Overview:
Spend your day at the waterpark THEN around 4pm, head into Legoland- all the ride are empty!
If you want to keep reading...here is all my advice:
I have a 37 inch 2 year old (he will be 3 in 1 month)- this was our 2nd trip to Legoland. My 1st review when he was 2- "take your toddler to the waterpark instead", and I still think that is true for 2 year olds. Now that my son is 3, we have entered the world of 34 and 36 inch rides..WAY more than last year!
Here are my tidbits:
-Get there at 10 am, head straight for waterpark. Find an umbrella and chairs, park it there all day. Lock up valubles, prepare to leave your stuff there while your 3 year old plays in the water. There are a couple great slides and play areas for your pre-schooler (PS).
-nap at the waterpark. this is where you parents get to go on the big rides (alone of course)
-around 4pm, head out to Legoland. Everyone leaves from 4-5pm. This means all the rides open up. We were able to get on 6+ rides, eat, and take a bunch of potty breaks from 4pm-7pm
FOOD:
-The Wok/Stirfry place in Duplo land is really good
-The pizza place (Mainland Pizza) offers a large pizza, 4 drinks and 2 salads for $33. GREAT deal for a family of 4
-Kids eat FREE after 5pm with purchase of adult entree at many of the restaurants.
-Tidbit: Bring your own FOOD! They don't check and don't seem to care. We grab a BJ's pizza after Legoland Day 1 (blocks away on Paseo del Norte, call when you are leaving and order to-go), and take the leftovers on day 2 of Legoland. Cold Pizza, yummy!
-bring your own drinks! A must if you are on a budget :)
-Tidbit- always travel with a BRITA sports bottle (Target/walmart). You just fill it up and the Brita filter is inside the lid. Turns yucky water into clean/good tasting water. BEST $8 I have ever spent. We just fill those up 5+ times throughout the day, saving major money on drinks!
-There is an ice cream & soda place right next to the Fire Station ride. It's attached to a LEGO store and next to the WaterPark entrance. BEST soft serve Ice Cream and you can get a soda for $8 - refillable for .99! If you are a soda drinker- this is a MUST!
Rides
-My PS is 37 inches... so any ride that said 36+...we did! He loved them! He even loved the simple slide in Adventure Land (the land that reminds me of Indiana Jones).
-Tidbit: if you have a tot LESS than 36 inches...stick to the waterpark only. Only a couple rides he/she can ride. Legoland by itself is NOT worth it, but if you have the hopper, then yes...waterpark is amazing!
-My favorite ride- Beetle Bounce (up down, up down) My PS favorite- the flying helicopters
-Tidbit: if the line for the SkyCruiser is more than 30 minutes- DONT DO IT! NOT WORTH IT!
-in fact- any ride that long...just head to the waterpark, come back AFTER 5pm! waiting in line with a 3 year old...sucks!
Stroller?:
YES, a must. LOTS of stroller parking! Easy to manueauver everywhere within the park. The place is built for our wheeled contraptions! Prepare to leave the stroller many times, go get on a ride, come back...repeat. Everyone does it.. everyone just trusts each other. (I do take my purse/backpack with me with all valuables, you want to steal the baby bag with pull-ups and his potty seat, go right ahead)
Tidbits for the Potty Trained Tot:
We just PT our tot 4 weeks ago. We were for-sure planning on accidents! But nope, not one! Lots of family bathrooms where we ALL entered and went potty. Some even had a small toilet and sink for our Tot. The reg bathrooms have the larger stalls (Handicap), so I would wheel him in and we both used the potty. Restrooms are in GREAT locations, just be sure to stop every hour and go potty. The Water Park has potty breaks every other hour, this is where everyone has to EXIT the pools and use the facilities. Yup--they clear the pools to encourage the kids to go potty!
Tidbit: hand sanitizer.... bring in bulk
Spend your day at the waterpark THEN around 4pm, head into Legoland- all the ride are empty!
If you want to keep reading...here is all my advice:
I have a 37 inch 2 year old (he will be 3 in 1 month)- this was our 2nd trip to Legoland. My 1st review when he was 2- "take your toddler to the waterpark instead", and I still think that is true for 2 year olds. Now that my son is 3, we have entered the world of 34 and 36 inch rides..WAY more than last year!
Here are my tidbits:
-Get there at 10 am, head straight for waterpark. Find an umbrella and chairs, park it there all day. Lock up valubles, prepare to leave your stuff there while your 3 year old plays in the water. There are a couple great slides and play areas for your pre-schooler (PS).
-nap at the waterpark. this is where you parents get to go on the big rides (alone of course)
-around 4pm, head out to Legoland. Everyone leaves from 4-5pm. This means all the rides open up. We were able to get on 6+ rides, eat, and take a bunch of potty breaks from 4pm-7pm
FOOD:
-The Wok/Stirfry place in Duplo land is really good
-The pizza place (Mainland Pizza) offers a large pizza, 4 drinks and 2 salads for $33. GREAT deal for a family of 4
-Kids eat FREE after 5pm with purchase of adult entree at many of the restaurants.
-Tidbit: Bring your own FOOD! They don't check and don't seem to care. We grab a BJ's pizza after Legoland Day 1 (blocks away on Paseo del Norte, call when you are leaving and order to-go), and take the leftovers on day 2 of Legoland. Cold Pizza, yummy!
-bring your own drinks! A must if you are on a budget :)
-Tidbit- always travel with a BRITA sports bottle (Target/walmart). You just fill it up and the Brita filter is inside the lid. Turns yucky water into clean/good tasting water. BEST $8 I have ever spent. We just fill those up 5+ times throughout the day, saving major money on drinks!
-There is an ice cream & soda place right next to the Fire Station ride. It's attached to a LEGO store and next to the WaterPark entrance. BEST soft serve Ice Cream and you can get a soda for $8 - refillable for .99! If you are a soda drinker- this is a MUST!
Rides
-My PS is 37 inches... so any ride that said 36+...we did! He loved them! He even loved the simple slide in Adventure Land (the land that reminds me of Indiana Jones).
-Tidbit: if you have a tot LESS than 36 inches...stick to the waterpark only. Only a couple rides he/she can ride. Legoland by itself is NOT worth it, but if you have the hopper, then yes...waterpark is amazing!
-My favorite ride- Beetle Bounce (up down, up down) My PS favorite- the flying helicopters
-Tidbit: if the line for the SkyCruiser is more than 30 minutes- DONT DO IT! NOT WORTH IT!
-in fact- any ride that long...just head to the waterpark, come back AFTER 5pm! waiting in line with a 3 year old...sucks!
Stroller?:
YES, a must. LOTS of stroller parking! Easy to manueauver everywhere within the park. The place is built for our wheeled contraptions! Prepare to leave the stroller many times, go get on a ride, come back...repeat. Everyone does it.. everyone just trusts each other. (I do take my purse/backpack with me with all valuables, you want to steal the baby bag with pull-ups and his potty seat, go right ahead)
Tidbits for the Potty Trained Tot:
We just PT our tot 4 weeks ago. We were for-sure planning on accidents! But nope, not one! Lots of family bathrooms where we ALL entered and went potty. Some even had a small toilet and sink for our Tot. The reg bathrooms have the larger stalls (Handicap), so I would wheel him in and we both used the potty. Restrooms are in GREAT locations, just be sure to stop every hour and go potty. The Water Park has potty breaks every other hour, this is where everyone has to EXIT the pools and use the facilities. Yup--they clear the pools to encourage the kids to go potty!
Tidbit: hand sanitizer.... bring in bulk
https://www.tripadvisor.com/ShowUserReviews-g32171-d103404-r166998055-LEGOLAND_California-Carlsbad_California.html#
As always I explain our my family spends 25K a year on vacations while still have a $630 a month daycare bill.
1) Working REWARDS!
a) Disney Chase Credit card. 2% back. Use if for EVERYTHING except 3 things. We have one of us cruise for free on Disney every other year. AND Disney Vacations are 6 months 0 % interest.
b) Costco Citi card! We make over $1500 a year back from 2 cards and the Executive Membership. That cash (sent as checks you cash at Costco registers) is used to pay for our entire Carnival Cruise this spring break!
c) Alaskan Airlines Credit Card- companion fares, free baggage, miles.
d) EBATES! In 8 days I have made $63 in cash and $30 is pending travel. You start at the EBATES website and simply shop like normal online. The referral link within Ebates makes you money.
ex: Amazon says "hey EBATES send me people to shop" Ebates loads up the % back and posts it. You start on Ebates and click the Amazon link, it sends you to Amazon KNOWING you will earn cash back. You shop on Amazon like normal (be sure to stay in that referral link) and BAM % back in your EBATE account the next day. It is THAT easy!
Cash is sent to your Paypal account (or paper check) every quarter. This alone pays for our spending money for our Thanksgiving Cancun Trip. Here is my snip-it proving what I have earned and (promise, legit)! And the link to sign up.
Below in the photo #1) All money made on Ebates to date (8 days people)! #2) My last PayPal deposit. #3) how I earned cash back on shopping.
LINK to sign up: https://www.ebates.com/r/OOGIEN3?eeid=28187
2) We do not have car payments. Hubby drives a 2003 Accord, me a 2010 Swag Van we paid off in 2 years (hence, didn't travel much those years).
3) Our mortgage is lower. We are both full time educators and could have afforded over 2K a month on a mortgage, instead we opted for a cheaper home for a cheaper mortgage.
4) Shop travel deals online during good sales. Our entire April spring break Carnival cruise is $1400 for all of us. Our Alaskan Cruise we got the alcohol package for FREE when we upgraded to a Balcony (which I had always wanted). In Mexico always Kids Stay FREE deals.
5) YNAB! You Need a Budget is an online cloud budget tool. It is budgeting on steroids! You have to account for EVERY penny! I have been using YNAB for 5 years and I am able to FULLY fund my vacations thru budgeting each month. I set aside 2k a month for travel, this tool allows me to budget monthly and set goals. It tells me what we spend the most money on (ahem, food and shopping) and allows us to have discussions about habits we NEED to change to reach our goals. They have amazing training videos, and a FREE 30 day trial. Try it, no obligation (it is better than MINT which I used for 2 years and EveryDollar). Try it here: https://ynab.com/referral/?ref=G6Kp8nTV4XKAQNSX&utm_source=customer_referral
Travel on Everyone!
Comments
Post a Comment