Little Big Club

Travel Date: Monday, 24 June 2013
Places of interest: Little Big Club : http://www.playtime.com.my/little-big-club
Airport: Senai International Airport : http://senaiairport.com/index.asp
Airline: AirAsia : http://www.airasia.com/id/id/home.page
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If you heard about Hello Kitty Town in Malaysia, there is another attraction located in the same building, just different floor, called Little Big Club. This attraction, which is spread in 2 floors, displays Thomas and Friends, Barney, Bob the Builder, Pingu, and Angelina Ballerina. Since aL is craaaazyy about Thomas & Friends, we skipped Hello Kitty Town and went straight up to the Little Big Club which is located in the second and third floor. 

As the elevator door was opened, we were welcomed by Angelina Ballerina and Bob the Builder. aL was soo stoked, he went hiding behind me. It was so funny to see my son who was so excited, and choked up when he saw his tv star in real life (Well, I guess we all are!) haha!

We were then greeted by Barney! Once you have kids, it became an idol in the household, haha. aL was getting better meeting the character. He even managed to give Barney a hug.

We arrived few minutes before 10:00am, so we managed to take picture with all the characters who were on the first floor. Around 10:30 Thomas the Tank Engine had its first show, aL was speechless then hysterical! It was so funny. Check the video below, hahaha.

There were live shows of Barney and Thomas. They had kids sing and dance along. So kids would definitely have a good time.

At Angelina Ballerina, girls can have their ballet session with the similar tutu as Angelina. Kids can pretend to build homes at Bobsville. At Barney's area, there is a lounge to watch Barney and playground. For Pingu, there is a playzone, like dingdong area but you do not need coin because it's free!

Thomas & Friends are located in the upper floor. 

Here there are plenty activities kids can play that uses Thomas & Friends characters. From riding Thomas the tank, to bump cars, playground, riding Harold the Helicopter, and many more. 

Of course aL had the best time taking rides on Thomas. At certain times we managed to take pictures with Sir Topham Hat (or Fat Controller). 

There is the professional photographer that will be snapping your pictures. But you can hand them your own camera as well. During my visit, their offer was RM 100 for four pictures size 5R with 1 extra pic in size 8R. There were also options to place it on keychain or fridge magnet.

For meal, you cannot bring outside food/drink. But, they will allow you if you bring your own bottled water and kids snacks in your own container. Inside there are several cafes that provides lunch or snack, so no worries. 

Ticket Pricing and Operating Hours
You can buy tickets prior to arrival on their website http://www.playtime.com.my
The price of Hello Kitty Town and Little Big Club as 2 park pass for RM 110 or RM 75 each. Adults and children price is the same. 

The theme parks open Monday to Sunday 10:00 am - 06:00 pm, closed every Tuesday except Malaysian and Singaporean public holidays / school holidays. 

Location and how to get there

The building is located in Puteri Harbour Family Theme Park, located 15 minutes from Legoland. We took the red taxi from our hotel which was 30 minutes away and the fare was RM 32. But for the return, we took the blue cab and it costed us RM 50.

From Puteri Harbour we saw a shuttle bus with Johor Premium Outlet (JPO) picture all over it. We had planned to go JPO from LBC, but did not know about the shuttle. The fare  was RM 3.40. It was a total bargain as the distance is quite far, near the airport. This shuttle bus (coded JPO 2) route was Legoland - Hello Kitty Town (LBC) - JPO - Airport.

Johor Bahru Trip

Travel Date: Saturday, 22 June 2013 - Tuesday, 25 June 2013
Places of interest: ~ Legoland Malaysia : http://www.legoland.com.my/
                            ~ Little Big Club : http://www.playtime.com.my/little-big-club
                            ~ Johor Premium Outlet : http://www.premiumoutlets.com.my/
Airport: Senai International Airport : http://senaiairport.com/index.asp
Airline: AirAsia : http://www.airasia.com/id/id/home.page
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Airline
So let's start from getting the airfare. I got a bargain airfare from AirAsia (http://www.airasia.com/id/id/home.page), a budget airline and the only one that offers direct flight from Jakarta to Johor Bahru. For 2 adults and 1 child, along with the baggage (depart with 30kgs and return with 55kgs) and meal, I paid approximately Rp. 2.300.000 (USD 230). Isn't it crazy???!!! When you fly with budget airline, there are several things you need to put attention. Try to book the passengers at once along with the baggage allowance, as you can merge the baggage allowances for each person. So, if one got overweight, those who still have some spare weight are able to cover it. Otherwise, the overweight cost is pretty expensive. And don't forget all the troublesome of paying it, going back and forth to the counter. You want to have an enjoyable, fun, and relaxing trip, right? :) But, don't worry about weighing the stroller...it's FREE! Yeay! Just FYI, I ordered extra meals from the flight just in case we were too tired to get out of hotel or whatever reason.

Airport

Then finally we arrive at Senai International Airport (http://senaiairport.com/index.asp). It was a small airport with only four boarding gates, same arrival and departure area. The immigration gates are located fairly close so you wouldn't have a hard time looking for it. Once you finished with the immigration, you head down stairs to pickup your luggage, then find your transportation. There are several methods from renting car, taxi, to bus. We chose taxi. Still inside the building, there is a taxi counter. Just tell them where you are heading and pay the predefined fare to them and nothing else to the taxi driver except the payment slip. My hotel was 30 minutes away and it cost me RM44, at first. Ha! It got you thinking what happened right?! So once I headed to my taxi they couldn't fit my luggage to the sedan type taxi. The taxi coordinator told me to go to the counter again, ask for bigger taxi, and pay additional 50% of my taxi fare. I gotta admit I was kinda irritated. I had my husband to look after aL and the luggage. 

Taxi

So we got the taxi, had a nice driver, chatted to us along the way. As I noticed, there was no meter on the taxi. I asked the driver about it and he told us that this particular taxi only operates to and from airport. For other routes there are two types of taxi differentiated by red color for regular fare and blue for executive taxi. The blue taxi cost almost double to the red one. The taxi driver gave us his card in case we had a hard time getting taxi for our way back to the airport and gave us the same fare for return. Which we did gave him a call for our return trip to the airport. 

Hotel

Finally we arrived at our hotel (http://www.m-suites.com) at almost 5pm (we arrived at 4ish). The name is M Suites Hotel, it has the feeling of an old hotel where some parts have been refurbished. The receptionists were friendly and very accommodating. I asked for a room facing to the Danga Bay, so we would have a little bit of view. The room was fairly big for a studio room. It has kitchenette, but no cutlery whatsoever. But they provided electric water kettle, cups, and tea coffee set. The bathroom is good size, has bathtub, and all the amenities. We spent the rest of the afternoon in the room, settling, and getting prepared for the next day. For the room package, I chose the 2D/1N Legoland package and additional 2 nights on its own. The Legoland Package included the return transport, tickets, and room. It was a pretty good deal. 

Legoland Malaysia

Travel Date: Sunday, 23 June 2013 
Places of interest: Legoland Malaysia : http://www.legoland.com.my/
Airport: Senai International Airport : http://senaiairport.com/index.asp
Airline: AirAsia : http://www.airasia.com/id/id/home.page
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I, first, heard about Legoland Malaysia from a friend who went there during their holiday to Singapore. You can reach Johor from Singapore by car. She also told me about the Hello Kitty Land and Little Big Club. Then I went to search it online. Google is my best friend, Lol! So, I found plenty of hotels offering package with Legoland and Hellokitty (Little Big Club), the rates varies on the hotel room type, transport inclusion, and theme park ticket types.

Legoland
We arrived at around 9:50am at Medini Mall where Legoland was located at the end of it. As it was about to open (10:00am), the employee did a bit of opening show with the dinosaur mascot. 

Once we got in, we tried to decide which way to go. I wanted to do the spinning chair, but aL wanted to join which was not allowed. So, my husband told me to find some other activities. Then as we found "The Forestman Hideout", treetop hideout that aL could get busy with, I went to the rollercoaster near by. It was good to scream out loud, haha!

There are shops around the park so you could cool down from the sun heat! I am telling you, it was BOILING HOT! The tree hasn't really grown all around, so hat, umbrella, and water will totally help.

Kids starting 3 years old are able to enjoy the activities provided. aL had lots of fun riding "Royal Joust", playing at the Duplo Playtown, and drove 10 (yes, TEN!) laps at the Junior Riding School! We had a hard time getting him out of that car.

As a family, we went on with the observation tower. We could see Legoland's 360degrees view from top which was awesome! After that, we went to watch 4D movie at Lego Studio where was nearby. The real effect of water, spray, bubbles were really exciting for kids, and they can sit on their own. We had our lunch at Pizza Mania, surprisingly it was tasty.

As aL went on his nap, my husband and I went around the Miniland where it has miniature of landmarks around Asia. It was incredible to see how many Lego were put into those amazing creations, and all those man hours and effort. 

Finally, around 3:00pm, we got to the end of our park by going into the Big Shop and do what female does best, shopping! You seriously need to stock up here, the prices are cheaper! At least compared when you are buying in Indonesia. They have items that are only available at Legoland. If you have their lunch box or keychain, you can get it engraved there for additional RM10. I wished I had brought mine. 

Overall I had an enjoyable, fun time there. Hope you enjoy my post on Legoland. Feel free to drop me comments / questions.

Enjoy your day :)

Welcome

Hello there,

Welcome to my blog "Travelling with aL". Well, aL is my son's name, he was born in June 2010. 

Some people think travelling with kids, especially underage, are troublesome. I don't remember travelling on my own was more fun than with aL. Obviously, there were times when he has his "moments"! But, I think it still can be manageable as long as you as a parent is confident and believe in yourself not to be driven entirely by your kid(s). And don't forget to enjoy the moments for your own and also see the kids blossom from the travel they gone through.

The world is their playground!