The Explorers Institute

Tucked away in the centre of LEGO City was the Explorers' Institute. Easy to overlook, this was actually a hugely interesting attraction for those that had never seen it before.

The attraction contained three main areas:

The Rainforest section of the Explorers' Institute

The Egyption section of the Explorers' Institute

The Arctic section of the Explorers' Institute

Scattered throughout these sections were seven keys, with the object being to search high and low to find them. At the end of the exhibit, it was revealed that there were in fact only six keys hidden throughout the areas, with the seventh being the key to the imagination.

Full of lovely detail, the Explorers' Institute unfortunately closed at the end of the 2008 season, to be converted into (wait for it...) a block of toilets. How sad.

LEGOLAND Windsor's official reason for closing was the opening of Kingdom of the Pharaohs, even though the two did not occupy the same space. The following is an excerpt from their website:

"Some models have been salvaged from the old Explorers' Institute walk-through attraction, which has now become a much needed extra toilet block and family room in LEGO City. But they’ve found new homes in Laser Raiders, a ride which would have made Explorer’s Institute look very outdated had it remained."

New rides like Laser Raiders are fantastic, they truely are, but do they really need to be built at the expense of firm favourites like the Explorers' Institute? I wouldn't have thought so, but the park's management clearly disagrees...