ORLANDO, Fla. — Sports Illustrated is launching a line of resorts for outdoorsy tourists and sports fans, and one of its first hotels is coming to Orlando in 2024.
Its name has not been made public, but it is part of the larger Sports Illustrated Resorts brand announced Friday.
It is unclear where the Orlando-bound hotel will be built. Some of the branded hotels will be at or close to university campuses, according to the SI Resorts website.
Concept art for the Orlando location features a baseball field, climbing walls, a go-kart track labeled “Naskart” and pools shaped like a basketball and baseball next to a lazy river. An open-air shopping center includes a building marked “S.I. City” and a food court called the “Tail Gate Food Festival.”
Hospitality development company ADMI Inc., which has worked on projects for Disney’s Typhoon Lagoon, Disney Cruise Line and Universal Orlando, is developing the resort with Experiential Ventures Hospitality LLC and Authentic Brands Group.
Representatives for Authentic Brands Group, which manages the Sports Illustrated brand, did not immediately respond to a message seeking additional information on the resort.
Orlando markets itself as a destination for sports teams and fans.
Beyond its own professional teams, Orlando has hosted high-profile sporting events such as the 2020 NBA Bubble and the annual Citrus Bowl and other college football games. The ESPN Wide World of Sports complex at Walt Disney World offers sports facilities across over 200 acres of the resort, and Disney’s athletic-themed All-Star Sports Resort will reopen next month after two years of being shut down because of the pandemic.
In a news release announcing Sports Illustrated Resorts, the company called the hotels “premium lifestyle resort and entertainment destinations” that cater to guests seeking participatory experiences.
“We are excited to expand Sports Illustrated in such a thrilling and interactive way, engaging travelers, families and sports fans like never before,” Dan Dienst, executive vice chairman of Authentic Brands Group, said in a statement. “ADMI’s vision for Sports Illustrated Resorts is to create a portfolio of immersive lifestyle properties that will become go-to destinations for individuals and families seeking active vacation experiences.”
SI Resorts’ website said the hotel locations will include beach clubs, “eco-adventure lodges” and golf getaways.
The first hotel will open in the Cap Cana resort development of Punta Cana, Dominican Republic, later this year. It will feature “an unlimited array of activities,” the Authentic Brands Group said, that include scuba diving, sport fishing, snorkeling, zip lining, horseback riding and golf.
The companies also plan to open Sports Illustrated resorts throughout the continental United States and Hawaii, but specific future locations have not been announced.
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