CheriePenguin
DIS Veteran
- Joined
- May 1, 2005
- Messages
- 589
We are home now, and I wanted to report that I was really impressed with the LEGOLAND hotel (for the most part)! The rooms were nicer than I expected and I thought the food at the breakfast and dinner buffets at BRICKS was really good and good variety! 
We had breakfast included each morning with our stay it included some terrific hashbrowns and chocolate chip pancakes, as well as an omelet bar and smoothies (not a great cereal selection though). We added 1 dinner to our reservation (for $50) and it included gyros, couscous, good mac & cheese, pizza, roast beef, and lots of other stuff I cant recall at the moment.
We stayed in a regular Adventure room (3rd floor). The theming throughout the hotel is awesome (even some of the light fixtures look like LEGOs and the walls of the shower look like bricks)! The room and beds were comfortable enough (can't speak for the bunk beds, but the kids didn't complain). DS2 managed to stay on the trundle - though his head was up against the hard edge one morning. DS7 and DS10 took turns with top/bottom bunk. And of course the Disco elevator is lots of fun!
DS7 and DS10 had lots of fun building LEGO robots for the model building competition at the hotel. And DS10 actually won! He got a certificate and $5 LEGO bucks.
The kids got (nice) slap bracelets that identified our family as hotel guests for the early entry. The early entry was AWESOME! We got to go in through a separate entrance at 9am and get into the main part of the park to 5 or 6 attractions that were open for us, including the Sky Cruiser (usually longest and slowest line in the park). The gates opened for everyone at 9, but they couldn't get past the ropes out of "The Beginnings" until 9:30, when most of the 2 front sections of the park were opened. The rest of the park opened at 10.
We checked in 7/3 and checked out 7/5, so there were some different and more busy things going on for Fourth of July. Each of us in the family got a neat lanyard with LEGOLAND Hotel VIP on it to identify us as hotel guests to use on 7/4, since they didn't want non-hotel guests on hotel grounds during the fireworks. We got access to the pool area, Skyline Cafe area, or front of hotel (which we chose) to watch the fireworks.
The fireworks were GREAT! And we had a great view from the sidewalk in front of the hotel / pool - with room for the kids to dance around. The only bummer was that they did not have the cool glasses I read about that make the fireworks/lights look like LEGOs. The people at the hotel had no idea what I was talking about, and the people at the park remembered them from the past, but when they checked around they found that they weren't having them this year.) 
The kids got to do the "treasure hunt" to get the code for their treasure chest safe. In the safe at check in was 1 Legoclub magazine and 2 Lego movie packs - containing a keychain, small 4-in-1 set, and a few stickers. Our check-in info said "If you are staying more than one night, be sure to check the safe for a surprise." And the 2nd day there were 3 packs of Mixels! (DS7 had already bought 11 packs of Mixels with his LEGOLAND giftcard from Gma & Gpa). I had read reports of the magazine and minifigures being in the safes previously.
We first came to LEGOLAND Tues, 7/1 - with the free shuttle from West Inn and Suites and stayed all day from just past opening until close. We got to do almost everything we wanted, despite my not being as prepared and informed about what we should do first, etc. (We got our 1st Time at Legoland pins from Guest Services.)
(West Inn and Suites was a nice hotel with 2 king bed rooms, and evening cookies and milk! We also took their shuttle to Tamarack Beach along with lots of beach stuff they let us borrow : chairs, towels, boogie boards, umbrella, beach toys)
DS10 got to do Mindstorms and really enjoyed it programming a robot to do certain tasks. (We signed up right away since they said to do it soon, and got put in the 11:00 session, which I wasn't thrilled about since it was prime early morning ride time. When we came at 11, they still only had 2 people registered for the 12:00 time. Not sure if we could have asked for a later time slot, I didn't ask.)
We came to mostly the LEGOLAND waterparks on Thurs, 7/3 after checking into the hotel. We did the Chima wave pool, lazy river, and Duplo Zoo area. Then we went to the hotel pool. We came back into LEGOLAND for a few more dry activities in the later afternoon/evening.
There was a nice feature in the park of kids eat free (with adult purchase) after 5pm (except on 7/4 and 7/5). We took advantage of that 2 nights - once being the pizza and pasta all-you-can-eat buffet. The apple fries were good, but not spectacular - they did taste kind of like apple pie. Food was theme-park expensive, but did include a number of healthy fruit, yogurt, etc. options. Most kid meals include a juice pouch, not the refillable kids cup I read about, but we upgraded them ($1.25) when we got the kids meals free. The cup is small but nice, and can be refilled for $.99.
Most rides were slow moving / slow loading, as I had read. But it wasnt horrible. We tried to do most of the rides we wanted on Tues, 7/1, figuring it would be mobbed on Thurs, 7/3 and Fri, 7/4. It was more crowded on those holiday weekend days, but not as bad as I was expecting it to be. Early morning and later evening were the least crowded times, though some rides had long lines all the way to the end. The worst (other than Sky Cruiser) was the Kid Power Towers. There are 3 towers (8 guests each), but only had 1 tower running when we were there ~9:45am, so though the line looked pretty short, it seemed to take forever. Also, the posted times werent always correct. And lots of things were walk-through with no lines (though still people to get through): Miniland, LEGO Star Wars
, LEGO movie experience, Factory Tour, Adventurer's Club - look for keys, Enchanted Garden, etc.)
They had some cute lawn games on the lawn just above miniland on the 4th of July (water balloons, sack races, build a burger relay), though we did not participate. And there were paper headband hats with a LEGO Lady Liberty on them.
The Dragon coaster was really nicely themed almost Disney-esque, with an indoor ride through part with lots of LEGO figures before the outdoor coaster part started. And obviously the boat and jeep rides were well themed passing by intricate LEGO models. And there are LEGO models everywhere. Most other rides did not seem particularly special or anything, but most were fun. Adventurer's Club did have pretty cool theming. We went through alone towards close, and a few things had even my 10 year old spooked
(though not super scary). I was a little disappointed in the Lost Kingdom Adventure. I thought it would be more like Buzz LightYear, but it was just a glorified shooting gallery, made more difficult by the fact that you are moving. And it was much shorter than I expected.
DS2.5 especially enjoyed the Safari Trek ride and the Cargo Ace (airplane ride). He also really like the DUPLO Village Playtown (outdoor) and DUPLO Play (indoor) areas. I think he would have really liked the Junior Driving School and the Royal Joust, but they said you needed to be 3. (He turns 3 next month, so I suppose I could have lied about his age, but I didnt want to set that precedent with the kids.) He also wasnt tall enough to go on the Bionicle Blasters (like the Tea Cups), though Im not sure why I suppose because there are no seat belts.
DS7 and DS10 were excited about doing minifigure trading. I gave them a few minifigures and DS10 brought a bunch of others along to trade. They weren't always thrilled with what the model citizens had available to trade, but did both end up making a few fun trades. Note - the ONLY minifigures available for purchase there at present were the Simpsons ones ($3.99) (or the build your own packs - 3/$9.99). Most "MC"'s have minifigs on their name tags and can trade with you, and most cashiers have a box of minifigs available to trade as well. (Workers in the restaurants seemed not to be able to trade, however.)
One cool thing we splurged on was really exclusive! DS7 became a roller coaster fan this trip, and there was a really cute picture from his ride on the Dragon coaster. Usually I don't like to pay for those pics, but they had an option to get the picture imprinted on LEGOs for an 89 pc stand up puzzle (w/ bonus minifig)! It was $30 (plus tax), but I got it because the pic was so cute and it was so special and unique.
We did manage to get to the aquarium, but it got shorted on time since we ended up squeezing it in in half an hour between the model building competition and getting ready for the fireworks viewing.
It really was a nice little aquarium, and well worth a visit. Plus it's inside with A/C, a plus on a hot day. There were sharks, rays, seahorses, jellyfish, starfish, as well as lots of other fish. There's a slide, a touch pool, and a neat overhead part where the sharks swim over you, and lots more. I felt bad we had to rush through it, but the kids didn't want to go earlier, and that's just how it worked out.
If you have any questions, I can try to answer them. But Im not sure how fast Ill be able to reply.
We had breakfast included each morning with our stay it included some terrific hashbrowns and chocolate chip pancakes, as well as an omelet bar and smoothies (not a great cereal selection though). We added 1 dinner to our reservation (for $50) and it included gyros, couscous, good mac & cheese, pizza, roast beef, and lots of other stuff I cant recall at the moment.
We stayed in a regular Adventure room (3rd floor). The theming throughout the hotel is awesome (even some of the light fixtures look like LEGOs and the walls of the shower look like bricks)! The room and beds were comfortable enough (can't speak for the bunk beds, but the kids didn't complain). DS2 managed to stay on the trundle - though his head was up against the hard edge one morning. DS7 and DS10 took turns with top/bottom bunk. And of course the Disco elevator is lots of fun!
DS7 and DS10 had lots of fun building LEGO robots for the model building competition at the hotel. And DS10 actually won! He got a certificate and $5 LEGO bucks.
The kids got (nice) slap bracelets that identified our family as hotel guests for the early entry. The early entry was AWESOME! We got to go in through a separate entrance at 9am and get into the main part of the park to 5 or 6 attractions that were open for us, including the Sky Cruiser (usually longest and slowest line in the park). The gates opened for everyone at 9, but they couldn't get past the ropes out of "The Beginnings" until 9:30, when most of the 2 front sections of the park were opened. The rest of the park opened at 10.
We checked in 7/3 and checked out 7/5, so there were some different and more busy things going on for Fourth of July. Each of us in the family got a neat lanyard with LEGOLAND Hotel VIP on it to identify us as hotel guests to use on 7/4, since they didn't want non-hotel guests on hotel grounds during the fireworks. We got access to the pool area, Skyline Cafe area, or front of hotel (which we chose) to watch the fireworks.
The fireworks were GREAT! And we had a great view from the sidewalk in front of the hotel / pool - with room for the kids to dance around. The only bummer was that they did not have the cool glasses I read about that make the fireworks/lights look like LEGOs. The people at the hotel had no idea what I was talking about, and the people at the park remembered them from the past, but when they checked around they found that they weren't having them this year.) The kids got to do the "treasure hunt" to get the code for their treasure chest safe. In the safe at check in was 1 Legoclub magazine and 2 Lego movie packs - containing a keychain, small 4-in-1 set, and a few stickers. Our check-in info said "If you are staying more than one night, be sure to check the safe for a surprise." And the 2nd day there were 3 packs of Mixels! (DS7 had already bought 11 packs of Mixels with his LEGOLAND giftcard from Gma & Gpa). I had read reports of the magazine and minifigures being in the safes previously.
We first came to LEGOLAND Tues, 7/1 - with the free shuttle from West Inn and Suites and stayed all day from just past opening until close. We got to do almost everything we wanted, despite my not being as prepared and informed about what we should do first, etc. (We got our 1st Time at Legoland pins from Guest Services.)
(West Inn and Suites was a nice hotel with 2 king bed rooms, and evening cookies and milk! We also took their shuttle to Tamarack Beach along with lots of beach stuff they let us borrow : chairs, towels, boogie boards, umbrella, beach toys)DS10 got to do Mindstorms and really enjoyed it programming a robot to do certain tasks. (We signed up right away since they said to do it soon, and got put in the 11:00 session, which I wasn't thrilled about since it was prime early morning ride time. When we came at 11, they still only had 2 people registered for the 12:00 time. Not sure if we could have asked for a later time slot, I didn't ask.)
We came to mostly the LEGOLAND waterparks on Thurs, 7/3 after checking into the hotel. We did the Chima wave pool, lazy river, and Duplo Zoo area. Then we went to the hotel pool. We came back into LEGOLAND for a few more dry activities in the later afternoon/evening.
There was a nice feature in the park of kids eat free (with adult purchase) after 5pm (except on 7/4 and 7/5). We took advantage of that 2 nights - once being the pizza and pasta all-you-can-eat buffet. The apple fries were good, but not spectacular - they did taste kind of like apple pie. Food was theme-park expensive, but did include a number of healthy fruit, yogurt, etc. options. Most kid meals include a juice pouch, not the refillable kids cup I read about, but we upgraded them ($1.25) when we got the kids meals free. The cup is small but nice, and can be refilled for $.99.
Most rides were slow moving / slow loading, as I had read. But it wasnt horrible. We tried to do most of the rides we wanted on Tues, 7/1, figuring it would be mobbed on Thurs, 7/3 and Fri, 7/4. It was more crowded on those holiday weekend days, but not as bad as I was expecting it to be. Early morning and later evening were the least crowded times, though some rides had long lines all the way to the end. The worst (other than Sky Cruiser) was the Kid Power Towers. There are 3 towers (8 guests each), but only had 1 tower running when we were there ~9:45am, so though the line looked pretty short, it seemed to take forever. Also, the posted times werent always correct. And lots of things were walk-through with no lines (though still people to get through): Miniland, LEGO Star Wars
, LEGO movie experience, Factory Tour, Adventurer's Club - look for keys, Enchanted Garden, etc.)They had some cute lawn games on the lawn just above miniland on the 4th of July (water balloons, sack races, build a burger relay), though we did not participate. And there were paper headband hats with a LEGO Lady Liberty on them.
The Dragon coaster was really nicely themed almost Disney-esque, with an indoor ride through part with lots of LEGO figures before the outdoor coaster part started. And obviously the boat and jeep rides were well themed passing by intricate LEGO models. And there are LEGO models everywhere. Most other rides did not seem particularly special or anything, but most were fun. Adventurer's Club did have pretty cool theming. We went through alone towards close, and a few things had even my 10 year old spooked
(though not super scary). I was a little disappointed in the Lost Kingdom Adventure. I thought it would be more like Buzz LightYear, but it was just a glorified shooting gallery, made more difficult by the fact that you are moving. And it was much shorter than I expected.DS2.5 especially enjoyed the Safari Trek ride and the Cargo Ace (airplane ride). He also really like the DUPLO Village Playtown (outdoor) and DUPLO Play (indoor) areas. I think he would have really liked the Junior Driving School and the Royal Joust, but they said you needed to be 3. (He turns 3 next month, so I suppose I could have lied about his age, but I didnt want to set that precedent with the kids.) He also wasnt tall enough to go on the Bionicle Blasters (like the Tea Cups), though Im not sure why I suppose because there are no seat belts.
DS7 and DS10 were excited about doing minifigure trading. I gave them a few minifigures and DS10 brought a bunch of others along to trade. They weren't always thrilled with what the model citizens had available to trade, but did both end up making a few fun trades. Note - the ONLY minifigures available for purchase there at present were the Simpsons ones ($3.99) (or the build your own packs - 3/$9.99). Most "MC"'s have minifigs on their name tags and can trade with you, and most cashiers have a box of minifigs available to trade as well. (Workers in the restaurants seemed not to be able to trade, however.)
One cool thing we splurged on was really exclusive! DS7 became a roller coaster fan this trip, and there was a really cute picture from his ride on the Dragon coaster. Usually I don't like to pay for those pics, but they had an option to get the picture imprinted on LEGOs for an 89 pc stand up puzzle (w/ bonus minifig)! It was $30 (plus tax), but I got it because the pic was so cute and it was so special and unique.
We did manage to get to the aquarium, but it got shorted on time since we ended up squeezing it in in half an hour between the model building competition and getting ready for the fireworks viewing.
It really was a nice little aquarium, and well worth a visit. Plus it's inside with A/C, a plus on a hot day. There were sharks, rays, seahorses, jellyfish, starfish, as well as lots of other fish. There's a slide, a touch pool, and a neat overhead part where the sharks swim over you, and lots more. I felt bad we had to rush through it, but the kids didn't want to go earlier, and that's just how it worked out. If you have any questions, I can try to answer them. But Im not sure how fast Ill be able to reply.
