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What do you think is the most improved park?


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CGA operations are amazing, among the best in the country.

For real for real? Granted, I don't recall having any serious complaints about operations in 2009 (I just remember they were huge on saying "check" after each restraint check, and I kinda hoped not all CF parks did that). But if they've become outstandingly good, that's awesome.

 

I was a little shocked too when I heard they won an "excellent operations" award of some sorts (can't remember who from) along with Cedar Point and Holiday World. Good for them!

 

Especially with Railblazer this year and the big future planned ahead, I think CGA is definitely worthy of most improved.

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I'm basing this entirely on my visits in 2014, but I thought their operations were a mixed bag.

 

The best rides- Flight Deck, Logger's Run (RIP), and Drop Tower were super fast loaders. It was particularly impressive they could dispatch Flight Deck without stacking since that coaster is such a short ride.

 

Gold Striker always had an hour queue, but it wasn't the fault of the employees. I rarely saw it stack.

 

But then there's Grizzly. Grizzly had one train operations and because the asinine seat belt, lap bar, and seat belt (yes there are two seat belts) combo, dispatches are easily 5 minutes.

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Six Flags America, from what I heard, had an atrocious reputation ten years ago, one that it doesn't deserve any more judging from my visits. Still not a full-day park - the StarFlyer is a step in the right direction, but the back of the park is still in need of at least a restroom and another ride.

 

Hmm... I'm not really sure if I follow. The park is about the same, or even worse than it was in 2001. And that's saying something. Since 2001, the park has pretty much added the Iron Wolf from SFGam, a mediocre 1st generation stand-up, a Wild Mouse, a few insignificant mediocre flat rides. Since then, they've lost Two Face, Iron Eagle (probably not the best non-coaster ride at the park) and a few insignificant flat rides. So its a park pretty much equipped with 90's style rides, as we're approaching the 2020's... not good.

 

I think that the former Paramount parks have gentrified since they've been acquired by Cedar Fair. KI was once a premier park in the 70's, but with the swing and miss with SOB, as well as the competition from CP and SFO, it had some pretty bad days. Its been coming along lately. The other parks pretty much all have hypers, if not gigas to add to their list. I think that they're all 14-18 coaster parks now (maybe with the exception of Great America). I think that the TLC from Cedar Fair, as well as a rebounding economy, and new innovations in the industry has helped those parks.

 

Its really funny that you mention that park. It manages to keep stagnating and going backwards despite all of these factors, and being a in a lucrative DC market.

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As far as SFA... when I moved here 18 years ago it was cool having a park close by. Ten years ago you could not have paid me to go. Season passes the past few years. The metal detectors were probably the key improvement. Which is funny since places like Disney have them now.

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All of the Cedar Fair parks that were acquired from Paramount. CGA got Gold Striker, a Floorless re-do of Vortex, and now Railblazer, Kings Island gets Diamondback, Banshee, and Mystic Timbers. Carowinds gets Intimidator and Fury 325, Kings Dominion gets Dominator, Intimidator 305, and now Twisted Timbers, and Canada's Wonderland gets Behemoth, Leviathan, and the unannounced B&M Dive Coaster.

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SFA had a completely closed, bad looking area you had to walk through to get to Wild One 8-10 years ago so yeah they've improved, now it looks great and you don't even have to go through that way anymore due to the new path. But they haven't done enough on rides, they had just sunk so low.

 

Kings Dominion is probably beat in new rides over the last 10 years by someone, but in terms of reversing a slide into inferiority to their closest competition they've done it.

 

If the question had been over the last 20 years, this would have been night and day comparisons. That I'm wanting to go back to Carowinds ...

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As Kings Island has already been mentioned, my pick is Carowinds. It has drastically changed since I first went there in 2011. They've added Fury, new flats in a newly relocated County Fair section that originally was a dead area, a very much needed overhaul of the water park to become Carolina Harbor despite the loss of Thunder Road, the addition of Harmony Hall that was once a large vacant spot of land, and now a remodeled Camp Snoopy and relocated Carousel. That's a lot in a short time.

 

Makes me want to go back down there soon.

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I don't have much of an opinion here since I've been only going to parks regularly for the last 4 years or so, but I think Great Adventure deserves a mention (though I'm sure many wouldnt say its MOST improved).

 

But just in the last few years I've been going:


  • -HITP
    -the water tower
    -removal of rotting lumber/add Zumanjaro/Diablo
    -parking lot repave
    -the JLBFM/Old Country improvements
    -Skull Mountains waterfall
    -Grandstand/Ft Independence/Joker/Harley Quinn repaint/theme
    -Skybar/that new bar near RMT
    -Caribbean Cove
    -incoming Solar Farm

 

Now if we could just some paint slapped on some coasters and a giant frisbee.

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People are onto something with the Cedar Fair parks--I'm impressed with a lot of the updates I've read about. Carowinds was easily my least favorite CF park when I visited in 2012, but I'm geared up to possibly be pleasantly surprised next time around (PS: okay, maybe Dorney ties for worst--I was originally more of a fan, but a second trip ground that positive sentiment into oblivion). Some of the better ones have climbed even higher, like Kings Dominion. And I never was a fan of CGA, but they seem to be on a turnaround. I'm not huge on Knott's either, but comparing past reviews to current opinions, they're certainly on an upswing.

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All of the SeaWorld Parks

 

They improved people's opinions on Private companies going public.

 

 

But being serious, Azoosment? They went from Satan's Tampon (My friend hates dirty jokes but loves that one Robb) to something that's gonna add a wooden coaster in the next couple of years.

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I would have to give the nod to DCA as well. If you all only knew what a joke of a park that place was in its infancy with so many horrible mistakes in terms of rides, theming, complete lack of story, cheap neon & stucco everywhere not to mention bare concrete slabs. The best areas of the park were Hollywood Pictures Backlot and Paradise Pier. One of those areas featured the awful Superstar Limo and a giant dead end, while the other had a coaster that was totally unthemed with a title that was a bad play off the title of a Mammas & the Pappas old song. And this is Disney? Really?? When I went to Japan in 2006 & 7, I only momentarily thought of DisneySea in the same context of DCA in terms of both being 2nd gate parks, and openly loudly laughed at the thought. Then consider that DCA and the legendary Disneyland just a 2 minute walk away were priced the same in terms of non-AP admission, and there was no 1-day park hopper option. No human being in their right mind would pay the same for the steaming pile of crap next door that they would for Disneyland, and DCA's alarming lack of attendance in its early years showed it.

 

Since then, I don't think any one park with Disney's name on it has seen more improvements made than DCA has. They've righted almost all the wrongs, and added some amazing areas like Cars Land, BV Street, Carthay Circle, the extension of Grizzly Peak through past Soarin', and greatly improved Paradise Pier/Park with the addition of Midway Mania and Little Mermaid rides. Pixar Pier is finally cleaning up one of the last vestiges of the old DCA where the ferris wheel and former Maliboomer were. The expanded Cove Bar had crazy lines most every night. Even the new Guardians of the Galaxy theme of the old Tower of Terror is a tremendous improvement and people seem to be having a lot more fun, despite the crazy ToT fanboys. All that together with World of Color, the annual events like Food & Wine and Festival of Holidays, upscale dining at Carthay, character meet n' greets with Oswald and so forth, and DCA is finally a park that can stand next to a park like Disneyland and be able to not look like a total joke by comparison. Since most of DLR's attendance comes from locals who go all the time, the bar is raised that much higher since frequent visitors of any park tend to nitpick more, and I think DCA finally holds its own there.

 

DCA is still no DisneySea by any stretch of the imagination, but it's gone from a total and complete joke to a legitimate 2nd gate offering. With its future bright in terms of expanded Marvel offerings possibly coming, the Pixar theme going into Paradise Pier, Paint the Night going in this year and staying for who knows how long, hopefully the momentum can continue.

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This one is not mentioned as much but Indiana Beach. I went in 2012 and 2011 and the operations were so bad. One car for Steel Hawg, LOCOSUMO was closed, Double Shot was closed. The park in terms of aesthetics was so gross. When I went in 2017 it was much cleaner and better maintained. Also in 2012 Falling Star was in pieces, and it had been for years but in 2017 it was operating. Maybe not the MOST improved but its improvement is worthy of recognition in my eyes.

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I agree about the CF parks, but I am going to go local and say Waldameer.

 

Since 2000, they have added a Mauer spinning coaster, the X-Scream drop tower, a Disk-O, a Musik Express on steroids, a Wave Swinger, a multi-million dollar expansion of Water World, several new kiddie rides, improved landscaping - and of course, that wooden coaster that keeps landing in everyone's Top Ten roller coaster list.

 

Now if they would only sell beer...

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There's a lot of parks that could be mentioned here for just adding rides. But I'd have to go with parks that were shut down and then reopened again. Kentucky Kingdom and Alabama Splash Adventure did that. It takes a lot of get a park operating again and to me that's the most impressive.

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Its a very small park, but its gone from one of the absolute worst parks ive visited to one of my favorites in just 5 years or so. Frontier City. This park used to be one of the worst due to little to no maintenance on the rides, 5-10+ minute dispatches on coasters that only have 1 train, many closed rides, buildings and theming in disrepair, horrible food quality, rude employees, and a complete disregard to customer satisfaction. But ever since some management changes around 2013-2014, the quality of the park has skyrocketed! Maintenance is actually very good now, rides have fresh paint, theming has been repaired or even added, closed rides have been refurbished and reopened, operations have improved and are some of the best 1 train operations at any park in the region with 30 - 60 second dispatches. They've got some good food now too. They've also added some fantastic new attractions such as Gunslinger and practically opening a waterpark on site. Its just really hard to describe the changes in this park in the last few years in words, its just something you have to experience. It almost feels like a completely different park than it was 5 years ago.

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For me, Oaks park in Portland may be the most improved. Replacing a Pinfari with a Gertslauer is an enormous improvement that will get me to go there on all my visits to Portland (several times a year). Without this, the odds of a return were very low. It's not of national significance like a new RMC somewhere, but I look forward to the change.

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