Legoland on a Budget
$219 Hotel for two nights, $226 tickets, $107 food for two days, $230 outlet shopping.
Legoland is really for the younger set, but my son still really wanted to go. So when we were offered a timeshare presentation with two free tickets to Legoland, we took it. I warned the kids ahead of time that we wouldn’t be buying any Legos at the park. They’ve actually gotten used to my budgeting.
For $219, we received two nights at the Grand Pacific Palisades Resort in Carlsbad along with two tickets to our choice of Seaworld, the San Diego Zoo, or Legoland. But we had to attend a two-hour timeshare presentation on our first morning. I used a coupon from McDonalds to purchase three (one-day) tickets for the kids for $226. You can probably find better deals if you shop around but we were limited as we were only buying three kid tickets.
We filled up on gas at the Costco across the street. After checking in, and picking up our Legoland tickets, we enjoyed complimentary rum & cokes at the adult pool. The kids wanted to hit the other pool before the beach.
The kids’ area had a little water park with a water slide, water cannons, and other water features. They also had a basketball court which the twins used for an hour. We had a beautiful view of the flower fields and the ocean from our third-story room. For dinner, we went next door to the Carlsbad Premium Outlets. We ordered three pizzas for $35 from Blaze and took back two boxes of leftovers.
We woke up early to attend the timeshare presentation at 8 a.m. The kids were checked in to an onsite Kids Club where they were given pancakes and waffles.
Legoland opened at 10:00 and we were able to go through the Marbrisa Hotel’s private back entrance to Legoland. I saw the Apple Fries stand, but this early in the morning, no one was hungry yet.
We zipped through Miniland to our first ride, the Kid Power Tower where there was no line. The tower is the highest point in the park and offered great views. I didn’t take any pictures because I was pulling on the rope to lift us up.
Legoland’s driving school was right next to the tower ride. There was a small line and the little one had to wait in a different line for 3–5 year olds. The kids loved this ride as the cars are actually operated by the kids. The little one was the best driver in her group. Others crashed and drove into walls. They also received drivers licenses.
The little one wanted to catch a live Lego and Friends show while the twins went on rides. Sher’s highlight was meeting Emma, Andrea & Stephanie.
The Lego and Friends area was supercute with a farm and plenty of places for pictures.
On the Tuesday after Easter, the park was not crowded at all. We probably would have had to wait in line to take a picture on this bench during peak periods, but today we walked right up and took several pictures.
Rides at the park have different requirements. This rollercoaster goes through a prehistoric jungle of LEGO brick dinosaurs.
- Rider must be at least 36" tall.
- Rider between 36" — 48" must be accompanied by a responsible rider of 48" or taller.
We met up at Ninjago World for a late lunch. The kids ate leftover pizza while the adults shared a $12 entree from the Ninja kitchen. We also got four cups of ice water as it was a warm 72 degrees.
We had no idea what Ninjago the Ride was all about and we waited in the longest line for this, but it was worth it, and still only about half an hour. It’s an interactive ride like Buzz Lightyear, but no controllers, your karate chops send out lasers to defeat enemies in 4D. Our son scored the highest which surprised me, usually gamer Dad wins.
We also waited in a short line to take a picture with Kai (pictured above) Lego Batman was also there, but the kids wanted to go on more rides rather than take pictures.
Again we split up while the twins went on more roller coasters and Sheri went on more tame rides. Before I knew it, we had only an hour left at the park which closed at 5 p.m.
We didn’t even get to return to Miniland before leaving the park or get to the water park. We will have to come back. We also didn’t buy a single souvenir at the park. Though there were several really cute gift shops with collections of mini-figures and beautiful lego sets. I almost purchased a magnet, but we were so busy running around the park that we didn’t ever really shop.
We walked back out through the private entrance and were at our hotel by 5:30. The kids went to the pool and water park while the sun was still up.
Sheri went the pool three times! She loved the water features even in the mild coastal weather. A little water slide, cannons and sprays.
For dinner, we picked up In-n-Out at the drive-through. Five burgers, three orders of fries, two shakes, and one coke for $22. I thought we were going to eat at the hotel, but the kids wanted to go back to the Carlsbad Premium Outlets to hit stores we hadn’t had a chance to get to. Even though my feet were aching, I figured we could buy something from the outlets since we hadn’t bought any legos at Legoland. Sheri scored tsum tsums at the Disney Outlet for only $2 each.
But we broke our budget with a stop at the Under Armour Outlet. Dad couldn’t believe they were selling Curry 3s for $80. So this one, who just made his first AAU basketball team got new shoes. And so did his twin sister. Again we were at the outlets until they closed at 9:00. But it was literally next door to the hotel so we were in bed by 10:00. Everyone quickly fell asleep.
We woke up early because the kids wanted to go to the hotel’s game room and pool before we checked out. The twins and I played pool and ping pong while the little one went to the water park and pool for a third time.
We checked out at 11 a.m. and headed to Carlsbad Village. We drove along the ocean but didn’t even visit the beach. It was beautiful.
Our first stop was Carlsbad Alkaline Water for California’s “Most Healthful Water,” for which the town is named after. I’m always looking for flouride-free water for my family. All of the kiosks were busy with people filling up tanks of water. At 70 cents a gallon, it’s a bargain! And tastes great.
For lunch, we stopped at a hole-in-the wall sushi counter that is only open from 11–1 p.m. Everything is made fresh. We bought six trays of sushi and some Japanese soda for $33. For dessert, we stopped at a French Cafe & Bakery and got a fruit tart and profiteroll for $5.
The town area is supercute but we enjoyed the outlets more for shopping. We had so much fun at Legoland!
