There’s no secret about it, Orlando Theme Parks can carry a hefty price tag, especially when you are traveling from out of state or planning to visit more than one park.
But for those of us who are budget savvy, there are some pretty great discounts and options for spending your vacation in the theme parks.
LEGOLAND Orlando is one of the parks I highly recommend for a budget friendly trip, and we’ve got all the details about how to make this vacation as spend-friendly as possible. Plus there’s ALL the details in this LEGOLAND planning guide if you are planning a trip soon!
For a budget friendly LEGOLAND Orlando Trip, consider a lower cost ticket or even an annual pass for maximum discounts. Plan to pack what you need so you won’t have to purchase costly souvenirs, and consider a soft sided cooler (or the budget friendly restaurants) for your trip inside the parks. Lastly, explore the low cost options for lodging near the resort, and plan your trip around the cheapest weeks to vacation at LEGOLAND Orlando.
Let’s take a look at all of the great discounts for a Florida Lego Vacation and get to planning a fun vacation! If you are planning to go for just one day, see if going to LEGOLAND is worth it for one day for your family.
OHH and Head over to LEGOLAND Hacks for more good tips for your vacation.
This post may contain affiliate links, read my full disclosure here.
Legoland on a Budget
Before we dive into the tips for doing LEGOLAND on a Budget, understand that there is a ‘base’ price that you can expect to pay.
For a one day, one park ticket, the lowest cost I’ve seen it in 2022 is 65 dollars.
You can bring food in, but they limit the cooler size (I’d recommend getting a large cooler with ice, filling it full, pack it up, then pay for preferred parking so you can run out to the car as often as you’d like).
Both the Water Park and Peppa Pig park are fantastic for low stress play for kids 12 and under. They are not Disney/Universal fast paced and racing around (and may not be worth it for you or your family).
LEGOLAND Florida Discount Tickets (cheap tickets to legoland)
There’s a lot to consider when doing a Budget LEGOLAND trip, but we’ve got to start with Ticket Discounts for LEGOLAND Orlando.
You need a ticket to get into the main LEGOLAND theme park, the LEGOLAND Water Park (it’s at the back of the regular LEGOLAND theme park) and the new Peppa Pig Theme Park.
All folks 2 and older need to have a ticket (yes, this is a new policy!)
Are Annual Passes Worth It for LEGOLAND?
Annual passes are offered by LEGOLAND to grant access to the parks throughout the year. There is only one option available to those vacationing from out of state, as the lower tier option is ‘unavailable’. Then there are two passes available for Florida residents.
One of the hacks, if you will, is to get an annual pass for the main planner in your party.
This is a wildly successful budget hack for Disney, Seaworld and Universal, and it’s the same at LEGOLAND too! With an annual pass for one person in your party, you can use it for discounts on secondary tickets for the family, for cheaper costs on the 3 hotel options on site, and for discounts inside the parks.
Big Box Stores/Memberships
You can find some significant discounts at big Stores like Costco, Sams, and AAA memberships.
This vary by the year, but I’ve personally seen discounts at Costco (over in the gift card section) and at Sams online.
If you are traveling with Family from Florida, you can take advantage of the “Grandparent Clause”. Have your Florida family purchase the tickets/annual passes for kids under 18 and redeem in person to get the Florida discounts.
Florida Resident Options
Florida Residents have some of the best discount ticket options. There are discounts found in various locations- but we’ve gotten them through the kids school and on various coke products.
Legoland Florida also offers some great Florida Resident Annual Passes- you’ll need to show valid ID to redeem these.
Active Military
All Active Military Members get a Free Single Day Admission. They can also go to Shades of Green (located at Disney World) for discounts on other tickets and lodging. Learn more at the LEGOLAND Military Discount webpage.
When’s the Cheapest time to go to LEGOLAND?
While Legoland won’t do a significantly reduced tickets- they do offer discounts throughout the year that make it cheaper to go.
(Also keep in mind, when you go during the off season, you simply get more bang for your buck as there are less crowds!)
You’ll find that there are a few times for better discounts throughout the year… these are due to the seasonal demand of tourists and local theme park goers spending habits.
Keep in mind that the best discount times also mean that offerings in the parks and resort might be paired back some! This is especially important to take into account if you are going for a bucket list trip, or to do a bunch of rides. Knowing ahead of time that Entertainment or Attractions might not all be available (because cheaper times mean less open) can impact your trip.
For the Absolute Best LEGOLAND Discounts, plan a vacation in September.
This is typically a great time to come to all the Florida Theme Parks, as people are back to school and scared of Hurricanes. Thankfully Legoland has a great hurricane/rainy day policy, and you can also grab travel insurance (highly recommend!) just in case.
September is a prime month that LEGOLAND offer discounts, often in the form of packaged deals with their resorts that will include meal vouchers. See the best times to go to LEGOLAND here.
But also keep in mind that for my family, if there’s a hurricane, we head to the parks. It’s safer for us to be in reinforced buildings with no trees around than it is to be in our Lake House Surrounded by Oaks! The LEGOLAND hotels would be a great place to hunker down in a storm.
If you are planning to do the other theme parks in the Orlando Area, Like Disney World or Universal, then January would be the best budget time!
Disney and Universal typically run some good discounts in January as they close things down for refurbishment and you can do an entire budget Orlando Vacation. This is also an ideal time for gas and airfare, as transportation isn’t included in the trips or packages.
Another good time to come is the first week of December. This is a ‘lull’ in the Holiday Season as people head back home after Thanksgiving but haven’t come out for the Full Christmas/New Years Festivities at the end of December. If you come the first week of December you can enjoy the Holiday Decorations and activities without the high steep prices.
What to pack to save money
There’s a couple of things that you can bring- not only to save money- but also because they might be sold out at the parks as they are hot commodities! And for those with babies and toddlers (one or both) here is the full packing list of items you should consider.
Portable Fan – This is the top of the list! You can get a handheld one, which I swear by! And also a stroller clip on one! *** make sure you check and charge before your trip- especially if you opt for a cheap model.
Easy to Carry Bags – They have drawstring bags and reusable shopping bags at LEGOLAND, but I think most people underestimate the amount of stuff they bring into the parks and the amount of stuff they take out of the parks! I always wear an over the shoulder bag or fanny pack to store my wallet and keys.
EyeCovers /Eye Mask – these are a must for a good night sleep. Every hotel I’ve ever stayed in is TOO bright at night, and the LEGOLAND hotel has this weird beeping light for it’s alarm system. Plus these will be helpful while your traveling.
Portable Charger – Save your phone battery with a portable charger. we use this one at every theme park (it’s the anker brand) , it’s easy to charge and holds the charge for what seems like forever! We use it for our phones and the rechargeable fans we talked about above.
Water Bottle – Bringing a water bottle inside is just a smart and easy hack that saves you time and sanity! Dehydration is no joke at theme parks (it’s also why we bring these electrolyte hydration packets with us!) And it can be hard to stay hydrated if you don’t have it with you.
How to do Food on the Cheap
LEGOLAND Florida has a pretty decent food policy. You can bring in a small cooler with regular food- and then whatever Baby food or Food Allergy Eats you might need!
We bring in a soft sided cooler and grab food from Publix across the street. We use the CleverMade Foldable Cooler at all the local theme parks here- it’s so convenient because it folds up tiny! You can also consider takeout if staying at the hotel or walking to a nearby restaurant as there are several close by (driving would be easier though!)
We’ve done the math, and by bringing in a reusable water bottle plus premade snacks, we save 83% over what we would have spent in the parks!
The other thing is that LEGOLAND hours are shorter than most other area theme parks, and the lines for food can get rather long. So bringing in food not only saves you actual money, but saves you time (and time is money when you are paying for parking, tickets and lodging!)
How much does Food Cost at LEGOLAND?
How much should you budget for food at LEGOLAND? Glad you asked, as I’ve got pictures from my most recent trip in September 2022.
Bottled water is $3.50
The Coke Machine refill options (which is actually a good deal as there are so many around the park!) is 1 for 17. We’ve done this to get gatorade. The machines have ice and water for free- no cup required.
Sandwiches at the Ultimate Sandwich Builder are between 10-14 dollars (no side or drink!). And most adult meals are like that. 9-15 dollars for the main entree, then whatever sides or drinks you want.
Kid’s meals around the park range from 7-10 dollars and do includes sides and a drink.
The only sit down option in LEGOLAND is Pizza and Pasta. It’s not always open, but when it is, it’s served all you can eat style. Prices for that are $19 for adults and $13 for kids.
Budget Friendly Lodging near Legoland Florida
You have a few options when it comes to visiting and staying near LEGOLAND (though I do recommend the Hotel if you can- as it’s very reasonably priced when compared to other theme park stays!)
The first is the Budget Option for LEGOLAND, the Beach Retreat. This is a Bungalow style hotel located across the street from LEGOLAND. They do have a shuttle that brings you back and forth (and it’s no different than the value options at WDW or UOR as they place those further from the parks there too!)
I’ve tried many times to stay at the Beach Retreat but it’s always sold out… so book early if this is your plan!
There aren’t many house rental options nearby- but there are several hotels and RV Parks.
For RV parks, there is the very highly rated Cypress Campground and RV park. If you don’t have an RV, see if it would be beneficial to rent one for the week.
Google lists “Meachams RV” as a local place to rent from- since they offer all of the set up and break down for whatever RV you choose! I haven’t rented or stayed at either location- but we do take our RV to fort wilderness at Disney World and love how it’s the best of budget, space, privacy and theme park fun! (for reference Fort Wilderness is about 50 minutes from LEGOLAND)
Then with hotels- it almost seems like they are mostly the same price as LEGOLAND itself, but with points and rewards programs, it may be more economical.
What I’m trying to say is that LEGOLAND budget lodging isn’t quite as easy to find as it is in Orlando. If you are only going for one or two days, consider driving in from a nearby location (factor in the 25 you’d pay in parking though)
Cheap Souvenir Ideas
MiniFigures from Ebay for trading, small sets for creating, multipurpose souvenirs like towels or bags.
LEGOLAND has its own version of tradeable items (like pins for disney!) in the form of MiniFigures. These tiny little Lego People are all over the parks and you can trade to your heart’s content!
However, the Minifigures in Park cost 5 dollars on average (because you have to have one to trade one!) and a great recommendation is to grab some bulk bags online!
Now I want to caution you against a “super great” deal as they are likely a bag of fakes- instead go for the MiniFigure Bundles that are around 2-4 dollars a piece. Better yet, round up what your kids have grown bored of and let them swap them for new fun Lego People!
Some other items that we really love to grab at the LEGOLAND resort include the smaller lego sets for creating fun themes (there’s a good number of 20-40 piece sets under 20 dollars). And they also have shirts, towels and socks available there.
OH and discounts on LEGOS?!?! Sign me up! Not only do you get to go and be inspired, but you can also take home some of the LEGO magic at some steep prices! We’ve bought all of the kids’ legos either at the park (or the Lego store in Disney Springs) but the best prices are hands down at the theme park! Plus they have some items that are harder to find online (plus no shipping!)
Conclusion
There are a lot of ways to save money at LEGOLAND- but one of the best ways is to make sure that you are going with minimal debt. Consider bringing in food, going in the off season and getting an annual pass to reduce your expenses!