Legoland Discovery Center and Kansas City Sea Life Aquarium - Review

A couple of weeks ago the kids and I had the opportunity to visit Legoland Discovery Center Kansas City and Kansas City Sea Life Aquarium.

They had been wanting to go for a long time. The kids are huge fans of Lego's and Aquariums so to visit both in one day was a dream for them. We drove three hours return and the kids were excited the whole way there.

Legoland Discovery Center and Kansas City Sea Life Aquarium Center share an entrance near Crown Center Kansas City, right next to the skating rink.

Little J got excited as soon as we parked because he saw a cool looking minivan. He thought it was completely awesome that it was different on each side.

Parking is validated for up to six hours so we had plenty of time to visit both attractions.

The kids decided that they wanted to go to Kansas City Sea Life Aquarium first. They were definitely not disappointed. The Aquarium is normally open Sunday - Thursday 10am - 8pm, Friday and Saturday 10am - 9pm. You are also allowed re-entry if you get your hand stamped as you leave.

If you don't book in advance the price of a ticket at the door is $19.00 (plus tax) for adults 13+ ($15.00 if you book in advance online) $15.00 (plus tax) for children 3-12 ($11.00 if you book online).

No flash photography is allowed in the aquarium, so please take that into account when looking at my pictures.

The kids were in their element as soon as we walked in. The lights are dimmed and the atmosphere is perfect from the moment you walk in the doors. There is 5,000+ creatures on exhibit including Sharks, Rays, and Seahorses.

When I asked the kids what their favorite thing from the aquarium they said;

Jam my 13 year old loved the Interactive Touch Pool experience.
Boo my 11 year old loved the Interactive Touch Pool experience.
Little J my 5 year old loved the sharks and the rays he saw going through the under water tunnel.

The displays are broken down into small areas which help keep the attention of the kids. The displays are perfectly placed at 'kid' height. I didn't hear Little J mention once that he couldn't see anything or the usual 'pick me up' so I can see' phrase that I hear so often at the zoo or other museums.

The kids loved the touch pool as I mentioned earlier, I do think the helper could have been a little more out-going and maybe interacted more with the kids. Maybe he was just having an off day.

The kids loved the new 'Claws' exhibit. I was quite amazed at this myself...I am glad these are found very DEEP in the ocean.


At the exit of the Sea Life Aquarium there is a fun play center. Little J had a blast and it was a great place to let out excess energy.

The next step of our day was Lego Land Discovery Center it is just a stones throw away from the Sea Life Aquarium and the kids were chomping at the bit to head there. I am glad that I gave them an early lunch as they really didn't want to take a break.

When we arrived in Lego Land we were met by the nicest lady. She spoke to the kids and gave them a lot of information about how the Lego bricks are made. They found it really interesting. You could tell that she really loved her job. I love it when you meet workers like that! It started our afternoon on a really high note.

 
After we left the greeter the kids found the measuring station. This was fun, first the kids stood on a scale and their weight was converted into Lego blocks. The kids thought this was awesome.


After the weigh scale they got to see how tall they were compared to a Lego tower.

Next we rode the Kingdom Quest Laser Ride the kids especially Little J thought this was great. In fact we rode this ride about 7 times (or more) throughout the day.


Jam noticed the Lego Master Builder Academy and decided he definitely wanted to participate in that, so for the next little while we had to clock watch. The classes are done periodically throughout the day. As soon as a class starts they have a little clock on the door so you know what time the next class starts. Jam and Boo were able to complete the little model dragon easily. The kit can be purchased at the gift store if you show them your certificate of completion of the academy class.


Legoland Discover Center has a 4D cinema and it shows four 15 minute movies. During our visit we watched three of them. The kids liked the 3D images and splashes of water etc...it was nice to take a few minutes to sit down. We didn't stay there but split our movie watching experiences throughout the afternoon.

Legoland was featuring a 'Wizard of Oz' exhibit. Although I don't think it had officially opened the kids were excited to be able to see it. We realized that Little J had never watched the movie. (Don't worry we took care of that oversight immediately.)


The rest of the displays in this room were of some of the common sites of the local area. This room cycles through day and night. The lights on the Lego displays are amazing!


Boo loves Lego Friends however she felt a little big for the area designated however it didn't stop her from building something in there. Little J also loved the karaoke.

The kids loved the huge pits full of Lego pieces. In fact it was hard to pull them out. Honestly they could have stayed in there all day, building.


We saved the Star Wars Lego exhibit till last as we all love Star Wars. The kids thought it was awesome. It was definitely worth the whole room dedicated to it. Little J loved the full size R2D2 and C3P0. Jam recognized all the scenes that were on display.



We had an awesome day visiting both of these attractions there is much you can learn around each corner.

As a home-school Mom I am always looking for educational field trips. This one was educational and also inspirational.

Legoland Discovery Center and Kansas City Sea Life Aquarium have told me that have a great rate for homeschoolers.

The prices for homeschoolers are $7.50 for K-6th grade and $8.50 for 7th grade through High School

If you want to book a homeschool visit for the Legoland Discovery Center and Kansas City Sea Life Aquarium call 816-556-3234 or email Katelyn Cook at katelyn.cook@merlinentertainments.biz

Make sure to mention 'homeschoolers' when booking.

I was given free entrance to Legoland Discover Center and Sealife to accommodate this review.






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