How To Do Legoland Windsor In A Day

Lego is an age-old family favourite (meaning ‘play well’ in Danish!) whose humble building-block beginnings have exploded into the infamous theme park Legoland. A sure staple on everyone's UK bucket list, Legoland Windsor is home to more than 55 rides and attractions across 12 imaginatively themed lands aimed at a range of 3-12 year olds. To make the most out of your family trip and ensure you really do 'play well', it's worth taking the time to plan your visit and Kidadl is here to lend a helping hand. We've put together an ultimate guide to Legoland Windsor covering everything you need to know from parking, downloading the app, where to head first and how to reduce those pesky queue times...

Legoland Windsor Resort is located on Winkfield Road Windsor and has a huge car park on site for £6 per day. We've found that blocks B and C are the closest you can get to the entrance at this cheaper rate, or you can opt to pay £16 for Preferred Parking to avoid the extra walking! Free parking for the resort is included in some Annual Passes, and disabled parking is available closer to the entrance. We highly recommend booking your parking in advance online, then you can simply scan your ticket on your way out! If you want to avoid the car park mania, you can also get a cushty coach from Victoria or train from London Paddington or Waterloo, where a shuttle bus service then takes you directly to the entrance for a small fee. Park & Ride is another great option; Routes 200 and 702 go directly from Windsor (Stop J and Stop G) every 30 minutes. An adult return is £5 and just £2.50 for children!

The Legoland Windsor resort opens at 10am (times may differ during school holidays), and we recommend getting there as early as possible. Book your entrance tickets in advance for the cheapest deals and to go straight to the turnstiles! Bargain hunters can look out for vouchers for tickets and parking on trusty Kellogg's cereal boxes, Groupon and with their Tesco Clubcard perks, and various Annual Passes are also available for Legoland UK including Pre-School Annual Passes for under 4s. When you get in, don't follow the crowds heading right but veer to the left instead for emptier paths and even a slide to spice up your walk! Kidadler tip - head straight to the back of the park to get first on a ride then work your way forward. Whilst Legoland officially closes at 6pm, lots of rides actually stay open past that if you're already queuing. Want to make a whole weekend of it? Why not stay at one of their two novelty hotels in a Kingdom fit for your exhausted Knights and Princesses!

Visit customer services to grab a handy wristband confirming your child's height, to avoid any conflict at the rides, and to write your phone number on in case anyone little wanderers get lost! Lockers are available for £1 per day near the Splash Safari, and you can rent pushchairs from The Beginning land from £9 a day. If you want to save those little legs, the Hill Train also runs from here to take you straight into the centre of the park!

For the smoothest Legoland run we seriously recommend downloading the Legoland Windsor app to help you make the most out of your day. Featuring directions to the resort, opening hours and top tips for planning your perfect day, as well as a 'save your favourites' function and even live queue times, this awesome app just made Legoland a whole lot easier!

Long Legoland queue times are inevitable, but investing in a Q-Bot can help save your precious time and optimise LEGO fun! The Q-Bot is a small digital device to register for Legoland's most popular rides; rather than wasting time waiting around in queues, your Q-Bot will notify you when it's your time to ride from wherever you are in the park! This game-changer does cost another £20 per person, with a £35 option to cut your queue times in half or - for the ultimate enthusiasts - an £80 Q-Bot offering as close to instant access as you can get plus an add-on for Laser Raiders. Purchase these at the ticket booths or use Q-Bot via the Legoland app! Do note that there's a £50 refundable deposit for your Q-Bot, so be sure not to lose it!

You never know when hunger might strike, so we recommend taking a packed lunch for your visit as well as your refillable water bottle to avoid even more queue times for food. However, if you do prefer to eat there, Legoland Windsor resort has plenty of delicious cafes and even meal deal offers when you book ahead from their website. Choose City Walk Pizza & Pasta for an all-you-can-eat buffet (just don't let the little ones go overboard... sicky stomachs and rollercoasters don't mix!), Hill Top Cafe for something lighter or Knights' Table for a feast fit for a King. Costa Coffee kiosks are also dotted around the park, as well as ice cream parlours to cool down in summer and that familiar scent of fresh doughnuts to follow for an irresistible theme park staple! If you want to hold out til afterwards, there's also a trusty Pizza Express nearby as well as some good old-fashioned chippys, perfect for an exhausted family facing a long drive home.

No matter what season you visit Legoland Windsor in, make sure you pack for every weather and bring something you can get wet in. Hopefully the temperature will permit a paddle in the Splash Safari, awesome Duplo Valley or encourage you to brave the Drench Towers! Don't worry though - dryers are available across the park for just £1, so you don't even have to wait til the end of the day if you're dying for a dip!

Legoland Windsor is one of the UK's largest and most popular theme parks, so it's unlikely you'll be able to tick everything off your to-do list in one visit. Why not pick your top three rides with the kids and check them off first, then you can relax with a walk around the unmissable Miniland Lego village or by exploring the Pirate Shores. Pick up a map or use the one on your app to familiarise yourself with the huge park, it's 12 different lands and which attractions are top of your list.

There's truly something for everyone and every age at Legoland Windsor, whether you want to prove your bravery on dragon rollercoasters in the Knight's Kingdom, get splashing in Duplo Valley, step back in time in the Kingdom of the Pharaohs, ride the waves in LEGO City or take your little explorers to their ultimate Adventure Land.

Don't be fooled, though - Legoland Windsor is not just about the rides! Why not catch a show whilst you're there, especially if you're staying overnight. Immerse yourself in their 4D cinema and meet your favourite LEGO Movie characters, dance with LEGO Friends in Heartlake City, witness the daring Return of Skeleton Bay or pop by a puppet show at Duplo Valley.

Have any more tips for avoiding Legoland queue times? Leave a comment below for fellow Kidadlers! However you plan your day, Legoland Windsor will be sure to build the blocks of an unforgettable memory for all the family.

For more ultimate guides, tickets and top tips, head to Kidadl.com.