Legoland is Florida’s newest and most anticipated theme park addition. Located in Winter Haven (about 45 minutes south of Disney) on the grounds of the old Cypress Gardens, it is a brightly colored mecca for Lego lovers and fans.
We were finally able to go this past Monday. I was a little worried with it being around spring break but when we pulled into the parking lot it was maybe 25% full! The park is only open from 930-500 and we arrived about 10am. We didn’t have tickets but were able to walk right up to purchase them.
The park is a lot larger then I expected. You need to do a little walking since the attractions are not right next to each other. And it IS truly a park for kids. The neat thing is they have play areas in the line que so a parent can wait in line and the kids play! I can imagine this would be great once they get very busy!
Building the park among the remains of the historic Cypress Gardens lends the park an elegance I wasn’t expecting. Ancient tall oaks shade the entire park. Pathways feel like they’ve been there for 80 years,The botanical gardens have kept the Cypress Gardens name, ensuring the legacy survives.
And walking the paths of the massive garden is absolutely jaw-dropping. I never would have imagined that they actually maintained the gardens so successfully, considering the park has been shuttered for so long. The humongous banyan tree is pretty amazing, even the kids were impressed! Simply unbelievable, and an incredible juxtaposition to the rest of the park.
Another great aspect (similar to Disney’s pin trading) is with the mini figures. The employees have a unique badge with pieces to trade with guests. The boys being “avid” pin traders loved this! They only wished they had brought some more from home! But no worries there are plenty of places to buy them! as I’m sure you can imagine!
Now onto the rides…
Legoland has four roller coasters and all are great for kids. The height restrictions are minimal: 36″ to 44″ will get you on all the rides.
The Dragon is an easy coaster, full of knights, castles, and of course, dragons.
The Coastersaurus is an old wooden coaster refurbished from Cypress Garden days. It’s bumpy and a bit different, but fun.
Test Track is a short, swervy ride, but it was the steepest and fastest — a 45 foot drop before you hit the switchbacks — but still okay for most kids.
Flying School is a suspended coaster (meaning you hang from the top) where kids and adults can get the feel of flying without the fear like other suspended coasters (such as Sea World’s Manta). It may look a little daunting, but it’s an easy thrill.
I think the one thing that I was really amazed by was the mini city replicas of Florida landmarks such as Kennedy Space Center, Daytona 500, Key West, South Beach, and other locations such as Las Vegas or Washington DC. My pictures absolutely can not show how cool this is! the detail and pure creativity of this is worth coming to see in itself.
Overall I feel that it is a good park. It is targeted at younger children and for sure a Lego Lover’s DREAM! In my opinion though it cannot be compared to Disney…it lacks the nostalgia….I think that it unfairly is. It is really just a totally different attraction.
Do I think you should go..Yes!
Check out more pics here….
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and…
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