Baby Genie

Review: LegoLand Windsor

We’ve reviewed quite a few family days out over the years, but none quite as exciting as LEGOLAND. For weeks before the trip our four year old was asking how many sleeps to go. By the morning of the trip he was beside himself with excitement. He wasn’t disappointed – and neither were we.

We visited on the opening day of the Duplo Valley Splash Park – and the sun shone hot and beautifully all day for us.

We started at the Star Wars exhibition (at The Beginning) – I confess to not being a fanatic but found the models fascinating – the atmosphere, lighting and sound effects were totally transporting and magical. Within moments of being inside we felt like big kids – husband and I beamed at each other, excited to find out what was around the next corner.

From there, we explored the park and rides. We were lucky to have Q-Bot passes so we didn’t have to queue for any of the rides, although the park wasn’t overly busy either so it would have been ok – if you’re planning to visit, avoid inset days – we went on the last Sunday of half term and it was relatively calm – maybe people assumed it would be manic. Q-Bot isn’t cheap so visit the Q-Bot page to find out more.

Our favourite rides included the Fire Academy (in Traffic) which you pump to move along in your engine to the house and then pump water to put a pretend fire out – it’s a race against each of the other engines. We also loved Laser Raiders (in Kingdom of the Pharaohs) – you travel around in ghost train style carts with laser guns shooting at targets above the skeletons heads. Four year old thought it was amazing – he shot nothing but had no idea and thought it was the best thing ever!

The Pirates of Skeleton Bay show at The Harbour was fantastic – true stuntmen (stunt people?) with flips and jumps off the tallest towers into the water with flames and all sorts – we were all gripped and it was a nice pitstop before lunch. We ate at Burger Ranch – I had a falafel burger which was huge and tasty – enough fuel for the rest of the afternoon and being ruled by our stomachs as a family, we were ready to sit and eat something filling. We did give in and buy one of the kids refillable drinks bottles which was pricy at £7 but we bought it late in the day so didn’t really get to use the refills – I can’t remember if they were free, I think so. There are lots of tea and coffee stops which is really hand.

After lunch we visited MiniLand which is just amazing – mini model towns and cities from across the UK, Europe and US made of Lego. The London attractions were stunning, as were the docks and US space centre / NASA areas – you felt like you were getting a true birds eye view of these somewhat classified places you’d never get to visit. We could have wandered around for longer but we were more interested than Bear who was desperate to get to the Splash Park. I went to find a cash machine for ice creams while the boys changed into their swimmers. They didn’t play for long but the sprinklers were a hit and the warm weather enticed more people in to play. It was well supervised and although it looked a little precarious in parts you could see that the surfaces were all non-slip (paranoid parent). I packed my cossie but didn’t feel I was missing out by staying at a safe viewing distance – I’m still covering up the body of a busy mum with a six month old and a chocolate habit.

We also managed to squeeze in a 4D viewing of a Lego Chima movie which was fab – the fire, smoke, rain and snow took us all by surprise and I admit to squealing slightly. Opposite there, in the Exploratorium you can sit and build Lego Heroes which was a great chance to stop and do something quietly for 20 minutes. After that, husband took Bear on the Atlantis Submarine Voyage which sounded amazing and I wished I’d been on it too – a real deep sea adventure complete with sharks.

So as well as a Pirate Boat ride, panning for gold (which you receive a medal for), balloon flights and more, we finished with a quick look around the shop where I secretly got Bear a Lego watch for his fifth birthday, as well as buying myself a bright pink Lego Box for my desk. Well….I still love Lego too.

The service everywhere was really good, everything is really clean, there are plenty of toilets and baby changing facilities – everything is very well planned and laid out. Thumbs up.

All in all we had an incredible day. It’s well worth the trip, the ticket price (maybe not the Q-Bot ticket so pick your day wisely) and I would absolutely guarantee taking home shattered but very happy children. Enjoy.

We were lucky to be given free entry and Q-Bot passes. I stick to the Bloggers with Integrity code to post honest and open reviews which are informative, useful and hopefully inspiring.