WINTER HAVEN, Fla. -- The colorful welcome sign that greets visitors to Central Florida's newest theme park appears to be painted, but a more careful examination proves Legoland Florida will be a truly immersive experience.
The sign’s letters are made from the iconic Lego bricks, and some kids, like our 5-year-old son, Ty, and 5-year-old niece, Alex, instantly crawl through the C and O of the WELCOME sign, unable to contain themselves from instant contact with the plastic bricks.
At Legoland Florida -- the second theme park in the U.S. designed around the beloved toys (the other is in California) -- the building blocks pop up in entertaining and unexpected ways.
Its interactive rides and wow-inducing Lego creations of national treasures and cities celebrate imagination. There are opportunities for kids to play with those plastic bricks as much as they want, but parents may be relieved to know that Legoland Florida’s activities are compelling enough to keep children too busy to beg for Lego sets from the gift shops.
The 150-acre park opened in October, and it is the largest Legoland in the world (they also are in Denmark, Germany and England). Its location at the former Cypress Gardens adds a sense of natural beauty to the sharp edges of the bricks. Legoland has retained the botanical gardens, moss-laden trees that offer some shade from the sun and a waterfall, where Lego deer and other animals gather.
The waterfall flows behind Miniland USA, a don’t-miss area with amazing re-creations of cities and landmarks that is the setting for family photos. Atlanta will have its own version of Miniland when the Legoland Discovery Center opens in Phipps Plaza this spring.
In New York, for example, you’ll find landmarks such as the Statue of Liberty, the Empire State Building and the Guggenheim Museum as well as the interior of Grand Central Station. Las Vegas depicts the glamorous hotels on the famous Strip, along with a mini wedding chapel. Some of the unexpected touches include an actual Lego shipwreck in the pirate section and a collection of RVs joining the scene at the Daytona International Speedway.
Beyond the explosion of creations in Miniland, there are 50 rides and activities, a 4-D movie theater, special performances and characters, and a water show featuring Lego pirates and soldiers on skis. We experienced brief waits on our Dec. 31 visit, with less than 15 minutes in line. (A park spokeswoman said we were there on a typical day, in terms of crowd size.)
Legoland bills itself as being geared toward ages 2 to 12. Roller coasters such as the Lego Technic Test Track and Flying School, a suspended ride, are daring to youngsters, but may bore thrill seekers even as young as 10. More traditional rides include a two-story carousel.
Some of the older kids we spoke with at the park said the Aquazone Wave Racers, where riders attempt to dodge water “explosions” while spinning in a circle in small pods shaped like boats, was among their favorites. One mom, with an 8-year-old son, in line at one ride, called Legoland their “rest day” in between visits to Universal's Islands of Adventure and Walt Disney World.
Many rides are constructed to give little ones control, whether they’re powering mini-boats, riding plastic horses through a medieval joust setting, shooting lasers at targets in the indoor Lost Kingdom Adventure ride or earning their official Legoland driver’s license after steering Lego cars through a winding course.
Employees cheered on kids and adults as we tugged on the ropes to pull ourselves, in a seated position, up to the top of the Kid Power Towers, then let the rope go to “free fall” down. They encouraged competition among families as we pumped a lever to race police and fire vehicles before pumping water that put out a simulated fire. (Hint: If there’s one car full of parents competing against one full of kids, they’ll find a way to keep you from finishing first.)
Legoland provides opportunities to escape the Florida heat. There are several showings of three 4-D movies at Fun Town Theater (it seats 700 people). The "Lego Racers" movie, which offered a 20-minute midafternoon break as the kids wound down, had so-so effects but provided a life lesson of being a team player. Also indoors: the Build & Test (planned for Atlanta’s Legoland Discovery Center, too), which allows kids and their parents to sort through bins of blocks to create cars and test them on timed tracks.
There are constant reminders of the creativity that comes from Legos, such as a huge replica of Albert Einstein’s head at the entrance to the Imagination Zone and a Lego tourist in shorts, a Hawaiian shirt and black socks sitting on a bench and snoring.
But there’s not much time for snoozing. We still couldn’t fit in everything during our nine-hour visit, with breaks for lunch (an all-you-can-eat pizza, pasta and salad buffet, at $10.99 per adult and $6.99 per child, with drinks included) and an afternoon snack of ice cream and a tangy dessert -- Granny’s Apple Fries -- made of fried apples and sprinkled with cinnamon and sugar.
If you time your trip with a holiday, you can get the extra benefit of Legoland’s unique fireworks show, which was offered for New Year’s Eve. With 3-D glasses, the fireworks turned into Lego blocks that exploded in the sky, ending the day with a final burst of creativity.
If you go
Legoland Florida is in Winter Haven, Fla., 45 minutes southwest of Orlando and 45 minutes from downtown Tampa.
Address: One Legoland Way, Winter Haven, FL 33884
Info: florida.legoland.com, 1-877-350-5346
Hours: Open five days a week (closed Tuesdays and Wednesdays) and daily during holiday periods. 10 a.m.-5 p.m. (hours are extended during spring break and holiday periods).
Prices: Adults 13-59: $75 (one-day ticket), plus tax; child 3-12 or senior, 60+: $65 (one-day ticket), plus tax; children under 3: free (parking is $12)
Tip: Specially marked Lego packages in stores offer a coupon for a free child ticket with the purchase of an adult ticket (we used these to save the cost of both child tickets). Park officials say these coupons are currently available in the packaging for "Lego Harry Potter" video games.
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