Mr Tin Field is a correct AFOL – that’s Grownup Fan of Lego earlier than you suppose I’m being impolite. Considered one of his high causes for having children was so he would legitimately play with LEGO once more. So, it wasn’t too troublesome persuading him we must always hop throughout the border from Oman for a keep on the LEGOLAND Dubai Resort.
Me? I’m not such an enormous LEGO fan. It by no means grabbed me as a baby. However, with a observe up keep booked on the QE2 resort nearer to Downtown Dubai, I used to be comfortable to go alongside for the experience.
On this evaluate of the LEGOLAND Dubai Resort I’m going to share what the children and AFOL in our household thought, plus the expertise for non-AFOLs like me. As a result of, let’s face it, LEGO followers are going to like staying proper within the brick, I imply thick, of it regardless.
*This publish accommodates affiliate hyperlinks*
Our keep at LEGOLAND Dubai Resort
We booked our LEGOLAND Dubai Keep and Play deal throughout the Easter faculty holidays.
Included was our Journey fully-themed room (I’ll go into the room choices in a bit), buffet breakfast every day and entry to one in all three Dubai Parks and Resorts parks for every night time of our keep.
We set off from Muscat tremendous early, crossed the border with out a lot faff (we’re Oman residents), skirted across the again of the town getting glimpses of the Burj Khalifa by means of the haze and arrived at Legoland Dubai in time for a late lunch.
After we lived in Devon in South West England we by no means contemplated staying at LEGOLAND Windsor*, regardless of it being about the identical journey time because it was for us right here within the Center East. We’ve modified!
Arriving at LEGOLAND Dubai made me want we’d made the trouble earlier. At the same time as a non-AFOL.
Our women had been beside themselves once they noticed the resort. We’ve by no means stayed anyplace fairly so ‘themed’.
Themed rooms at LEGOLAND Dubai
There are 5 room ideas accessible: Journey, LEGO Buddies, Kingdom, NINJAGO and Pirate. They’re situated on totally different flooring with hallways which can be adorned with the identical theme.
The LEGO Buddies and NINJAGO rooms are the costliest.
Customary themed rooms can sleep as much as 5 folks. They’ve a King-sized mattress, bunk mattress and pull out mattress beneath the bunks.
Inside every theme you possibly can improve to a fully-themed room (with extra decorations) or a collection which sleeps as much as eight folks with a King-sized mattress, bunks and couch mattress.
Our Journey fully-themed room
We determined to guide an Journey fully-themed room because it reminded us of our 10 day tour of Egypt the earlier Easter. The value distinction between this and a baseline Journey themed room was about £20 per night time.
If the children we excited after we arrived on the resort, they had been beside themselves as we took a experience on the disco elevate and used our wrist bands to unlock our room.
By the best way, the wrist bands are tremendous helpful. They meant we didn’t want to fret about leaving the room with out the important thing.
LEGO theming
At the same time as a non-AFOL, I used to be impressed with our room. It appeared precisely prefer it did within the photos on the LEGOLAND Resort web site.
The furnishings and fashions had been good and there didn’t look like a lot put on and tear. The lavatory is the one place there isn’t any LEGO ornament however every little thing else was brick-tastic from flooring to ceiling.
The ladies made fast work of the in-room treasure hunt, liberating their small LEGO units from the protected and setting about making them whereas we unpacked.
They then discovered the Duplo field.
Household room format
The format of the LEGOLAND resort rooms is fairly distinctive within the Center East. Most motels that say their rooms accommodate households don’t supply everlasting beds for the children. Households of 4 or extra must all pile into the King dimension, request or convey further beds, or guide two rooms.
We largely discover ourselves doing the latter as the women are properly into their pre-teen years.
At this resort there are bunks for the children with an additional roll out mattress beneath to sleep as much as three kids and a King dimension for the adults. These are separated by a brief hall off which you could find an open hanging area and the door to the toilet.
In themed and absolutely themed rooms the toilet as a walk-in bathe, sink and bathroom. There are baths within the household suites.
Meals on the LEGOLAND Resort
The buffet breakfast within the resort’s Bricks Household Restaurant was included in our Keep and Play bundle. The meals on supply was actually good with a spread of cold and hot worldwide dishes and, to the women’ delight, doughnuts and frozen yoghurt.
We discovered the most effective time to reach was at 8am. The LEGOLAND park doesn’t open till 10am and Motiongate is even later at 11am, so we had been consuming properly earlier than the frenzy.
We additionally ate lunch within the Bricks Household Restaurant on two days. That is al a carte and, to be trustworthy, a bit dear for fairly fundamental meals. However we’ve discovered that’s the case with most locations within the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) nations.
Children meals value greater than £10 and grownup meals had been between £12 and £20 every.
We made the error of pondering the meals within the resort can be cheaper than the LEGOLAND theme park however after trying the costs in each locations we may have saved cash within the park.
One other place to eat within the resort is the Skyline Lounge. I believed this is likely to be on the roof just like the title suggests, however it’s really on the other facet of reception to the principle restaurant. Skyline serves the identical menu because the restaurant.
The distinction is that this looks like a extra grown up area with a bar, excessive tables with bar stools, couch seating and fewer ‘in your face’ LEGO theming. It’s gentle reduction for non-AFOLs. Though I’d have been way more enthusiastic about it if it had been a roof bar.
There’s a cheerful hour (purchase two chosen drinks and get one free) every day from 12pm to 2pm and 6pm to 8pm.
Options to consuming on the resort
If you wish to discover various and even cheaper locations to eat we suggest taking a brief stroll or taxi experience to Dubai Outlet Village the place you could find eating places in addition to discounted designer manufacturers. We acquired pizza and gentle drinks at Papa Murphy’s for about £30 for the 4 of us.
Riverland can also be simply outdoors the resort grounds. This large leisure area with buildings impressed by Fifties North America and seventeenth Century France has eating places, bars and small sights lining a artifical river.
I say small, however you could find the world’s largest camel sculpture and the world’s largest out of doors inflatable assault course right here.
It’s all very Dubai!
We went to Riverland for dinner one night and, whereas the costs had been additionally very Dubai, the meals was good. We ate at The Keg which is modelled on a standard Irish pub with wooden panelling and a tiled bar.
There have been a number of different choices, however this one pulled us in as a result of we’re lacking Sundays down the pub within the UK.
The theme parks
We had three parks included in our three night time Keep and Play deal: LEGOLAND Dubai, the LEGOLAND Water Park and Motiongate.
After I was trying Dubai Parks and Resorts on Google Maps I hadn’t realised fairly how shut the LEGOLAND Resort was to all of those.
I used to be nonetheless none-the-wiser after we arrived as we didn’t see a lot driving in direction of the resort and our room was going through the elaborately adorned frontage. So it was a little bit of a shock after we walked out the again entrance, handed the pool and there they had been.
It takes lower than two minutes to depart the resort grounds and stroll to the doorway of each LEGOLAND Dubai and the water park.
Motiongate is a bit additional away however nonetheless solely a ten minute stroll.
LEGOLAND Dubai
We determined to start out our theme park tour with LEGOLAND figuring out that our women had been on the high finish of its audience. Our technique was to work as much as the joys rides at Motiongate the next day.
We’d not been to a LEGOLAND park earlier than so can’t examine them, however should you’re a daily who hasn’t been to Dubai but, it has 40 rides in comparison with LEGOLAND Windsor’s 55. Apparently the location can also be a lot smaller, which is definitely a bonus in Dubai as you wish to minimise the quantity of strolling you do within the warmth.
It was the primary time we’d been to a theme park the place we knew the children would have the ability to go on all of the rides. In reality some had been a bit too tame for them. This mixed with the non-existent queues meant we solely spent three hours wandering by means of the park’s six zones.
Our favorite rides had been The Dragon, Submarine Journey, Rescue Academy and the Misplaced Kingdom Journey. These had been a bit extra thrilling for older children.
We additionally frolicked trying on the large fashions in MINILAND and making race vehicles within the Construct & Take a look at expertise.
If we had youthful children I’m positive we’d have spent extra time within the varied indoor and out of doors play areas, and on a few of the decrease key rides.
Nevertheless, solely spending half the day right here meant we had loads of time to go to LEGOLAND Water Park within the afternoon.
Tip: purchase a few the memento drinks bottles on the park entrance. These can be utilized for bottomless refills round LEGOLAND Dubai and the Water Park on the day you buy them.
They value 79 AED (about £17.25) every or 69 AED (about £15.05) once you purchase two or extra. We shared two between us and acquired greater than our cash’s price of juices and gentle drinks. You want the liquids within the warmth!
LEGOLAND Water Park Dubai
We had a fantastic afternoon right here, spending two and a half hours driving flumes, tubes and rafts.
There’s additionally a wave pool, a lazy river full with bricks and the good Joker Soaker water playground. In addition to 20 water sights there’s a number of solar loungers out and in of the shade.
For me, as a non-AFOL this was much more enjoyable than the theme park.
Motiongate
The following day we moved onto the most important Hollywood themed park within the Center East with rides and sights primarily based on motion pictures by the DreamWorks Animation, Columbia Footage and Lionsgate studios.
We’s seen a few of the rollercoasters from the Legoland Water Park the day earlier than, which gave us a heads up about how totally different they might be.
Total, we had a fantastic day at Motiongate. It was well-worth saving a complete day for it. There have been a great deal of the massive thrill rides that we craved after LEGOLAND and the movie set staging was good.
There have been additionally just a few queues regardless of it being a weekend within the Easter holidays.
In addition to the rollercoasters and movement simulators for older children and adults there have been loads of enjoyable issues to do for youthful kids.
The Smurfs Village has a decrease key rollercoaster, play zones and reveals and there are mild sights with characters little ones will recognise within the Dreamworks Animation Zone.
A few of our favorite rides had been within the Lionsgate and Columbia Footage areas. We haven’t launched the children to movies just like the Starvation Video games or Zombieland but however that didn’t cease them having fun with these excessive adrenaline rides.
We spent seven hours doing 17,000 steps across the Motiongate and got here again to the Legoland resort exhausted.
How do these Dubai theme parks examine to Yas Island in Abu Dhabi?
We visited Yas Island final yr so had been evaluating it with Dubai as we went. Had been LEGOLAND Dubai, the water park and Motiongate pretty much as good as Warner Bros Studios, Yas Water Park and Ferrari World on Yas Island in Abu Dhabi?
No.
The Dubai Parks are a bit older so – usually for this area – they don’t have the most important, quickest or most excessive tech rides.
At Motiongate a number of of the rides and cafes had been shut and I seen some shifting components within the tour-type rides had been damaged.
A giant bonus was that food and drinks was less expensive in Dubai than within the Yas parks.
We’d positively contemplate going to Motiongate once more if we had been again in Dubai, whereas we’d not hassle with LEGOLAND. However a number of that’s to do with the age of our children.
Actions on the resort
Our early breakfast routine meant we, I imply the children and AFOL, acquired to play with LEGO within the resort foyer. In case you’ve stayed at a LEGOLAND Resort elsewhere you’ll be acquainted with the LEGO pit within the foyer space the place you possibly can go freestyle along with your creations.
We additionally spent a number of time right here on the finish of our days. I’m unsure who loved that almost all.
On the Dubai resort there’s additionally a big fortress play body within the foyer and rooms the place you possibly can guide a inventive workshop for you and your little ones.
The energetic leisure staff had been additionally on the go within the afternoon and evenings, taking part in video games with anybody who nonetheless had power after a full on day on the parks. They noticed us within the Skyline Bar one night and roped within the women for a recreation of charades whereas Mr Tin Field and I loved a beer.
All this offers the resort extra of a resort really feel, so even should you aren’t going to the parks you recognize the children can be entertained.
The pool at LEGOLAND Dubai Resort
The pool is small and shallow with a roped off toddler space and huge LEGO bricks you possibly can play with within the water. There’s additionally a splash park with water jets.
There are a number of cabanas and a restricted variety of solar loungers which you’ll seize on a first-come-first-served foundation. There’s additionally a small bar promoting drinks and snacks.
In case you come to this resort to calm down by the pool I believe you’d be upset. It was busy and discovering someplace to sit down was troublesome. However with the LEGOLAND Water Park only a quick stroll away they don’t actually need to promote this space.
Tip: if you’re in your strategy to the water park the resort pool is the place you choose up your towels. In any other case you’ll have to lease one on the water park.
How lengthy do it’s worthwhile to keep at LEGOLAND Dubai Resort?
We initially booked 4 nights pondering that we would want a full day at every of the theme parks and the LEGOLAND Waterpark.
Nevertheless, after chatting with mates who had already been, they persuaded us that we may do the LEGOLAND theme park and waterpark in sooner or later.
And our expertise was this was simply doable.
There have been only a few queues for any of the sights regardless that it was Europe’s Easter faculty holidays. Nevertheless, the truth that Eid was additionally developing meant that a number of locals had been travelling. So I don’t know if Dubai Parks and Resorts are at all times as quiet as they had been for us.
Anyway, we had been very glad we modified our reserving to 3 nights. It might have been troublesome to entertain our 11 and eight-year-olds in LEGOLAND for longer than three hours, so a visit to the water park within the afternoon made for a enjoyable day.
We wanted the second full day for Motiongate, which had much more for our women to do.
If in case you have youthful kids then you definitely would possibly wish to take issues at a slower tempo. Three nights can be ideally suited for doing two of the Dubai Parks and Resorts theme parks, however for 3 parks you would possibly wish to add an evening.
The place is LEGOLAND Resort in Dubai?
LEGOLAND Dubai Parks and Resorts is a forty five minute drive alongside the coast south west from Dubai Worldwide Airport, so you might be fairly a distance from Dubai’s essential sights just like the Burj Khalifa.
If you wish to see this and Downtown Dubai we’d suggest relocating. We did precisely this and stayed on the QE2 Resort for the second half of our Dubai metropolis break.
Summing up our LEGOLAND Dubai Resort evaluate
For non-AFOLs, neglect about all of the LEGO stuff, it is a good household resort. The rooms are genuinely designed for households and provides area for each adults and children to calm down after busy days.
The leisure staff had been actually enthusiastic and we actually rated the breakfast buffet. The al a carte costs had been a bit a lot, however as I discussed earlier you’ve different choices shut by.
When it comes to the situation, the resort is the proper place to remain for the theme parks – you can’t get any nearer which takes all of the faff out of the start of the day and getting again to the resort once you’re all operating out of steam.
The mixed resort and theme park offers are good worth should you intend to do multiple park. And with entry to Motiongate included within the offers you don’t must overload on LEGO the entire time.
For LEGO followers, the theming is de facto spectacular and makes this an additional particular place to vacation.
So, you don’t have to be a LEGO fanatic to remain on the LEGOLAND Dubai Resort. However should you do have a fan in your loved ones you’ll make their yr by reserving.
Disclosure: this publish accommodates affiliate hyperlinks marked with *. In case you click on on one in all these and make a purchase order I’ll earn some fee. This doesn’t have an effect on the worth you pay.