We were going to Florida for a combination vacation and work trip. I didn’t want to go to DisneyWorld for just a day or two because it always feels so rushed and not everyone gets to see what they want with that limited time – not to mention that it costs more for a shorter amount of days.
We chose Legoland for our one-day funday. Since it had recently opened in Florida, we thought we’d see what the Florida version had to offer. We had been to the California Legoland a few years ago. 
Of course, I’m always searching for the best deals so I read online that the Lego magazine had a free kid’s ticket with a paid adult. Luckily, we still had one laying around so I was able to get both kids’ tickets for free.
We chose Christmas day for our trip. We flew to Florida on Christmas Eve, stayed at the Embassy Suites in Lake Buena Vista, and drove to Legoland for the day. When we woke up at the hotel, Santa had left two Lego bags with cash in each for our day. At the park, parking is $12 ($11 something plus tax, magically totaling $12) and the lot was fairly empty when we arrived.
Legoland had some nice holiday touches – a large Christmas tree (made of Legos, of course), santas hidden throughout miniland and some other sites throughout the park. 
The weather was overcast but not cold, making it a perfect day to walk around a theme park. The waterpark was closed because of the off-season but everything else was up and running.
I really like this park for the kids, who are 10 and 8. The rides are just their size and they especially love the driving school (unlike most theme parks where cars are on a track, these cars are on “roads” with stop signs and stoplights and the kids learn to navigate them.
The only problems we ran into, which were minor, were with food. Cap’n Brickbeard was listed on the printed map as “All American food” but when we walked over there, the sign said “Cap’n Brickbeard’s Burgers.” I know burgers are American but I was expecting more than only that, so we headed over to the all-you-can-eat pizza and pasta buffet. My son burned his finger on one of the pizza pans and the workers there would not give us any ice. They said we had to go to the first aid station and that they would get in trouble if they tried to help us. So I ended up using a bunch of napkins to put ice in for his finger.
We also walked around Cypress Gardens, a former park that Legoland preserved, and found the giant Banyan tree. The kids also liked finding the Travelocity gnomes that were placed around there, too.
Other than the incidents, the food was typical and filled us up for more explorations. My son was thrilled with the Star Wars miniland and was doing his best to find all of the santas (we ended up being a few short). My daughter was excited with the new Lego Friends store and seeing one of the characters outside.
All in all, it was a great Christmas day and we’d definitely visit again.
Note: No compensation was received for this post. We traveled and attended on our own.
Tonja's Travels 