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Legoland and our San Diego Vacation |
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[Editorial published 3/26/08]
Hi Everyone,
At the end of February, my husband and I took our son (almost 5 years) and daughter (2.5 years) to San Diego. The focus of the vacation was Legoland. As a couple, we had visited Legoland in 1999 shortly after it first opened -- we loved it immediately. Now that our youngest is 36" tall, we knew it was finally time to return to Carlsbad, CA for a theme park different than anything else in America. This week's editorial is a trip report on Legoland and our San Diego Vacation.
What makes this park different is Legoland's emphasis on attractions that involve physical interaction. Our family had a blast in the family-firetruck challenge. It takes at least 3 people to propel a firetruck the size of a small car 15 yards across the pavement, then everyone has to jump out and get a fake fire under control with water hoses. The referee announces when you can get back into your truck and power it back to the starting line. This is physically exhausting and a lot of fun. Even a big, strong daddy can't manage this game alone -- it's designed to be a family activity, there are even pseudo-steering wheels provided for little ones.
Two of the flagship attractions include a ride where familes use pedal-power to propel their vehicle on an elevated track, and the Kid-Powered Tower where kids use a pulley system to ascend and descend a tall contraption while seated. There is so much fun to have around the park, that I wouldn't recommend waiting more than 15 minutes for the little car-ride to look at Lego safari animals, or the little boat-ride to see Lego storybook characters.
Another distinction is that Legoland is designed more for "the experience" than for managing large crowds. That said, it is worth noting that (in late February) we never waited more than 10 minutes for any ride -- except on Thursday mornings when the local playgroups are there. The majority of rides are for 1-4 persons. The park isn't designed for hundreds of people to push thru the same queue every hour. My kids adored a ride where each kid is buckled onto a fake horse that rocks forward-back as it journeys along a winding track of a Medieval-themed area. It's one kid per horse, no parents, and there's at least a 10-foot gap between horses. Why isn't this ride at any other park I've visited? probably because it doesn't move enough people per hour.
Legoland also has more than a half-dozen open play zones. We spent a lot of time in the Bionicle room and also in the Build-and-Test car-racing area. Unfortunately my son wasn't old enough to sign up for a Mindstorms/robot session. In the Medieval-themed area we all enjoyed the wonderful playground (single entrance/exit) with ropes, nets, slides and lots of wooden ramps. On the opposite end of the park is the music-and-fountain play zone. I remember loving the pressure-pad triggered musical-instrument fountain in 1999 and got a buzz from sharing that experience with my little ones. They also liked using the water sprayers (no extra charge) to interact with the Lego frogs and crocodiles.
Not to say that Legoland doesn't have thrills. My daughter was bonkers (I mean bonkers) for Coastersaurus. This smooth roller coaster with banking turns allows kids who are 36" tall. Wahoo! Around the 5th time around, I took out my video camera - next week I hope to post a clip here to share with you. It's a good thing we didn't discover Coastersaurus until our 2nd day visiting the park, because my daughter made a [successful] effort to ride Coastersaurus until the attraction closed. My son would probably have done the same but he was having too much fun in the Build-and-Test area with my husband. For daring kids there are also a few hard-core thrill rides but we were having plenty of fun otherwise.
 Legoland has quiet places too. I mean to say that there are places for children to think, although there may be some noise from nearby attractions. There is a giant sandbox where (for a small tools fee) kids can dig to find bones. Secondly, the driving school (ages 6+) puts the kids thru paces of maneuvering signs, lanes and stoplights. There is no track here, nor at the jr. version. All of our family enjoyed strolling thru Miniland's vast arrangement of models. It has replicas of everything from the Daytona 500 to the White House to the Vegas Strip, and so much more.
Like all parks, Legoland strictly enforces minimum-height requirements for safety. But they also have minimum-age restrictions. The age restrictions are the trade-off for having so many interactive and/or single-person attractions. When crowds are present, the age-restrictions act as a filter to help ensure that the target audience can enjoy the ride. It was certainly a bummer that my son needed to be 10 years old to sign-up for the mindstorms/robot session, but I learned about the age restrictions before we arrived. They are also noted on the brochure/map for the park.
There's a lot more to describe than I can cover here. We didn't spend time in Pirate Shores but it looked fun, and the new Indiana-Jones themed area opened just after we left California. This summer they are opening an aquarium that is supposed to be included with the Legoland admission.
For food, the best value is getting the family package at the pizza shop. It works out to around $6 per person for salad, pizza and drink and that's actually pretty cheap for an amusement park. If you're up for spending twice that, I recommend the sit-down Sports Cafe restaurant. We had nice salmon entrees and fun sundaes with topping-selections. Near the entrance is a small market where you can buy individual cheese sticks, cups of sliced strawberries, even caprese salads. There are many other dining choices. Only about 20% of the food in the park is junk food, but all of it is pricey.
For admission, we surprisingly got in for free the day we arrived. It was 3:30pm on Saturday, the park was set to close at 6pm (the attractions were closing at 5pm). Because it was so late in the day, we were waived thru parking (saved $10), then at guest services we were told about their Shopper's Pass — a 1-hour pass designed to let visitors shop in their stores. Since the park was scheduled to open to the public (yes, free) at 4pm that day, we were able to get in from 3:30-6pm for free. I called Guest Services before typing this article and learned the time that the park becomes open to the public varies - the agent wouldn't provide any specific times. By the way, if you spend $20 in the park on a Shopper's Pass, they'll refund the parking fee too. The store near the front of the park is called the Big Shop (for good reason) -- my son would pitch a tent and live there if he could.
Another way to save on admission is to join the Brickmaster Club. My son's $40 annual membership came with a free ticket (any age) to Legoland, along with magazines and small Lego sets delivered bi-monthly. There are also multi-park passes you can buy that includes admission to other places in San Diego.
My recommendation for families visiting Legoland: use the Shopper's Pass to scope out the park, and then plan 1 - 2.5 days to enjoy it thoroughly. The time it takes to enjoy this park isn't the time it takes to see the attractions, it's also the time your kids want to put in to the interactive elements and play zones. I think the optimal age is 4-7 years old. Aim at the off-season for the shortest lines (if any) — but keep an eye on mid-week closures during non-summer months.
Other comments about our San Diego vacation
Ramada Suites in Carlsbad
Pros: 2-bedroom suite with separate beds for the kids. 4 miles from Legoland (on side streets) and generally very convenient -- in fact there was an In-N-Out Burger between the hotel and Legoland :) Kitchen and living room. Very nice staff. Free wireless network and parking. You can buy discounted Legoland tickets at the desk. Good breakfast. New fixtures.
Cons: The cabinetry and appliances appear to be at least 20 years old. Quite a way from Mission Bay and downtown San Diego.
Zoomars Petting Zoo in San Juan Capistrano
Pros: My kids had a blast feeding vegetable slices to the bunnies and guinea pigs in the big pen. It was a lot of fun. Pony rides are available too. Located right by the train station.
Cons: The larger animals seem more aggressive than the bunnies - it may just be their size. I wouldn't suggest toddlers feeding anything other than the bunnies and guinea pigs.
Tips: Arrive before noon, before the bunnies are full and start to snooze. To hold a bunny or guinea pig, try putting it into an empty food basket. The animals are more likely to allow a child to hold them (via the basket) than to let a child grab/squeeze them with their hands. This petting zoo is pretty clean but visitors should be old enough to not put their fingers in their mouths, and don't forget the hand sanitizer.
Taking the Train up the Coast for 20 minutes
Pros: Metrolink. It is a friendly experience where small children ride free and the prices are reasonable.
Cons: Amtrak. The ticket salesperson wouldn't sell me advanced tickets without my husband's driver's license (he was parking the car). So we got on board in Oceanside without advanced tickets and were charged approximately $45 to ride the train. That's right, $45 to ride amtrak northbound for 20 minutes / one stop. Furthermore, the train company who was supposed to appear at the scheduled time didn't, the opposite company's train arrived within 3 minutes of the expected time -- both on our Northbound journey and our Southbound journey. In light of Amtrak's prices, policies and penalties, I (sadly) recommend that families just drive and skip the train.
Tips: Heading South from Oceanside, the Coaster might be a good choice for a short trip. It does stop at every station so be prepared for a slow journey. There is also a trolley downtown that would be worth checking out.
Sea World
Pros: Feeding the dolphins and the sea lions is a blast. You can stroke the dolphin before feeding it. There are pass-thru holes for little kids to safely feed sea lions. Both my kids got into the music of the new Shamu show ("Believe") even moreso than watching 4 whales perform at once. This summer, Sea World is opening a Sesame Street-themed play area.
Cons: You can go broke buying little frozen fish in bundles of 5 for $5. Clyde and Seamore weren't on stage that week, I must admit I really enjoy that one.
Tips: They allow new trainers to run the Shamu show on days with lower attendance. What we saw on Tuesday was good, but what we saw on Friday was twice as spectacular. The Clydesdales are also breathtaking, did you know you can have your picture taken with a Clydesdale in Colorado?
Weather
The San Diego weather was wonky in late February. We wore t-shirts and carried thick hoodies plus lightweight jackets with us every day. We often needed to change layers every 15 minutes (no exaggeration.) One day the sun was scorching, and on another we were rained out.
I hope your week is filled with laughter,
Jill
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Last Updated ( Monday, 04 January 2010 )
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