Spongebob

I’m not sure I would’ve thought to head to LEGOLAND Florida for my back to school shopping, but the park is making it pretty tempting to head down there and get some fun supplies! If you purchase a one-day ticket and leave the park within an hour, your ticket price will be reimbursed at the front gate – and if you buy $20 or more of merchandise, even your parking fee will be refunded! Check out the official news below:

Winter Haven, FL (July 27, 2012) – With back to school right around the corner, moms and dads are looking for great deals while kids are searching for the coolest backpacks, lunch boxes, T-shirts, hats, thermoses, gadgets and supplies as they gear up for school. LEGOLAND® Florida now offers a shopping pass allowing shoppers access into the park to shop for the latest LEGO® and LEGOLAND Florida apparel, school supplies and LEGO merchandise that kids will love.

With the purchase of a single day ticket at the front gate ticket window, shoppers will be given access to the park for one hour and will be reimbursed upon their check-out at the front gate ticket window. Shoppers will even get their parking reimbursed with a park purchase of $20 or more.

Shoppers can explore The Big Shop in the Beginning of the park, one of the largest LEGO retails stores in the world and discover a ginormous selection of all things LEGO. Along with the Big Shop is the LEGO Studio Store where shoppers can pick up LEGO-licensed products like Harry Potter, SpongeBob™ and Star Wars™ or visit the Minifigure Market to create their own custom mini-fig.

Of course to experience all the interactive fun including 50 rides, shows and attractions and the all-new LEGOLAND® Water Park, guests can visit www.LEGOLAND.com for more ticket information.

With convenient services like this, and the fact that LEGOLAND Florida has not increased its ticket prices, LEGOLAND is winning over the hearts of tourists and locals alike!

Universal’s Superstar Parade is now open, bringing an entirely new form of entertainment to Universal Studios Florida that combines wildly creative floats with hundreds of performers to create whole new levels of fun and excitement. Image ©Universal Studios Florida

Last night, Universal Orlando Resort premiered its two newest entertainment offerings. These shows have been in sneak peek mode for a few weeks now, but media (myself included) and special guests were invited to experience their grand opening, and given the red carpet treatment too. While the central Florida rain put a slight delay on festivities, we were still able to see both shows and they were worth the wait.

Universal Orlando continues to impress me with their new offerings and they are living up to their “Year to Be Here” motto for 2012. The Superstar Parade has taken two years to get to fruition and the result is something for everyone. Parade Show Director Lora Wallace explained that this was no accident. If your child loves Dora and Diego, they will be thrilled at the float containing the familiar pair, along with Boots the monkey and baby jaguar. If they have outgrown Dora, there are tumbling monkeys on the float which will impress any age group. The same goes for SpongeBob SquarePants; if you aren’t a fan, they’ve added aerial silk performers on the back of his float to entertain and wow audiences. One of my favorite parts was the HOP float, where E.B. plays a drum set on the float, as a drum corps follows along behind him. Lora is a former snare drum player from her high school marching band, so this was a personal addition she was pleased to add as it tied in with HOP perfectly. As a mom of a school band drummer, I loved it too!

My daughter loved meeting E.B. from HOP (I wished Russel Brand were there!)

In addition to these fun visual elements, this new parade makes two stops along its route – in the Hollywood and New York areas. These stops showcase dance numbers and tons of guest interaction. No matter where you watch the parade, you’ll get a slightly different experience, or you can choose to stand in a specific spot to see your favorite characters. The Despicable Me characters which lead the parade are a great park addition and will tie in perfectly to the new Despicable Me: Minion Mayhem attraction opening this summer. I can’t wait!

The Superstar Parade runs daily at 5pm. Plans have not yet been finalized for the presentation of this parade during the Macy’s Holiday and Mardi Gras parade seasons, but it will all be worked out according to Senior Vice President for Entertainment at Universal Orlando, Jim Timon. Our viewing was shown at night due to the rain delay, so the video below will reflect that. However, for a parade created to show in the daytime, it’s still quite vibrant and beautiful at night! Check out the video below for a preview with some Superstar Parade highlights:

You can find out more about Universal Orlando Resort at UniversalOrlando.com. Special thanks to the UOR team for providing my family with dinner, desserts and entertainment so I could review these events for you. Opinions and reviews are 100% my own. Also check out the Cinematic Spectacular: 100 Years of Universal Memories, the amazing new nighttime lagoon show.

LEGOLAND Florida’s Shopping Pass Makes Back To School Bricktacular

Universal Orlando Resort Creates Family Fun with its Superstar Parade