LEGOLAND - A Young Family Destination

If you are looking for an awesome getaway for young kids, especially if they are Lego fans, then LegoLand is definitely your place to go. I received two complimentary tickets to the LEGOLAND California Resort and we decided to surprise our kids with a special trip.

We wanted to do something fun for our kids at the end of the school year, so we had a surprise LegoLand trip planned for our kids.  After they got home from their last day of school, we shared the news.

I laugh every time I watch this as I wonder, did they even really listen the first time we said it, if they did, it definitely did not fully sink in.

My son is a huge Lego fantastic, my daughter is in love with the Lego Friends sets (I am too actually) and my youngest even has a couple of sets of his own; so they were obviously excited to go.  We have been to LegoLand a couple of times now, so I wanted to share my tips for a Legoland vacation.

Planning Your Trip
 1. Check the hours!
     During the off seasons, Legoland actually has a couple of days of the week that the park is closed. You will want to check their calendar carefully.  We found this out the hard way a couple of years ago but ended up going to their Sea Life Aquarium, which is awesome too.
 If you are wanting to park hop (there is also a water park and aquarium), I definitely recommend going more than one day.  On the day we went the park was only open from 10-5 (which is pretty standard), so there would not have been enough time to park hop.

2. Check for Discounts
   The great thing about Legoland is there are often discounts available.  They have park hopper tickets(between the Aquarium, the watermark and the actual park) and just park tickets.  If you live in SoCal, there are often discount tickets in the back of coupon magazines.  Also, if you have a Lego store near you, definitely check to see if they have any discount tickets.  This time we were able to use a buy an adult/get a child Free ticket that we got at McDonalds.
   If you have a child that loves Legos, you can also subscribe to the FREE Lego magazine, which often has discount tickets.
   For all of of my blogging friends- LegoLand loves working with bloggers (which I did this time)- just go to the LegoLand site and look under the Media Tab and there is information for bloggers.
  If you are needing a place to stay, definitely look into the newly built Lego Hotel right on the site, I have not stayed there but have heard great things about it.

3. What to Wear
   Legoland is fairly close to the ocean so the weather is pretty moderate.  On the day we went the highs were only in the low 70's- but we were very comfortable in shorts and t-shirts.  If your kids like water, I definitely recommend having them come in their bathing suits (with clothes over it) or just bringing bathing suits for them to change into as there is a whole water area with a great splash pad that they will get soaked if they play in it.

Day At the Park

1. Parking
   It does cost to park and there is even a upgraded or premier parking- which just gives you access to a closer lot; but in reality the lot isn't that big,  so in my opinion it isn't worth the extra money for the close lot.

One of the biggest coasters in the park

2. Rides/Attractions

 LegoLand is definitely kid friendly.  My 4-year-old who is pretty average height was able to go on almost every single ride.  If you are person who is seeking big thrills, this probably isn't your park.  Instead expect to find a lot of family friendly rides, a few fun but not big thrill coasters and a lot of fun themed attractions.  My 4-year-old loved the Dragon roller coaster, as did my other two.

   Most of the rides lines seem to move pretty quickly. They are great about letting you hand of kids that don't want to ride or are too small.  Also, all of the rides had places to put your bags if the ride required it.

The one ride that the line seemed to hardly move at all was The Sky Cruiser; but the brilliance is that the line wraps around a fenced in play area that kids can build with Lego bricks while the parents wait in line able to keep your eye on your kids the whole way.

Building in the fenced in play area while we waited in line

There is also Miniland USA.  This is an incredible area to walk through that has cities built out of thousands of Lego bricks. It really is incredible; you really feel like you could be walking the streets of Vegas and D.C, New York and more- just on a smaller scale.



3. Food
  There are lots of great places to eat around the park.  Everything from burgers to hot dogs to cafes with more healthy and lighter choices.  Right now and for most of June, in Fun Town Market kids eat free after 3:30 PM.  LegoLand is wonderful about great deals, make sure you check out the deals for the day you are attending.

I definitely recommend trying the famous Granny's Apple Fries- they were a hit with everyone in my family.

Overall it was a great day at Legoland.  I really love the whole family friendly atmosphere.  I was also really impressed with the bathrooms, I know that may seem strange, but I loved how big the stalls were, perfect for when you have younger kids that you need to help still.
It was the perfect way to start our summer.

Have you ever been to LegoLand, do you have any tips?

Disclaimer: I received two complimentary tickets, all opinions and feelings are my own and truthful.