I remember Legos as a kid, but I don’t remember them being this big. Earlier this year, Brand Finance announced that Lego is the world’s most powerful brand. So I guess it’s kind of a big deal.
We went to Legoland Malaysia last year. It’s strategically placed in the state of Johor, close enough to Singapore to be a day trip. That’s what we did, taking public transit across the Tuas Second Link. I have to say, that park is awesome. Each park has rides designed to look like they’re made out of Lego bricks. The center of the park is called Miniland and features world landmarks in miniature made out of Legos. The detail is amazing!
There are six Legoland Amusement Parks around the world, so you don’t have to go to the one in Malaysia. But the distribution is largely Eurocentric, owing to Lego’s roots as a Danish company. There are European parks in Denmark, Germany and the UK. Two more are in the U.S. (California and Florida, of course). The seventh park is set to open in Dubai next year. There are two more planned for Asia, in South Korea and Japan, set to open in 2017 and 2021 respectively.
As an amusement park that caters to Westerners and rich locals, it’s not a cheap day out. But I did appreciate that there was not as much in your face marketing as I’ve seen at American amusement parks. Of course the food vendors were expensive and there was a store at the entrance to help you buy all the Legos that you want. But it still felt less commercial.