When Legoland Florida opened in 2011 in Winter Haven, it didn't have a hotel. Now it has two.
The Legoland Hotel opened in 2015, and new for this summer is Legoland Beach Retreat.
Which is the better choice? It depends on what you're willing to spend (Legoland Hotel is more expensive) and how much convenience you're willing to sacrifice (Legoland Beach Retreat is a short drive from the theme park, behind the husk of an abandoned Kmart).
Either location includes a free buffet breakfast; the buffet at Legoland Hotel had more options. Both hotels have pools, but Beach Retreat's pool appeared to be larger, with more oversize Lego bricks floating in the water for children to build with.
Legoland Hotel
A raucous atmosphere courses through the lobby of the Legoland Hotel, especially at 8 p.m. when it's time for the nightly pajama party that winds kids up just before bedtime.
But it's a pretty sweet location for Lego-obsessed kids any time of day thanks to giant pits filled with Legos in several lobby locations. Lego characters also show up from time to time to meet and greet guests.
Hotel guests get the opportunity to sign up for a Master Model Builder Workshop (spots are limited; first come, first served), where a Legoland employee walks students through building a small Lego creation they get to keep (on our visit, everyone built a small Lego race car).
The elevator turns into a party zone, too, with a disco ball, light projections and music that activates as the elevator makes its journey to and from guest room floors.
Each room in the hotel has one of four themes — pirate, kingdom (knights), adventure (Egyptian archaeology) and friends (purple and pink predominate). Each room is decked out in style to match that theme, including Lego creations that decorate the walls.
Our kingdom room had a crown-wearing rat, snail, frog, butterfly and ladybug made out of Lego bricks adorning walls wallpapered to resemble the interior of a stone castle.
Each room also includes a treasure hunt with a small bag of Lego toys at its conclusion inside a safe. Our kids loved the treasure hunt.
Legoland Beach Retreat
A quieter setting on the shore of Lake Dexter — fences are in place to keep alligators out, but alligator warning signs are also present — the Beach Retreat is made up of about a dozen coves, each with four to eight duplex bungalows surrounding a small playground at the cove's center.
The rooms at Beach Retreat seem smaller and cheaper — more wallpapered images of Lego Minifigs, fewer actual Lego creations decorating the walls. And although each bungalow has its own porch with a table and four chairs, there was nowhere inside the room to sit other than the beds.
The playgrounds in each cove are pretty small — so small our kids, 3 and 7, had no real interest in them — and there's little shade to be found from the hot Florida sun. We counted four sun umbrellas total at the pool.
There were also fewer scheduled activities, no character interactions or access to Master Model Builder classes and no in-room treasure hunts.
A shuttle transports Beach Retreat guests to Legoland, but it doesn't run between noon and 3 p.m., which makes driving a necessity for anyone who needs to come back for an early afternoon nap. (Parking at Legoland is free for guests at the hotels.)
On the plus side, there's a large playground near the pool along with sand volleyball and other games. The cul-de-sac concept might make Beach Retreat ideal for a group rental of several bungalows for, say, a family reunion.
And while Beach Retreat is located behind a strip mall, once you're inside it feels like its own world, just one within walking distance of a Publix grocery store.
If you go
Where: Legoland, in Winter Haven, Fla., is about an hour southwest of Orlando International Airport by car. Add another 30 to 60 minutes at rush hour.
Tickets: One-day tickets to Legoland Florida purchased online begin at $73; tickets for the theme park and attached water park start at $93. Two-day tickets start at $113. Parking costs $17 at the gate (free if staying in a Legoland hotel) or $15 in advance online.
Room rates: Generally the Beach Retreat is less expensive. A search for a room for the night of June 23 found a rate of $455 at Legoland Hotel and $285 at Beach Retreat. A room on Sept. 8 was $285 at Legoland Hotel and $175 at Beach Retreat. Room and ticket packages, including the offer of a second day free, are available at legoland.com/florida.
How many days? Legoland can be done in one day — visit the new Ninjago ride first, as it can have a long wait — but if you want to visit the Legoland Water Park, two days is advisable for a more leisurely experience. The cost for the second-day ticket is relatively negligible.
