Everything is awesome at Florida Legoland park

WINTER HAVEN, FLA. — This spring, my twin five-year-old sons declared that they're moving to Florida.

The reason? Legoland.

It's not hard to see why. At this family-friendly theme park and hotel 50 miles south of Orlando, everything is awesome. At least, that's the review you'll get from my budding Master Builders.

Legoland Florida opened in the fall of 2011 on the site of Cypress Gardens — Florida's first theme park. It features more than 50 rides and attractions aimed at kids under 12.

Toddlers have a place to play in the farm-themed Duplo Valley, which includes a splash pad, indoor playground, and gentle train and tractor rides. Bigger kids can get their thrills on roller coasters like Project X, which sends you zipping around a track in a life-size Lego Technic vehicle. And pretty everyone oohs and aahs over detailed Lego models of New York City, Las Vegas, Kennedy Space Center and even the planet of Hoth in an area of the park called Miniland USA.

In between, kids can earn their license at driving school in Lego City, go on safari in Land of Adventure, joust in Lego Kingdoms, and battle with water cannons in the World of Chima, among other adventures.

This spring — our second year visiting the park — all of the above were hits with my five-year-olds, who are at that magical theme park age where kiddie rides still rank alongside the (relatively tame) roller coasters they've just barely grown tall enough for.

For an additional cost, you also can visit an adjacent outdoor water park, which is open seasonally.

I can't tell you much about the water park though, because we never made it there. My kids were too busy playing at Legoland Hotel.

The hotel is why my kids want to move to Florida. The hotel, in fact, is where my kids want to live when the move to Florida. They were wowed by the smoke-breathing Lego dragon that stands guard outside the entrance, mesmerized by a wall of minifigures behind the front desk, and delighted by a castle play area and pits filled with Legos.

It only got better when we got to our room. Legoland offers four room themes: Pirate, Kingdom, Adventure and Friends. My boys selected the Adventure-themed room. Its décor, which included Indiana Jones-inspired murals and Lego creations, was 'super cool,' my boys said. Kid-friendly touches, like a step stool in the bathroom, helped make our stay more comfortable.

Our room included a kids' alcove with bunk beds and a treasure chest guarded by a Lego monkey. Clues revealed the combination of a lock on the treasure chest. Inside, we found a juice pouch, small Lego set, activity pack and lanyard for each kid.

Each night at the hotel, we ate dinner in lounge/play area, where my husband and I could eat while watching the kids play in the Lego pit and attend the hotel's nightly kids' pajama party. It was — as you would expect — lively, busy and very, very loud.

Among the perks of staying at the Legoland Hotel is early admission to the theme park, which is literally steps away. That meant we didn't have to stand in line to enter the park and we could jump on popular rides early, before the crowds arrived. Although during our spring break visit both this year and last, I think our longest wait for a ride was about 10 minutes. Many lines include a small play area with a Lego table and Duplo bricks — so antsy little ones can pass the time by playing when long waits do happen.

The hotel also offers daily Master Model Builder Sessions (signups are first-come, first-serve), 24/7 viewings of 'The Lego Movie,' and an outdoor pool featuring, of course, floating Lego bricks.

Elementary-aged kids could easily cover the park in one day. For us, a two-day visit allowed for a more relaxed pace and time to enjoy the hotel's play areas and pool. It's not Disney — that other Florida theme park young kids love — and for us, that was part of the appeal. Planning was super easy. (Make a single online reservation and you're done. No fast passes or character breakfasts to book.) And the accessible size and short lines were just right for little legs and young attention spans.

If you go

To learn more about Legoland, go to www.legoland.com/florida