ORLANDO, Fla. – There’s no shortage of hotel and resort options in Orlando, but one promises to offer something the others cannot: the beach.
The $1.5 billion Evermore Resort, along with its 17-million-gallon artificial lagoon, officially opened Jan.1, 2024. The 1,100-acre property borders Walt Disney World at the site of the former Villas at Grand Cypress.
On its website, Evermore touts itself as “Orlando’s first-ever beach paradise.” The 8-acre crystal-clear lagoon — which guests can swim, paddleboard or kayak in — is surrounded by sand imported from Pensacola Beach.
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Throughout the resort’s tropical aesthetic is a diverse range of accommodations, including flats, villas and vacation homes, as well as a 433-room Conrad Hotel. There are also more than a dozen dining options, a boathouse venue for weddings and events, and two Jack Nicklaus-designed golf courses.
Mark Jones, one of the resort’s architects who’s also behind Orlando’s Baldwin Park and Oakland Park neighborhoods, said the objective was to create community living in a resort fashion.
“The goal was not unlike the way we create neighborhoods,” he said. “It’s really about creating a community. We’ve moved all of the automobiles to the rear of the homes. The community is very walkable whether you’re going to the hotel for dinner, the beach club or whether you’re just trying to walk to the lagoon and to the pool.”
While guests can begin staying at the villas and flats, the Conrad Hotel, which is Orlando’s first, isn’t available until Jan. 9.
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