We always go to Legoland once or twice a year. My 4 year old son is completely obsessed with LEGOS. Over the years, we have become more frugal about saving on our Legoland trips. Now with a baby, we spend a lot of money on diapers, baby formula and other necessities. So here are my recommendations when planning to go to Legoland.

1. Sleep offsite.

We love the Resident Inn at Carlsbad or at Oceanside. The one in Carlsbad is 5 minutes away from the park and the Oceanside location is about 15 minutes away.

The hotels offer free breakfast and the rooms have a full kitchen. You can also get suites with 2 bedrooms for a reasonable price. You can also take a yogurt and fruit for the road.

2. Buy your tickets online.

If you are a AAA member you can also buy your tickets ahead of time at several AAA locations. Also, you can also buy tickets at the gate and just mention that you are a AAA card holder so they can apply savings. They won’t even look at your AAA card.

3. Get there early.

Legoland opens at 10am but arrive at 9am or by 9.30am at the gate. You can go to the store and start shopping and some of the rides start opening at 9.30am. Click the link for days and hours of operation.

https://www.legoland.com/california/legoland-california/days-and-hours-of-operation/

4. Pack your own lunch if you can.

I usually go to the hotel the night before and go grocery shopping or take my own groceries on a little cooler. You can prep your lunches or buy prep salads or sandwiches at a grocery store. Pack some snacks and water bottles. The park has also healthy choices of their different restaurants.

5. Use the package pickup service.

You don’t need to carry your items all day. You can buy at the park and they will have your packages ready for pick up at the park exit.

6. Use the reserve ‘N’ Ride

We use this new system and we were able to enjoy the top rides without making a line. We purchased the Express Reserve N’ Ride for $25/person with a $100 deposit for the device. The program lets you make one ride reservation at a time and will tell you when to go to the ride avoiding the lines. You will see a Reserve-N-Ride entrance at the rides. It was worth every penny because we were able to do all the rides we wanted and avoided all the lines. You can buy it online or at the park. It lets you reduce your time by 25%. I honestly think this was amazing. They also offer the Deluxe and Ultimate Reserve N’ Ride for $55 and $100 per person respectively but I think the Express was enough since you can reserve your ride checkout other things and the reserve ride was available within 30 minutes.

7. Minifigure trading.

Have your little ones bring a minifigure for trading. Look for the MC’s wearing a Minifigure on their brick badge.

8. Download their mobile app.

You can find information for daily entertainment, park hours and directions, ride wait times interactive maps, dining, offers, and more.

9. Get the photobook Souvenir Package.

You can create a Photobook and have unlimited photo downloads.

10. Pack your swimming suits for the warmer weather.

We love going to the water park during summer. It’s fun and your kids will have an amazing time there. Bring a towel.