The Villages, FL: 13 Fun Facts About the Best Place to Retire in Florida
If you’ve been thinking about moving to The Villages in Florida, you wouldn’t be the only one. Far from it, actually: The Villages-News.com estimated that nearly 5,000 new residents moved there in 2021. That growth meant The Villages experienced the fifth highest population growth among all metro areas in the U.S.
That’s a lot of people, which strongly suggests there must be many good reasons why people are choosing to move to The Villages.
So perhaps you’ve been seriously considering a move to The Villages in Florida — and the fact is, if you’re 55 or older, you can be a resident! Here are 13 fun facts that may help explain why The Villages is one of the best places to retire in Florida.
- 1. The world’s largest retirement community is home to 138,000 people. And yes, it’s The Villages. As of 2022, The Villages eclipsed the second-largest senior living community, Sun City in Arizona, which had a relatively meager 40,000 residents.
- 2. The Villages in Florida is larger than the island of Manhattan. The community is on approximately 57 square miles of land in central Florida compared to Manhattan’s 22.7 square miles — and The Villages’ 750 miles of roads also surpass Manhattan’s 508 miles.
- 3. The Villages is made up of 17 unique neighborhoods. The neighborhoods are called Community Development Districts and are each run by an elected board of supervisors. Every neighborhood also has its own regulations.
- 4. Three unique historically themed town squares offer free nightly entertainment 365 days a year. Spanish Springs Town Square, Lake Sumter Landing Town Square and Brownwood Paddock Square each offer an abundance of shopping, dining and, yes, daily entertainment.
- 5. You can select your home from seven different series of homes and villas. This is a good segue to introduce to you a delightful truth about The Villages: You have lots and lots of options in everything, including the type of home you want. Choose from one-bedroom Patio Villas to four-bedroom Premier Homes; when it comes to customizations, you can choose popular residence features like golf cart garages, lanais, walk-in showers and island kitchens.
- 6. There are more than 100 restaurants in The Villages. Casual, fine dining, country club restaurants, bar and grills, cafés, takeout, grab-and-go, carryout — if you can think of a style of dining, The Villages has it. Choose from popular chain restaurants like Panera, Outback Steakhouse and Olive Garden to local favorites such as Beef O’Brady’s, Toppers Tavern or Stumpknockers.
- 7. You can play America’s fastest growing sport here on one of 241 pickleball courts. If pickleball isn’t your thing, go swimming in one of 110 pools, play softball on one of 15 fields, or play golf on one of more than 50 golf courses. Speaking of golf…
- 8. You can play 729 total number of holes of golf at The Villages in Florida, more than any other community in the world. That includes holes on 13 championship golf courses and 42 executive golf courses. Lots of people who retire in The Villages say the biggest draw for them was the access to golf courses and Florida’s nearly year-round sunshine. Of course, now we have to talk about golf carts.
- 9. There are almost 100 miles of golf cart paths throughout The Villages. Lots of residents in our senior living community don’t bother to drive their cars around. Instead, their daily driver is their golf cart.
- 10. There are more than 3,000 resident-led social clubs in The Villages. Ancestry to antique cars, birdwatching to metal detecting, SCUBA to Beatlemaniacs, whatever your interest, odds are there’s a club here for that. Single or widowed? At least 130 of the clubs are specifically for you.
- 11. The Villages has its very own fire department. EMS/EMT and fire department services are located throughout the community; our retirement community is protected by the local and county law enforcement offices and officers.
- 12. Check out a book at one of three local libraries. The Villages has pretty much every amenity you’d expect from a city of 130,000 people, and that includes libraries. Find a good read at the Public Library at Belvedere, The Villages Public Library at Pinellas Park, and the Mark Twain Library.
- 13. Freedom Pointe at The Villages is a Life Plan Community in The Villages, one of Florida’s premier master planned communities for older adults. The fact is, if you’re looking for the best places to retire in Florida, you should look at Freedom Pointe.
We’re a Life Plan Community, also known as a Continuing Care Retirement Community (CCRC). In addition to independent living, our community also offers the full continuum of care right on our campus.
As a Life Care community, Freedom Pointe makes aging in place simple. You can seamlessly transition from independent living to assisted living, skilled nursing, memory care or rehabilitation as your health needs change.
For More Fun Facts About The Villages, Schedule a Visit
Whether you’re retired or still working, moving to The Villages in Florida means far more opportunities with far fewer worries. Get all the facts about Freedom Pointe by talking with our team. Start by contacting us — we’ll answer your questions and, if you like, set up your personal visit to see our community.