Fantasy of Flight to close its public museum

Polk City, Fla.-based Fantasy of Flight aircraft museum will close to the public effective Sunday, April 6, owner Kermit Weeks announced in a press release. Weeks said he plans to focus on Fantasy of Flight’s private event business and the design and development of a new future destination attraction.

“Although we are located just 20 minutes west of Walt Disney World, we’re currently outside the center of mass tourism and not perceived of as a destination. We have a great product, but people have a misperception of what we offer,” said Weeks. “After 18 years of being in operation, it’s time we close the attraction and move forward toward creating the vision for what I know Fantasy of Flight can become.”

Weeks said that along with continuing the events business, including weddings, meetings, and corporate events, he will turn the facility into what it was originally designed for: a restoration and maintenance facility that will be needed to build future attraction elements. There are plans to open part of the collection to the public for paid admission later in 2014.

“This isn’t the end of Fantasy of Flight, it’s just the next step on the company’s journey to become what it was always meant to be—a quality attraction that uses entertainment as a means to an end for self-discovery and self-transformation,” said Weeks.