LEGOLAND Phila: Tips for Discovery Center Philadelphia 2022

LEGOLAND Phila aka the LEGOLAND Discovery Center in Plymouth Meeting, Pennsylvania was such an incredible place! We loved our visit there in early Spring 2022 and want to share all about it with you! Note: When I knew we were visiting, I reached out to the center to request free tickets and they graciously offered them. However, the review below is my honest opinion and I would truly pay full price next time!

Legoland Phila Discovery Center Philadelphia

Table of Contents:

Where to find discounts on tickets
Know Before You Go (Ages, Time, Money Saving)
Tips at the Center
11 Epic Attractions
Where to Stay - our Philly Hotel
More Family-Friendly Activities in Philadelphia

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Where to Find Discount Tickets for LEGOLAND Discovery Center Philadelphia

Cost of Tickets:

The cost of tickets online in 2022 starts at $22.99. You save $3 by purchasing online rather than in person.
There is also an upgrade to an "Extra Value Package" for $29.99 that guarantees your admission and includes a LEGO collectible.
Ages 2 and under are FREE.
All ticket info and tiers here.

Ways to Save on LEGOLAND Phila Tickets:

Purchase online to save $3 from the in person ticket price.
In our hotel lobby brochure section, there was a coupon for $10 off LEGOLAND tickets! There were some limitations and you had to show it in person so maybe check your hotel lobby or a tourist visitor's center.
Check Groupon or Certifikid for discounts.
Military Discount of $10 off "the standard, walk-up admission price. This offer is valid for you and up to 5 guests" with valid military ID.

Know Before You Go

What ages is LEGOLAND Phila good for?

The Discovery Center is primarliy focused on ages 3 - 10.
I would say there is a lot that a toddler would enjoy like the Duplo Village (ages 2 and under are free) but of course you would need to keep a close on them around the smaller LEGO bricks.

How long should you allow at the Discovery Center?

My kids could have played for 5+ hours! We spent 3.5 hours and were able to do all the activities multple times.

Location, Food, and Parking

It is actually located 30 minutes northwest of downtown Philadelphia (or depending on traffic, longer). The mall that it is attached to is very nice with a Whole Foods, carousel outside the LEGOLAnd and lots of stores, food court etc.
You are not allowed to bring in outside food or drinks unless "caring for babies or food allergies in children." They had a great cafe (see pics below of menu) and we got a small lunch and snacks in between all the fun.
The space itself is not crazy big but you would not have eye sight of the children in all areas. I would recommend 2 adults if possible if you have 2 or more kids.
Parking is very easy because its a mall! Follow the signs to LEGOLAND at the mall and park by the giant LEGO giraffe!

Money Saving Tips

We were given an Activity Pack (you can add-on for $6) which was very nice but not necessary to enjoy the space. In fact, its a LEGO shaped notebook that was a little heavy for my kids to wear so we eneded up just using it in the car ride back home.
Note: You do exit via their extensive gift shop and maybe a way to avoid spending time (and money?) is to purchase a small LEGO toy from Amazon waiting in the car? Below are under $10 options I considered but ended up just letting the kids pick out a minifig keychain! (just trying to keep it hones!)

Tips At the LEGOLAND Phila Discovery Center

Bring a quarter for the lockers to put your coats or purses in. They are located to the left of the cafe in a very central location.
When you arrive, go to the 4D Cinema and take a picture of the schedule of the day so you can plan out when you want to watch which movie.
If its a busy day and your kiddo is easily overwhelmed by stimulation there are two great quiet spots: The LEGO Creative Workshop which has guided builds scheduled throughout the day and the Arctic Adventure room. They are both away from the main areas which can have a lot of louder kids and have calm lights.

11 Epic Attractions at LEGOLAND Phila

(LEGOLAND has a great overview of each of the attractions here and my son LOVED checking out their Map ahead of time!)

Imagination Express was definitly a top 3 attraction! You sit in a self-moving LEGO train and then use your magic wand to collect points. You can go as many times as you want. On a Friday, there was no line! (And I beat the whole family on our 2nd try!)
LEGO 4D Cinema was VERY cool! My kdis first 4D experience. The shows are about 15 minutes each and has effects like rain, wind and even snow. Pretty surprised how large the theater was and fun to take pictures at the LEGO red carpet! When we went they showed 3 movies including Ninjango, LEGO City and others.
Miniland has a interactive version of downtown Philadelphia made wiht 1.5 million bricks! I loved looking at this but it wasn't in my kids top 5.
Pirate Advenutre Land was definietly in their top for fun things to do. You remove your shoes and they have a staff person at the entrance to make sure there aren't too many poeple. It's an indoor play area that is pirate themed with slides and obstacles.
Ninjango Training Camp was very cool. Laser room, reaection test and building areas!
LEGO Racers Build and Test was so cool! You can make your own racer or they have lots of stations that help you make different types of cars to race and iterate.
Earthquake Tables were also a hit! You can compete to see who's tower falls first and adjust the quakiness.
Arctic Adventure was a calming room that's great if your kiddo is overstimulated. They also have one station with an ipad that walks you through a build.
LEGO Friends is a small area but nice to build and add to Heartlake City.
Duplo Village is small as well but fun for younger kids. (and interesteingly my kids loved playing with the mega big bricks!)
LEGO Creative Workshop was one of my favs because we all got to work with a MAster Builder to create a custom build. It felt like we were on a TV show!

Where to Stay

We stayed at the Marriott Old City in Philadelphia and it was perfect for us! We drove from DC on a Friday in March to LEGOLAND and then around 3PM we drove 45 minutes (usually a half hour but Friday afternoon traffic!) to Chinatown for dinner and finally to our hotel!
You can read more about our time at the Marriott Old City here. Walking distance to the Liberty Bell, historic center and the famous Franklin Fountain ice cream!
There are lots of hotels closer to LEGOLAND in Plymouth Meeting, PA if you are interested!