Aug. 18–WINTER HAVEN — Heads in beds. That phrase, summarizing the ultimate goal of tourism marketing, is so commonly used in the industry it has become a cliche.

Legoland Florida has been luring plenty of heads (and feet and wallets) to Polk County since its opening nearly two years ago. Local tourism officials, though, would like to see more of those heads resting in beds at local hotels.

Not a single new hotel has been constructed in the Winter Haven area since the theme park opened Oct. 15, 2011.

Legoland general manager Adrian Jones said half of the park’s guests last year made overnight stays in connection with their visits. And he said Legoland’s research indicates 80 percent of them would stay in Polk County hotels if better lodgings were available.

Jones said he has been meeting with developers to promote the potential for new hotels. Local tourism leaders have been doing the same.

“I’ve said repeatedly before that our guests are increasingly telling us, and all the research we’ve done — and we’ve spent a lot of money on research — is showing, in general, that a high-class hotel in Winter Haven close to the park would definitely be something that would be extremely desirable,” Jones said.

Legoland Florida has several “Bed and Brick” partner hotels, including two in Winter Haven, two in Lake Wales and one in Auburndale. But Jones said the park would benefit from an increased supply of quality lodgings.

Jones often cites a report commissioned by Polk County’s tourism agency and issued last fall that described a shortage of modern, high-quality hotels in the county. The report from Randall Travel Marketing said two-thirds of Polk’s lodgings were built before 1980, and nearly 44 percent were built prior to 1960.

In marketing efforts, Legoland Florida promotes its proximity to Orlando. In some ways, though, that closeness could hinder Polk’s ability to capitalize on its most prominent tourist attraction.

“I think you’ve got some classic shadow effect going on,” said Duncan Dickson, an associate professor at the University of Central Florida’s Rosen College of Hospitality Management. “Winter Haven is a tough place to convince investors to plunk down money for a new facility. Thirty minutes away, 45 minutes away, you’ve got just a whole phenomenal range of hotels.”

Dickson suggested Legoland might need to follow the example of Walt Disney World. When that attraction opened in 1971, quality lodgings in the vicinity were scarce. Disney constructed its own hotels, the Contemporary and Polynesian Resorts, and outside companies soon built hotels near the instantly successful theme park.

Officials with Merlin Entertainments Group, Legoland’s parent company, have said they plan eventually to open a resort hotel at Legoland Florida. But Jones said the company still has no time line.

Legoland California opened a 250-room, Lego-themed hotel in April, 14 years after the theme park opened.

POSITIVE TRENDS

Mark Jackson, Polk’s director of tourism and sports marketing, said he has met with potential investors to promote the benefits of building hotels in the county.

The pitch doesn’t focus exclusively on Legoland. Jackson said his agency also emphasizes the Lake Myrtle Sports Park in Auburndale, which hosts baseball and soccer tournaments that draw teams from across the state and the nation.

One of the factors most important to hotel developers is an area’s average daily rate, or ADR, Jackson said. That’s the rate charged for rooms.

Jackson, citing data from Smith Travel Research, said the average daily rate for Polk County hotels has risen 3.5 percent this year, something he called “a very, very good trend.”

Jackson said occupancy rates at Polk County hotels also have risen in recent years. The rate is up 11.7 percent this year compared to the same period in 2012, according to figures compiled by Polk Tourism and Sports Marketing. Jackson said occupancy rates increased 11.3 percent in 2012 and 14.5 percent in 2011.

At the same time, Jackson said revenue per available room at Polk hotels has increased 15.8 percent this year after rising 12.8 percent last year and 13.1 percent in 2011. Jackson said that is a measurement studied closely by hotel developers.

Jackson said tourists, especially those familiar with Orlando area lodgings, have high expectations for hotels. For example, he said vacationers tend to reject hotels with exterior corridors, a design feature common to older lodgings.

Jackson said a recent report from HVS Global Hospitality Services concluded the return on investment is higher now for building a new hotel than renovating an existing one. He said the opposite was true a few years ago.

The cost of building a hotel varies widely, said Michael Terry, an instructor in food service and lodging management for UCF’s Rosen School. Terry, a third-generation hotelier, offered a rough estimate of construction costs for a mid-range hotel — comparable to a Holiday Inn — at $100,000 per guest room. That would equate to $20 million for a 200-room hotel.

“The supply for hotels has been down around the country for several years now, so it’s been nice for people who own hotels,” Terry said. “Interest rates are still low, and confidence is coming back. … All the stars are aligned, if somebody wants to build something. It’s a perfect time to build hotel rooms.”

POTENTIAL LOCATIONS

A local commercial real estate company has been marketing three vacant parcels as “potential Legoland Florida hotel sites.” Coldwell Banker Commercial Saunders Ralston Dantzler Realty, the broker for the sites, even hired a pilot to fly an ultralight and record aerial video for its promotional pitch.

Each of the three parcels lies on the north side of Cypress Gardens Boulevard between the Legoland entrance and U.S. Highway 27. One is almost directly across from the Legoland parking lot at the south edge of Lake Dexter.

Polk County Commissioner Todd Dantzler, a managing partner with the firm, said he and other brokers have promoted the Winter Haven area at industry conventions as a place ripe for new hotels.

“We’re just pushing as hard as we can to find hoteliers and retailers,” Dantzler said. “Hopefully, we’ll get some developers to step up.”

Though economic indicators have been mostly positive lately, Dantzler said, economic concerns remain “the No. 1 impediment to any development and expansion right now.”

Amy Palmer, the city of Auburndale’s community development director, said she sent letters in June to several major hotel companies, touting the area not only for the presence of Legoland but also for the Lake Myrtle Sports Park; the Fantasy of Flight attraction; and Florida Polytechnic University, now under construction.

Palmer said she got responses from a few of the companies. She said some hotel companies rely on local developers to finance construction of new locations. She said the companies gave her franchise packets to share with local developers.

“I think there’s just a lot of waiting and seeing right now,” Palmer said. “There’s a lot of interest, and it’s kind of building, and hopefully it gets to the point someone bites the bullet and does the first development that’s wildly successful, and we can use that as an example.”

Jones has consistently said Legoland has met or exceeded all its goals for attendance and revenue, though the attraction has not publicly released details. Jones said developers seem to be waiting for proof Legoland really is succeeding.

“I think people get the opportunity. They get that we’ve made a Legoland park work everywhere else,” Jones said. “The issue is just that leap of faith of — is the time right, is the market right, are deals right on the land and the support from the county to make these things happen?”

[ Gary White can be reached at gary.white@theledger.com or 863-802-7518. Join his discussion of books at http://ledgerlit.blogs.theledger.com or facebook.com/ledgerlit. ]