9 Reasons to Visit LEGOLAND California

Are you thinking about planning a trip to LEGOLAND California with your family?  LEGOLAND California is a LEGO theme park located in Carlsbad, California.  As an Insider Blogger, I received two complimentary tickets for admission to the park so that I can share information with my readers.  As always, all opinions are my own.  We became fans during our first visit.  Ever since then, we’ve regularly returned for visits, especially because LEGOLAND California is constantly adding new attractions.  Here are 9 reasons to visit LEGOLAND California!

9 Reasons to Visit LEGOLAND California

1.  Building Stations and Play Areas
2. Age Appropriate Rides
3. The LEGO Movie 4D:  A New Adventure
4. Castle Hill
5. Fun Town
6. DUPLO Playtown
7. LEGO Friends Heartlake City
8. Pirate Shores
9. Miniland

1. Building Stations and Play Areas

One of the reasons to visit LEGOLAND California are the building stations and play areas set up near some of the rides.  Even though the lines move relatively quickly, it’s nice that kids have the option to build with Legos at a building station while waiting for a ride.  And some of the play areas also consist of slides, which my son really enjoys.

2.  Age Appropriate Rides

One of the other reasons to visit LEGOLAND California are the age appropriate rides.  The park consists of different themed areas like Imagination Zone, Land of Adventure, Castle Hill, and Pirate Shores just to name a few.  The rides are perfect for younger children and not scary.  For example, there are several rides where my my son can ride with me and my husband, or by himself.  He seems to gravitate especially towards the water rides.

As a family, we enjoy Fairy Tale Brook the most, located in the Explorer Island area.  Not only are the fairy tale characters made out of LEGOS, but it is a relaxing boat ride, with a lot of shade, which comes in handy for those summer months.

3.  The LEGO Movie 4D:  A New Adventure

Emmet, Wyldstyle, and company are back!  This is a fun reunion with special effects for those of you who have seen the LEGO Movie.  A New Adventure is approximately 15 minutes, so it’s not too short and not too long for families with younger children.

4.  Castle Hill

As I mentioned, the park consists of different themed areas.  One of them is Castle Hill, which has a medieval feel to it.  This is also the area of the park where you can find delicious apple fries.

There is also an Enchanted Walk nearby which consists of a pathway surrounded by animals made from Legos.  We didn’t walk the path during our first trip to LEGOLAND, but I’m glad we’ve experienced it since then.  Plus, it has a little bridge and my son loves walking across bridges.

5.  Fun Town

If I had to pick a favorite area of the park, this would be it.  Police and Fire Academy is a huge hit.  During our first visit to LEGOLAND California, we weren’t able to experience it because we went in July and there was more of a crowd and longer lines.  However, when we visited during the week in April, we literally were able to just walk on the ride.  Essentially, you and your family race against other families in firetrucks and police cars to put out a fire.

There are also two different driving schools in Fun Town:  Driving School for children 6-13 years of age and Junior Driving School for children 3-5 years of age.  I like that they separate younger kids from the older kids.

Children can also get a driver’s license afterward (at an additional cost) as a momento of their trip.  My son still has his driver’s license.  He’s at an age where he likes making funny faces, so he was hamming it up for the camera.  The picture makes me smile every time I see it!

6.  DUPLO Playtown

Another fun area is the DUPLO Playtown, which can probably be best described as a LEGO village.  Not only are there several play areas, but there is also a little train called the LEGOLAND Express.  If it were up to my son, we would have never left this area!

7.  LEGO Friends Heartlake City

During certain times throughout the day, a fashion show occurs on the stage in Heartlake City.  Initially, I wasn’t sure if my son would be interested in this particular area of the park, but I think the park does a great job of appealing to both girls and boys.  There are also several other things in Heartlake City besides the fashion show.  For example, there is a carousel that not only has horses, but also has two firetrucks that you can sit in.

There’s also a stable area with a large amount of LEGOS to use for building 🙂

And a fountain where kids can splash in the water!

And last but not least, the City Park Creperie which serves crepes.

8.  Pirate Shores

While there is a separate water park at LEGOLAND California which includes Legends of CHIMA, there is also an area in the park called Pirate Shores that does not require separate admission or the purchase of a park hopper ticket.  Essentially, it’s included in your admission to the theme park.  We like it a lot, especially for our son’s age.  Not only does it have a ride in the form of pirate ships where you can blast other pirate ships or people with water, but it also has a splash pad, as well as a multilevel water/play structure with slides.  There is also a changing area close by.

The separate water park was closed during our visit.  But there was more than enough to see/do in one day.

9.  Miniland

Miniland is one of the other reasons to visit LEGOLAND California!  It’s an area of the park that’s modeled after various cities in the U.S., like San Francisco and Las Vegas.  The buildings are made from LEGOs and there are also LEGO models nearby that depict scenes from Star Wars.

For those of you who are considering going to LEGOLAND California and have never been before, it’s definitely worth the trip.  April turned out to be a great time to visit during the weekday (and after spring break)  – there was minimal wait time and it was not crowded.  As my son gets older, though, and starts elementary school, I know we will be more limited as to when we can go.  At that point, I would strongly consider the Reserve ‘N’ Ride System which is similar to a fast pass.

LEGOLAND California also has several fun events throughout the year.  We were able to attend the grand opening of NINJAGO World and also LEGO Batman Movie Days.  I hope to visit during the holidays sometime in the future 🙂

BOOK A TRIP TO SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA AT A DISCOUNT!

If you’re thinking of booking a trip to Southern California, then please consider booking through Get Away Today by clicking on this link.  I’m a proud affiliate of Get Away Today and layaway plans are available through Get Away Today for Southern California vacation packages, with the first payment beginning as low as $125.  Additionally, you can receive an extra $10 off any 2-night or longer Southern California package by using the promo code CACTUS.