LEGOLAND Florida in Winter Haven is where everything is awesome! And we are taking our daughter for the 1st time to the park that is everything LEGO. This is also Becky’s first time here, and we’re staying at the LEGOLAND Hotel for the weekend!
Yesterday we went to their new theme park here, read our separate post: Peppa Pig Theme Park Now Open!
Planning LEGOLAND
Our daughter is off from school Friday and Monday this weekend and we plan to make the best use of it. Originally we were thinking about Disney World, but her new annual pass is blacked out this weekend. And we had thought about taking her to LEGOLAND previously and just haven’t made it happen yet. But, now that Peppa Pig Theme Park is open and she is blacked out, this should be a perfect weekend. You can read more about the park here: LEGOLAND FLORIDA | Official Site | Tickets, Passes, Vacations.
Normally we look for a timeshare property close to where we want to go. But, we splurged and bought a vacation package staying at the LEGOLAND Hotel for 3 nights. With the package, we’ll be able to go to LEGOLAND Florida and Peppa Pig Theme Park over 2 days. After the big storm passed through Florida yesterday morning, it is cool for Central Florida. However, it is sunny and we look forward to spending the day at LEGOLAND.
Entering LEGOLAND park
Though we are staying at the LEGOLAND Hotel steps away from the entrance, we have a late start. Last night was the Daylight Savings change where we lost an hour, so we slept in. But we still didn’t leave until after 11:30AM though the park opened at 10:00. But the park is open until 7:00PM and we plan to spend the whole day here. From the hotel, there is a little walkway to a side-entrance with a small security checkpoint manned by only 1 person. Once past it, we go to the main gate and they scan our printed tickets. And once in we grab a map and show times.
As we start walking we notice a large LEGO cake with a big ’10’ on top. LEGOLAND Florida opened 10 years ago and that’s when Paul first came with our boys. So, we’re looking forward to seeing what has changed here since then. And we have a feeling there will be many more LEGO sculptures around the park.
The LEGO Movie World
After looking at wait times on the park app, we go to the LEGO Movie Masters of Flight ride first. Our daughter watched the LEGO Movie on the drive down as well as in our hotel room, and is excited! So, when we get to the carousel, we turn right to go through DUPLO Valley to The LEGO Movie World. This newest world just opened in March 2019, and this ride has the longest wait time currently at 40 minutes. But that’s not too bad, and even though the line inside seems slow, we are on in 20 minutes.
The ride is similar to Soarin’ at EPCOT, where you have a harness over your head and your feet dangle. Except this time you’re in a triple decker sofa guided by Emmet from the LEGO Movie. We loved the ride, but unfortunately Becky got a little motion sickness. We skipped breakfast when we slept in, so we plan to head toward a lunch spot next.
But before we leave, we check out the rest of Lego Movie World. Our daughter doesn’t want to do Unikitty’s Disco Drop and we pass on the Battle of Bricksburg water ride. But, there’s also Benny’s Play Ship playground in the center which we let our daughter go on. Looking around we find a character greeting with Wyldstyle from the LEGO Movie next to The Awesome Shop. Like Disney, you can’t touch the characters, but you can get a picture and interact with them. And there is no line! And Wyldstyle is cool just like the LEGO mini-figures with their “C” hands. Everything is awesome in this new world!
LEGO Kingdoms and Miniland USA
On the way to lunch, we pass through the LEGO Kingdoms world. The big ride here is The Dragon and it’s only a 15 minute wait. Though Becky isn’t feeling great, we decide to get on the ride. And we get on in less than 10 minutes. This kid-friendly coaster starts inside and goes outside and our daughter loves it. This is a step-up from yesterday’s rollercoaster going faster and has more turns.
We are glad to knock out 2 of their bigger rides so quickly. Note this ride and a few others have photos you can purchase for $25 plus tax. So the more pictures you get, the more it’s worth it. Though the only opportunity for pictures we saw were on a few rides. But, you have to scan them on your phone so we could’ve missed some. After the ride, we head through Miniland USA which is a collection of large LEGO scenes.
We first see a pirate boat and port town which is very cool. And we continue past scenes from St. Augustine and other Florida cities. The scenes seem the same as 10 years ago, but Miniland is now covered. This is great on a hot day because you can now enjoy this area in the shade. We make it to the NASA scene where the space shuttle is counting down. It counts down throughout the day, and with only a few minutes left we stop to watch. When it gets to zero, it starts smoking and goes up a foot or two. The blast off isn’t much but it’s hard to believe it’s all made out of LEGO bricks.
Fun Town Pizza & Pasta Buffet Lunch
By the time we get to Fun Town Pizza & Pasta Buffet it is after 1:00PM and we are starving. However, there is no wait and we walk right up to pay. The All-You-Can-Eat price is $19 for adults and $13 for kids which includes drinks. Once we pay we find plenty of open tables. They have soda machines with cups you can fill-up as many times as you want. They do have Powerade and water as well. After we grab our drinks we head to the buffet.
The buffet has a salad bar with a few toppings and multiple dressings. The 3 pastas on the bar are all penne with different sauces, but surprisingly no mac-n-cheese. They have 2 sides of pizzas with different types on each side. One side has 4 basic pizzas with meat including pepperoni, sausage, both and Hawaiian. The other side has cheese and a veggie with peppers, onions and black olives. We figured this would be cheap pizza and it’s nothing special. But for the price it’s not bad and may be the only sit-down restaurant in the park. Plus for dessert they have brownies which are really good. Only thing missing was some ice cream.
Brickbeard’s Watersports Stunt Show at LEGOLAND
After our bellies are full, we look at the show times. Paul wants to see Brickbeard’s Watersports Stunt Show which only has 2 showings left. And the next one is in a couple minutes at 2:00PM. So, we decide to head to the ski stadium just past Miniland. They opened up a lawn area before the stadium where you can watch. We try it out for a minute, but there are some bugs so we decide to head into the stadium.
Many people don’t know that LEGOLAND Florida replaced an old theme park here called Cypress Gardens. And one of the big draws for the former park was its water ski shows on Lake Eloise. As far as we know, they only do these shows here in Florida. And once in the stadium we easily find some seating. There are a couple of hosts that tee up the water sports shown on the lake. They are soon joined by Calico Jade who oversees the stunts. We see boats go back and forth with wakeboarders doing flips, barefoot skiers, and more.
Brickbeard himself makes an appearance to ensure the show and water crew are seaworthy. And the stunts become more extreme leading up to the finale. For the finale a boat comes out with 5 skiers that form a pyramid! Then the skiers come to the stage at the end to be sworn in as Brickbeard’s crew. This 30-minute show has a lot of exciting stunts and worth the time. As we leave the stadium, we pass the entrance to the botanical gardens aptly named Cypress Gardens. But our daughter wants ice cream so we find the closest place nearby. So, we’ll come back to see the gardens later.
Ice Cream and the Flying School
We take our daughter to the closest place for ice cream called Firehouse Ice Cream. There is a little wait and a single scoop is $5, but we get her a scoop on a cone. We then sit down next the Ford Jr. Driving School and watch some little kids drive around a small track. Our daughter is enjoying the ice cream, but unfortunately she drops it. The one scoop was on the top of the cone and fell upside down on the ground. We pick it up and throw it in the trash telling her we’ll go to another ice cream place later. So, we decide to do a ride instead.
We head past the big Ford Driving School to the Flying School. This ride is a suspended coaster and has a 30 minute wait. Unlike Disney that has a few rides that always have long waits, the wait times change throughout the day. And all have been less than 45 minutes today. So far our ride waits have been half what the wait times state, but this one takes longer. The line isn’t very long but goes very slow. Adding frustration is multiple rows are unseated making the wait longer for no reason. We finally get on this short kid-friendly coaster after about 40 minutes. But the ride is cool and our daughter has never done a rollercoaster like it. After leaving we leave for LEGO NINJAGO World.
LEGO NINJAGO The Ride
After taking a while, we decide we need to hit some more rides. So we head to LEGO NINJAGO World to do LEGO NINJAGO The Ride. There isn’t a lot to do in this world except the ride which is fine. The wait time shows a little less at 25 minutes, but also takes almost 40 minutes. We were so spoiled with quick waits early on, but it’s the afternoon and more people are here. And this is also a newer ride and it requires 3-D glasses.
I can only compare to Disney rides and it’s sort of like Toy Story Mania or Buzz Lightyear. However instead of pushing a button, you use your hands to throw balls of light at targets to score. And at the end you can see your total score compared to others. You also can get your picture from this ride. Becky wins this time as her ninja skills are unmatched.
Coastersaurus, Safari Trek and More
After the last 2 rides, time is flying by. It is almost 5:00 and the park closes at 7:00. So we head quickly to the wooden coaster, Coastersaurus. The wait time is 30 minutes and it takes that long. Many of the original rides are tailored to kids 12 and under and this one is no exception. And when we get placed in spots for the ride, Paul gets placed with another dad. This coaster is not meant for 2 adults! But Becky and our daughter are in the front row and scream the whole time with their hands up. Sometimes you have to do it for the team…
Right across from Coastersaurus is Safari Trek. The line for this ride is shorter and only takes about 15 minutes. Up to 2 people can fit in the little car that goes through the LEGO jungle. Through the ride you see many jungle animals made out of LEGOs including zebras, lions and even very tall giraffes. Another ride fun for little kids.
After we exit the ride we only have about an hour left. We want to do the Lost Kingdom Adventure ride and go back to Cypress Gardens. But we don’t think we’ll have time for both. So, we decide to head toward another ice cream place we saw earlier first and then go to gardens. But after arriving just after 6:00PM, the ice cream store is already closed. Not understanding why they would close anything prior to park hours we head for Granny’s Apple Fries.
Granny’s Apple Fries and the Grand Carousel
Granny’s Apple Fries is LEGOLAND’s awesome treat and they have an ice cream option. So, we head to the grab & go counter next to the Grand Carousel. There is a bit of a line, so we decide to split-up. One of us will stay in line to order while the other takes our daughter to ride on the carousel. Of course our daughter wants to ride with Mommy…
You can get the battered apple fries a few different ways. And Paul orders Apple Fries a la mode as well as another Apple Fries with caramel dipping sauce. By the time Paul gets the order, the girls are on the top floor of the double-decker carousel. Our daughter loves carousels and can’t believe this has 2 stories. Once the ride is finished, we join up for some apple fries.
Never having these Granny Smith apple fries dusted with cinnamon and sugar we weren’t sure how good they’d be. They are good. The apple fries are delicious by themselves, but our daughter got some ice cream too. Why did we not get these sooner? Next time, we’re coming here first.
Cypress Gardens and The Big Shop
By the time with finish our apple fries it is getting close to 6:30PM. And we have to walk back across the park to the gardens. But Paul enjoyed the gardens the first time he came and really wants to enjoy them with the girls. We figure we’ll have almost 30 minutes to stroll through the gardens before we have to leave. And by the time we get there, it’s only a couple minutes past 6:30.
But a girl standing at the entrance tells us the gardens just closed. She goes on saying they close them 30 minutes prior to park closing because nocturnal animals start to come out. And they don’t want anyone to get hurt. What a load of BS! Daylight Savings just changed today and it will get dark an hour later though the park hours didn’t change. At this point, we just head to the exit.
Right before the exit is The Big Shop, so like everyone we head in. We saw a few smaller shops which were okay but this store is truly big. And they have a lot of great LEGO sets including some hard to find. We find the LEGO Madrigal House from Encanto and our daughter is super happy! After a fun day at LEGOLAND Florida Theme Park, we head back to the hotel.
LEGOLAND Summary
After starting late, we hit LEGOLAND in stride knocking out big rides The LEGO Movie ride and The Dragon. We then stop for a pizza buffet lunch. After lunch, we watch Brickbeard’s Watersports Stunt Show on the lake. And after our 1st attempt at ice cream, we ride Flying School. Then we do LEGO NINJAGO the Ride followed by Coastersaurus and Safari Trek. After our 2nd attempt at ice cream, we score at Granny’s Apple Fries and the Grand Carousel. We left Cypress Gardens for last and we’re disappointed they closed them early. But we finished with some LEGO shopping at The Big Shop.
We got to ride quite a few rides and our daughter really enjoyed them. The water ski show was a highlight, but missing the gardens makes us long for more. Unfortunately this is our last day, and not sure when we’ll return. But our daughter enjoyed the park so much she said it was the most amazing day ever. Whether it’s amazing or awesome, our trip was a success. And we’ll definitely plan to return to LEGOLAND Florida again at some point.