This week, during spring break, we took the kids to Legoland Florida, located in Winter Haven. I didn't know what to expect, other than I'd see a lot of Lego's, but I was impressed. Actually, my whole family loved the place! I have two children, ages 5.5 and 7.5, and they loved Legoland!

Thereis so much to do there that we didn't even get to cover it all. The kids didn't even go on probably half of the rides, simply because we ran out of time. We went on many rides (e.g., roller coasters, water rides, boat rides, the kids got to drive little cars, etc.), ate lunch at one of their restaurants, walked through Cypress Gardens, and watched shows. There is a lot to do for both younger and older kids. Adults can also go on most of the rides with the kids, so we went on roller coasters, water rides, themed rides, boat rides, car rides, and more. 

There were several different 4D movies playing throughout the day, a water ski pirate show, and others. The shows were all good and what I really loved about it is that they are short. So they hold the kid's attentions and they don't chew up a lot of your time. They run from about 12 to 20 minutes each. There are Lego displays all over that they kids absolutely loved. They also have the coolest area that is filled with cities all made out of Legos, including Las Vegas, New York City, San Francisco, Tallahassee, Washington D.C., and others. They even have the Daytona racing track all done in Lego's! That area of the Legoland theme park consists of over 20 million Legos!

The Cypress Garden area within Legoland is beautiful! We loved walking through there and seeing the well maintained grounds. And the massive banyan tree in the middle of it is breathtaking! This is great spot to take a rest, have a snack, snap some pictures, or even have a picnic.

My recommendations are to arrive when it opens, so you can get as much time in as possible. There is a lot to do, so get a map and plan your activities, being sure to take in some of the shows. As you watch the shows it is a great time to eat a few small snacks to keep the kids energized. If you can, pack a picnic lunch in a backpack and eat it for lunch. Also, pack a few small healthy snacks (trail mix, cereal bars, etc.) and a couple of drinks. This will save you money, as well as time (we waited probably 20 minutes or so in line to get food). 

Overall, we all had a great time at Legoland and wished we could have spent more time there. It's a nice place, with plenty to do, and fun to be had by all. If you have a Lego fan in the family, you will want to check this place out. My son is a big Lego fan and he was thrilled the entire day to be there. It was a great experience for our family! It must have been a good time of the year to go, because the weather cooperated (we had a few sprinkles here and there, but nothing major) and lines were not bad for the rides. The most we waited in line for a ride was maybe 10 minutes or so. Most rides we were on within a minute or two, as they had no real wait at all.

We promised our kids all day that we'd buy them something from one of the Legoland stores at the end. We saved the store shopping at Legoland for the end of the day, so that more fun could be had doing other things. The parked closed at 6:30, so at 6:10 we made our way to the front store. It was so crowded! Everyone had the same idea. We gave them each $20 to spend, and they eached picked out Lego sets (my son picked a Ninja one, my daughter picked a Friend's pet show one). I would still recommend saving the shopping for the end of the day. That way you don't have to carry the items around Legoland with you all day, and you have more time to do other things before they close (it seemed like most rides closed around 6:00 p.m.).

Below are a variety of pictures from our Legoland Florida visit.

(the front enterance to Legoland Florida)

(Just one of many cool city scenes built out of legos at Legoland Florida)

(The kids LOVED this...they are really driving around and have traffic signs and all! Very cool! They  have two versions of this.... one for kids 3-5 and one for kids 6-13).

(A ride that gives you a bird's eye view of the grounds at Legoland Florida).

(Part of Cypress Gardens at Legoland Florida - beautiful!)

(This is a Ford Explorer that is made out of all Lego's. Very cool! You can watch the video of it being built here.)

(Kids can take parents on a boat ride - They loved it!)

(A jet ski-type of ride at Legoland Florida...dad loved it, too!)