
The second act began on paper. In 1972 Palm Beach County approved a planned unit development on the old ranch lands, and builders started laying out a community around Lake Wellington. Then, in 1977, polo arrived — brought by Gould Corporation chairman William "Bill" Ylvisaker — and everything about the place changed direction. Palm Beach wealth looked fifteen miles west for room that the island could never offer: room for barns, rings, paddocks, and polo fields. Within a decade the strawberry country had a new crop, and it stood sixteen hands tall.
Wellington is the self-styled Winter Equestrian Capital of the World — at the height of the winter season some 20,000 horses are stabled in the village, served by 700-plus horse farms.
Why People Visit Wellington Florida
- Take in the winter equestrian season — show jumping, dressage, and international polo draw riders from around the world to Wellington's rings and polo fields each January through April.
- Ride or walk part of the Equestrian Preserve's bridle-trail network — dozens of miles of public horse trails threading the village's horse country.
- Walk the Wellington Environmental Preserve at the Marjory Stoneman Douglas Everglades Habitat — a 365-acre public park with trails and birdwatching towers on the Everglades edge.
- Explore Peaceful Waters Sanctuary — a 30-acre wetlands park with boardwalks across marsh and wetland habitats.
- Relax along Lake Wellington and the village's neighborhood parks and ball fields.
- Drive the horse-themed street grid of the equestrian neighborhoods, where barns and rings sit beside the canals of the old Acme Drainage District.