Are you considering a trip to Legoland Windsor with little kids? We recently visited and had such a fun day, however, there are a few things I wish I had known before booking, and I would do differently next time. In this honest Legoland Windsor review, we will cover all you need to know about visiting with children under 5 and tips to enjoy your day as a family.
For reference, I have two boys, who were aged 4.5 years (1.05 meters tall) and 17 months (under 0.9 meters tall) at the time of this visit.
We’re currently living in London and love to explore as much as possible. On this blog, we’ll share honest reviews and great things to do in London and beyond with little kids.
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Getting to Legoland Windsor
Legoland Windsor is located about an hour’s drive from central London. Parking is available on-site starting from £8 (book online to get the lower price).
If you’re coming to visit London from outside of England, you can easily take a day trip here. If you don’t have a car, you could take the train to Windsor and Eaton Riverside station and then take a 10-minute bus or taxi to the theme park. Or coach trips run there, departing from London Victoria Station. Personally, I think unless you have your own car, the coach would be the easiest option! Coach tickets start from £65 for children and £75 for adults (this also includes park entry).
CLICK HERE TO SEE COACH TRIP OPTIONS.
Tickets for Legoland Windsor
Tickets for Legoland Windsor can be pretty pricey; there are multiple ticket options, and they can be a little confusing. So, let me summarise the best options for you and tell you how you can save.
Note: Children under 90cm are free. They’re free for a reason – there are barely any rides for them. I will talk more about that below!
I mentioned a coach package ticket and transport deal above, but there are other options!
On the door, prices start from £68 each (and even more on weekends and school holidays), and it’s honestly not worth that much. Please avoid paying that by reading the following:
- Book in advance, the Legoland website offers a huge discount if you book an ONLINE SAVER TICKET in advance (even just one day in advance!) Those £68 tickets get slashed down to £29 each, which is a huge saving!
- If you have a child who is aged 4 or under, you can get an ADULT AND PRE-SCHOOLER TICKET for £29. This offer is only available during term time, but it’s a great way to save and perfect if you’re visiting with toddlers or a 3-year-old.
- Consider a LEGOLAND ANNUAL PASS. You can get an adult and toddler pass for £59. This pass belongs to the toddler, so any adult can take it, again, only on off-peak days. Or an ANNUAL PASS for ages 5+ starts from £99 each. If you are able to visit multiple times in a year, this could be a good option.
- Love theme parks? You might like the MERLIN ANNUAL PASS. This includes multiple attractions such as Legoland Windsor, Chessington, The London Eye, Sea Life Centres, Warwick Castle and many more. These are expensive, starting at £99 for an off-peak pass, with further options at £169, £239 and £299. It’s worth considering if you’ll get a lot of use out of them.
- There are often discount codes on cereal boxes and sharing packs of chocolate wrappers. Keep an eye out for those!
- Sometimes Legoland is an option for redeeming Tesco Clubcard points (if you have enough!)
TOP TIP: If you’re booking standard day tickets, use a company such as Get Your Guide as they offer free cancellation. This is really handy when travelling with kids, because you never know! Plus, they match the online saver price!
BOOK LEGOLAND WINDSOR TICKETS HERE.
Is Legoland Windsor Good for Toddlers and Young Kids?
Firstly, in this Legoland Windsor review, I’m going to be very honest. If you have a child who is under 0.9 meters tall, don’t bother with Legoland Windsor. Consider Chessington World of Adventures instead. There are barely any rides for the little ones to go on, I think about 5 in total, and the majority of these were too young to interest my 4-year-old.
On the other hand, my 4-year-old would give a Legoland Windsor review that was absolutely glowing! He really loved it there.
So the answer to “Is Legoland Windsor good for toddlers or young children?” will largely depend on your little ones’ height. If your little one is below 0.9m, I wouldn’t recommend taking them to Logoland Windsor. If your child is tall enough to go on more rides, then they will likely love it! Our 4-year-old had the best time there, but I really felt our almost 2-year-old missed out, as there wasn’t much for him to do.
My husband spent most of the day with our 4-year-old, and I with our 17-month-old. The only ride we all went on together was The Fairytale Brook.
We’ve previously been to Legoland California, when the boys were 4 years old and our baby was just 4 months old. We had the best day, and there were plenty of rides with no height restrictions. I think it is also important to mention that Legoland in America is far bigger and better than in England. The tickets are also much more expensive, but I don’t want any Americans to be disappointed!
Tips for Visiting Legoland Windsor with a Toddler or Under 5
Arrive Early
The park opens at 10 am, but there’s often a queue of traffic to get into the car park. It also takes time to park and walk to the park entrance.
They start letting people in at 9:30, so I would aim to arrive then to make the most of your day and be one of the first in line!
Plan Your Day
Download the Legoland Windsor app, which tells you which rides are close by and the wait times.
We also looked at the list of rides on the website prior to going, so my 4-year-old could pick out his favourites and we could prioritise going on these.
I found the park quite hard to navigate, but I’m not the best map reader. You can see a map of the park here. I wish I had studied this before arriving!
Take the Legoland Express Down to the Park
There is a train (included in the entry ticket) which takes you from near the entrance down to the park, which is what we did.
Coming back to the car park at the end of the day, the line for the train was long, so we decided to walk. It’s quite a long walk and up a steep hill, so I would recommend leaving time to get the train, you’ll all be tired by the end of the day!
Be Prepared for Queues
We visited on a Friday in mid-July, and it was busy. This was before the majority of UK schools had broken up for the summer. The lines for most rides were 30 minutes to an hour. A few of the baby rides had 15-minute queues.
They were incredibly slow at getting people on and off the rides. Of course, this is very frustrating when you’re waiting in a long line. This was a real negative factor, I think important to mention in this Legoland Windsor review. The staff could have been much quicker, they were noticeably slow compared to the staff at Disneyland Paris. See our guide for more on Disneyland Paris!
Our 4-year-old handled the waiting pretty well, but some toddlers were not at all happy! If you’re visiting Legoland Windsor with a toddler, take advantage of being able to visit outside of peak hours. Long lines are tough for impatient toddlers!
Food and Drink Options at Legoland Windsor
There are many food and drink retailers in Legoland, you’ll find pizza, burgers, fish and chips, as well as many snack kiosks.
Alternatively, you can take whatever food and drinks you like into the park. We packed a picnic, which they ate in one of the long queues. It kept them busy and helped maximise the number of rides we got to go on.
In the afternoon, the sun came out and we got ice cream!
For toddlers, be sure to pack plenty of snacks and drinks. If you stay for the full day, it is a long day out and two meals, plus snacks, will probably be needed!
Other Things to Bring for Your Day at Legoland Windsor with Kids
s well as food and many snacks, also pack spare clothes and a towel.
There are a few water rides and also a big splash pad, so be prepared to get wet. There aren’t too many days in England (including the one we visited on) that are warm enough for a splash pad, but it’s best to be prepared!
If you have young kids, you’ll want your pushchair (stroller). Or you can hire them at the park. It’s easy to get around with a pushchair, but you do need to leave them in the buggy parking while you queue for rides. Make sure to bring a small bag or wear something with zip-up pockets to keep valuables safe.
If you forget sun cream, there was a dispenser by the Duplo Land playground, which I thought was cool!
Embrace or Avoid the Gift Shop
My advice would be to either completely avoid the gift shop or to be prepared to buy something. The largest shop is by the entrance/ exit, and it has many Lego options at various price points. There are also a lot of exclusive products that you can only buy while you’re there!
If your child is a LEGO fan, they will find plenty of things they’d like here! They also have Duplo sets (large Lego blocks) aimed at toddlers.
The Best Rides for Toddlers at Legoland Windsor
A Legoland Windsor review wouldn’t be complete without telling you the best rides for kids!
When visiting Legoland Windsor with little kids, I’d recommend planning what rides you want to go on beforehand. There are over 55 rides at Legoland Windsor, but they are not all suitable for little kids. As I mentioned, there are only a few for those under 0.9 meters tall. You can see what rides will suit your child’s/children’s height here.
Our 17-month-olds’ favourite rides at Legoland Windsor (these were really all he could go on!):
- The Duplo Express Train
- Miniland (not really a ride, but cool models of European Cities made from Lego)
- Fairy Tale Brook
- Desert Chase Carousel
Our 4-year-olds’ favourite rides at Legoland Windsor:
- Laser Raiders
- L-Drivers (he would have preferred the older version, but he was just too small)
- Fire Academy
- Merlin’s Challenge
- Dragons Apprentice Coaster
- Flight of the Sky Lion
In conclusion, Legoland can be an amazing day out. Our 4-year-old was absolutely in his element, but I wouldn’t go again until both kids are at least 0.9 meters tall and able to go on more rides.
Thank you for reading our honest Legoland Windsor review. I hope our tips have helped you plan your day, and you have the best time at Legoland Windsor!
We’re currently living in London and love to explore as much as possible. On this blog, we’ll share honest reviews and great things to do with little kids in London and beyond.
CHECK OUT OUR OTHER LONDON POSTS HERE.
Happy Exploring,
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