Where Does John Travolta Live in Florida? Inside His Jumbolair Home Near Ocala

Where does John Travolta live? The actor and licensed pilot lives at Jumbolair Aviation Estates, a gated fly-in community about seven miles northeast of Ocala in Marion County, Florida. His home sits on almost 20 acres with taxiways that run from the front of the house to a 7,550-foot private runway. He has lived there for more than two decades. Here is what public reporting says about the home, the airport around it, and the Maine estate he has tried to sell.

Key takeaways

• Travolta lives at Jumbolair Aviation Estates near Ocala, home to the longest private paved runway in the country.
• The Ocala Gazette describes his lot as almost 20 acres with a 6,600-square-foot home. He built it, so no purchase price exists.
• His Boeing 707 can park next to the house, along with his smaller jets, via taxiways to the runway.
• He also owns a 20-bedroom estate on Islesboro, Maine, listed at $5 million in 2021 and still in his hands per later reports.

Where does John Travolta live in Florida?

Travolta lives at Jumbolair, a 550-acre property in the horse country north of Ocala. Marion County is in the middle of the state, about 80 miles north of Orlando, and it is better known for thoroughbred farms than for celebrities. Jumbolair sits inland on the opposite side of the state from the counties Pure Equity serves. We cover it because the search interest is real.

The community is unusual even by celebrity standards. Jumbolair's runway runs 7,550 feet, long enough for a Boeing 747, and every lot in the aviation estates section connects to it by taxiway. Owners keep planes in hangars attached to their homes and taxi out to fly. Travolta, who holds type ratings on several jets, picked the place for exactly that reason.

The land has a long history. Muriel Vanderbilt Adams, a Vanderbilt heir, bred thoroughbreds there in the 1960s and 1970s. Arthur Jones, the inventor of Nautilus exercise equipment, bought it in 1980, expanded it to 550 acres and built the runway to fly his private 707s, which he used to transport elephants and other animals. His former wife Terri Thayer turned it into an aviation community after their 1989 divorce. Pure Equity does not publish private addresses, so the community name is as specific as this post gets.

Inside the reported Jumbolair home

The Ocala Gazette, reporting on the 2021 sale of the surrounding property, described Travolta's holding as an almost 20-acre lot with a 6,600-square-foot home. Other outlets have listed five bedrooms and seven bathrooms. The design is the famous part: the house is shaped around the aircraft, with a pair of taxiways that lead from the front of the home to the runway. His Boeing 707, painted in Qantas colors from his years as an ambassador for the airline, parked beside the house for years and became the most photographed thing on the property.

Travolta built the home rather than buying it, so there is no sale price on record. Some celebrity real estate sites put a value near $10 million on it, but that is an estimate, not a transaction, and we do not repeat it as fact. Reports place the family's move-in around 2002 or 2003, after several years of construction.

The community itself has changed hands twice in recent memory. Forbes reported in 2019 that Jumbolair, including its mansion, warehouses and 19 unsold lots, had gone on the market. The Ocala Gazette reported that it sold on February 26, 2021, for $9.5 million to a group led by Robert and Debra Bull of Melbourne, Florida. Travolta's own lot was not part of that sale. He later joined other residents in objecting to proposed zoning changes at the airport, which local coverage followed closely.

Why John Travolta chose Ocala

The answer is the runway. Travolta earned his pilot's license in his early twenties and has flown ever since, with ratings that at various points covered the 707, a Bombardier Challenger and Gulfstream jets. Most airports will not let a private owner park a 707 at the house. Jumbolair would. He has said in interviews that the ability to walk out the door and fly is the whole point of living there.

The location also fit his family. He and his late wife Kelly Preston raised their children there in relative quiet, far from the Los Angeles press. Ocala's horse country gave the children room, and Orlando's airport and studios were an easy hop by plane. After Preston's death in 2020, Travolta stayed in Ocala, and his daughter Ella has been photographed at local events with him since.

He has also been a good neighbor by local accounts. He has flown in supplies after hurricanes and has shown up at Ocala charity events for years. The Gazette and the Ocala Star-Banner treat him as a resident first and a movie star second.

Where else does John Travolta live?

The other reported home is on Islesboro, an island off the coast of midcoast Maine. Travolta and Preston bought the property as newlyweds in 1991 after visiting Kirstie Alley, who also had a home on the island. The Portland Press Herald reported in February 2021 that he listed it for $5 million. The listing described a 10,830-square-foot oceanfront house from 1903, with 20 bedrooms on 48 acres.

That sale did not happen quickly. Bloomberg and Boston.com covered the listing, and by late 2021 the home had come off the market. Local radio station WCYY reported that Travolta was seen vacationing there with his children in late 2022, which suggested he had pulled the listing rather than sold. The home has been relisted since. As of the most recent reports, it remains his.

He has owned California homes in the past, and reports have placed him in a Calabasas house at various points. None of those is described as a primary residence in recent coverage. Ocala is the home base, and the plane is how he gets everywhere else.

What homes near John Travolta cost

Jumbolair is far outside Pure Equity's service area, and no South Florida community has a 747-length runway. The closest equivalent for a buyer who wants acreage, privacy and room for something large, whether that is horses or aircraft, is Palm Beach Point in Wellington, where lots run five acres and up, or the ranch estates of Southwest Ranches in Broward County.

Our MLS feed as of September 2026 shows about 540 active listings in Wellington, with a median list price near $925,000 and an average of about 117 days on market. Southwest Ranches shows about 120 active listings at a median near $2.9 million, with an average of about 168 days on market. Our homes with acreage page filters both areas down to large lots, and the Palm Beach County page carries the county view.

For central Florida itself, our Marion County page pulls live listings and market stats for Ocala and the surrounding horse country. Marion is one of the most affordable large counties in the state, which is part of why a 20-acre estate there is possible at all.

Frequently asked questions

Where does John Travolta live now?

He lives at Jumbolair Aviation Estates near Ocala, Florida, in the home he built in the early 2000s. Reporting through 2025 continues to place him there. He splits time with the family estate in Maine.

Where in Ocala does John Travolta live?

The home is inside Jumbolair Aviation Estates, a gated fly-in community about seven miles northeast of the city. Pure Equity does not publish private addresses. The lot is about 20 acres and connects to the runway by taxiway.

Where does John Travolta live full time?

Ocala is his primary home and has been since around 2002. The Islesboro, Maine estate is a summer and holiday home. He listed it in 2021 but appears to have kept it.

How much did John Travolta pay for the Jumbolair home?

There is no purchase price, because he built the house on a lot in the aviation estates. Neither the lot price nor the construction cost has been reported. The $9.5 million figure in the news refers to the sale of the surrounding Jumbolair property in 2021, not his home.

Is Ocala part of South Florida?

No. Ocala is in central Florida, about 250 miles by road from West Palm Beach. Pure Equity serves Palm Beach, Broward, Miami-Dade and five nearby counties on the southeast coast.

Can you buy a home at Jumbolair?

Yes. Jumbolair Aviation Estates sells lots and resale homes, and the 2021 sale included 19 unsold lots. Buyers should expect a gated community with strict aviation rules and a homeowners association. Pure Equity does not represent buyers there.

If you own an equestrian or acreage property in Wellington or anywhere in Palm Beach County and want a current read on its value, request a free home valuation from Pure Equity. Buyers can browse Wellington listings or see luxury homes across South Florida. Related reads: where Tiger Woods lives on Jupiter Island and our roundup of celebrities who live in Florida.

Sources

• Ocala Gazette, Jumbolair sells for $9.5 million
• Forbes, Private Aviation Community, Home To John Travolta, Is Up For Sale In Florida
• Portland Press Herald, John Travolta's Islesboro home on market for $5 million
• WCYY, Did John Travolta Pull His Maine Mansion From the Market or Did It Finally Sell?

Based on publicly reported information; details may change and are not independently verified by Pure Equity. We do not publish private addresses.