provision during seasonal special events.”
Legoland said it’s helping employees find other jobs, including opportunities with the third-party entertainment provider.
“We are supporting employees during this period of change and will do all we can to help them find alternative employment,” she said.
The mass layoffs comes after Legoland ended its water skiing show on Lake Eloise at the end of December. The show, titled Brickbeard’s Watersport Stunt Show, featured water ski and wakeboard stunts and characters.
Legoland, which is owned by UK-based Merlin Entertaiments, is also set to open a new Sea Life aquarium at its Florida resort this spring. Merlin operates a Sea Life aquarium in Orlando, where it also operates the Orlando Eye and Madame Tussuads Orlando. All three attractions are located at ICON Park.
Similar cuts are also being made to Legoland California‘s entertainment department, although the number of layoffs have not been disclosed.
*This story has been updated to include a statement from Legoland about the layoffs.
