Latest news with #Legoland
The Independent
8 hours ago
- Business
- The Independent
World's largest Legoland set to open with replica of iconic skyline
Legoland Shanghai, poised to become the world's largest version of the popular theme park, is set to open its gates on July 5, marking a significant expansion into the Chinese market. Among its star attractions is expected to be a meticulously crafted mini replica of the Shanghai waterfront and the towering skyscrapers of the Lujiazui financial district, all constructed from the iconic colourful plastic bricks. The sprawling resort, the first of its kind in China, boasts eight distinct themed sections familiar to Lego enthusiasts, including Ninjago, Lego Friends, and Monkie Kid lands. These areas bring classic Lego pieces to life, featuring supersized constructions designed to immerse visitors in the vibrant world of Lego. While the scale of some attractions may not meet every visitor's initial grand expectations, the overall experience appears to resonate. Lyu Xiaole, a seven-year-old who secured a coveted pre-opening ticket, remarked: "I thought it would be huge, but it turned out to be half of the scale I dreamed ... But the attractions are beyond my expectation." The park's launch comes at a time when China's economy has faced headwinds, including weak consumer spending, a prolonged property slump, and high youth unemployment. However, Legoland Shanghai is banking on the resilience of domestic travel and the robust "experience" economy, sectors that have demonstrated continued strength despite broader economic challenges. Legoland Shanghai is operated by a joint venture between Merlin Entertainments, which runs Legoland parks around the world, and the Shanghai Jinshan District local government. The replica of downtown Shanghai and the city's waterfront is housed in the "Miniland" building at the site, where skyscrapers face the colonial era splendour of buildings along Shanghai's famed Bund promenade. The Miniland creations took 168,000 hours to complete, using more than 20 million bricks. "I think it's best to play Lego in Legoland because I have much less Lego at my place," said seven-year-old Shen Jieqi. Lego, the Danish family-owned toymaker that produces the bricks, is a familiar name in China where it has more than 400 stores. In Shanghai, Legoland will offer another leisure space in the city for those who can afford it. Tickets will start from 319 yuan ($44.46) in low season and up to 599 yuan on peak days. "We came very early in the morning. The atmosphere in the park is very joyful. The staff are full of passion," said Huang Xuanhua, 44, who lives close by the resort in Shanghai's Jinshan district and visited on Friday. "It has been a joyful day." ($1 = 7.1756 Chinese yuan renminbi)
Straits Times
8 hours ago
- Entertainment
- Straits Times
World's largest Legoland set to open in Shanghai on July 5
Visitors ride on a rollercoaster during the press day in the new Legoland in Shanghai, China. PHOTO: EPA-EFE SHANGHAI – One of the star attractions at Legoland Shanghai, which officially opens on July 5, is likely to be a mini replica of the Shanghai waterfront and skyscrapers of the Lujiazui financial district, all built in colourful plastic bricks. The Shanghai resort, which will be the world's biggest Legoland so far and the first in China, features eight themed sections that will feel familiar to fans of Lego. They include Ninjago, Lego Friends and Monkie Kid lands, in which classic Lego pieces are brought to life and supersized – though not big enough to meet everyone's expectations. 'I thought it would be huge, but it turned out to be half of the scale I dreamed… But the attractions are beyond my expectation,' said Lyu Xiaole, a very grown-up seven-year-old whose family were among those able to get limited tickets for a pre-opening visit on June 20. China's economy has been hit by weak consumer spending in recent years amid a prolonged property slump and high youth unemployment, but Legoland Shanghai will be counting on resilient domestic travel and 'experience' spending that have remained strong. Legoland Shanghai is operated by a joint venture between Merlin Entertainments, which runs Legoland parks around the world, and the Shanghai Jinshan District local government. The replica of downtown Shanghai and the city's waterfront is housed in the 'Miniland' building at the site, where skyscrapers face the colonial era splendour of buildings along Shanghai's famed Bund promenade. The Miniland creations took 168,000 hours to complete, using more than 20 million bricks. The replica of downtown Shanghai featuring the city's famed Bund promenade is housed in the 'Miniland' building at the site. PHOTO: REUTERS 'I think it's best to play Lego in Legoland because I have much less Lego at my place,' said seven-year-old Shen Jieqi. Lego, the Danish family-owned toymaker that produces the bricks, is a familiar name in China where it has more than 400 stores. In Shanghai, Legoland will offer another leisure space in the city for those who can afford it. Tickets will start from 319 yuan (S$57) in low season and up to 599 yuan on peak days. 'We came very early in the morning. The atmosphere in the park is very joyful. The staff are full of passion,' said Mr Huang Xuanhua, 44, who lives close by the resort in Shanghai's Jinshan district and visited on June 20. 'It has been a joyful day.' REUTERS Join ST's Telegram channel and get the latest breaking news delivered to you.
Zawya
9 hours ago
- Entertainment
- Zawya
World's largest Legoland set to open in Shanghai
One of the star attractions at Legoland Shanghai, which officially opens on July 5, is likely to be a mini replica of the Shanghai waterfront and skyscrapers of the Lujiazui financial district, all built in the colourful plastic bricks. The Shanghai resort, which will be the world's biggest Legoland so far and the first in China, features eight themed sections that will feel familiar to fans of Lego. They include Ninjago, Lego Friends and Monkie Kid lands, in which classic Lego pieces are brought to life and supersized - though not big enough to meet everyone's expectations. "I thought it would be huge, but it turned out to be half of the scale I dreamed ... But the attractions are beyond my expectation," said Lyu Xiaole, a very grown-up seven-year-old whose family were among those able to get limited tickets for a pre-opening visit on Friday. China's economy has been hit by weak consumer spending in recent years amid a prolonged property slump and high youth unemployment, but Legoland Shanghai will be counting on resilient domestic travel and "experience" spending which have remained strong. Legoland Shanghai is operated by a joint venture between Merlin Entertainments, which runs Legoland parks around the world, and the Shanghai Jinshan District local government. The replica of downtown Shanghai and the city's waterfront is housed in the "Miniland" building at the site, where skyscrapers face the colonial era splendour of buildings along Shanghai's famed Bund promenade. The Miniland creations took 168,000 hours to complete, using more than 20 million bricks. "I think it's best to play Lego in Legoland because I have much less Lego at my place," said seven-year-old Shen Jieqi. Lego, the Danish family-owned toymaker that produces the bricks, is a familiar name in China where it has more than 400 stores. In Shanghai, Legoland will offer another leisure space in the city for those who can afford it. Tickets will start from 319 yuan ($44.46) in low season and up to 599 yuan on peak days. "We came very early in the morning. The atmosphere in the park is very joyful. The staff are full of passion," said Huang Xuanhua, 44, who lives close by the resort in Shanghai's Jinshan district and visited on Friday. "It has been a joyful day." ($1 = 7.1756 Chinese yuan renminbi) (Reporting by Casey Hall and Xihao Jiang; Editing by Susan Fenton)
Reuters
9 hours ago
- Entertainment
- Reuters
World's largest Legoland set to open in Shanghai
SHANGHAI, June 20 (Reuters) - One of the star attractions at Legoland Shanghai, which officially opens on July 5, is likely to be a mini replica of the Shanghai waterfront and skyscrapers of the Lujiazui financial district, all built in the colourful plastic bricks. The Shanghai resort, which will be the world's biggest Legoland so far and the first in China, features eight themed sections that will feel familiar to fans of Lego. They include Ninjago, Lego Friends and Monkie Kid lands, in which classic Lego pieces are brought to life and supersized - though not big enough to meet everyone's expectations. "I thought it would be huge, but it turned out to be half of the scale I dreamed ... But the attractions are beyond my expectation," said Lyu Xiaole, a very grown-up seven-year-old whose family were among those able to get limited tickets for a pre-opening visit on Friday. China's economy has been hit by weak consumer spending in recent years amid a prolonged property slump and high youth unemployment, but Legoland Shanghai will be counting on resilient domestic travel and "experience" spending which have remained strong. Legoland Shanghai is operated by a joint venture between Merlin Entertainments, which runs Legoland parks around the world, and the Shanghai Jinshan District local government. The replica of downtown Shanghai and the city's waterfront is housed in the "Miniland" building at the site, where skyscrapers face the colonial era splendour of buildings along Shanghai's famed Bund promenade. The Miniland creations took 168,000 hours to complete, using more than 20 million bricks. "I think it's best to play Lego in Legoland because I have much less Lego at my place," said seven-year-old Shen Jieqi. Lego, the Danish family-owned toymaker that produces the bricks, is a familiar name in China where it has more than 400 stores. In Shanghai, Legoland will offer another leisure space in the city for those who can afford it. Tickets will start from 319 yuan ($44.46) in low season and up to 599 yuan on peak days. "We came very early in the morning. The atmosphere in the park is very joyful. The staff are full of passion," said Huang Xuanhua, 44, who lives close by the resort in Shanghai's Jinshan district and visited on Friday. "It has been a joyful day." ($1 = 7.1756 Chinese yuan renminbi)
The Star
9 hours ago
- Business
- The Star
Legoland Shanghai a key brick to building toy brand in China
Lego has continued to be the biggest player in the construction toys market for 'kidults' in the Chinese market. — Xinhua SHANGHAI: The Lego Group is viewing China as a high-potential market, as the toymaker gears up to open its much-anticipated Legoland Shanghai Resort on July 5. Julia Goldin, chief product and marketing officer at Lego, said during her recent trip to Shanghai: 'With more than 400 retail stores across over 100 Chinese cities, we're committed to expanding our presence with a portfolio of products tailored for Chinese consumers.' The senior executive visited the city to activate the World Play Day with key events in Shanghai, Berlin, Boston and London. The initiative aims to inspire children and families to reimagine urban spaces through the lens of play. Launched last Wednesday, World Play Day, which opened at the West Bund Dream Centre, will run through July 27. The campaign comes as new research commissioned by Lego showed a growing disconnect between urban development and child-friendly planning. Nearly a third of the world's children live in urban areas, and this is projected to rise to 70% by 2050. Yet, many of these children feel overlooked in city planning. The study, which surveyed 10,000 parents and 10,000 children aged 6 to 16 across the world, including Britain, the United States, France and Poland, found that urban centres are generally falling short in providing safe and inclusive spaces for play. 'Play should not be limited to homes and schools. It should extend into our streets, parks and public spaces,' said Goldin. The Shanghai event coincides with a broader push by the toymaker to widen its reach in China, particularly in the year when Legoland Shanghai Resort is scheduled to open next month. Covering 318,000 square metres in the city's Jinshan district, the resort, which is the world's largest Legoland, comprises a theme park and a hotel for children aged two to 12 and their families. It features more than 75 interactive rides, shows and attractions, as well as thousands of Lego models made with over 85 million Lego bricks across eight immersive 'lands'. Goldin said that, in addition to the resort, locally relevant products, including the Shanghai Skyline set, the Lego Botanical Collection featuring Chinese flora, and the Monkie Kid series inspired by traditional Chinese mythology, are key to better resonating with local consumers. Niels B. Christiansen, chief executive officer of the group, said earlier this year that 2025 is a big year for the Lego brand in China, pointing to a series of brand activities designed to engage a wide spectrum of consumers, from children to adult fans. Clifton Chiu, senior analyst at Euromonitor International, said Lego has continued to be the biggest player in the construction toys market for 'kidults' in the Chinese market, with its roster of 18-plus sets. To engage with evolving fans worldwide, the toymaker is also leveraging global partnerships to tap into consumer passions beyond traditional toy play. The group recently teamed up with sportswear brand Nike and Formula 1 racing to integrate play into sports culture. Chiu said the number of brands Lego has collaborated with recently, such as Formula 1, has further increased its popularity by introducing racing fans to the Lego space. Goldin said of the team-ups: 'We only pursue these collaborations when we can add extra value to the passion point. — China Daily/ANN
