Play: Twenty ways to play at Legoland’s 20th anniversary celebrations.
Celebrate at Legoland with these 20 ways to play
Legoland has always been a family-friendly spot. And when the Carlsbad theme park opened on California’s sunny southern coast 20 years ago, it offered plenty of colorful Lego cityscapes and 12 kid-ready rides. If that’s still your vision of the place, get ready to be rocked. Legoland has grown up.
The theme park still caters to kids ages 2 to 12, but now it does it with more than 60 rides, shows and attractions, all at “pink knuckle” speed. (You’ll hang on, all right, but without the white-knuckled fear that roller coasters inspire.) The 128acre property includes nearly a dozen different themed zones, from Miniland USA and Pirate Shores to a vast Star Wars display. Dining options have been upgraded with 16 global eateries that run the gamut from Spain to Japan. And this year’s 20th anniversary festivities add even more to the fun.
Our little family spent a recent happy weekend here and found there was something for everyone, big and small. Here are the top 20 must-dos in this Lego kingdom, from birthday shakes to disco elevators, submarines and craft beer.
1 Dance it off
Kick up your heels at Legoland’s 20th Birthday Dance Party — complete with loud music and fancy lighting — which hits the Fun Town stage four times a day. Dancing right alongside: Emily and Jake, two new Lego characters named for the most popular boy and girl names of 1999.
2 Dive deep
Head straight for the park’s newest ride: The Submarine at Lego City: Deep Sea Adventure. The ride includes a treasure hunt that uses touch screens inside the sub to interact with real sea life just outside the porthole.
3 Go Hollywood — er, British Columbia
“The Lego Movie” was filmed in Vancouver, but after the final cut, the film set was taken apart and brought down to Legoland. Now you can explore the set firsthand — and if you feel like channeling your inner Emmet Brickowski, this is the perfect spot to belt a bit of “Everything Is Awesome.”
4 Take a mini tour
The VIP tour at Miniland USA takes you behind the scenes, where master model maker Chris Scheunemann can tell you everything you’ve ever wondered about Lego construction. Be sure to check out the epic structures and figures (R2-D2! Shaq!) when you walk past the floor-to-ceiling window at the model shop.
5 Hang 10
The whole family can surf together at the newest wave-inspired ride at Riptide Racers in Surfers Cove, a beachy section in Legoland’s water park area.
6 Relax as you splash
Speaking of the water park, relax and enjoy it without enduring any “mean mommy!” cries when you drag the kids out of the water for bathroom and snack breaks. The lifeguards initiate the water park closures. Easy peasy.
7 Dine deliciously
And speaking of snacks, don’t expect the typical amusementpark grease bombs. Legoland’s Smokehouse boasts both a smoker that holds 1,300 pounds of meat at a time and chef Mike Mendoza, who picked up his barbecue skills in Texas. You’ll find housemade miso broth with kombu at the park’s Wok N Bowl Ramen, fresh fettucine at the Pizza & Pasta Buffet and traditional street tacos at the new Beach Street Tacos stand in the water park area. Don’t miss the churros con chocolate at the churro stand.
8 Work off those churros
The scaffolding-meets-skyscraper Kid Power Tower in Duplo Playtown will help you work off those churros and chocolate. You operate the pulley system yourself. The harder and faster you pull, the higher you rise. Plus the tower offers the very best bird’s-eye views of the entire park.
9 Tap a brew
You’re in San Diego County, a craft beer mecca, so it’s only fitting that the park offers a variety of suds for sampling. You’ll find Stone Brewing, Refuge and Thorn Brewing on tap at many of the restaurants and stands. And the new Wolfs Watering Hole, which just opened at Legoland’s Chima Water Park, offers six local taps, plus wine and cider.
10 Splash a stranger
In the swashbuckler themed Pirate Shores section of the park, you can get even with everyone in your family (and even some strangers, if you want to) at the Splash Battle water blasters. I was soaked by some energetic teenager with extremely good aim.
11 Build in line
You’ll find buildable interactive models strategically stationed near various rides. Among them: a big shark at Deep Sea near the submarine ride and a big Duplo brick at the Skipper School boat ride, so antsy kids can have a creative outlet while waiting in line.
12Watch a 4D flick
A new 12-minute silent film — “Lego City: Officer in Pursuit” — is in 4D, pushing the envelope in visual entertainment by combining 3D film with synchronized physical effects, including vibrations, wind and strobe lights. Plus, the hero is a girl, so that’s even cooler.
13 Chill out
Even the most seasoned amusement parkgoer gets frazzled from the crowds and lines. The park’s quiet Baby Care Center is super appealing to any parent in need of a little down time. In addition to baby-changing facilities, the center has phone chargers, rocking chairs and refrigerators.
14 Dip those sweet fries
Check out Legoland’s signature dessert on Castle Hill, where Granny’s Apple Fries are essentially apple pie in french fry form. Apple strips are coated in batter and deep-fried, then dusted with powdered sugar and served with whipped cream.
15 Go locavore
Sample your way through local products and ingredients at the park’s Garden Deli & Cafe. You’ll find San Diego’s Steeping Giant nitro coffee and Oceanside’s Suja Kombucha on tap, Carlsbad’s Chuao chocolate bars, local lettuce mix in your salad —and even avocado ice pops.
16 Be a ninja
Don’t miss Ninjago, the ninja-themed dark ride that uses Maestro hand-gesture technology — the first ride in any North American theme park to use this. That means you gather points for every fireball, shock wave or lightning bolt your hands shape and throw.
17 Dabble in a disco … elevator?
Staying at the Legoland and Castle hotels? The fun continues into the off hours with live entertainment every evening, scavenger and treasure hunts with real treasure chest safes to unlock, and disco elevators, complete with discoball lighting, music and wall art that transform your elevator ride into a dance party. Bonus: Rooms with separate kidsized sleeping quarters and bunk beds.
18 Try a sippy (cocktail) cup
The inner courtyard play structure at the Castle Hotel is conveniently located near the hotel Dragon’s Den bar, where savvy bartenders automatically make you a “to-go” drink that you can sip while letting the kids run free. This is not just cheap beer and big-box wine. You can get a legit Old-fashioned with topshelf bourbon and a fancy round ice cube.
19 Count ’em up
Counting all the Lego bricks at Legoland is nearly impossible, so we’ll just tell you that it took more than 60 million to make the 30,000plus models throughout the park. But make sure you go in search of the largest and tiniest of the bunch. The largest model is a giant dinosaur named “Bronty” — you’ll spot him easily when you’re up on that Kid Power Tower. The smallest is a tiny pigeon made from four Lego bricks in the Washington, D.C., cityscape in Miniland USA.
20 Sip, sip, slurp
The special Birthday Monster Shake is already Instagram famous, a colorful, whimsical wonder whipped up just for the park’s big anniversary. It’s garnished with fruity rainbow cereal and an entire cupcake. Find it at Castle Ice Cream.