A fun-filled weekend at LEGOLAND Malaysia

#5 has been asking for the longest time if we could book a stay at LEGOLAND Hotel as he had seen the advertisements on TV. The hubs does not see any reason why we should pay to “sleep elsewhere when we can come home to our own bed”. So the last 2 times, we visited the Parks as a day trip. #5 finally had his wish come true when the generous team behind LEGOLAND Malaysia Resort extended us a stay last weekend.

Pirate themed Premium room

9am: We left our house bright and early so that we could play the whole day at the Water Park which opens at 10am. We took the Second Link at Tuas and was pleasantly surprised that traffic was smooth all the way even though it was a Saturday morning.

10am: It took us a mere 30 minutes to reach LEGOLAND hotel once we cleared the Malaysian immigration. I dropped the kids and my parents at the lobby and the porter collected our luggage. I was wondering what would happen to our luggage as check-in time was only at 4pm, but he assured me that our bags would be kept safe in the luggage holding room. I drove down to the basement carpark to park my car and saw that the hotel opens right out to the entrance of the 2 parks at the basement level. Perfect. I didn’t know it was that close.

As I stepped into the lift to head up to the lobby, I was dazzled by the disco lights in the lift! I knew then that the kids would have a swell weekend ahead of them.

Ultra cool lift

There was already a queue of people doing pre-check in so I guess everyone wants to check-in before heading out to the parks. Thankfully the lobby is filled with Lego everywhere to keep the kids occupied while waiting. Several staff were on hand to greet the guests and to provide assistance. I mentioned to a staff that I needed to collect my complimentary tickets and was wondering which counter I should get it from. She went to check with the manager and ushered me to the priority counter which had no queue. (Guests with the annual pass can also use this privileged counter).

The manager on duty was expecting us and his welcome was effusive. He informed me that check-in time was 4pm but not to worry, they had our room prepared for us and we could head straight up. Blogger privilege! So honoured. Before I could even open my mouth to thank him and request for a late check-out for tomorrow, he granted that to us and wished us a happy stay at their hotel. You should have seen the kids’ faces. They couldn’t believe their mum was treated like a mini-celebrity or something.

The staff are really good with kids and they have a fun little Trade with me policy whereby if you like any of the figurines attached to their name tags (see photo above), you can purchase a figurine from the Gift shop and trade it with them. She explained to me that it was their way of initiating conversation with the guests.

Hotel lobby filled with Lego pieces

Once we got the room access card, the kids couldn’t wait to dash up to check it out. There are 3 different themes such as Pirate, Adventure and Kingdom themes, all with various room sizes to choose from. There is a little treasure hunt game with clues around the room to unlock the treasure chest to find a little door-gift within. So exciting. A box of Duplo is provided in the room to keep the kids entertained.

What I really like about the rooms is that the kids have a separate sleeping area with a sliding door in between. This means that while Kate is sleeping in one area, she wouldn’t be easily disturbed by the other kids coming into the room.

Partitioned kids’ room

11am: The kids would have stayed in the room for a much longer time, but I reminded them that the Water Park was awaiting them downstairs. I needn’t have brought so much water along as 4 bottles of mineral water are provided in the room and more can be requested with no extra charge.

This was Kate’s first time here at LEGOLAND Water Park and she was extremely excited. We started with the “Build-a-Raft” lazy river which all of us enjoyed together, then the older kids headed straight for the challenging slides while Kate stayed to play at the toddler areas.

“Water Park, here i come”

I’ll let you in on a secret. I’m a real chicken and even simple kiddie roller-coasters get me screaming my lungs out. The last time we were here, I didn’t dare go on any of the intimidating looking slides. But guess what. This time, I managed to go on ALL the rides! And I actually enjoyed them. What an achievement. My kids were really proud of me.

Climbed all the way up for this photo!

1pm: We took a break for lunch and after that the kids relaxed at the wave pool and lazy river to digest their lunch. They ingeniously used an extra life jacket as their head rest and managed to float around.

“Build-A-Raft-River”

2pm: Kate went back to the hotel room for her nap while the older kids stayed and went down repeatedly on their favourite slides, which were the Slide Racer and Brick Blaster. Last year, #5 didn’t dare to go on the scarier ones, but this year, he was much more confident and enjoyed all the rides. My mum told me that when they returned to the room, Kate immediately climbed up to the upper bunk bed, declared it was hers and promptly fell asleep for 3 whole hours.

Water gun

6pm: The older kids played till closing time which was at 6pm. They spent the last hour at this interactive play station building a water gun which shoots water, complete with a peephole. We went back to shower and my dad wanted to eat at BRICKS family restaurant as he likes the wide variety of food available and didn’t want the hassle of leaving the hotel. (Children/Seniors RM48++, Adults RM88++). As expected, the restaurant is extremely kid-friendly. Crayons are provided, and even the table cloth can be doodled on. There are sinks conveniently located near the entrance of the restaurant.

Besides BRICKS, there is also an Italian restaurant in the hotel. If you want more options and don’t mind taking a little walk, head out to Medini mall which adjoins the hotel. They have KFC, Burger King, The Manhattan fish market, a Chinese restaurant and a Thai restaurant. There is also a convenience store there.

9.30pm: They were all exhausted after a full day of fun in the sun and promptly fell asleep.

The hubs has to concede that Legoland Hotel is much more than just a place to sleep in for the night. It certainly adds to the whole LEGOLAND experience and turns it into a memorable ‘mini-vacation’ for the kids. It is such a great way to bond as a family and I’m sure we will be back!

Read on for DAY 2 of our splendid weekend away.

BRICKS Family Restaurant Buffet Dinner

During this month of February 2015, to usher in the Year of the Goat, the Hotel has lined up daily activities which include building of LEGO Mandarin / LEGO Goat / LEGO Pineapple, Building of Chinese Characters with LEGO bricks, Lion Dance Performance on 21 February at 10am, and special appearance by the God of Wealth.

Check out my previous review of LEGOLAND Water Park.

• Toddlers under 3 do not need an admission ticket, but you have to pay RM10 which includes 2 swim diapers. (I guess it’s their way of ensuring all babies don appropriate diapers, which is good to know!)
• Do note that only combo tickets allow for multiple re-entry into the Parks.

Getting there:

By Car: Use the Tuas Second link and exit at Nusajara Exit 312. Look out for the LEGOLAND signage on the Left. That’s it!

By Bus: Coach service is available from the Singapore Flyer at $20 per person. Click here for more details.

Disclaimer: We were sponsored our stay at LEGOLAND Malaysia Hotel inclusive of admission tickets to the Parks and meal vouchers. All opinions are my own.

~ www.mummyweeblog.com – a blog on parenting 6 kids in Singapore ~