Lego held its first Kids Fest in Boston and I took the family up for session one of the first day. After getting a late start we arrived at the convention center at 0930 and were greeted with a line that literally wrapped around the front of the building three times. Considering that the center opened its doors at 0700 and the show doors opened at 0900 the length of the line was surprising, as was the forty-five minute wait in it until we got inside.
Entering the hall the first thing you see was a automobile display, not a LEGO car mind you and it was a strange first sight to see as well as a sign of the advertising to come. In the first room there were a lot of full sized displays like the Batman and C-3PO statues, the roving train ride ($3), slot cars ($2) and RC Lego Cars ($3). We started getting the kids passport stamped at the various advertisers and spent the first hour exploring the room.
At that point it was time for the Lego Club Meeting so we headed down the outside hallway to the meeting room and checked in. This was a nice break in the day after all that standing and dealing with the crowds, a nice quiet room with three tables piled high with LEGOs and twenty kids ready to have fun. They were given a half hour to build a Clone Wars themed ship and while they worked various LEGO employees walked around offering advice and help.
Then a Master Builder was introduced and he came in and talked for a bit and then engaged every kid in the room, asking about their ships and making suggestions. He did a really good job getting the kids to open up and had the kids excited that he liked their work. By then the hour was just about done and a costumed Max came in for photos with the kids and then gift bags were handed out as we left. The bags contained a poster, Max minifig, Star Wars BrickMaster set and sticker. Very cool and worth the extra $15 for the break and relaxed pace. The only downside was that the kids did not get to keep their ships - considering the tables were stocked with nothing but common pieces I would encourage LEGO to add a few dollars to the price and let them take their creation, especially after the LEGO Master Builder praised it.
We headed back out to the floor and noticed a dramatic reduction in the amount of people, maybe they went through the show in two hours and left but it was a pleasant surprise. We hit the second room and enjoyed some of the events there. They had small baseplates and bricks available for people to build a small creation which was then placed into a huge outline of the United States on the floor; as the fest went on the map filled up and some of the builds were very impressive. The kids loved seeing their creations placed into part of something bigger so that was a great success.
Next up they had custom 10x10 plates which were part of a large wall mural. Each plate was color coded and you had to fill it with 1 stud bricks of the proper color before it was turned in and pounded into place in the mural. We did not get to see enough of it finished to see what it was but my daughter got to build a solid red part of the LEGO logo and, again, loved to see her work contribute to something cool.
They had a section of local landmarks like Fenway Park, the Old Meeting House and Boston Commons but what we did not realize the first time we checked it out was that you could receive two 1 stud bricks and use them to vote for your favorite creations.
There were also more displays in the second room that were stunning to see up close and personal including a great beach scene that had an underwater scene below it, it was stunning to see in person.
We got the rest of the passport stamps we needed and headed back to turn them in. We were offered one of three gifts; a duck tours temporary tattoo, a sticker, or an exclusive LEGO Fest minifig. Hmmm... despite my daughter asking for a sticker I had to use a parent veto and grab the minifig.
There was a LEGO Club section where they had talks with Master Builders and had open builds, a section for home made creations, a stage for quizzes and sing-alongs, and of course the infamous LEGO Fest store. The store was filled with most current sets including the unreleased holiday set but you would think they were giving sets away watching people leaving with multiple $100+ sets in their bags. I asked the attendant if there was anything special inside and was told that everything was regular retail price. She did give me a five dollar off coupon good at the local LEGO stores (not valid at the fest) and I avoided the huge line to get in.
By then the first session was drawing to a close so we made our way to the exits and went into the Prudential Center next door, grabbed some grub and sat outside eating while doing a little people watching. By the time we were done it was almost time for the second session to begin but I was in no mood to wait in a huge line again so we did a little recon and the front of the building was clear! We walked right on in, got into a smallish line and within minutes we were back inside, what a nice surprise and it had us wishing we came for the second session in the first place. As the crowds surged into the first room we made a bee-line to the second room and got to enjoy the statues and displays in relative peace before letting the kids enjoy the free bouncies for a while. By then the crowd had filled in the second room to the point where I changed my mind and was now grateful we went to the first session - it was so crowded that I had to pick up my daughter so she would not get knocked over. Since we had seen everything and the crowd was getting crazy we made our way to the exit.
While passing the passport booth we heard a bunch of parents angrily complaining to each other that all they got for completing the passport was a sticker that was being given away free at the Duck Tours booth. This naturally got my curiosity up so I inquired about it and was told that the passport supervisor directed them to stop giving out the minifigs and that they had no idea why considering that they had boxes of them. All I know is that I would have been ticked if I spent time working on the passport and all I got was a sticker, and a non-LEGO one at that!
So that was our experience at the LEGO Fest, the kids had a great time and despite some misgivings it was a worthwhile trip.
What I Liked:
- Plenty of creation areas with tons of bricks available
- Amazing statues and displays
- Lots of interactive exhibits
- Great LEGO Club Meeting
What I Did Not Like:
- Lack of LEGO memorabilia - no stickers or pins for the kids who completed tasks, no LEGO Fest themed merchandise and no show exclusives.
- There was a lot of advertising and booths that had nothing to do with LEGO. No thanks on that New York Times subscription offer.
- A forty-five minute wait to get in?
- Too many people. Perhaps they could cut back the sessions a bit, have three per day with fewer in at a time or just sell fewer tickets. I am not sure but I heard some parents at the second session planning to leave after an hour and then come back later and hope for a smaller crowd.
- $35 to park?
Overall:
We had a great time but the costs (besides admission which I found acceptable) added up quickly and the number of people crammed into the show made it difficult to get to exhibits and navigate. I was planning on going to the Hartford show in December but at this point I am probably not going to unless I heard about improvements from the Chicago and New York shows. Still, I am rooting for them to continue to improve and hopefully learn from their mistakes.
If You Plan To Attend:
- Arrive early and be prepared to wait.
- Don't get stuck in the first area when you first arrive, head to the deepest part of the show to explore in peace.
- Don't be afraid to leave for an hour and come back when the crowd has thinned out.
- Splurge for the LEGO Club Meeting, try to schedule it in the middle of the show for a nice break.
- If you attend the club meeting take advantage of the second session tickets. Use the hour break between session to eat outside of the show to save money.
- Check with the passport table to see if they have anything worth the effort of collecting the stamps. If not then spend the extra time exploring.
