Would you give up a day at Disney to experience Legoland?

[Meemoo]

This year, I will get 10 nights in Anaheim - Ten nights in I don't know how many years to experience my beloved DL (10 years since last Anaheim visit)!! I recently checked out Legoland as my kids love their Lego. The hotel looks very fun, the actual park hasn't got me convinced but the kids REALLY want to go! (The kids have never been to DL btw!) Do you think 1 night out at Legoland would leave me regretting not staying at Disney or to those who have taken their kids did they love it even after experiencing DL?

 

[corinne76]

I'm kind of dealing with this as well. We are planning a week in CA. Our last trip was 2 years ago, and we did do LL. You can't compare it to DL. I noticed it wasn't kept as nicely as DL and, well, it's not Disney! The magic isn't there. It was fun, but there's just no comparison in my mind.

I was debating not going at all, but my kids love Lego. I figure, as they get older, the rides at LL aren't going to appeal to them. I think there is an age limit to LL (but not to Lego!)

We are doing 5 days in DL, though I wanted to do 5 plus a halloween party. We will likely drive to Carlsbad and do LL and San Diego zoo and stay in the hotel for 2 days.

Long story short, at first it was a struggle for me to give up a DL day. I love Disney. But the kids will have fun, and it is their vacation too. They did love DL but will really enjoy LL and the hotel as well. I think as long as your kids have fun, you won't regret giving up one day. We did drive to LL and back last time, so a one day trip from Anaheim is totally doable.

 

[PHXscuba]

If they like Legos and are between about ages 5-10, they will really like the park. It's so detailed and there's a lot to see as well as ride. If I had 10 nights in Anaheim I'd certainly make room for at least one day to Legoland. I'd do that before Knotts or Universal with that general age group.

 

[Congo Queen]

Well it is tough to give up a precious day at Dland. If I had to choose a single day at either Dland or Legoland, I would always go Disney, but you have an long visit planned. If your kids would really enjoy it, why not spend one day at Legoland? My son used to be really into Legos and so had a bunch of fun at Legoland. I was meh about it myself, but I get such a kick out of seeing him have fun that it was OK by me to visit a non-Disney park now and then.

 

[Meemoo]

I think it is coming down to either Legoland or Universal. And it is true what someone mentioned above about their own kids, that by the next time we come to Anaheim or the US next for that matter they will be too old for Legoland. My kids will be 7 and almost 9 (celebrating birthday at Disney, as you do ) I think if we go, we must stay at the hotel, to me that would be my fun part - Lego themed room! I hope to go over to DW next time so maybe I should leave Universal for then, and the kids will be more age appropriate. I know it wont be Disney standard, its a tough act to follow but I have heard people say what a let down it was after DL which is why I started to wonder if it would be worthwhile.

 

[beachdreamr1229]

I think 1 night at Legoland would be worth it if you're taking such a long trip anyway. We haven't been yet, but we're heading down there the first weekend in June. I have friends who have taken their kids or grandkids and say the hotel is epic. There's practically a dance party on the elevator and all rooms have bunk beds, a hidden treasure, and great themes. Also, free breakfast buffet at the hotel and a great pool. The park itself has long lines and slow loading, but I've been told one day is plenty. Most of my friends have said prepare to buy the waterpark add on and spend your time there because it's more fun.

 

[nikkislaght]

We did Lego land a few years ago.. son was 6 at the time.. and it was ok.. the only ride he really enjoyed was the cars.. in the town.. he said he liked the area where he could make a car and race it, but there were so many kids there that had used up all the bricks that he couldnt even make a small car and the wait was really long.. visually its a great place to walk around as you get to see the amazing things they make out of Legos, maybe we went thinking it was an amusement park and thats where we went wrong,, but we have never been back... and if I ask my son if he would like to he shudders...
for us it was not worth it.... others have a blast... unless you go yourself you will never know how your kids will react... I would say ,, if you have 10 days at Disney then yes do it.. but if you had only 5, then I would say stay at Disney.. the good thing about Lego land is that its not too far from D/L. have a great trip

 

[jenjersnap]

My lego crazed kids would say YES! We find LL to be a cute, small park with lots of visual interest for Lego fans. We will probably go again this trip and our trip is much shorter.

 

[sgrap]

We have been to Legoland several times and absolutely LOVE it there. With those many days at Disney, I would definitely take one and do Legoland. We haven't stayed at the hotel--it was almost finished the last time we were there. It looked SO cool. It is an about an hour drive, almost all freeway.

 

[corinne76]

I agree that DL is a tough act to follow. But take a look at the rides at LL. My kids are 4 and 7. I do think this will be it for them. We don't get to go yearly, so the next time we go, they may be getting to the age limit as far as thinking LL is still cool. DL is cool no matter how old you are

 

[Jee]

Did you know that you can actually use Google Maps Street View to look INSIDE Lego Land? That's how I became convinced that my son would like it. Maybe that will help get a visual? You can't see everything but it definitely helped me when I was in your position.

 

[ludari]

I visited LEGOLAND when it first opened so they where not as many rides as they have now, however as much as I like amusement parks this one didn't do it for me. Maybe with the new rides it's better and I might give it a try, however given the option you mentioned I would choose Disney over LEGOLAND.

 

[donaldbuzz&minnie]

We were very excited about taking our grandkids to LEGOLAND, but once was enough for us. The "vibe" there is very different than Disney or Universal. I'm glad we saw it, but it's pretty small potatoes compared to the other parks.

Is there any way to insert your visit into the middle of your Disney plans? It's a much more laid-back park (which if you're going to be taking a break from the intensity of Disney might be a really good thing!) Just FYI - the food is very over-priced and pretty bad from what we experienced. I'd eat off-site as much as possible.

 

[chickapin parterre]

Did you know that you can actually use Google Maps Street View to look INSIDE Lego Land? That's how I became convinced that my son would like it. Maybe that will help get a visual? You can't see everything but it definitely helped me when I was in your position.

thank you for this visual. What a hoot if you like the Google Map culture. It captured these two boys climbing light pole sanctions and an employee gesturing to them get off the utility poles, they were about 7 feet off the ground. another shot had a boy trying to measure up to the height requirement to ride an attraction. And wouldn't you know, the one ride that looked really original, was down for refurb.

 

[BoomerThePirate]

i have not been to Legoland but i hear it really is just for kids. and you can get it all done fairly quickly.

 

[figment_jii]

I was going to ask what the age of your children are, but I see that it was mentioned in a later post. I think this is probably the best time to take them because they're going to be outside of the target age range quickly. If you had said they were three or younger, I would have said that Legoland might not be for them, but at 7 and 9, I think this is a good chance to go. You're already going to DLR for a fairly lengthy period of time, so I would probably opt to spend one day at Legoland. As others have said, it's not quite DL, so I'd be careful not to build it up to the point where the kids expect more than it is. If you go expecting something cute and fun, I think you'll be okay. Have a great trip!

 

[GatorChris]

With 10 nights, this is a no brainer. If you just had 3-5 days, it's hard to give up a Disney day. But with 10 nights at a resort with just two parks, I would definitely spend a day at Legoland. We're thinking about doing that on our next November trip. I'm not sure about the LL hotel, but definitely the park.

 

[GenGen22]

We have been to LL and US in California and also US Islands of Adventure in Florida and I have to say that the US in Florida is much better than the one in CA. With that said I would definitely take your kids to LL before they outgrow it especially if they like Legos. We took our kids when they were 8, 10 & 13 & the 13 year old was bored to death. They boys 8 & 10 loved it so, I am glad we took them. Other amusement parks are just not comparable to Disney at all. I love Disney with all my heart and am a major Disney fan but I also enjoy visiting other amusement parks as well like US, LL, Knotts, Six Flags, Sea World etc. We like to do other things as well as Disney because not everyone in our family are Disney lovers like me and my daughter. They like it, just not love it like we do so, we try to experience other things which is fun.

 

[Speechphi]

Nope.

We've been to Legoland once, when kids were 5, 4, & 2. Never again. Wasn't impressed with it.

 

[mamaofthree]

I definitely think it is worth a trip if your kids love legos, especially if you stay at the legoland hotel. The theming is awesome, the bedroom setup is super functional, and we loved the breakfast buffet. It is a a totally different experience than Disneyland. I personally don't love the long lines that don't seem to move, especially when the rides aren't very exciting, but I have a lego obsessed husband and son so we've made a few trips there over the years. My girls are not into legos but can appreciate the fact that the boys love it so much and they still have fun. On the last trip we got tired of waiting in lines and the kids spent over an hour playing on the giant jungle gym play area. With that said, I would NEVER pay full price to go there. We've always had buy one get one free tickets.