Whenever I go to a park, one of the things I look forward to most afterwards is writing up my trip report. Here we go again!
I am now a Merlin passholder, with it being a birthday present from my parents. I've already used it to go to Thorpe Park's opening day and on April 13th, I used it for the second time to escape from the monotony and loneliness of life as a Londoner searching for a permanent job (it's not easy!) and return somewhere I hadn't been for 19 years: Legoland Windsor. My last visit was (I think) in the summer months of 2007. I'd never felt a big need to get back as I'd been several times and I'd outgrown the level of rides there. I'd also had a couple of bad days at Legoland, and those maybe cast a bit of a shadow over the place for me. Anyway, now that I've got the pass, it felt like the right time to return.
I believe it is still the Easter holidays and it was busy, but not hellishly so. I got on everything I was really keen to do aside from the Pharoah shooting dark ride, which I can do whenever they build their next coaster where the Viking Rapids used to be (I never got to do those unfortunately). I'll go through the rides I went on in chronological order. As always with my trip reports, I'll do ratings out of 5 for the simpler attractions and ratings out of 10 for the bigger and/or more complex ones.
DUPLO Dino Coaster - Ever since the departure of Jungle Coaster in 2009 (which must've been a real headache for the park, given that it was the biggest coaster there yet it only lasted 5 years), Legoland Windsor had had a glaring gap in its coaster line-up. Much like Thorpe Park and Chessington, a decade passed between coasters. However, Thorpe Park got a record-breaking all-timer, Chessington got its most unusual and extreme coaster to date, Legoland got... this insultingly basic kiddie coaster. On the surface, it looks like a good fit for the park but is it really? The capacity is awful and once you get on it, it's more certainly not worth waiting more than 10 minutes at the very most. Also, that noisy rotating 'whatever' in the middle really irked me. Put it this way: get this one as soon as you get in. I can imagine it being the most annoying of creds to get otherwise if you actually have to blow an hour of your day for this nothing-burger. Really, they needed to do better than this. 2/5
Minifigure Speedway - The biggest rollercoaster since Jungle Coaster, this is a duelling Zierer Family Boomerang coaster themed to a Lego race. Well, I say themed, but aside from a massive Lego figure next to the ride there's little in the way of theming compared to most other rides here. I'm not convinced that a shuttle coaster was the right move for a park that gets so rammed, but it is a very fun family coaster with a nice whoosh here and there. Having said this, it's not a personal favourite of mine, as going backwards makes me feel dizzy even on a milder layout such as this. 7/10
Fairy Tale Brook - Fairy Tale Brook... if you don't like this, you're a pretty cynical sort. I love this outdoor boat ride. The Lego models are so charming, it's great to work out all the different references and the closer you look, the more details you see. For example, one of the Prince Charming models seemed to have a smartphone, a witty anachronistic gag. Capacity wasn't great and the boats piled up at the end of the course, but this wasn't too much of an issue really. A great attraction - long may it reign. 8.5/10
Haunted Mansion Monster Party - My second Vekoma Mad-House after Hex at Alton Towers, this one is another thoroughly successful installation that proves what a winning model this is. This one's ride cycle was a bit short, yet the ear-worm of a soundtrack, disorientating rotations and delightful visuals made this a spooky and wholesome good time. Nice pre-show too. 7.5/10
Deep Sea Adventure - I thought this was really rather wonderful. The queue was a little show, but I just loved going underwater and seeing the real fish mixed with Lego props. Though a little short, I found it to be a wondrous excursion into the water. 8/10
Flight of the Sky Lion - This was the longest wait of the day, which I was prepared for. Another enthusiast had informed me that it's always an hour-long wait for this one, as is common with any flying theatre. Once I finally got onto it, I found it to be a really lovely experience with a smashing pre-show and beautiful animation. The one thing I will say is that I was glad it didn't last for much longer, as I did feel a slight hint of motion-sickness. Nevertheless, I did get truly immersed and I found myself extending my arms and legs, feeling almost surprised when they didn't touch anything. An excellent ride - just accept that it'll probably be the longest wait of your day. 8/10
Lego Ninjago: The Ride - This is a unique shooting ride, where you use hand motions instead of guns. It took me a few scenes to get a hold of how to play it properly and at first, I wasn't sure about it. However, the more I adapted, the more I liked it and the more I was able to appreciate the fantastic visuals on the screens, as well as the fun interaction and storytelling. It'll tire your arm out, but it's worth it and then some! Another smashing dark ride which reaffirms that Legoland might low-key be the best park for Dark Rides in the UK. 8/10
Dragon's Apprentice - Back to where it all began - this was my first ever rollercoaster back in 2003. Today, it remains the ideal family coaster. Excellent presentation, a simple yet gently exciting layout, a strong sense of speed, an adorable ride train - no complaints at all here. For what it is, it ticks every box. 4/5
Dragon - My second rollercoaster, and this was one that I found terrifying as a 5-year-old. When I went on it again years later, it all seemed rather tamer than I'd remembered! Now, I regard this as a really frustrating ride. So, every Legoland park has a Dragon, or at least most of them do. Most of the other installations have good-looking layouts with turns and drops, this one is just weird. It's so short and broken up by a pointless mis-course brake-run. There's barely anything to this ride, which is a damn-shame as people will often be waiting so long for it. And do you know what the most frustrating thing of all is? When this ride is actually moving... it's deceptively good. I got a bit of airtime on one of the drops, and the laterals are sneakily powerful. There is a better ride lurking in here, but the one we got is a confused mess that doesn't feel like a fully-fledged rollercoaster at all. I actually think the Dragon's Apprentice is superior in a lot of ways - probably a hot take, but there it is. 6/10
Pirate Falls: Treasure Hint - I assumed this would be the best ride of the day, which is why I saved it for last. Sure enough, I was right. Now that Loggers Leap is gone, this is quite possibly the greatest Log Flume in the UK. I mean, what else can compare? Fantastic theming and models, plenty of sneaky water effects, a delightfully wholesome vibe and best of all, a punchy drop that delivers on the airtime. This is by far and away the greatest ride at Legoland Windsor Resort. I just want to give a head's up: if you're visiting on your own, they don't let single riders have a boat to themselves so you'll have to share. Maybe make friends with a duo in the queue - after all, you do not want to miss this little gem. 8.5/10
Of course, this is the only park I've ever been to where the best thing isn't a ride at all - it's a walk-through. Namely, Miniland, which is just beautiful. That gets a 10/10 from me!
Overall thoughts on the park
The Pros? Aside from perhaps the area around Minifigure Speedway, it's a beautifully-themed park. Not Europa Park-level perhaps, but it looks lovely and most of the rides are seriously well-themed, including the basic flat rides. This might just be the park with the best theming in the UK, at least until 2031. The only equivalent I could think of is Paulton's Park. Furthermore, the ride line-up is stronger than I'd assumed. It's got two fantastic water rides, it's got several well-themed flat rides and it's got a stellar collection of dark rides, so this is a mostly well-balanced line-up in terms of the types of ride it offers. Also, we can't forget Miniland!
The Cons? The usual stuff for Merlin. I can forgive the slow operations more as it's a bit different with such a young demographic, what I don't like is the overpriced and poor-quality catering. As Paulton's Park shows, theme park food doesn't have to suck! Also, I saw quite a bit of queue-jumping here. In terms of the line-up, I feel this place has really drawn the short straw in terms of its coasters. Fine, you don't go to Legoland for the rollercoasters, but I still think they could've done a lot better here. Their Dragon, unlike most layouts around the world, is wildly uneven and although Minifigure Speedway is good, I don't think it was the right fit for this park. I'm aware that a new rollercoaster is on the way and that's exactly what they should be doing next - here's hoping that will be the one standout family coaster this park has needed for so many years, ever since Jungle Coaster's departure.
Overall, I had a really good day here, which I was not expecting. It's got its issues but it is a very good theme park for what it is, and with a few fixes - namely, better food options and a standout rollercoaster - it could match Paulton's Park one day.
Thanks for reading!
I am now a Merlin passholder, with it being a birthday present from my parents. I've already used it to go to Thorpe Park's opening day and on April 13th, I used it for the second time to escape from the monotony and loneliness of life as a Londoner searching for a permanent job (it's not easy!) and return somewhere I hadn't been for 19 years: Legoland Windsor. My last visit was (I think) in the summer months of 2007. I'd never felt a big need to get back as I'd been several times and I'd outgrown the level of rides there. I'd also had a couple of bad days at Legoland, and those maybe cast a bit of a shadow over the place for me. Anyway, now that I've got the pass, it felt like the right time to return.
I believe it is still the Easter holidays and it was busy, but not hellishly so. I got on everything I was really keen to do aside from the Pharoah shooting dark ride, which I can do whenever they build their next coaster where the Viking Rapids used to be (I never got to do those unfortunately). I'll go through the rides I went on in chronological order. As always with my trip reports, I'll do ratings out of 5 for the simpler attractions and ratings out of 10 for the bigger and/or more complex ones.
DUPLO Dino Coaster - Ever since the departure of Jungle Coaster in 2009 (which must've been a real headache for the park, given that it was the biggest coaster there yet it only lasted 5 years), Legoland Windsor had had a glaring gap in its coaster line-up. Much like Thorpe Park and Chessington, a decade passed between coasters. However, Thorpe Park got a record-breaking all-timer, Chessington got its most unusual and extreme coaster to date, Legoland got... this insultingly basic kiddie coaster. On the surface, it looks like a good fit for the park but is it really? The capacity is awful and once you get on it, it's more certainly not worth waiting more than 10 minutes at the very most. Also, that noisy rotating 'whatever' in the middle really irked me. Put it this way: get this one as soon as you get in. I can imagine it being the most annoying of creds to get otherwise if you actually have to blow an hour of your day for this nothing-burger. Really, they needed to do better than this. 2/5
Minifigure Speedway - The biggest rollercoaster since Jungle Coaster, this is a duelling Zierer Family Boomerang coaster themed to a Lego race. Well, I say themed, but aside from a massive Lego figure next to the ride there's little in the way of theming compared to most other rides here. I'm not convinced that a shuttle coaster was the right move for a park that gets so rammed, but it is a very fun family coaster with a nice whoosh here and there. Having said this, it's not a personal favourite of mine, as going backwards makes me feel dizzy even on a milder layout such as this. 7/10
Fairy Tale Brook - Fairy Tale Brook... if you don't like this, you're a pretty cynical sort. I love this outdoor boat ride. The Lego models are so charming, it's great to work out all the different references and the closer you look, the more details you see. For example, one of the Prince Charming models seemed to have a smartphone, a witty anachronistic gag. Capacity wasn't great and the boats piled up at the end of the course, but this wasn't too much of an issue really. A great attraction - long may it reign. 8.5/10
Haunted Mansion Monster Party - My second Vekoma Mad-House after Hex at Alton Towers, this one is another thoroughly successful installation that proves what a winning model this is. This one's ride cycle was a bit short, yet the ear-worm of a soundtrack, disorientating rotations and delightful visuals made this a spooky and wholesome good time. Nice pre-show too. 7.5/10
Deep Sea Adventure - I thought this was really rather wonderful. The queue was a little show, but I just loved going underwater and seeing the real fish mixed with Lego props. Though a little short, I found it to be a wondrous excursion into the water. 8/10
Flight of the Sky Lion - This was the longest wait of the day, which I was prepared for. Another enthusiast had informed me that it's always an hour-long wait for this one, as is common with any flying theatre. Once I finally got onto it, I found it to be a really lovely experience with a smashing pre-show and beautiful animation. The one thing I will say is that I was glad it didn't last for much longer, as I did feel a slight hint of motion-sickness. Nevertheless, I did get truly immersed and I found myself extending my arms and legs, feeling almost surprised when they didn't touch anything. An excellent ride - just accept that it'll probably be the longest wait of your day. 8/10
Lego Ninjago: The Ride - This is a unique shooting ride, where you use hand motions instead of guns. It took me a few scenes to get a hold of how to play it properly and at first, I wasn't sure about it. However, the more I adapted, the more I liked it and the more I was able to appreciate the fantastic visuals on the screens, as well as the fun interaction and storytelling. It'll tire your arm out, but it's worth it and then some! Another smashing dark ride which reaffirms that Legoland might low-key be the best park for Dark Rides in the UK. 8/10
Dragon's Apprentice - Back to where it all began - this was my first ever rollercoaster back in 2003. Today, it remains the ideal family coaster. Excellent presentation, a simple yet gently exciting layout, a strong sense of speed, an adorable ride train - no complaints at all here. For what it is, it ticks every box. 4/5
Dragon - My second rollercoaster, and this was one that I found terrifying as a 5-year-old. When I went on it again years later, it all seemed rather tamer than I'd remembered! Now, I regard this as a really frustrating ride. So, every Legoland park has a Dragon, or at least most of them do. Most of the other installations have good-looking layouts with turns and drops, this one is just weird. It's so short and broken up by a pointless mis-course brake-run. There's barely anything to this ride, which is a damn-shame as people will often be waiting so long for it. And do you know what the most frustrating thing of all is? When this ride is actually moving... it's deceptively good. I got a bit of airtime on one of the drops, and the laterals are sneakily powerful. There is a better ride lurking in here, but the one we got is a confused mess that doesn't feel like a fully-fledged rollercoaster at all. I actually think the Dragon's Apprentice is superior in a lot of ways - probably a hot take, but there it is. 6/10
Pirate Falls: Treasure Hint - I assumed this would be the best ride of the day, which is why I saved it for last. Sure enough, I was right. Now that Loggers Leap is gone, this is quite possibly the greatest Log Flume in the UK. I mean, what else can compare? Fantastic theming and models, plenty of sneaky water effects, a delightfully wholesome vibe and best of all, a punchy drop that delivers on the airtime. This is by far and away the greatest ride at Legoland Windsor Resort. I just want to give a head's up: if you're visiting on your own, they don't let single riders have a boat to themselves so you'll have to share. Maybe make friends with a duo in the queue - after all, you do not want to miss this little gem. 8.5/10
Of course, this is the only park I've ever been to where the best thing isn't a ride at all - it's a walk-through. Namely, Miniland, which is just beautiful. That gets a 10/10 from me!
Overall thoughts on the park
The Pros? Aside from perhaps the area around Minifigure Speedway, it's a beautifully-themed park. Not Europa Park-level perhaps, but it looks lovely and most of the rides are seriously well-themed, including the basic flat rides. This might just be the park with the best theming in the UK, at least until 2031. The only equivalent I could think of is Paulton's Park. Furthermore, the ride line-up is stronger than I'd assumed. It's got two fantastic water rides, it's got several well-themed flat rides and it's got a stellar collection of dark rides, so this is a mostly well-balanced line-up in terms of the types of ride it offers. Also, we can't forget Miniland!
The Cons? The usual stuff for Merlin. I can forgive the slow operations more as it's a bit different with such a young demographic, what I don't like is the overpriced and poor-quality catering. As Paulton's Park shows, theme park food doesn't have to suck! Also, I saw quite a bit of queue-jumping here. In terms of the line-up, I feel this place has really drawn the short straw in terms of its coasters. Fine, you don't go to Legoland for the rollercoasters, but I still think they could've done a lot better here. Their Dragon, unlike most layouts around the world, is wildly uneven and although Minifigure Speedway is good, I don't think it was the right fit for this park. I'm aware that a new rollercoaster is on the way and that's exactly what they should be doing next - here's hoping that will be the one standout family coaster this park has needed for so many years, ever since Jungle Coaster's departure.
Overall, I had a really good day here, which I was not expecting. It's got its issues but it is a very good theme park for what it is, and with a few fixes - namely, better food options and a standout rollercoaster - it could match Paulton's Park one day.
Thanks for reading!