More than 200 guests from Ronald McDonald House Southern California spent time inside Legoland California Resort, trading hospital routines for Halloween-themed rides, monster meet-and-greets and trick-or-treating stations as the Carlsbad theme park hosted its Brick or Treat season. Among the guests were children impacted by childhood cancer, their siblings and their parents, all invited during Childhood Cancer Awareness Month for a day built around them.
The event was made possible through a collaboration between Merlin's Magic Wand Foundation and Ronald McDonald House Southern California, according to Amusement Today. Merlin's Magic Wand, which works with Merlin Entertainments attractions including Legoland, Madame Tussauds and SEA LIFE Aquariums, exists specifically to bring theme-park magic to children and families facing what the foundation calls life's toughest moments, per its own mission statement. Eligible children and their immediate families can receive single-day admission tickets to a Merlin attraction of their choice through the foundation's application process.
Brick or Treat Street and Spooky Makeovers
This year's Brick or Treat introduced Brick or Treat Street, an immersive walkthrough. Young cancer patients and their families also saw spooky makeovers of Galacticoaster and The Dragon, and posed for photos with monster characters and a 17-foot LEGO Halloween Tree, as reported by FOX 5 San Diego.
The overall Halloween season at the Carlsbad park layers in newly transformed attractions, spooky decor, character meet-and-greets and limited-time themed treats, according to the same station's reporting. Brick or Treat activities run through November 1, 2026, and include costume contests, live shows and trick-or-treating at various candy stations. The park's Halloween-themed updates to Galacticoaster were also highlighted by Laughing Place, which described the group attending as 200 special guests taking part in a partnership between Merlin's Magic Wand and Ronald McDonald House of Southern California.
A Camp Built Around Connection
Guests also participated in Camp Ronald McDonald for Good Times, a program for young people diagnosed with cancer and their siblings that helps participants connect with others who have had similar experiences. The camp offers medically supervised residential programs and family support for children with cancer and their families, according to Ronald McDonald House Charities of Southern California.
The camp offers a cost-free, medically supervised, residential camp experience to any child who has or has had cancer, on or off treatment, from infancy through age 26, per the same source. Siblings of the patient and the parents of young cancer patients can also attend, creating free medically supported adventures for the whole family rather than just the child undergoing treatment.
