Our family just returned home from vacationing in Florida. Since so many of our kids are so crazy about Legos, we squeezed in a visit to Legoland while we were there. With a little advanced planning, we were able to go without breaking the bank.

Top 4 Money-Saving Tips for Legoland:

1. Go on Homeschool Day

Tickets to Legoland Florida are already about 10%-20% less expensive that many of the major theme parks in nearby Orlando, but if you happen to homeschool, you can save a bundle by visiting on designated “Homeschool Days.” Check the dates, then call the park to reserve your tickets two days in advance. The savings is significant: We paid $12.50 for tickets that would normally have cost us $89. You’ll need to show proof of homeschooling and a picture ID when you pick up your tickets on the day of your visit (our HSLDA membership card worked beautifully for us).

Legoland California also hosts homeschool days, but their rules and pricing are a little different. If you’re heading to the other coast, follow this link for information: Legoland California Homeschool Field Trip

Don’t homeschool? Then your best bet for saving on admission is to order your child(ren) a free subscription to Lego Club Magazine. Several times a year, they publish coupons for a free child’s ticket to Legoland with the purchase of an adult ticket.

You’ll need one coupon per adult/child pair. Legoland classifies ages 13 and up as adults (unless you are paying for student pricing on Homeschool Day, in which case children ages 3-18 get in for the same low price!).

2. Bring Your Own Food

Legoland Florida allows you to bring bottled water and small snacks into the park with you (for lists of acceptable/prohibited items, follow this link: Legoland FAQs). We loaded our stroller with water bottles, chips, nuts, and granola bars and the kids took turns pushing it around the park.

It has been awhile since we’ve had a baby, so getting to push the stroller was a novel privilege, not a chore. We had to keep an eye on the clock to ensure the youngest three got equal time doing it! 🙂

3. Bring Minifigures from Home

We didn’t know about this one in advance, but are making note of it for next time: Legoland Florida has a special kiosk where kids can trade their old minifigures in for new ones at no charge. If you have duplicate figures at home, this would be a great way to bring home a souvenir without spending any money on it. They had a wonderful variety of minifigures to choose from, including sailors, princesses, knights, muscle men, police officers, etc.

4. Stay On Site

If you stay in the Legoland Resort, you’ll save an additional $17-$22 per day parking.

The resort serves free breakfast, offers extended hours to the park, and provides nightly entertainment for the kids. We stayed in Orlando and just drove in for one day at Legoland, but it would be worth doing a little comparison shopping to see if staying in the park might be cheaper in the long run.

Those are my best tips on saving a bundle at Legoland. If you know any other money saving tips, please share in the comments below.

Our family is already planning a return trip next year, primarily because Homeschool Day was such a bomb — no crowds, short lines, friendly faces. Most of the rides had no line at all; the operators would just let us keep our seats and go around again and again. We had a wonderful time, youngest to oldest, and highly recommend Legoland to Lego fans everywhere.