Summer is coming to a close so now is the time to squeeze in those family vacations you have been wanting to do. LEGOLAND® California is located in Carlsbad just outside of San Diego and makes for a great day trip or an overnight stay in their LEGOLAND® California Resort. The park is connected to the SEA LIFE Aquarium and the LEGOLAND® Water Park so make sure to get the multi-park tickets to visit all three while on your trip.
The LEGO® Movie World is now open at the park and features new rides, attractions, and shops that immerse you in the LEGO® world including Emmet’s Flying Adventure Ride and the Unikitty’s Disco Drop!
Dig up dino fossils like a paleontologist, rock climb like the ninjas from Ninjago, build a LEGO Coast Guard boat to sail on water, or build rockets and rovers for NASA. No matter where you are in the park there is something to ride, build and explore.
In Miniland USA you’ll be able to travel around the nation and see the most iconic landmarks and cities transformed into amazing LEGO builds. You can see builds of California’s favorite places like the Golden Gate Bridge, Pier 39, the Hollywood Bowl, and the Griffith Park Observatory. The Vegas strip has been miniaturized into a LEGO city featuring all of the most famous resorts and casinos. You can even check out more builds from Florida, New York, and Washington D.C. in Miniland USA.
Take a break and cool down from the summer heat in the LEGO® Ferrari Build & Race building. Here you can take a picture with a life-size LEGO Ferrari 450 model. Make your way into the garage where you can build and customize your own vehicle to race on three different racetracks. Once you are done racing, take your your car into the next room to be digitally scanned and projected onto a LEGO racetrack screen where you can race other cars.
If you’re looking to cool down even further, visit Pirate Shores and take a drop down the Pirate Reef ride where you are guaranteed to get soaked! If you’re really brave you can stand on the lookout deck and wait for the waves to hit you from each boat drop. For a not so super-soaked ride check out Splash Battle where you ride pirate ships across the sea and shoot water from cannons on the boat to other riders and guests walking by.
Our favorite ride at the park was the LEGO® CITY: Deep Sea Adventure ride. Think the submarine ride at Disneyland but with REAL marine life! Inside the submarine you play quests looking for gold, gems, and other hidden treasures that you mark off on a screen while taking in the beautiful sites of tropical fish, sharks and rays swimming past your window.
There are tons of rides, attractions, and shows, so make sure to download the LEGOLAND app and plan your day before you get to the park. You can also purchase Reserve’N’Ride passes to help you get ahead of the lines. We were there all day and only got to about a third of the rides and attractions. Overall LEGOLAND is a great family amusement park with gentle rides for young kids and a few small coasters for older kids.
For an extra bit of fun you can bring a LEGO minifigure character from home or make and purchase one at the Minifig Market in the park and trade them with an employee. Just look for an employee in the park with a name badge that has a minifigure attached to it and ask to trade.
