This two-day excursion to Billund was one part of our week-long Denmark break in May 2025 with my husband, son, and daughter. My son, R, has multiple food allergies to peanuts, tree nuts, sesame, fish, and shellfish. We found Denmark to be not only beautiful, clean, and safe but also very kid-friendly and allergy-aware, which made a huge difference to our experience.

We primarily stayed in Copenhagen during our trip to Denmark and you can read our Copenhagen travel story too. We hired a car and drove to Billund and back. Each drive took about three hours. We stayed at The Lodge for two nights, spending one day at LEGO House and the next at LEGOLAND.

Billund is the place to go for LEGO fans! It is home to LEGO HQ, Lego House and of course a LEGOLAND which boasts not only having the largest LEGO shop in the world but also some exclusive sets that can only be bought there.

There is plenty of information on the LEGOLAND website. Given the location of the two attractions we wanted to visit, we then found a hotel nearby.

1. Hotel
With two-full day activities planned, we prioritised functional elements when looking for accommodation. We found The Lodge Billund to look like a lovely, clean and comfortable hotel within our budget, nearby the main attractions and it offered a great buffet breakfast. We emailed ahead with our son’s food allergies and they confirmed that they could prepare breakfast for him separately. LEGOLAND itself has its choice of hotels too but we really wanted to stay at The Lodge.

2. Supermarkets
We had already established that Netto is a Danish supermarket chain that offers basic goods at affordable prices and one of the most common supermarkets in Denmark. We found one that was driving distance from The Lodge and our attractions, so our “plan B” food-wise was sorted.

3. Hospital
The nearest clinic to LEGO House is Billund Medical Clinic located at Ole Kirks Vej 91, 7190 Billund. It offers a wide range of health services, and is conveniently located near a Netto! Additionally the attractions we wanted to see have plenty of first aid responders on site.

We packed the following:

Medication & Allergy Supplies:
• Four EpiPens (two carried by our son in an EpiBelt; and two extra packed in an Allermates insulated EpiPen Case)
• Extra cetirizine tablets in a labelled tablet holder
• Full reliever and preventer inhalers for both kids, with clean spacers
• BSACI Allergy Action Plan
• BSACI Medical Authorisation for Travel Form
• Other paperwork specific to the severity of my son's allergies unique to him, including our allergist’s phone number

Travel Resources:
• Lonely Planet guidebook
• Equal Eats Danish food allergy translation card
• R learned around 100 Danish words using Duolingo before the trip

Food and Snacks

All food and snacks below are nut-free and sesame-free:

• Nutribrex - R's favourite cereal from home
  
• Sainsbury's Taste the Difference dark chocolate chips from home
  
• Creative Nature top 14 allergen free snacks from home
  
• Leksands Knäckebröd Swedish crackers we brought with us from Copenhagen
  
• Some chocolate covered øgo riskiks rice cakes from Netto
• Oreo Cookies from Netto
  
• Long-life tortilla wraps and cheese slices bought in Netto
  
• OIT food - to maintain my son's treatment plan while on holiday
  
• Water and soft drinks

Given we flew into Copenhagen we could either take public transport or drive to Billund. Both take about 3 hours, but we preferred to drive so we could transport our luggage more easily and to have flexibility to get around Billund when we got there.

The drive was thoroughly enjoyable. The roads were free of traffic and road-works, and showcased remarkable engineering that stood up well to the harsh winter Scandinavian weather. There is one toll to pay, either at the toll itself or in advance like we did at the car-hire office.

When we returned the car (clean of crumbs and in one piece!) we did speak with another family who booked a car for a day-trip to LEGOLAND – three hours drive to Billund to make the 10am opening, day at the theme park and then three hours back to Copenhagen. This option would work well for those not looking to stay the night in Billund and are happy to only spend a day at either the LEGO House or LEGOLAND.

We stayed at the The Lodge for two nights and absolutely loved it there. We received a warm welcome on arrival and waited in the comfortable lounge area while we waited to check in.

After check-in we took the kids swimming in the pool and they had a brilliant time. There was also a pretty communal outdoor patio area with our own table and chairs where we could eat. We ate dinner out here on the second evening which also included R's OIT food. We had a mini-fridge in our room where we stored safe food for R.

The Leaf restaurant inside The Lodge, where they 'serve the best breakfast in town', was fantastic with R. The first morning at breakfast we discussed in detail what R could and couldn't eat. Using our Equal Eats card the restaurant staff member checked food in the kitchen, at the buffet and read labels together with us. We found safe bread for R and she prepared a completely separate safe plate for him. There are loose nuts and seeds at the buffet so it is safer for food to be prepared separately in the kitchen rather than taking from the buffet. They prepared a separate breakfast for R both mornings and were so careful, helpful, kind and polite. We felt very welcome to eat there at breakfast.

Bellini Café & Ristorante

On our first evening in Billund, we went to Bellini Restaurant in Billund. I found it while searching on Tripadvisor. Bellini, an Italian restaurant, came up second on the list of recommended restaurants in the area. We’ve generally had great experiences with Italian cuisine, so I decided to give this one a try. I emailed them earlier that day as we were driving from Copenhagen to Billund. After checking the menu online, I asked if it would be possible for my son to have a Margherita pizza or pasta. They replied within eight minutes, saying that a Margherita pizza would be a safe choice for him, as it didn’t contain any peanuts, tree nuts, sesame, fish, or shellfish. They also added, “We will make sure to prepare it with extra care to avoid cross-contamination. We look forward to welcoming you this evening at 5 pm.”

I was really happy with this response. It made me feel they took my son’s food allergies seriously. When we arrived, we explained his allergies again and handed over our Equal Eats card. The server wasn’t the same person who had replied by email, and her English wasn’t as strong, but she clearly understood the seriousness of the situation using our card. She phoned the staff member who had responded to us and went through everything carefully. Once we’d spoken to the server in person, we were even able to switch to a tuna (the only fish R is not allergic to) pizza, something R enjoys even more than Margherita.

We weren’t able to order the chips, as they were fried alongside other foods and there was a risk of cross-contamination. But the pizza portions were so generous that it didn’t matter. In fact, the pizzas were so huge we ended up taking the leftovers home in the box and had them for dinner the following evening, which we enjoyed on our patio.

Another reason we booked this one ahead of time as the local restaurants can get very busy if lots of people are at the attractions during the day. For those avoiding gluten, they also have gluten-free options on the menu.

The restaurant is also walking distance to LEGO House, and even when LEGO House is closed it is still worth visiting as you can climb up the building and play in the play areas around the facility.

LEGO House Mini Chef

For lunch during our day at LEGO House the MINI CHEF restaurant on site was on our bucket list! The kids were so very excited to eat here. It is quite the experience – you order food using LEGO (of course...) by assembling your order with the bricks provided and then placing them into the robotic terminal on every table. Food is then “built” by the robots and sent down a mechanical system where you go and collect it when you order is ready.

Pre booking is essential to avoid disappointment on the day, the restaurant is very popular. Also, we rang ahead weeks before our trip to check whether R could eat there and they were able to confirm he could.

The menu is fairly streamline. The allergy information is excellent and very clear. It was available on the table already next to the main menus. Additionally, there are actually waiting staff you can talk to. We told our server Tobias about R's allergies and he was brilliant and said 'I want you all to feel safe' totally unprompted. Tobias listed R's allergens on the order, made a special substitution (as you can ordinarily only order one item for each section) and spoke to the chefs in the kitchen. He took a photo of our Equal Eats card and showed the chefs to ensure no cross contamination.

There are no nuts in the kitchen. The seasonal roasted roots had sesame seeds so we avoided those. The chips are fried separately in rapeseed oil so were safe for R.

While you wait for your food, there are piles of red LEGO bricks near each table to play with which the kids really enjoyed.

Overall this was a brilliant experience and I highly recommend coming here to eat but remember to book in advance.

Café BRICKACCINO

Another LEGO House eating option is the café BRICKACCINO. This can be accessed both outside and inside the experience. There is clear allergy information here too. The cakes are individually wrapped and bought in so we managed to find some options for R, so much so we couldn't decide between the carrot cake and chocolate brownie. So we had both!

LEGOLAND

LEGOLAND itself is filled with a variety of options, and all of the allergen information is available for each place on the same website.

Incredibly once inside LEGOLAND, we discovered that the LEGO shaped chocolate was R safe, so we all tried the chocolate. We went to Dolly's Coffee Shop where the chocolate is laid out with all the other cakes. We noted that the Lego chocolate did not contain nuts or any of R's other allergens . The staff member was so kind and put on some clean gloves and took Lego chocolate from out the back which hadn't touched any other cakes.

We brought our own packed lunch and snacks for LEGOLAND. We didn't eat in any of the restaurants. There are lots of picnic areas and benches to eat your own food and we found a lovely area to enjoy our lunch.

Netto was our go-to supermarket chain while in Denmark. There is a Netto just along the road from LEGO House. We got some food here for our evening meal on the second night, as well as some additional food items for our drive back to Copenhagen.

For fans of LEGO, the two main attractions are the LEGO House and LEGOLAND itself.

LEGO House

The building itself is worth visiting for its architectural beauty and to play around it on the various climbing frames and giant sized LEGO bricks. The building itself can also be climbed on!

Inside during opening hours, the shop, restaurant and cafe are accessible to the public but the main experience needs to be paid for.

We bought tickets in advance, scanned the QR code and got our wrist bands to enter.

The Experience itself has a little something for everyone: incredible sculptures to admire, LEGO landscapes to view and many interactive activities that involve building things with LEGO.

You can make fish that swim in a digital ocean, build cars to race on ramps and make mini figures that can then be transformed into dancing versions of themselves on a big screen.

We also made a mini stop-motion film with LEGO too. Note the wrist band has a QR code to enable you download all the digital material you create 29 days after your visit.

You are free to come and go from the Experience if you want to lunch elsewhere, and you get a bag of six red bricks at the exit which are literally made there and then to show the manufacturing process.

Parking is available round the corner in a designated carpark.

LEGOLAND

The LEGOLAND Billund is not too dissimilar from its twin in Windsor, England. There is a LEGO mini-city where famous landmarks and buildings are made in LEGO. The theme park also has other zones with several rides in each – you can see on the information screens the approximate queue times for each and queue jumps are available.

We started at the farthest end and went on the LEGO Movie 2 virtual reality ride first (note the voice overs are in Danish) and then worked our way back picking off a rollercoaster here and there. We went on some calmer rides too and enjoyed looking at all the LEGO sculptures and scenes contained within.

As mentioned, the shop at the entrance is the biggest in the world and has some exclusive sets that cannot be bought anywhere else. There are a few smaller shops scattered around the theme park too.

You can buy a combi ticket for both the LEGO House and LEGOLAND, where you select the date of your LEGO House visit and then you can go to LEGOLAND any day up to 6 days before or after that date.

Teddy Bear Art Museum

Near LEGO House is a sweet museum filled with over 1200 teddy bears from a range of historical periods and geographical regions. There is a cafe and garden too, and it might be an option for anyone looking to take a break from the brick.

We didn’t experience any specific challenges over and above what we normally contend with when trying to find somewhere allergy safe to eat.

1. When it came to food labelling, there was a bit of a lottery when it came to the other languages that were also included on the back – sometimes English was there, but other times it was just other European languages which made it a bit tricky using Google lens/translate as it detected more than one language.

2. English is widely spoken.

3. In some restaurants, staff don’t speak Danish, they speak English so having both languages on the Equal Eats cards is really helpful.

4. Staff are very friendly and a lot of restaurants are allergy-aware.

My three travel tips are:
1. If you want to do both LEGO House and LEGOLAND then get the combi ticket
2. Book the LEGO House mini chef restaurant in advance if you want to eat there
3. Be sure to explore the LEGO House building itself, even if you don’t pay for entry. It’s a fun experience, and there are climbing frames around to enjoy.

Billund very much has the feel of a university campus – quite small, clean and ultimately set up around the main LEGO attractions. There is an airport into Billund for direct travel, but we found it worked well when coupled with time in Copenhagen too.

We had the best time in Billund and the kids are asking if they can go again!