Legoland California Brings Holiday Cheer To Ronald McDonald House

SAN DIEGO, CA — Legoland California Resort brought holiday cheer Friday to the families at Ronald McDonald House of San Diego.

Families were treated to festive activities and special entertainment from the Carlsbad-based theme park's Holidays at Legoland event, including the park's carolers, Lego costume characters, Lego building, holiday gifts, and a surprise visit from Lego Santa and his elves. Volunteers from Merlin's Magic Wand, the official children's charity of Merlin Entertainments, also served lunch to families during the festivities.

Prior to the start of the special preview, the park gifted $35,000 to help support the Ronald McDonald House Charities of San Diego and Southern California in their mission to provide vital support to families with children undergoing treatment for serious health conditions.

"It's through partnerships with organizations like Legoland California Resort that our families are able to experience a sense of normalcy — an invaluable feeling around the holiday season," said Chuck Day, CEO of Ronald McDonald House Charities of San Diego. "Whether it's bringing magical experiences right to the House, or generous donations that allow us to provide necessities and services to our families every single day, we're honored to have support from Merlin's Magic Wand in keeping families close."

The park's annual holiday event kicked off Saturday and runs on select dates through Jan. 5, 2025.

The park has transformed into an "elf extravaganza" with festive décor, twinkling lights and falling snow. For the first time, Legoland visitors can train to become an elf at the new Elf Training Academy, take "elfies" with the all-new Lego elf characters, Ivy and Frode, or master their jolly good dance moves at the new Holly Hype Dance Party. Kids can also mail letters to Santa by dropping them in a special mailbox for the North Pole Postal Service.

A highlight of Holidays at Legoland is the annual tree lighting ceremony on Dec. 6. The evening will feature the lighting of the park's Lego Christmas tree, decked out with more than 500 LED lights and 40 Lego candles, followed by a fireworks display. This will be the first of the season's firework shows happening every Saturday in December and nightly between Dec. 21 and 30.

All holiday festivities, including the tree lighting ceremony, are included with general park admission and select annual passes.