Travel
Visiting the Legoland New York Resort By Donna Duarte-LaDD
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irst, let’s start with a disclaimer, I know my amusement parks. Growing up in California, I visited many and often. But as a mom living on the East Coast, amusement parks never seemed as big a deal as California’s ones. Am I an amusement park snob? Perhaps. But when LEGOLAND New York Resort announced they were opening here in New York, well, this changed the game. It is a big deal, especially for people like me, where visiting amusement parks was part of their childhood fabric. And now that we adults and one 12 year old are vaccinated, we headed to LEGOLAND! Legoland New Resort Most parents will admit that taking their kids to an amusement park is a love-hate thing. You want your kids to have this fun experience, but they go wild, which can be stressful. I also have to consider my Autistic son;
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two summers ago, we went to a particular park (think mouse ears), and it didn’t go well. So I was concerned about this Legoland visit. Some parents with ASD children will share, doing anything with your ASD kid can be challenging. But when a park is bright, and its foundation is based on building bricks and is entirely okay with children running around, the stress you carry in these visits can be minimal, and it’s easy to enjoy the experience. The Legoland Experinece While I have been to the Legoland Park in San Diego, I found this park more manageable, and the view of the surrounding town of Goshen is breathtaking; really, bring the camera. There are seven’ lands.’ You can zig-zag and visit the rides you wish or start from the park’s entry and work your way -looping your way through the park. • Brick Street • Bricktopia • LEGO NINJAGO World
NewYorkFamily.com | November/December 2021
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LEGO Castle LEGO City LEGO Pirates Miniland Our favorite rides were Lego Factory Adventure Ride, everything in Ninjago, and Splash Battle (prepare to get wet) like the one in California. My youngest was more into The Wharf, which is a fun sensory playgroundtype ship. Mini-Land at Legoland Of course, LEGOLAND is about legos, many of them, and Mini Land does not disappoint. The ‘land’ features ten destinations from around the world of 22,231,368-ish Lego Bricks. Super impressive, but once you get to the New York land, it is awe-inspiring with the detail and love put into the most iconic spots of all five boroughs of New York City, such as the Statue of Liberty and One World Trade Center. I honestly do not want to give it all away because it is pretty special to see the artistry of these masterpieces IRL.