New LEGO Theme Park to Open Summer 2021 in Orange County
By: Alexandra Avangelista and Dylan Rippe
“We are so excited to invite people in to see how bricktastic LEGOLAND New York is,” says Matt Berman, the public relations manager of the LEGOLAND New York Resort.
Delayed due to COVID, the 175 acre theme park was supposed to have its doors open last summer of 2020. Located in Goshen, Orange County, LEGOLAND is now planning to open this summer, and divisional director Stephanie Johnston is excited to show off the theme park to its devoted fans.
Johnston says the opening of the amusement park is a “bricktastic moment”, and the model citizens — as she refers to the employees — have been working hard to get this project completed. Construction of the park began in 2017; costing a total of $600 million, this park is the largest LEGO theme park Merlin Entertainments has ever developed.
There will be different themed areas of the resort, including places like Brick Street, Bricktopia, LEGO Castle and LEGO NINJAGO World. In total, the park has over 18,000 different LEGO models, and more than 40 million LEGO bricks have been used for construction. One of these models is Brad, short for Big Red Awesome Dinosaur. Brad stands 10.8 feet tall at its tallest point, and has steel rods in its body to keep it in place. Miniland is another exhibit, consisting of iconic landmarks built with LEGOs, like the Statue of Liberty and the Empire State Building. This exciting experience is only getting started here!
Professor Brick’s Factory Adventure Ride, another unique experience, has special features to help make the ride more personal for guests. According to Andy Marvin, the creative lead at LEGOLAND, the ride will use facial recognition technology to create a digital mini figure of yourself that you will be able to interact with. This technology is the first of its kind, and the ride itself will only be available at the LEGOLAND New York Resort.
Although about one third of the park is still under construction, and has faced a great challenge due to COVID, Berman is excited for the future. “The delay in opening the park due to the ongoing pandemic has been a difficult experience to overcome,” says Berman, “but we here at LEGOLAND New York are very excited to eventually open this summer to the public.”
There are about 10,000 people expected to visit the amusement park everyday at its peak, but until then the opening will come in phases. The park will gradually allow more guests as it moves through phases, and social distancing rules will be compliant with New York State guidelines. Upon opening, the park will be limited to 33% capacity.
LEGOLAND will be the first major theme park to open in the northeast of the United States in over 40 years. Hoping to attract people from all over the globe, a hotel is being constructed adjacent to the park with 210 rooms to accommodate guests. Tickets to enjoy the fun will be available online, which will cost you $85 for ages 13 years and older, and $75 for 12 years and younger. So, grab the family and make your way down to LEGOLAND to see all the fun for yourself this summer!
