AIBU to think that Legoland is just a massive sodding rip off.

[IAmADancer]

I had the unfortunate experience of going to Legoland yesterday and I am still angry about how much the whole day cost and feel as I have just been completely ripped off. I may as well have just taken a wad of money into the middle of the park and burnt it.
I know it was half term, although hadn’t realised when we booked the tickets, but from the moment I arrived I felt like we were just being conned out of money.
£12 for park
£120 in q-bots which were a waste of time as we would turn up at our allotted time and then still queue for another 20-25 mins because there were no staff or only part of the ride working.
£8.50 for a stupidly small salad
£16.00 for 3 coffees and a tea
£9 for face painting
The list is endless. How the hell do people afford to go to this place?
Half the rides aren’t working, the queues are over an hour for a ride that lasts 2 minutes. The queue to get an ice cream was 30 minutes and then you are charged an extortionate amount for one scoop. It is dirty and old looking, the rides are crap and the decent ones you have to pay extra for. The toilets are disgusting, the only food available is pizza, pasta and fried crap.

I was so pissed off by the end of the day and just felt completely taken advantage of.

So AIBU or is legoland actually incredible and I went on a bad day?

We had half price vouchers for legoland and took a picnic and still felt horribly ripped off.

It is bad to go at half term. Super busy. I would take our son if he had a teacher training day etc.
We had Merlin passes so not expensive if you use them more than 3 times.
I think you in part made your day more expensive by getting the W bots.
We never did way to expensive.

YANBU. I think the whole of Legoland could do with a jolly good steam clean and a lick of paint. Last time I went was on a friend’s magic passes as she’s staff and I didn’t actually pay, so much the better because I’d have been royally pissed after getting on 3 rides the entire day

YANBU. It is shockingly expensive. I took the DCs last year after collecting vouchers in a newspaper for 2 free tickets. So I only paid for one of my DCs (which I bought in advance) plus parking and it was still £50. I took a picnic to save money but spent another £15 or so on incidentals while there (ice cream for DCs, tea for me). So it cost £65 in all plus petrol. It was very crowded, the queues were really long and everything was a bit grubby. My DCs had a good time but I wouldn’t go again - even with a discount. I would never go full price. Just can’t afford it. I could take us all camping for a week on what it would cost.

I was amazed at how poor the maintenance was. They’re charging a fortune so they should definitely be painting the railings etc regularly.

Don’t get me wrong, I know that going at half term was probably the worst time we could go but I didn’t realise until after we had booked. My twins are 2.5 so just hadn’t taken into account the holidays.

Also, the face painting, I’m just making the point that face painting is £9, and on top of everything else it’s just feels like another pisstake. No you don’t have to pay for face painting but I feel like the whole park is just trying to extort money from you.

I had bought a premium yearly pass for £70 as I get a corporate rate through Tamba. That gave me 20% off of the food etc but even with that I just think they are taking the mick out of families.

I don’t want to have to faff about with a picnic etc, I’m actually happy to write off the ridiculous cost of the food if the days itself is worth it and the kids have a great time but nothing about Legoland is good. It’s incredibly disappointing and is just trading off a name and basically being allowed to get away with murder. How is it ok to charge people for a q-bot but then half the rides don’t work or it’s an extra £7 to go on certain rides or you get to the ride and still have to queue for another 20 minutes when you have paid extra to not have to do that.

Even the staff were arguing amongst themselves at the various kiosks because the queues to get coffee/ice cream/food/drinks were just unbelievable and they didn’t have enough staff.

YANBU it is awful !! Me and DH went for a day out with our DNs and it was vile the food was cold and overpriced with not a healthy option in sight apart from the over priced tolken salad and then the Queues were insanely long even with the Q bots and the whole place was so dirty and run down it looked liked it hasn't been updated or cleaned in years and there was an overpowering urine like smell from the toilets wafting over the whole park to top it all off.

You may enjoy this fine review of Legoland, having wasted a significant amount of money to take ds there last year I can confirm it hasn’t improved much
www.tripadvisor.co.uk/ShowUserReviews-g186419-d207144-r298217582-Legoland_Windsor_Resort-Windsor_Windsor_and_Maidenhead_Berkshire_England.html

I’m tempted to make a formal complaint and send links to all the bad reviews/discussions about Legoland so They can see just what people really think of them.

Although they probably won’t care!

I feel like the whole park is just trying to extort money from you.

Sorry to break this to you, but they are.

That’s is an hilarious review

Thunderbirdthree**

I know they are but they could do it with a bit of finesse so that you don’t feel quite so taken adavantage of. As I said, I can get past the price of things if it’s a good day out but when it’s just dreadful all round then you just leave feeling really really pissed about it all.

I kind of admire their unrelentingly blatant approach to ripping people off, TBH

We've stayed in the hotel a few times. Again, we pretty much had to remortgage but it's so much fun. They have Lego shaped chips which makes the whole experience worthwhile.

We've been to the one in Florida and loved it. It was just after Spring Break finished and not that busy. We were in the park very early and got to go on some rides 3x in a row as it was so quiet. No QBots needed.

The food was your general pizza, pasta, salad buffet, not too expensive.

The jet ski pirate show on the lake was fab.

One time was enough though, we wouldn't t go back.

I know this post isn't helping, but it's just to show I think you had a very bad experience of the park, on a crazy busy weekend day, but it can actually be ok.

We have a Legoland is shite thread every week. Yes it is rubbish hopefully enough people will realise this and it will close down sometime soon.

If your dc are 2.5 then they were free! Can’t get cheaper than that can you? If you have a pass you can go again outside of school hols and not bother with a qbot and it will be much cheaper and quieter and you will have a better time.

Yes. Utter shit.

Felt like burning tenners while hearing the sound of distant corporate laughter. They are pissing themselves watching people pay huge money for a dross and queuing for dross.

It should be illegal to do this to people!

I don’t mind the legoland is shite threads because it has put me off going forever! I feel like I’ve had a lucky escape.

The wasp world review is one of my favourite things.

Oh dear. We've been twice. Had it planned to the smallest detail far in advance. Had a fantastic time, weather was perfect, no wasps, went on the rides so often we got bored of some of them. Managed to get onto all the rides we wanted to. Bought the drinks containers that came with free refills and made the most of those (we shared 2 amongst 4). Still have them! Bought the photo offer thing that gave us lots of images.
Scottish though, we were there before the schools broke up for summer.
We probably won't go again as kids getting too old for it now.
Sorry you had such a crummy time. The only way to make these sort of trips work is planning in advance. Even down to the route to walk and where and when to stop for lunch.
Didn't use the q-bot, did use the app lots. That was a big help.

Oh dear - am meant to be going for the day (only til 3pm aa got long drive afterwards) on a weekday in early July with 9 year old DC who likes the idea of Legoland and has been promised it.
Wondering if I should ditch now??
I keep reading awful reviews (and hilarious wasp ones too ) and worrying. I can’t face Qbot as it’s a shocking ripofff but will bring own food.
Was planning on listing which rides to do and getting in and out of the park ASAP.
Is it worth it?? Or will I be whinging on here in rage in July...?

They need to get the Disney Florida people in to give them a massive kick up the arse and whip them into shape.

magic kingdom is incredibly shabby and needs serious money spending on it.

I don’t mind legoland, although I last went about 3 years ago. We got in for free and used Tesco vouchers and took packed lunch. I wouldn’t go to any themepark if we had to pay

We did Lego Land in the summer holidays a couple of years ago.

It was expensive and the queues a bit much at times, especially for the one ride. But the kids loved it and for a one off it was a good day.

We used the app a lot, which gave queue times, and went to what was quietest at that time. We did about 12 rides, a couple of them more than once. There was nothing the kids did not get to do that they really wanted to.

Plus the time we had in the water part, an hour or so in mini land, then a good 40 minutes in the play park area.

Have to say though, the ppl with the q-bots were very annoying.

And mid ride of the swinging pirate boat is not a good time to discover your 8 year old is terrified of it.

It was an expensive day, and we would not do it again, mainly as it was a pain to get to and I think they are too old for it now.

But all in it was a good day.

We have been to Drayton Manor a few times, as we live close, and they enjoy it, but they are 9 and 10 now, and they are too old for Thomas Land, but then some of the bigger rides they want to do they are too short for. So there is really not a lot of choice for them. Brilliant for little kids, decent for teenagers, but for my 2, not so much. Will not do it this summer.

That review is pure gold 😂😂

IAmADancer please do contact the actual Lego Group to tell them. Merlin run Legoland not The Lego Group (TLG). Unfortunately Legoland being apparently so dreadful could give TLG a bad name when the actual toy they produce is amazing!!!
Legoland should be renamed Blockoland (TVs The Simpsons joke there)!

Blockoland.....