There are plenty of reasons to visit San Diego, California. Aside from beautiful beaches, visitors to the Golden State’s southernmost metropolitan area can watch professional baseball and football, see killer whales and other marine life at Sea World, and dine on authentic Mexican cuisine.
And of course, there’s also Legoland California, North America’s first theme park dedicated to the Danish blocks that have captivated generations of kids. Since its opening in 1999, Legoland California has gone through numerous renovations, and as of April even has its own Legoland Hotel, one of only three in the world.
Needless to say, we booked our reservation as soon as possible.
The Lego experience started even before we entered the hotel itself. Aside from jumbo-sized versions of the standard Lego people, realistic, life-sized statues of vacationing families made of the blocks stand about the parking lot. Perched in a tower is a gigantic green dragon, peering down at guests as they pass underneath on their way to the building’s main entrance.
We headed inside to check in, and our eyes were greeted first by Legos, then by more Legos, and finally even more Legos! Even the flowers decorating the reception desk are made of the things. The lobby gift shop came as no surprise, but the awesome free play area, complete with pirate ship, castle, menacing ogre, and pit full of building blocks was definitely an unexpected bit of hospitality.
The Legoland Hotel also has a spacious outdoor pool. After dipping in a toe to confirm that it was, in fact, filled with water and not pastel-blue blocks, we hopped in. With summer not yet in full swing it was still a little too cold for us to spend more than a few minutes in the water, but the temperature didn’t seem to be any sort of issue for the kids splashing around. And should you or any of you little ones forget to bring a towel from the room, the attentive staff places a stack of them poolside for any guests to use.
By this time our stomachs were growling, so we headed to the hotel’s buffet. Kid favorites such as pizza and pasta with meatballs are available, as well as a sampling of Chinese-style dishes. For the health-conscious, there’s a salad bar and selection of fruit, with cantaloupe and honeydew melon cut into, appropriately, blocks. Kids are encouraged to draw or color on the large paper tablecloths, which we think is a perfect way to keep the creative kind of tikes who love Legos entertained during mealtimes.
Finally, we arrived at our room. Nothing is too good for our reporters here at RocketNews24, so we splurged on a suite, and it did not disappoint. Our medieval-styled room came with three beds, including a bunk bed with an additional pull-out section, and, of course, a slew of creatures fashioned out of Legos. While that’s more than enough to satisfy the kids, adults will also appreciate that the hotel doesn’t skimp on toiletries and provides guests with shampoo and soap from respected manufacturer Bath & Bodyworks (although oddly enough toothbrushes aren’t provided, so be sure to bring your own).
With American schools just about to start their long summer vacations, rates at the Legoland hotel will be rising, at the same time as your chances of booking a room on short notice drop. Even still, we can’t recommend a night at the place enough, even if it means having to plan a few months in advance. If nothing else, it’ll give you time to think up some plans for all the cool stuff you can build once you get there.
Photos: RocketNews24