Legoland Billund Resort, the original
Legoland
Legoland (, trademark in uppercase as LEGOLAND) is a chain of family theme parks focusing on the construction toy system Lego. They are not fully owned by The Lego Group itself; rather, they are owned and operated by the British theme park com ...
park, opened on 7 June 1968 in
Billund,
Denmark
)
, song = ( en, "King Christian stood by the lofty mast")
, song_type = National and royal anthem
, image_map = EU-Denmark.svg
, map_caption =
, subdivision_type = Sovereign state
, subdivision_name = Danish Realm, Kingdom of Denmark
...
. The park is located next to the original
Lego
Lego ( , ; stylized as LEGO) is a line of plastic construction toys that are manufactured by The Lego Group, a privately held company based in Billund, Denmark. The company's flagship product, Lego, consists of variously colored interlocking ...
factory and
Billund Airport
Billund Airport ( da, Billund Lufthavn) is an airport in Denmark. Located northeast of Billund, Denmark, Billund, it serves as one of the country's busiest Cargo airline, air cargo centres, as well as a charter airline destination. Most major ...
, Denmark's second-busiest airport. Over 1.9 million guests visited the park in 2011, and since the opening more than 50 million guests have visited the park. This makes Legoland the largest tourist attraction in Denmark outside Copenhagen. The Legoland parks that have since been built are modelled upon Legoland Billund, most noticeably the Miniland area, which is made up of millions of plastic Lego bricks.
History
![Legoland Hovedindgang 1968](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/b/bb/Legoland_Hovedindgang_1968.jpg)
The Lego company, led by
Ole Kirk Christiansen
Ole Kirk Kristiansen (7 April 1891 – 11 March 1958) was a Danish carpenter. In 1932, he founded the construction toy company The Lego Group. Over the course of his working life, Kristiansen developed his business from a small wood-worki ...
, introduced plastic toys alongside their existing wooden toy line in 1949 after purchasing one of the first
injection moulding
Injection moulding (U.S. spelling: injection molding) is a manufacturing process for producing parts by injecting molten material into a mould, or mold. Injection moulding can be performed with a host of materials mainly including metals (for ...
machines in 1947.
One son, Godtfred Kirk Christiansen (GKC), was named the managing director of the family business in 1957 shortly before his father died and just two years later he bought out his three brothers.
In the 1960s, GKC decided to open a Legoland Park adjacent to the Lego factory in Billund to promote his toy business; the factory itself was already drawing approximately 20,000 visitors per year by the mid-1960s, who came to view models produced for trade shows and shops.
[ GKC hired Arnold Boutrop as the park's first general director and designer; after visiting ]Madurodam
Madurodam (, opened 1952) is a miniature park and tourist attraction in the Scheveningen district of The Hague in the Netherlands. It is home to a range of 1:25 scale model replicas of famous Dutch landmarks, historical cities and large developme ...
, the two men began finalizing plans for what would become Miniland, the main attraction of Legoland. Dagny Holm, a cousin of GKC trained as a sculptor who was hired as a model designer in 1961 is credited with much of the original design and building of Miniland. The park became an instant success, with 625,000 visitors in its first abbreviated season after opening on 7 June 1968.
Over the years, Legoland Billund has added many original models and rides. The park, which has now been expanded to cover , is divided into nine themed areas, including Duplo Land, Imagination Zone, LEGOREDO Town, Adventure Land, Lego City
Lego City is a theme under which Lego building sets are released based on city life, with the models depicting city and emergency services (such as police and fire), airport, train, construction, and civilian services. Legoland Town is one of th ...
, Knight's Kingdom, Mini Land
The Mini is a small, two-door, four-seat car, developed as ADO15, and produced by the British Motor Corporation (BMC) and its successors, from 1959 through 2000. Minus a brief hiatus, original Minis were built for four decades and sold during ...
, Pirate Land, and Polar Land.
Today, Legoland Billund is the most visited tourist attraction in Jutland
Jutland ( da, Jylland ; german: Jütland ; ang, Ēota land ), known anciently as the Cimbric or Cimbrian Peninsula ( la, Cimbricus Chersonesus; da, den Kimbriske Halvø, links=no or ; german: Kimbrische Halbinsel, links=no), is a peninsula of ...
and the third-most visited attraction in Denmark, after Tivoli Gardens
Tivoli Gardens, also known simply as Tivoli, is an amusement park and pleasure garden in Copenhagen, Denmark. The park opened on 15 August 1843 and is the third-oldest operating amusement park in the world, after Dyrehavsbakken in nearby Klampe ...
and Dyrehavsbakken
(), commonly referred to as (), is an amusement park in Lyngby-Taarbæk Kommune, Denmark, near Klampenborg (Gentofte municipality), about north of central Copenhagen.
It opened in and is the world's oldest operating amusement park.
With 2. ...
. Several other Legolands have since been built in other parts of the world:
* Legoland Windsor Resort
Legoland Windsor Resort (), styled and also known as Legoland Windsor, is a theme park and resort in Windsor, Berkshire in England, themed around the Lego brand. The park opened on 17 March 1996 and is currently operated by Merlin Entertainment ...
(1996)
* Legoland California (1999)
* Legoland Deutschland Resort
Legoland Deutschland Resort is a Legoland park located in Günzburg, Germany, Günzburg in southern Germany, roughly halfway from Munich to Stuttgart, which opened in 2002. It is 43.5 hectares (107 acres) in area, and it is one of the four most p ...
(2002)
* Legoland Florida
Legoland Florida Resort (stylized as LEGOLAND Florida Resort) is a vacation destination in Winter Haven, Florida. The resort features the Legoland Florida theme park itself, the Legoland Water Park, three on-site accommodations and a separatel ...
(2011)
* Legoland Malaysia Resort
Legoland Malaysia Resort is Malaysia's first international theme park, which opened in Iskandar Puteri, Johor, Malaysia on 15 September 2012 with over 40 interactive rides, shows and attractions. It is the first Legoland theme park in Asia and s ...
(2012)
* Legoland Dubai Resort
Legoland Dubai (stylized as LEGOLAND Dubai) is a theme park in Dubai. It opened on October 31, 2016. It is the first Legoland park in the Middle East and was the seventh worldwide. The park was originally scheduled to open in 2011 in Dubailand as ...
(2016)
* Legoland Japan Resort
is a theme park in Nagoya, Japan. It opened on April 1, 2017. It is the first Legoland theme park in Japan; the second in Asia, after Legoland Malaysia Resort; and the eighth worldwide. The park was projected to attract over two million visit ...
(2017)
The Blackstone Group
Blackstone Inc. is an American alternative investment management company based in New York City. Blackstone's private equity business has been one of the largest investors in leveraged buyouts in the last three decades, while its real estate bu ...
, an investment firm, bought a 70% controlling stake in Legoland in 2005, with the remaining 30% still owned by Lego. The parks are operated by Merlin Entertainments
Merlin Entertainments Limited is a British entertainment company based at Poole in Dorset, England. It was listed on the London Stock Exchange until November 2019, when it was acquired by a consortium that includes Kirkbi A/S (the investment a ...
.
Themed Lego Lands
, the park has nine themed areas.
Adventure Land
This area contains some of the park's more exciting rides such as the wild mouse roller coaster, ''X-treme Racers''. ''Jungle Racers'' jet ski ride has a jungle theme and spins the riders quite fast. In 2010, ''The Temple'' was introduced, an indoor ride where riders board Explorer SUVs and are equipped with laser guns to shoot at moving targets in 11 scenes themed to ancient Egypt. The Temple also has a game area with an Egyptian theme, containing ring-toss, water-shooting, balloon-popping and a mummy game. The area contains two gift shops (Temple Gifts and Adventure Shop) and two restaurants.
''Falck'' ''Fire Brigade'' is a ride where you take your assigned vehicle to the scene of a fire where you and your fellow firefighters have to put out a fire in a building, and the fastest team wins.
Duplo Land
Duplo Land contains rides and attractions for young children, with the Lego Duplo brand name. The ''Duplo Playhouse'' is a play area for children ages 2–6, which is themed like a city in which children can play. They can build using Lego, or play on planes and cars. There are also slides, stairs, interactive elements and a role-play area. The ''Duplo Train'', a train ride that looks like a train made of Duplo bricks, takes two minutes to complete its loop. ''Duplo Planes'' is a plane ride similar to Disney's Dumbo ride, but with a Lego theme. The land also used to feature ''Duplo Driving School''. This was a car ride for children ages 2–6, who are not yet ready for the Traffic School ride.
Imagination Zone
This zone contains the ''Lego Studios
Lego Studios was a popular brand of Lego toys released in 2000 and mainly focused on movie-making and the steps thereof. Lego Studios was first distributed in November 2000, and was later discontinued in 2003. The last series in the franchise wa ...
'', a purpose-built 600-seat 4-D theater, complete with special effects and a giant screen. Four movies play daily ; these are Lego Racers
Lego Racers was a Lego product line with the first wave of sets being released in 2001. The range was first introduced in 2001 named after the Lego Racers video game series with the first wave of sets being based on the Xalax segment of Lego Race ...
, Spellbreaker, Bob the Builder 4D, and The Adventures of Clutch Powers.
'' Lego Atlantis'' by Sea Life was added in 2007. The attraction starts off with an animated movie, featuring Lego figures and a submarine that travels down to the submerged city of Atlantis. There is also a Sea Life
Sea Life is a chain of commercial sea life-themed aquarium attractions. there are 53 Sea Life attractions (including standalone Sea Life centres, mini Sea Life features within resort theme parks, and Legoland submarine rides) around the world ...
aquarium featuring a walk-through underwater tunnel and other hands-on activities with more than 800 sea creatures. Numerous Lego figures and models are in and around the aquarium.
Knight's Kingdom
Knight's Kingdom contains ''The Dragon'' coaster, located inside a medieval castle. The ride starts with a slow-moving dark ride scene with Lego figures themed to medieval times, including a mighty dragon. ''Vikings River Splash'' is a Viking theme river rapids ride that was added in 2006 and has plenty of wet surprises. Riders' photos are taken at the end of the ride. Knight's Kingdom also has Granny's Apple Farms Restaurant, Knight's Barbecue Grill and Castle Burgers.
LEGO Movie World
Along with Legoland California, the park will be receiving a LEGO Movie world in 2021. Its location has yet to be disclosed as it does not seem to be taking over a pre-existing land like the US versions (Chima in Florida and Friends/Duplo in California). It will feature the Masters of Flight and Unikitty's Disco Drop found in the California and Florida versions with its exclusive ride being a Technical Park Aerobat.
LEGOREDO Town
LEGOREDO Town is a Western
Western may refer to:
Places
*Western, Nebraska, a village in the US
*Western, New York, a town in the US
*Western Creek, Tasmania, a locality in Australia
*Western Junction, Tasmania, a locality in Australia
*Western world, countries that id ...
-themed land that contains the rides ''Lego Canoe'', ''LEGOLDMINE'', ''Westernride'', ''Timber Ride'', ''LEGOLDMINE Train''. There is also an Indian camp led by the popular Chief Long Ears (referring to the long rabbit ears on his headdress). LEGOREDO also has its own band called "The Rattlesnakes" and they play country music all day long. The mountain terrain of ''Lego Canoe'' offers a scenic background.
Directly opposite on the other side of the town was the hilly landscape of The ''Mine Train'', which traveled through mines in the mountain. ''Mine Train'' was shut down in 2013 and a new haunted house attraction entitled ''Ghost - The Haunted House'' replaced it starting with the 2014 season.
Mini Land
Mini Land is the heart of any Legoland park. The 1:20 scale Lego brick models feature landscapes, sights and buildings from all over Denmark, as well as famous landmarks from other parts of the world. These include, in addition to the models listed below, the Acropolis of Athens
The Acropolis of Athens is an ancient citadel located on a rocky outcrop above the city of Athens and contains the remains of several ancient buildings of great architectural and historical significance, the most famous being the Parthenon. Th ...
and scenes from ''Star Wars
''Star Wars'' is an American epic film, epic space opera multimedia franchise created by George Lucas, which began with the Star Wars (film), eponymous 1977 film and quickly became a worldwide popular culture, pop-culture Cultural impact of S ...
''. The LEGOTop observation tower
An observation tower is a structure used to view events from a long distance and to create a full 360 degree range of vision to conduct long distance observations. Observation towers are usually at least tall and are made from stone, iron, an ...
offers a nice view of the entire park. The models and structures in Mini Land were made using more than 25 million Lego bricks.
Ninjago World
Ninjago World, which opened in 2016, features ''NINJAGO: The Ride'', an interactive dark ride using gesture controls. The technology was developed by Triotech, who had previously developed the interactive '' Voyage to the Iron Reef'' dark ride at Knott's Berry Farm
Knott's Berry Farm is a theme park located in Buena Park, California, owned and operated by Cedar Fair. In 2015, it was the twelfth-most-visited theme park in North America and averages approximately 4 million visitors per year. It features 40 ...
.
Pirate Land
Pirate Land is a pirate-themed area. It features the ''Pirate Splash Battle'' where participants get wet. Other rides include ''Pirate Wave Breaker'', ''Pirate Water Falls'' and ''Pirate Boats''.
Polar Land
Polar Land is a North Pole
The North Pole, also known as the Geographic North Pole or Terrestrial North Pole, is the point in the Northern Hemisphere where the Earth's axis of rotation meets its surface. It is called the True North Pole to distinguish from the Mag ...
and South Pole
The South Pole, also known as the Geographic South Pole, Terrestrial South Pole or 90th Parallel South, is one of the two points where Earth's axis of rotation intersects its surface. It is the southernmost point on Earth and lies antipod ...
theme area that opened in 2012. This themed area was partially created from part of the Lego City themed area and the Event Center. It features the ''Polar X-plorer
''Polar X-plorer'' is a steel roller coaster at Legoland Billund in Billund, Denmark. It opened on 29 April 2012 as Zierer's first coaster with a freefall drop track section.
History
On 11 October 2011, Legoland Billund announced that the pa ...
'' roller coaster, ''Penguin
Penguins (order (biology), order List of Sphenisciformes by population, Sphenisciformes , family (biology), family Spheniscidae ) are a group of Water bird, aquatic flightless birds. They live almost exclusively in the Southern Hemisphere: on ...
Bayaturing live penguins, and ''Ice Pilots School''. In Polar Land, visitors can eat at Polar Pizza and Pasta with a view overlooking the Penguin Bay habitat.
''Ice Pilots School'' was previously named ''Power Builders'' and carried a Bionicle
Bionicle was a line of Lego construction toys, marketed primarily towards 8-to-16-year-olds. The line originally launched in 2001 as a subsidiary of Lego's Technic series. Over the following decade, it became one of Lego's biggest-selling prop ...
theme when it was part of the Lego City themed area.
Attractions
Roller coasters
Water rides
Other rides
Kiddie rides
Building experiences
Shows
Extras
These attractions and activities all require an extra charge in addition to regular admission fees.
Special events
The park hosts many special events throughout the season, including a Halloween celebration, firework shows, and Star Wars days.
Retired rides and attractions
Accident
On 29 April 2007, a 21-year-old female employee was killed by a roller coaster when she climbed over a security fence to retrieve a guest's wallet.
Gallery
Image:LegoBillundTowerView.jpg, View from the observation tower (click to enlarge)
Image:LegoBillundFishingVillage.jpg, A Norwegian
Norwegian, Norwayan, or Norsk may refer to:
*Something of, from, or related to Norway, a country in northwestern Europe
* Norwegians, both a nation and an ethnic group native to Norway
* Demographics of Norway
*The Norwegian language, including ...
fishing village
Image:Billund - Legolands udsigtstårn.jpg, Observation tower
Image:Legoland_Billund_Robocoaster.jpg, KUKA Robocoaster programmable robotic arm
Image:Legoland Billund Denmark 2012.JPG, View from the Lego Top (tower), May 2012
See also
* Incidents at European amusement parks
This is a summary of notable incidents that have taken place at various European amusement parks, water parks, or theme parks. This list is not intended to be a comprehensive list of every such event, but only those that have a significant impact ...
References
External links
www.legoland.dk/en/
nbsp;— Legoland Billund English language site
Video of Legoland Billund in 1968
{{Merlin Entertainments
Legoland
Amusement parks in Denmark
1968 establishments in Denmark
Tourist attractions in the Region of Southern Denmark
Buildings and structures in Billund Municipality
Amusement parks opened in 1968