degrapevine
Has a serious Disney watch addiction!
- Joined
- Jul 29, 2003
Cast of Characters:
DH (David), 38; Myself (Rose), 35; DS10 (Eric); DS (Patrick); and DD4 (Gina).
Friday, June 24th
This was Legoland's first day of "extended" summer hours (10-8), so we didn't need to leave the hotel until around 8:30 AM.
We slept in (7:30), got ready, and headed down for breakfast.
We finally got to see what the buffet is like during "rush hour" from 8-9. Completely packed with people, but we still got a table and didn't really have to wait that long (and had a nice big breakfast for the long ride!).
We headed off to Carlsbad, about 100 miles south of Anaheim.
The drive was nice, no heavy traffic, we drove along the Pacific for a while, and saw lots of mountains (great for us flatlanders from FL!).
When I mentioned to my DD how pretty they were, she said "It's just a bunch of rocks!" - So although I appreciated how lovely CA is, she was just interested in getting to the park!
We parked our car (It's crazy, no parking attendants telling you where to park - so un-Disney-like!) and made our way to the entrance.
My boys were SO excited - I pretty much knew that this was going to be the highlight of our trip for them.
We stood in line at the gates (I had bought all our tickets on eBay for a big discount and had Eric's free Brickmaster Club ticket) and heard the official opening - A bagpiper was playing for the Knights and Damsels Fair they had going on.
We had our picture taken by the lagoon (of course, all lego-made creatures in the water) and headed off ...
I won't go into detail of every ride, but I will say that there was a good mixture of kiddie rides, small coasters, and play areas.
We probably could have spent an extra day just playing.
We saw all the shows - The ventriloquist (Kevin) was really good and pretty funny. The Fire Dept. show was long and (I thought) not really interesting (but the kids enjoyed the slapstick humor and loved the water-squirting fire hoses).
They really enjoyed the Driving Schools (got licenses on cords for $6 each with their pictures) and then had lunch at The Market (kind of expensive, but a good variety - David had a Philly Cheese Steak and I had an Asian Chicken Bowl with rice. The kids had burgers (kids meals in neat Bionicle tote bags) and we paid an extra $1 for collectible cups. Lunch was $47.38.
We headed over to Knights Kingdom and I found the stand for Granny's Apple Fries! I got 2, about $4.50 each, took a picture (of course!) and we all shared them. They were delicious - Granny Smith apple strips deep fried in batter, sprinkled with cinnamon sugar and served with vanilla whipped cream. A Legoland original!
We then went on some more rides and took a look at the new Knights' Tournament ride. Although we had short lines all day (30 minutes at the most), this one was 90 minutes and the ride was insane! We decided to pass it up, since Patrick and Gina could only do Level 1 and Eric could only do up to Level 2 and it just wasn't worth the wait.
We went on some other rides, even going on the Technic Track twice (my kids really grew to love "mouse" coasters on this trip) and finally, over to the 4D movie (that's stretching it - again, okay, but not Disney standards!).
Last, we did the cruise of Miniland, ran over to ride one ride we had missed earlier, and then tried to go through Miniland a little (before being shooed out!).
We did some shopping at a tent sale and in the "Big Store" (spent almost $200 on MORE Legos! - Just what we need) and then stopped for a couple of swirl ice creams before leaving.
We had a wonderful day - Oh, and our picture turned out great ($14 for a 6x8)!
We probably could have made another day of it to let the kids just play, but I would definitely say to anyone whose children enjoy Legos that it's a great little park to go to for the day.
Just don't expect Disney level entertainment and wild rides - It's lower-key, a relaxing visit, and a chance for you to sit back and watch the kids' minds at work.
And, as I expected, it's what my boys talk about the most from our trip.
Next, California Adventure ... can't wait!
Thanks for sharing with us.
Rose
DH (David), 38; Myself (Rose), 35; DS10 (Eric); DS (Patrick); and DD4 (Gina).
Friday, June 24th
This was Legoland's first day of "extended" summer hours (10-8), so we didn't need to leave the hotel until around 8:30 AM.
We slept in (7:30), got ready, and headed down for breakfast.
We finally got to see what the buffet is like during "rush hour" from 8-9. Completely packed with people, but we still got a table and didn't really have to wait that long (and had a nice big breakfast for the long ride!).
We headed off to Carlsbad, about 100 miles south of Anaheim.
The drive was nice, no heavy traffic, we drove along the Pacific for a while, and saw lots of mountains (great for us flatlanders from FL!).
When I mentioned to my DD how pretty they were, she said "It's just a bunch of rocks!" - So although I appreciated how lovely CA is, she was just interested in getting to the park!
We parked our car (It's crazy, no parking attendants telling you where to park - so un-Disney-like!) and made our way to the entrance.
My boys were SO excited - I pretty much knew that this was going to be the highlight of our trip for them.
We stood in line at the gates (I had bought all our tickets on eBay for a big discount and had Eric's free Brickmaster Club ticket) and heard the official opening - A bagpiper was playing for the Knights and Damsels Fair they had going on.
We had our picture taken by the lagoon (of course, all lego-made creatures in the water) and headed off ...
I won't go into detail of every ride, but I will say that there was a good mixture of kiddie rides, small coasters, and play areas.
We probably could have spent an extra day just playing.
We saw all the shows - The ventriloquist (Kevin) was really good and pretty funny. The Fire Dept. show was long and (I thought) not really interesting (but the kids enjoyed the slapstick humor and loved the water-squirting fire hoses).
They really enjoyed the Driving Schools (got licenses on cords for $6 each with their pictures) and then had lunch at The Market (kind of expensive, but a good variety - David had a Philly Cheese Steak and I had an Asian Chicken Bowl with rice. The kids had burgers (kids meals in neat Bionicle tote bags) and we paid an extra $1 for collectible cups. Lunch was $47.38.
We headed over to Knights Kingdom and I found the stand for Granny's Apple Fries! I got 2, about $4.50 each, took a picture (of course!) and we all shared them. They were delicious - Granny Smith apple strips deep fried in batter, sprinkled with cinnamon sugar and served with vanilla whipped cream. A Legoland original!
We then went on some more rides and took a look at the new Knights' Tournament ride. Although we had short lines all day (30 minutes at the most), this one was 90 minutes and the ride was insane! We decided to pass it up, since Patrick and Gina could only do Level 1 and Eric could only do up to Level 2 and it just wasn't worth the wait.
We went on some other rides, even going on the Technic Track twice (my kids really grew to love "mouse" coasters on this trip) and finally, over to the 4D movie (that's stretching it - again, okay, but not Disney standards!).
Last, we did the cruise of Miniland, ran over to ride one ride we had missed earlier, and then tried to go through Miniland a little (before being shooed out!).
We did some shopping at a tent sale and in the "Big Store" (spent almost $200 on MORE Legos! - Just what we need) and then stopped for a couple of swirl ice creams before leaving.
We had a wonderful day - Oh, and our picture turned out great ($14 for a 6x8)!
We probably could have made another day of it to let the kids just play, but I would definitely say to anyone whose children enjoy Legos that it's a great little park to go to for the day.
Just don't expect Disney level entertainment and wild rides - It's lower-key, a relaxing visit, and a chance for you to sit back and watch the kids' minds at work.
And, as I expected, it's what my boys talk about the most from our trip.
Next, California Adventure ... can't wait!
Thanks for sharing with us.
Rose
