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As some of you may know I am the guy who put off his vacation when Dragster had its accident and I decided I didn’t want to come unless it was replaced or “remastered”. Then when it did come back reimagined I once again stopped my plans when it went down early in the season. And boy am I glad I did wait(more on that later). I stayed at hotel breakers with my mother from July 14-July 19. So I got 4 full park days and a half a day when we arrived because we got to the park at like 2pm. I’ve never done a trip report before so if this is a little rough bear with me. I have tons of thoughts, hot takes and opinions I’d really like to share. Let me start with the good. Immediately upon arriving they were able to accommodate our early check in request and had the room ready. Room was tidy, had no bad smells and had a perfect view of TT2(as I had requested lol). Immediately the hotel staff made us feel very welcome and had no issues answering our questions or taking our trash away. They were very very quick to respond to all requests such as extra blankets or coming by to pick up the trash(we were told to leave it outside the door). This kindness extended to the ride ops and all park staff we encountered. Everyone was super nice! The rides! After hearing on Facebook so many awful accounts of rides being closed that simply wasn’t my experience at all. Yeah Millie and Maverick went down twice at two inconvenient times but other than that I barely ever saw a ride closed. Let’s start with B&M’s. First thing I did was ride gatekeeper in the front row on the left. Starting the ride off with an inversion that flips you over the tracks was an awesome sensation! I really enjoyed it and the gate elements added a lot of fun to the ride experience. Rougaru was meh in terms of layout and honestly I didn’t enjoy it enough to ride more than once. Ironically I think my opinion of it would be far better if it was still a standup ride. But it was by no means bad and I didn’t find that my head banged around too hard. Raptor was awesome! My favorite B&M in the park by a good margin. It had a great layout with wippy inversions and a final helix that seems to go on forever(my favorite part). Unfortunately I do agree with the people who find Valraven very dull. It felt completely forceless to me and honestly I only have two good things to say about it. The smoothness and that last inversion gives you a little bit of hang time. I’m simply not much of a fan of Dive coasters Speaking of Forceless, let’s get to Millie. I have heard this ride called Millennium forcless for as long as I knew it existed. I got a front row seat for the first ride and was immediately struck by the view, the videos don’t do it justice. The first drop was awesome but I immediately greyed out in the helix and went on to grey out twice more in the layout. The ride was smooth and fun but I absolutely did not find it forcless at all! I do prefer Fury but this ride has aged VERY WELL IMO. I greyed out on that first Helix every single time. Magnum. Honestly respect the ride for its history but I hated it. Just too painful and I have massive bruises from it. Corkscrew, Gemini and Blue streak were also not very pleasant to be on and frankly I rode them just to say I tried them lol. The only two coasters I did not ride was Iron Dragon and Cedar creek mine ride. Wild mouse by Zamperla was fun! The only thing wrong with it was its very short layout. Great family ride. Let’s move on to the other Zamperla creation and my new number one coaster. TT2 was worth the wait and then some. Being thrown back at 100mph at like 350 feet was simply incredible. Both in view and strong floater airtime. Going up that top hat was really quite intense and being jerked over it into the downward spiral was nuts(especially back row). It bordered on uncomfortable but man I absolutely loved it guys. I have a TT2 blanket on me as I type this Sirens curse was very fun and while Cedar Point isn’t lacking in great coasters this was more than a solid addition. My only gripe with the ride is that I wish it had a bigger drop. The layout after the drop was really good and had no down time(great pacing). And man it was potentially the smoothest coaster I’ve ever ridden. The Vekoma at my home park is night and day difference in smoothness. Also that light package for nighttime is absolutely gorgeous and the on ride audio was super neat. Not to mention the very good theming around the queue. It’s not Disney, but they clearly cared and it shows. Next up we have two absolute gems! Maverick and Steel Vengeance. Both of these rides lived up to my high expectations. Mavericks low to the ground layout and snappy elements remind you that size isn’t everything. The launch under the station is a genius way to keep the layout compact. And boy at night you feel like you’re getting launched into the wall. Both Maverick and Vengeance are better at night. Steel Vengeance was completely insane. Like to the point I’m still not sure if it’s a great ride just because of the sheer intensity. The layout and ejector airtime simply can’t be appreciated by a forum post or a YouTube video. I would argue that as great as the first half is that the second half is even better. Visually just going through all that wood was so disorienting in the best way possible. And you really feel out of control. It’s probably the most intense ride I’ve ever ridden. I think I do prefer Maverick simply because I found it more comfortable as Steve was hard on my legs. I also loved how the rides very much feel like rivals and that the park embraced that fully with a backstory. The flat rides were good! Max air and skyhawk were standouts. I found power tower to be disappointing. You simply don’t drop far enough imo I really don’t have many negatives but they do exist. I think the employees being forced to ask every single time if you want a souvenir cup even if you’re holding one got old fast. I was very polite to them as I was informed beforehand they get into trouble if they don’t ask. It made me feel sad for them because you always have A Holes who you know treat them badly over it. The breakers wasn’t disgusting or anything but it certainly didn’t feel its price. I understand they’re getting away with that though because it’s simply a 5 star location and the convenience is ridiculously nice. I feel spoiled staying on site. The all season drink plan was so sooooo worth it. Getting to fill your body with power aide came in extremely clutch in the hot weather where it’s a struggle just to stay hydrated. I also really liked the food. Cheese on a stick didn’t disappoint me and the portion of fries with my meal was very large! The macaroni and cheese was to die for as well. We ended up eating outside the park one night at a place that was called Brick oven bistro or something like that. We loved our food and the price was very reasonable. Anyway guys my trip was everything I hoped for and more. The only bad part was my mom didn’t want to ride much. None of my guy friends or coaster buddies were available this summer (work, kids etc etc). But my mom did surprise me. She rode Sirens curse, gatekeeper, Valraven(the GP seem to adore this one) and I somehow talked her into riding Maverick even though she had read how intense it was. She walked away with Maverick being her favorite by far! If you know my mom this was a BIG plot twist lol. Unfortunately on our last night at the park we were in the queue and it broke and never reopened, so she never got her night ride in. Cedar point simply can’t be missed and I’m already hoping to return in a few years. 10/10 trip. I am so jealous some people get this as their home park. And with Kings Island not being too far it’s an embarrassment of riches for Ohio.

I went to the park yesterday & used the Ride Forces app to record forces on The Boss, you can clearly see how much smoother the Titan track is. The first graph is from 2024 recorded by StormSurge9099, & the second graph is the one I recorded yesterday.

Rapterra Takes Flight at Kings Dominion Kings Dominion’s old “safari” section has undergone many changes in the last few years. For example, the park introduced more sci-fi/fantasy elements by retheming it as Jungle X-pedition, where guests can explore the ruins and artifacts of an ancient civilization. Their latest “find” is the lost temple of Rapterra. This shrine was built to honor a legendary gigantic bird of prey that once ruled the skies over the jungle. Those who entered the temple were said to be possessed by the power and will of this ancient predator. A volcanic eruption buried the temple, but it has since been unearthed by archaeologists. But does the giant bird of prey still exist? What better way to tell this story this than with a B&M Launched Wingrider Coaster? Rapterra blasts people out of the station and through a series a twists, inversions, and dives over the caldera of the ancient volcano, which is a nice homage to the ride that once stood on this spot--Volcano: The Blast Coaster. The new ride also reuses Volcano's old gift shop. Kings Dominion invited TPR to ride Rapterra on March 20. It’s a good addition to the park, and the whole entrance plaza, queue, and theming for the ride look great. Let’s take a ride, shall we? You’d better finish any snacks you have on hand, as they could attract unwelcome attention from above. TPR thanks Kings Dominion for the chance to preview Rapterra! The ride officially opens to the public on March 29. The queue is huge. But it will give you time and the proper setting to meditate and prepare yourself to be possessed by Rapterra. Here's the caldera, which serves as a bit of a tribute to Volcano. Much of the rubble here is from the structure of the old ride's mountain. Oh, it's just an ancient archway built in tribute to dangerous god. What could possibly go wrong? "Look on my works, ye Mighty, and despair!" Yes, the queue is nice, but it's time we got to the ride. They've been swept away by Rapterra! Yep--never walk through an ancient archway dedicated to a dangerous god. Looks like a drone has been dispatched to stop Rapterra! (Just kidding--it was part of a video shoot.) Fly, Rapterra, fly! I rather liked this part. But I appreciate big coasters with bunny hills, too. Eventually, Rapterra brings you back to the archaeological dig. I like the what they did with the control-room window--nice theming. Not everything has changed here--for example, this waterfall. Here's a peek at Pantherian (the ride formerly known as Intimidator 305 and one other name that escapes me for the moment). Flight of Fear is being incorporated into the Jungle X-pedition theme somehow, too. It'll be nice for the attractions to fit together better. They gave us some samples of what I presume was the cuisine of the ancient civilization that once existed here. Looks like they were really into smothering cheeseburgers with chicken tenders and bacon. They were, indeed, ahead of their time. I didn't get a sample of the local brew, but it was the CENTER OF THEIR UNIVERSE. How about a few last looks at Rapterra? I like how it flies not only over the caldera but also over the entrance plaza. One last dive and flip before you return to the station. Rapterra soars over the gift shop as I exit. Thanks for reading!

You really don't need to.

Soo after years of saying I wanted to, and my work blessing me with two days off in a row, I finally booked a very last-minute trip and made my way up here on the 17th. With that, the downside to this was that I only had a day in this park but I feel like I made the most of it. I did spend the extra $20 to get the drink pass and upon getting there decided also to buy the express - it looked like it was going to be a busier day in the park, and again I only had a day and wanted to ensure I was able to do everything. I did still miss some stuff, mostly the flatrides and I chose to skip Corkscrew. Steel Vengeance and Maverick are the hidden gems in the back of the park. SV is insane. I went into Maverick blind so I was also pleasantly surprised by it. Both coasters really pack some punches. I did find Maverick to be uncomfortable but that was kinda my own fault - accidentally stapled myself into the restraints. Rougarou exists. Ops were fun though. I kept track of my coaster credits because I wanted #50 (I know, I know... baby numbers) to be one of the crazy ones. After finally seeing TT2 with my own eyes it was kinda intimidating and it took me like all day to psyche myself up to do it. Made Siren's Curse my 50th credit. They put me and another single rider in the front. Terrifying. I'm gonna need that ride audio on Spotify or something though. I love the theming even if it is minimal, though I know its nitpicky, I do wish the track was green or teal instead of red. I just think it'd be more aesthetically pleasing. Iron Dragon is a fun family coaster. Happy I can cross a coaster like that off my list. Took a food break (all the food is great btw!) then did Gemini. Only one train on this day idk if that's a common occurance or not. Had more fun than I thought I would, though I was sat behind a kid who kept flailing his arms backwards and hitting me though, that was a little annoying. Got in line for Millennium Force three separate times (it was soft down the first two, then I had to unload on the third time.) Apparently the gates to get on the ride are suuuuper finnicky, and if people push or pull on them or whatever it can cause the trains to e-stop. Op explained this to everyone in line because I guess that caused a train to e-stop right before the unload. The more you know! Besides that, the actual coaster is very fun. I know it's a mixed bag on here but I found Valravn was very fun. I go back and forth between that and SV being my third favorite coaster here. Also my first experience with a dive coaster so that may be part of it. I survived Blue Streak I liked Raptor. I did not have high expectations because I don't love coasters of that style (please understand my home park is SFDL so my only other experience is Mind Eraser.) Magnum was alright. I fortunately didn't end up with bruises but it was a pretty rough ride. GateKeeper is fun. Literally just felt like I was flying, also adored it being in the front of the park and the 'theming' if you will with that. TT2 ended up being my last ride though not totally by choice. It went down four separate times while I was in line for it. Literally would run a few cycles with people, then would see it was just testing. By #3 I almost cut my losses and was about to just reride some favorites but I was already waiting for that long, I may as well see it through. I did not regret it, I literally don't have words. What an insane coaster. It's just... an experience you need to have if you're an enthusiast. By the time I got off it was a little past 9, so barely an hour left of park open. I wanted to try to still get some rerides in, but Iron Dragon went down around 8 and never reopened, and when I got off TT2 it went down again, and Siren's and MF were also down. So I decided that was my sign and headed out. My overall thoughts, now that I've actually experienced it CP very much deserves the hype it gets. It definitely makes the top 10 on my favorite parks list, probably even in the top 3. It probably will be a long while before I get to come back, but when I do I definitely will plan it better and make a longer trip out of it - so I can have a few days in the park and don't have to speedrun everything and can even take a day to the water park. I'm sure there's some stuff I missed but this is already a very long trip recap, sorry lol. I literally have dreams about some of these coasters I cannot wait to be back one day. That's all.

I figured I might as well share the pictures and videos from my trip before other parts of the park are closed and they becomes less applicable haha. Presented without commentary: VID_20250510_135432010.mp4 VID_20250510_174646873.mp4

Hesrchend and Parques Reunidos have announced a new agreement for Herschend to acquire all of Palace Entertainment's U.S. entertainment properties currently owned by Parques Reunidos. This will bring more than 20 new venues into the Herschend family of properties including Kennywood, Lake Compounce, Dutch Wonderland and more. https://www.hfecorp.com/whats-new/herschend-to-acquire-palace-entertainments-us-attractions-from-parques-reunidos/ Herschend and Parques Reunidos have signed a definitive agreement under which Herschend will acquire all of Palace Entertainment’s U.S. entertainment properties from Parques Reunidos. This agreement represents a significant milestone for both organizations—supporting Herschend’s strategic expansion in family entertainment and hospitality while allowing Parques Reunidos to reinforce its strategic focus on its core European market. “This year, we’re celebrating 75 years of bringing families closer together—and looking ahead to the next 75,” said Andrew Wexler, CEO of Herschend. “Today’s announcement marks a natural expansion and continuation of that vision. By growing wisely and staying true to our purpose, we are building a future where we can continue creating memories worth repeating for generations to come.” Palace Entertainment’s over 20 historic and beloved entertainment venues across 10 U.S. states will join Herschend’s growing family of world-class destinations. Palace’s diverse portfolio of amusement parks, water parks, family entertainment centers, campgrounds, and hotels includes notable properties like Kennywood in Pa., Pittsburgh’s thrill and entertainment destination known for its classic wooden coasters and modern thrill rides; Dutch Wonderland in Lancaster, Pa., the world’s best family park and kingdom for kids; and Lake Compounce in Conn., which holds the title of America’s First Amusement Park and features the renowned Boulder Dash wooden roller coaster. With this acquisition, Herschend will strengthen its position as the world’s largest family-held themed entertainment company, with a broad portfolio of brands spanning theme parks, aquariums, resorts, and immersive attractions that collectively entertain more than 20 million annual guests. “We look forward to building upon the strong foundation that Palace Entertainment has created and welcoming these properties and hosts into the Herschend family of brands,” added Wexler. “The teams at these parks have done an incredible job building beloved destinations in their communities, and we look forward to learning from them, growing together, and building on their success. This is an exciting opportunity for all of us to continue creating exceptional experiences for guests and meaningful opportunities for our teams.” “Herschend is the ideal organization to lead Palace Entertainment’s unique properties,” said John Reilly, Palace Entertainment Chief Executive Officer. “Herschend is best in class in providing a high-quality guest experience within its parks. Palace Entertainment's team members and its parks are in great hands as we make this transition.” "Being a family business for 75 years has given us a deep understanding of what makes properties like these special—not just the rides and attractions, but the people who pour their hearts into them every day,” said Herschend’s Board Chair, Chris Herschend. “These historic and beloved properties have been family traditions for generations, and we are honored to help carry that legacy forward.” Herschend is committed to ensuring a smooth transition for employees (hosts), guests, and communities. No immediate changes are planned for daily operations as the company thoughtfully integrates these properties into its portfolio. In the coming months, Herschend will prioritize: Supporting its new employees with training, resources, and opportunities aligned with Herschend’s people-first culture. Maintaining continuity in guest experiences while exploring enhancements that align with Herschend’s commitment to high-quality entertainment. Proactively communicating with employees, guests, and local communities as the transition progresses. The transaction is subject to customary closing conditions and is expected to close thereafter. BDT & MSD Partners is acting as Herschend’s exclusive financial and debt advisor and Goldman Sachs was the exclusive committed financing provider for the acquisition. Akerman, LLP is serving as legal advisor to Herschend on the acquisition, with Kilpatrick Townsend & Stockton LLP providing legal advice for the debt financing. J.P. Morgan is acting as the exclusive financial advisor for Parques Reunidos Group. A&O Shearman is serving as legal advisor to Parques Reunidos Group on the transaction.

I know it's nothing to do with the jungle theme but KD should retheme BSC to I-95 in Virginia and have it stop for 25 minutes when it gets to the helicopter scene for added effect, and then add a Sheetz to the end of the ride with someone getting arrested in the parking lot.

I really appreciate the inclusion of a Clench-O-Meter, Underwear Evacuation Rate, and Soul Exit Probability. This is proper hype.

Grab Your Hard Hats for a Tour of The Big Bad Wolf: The Wolf's Revenge Busch Gardens gave us a sneak peak at all the construction going on near the Festhaus and on the other side of the railroad tracks with a hard-hat tour of the Big Bad Wolf: The Wolf's Revenge. This new Bollinger & Mabillard (B&M) Family Inverted Coaster continues the story of the original Big Bad Wolf, which thrilled riders in Oktoberfest for 25 years. The original Big Bad Wolf was the first coaster for many local park guests--not to mention for their children and grandchildren. BGW wanted to bring back the spirit of the old ride, but with a fresh approach. Here's the back story of the Wolf's Revenge from the park's website: Kevin Lembke, park president, and Suzy Cheely, vice president, design and engineering, provided some background on the ride and answered questions from the group. Here's a little infographic to kick things off. The ride is longer than the Tampa park's Phoenix Rising (another B&M Family Inverted) and sports a 65-foot initial drop and two lift hills. The Wolf's Revenge tears through a Bavarian village, as the original ride did. The original Big Bad Wolf "means a lot to our guests," said Suzy Cheely, so they wanted to capture the feeling of the old ride and upgrade the storytelling. Even Drachen Fire, the previous coaster in this space, is contributing to the new ride. The old Arrow coaster's station and maintenance barn now belong to the Wolf's Revenge, so they've come full circle from being used as Howl-o-Scream mazes and storage buildings. A few other points before we brave the muddy path to the Bavarian village: There's no official opening date yet--just "spring 2025." The inverted trains will not "swing" as the old ride's trains once did. Wolf's Revenge might be open during Christmas Town this year, but that hasn't been decided yet. OK, watch your step as we explore The Big Bad Wolf: The Wolf's Revenge. Those who get mired in the muck be warned--there's a wolf in the vicinity! This, is, indeed, a hard-hat area--and we better not see anyone out here in sandals, either! Here's a less obstructed view of the station. It's been the home of numerous Howl-o-Scream mazes over the years since Drachen Fire was removed. The building was sound structurally, said Suzy Cheely, but they did put on a new roof and remove a lot of extra nails and bits from the old HOS mazes. The Wolf's Revenge's entrance will be what used to be Drachen Fire's exit. The first lift hill before the wolf howls and you plunge. A look at the original Big Bad Wolf's replacement: Verbolten. The ride crosses over the maintenance barn and the railroad tracks. Hmm--I wonder if the Witch of the Woods was upset when she was evicted. Perhaps she's sharing a place with Scarlett, one of the park's other HOS witches. The ride is actually bigger than I expected. Kevin Lembke answers questions. Another look at where the ride crosses over the barn and the railroad tracks. As you can see, it's a bit "twisty," but there are no inversions. The wolf charges through the village gates here--nice touch. Suzy Cheely talks about the ride's theming elements and construction. Here's an unobstructed view of some of the village. Those who rode the original Big Bad Wolf will, no doubt, find some the architecture familiar. Suzy Cheely said that they've been very careful about the ride's clearance near the church steeple. This is a "foot chopper" heavy ride. I was rather taken by this stable. I imagine the farm animals were taken from it--and eaten! Time to head back for lunch at the Festhaus. They treated us to some spicy Mardi Gras food, beads, and some lemonade spiked with vodka. Let the good times roll, indeed! Thanks for reading.

Took a trip up to COTA last night, to check out the Peppermint Parkway Christmas Event - which thanks to the Director of Park Operations (Matt Hughey), and the local SW chapter of American Coaster Enthusiasts included free admission and rides on Circuit Breaker. lots of pics below, but will get the burning question out of the way up front. Circuit Breaker is amazing. Very smooth, has multiple inversions- including my favorite element - a short stall at the 1/2 way point on the ride, and wll be 100% worth the trip to Texas to ride. they have two trains running: Red and Yellow, both with onboard audio. Very loud onboard audio, I'll note. I mentioned that to Matt and he said they have brought that up to Vekoma, but apparently it's a program that cycles and they don't really have any control over whether the audio will be BLASTING loud, or not. for what it's worth? I thought the Audio was much better/quieter on the Red train. oh..they also lowered the price. at least during Peppermint Parkway, it's now $15 to get into the event, but once in? only $15 (3 tickets) to ride it. almost every other ride is only 1 ticket. (Circuit Breaker was prior $25 for one ride). Or you could do the Gold Band that is $50 and offers unlimited rides on everything, and includes Circuit Breaker. the only thing not included in the Gold Band are the Go Kart racing, and the upcharge "lap around the track" also even tho it's the weekend before Christmas? it looks like they are expanding the ride options - adding in a new section that has another kiddie coaster (Orient Express), an Octopus, a kiddie motorcycle carousel, and a ferris wheel - tho this section was not quite ready to open. As you'll see tho, they did have the lights on some of the new rides going tho. ok. .on to pictures. .it really is a good event, and we had a great time. more info scattered thruout the pics at the moment, the Entrance to what will be COTALand is via Peppermint Parkway. So it's just to the left of the main Grandstands, and the parking is mainly in lot A behind us is the startingline/main granstands and the Minigolf. to the right is the Karting for adults (and under that white shade back there is the kids Karting) bright and sunny, as they just changed the hours of Peppermint Parkway so it starts at 4 instead of 5:30. . but they haven't really gotten that memo out to folks, so it was actually pretty quiet (and almost ERT like) until about 5:30, which had been the starting time. entrance is not free - it's $15 per ticket to enjoy the carnival grounds, and the lights. then you can either purchase individual tickets for rides/attractions (each ticket is $5) or buy one of multiple wristbands that include different levels of activities (ie: all the 1 ticket rides, the mini-golf, the activities such as paint a dreidel or ornament, cookie decorating, smores, etc. . .) They did a really nice job. . tho I must admit the COTALand area looks much better at night, once the darkness hides the dirt/construction. the exit of the entry tunnel. . again, this will look incredible at night. I absolutely adore that they put up "wacky Santa inflatables". .. immediately put a smile on our faces the only thing actually open during Peppermint Parkway in COTALand "proper" is Circuit Breaker. . so it's off by itself after a bit of a walk on the left. but they actually DO have quite a bit done already. it was impressive to see. the Schwarzkopf Wildcat is not moved and pieced back together, but was not quite ready to go yet. and the S&S Screaming Swing has been topped off, and Matt said they will be back next week to complete work on it. as you might note, there are LOTS of ride pads, and pillars poured. so there will be things everywhere. . . I believe what's going right next to Circuit Breaker is the Starflyer. there will be no dedicated "kiddie area", but instead the kids rides will be scattered thruout the park so there will things for families to do in each area. this is the base of what will be a 250' drop tower! and off in the distance (beyond the final curve of the F1 track - there will be a path that connects the park to that side along the track), is Palindrome, the Gerstlaur infinity coaster. it also is not open yet, but WAS testing during our visit, to the delight of many. hard to see in this pic, but the lift hill/final drop of the log flume is up and done too. but here's what most came for. and as noted above, Circuit Breaker is amazing. Wildcat seen from the Circuit Breaker gift shop exit. these trains are covered in LEDs. . and really do look incredible at night. tho I rode several times in a couple of places (on both trains). . I really do prefer the back row. to be fair tho, the front really does have a ton of airtime. walkways are designed well over here, with tons of spots to get great pics. we pulled Matt over for a pic in the sleigh that's for use by a Santa later in the evening to pose for a pic. this coaster is a great success, in terms of rideability, smoothness, and thrill. walking back over to the main Peppermint Parkway after rides on Circuit Breaker, another pic of just how far out COTALand will extend (tho please note the big area in the center is the F1 track, so mainly along that path connecting the two sides of the park will be nothing but path). Matt did confirm for me there are still plans for the "most thrilling ride that will be in the park" - the multi seated "skycoaster" type ride, that will be rising over on the Palindrome side. but this pic gives a good idea of how many ride pads / supports have been done already, and a better view of the flume and Palindrome. looking back at Circuit Breaker a final time before leaving this section to head over to the main Peppermint Parkway area. tons and tons of lights, and things to do / photo ops over here. they did a Menorah Lighting at 5:45, which I appreciated, as last night was night 7 of Hanukkah. one of my favorite things is that they have the grandstands open (mainly for use of the Concession stands and bathrooms), but you can sit and watch the folks that did the "take a lap on the track".. so very loud and fun to see the cars zoom by at 100+ MPH. some of the stuff they had up was a bit "scary" for kids I thought. . but most of the adults loved it. and they had a screen set up playing movies (we saw the end of Grinch, and most of Elf playing during our visit) the smaller rides that used to be over by the Concert Venue entrance have been moved over to the front of the Grandstands to be included in Peppermint Parkway. Matt told me these are only here temporarily, and I'd say the vast majority of them will end up placed in COTALand - as many of the smaller kiddie rides are COTA branded already in the paintjobs and ride vehicles. but over here is also the Wacky Worm. . and since Jim wouldn't ride Circuit Breaker (it's too big a coaster for him still, so he freaks himself out), he WAS willing to ride the Wacky Worm with me. from the temporary placement, one does get a lovely view of the F1 track starting line from the lift hill. lots of other temporary rides have been set up over here, and tons and tons of lights. and would it be a "carnival atmosphere" without food carts? including the Donut place that is operated by Matt's wife. . yummmmm. . .a giant bucket of fried donuts! (and hot apple cider too). just a sampling of the lights over here. . which would look so much better as it got darker. back here is the new section, which as noted, didn't open last night as it wasn't fully ready. but they are assembling an Octopus there, the Orient Express looked ready to go (and was lit up!), but I guess it's not safe to operate while they are building a ride next to it. of course they have a kissing booth too. (and yes, we did kiss, but not sharing that pic here ) the only "permanent" things over here are the Zipline, the Mini Golf and the two karting tracks (Kids/Adults). but as noted, I would say most of these rides will make it over to COTALand proper eventually. it was time for the tree lighting ceremony, and it got PACKED over here. Princess Peppermint came out and did a little skit to light the tree. it really is pretty cool looking once the tree lighting happened, the crowd spread out, and since the place is so large? it never did feel crowded. tho I would estimate the line of cars to get in, as we were leaving, was at least a mile long. would it BE an event at COTA without some race cars? How about RaceCar driver Santa? (the line for him was at least 40 minutes, so I just waited outside the queue and snapped them between visitors) you could also queue to meet Mrs Claus (she had a much shorter line at about 15 minutes) THIS nightmare fuel: as well as Rudolf, and the "Ice Queen and Snow Princess" (aka: NOT FROZEN, but kinda, but we don't wanna get sued). . LOL the line for those two was easily the longest of the night other than Santa tho. so we kept walking and stopping for pics. we did bump into Princess Peppermint as she was making her way back towards the main entrance for her photo-op spot. she was kind enough to pose for a pic with us. the entrance gate at night. stunning. and the tunnel at night is pretty impressive too but our feet were hurting, so it was time to go. heading back to the car, a few final pics of Circuit Breaker - with the LEDs on the cars .. they start off the color of the train, then switch to Red/White/Blue, as the train runs the course. here's that Stall I love. well worth a visit if you're in the Austin Area this holiday season. . . .

The power of Claus compels you! The power of Clause compels you! Merry Christmas Town 2025! It's time for our annual stroll through Christmas Town at Busch Gardens Williamsburg. There's every thing you'd expect: "millions" of Christmas lights, lots of festive decorations and music, different types of holiday grog and goodies, and, of course, Santa's Workshop. In fact, this event is much the same as last year, only with some minor changes in decorations and two new holiday shows: Christmas Town Live in the Festhaus and the Merry Misfits trio in France. Returning for this season are Scrooge No More, the park's popular version of A Christmas Carol, in England's Globe Theatre; Gloria, a retelling of the Christ story, in Ireland; Wiseman, a singing trio in Italy (I think their stage got an upgrade for this season, though); O'Tannenbaum, a synchronized music-and-light show outside the Festhaus in Germany; the Polar Pathway Spectacle of Lights in the Escape from Pompeii area; Elmo's Christmas Wish in the Sesame Street Forest of Fun; and 'Twas that Night, an ice-skating show in France's Palace Theatre. The park is running a few coasters, weather permitting, during Christmas Town: Pantheon, Verbolten, Invadr, and DarKoaster (not affected by weather, of course). Most of the flat rides are running, along with the Christmas Town Express (round trips only starting at Caribou Station) and the Skyride. Let's take it in, shall we? Bundle up--it's a chilly winter's night. The Giant Snowman bids you welcome to Christmas Town--unless you use VIP parking, which means you won't lay eyes on him. The Tree with the Big Balls is back! Carolers greet you in England with traditional Christmas songs, but don't expect to hear "Grandma Got Run Over by a Reindeer" or "Christmas at Ground Zero." In Ireland, you can pray for the immortal souls of those who decided to stop at Grogan's Pub for a pint of Christmas Town Stout. You can see Gloria in the Abbeystone Theatre, too. You can also partake of Santa's Fireside Feast, where you will be under the protection of the Great Stone Fist of the Elves. Oh, you also get cookies from Mrs. Claus. The path between Ireland and France is very peaceful--one of my favorite spots during Christmas Town. This peaceful setting brought to you by Coca Cola. In France, all will make merry, or they will taunt you with hearty laughter. "You are impressed by our enormous Christmas lights, n'est-ce pas?" They're a bit more laid back in Canada. But you do have to watch out for frolicking caribou. In Germany, gingerbread men and gum drops reach unnatural sizes. I found this in one of Oktoberfest's gift shops. Nothing says "German Christmas" more than a Scottish Highland Cow on a t-shirt. Santa's Workshop is in Germany, so suck it North Pole! Why is the very tall wooden soldier trying to choke herself? The Festhaus looks even more festive than usual during Christmas Town. The O'Tannenbaum show is always a crowd pleaser. Christmas Town Live harkens back to the Christmas TV specials of the past. The timing was wrong for me to catch the show that night. The stage is decorated like an old-time TV studio. Peace out on the bridge between Germany and Italy. It looks like the Wiseman show was upgraded a bit from last year's version. This year's version looks a lot like one of those Hallmark movies. This is my single favorite tree at Christmas Town--beautiful in its dignity and simplicity. Meanwhile, across the bridge from that same tree, Christmas is going completely nuts at Holiday Hills (aka Festa Italia). I like the Polar Pathway by Escape from Pompei, too. They have another synchronized music-and-light extravaganza on the Pompei show building. "Hmm--Cookie Monster wish for more bourbon in his hot chocolate." It's getting pretty cold. In fact, it's snowing in Williamsburg as I write this today. Time to head out via Scotland. A Merry Christmas Town to all, and to all, a good night!

pics from yesterday's visit for "Feliz Fiesta" during Holiday in the Park. (and yes, they got TONS of lights from SFA - I asked and was confirmed that the Texas parks got things from several other parks as well that were no longer doing Holiday in the Park) the park is looking amazing, and the shows remain top notch! Majesty of Christmas, and the Dickens shows alone are worth price of admission, tho all the other shows are great as well. because of Texas Department of Transportation sending out a crapload of warnings about how I10 & Loop 1604 (ie: right were the park is) being closed all weekend for construction, we allowed just over 2 hours for the trip to the park from Austin today. so of course, we were so early that even tho the cones were up, they hadn't started any work yet, and traffic flowed - resulting in us being the first ones at the park, and stopped at the entrance gate. so we took advantage to get out of the car, and snap this pic which typically you only can get while driving by. but after about 15 minutes, the parking gates opened and we headed in (with all the other folks that had backed up behind us). of COURSE, this was right when the Six Flags app decided to update, and that made getting thru the toll booths a nightmare - how nice Six Flags stopped handing out physical (hard card) passes JUST before they updated the app and made it a huge mess to access your digital stuff. note: we did chat with mgmt about this during the day as lots of folks had issues, so it came up. they are aware of issues, and are working on solutions, so "please stand by" anyways, the park looks great. the Day ended up being PERFECT (low 70s after a week of temps in the 40s and 50s), and the construction kept many away from the area, resulting in a very crowd comfortable day. lots and lots of photo ops thru the park. as mentioned, I'm guessing some of them came from other parks no longer doing HitP and no trip to SFFT is complete without a stop in to say hi to "miss Connie" in Sangerfest halle. she's a celebrity, and my friends all know I tend to go there first to get a pic. after 1st rides of the day on Chubacabra, those of us attending Feliz Fiesta got to go backstage for a tour of the construction site that I posted yesterday. as part of that tour, we also got to go down into the Gully Washer reservoir (drained during the off season upkeep) for some fantastic shots of Iron Rattler's drops. and then it was time to eat something for lunch (as our dinner wasn't until almost 5). we headed into Blues BBQ, where here at Fiesta Texas, the Turkey Leg with stuffing is still included on the meal plan. and as it's Holiday in the Park? Santa was out all day, so we had to pop in and say hello. naughty bert! (and how fantastic that Santa played along) one of the shows in the main square. . I believe this was the Tinker-Belles and the wooden soldiers one of 3 large trees SFFT has on display. this one is at the end of the main avenue into the park (and the tinkerbelles stage is at the bottom) many, many characters were available today for Meet and Greets. not just the Looney Tunes in Holiday garb, but also multiple DC Heroes, and tons of Holiday themed characters. and the "handlers" are happy to take your phone to snap pics for you. this makes me laugh - this is what happens when they start snapping before you're ready for the picture. . . LOL durrrrrrrr. . . . . but we did get some great pics regardless another throne. .and I do love my thrones more characters. . a bit horrifying, I thought, but happy to take pics after this great meet and greet in DCU, I asked them how about an "action pose". .and that's the 2nd pic. they understood the assignment - particularly Flash walking back to the front for dinner in the picnic grove, caught the end of a Tinkerbelles & soldiers performance, and they were hanging around for pictures. and yet, ANOTHER throne. they must have gotten these from other parks. a night time shot of the tree at the end of the main corridor. here's the MAIN tree in the park, in Rockville, during the Tree Lighting ceremony (that includes fireworks, Looney Tunes characters, dancers, and Santa on the stage in front of it) .. oh, and "snow" Jim and I in front of the main tree, before heading into the Rockville High Theater to see the Dicken's show - one of the parks two signature HitP shows didnt' take any pics of the 1st part of the show, but it's a full on production with sets, dancing, and very good singing. the camera came out during Ghost of Christmas Future, as I love the design of it. ltr: Scrooge, Ghost of Christmas Present, Ghost of Christmas Past, Ghost of Marley, and Ghost of Christmas future. Scrooge seeing the error of his ways before he gets tossed into his own grave by Marley (oh. . "spoilers". . . LOL) after the show (and a few rides) we made our way up to the "big" theater in the park, for the amazing "Majesty of Christmas" - which, yes, includes live animals on stage in a wonderful production. after this show, the park was about to shut down, but attendees of Feliz Fiesta get some ERT on the CrackAxle coasters (Iron Rattler, Roadrunner Express, and Dr. Diabolical's Cliffhanger). . so we took the "Holiday Express" which is what they transform the train into, for a full loop around the park complete with Holiday songs and tons and tons of lights. including new this year, lights representing the 12 days of Christmas. . . that you pass on the train, AS the song is playing synched to what you are passing. so simple, but so effective and impressive. another photo op in front of Hurricane Harbor area and the 3rd and final tree, in Crackaxle, which I was told came from another park that is no longer doing HitP. it's a great event, and well worth going to.

Europa Park, Day one, concluded. Atlantica Supersplash (with the mini monorail behind it) wet TPR folks, giving the thumbs down. . .LOL while we hadn't done the whole park - there were still quite a bit of attractions we hadn't made it to - Austria was back over by Spain (and resort entrance/exit), so we made a point of stopping by there to take a look. Alpine Express and the Log Flume - which had been in one big adventure mountain area, had been lost in a massive fire in 2023, and they had rebuilt it, and opened it back up in 2024. we we really wanted to get a look at it. the coaster is now called Alpenexpress Enzian, and seems to have a VR option (don't recall seeing that when there, so maybe it's new? or an upcharge?). anyways, the line was a bit too long to make it before park close (and it was too cool to ride the flume, so I'd ride that tomorrow). So instead we checked out the rebuilt area via the new adventure trails, that replaced the caves that had burnt down. it's a powered coaster, but it's a good one. theming! and when walking the "trail" it interacts with both the coaster, and the log flume. which has squirt guns rigged along the trail, so you can squirt the folks riding the flume. there's a bunch of interactive stuff along the way too. . .like this "fireplace" that changes color based on touch. a great example of the coaster track and flume, and trail, interaction I asked about this, and was told that they kept the lead car from the prior ride (that had burned down) and put it on display as a memorial. very cool of them to do this, I think. I really liked the redone versions.. great job by the park rebuilding! and when we left the trail, we noticed that tho the park was only open for another 10 minutes, the line for the Alpenexpress Enzian had dropped to 5 minutes. so we ended up hopping on to end our first day in the park on this coaster! even tho Nick is blinking, we look so happy goodnight Europa Park! will see you again tomorrow for a full day 2. including Traumatica!

I am hoping to be very wrong about the relocations for the coasters. I really think the spinning mouse and the kiddie coaster are the only ones moved within the chain and maybe the only one moved period. I could see Firebird or the SLC going to somewhere random like Brazil, I guess, but I wouldn't bet on it. The woodies are done. Superman is too big both in terms of cost to move and trying to fit the footprint anywhere. Nothing with an LIM launch is getting moved in 2025, nor is a Vekoma Flying Dutchman. Sad days ahead as these all get scrapped.

Well, I FINALLY made my first visit to Holiday World. WOW. I will join the chorus of people singing its praises. What a charming, well-kept, well-run park. As I entered the park, I was greeted by all the team members in a super friendly way. And as I made my around the park, its cleanliness, fun themes, and overall operations were stunning for a such a small, family-run park. I was stunned they were running 2 trains on Voyage and Legend, despite minimal lines. AND the Voyage had like 6 team members checking the train -- although they still somehow managed to stack trains frequently, the operations were mostly smooth. I focused on the coasters. Sure wish I could have done night rides! The Voyage. I actually wasn't terribly impressed on my first ride. I was in the very front of the very first train and although I was impressed by relatively smooth it was, I just wasn't blown away: not a lot of air. Definitely partly the product of sky-high expectations. AND THEN I rode the back and THEN the coaster warmed up. Holy crap! To me, this is more a backseat ride (although there is no "bad" seat that I can find in 8 rides.). The spaghetti bowl turnaround at the back is one of the most out-of-control feelings I have ever experienced in a coaster. It's up there with the quadruple down on Lightning run and the end turns on El Toro, as great mayhem. Each ride I appreciated The Voyage more, focusing more on its unrelenting speed, floater (and pops) of air, and its incredible length and design. It's a top 5 for me now. And kudos for the loving care Holiday World shows this ride -- they spend a ton of time taking care of it, and it shows. Legend. As a sign of my old age, the back seat was just a little too uncomfortable for me, but I loved how raw and rough this coaster is (in the good way, as designed vs. rough b/c of crappy maintenance.). Enjoyed it much more in the front seat, especially the second half. But I didn't love it. My bias is more towards airtime machines than laterals and I still found myself having to ride a little more defensively than I'd like. Still, a very good ride. Love the backstory and the bell ringing. Raven. Man, I had waited for this coaster for a while, given its legendary status. Again, my expectations sorta messed with me, and having ridden it third, it was a hard comparison to the mighty Voyage. I imagine it is stunning at night. I loved the layout, especially the third drop into the woods (massive air in the back, but sadly I kept thinking about the enthusiast who fell). I see they have retracked big sections, but they didn't quite yet reach that final right hand turn before the final turn -- that thing is BRUTAL: literally flying into and out of a pothole. I only did 2 rides on Raven because the pothole was nearly a chiropractic spinal cracking everytime. Loved the station and it's a fun, excellent ride. Thunderbird. This was the surprise hit! Yes, the value of low expectations-- AND it's a great design! yes, I was one of the idiots on here complaining when this ride was announced 10 years ago, saying it was not a great fit for the park: too much money for a gimmicky ride. Happily I was wrong: the theming is great, the launch packs a bunch, and the layout is superb. Probably the best wing coaster I have been on, possibly except for Gatekeeper ( I have also done Wild Eagle and X Flight). Love the use of the valley and the woods. Really super fun and re-rideable. Overall, just loved the park and how it's run. I know Paula is long-gone and they went through some family drama, but I still found everything excellent

Kings Island has announced the replacement for Boo Blasters on Boo Hill, "Phantom Theater: Opening Nightmare," to open in 2026! https://www.visitkingsisland.com/blog/2025/august/phantom-theater-opening-nightmare-coming-in-2026 The stage is set for guests to be ushered into a new but familiar chapter in Kings Island’s history as Phantom Theater: Opening Nightmare will make its debut next spring. Located at the site of the park’s original Phantom Theater dark ride, the quirky characters and chaos from the original return, along with modern technology, enhanced scenic elements and expanded storytelling. The comedic and fast-paced family adventure begins with a dark and stormy night, setting the tone for the grand (and ghostly) re-opening of the haunted Phantom Theater. Inside, a long-awaited performance by Maestro, the theater’s resident organist, is set to begin. During the storm, a lightning strike unleashes the ghost notes – mischievous musical spirits that wreak havoc across the theater – from Maestro’s mighty pipe organ. With the help of head usher No Legs Larry, guests will take the role as a member of his team and ride in “enchanted opera boxes,” utilizing special spellbound flashlights to capture and return the ghost notes to the organ so the performance can begin on time. Along the way, the enchanted opera boxes travel through fully built dimensional scenes, including backstage areas, haunted hallways, dressing rooms and a fiery boiler room as they meet other performers who are ready to take the stage. From animatronic forms of Houdelini and The Great Garbanzo to Hilda Bovine and Lionel Burymore, the Phantom Theater’s beloved crew returns, getting caught in the chaos while guests simultaneously search for the ghost notes. New surprises await guests around every corner, including the introduction of Arpeggio, Maestro’s furry feline friend. In total, 26 interactive scenes feature added multi-sensory effects like wind and sound, hidden Easter eggs throughout and a grand on-stage musical finale with all cast members. Manufactured by Sally Dark Rides, the leader in indoor family dark ride experiences, Phantom Theater: Opening Nightmare is a true nod to the original that made its home at Kings Island from 1992 – 2002. “Families who have visited Kings Island will remember how special the original Phantom Theater was, and they’ve always wanted it to return,” said Tony Carovillano, park manager of Kings Island. “While paying homage to the original ride, Phantom Theater: Opening Nightmare’s modern and advanced features will help create new memories and stories for all who take their seat inside this amazing experience.”

The adventure isn't so great anymore.

They're assembling the carousel now.

Here are some photos of AlpenFury I captured today while at the park. It isn't quite complete yet, but very close! AlpenFury looks to be a great coaster once it does open!

After our brief but wonderful taste of Europa Park the prior evening, it was hard to sleep knowing that we'd have two full days to enjoy the resort ahead of us. I managed to grab what rest I could, eagerly awaiting the morning's exclusive ride time. We started with Blue Fire, another of the park's coasters that I had long anticipated getting the chance to ride. This is one sleek train! ERT earned many thumbs up! As soon as ERT was over, Robb and I rushed over to The Can-Can Coaster (Eurosat), not for the traditional ride experience, but for the newly-opened The Phantom of the Opera Coastiality VR experience. Replacing the previous Valerian VR experience that debuted with the rebuilt Eurosat, this new experience leans heavily into the fandom surrounding Andrew Lloyd Webber's classic musical. The queue is filled with props from the show... The queue also serves as pre-show experience before the VR elements begin, setting the stage for your visit to L'Opera Populaire in Paris. Fans of Andrew Lloyd Webber can find in-universe nods to some of his other works. I'll be absolutely honest. I'm not a huge fan of VR experiences on coasters. But I am a huge fan of Phantom of the Opera--I've seen the show seven times in my life, the movie countless times and I've listened to the soundtrack far too many times to count. For this reason, I wasn't going to be to visit Europa Park without seeing how such a beloved (albeit likely incompatible) IP could translate to a theme park ride experience. Unlike other VR experiences I've been on, this one had you put on the headset while standing in a room away from the loading platform. From here the pre-show experience begins in Box 5 of the Paris Opera House, the Phantom's preferred booth. Surprisingly, the booth lowers from the theater down into the catacombs below to reveal the Phantom's lair. Standing alongside others who are also wearing the VR headsets (you and others around you are represented as period-appropriate avatars, mine an older woman in a purple dress and Robb's a man with a monocle, a black top hat and a grey mustache) you are guided by another avatar through the catacombs to a convenient train of gondolas. What you don't realize is that from behind the VR helmets, you are walking to the Eurosat trains. And through the VR experience you are actually expected to walk to and get into your seats. If the VR isn't spot on (whether because of the headset placement or how it has sync'd up), then your results on getting in safely may vary... But I absolutely give them credit for such a ballsy approach. Once seated, your gondolas take off and begin on a journey that summarizes the key points of the musical's story in a compressed format. Logic, science and physics cease to matter as, once you ascend Eurosat's lift hill, your point of view shifts from the turning gondolas to a glowing orb that floats and flies through the story's scenes. The ride kicks off strong with the Phantom bringing down the chandelier to the famous tones of the show's main overture, and as the chandelier collides with the stage, you go crashing through it, down and into the catacombs. Flying through the layout of the physical coaster, you inexplicably weave in and out of the Paris Opera as it crumbles and burns, pausing near the end for Raoul and Christine to kiss in front of its burning remains, before returning inside to revisit the Phantom's lair, where he appears briefly and disappears in a gag that mirrors a final moment from the show, All in all, it was an interesting way to translate the show to a ride. The VR graphics aren't quite there yet and the syncing with the coaster's movement never really felt perfectly aligned--both reasons why I was in love with the end result, but as a Phantom fan, I'm grateful that Europa Park was gutsy enough to choose such a property for this experience. Now time for another hotly anticipated experience! Due to our visit taking place near Halloween, the coaster's signature music had been replaced with a special track for the season. "It's Halloween" plays on repeat throughout the queue and inside of the ride itself during this overlay. And I guess it is because I didn't know what I was missing--I thought it worked really well. Euro-Mir was a really fun ride (with a somewhat wild finale) and the randomized rotations made it very re-rideable. You know we had to come back for more Voltron! I love that the Croatia section of the park features three animatronics of Nikola Tesla (one in the queue, one at the start of the coaster and one in an outdoor area in the land). I strongly considered buying this Coaster Dynamix Nanocoaster but I haven't finished assembling several of the ones I already own. Silver Star stands in the foggy distance... Madame Freudenreich Curiosités was a very cute way to repurpose the "Universe of Energy" dinosaurs for a more unique (and less knock-off-ish) experience. The ride has a cute story. Familiar but different. There are lots of dinosaurs to be found in the ride. Not our dino, TPR has a bobsled team! Long had I waited for this moment! And Schweizer Bobbahn did not disappoint! The Swiss section of the park is charming and narrow... But most importantly... It is home to raclette! TPR takeover of the raclette hut! The park has so many beautiful areas to enjoy. I love the faux bateaux mouche so much! Europa Park had already been a delicious and refreshing experience so far! Time for more cute dark rides! Adorable. How does one follow up such cuteness? With coasters, of course! It was nice to just hang out for a bit. Of all of the rides inspired by Disney's Haunted Mansion that we experience on this trip, Castello dei Medici was certainly one of them. There's definitely key differences here. But there are also far more blatantly derivative sections. Familiar but different. There's even a hitchhiking ghost-equivalent finale. Though I have no affinity for the IP, "ARTHUR - In the Minimoys Kingdom" is a pretty neat mini land. The power suspended coaster was fun and unique. I love the architecture in the Iceland section of the park. And Wodan was a solid wooden coaster that has been well maintained. The station fly-through is such a fun element. Whale Adventures – Northern Lights is easily one of the cutest splash battles I've ever seen. Animatronics and flammable buildings out and about to enhance the lands' theming. I LOVE IT. I wish I had more time to spend in the Scandinavian section of the park. Snorri Touren is a gem of an attraction that no amount of research had prepared me for. Snorri is simply the best. This dark ride is not without value for adults. The gist of where the story takes you while onboard... Our carriage awaits! Our journey begins... Some great set design for this attraction. You can't go wrong with singing trolls. Snorri plays the mushroom drums. You can bet I brought a plush Snorri home to my son. Familiar but different. Some neat elements in the queue... Lots of exposition but I couldn't understand what it was. While he isn't Snorri, Jopie is great too. Piraten in Batavia feels similar but different to Pirates of the Caribbean. Some scenes are more recognizable than others. Jopie is helping to escape! Very pretty sets. I spy with my little eye, someone that is Mack. The ride's finale ends with an impressing series of projection mapping effects. Familiar but different. Equally familiar but different. Where have I seen one of these before? It was too cold for my tastes to ride Fjord-Rafting during our visit. Atlantica Supersplash looking good. This place is a theme park fan's dream. So cool to see in person! Such a fun and pictureseque coaster! Our time in Europa Park came to a close for the day... But our adventure was just beginning. As we had an evening set aside to experience Rulantica! Due to our limited time I have virtually no photos from inside, but I can't rave enough about the water park. This is the first indoor water park I've been to, but the bar was set so much higher than I anticipated. Rulantica is packed with themed areas, great water slides and some excellent spaces. Vildstrøm is the star of the show--a wild outdoor body slide that doesn't require you to go one at a time. Hilarity and chaos ensue. Robb has some fantastic video from our experience... The park was kind enough to let us try the Snorri Snorkling VR experience which was unlike anything I'd done before. It followed a similar story to Snorri Touren from in the park, but this time, experiencing it while gliding through the water. Super unique--mildly bizarre. I'm glad I had the chance to do it. After a wonderful evening at Rulantica, it was time to head back to the hotel for some rest. Tomorrow would bring even more adventures.

day 7 (full day at Alton Towers) concluded: continuing our way around this side of the park, the next thing we came to was Smiler yeah. .this 14 (!) inversion coaster looked really intense. I was wary of it, but since we had the fast passes, we figured we'd try to ride everything. it broke down while we were in line tho, so denied (for the moment) it really is sensation overload. . even just in the queue - the blasting giggling over the loudspeakers gets into your head! the employees didn't look thrilled with their outfits, but one of them did confide in me that "at least they are warm" what a gigantic mess of track! with Smiler down, we went over to the world's first dive coaster, Oblivion. I'd heard about this one for ages. . but didn't realize it's really just a drop. there isn't much to this coaster, but being the first of it's kind meant that it was a must ride. and ya know what? it gives a hell of a thrill still. I quite enjoyed it. Smiler was still down, so we headed towards the forbidden forest area - the only part of the park we hadn't explored yet, and home to the last two coasters here. cutting thru the ruins at the center of the park along the way it was a shame that Hex was down - as I love madhouses, and I'd heard this was a good one. but hey, a reason to go back at some point! whoops. . we'd taken a wrong turn and totally missed the forbidden forest area, and ended up in the world of David Walliams. as a fan of Little Britain, I knew who he was, even if I wasn't familiar with his kid's books. But the Gangsta Granny ride sounded great - and it was a fun , stupid, dark ride, that I think I rode a 1/2 doezen times. so well worth the stop over in this section. it even had a photo op! why yes, I'm the Queen this was apparently a building they used for a show that was not running at the moment. but next to it was a sizzler . . and a small carousel. on site in the park, there was also an Alton Towers Dungeon - which one of the workers told us was about to shut down, so we made sure to do it the next day. glad we did too, as they seem to have removed it from the park, so I got to experience my first ever "Dungeon" (in talking to others on the trip, the Dungeon experience is very similar in different locations, but typically do include a ride of some sort - in this case, was a boat ride in the middle of it). we finally found our way over to where we had been headed earlier tho: home to Rita and 13 the last two coasters in the park we hadn't seen yet. I did enjoy Rita for what it is. . . but found it to be really rather short. Just when I thought we were gearing up for another launch, we pulled into the station. it was fun tho, and I believe i did ride it a couple of times. 13 (Thirteen) is 100% a family coaster, but I truly don't understand why some are disappointed in it. for what it does? it does very, very well. and I enjoyed it. but my favorite coaster in the park? Wicker Man. we had ERT on it tomorrow night. . but that didn't stop me from riding it several times during the 1st day. I absolutely loved the layout, the fire/smoke effects, and that double down / double up lift/drop. so, so good. even the station was kewl! and the exit thru the gift shop offered lots of great swag! making a face, but seriously, I loved this! and some Rita pics and the mine train. . . Nick had photo pass, and he must have shared them all with us at this point, since all are together in my pics Oh, I was incorrect. . we hadn't been to all the coasters yet. We had come back to this area earlier, but only rode sub-terra. . we hadn't actually gone into the main area, and ridden Nemesis or Galactica. . so we headed back over that way. Nemesis looks amazing. . and that giant eyeball in the center moves to follow the trains! and it blinks. . . really rather creepy. more characters out, patrolling the area (there were also a group of "freaks" out, protesting to protect the creature from government prodding). it's good! Galactica is a B&M flyer. . and yeah. . it knocked the wind out of me. a bit too intense! I liked it. . but yeah, 1 and done for me. way too intense. it was almost time to head back across the park for Smiler ERT. . . but we swung past Nemesis again for a few more pics (and another ride) to get back over to Smiler, we decided to cut thru the "Gardens" section of the park. it's hard to believe we're still in the middle of a theme park (tho to be fair, I think if the skyride had been operating, instead of in refurb mode - now back open I hear - it wouldn't have seemed so "forrest-ry" back at Smiler, which was now back up and running. Group pic before ERT. I'd be danged if I didn't ride it at least once. . even tho I KNEW I wasn't gonna like it. (and I didnt' care for it. . the 14 inversions were just a bit too much for me. . so I was one and done,and then took pics of others riding it). it's a great looking ride, just too much for me, but i know a lot of folks on this trip LOVED it. and they were yelling out inversion counts as it went. the photo must be early on, as I was still enjoying the ride at this point. not sure about how Colin felt tho. . LOL the track is so long, they can operate multiple trains. . . which with the twisted up track, really gives the impression they might hit each other! I did make it to the end of ERT, even tho only rode that one time, and then we headed back to the hotel to grab some food and crash after a long, exciting, and exhausting, day. I wasn't too hungry tho. . perhaps Galactica and Smiler back to back had my stomach in knots. . . so I stuck with a desert. and no, I didn't share and with that, it was off to shower, and bed. Tomorrow was another full day at the park, and there were a ton of things I wanted to ride, and re-ride.

Kumba is now running again.

After an incredible week in and around Munich, it was time to move on to the theme park-focused portion of trip. Our travel day from Munich to Europa Park was spent mostly on the bus (with a brief rest stop visit along the way), but the payoff would come in the form of an early evening arrival at Europa Park. Robb and Elissa along with the team at Europa Park surprised us with a few hours of access to the park followed by an hour of exclusive ride time on the park's newest addition, Voltron Neverra. With two full days in the park ahead of us, it was a great first taste of just why Europa Park has earned world-class praise. Local soda flavors continue to be a travel passion of mine and Germany continued to impress. What happened to Germany's original Milky Way if they're already on Milky Way 2? On the way to Hotel Colosseo we got our first look at Rulantica, Europa's water park which we'd be visiting on the next day. In terms of themed hotel environments, this is one of the nicest I've experienced. Inside of the park for our few hours of access before our Voltron Neverra exclusive ride time, we enjoyed the sights of Europa Park. In a lot of ways, it feels like the park has found ways to utilize their land creatively, embedding multiple attractions in unique, intertwining spaces that look excellent. My jaw nearly hit the floor when we made it to this section of the park. Alpenexpress Enzian re-opened in 2024 after a fire in 2023 destroyed much of its layout along with several other parts of the Austrian section of the park. Europa Park goes out of its way to celebrate Halloween with a unique parade and a Halloween overlay to an existing attraction (we'll get back to that later). Hi Snorri! There's so much happening in this photo. It's almost too much to process as a theme park fan. Something I especially admire about Europa Park is its willingness to invest in animatronics for queues, scenic spaces and themed areas simply meant to pass by. I don't know that there's a wild mouse I've ever anticipated riding more than Matterhorn Blitz. The double-train elevator at the start of the ride is a neat touch. Matterhorn Blitz was a really fun coaster. Nothing earth-shattering but the layout was literal leaps-and-bounds ahead of standard wild mouse coasters. Familiar yet different. It was finally time to visit the park's new Croatia-themed area and its signature attraction... Long had I waited for this moment and even longer had I doubted that I'd ever have the chance for it to happen. This coaster is relentlessly intense and much longer than you'd expect. Each element of the coaster flows seamlessly from the previous and the train's unique seating allows you to be whipped around through inversions while being held in purely by a lap bar. Such a unique element and a great way to kick off the coaster's outside layout. Such a picturesque coaster. ERT was such a great surprise and Voltron more than lived up to the hype. This is quite easily one of the best rollercoasters I've ever been on, and having an hour to ride it repeatedly only solidified that notion. I could have kept going for hours more! Familiar yet different. Grand Prix of Europe is a new interactive dark ride that will open at the park in 2025. We passed through the grounds of the Hotel El Andaluz on our way back to the Hotel Colosseo... Absolutely beautiful. Dinner at Antica Roma kicked off with a wide selection of cheeses... Are you even in Germany if you're not having a beer each day? Antipasti for dinner! A new Cornetto Cone flavor for the books! After dinner we assembled for TPR's first ever competitive puzzling challenge. Joey and I participated. It was also the trip's designated time for the snack exchange and many treats were had. Here's a photo of a trophy I didn't come close to getting. After an evening of fun, it was time to get some rest, because tomorrow would be our first of two full days at Europa Park.

Are we incapable of putting more than one sentence within a single post?

Europa Park Day one continued: it was time to head over to Greece, and Atlantis Adventure, the park's shooting dark ride. Cassandra's Curse - a fantastic Madhouse (that is included in Traumatica, but with a much more gory overlay): Poseidon - the park's watercoaster. . that not only soaks, but I always find very rough on the coaster sections: that's Matterhorn Blitz doing it's thing across the lake in the background. whee! We're on a Log Flume! (sorta/kinda) a closer zoom on Matterhorn Blitz as we walked around the lake to get to the last coaster in this section Pegasus. . a jr coaster. which is also included in the Traumatica event (it takes place just outside the main gates, and in the 2024 event, opened up into the Greek section of the park for some rides) it had one of my favorite pumpkins I saw at the park. I never got a chance to ask who made it, but I assume a child visitor. Love it ! walk around spooky cast members were out in force on this day. loved her "ghost dog" the park is SO well decorated. some of the folks I was hanging out with really wanted ALL the coasters. . . so we headed to Ireland. so they could ride Ba-a-a-Express - the park's kiddie coaster. i didn't ride, and just took pictures no shame, at all. . . LOL and since we were over on this side of the park now. . . I was ready to ride Arthur, the Mack powered inverted coaster that is just amazingly WTF. to get there, we took the back way across the "obstacle course" Paddington Bear! I think we were behind the England section over here. and some appropriately spooky Halloween stuff. the entrance gate into Fairy-Tale land. I don't understand it at all. . even after riding it more than a dozen times. But I so enjoy the Arthur coaster. luckily, they have a GREAT skip the line system here, as well as a single rider line on this coaster. . so never really had to wait in the lengthy lines for this one. awww. . a bear. a bear or a throne. . . a sure way to guarantee I'll stop for a pic we decided to go ride EuroSat - Can-Can coaster again, so headed back that way, passing this adorable kiddie car ride. but before we got to EuroSat, it was remembered that there's another amazing dark ride right next to it - that again, is always walk on, because folks just don't realize there is a ride there. not sure what the "real" name is, but I call this the Dinosaur Birthday Party ride. . .and I rode this at least 5 times too this visit. notice the dino poop in the cat box! details and they pump the smell of honey into this scene. . along with the sound of beez awwww. .they are making a cake! it's a Dinosaur Birthday Party! and then next door onto EuroSat Can-Can coaster again. . tho this time I took some actual pics in the queue line. it was starting to get late in the afternoon, and I believe they had announced the park was closing at 7 instead of at 6 . . so we headed back towards the resort gate hitting stuff along the way. no "parade" per se, but lots of characters out and about. I discovered this visit, that Europa has a Church on site. and apparently? one can get married there! a MUST stop was another "hidden" dark ride that so many don't even realize is there! it's down some stairs next to a shop. it was built as a fun "advertisement" for the waterpark, but proved so popular, they have kept it. "Snorri Touren" (Snorri is the octopus mascot of the waterpark) I ended up buying this hat in the gift shop. and this is also a picture framed on our wall. . as this is when I KNEW I had found the right person again. I had sent this home, and instead of saying, "what the F do you have on your head?". . the response was: "you go, Hilda!" so yeah. . right then I completely fell in love. it was cold-ish today, but we had been told about this particular opportunity at the park, and no way in heck was I (or others) passing this up. so time for some custom ice cream! so good! some folks wanted to ride the Atlantica Supersplash (over in the Portuguese area) that was on the way back to the hotel. I wasn't wanting to get wet, and have ridden this Mack Supersplash at SWSA, so I passed and just took pics. day 1 to be concluded. . .

Rain nothing! Tormenta progress ramps up as more track pieces arrive! Pic courtesy of Six Flags Over Texas!

That would be a tragedy. Freeze is an icon. You can hear the roar throughout half of the park.

Electerik Hershey Oddventure September 25 - 29, 2025 Part 2 of 2: Special Dark Inside the gates. Is Candymonium the best name for a roller coaster ever? Yes. If you disagree and insist that it is in fact Thunder Dolphin, I can respect that. Any other answer will simply be dismissed as wrong. Unless there’s a really good one I haven’t thought of. Because I like my egomaniacal certainty lightly dusted with crippling self-doubt. Look who I ran into! Totally unplanned. But it’s said that if one lingers around long enough trying to get a good photo of a roller coaster, eventually AJ will appear. Okay, let’s get nerdy: I absolutely loved Candymonium. It reminds me a lot of Mako, which was my favorite B&M hyper, but this one is better. I’m not sure anything on Candymonium is quite as good as Mako’s third hill, but this one’s second hill is close, I like this layout more, and most importantly, while they both have noticeable trim brakes, Candymonium’s are far less ruinous to the second half of the ride than Mako’s are. The Starbucks really makes me feel like I’m at home. (In the sense that I didn’t go in and I don’t go to them here in Seattle either.) So, Candymonium doesn’t have a midcourse block brake. But really it does, it’s just weirdly at the end of the ride, right before this pointless little transitional dip over the midway and into the brake run. Except, the thing is, on paper, while this looks pretty silly, it kind of won me over. I mean, it’s not particularly forceful. But it’s visually-interesting and acts as a sort of false ending to the general public--who react like the ride is legitimately over and then scream when it isn’t quite. It’s kind of fun. Speaking of screaming, I have a fun story. But this caption is already long enough, so I’ll save it for the next photo of Candymonium. Here we have left Chocolate Town and entered the wilds of Hersheypark, where we find this statue of some guy. dooperdooperLooper is sort of the sister coaster to Magic Mountain’s Revolution. The little sister. The less attractive, less talented, less successful one. Which is not to say that it’s bad. It’s not. It just doesn’t do a whole lot, especially when compared to other Schwarzkopfs of this type. Even the visual placement of its loop is “lesser” than that of Revolution. Still fun, though. Glad it’s still around and that I got to ride it a couple of times. Interestingly enough, my first ride was a zen front seat night ride, as it had just come up from a short downtime and the few other guests in the area hadn’t quite caught on yet that it was open again. (Of course, the fact that they closed and reopened the queue by putting up and taking down a simple chain at the front entrance, with no signage and no team members posted, did make it a bit hard to suss out.) Onto the next old school family coaster, Trailblazer. Unlike most Arrow Mine Trains, this one has just one relatively-large lift hill, and then a fairly short layout. But like most Arrow Mine Trains, it manages to be both smooth and janky at the same time. This photo of pathways with some Halloween decor awaiting the darkness might be a good opportunity to share that this park’s layout absolutely befuddled me. A lot of coaster parks (and I would classify Hersheypark in this way) evolve into places with lots of dead ends, but this is more like a series of circuitous pathways that occasionally connect at random intervals. Even by my third day in the park, I often had trouble getting exactly where I wanted to go or finding some particular thing without getting turned around a couple of times. Here, of course, you can see two pathways that cross without connecting. So that’s fun. Storm Runner looked to have an interesting, if rather short, layout. But I didn’t ride it. Why? The trains. I absolutely despise these. I did give the test seat a go, just to double-check/remind myself. And even just briefly and carefully sitting down in said seat, without even touching the restraint, I experience immediate pain in my boy apples. I can’t even imagine how that would feel if I was pinned in, the thing was moving, and there was airtime. Actually, I can, because I’ve been on Maverick. Once. No idea who these seats are designed for, but it’s certainly not big burly men with adult-sized man… um, I need a synonym for balls. Anyone? Thesaurus says “courage,” but that doesn’t quite seem right. Parts of this park are quite pretty. Well, mostly the nature parts. But that’s still something. I didn’t ride their Boomerang either. But I do appreciate that they rethemed it to Jolly Ranchers! It does look like it has the newer vest restraints, but you could still see people jostling around in there as the train bounced its way through the course. Well, this is surprisingly honest. Did they know it was going to be hot this weekend? Also, why is it always hot when I go on park trips? Do I just attract warmth? If you’ve hung out with me at all, I’m sorry. But also, you know I don’t particularly care for RMCs. I was interested in maybe giving Wildcat’s Revenge a try, though. Not entirely sure why. I’d been on 3 (Outlaw Run, Untamed, and Wildfire) and didn’t care for any of them. But I tried the test seat, and found it utterly unchallenging, so I decided to give it a go. The restraints seemed to fit me a bit better on this one (or maybe I’ve changed a bit), so I was actually able to experience, you know, forces. And I kind of liked it? But it also beat me up a bit, especially in the second half. So…while I would say that it’s the most fun I’ve ever had on an RMC, I still found that one ride was enough. Hear me out: Wouldn’t it be more scary if the radiation didn’t have a safety control unit? The park’s indoor Maurer spinner, Laff Trakk, was given a Shaq overlay for Halloween, because apparently there’s also a Shaq-themed Hershey gummy candy? I’ve never had it. Or heard of it. Or been on this ride. Not sure the Shaq stuff really added a whole lot, but the ride was fun (and arguably better themed than Crush’s Coaster in Paris), Probably not worth a long wait, but the park was slammed on Saturday, so I sprung for the Unlimited Fast Track. Lightning Racer is a pair of racing/dueling CGIs. Not top tier or anything, but fun. I’m not sure how I feel about the water park just being in/part of the amusement park. It seemed weird to walk through it closed, but I imagine it would also feel weird to walk through it open. Also, there’s a Wild Mouse coaster called Wild Mouse. I always forget what I bad idea it is to ride a wild mouse by oneself. But I do like Wild Meese, so I’d probably do it anyway even if I remembered. There’s also a dark ride inside the park, Reese’s Cupfusion. The storyline is about misfit candies trying to steal some kind of magical cup from vapid genetically-superior candies and I think I’m supposed to be rooting for the rich, entitled ones? I shot all the bad different candy and maintained the elites’ grip on power! Sta-tus-quo! Sta-tus-quo! As with literally everything, I may be overthinking it. The “trick-or-treat” event seemed…um… Well, this was pretty much it. Also, I’m not a big fan of real-world franchise food & beverage establishments inside theme parks. But they did have a Rita’s, so I was a happy hypocrite. There’s a scenic little side path shortcut that connects Chocolate Town to whatever BS made-up themed area Skyrush is in. (Um…The Hollow? Founder’s Way? Midway America?) Skyrush had some good airtime, but was quite rattly--at least in the outside seats. I would’ve ridden again in a middle seat to see if it was better, if I thought that was in any way achievable as someone in the park by themselves. It wouldn’t have helped with that particular goal, but worth mentioning that Hershey doesn’t have any single rider lines anywhere, as far as I could tell. Okay, time for my Candymonium story! (I’m sure you’re excited.) So I end up riding next to a kid with (I assume) both autism and Tourette’s, and his very patient and loving (again, I assume) mother. Kid’s been shouting odd things in line about how he’s being murdered and whatnot, which is turning a lot of heads, but I figure this’ll be fun. Let’s see how he does on the ride. So, he’s sitting next to me, and he’s carrying on a bit on the lift--which again, I’m finding amusing more than annoying—but he’s locked in during the ride. (Which is probably the point of mom bringing him here, right?) Anyway, train gets back to the station and overshoots. Now, I spent many years working rides, so I’m pretty sure I knew what had happened before the ride ops even did. But immediately my heart sinks, because I know that the restraints are tied to the ride's position in the station. So we’re stuck there for 10 or 15 minutes waiting on maintenance to come move the train back into position and this kid is losing his mind. He’s screaming at the top of his lungs about wanting his phone, why he can’t just get off the ride, how a kid died in the wave pool a couple of weeks ago, you name it. His poor mother is doing her best to distract him, but there’s no hope. And all I can do is wince (he is basically just screaming in my ear) and smile and try not to laugh at the sheer awfulness of it all. The ride manager comes out to talk to him, and he offers to let the kid ride again (because he’s mentioned that). The line was closed by this point, and I probably could’ve weaseled my way back on with them…but I was good at that point. His mother thanked me when we got off. Not sure why. Just for not being an a-hole, I guess. But what can I say? Just like the train overshot the station, sometimes a situation overshoots annoying and lands right in effing hilarious. Plus, let’s be real here. I only had to deal with it for like 15 minutes. For this kid and his mom, it’s basically a lifetime of no choice but to deal with it. Cars in the park as advertisement. Very Six Flags. And a lot of this park is, sadly, despite its charms. On the other hand, this is pretty great. I didn’t ride. Not sure if I could have. But I’ve been on a proper adult one at Kennywood. So no big deal either way. I always ride these things, though. Also, you can’t park your stroller there unless you promise that your child will one day shop at that grocery store. I did go to that grocery store while I was in town. As well as another one called “Karns.” Because I always like to check out the local grocery stores. Is that weird? Maybe the most interesting part of these is that they’re dual tracked “racers,” with classic cars on one side and sports cars on the other. Twizzlers Twisted Gravity was quite good. I think I just like anything named after candy. Note the Kissing Tower in the background, because that’s where we’re going next. The old power plant (still standing for…reasons?), the remnants of the old chocolate factory, the new-ish corporate offices, the Reading Railroad (as in, “take a ride on the Reading”) and the Hersheypark Monorail--which was closed all weekend, much to my unhappiness. I really wanted to ride that. I got the impression they just didn’t want to run it in the fall. The same way they didn’t want to run their water rides, since it was only in the 80’s all weekend. In the queue for the Kissing Tower, there’s a sign that says something like, “Smooching is okay, but no food or drinks, please.” So I get in line, and a woman directly in front of me, who’s by herself, looks at me, looks at the sign, and then exits the line. I’m trying not to take it personally. Fahrenheit. Same trains at Storm Chaser. I just can’t imagine a reality where I would not completely hate a ride on this. Which is unfortunate. But I can’t imagine not being incredibly handsome, either. You don’t always get a choice with these things. That Kissing Tower lady's loss. I assume they didn’t want to run their water rides because half the time the park was going to be open would be at night--and people tend not to ride water rides at night, even if it’s warm. On the other hand, they only ran Trailblazer during the day, and then shut it down at night so a haunted house could use its queue. Really, I’m just bitter because I really wanted to ride their log flume, Coal Cracker. Which this is not. I wouldn’t have ridden this anyway. Honestly, I probably could’ve predicted that the water rides would be closed when I was planning the trip, if I’d thought about it. But I don't have to like it. Lightning Racer’s exit at night. One side is called Thunder, and the other side is called Lightning. Which I just can’t get behind. That’s not the right way to name things. Do I have to explain this? It’s just…wrong. You get it, right? It's not just me? I did check out one of the houses. Auntie Mortem’s Something Something. It was alright. Haunted attractions aren’t really my thing. I do enjoy the theming and seeing how they do throughput, what little tricks they have, and things like that. I don’t scare particularly easy, though--especially not in this kind of setting. So I kind of feel bad when I don’t really react the way they expect me to. I was also there by myself, which is interesting in the “horror night” context, where you’re maybe supposed to experience it more as a group, I reckon. Otherwise, being by myself didn’t really have too many downsides. Oh. A photo so bad that it circled back around again to being good? I was under the impression that Great Bear was on the less forceful side, but I did not find it so. I also thought it rather rough. I liked its setting and the way it interacted with some of the other rides, though. If you’re already in Hersheypark, you can take this bridge over to check out ZooAmerica at no extra charge. But I saw it earlier when Hersheypark wasn’t open to maximize time over cost. Also, it’s closed at night, so you couldn’t do what I just described right now anyway. But here’s the entrance to that bridge, if you just wanted to know what it looks like. sooperdooperLooper, Skyrush, and Comet. Have I talked about Comet? PTC goodness from 1946. Nothing too crazy, but lots of fun. Cool weird T-shaped layout. Obviously more modern trains and braking system than it originally had. But just feels like (and is) a gem. Also a PTC carousel. (With special semi-hidden mirror selfie by me!) I don’t normally like to brag about my ignorance. But all weekend I kept seeing people with 21 Pilots shirts. And I had no idea what that was. At first I assumed it was a band or something. But there were so many. Like, 1 in every 10 guests had one of these shirts. Maybe it was a clothing brand? Or like a joke of some sort? Well, turns out it was a band. And they were playing onsite/next door at Hershey Arena on Saturday night. Anyway, I can’t tell you if they’re any good or not, but their show contributed to this photo. So they can be proud of that, I suppose. What did I think of Hersheypark? Well, I really liked Chocolate World and Chocolate Town. But the rest of the park, while not without bright spots, was less to my taste. But one way I judge a park is by what they have that I like, and what they’re missing. I tend not to judge them poorly for having rides or attractions that I don’t like, because I can just skip those. It’s like a buffet. If I went to an all-vegetable buffet, I’d probably be pretty unhappy with it. But if I went to a pizza and ice cream buffet, I probably wouldn’t be too bothered if they also had some vegetables. I just wouldn’t eat those. Especially if they were first generation Intamin vegetables. Another way I judge parks in on their policies, and Hershey’s were fine and consistent. For example, on the aggressive rides, you could only wear glasses if you had a strap. That’s easy and clear. Signage, announcements, and employees were all on the same page. Every coaster had free lockers and/or someplace to leave your items in the station. That’s all great. I didn’t run into any policies that I thought were especially stupid, punished planning, or seemed unfair or inconsistent. So, on a scale of 0 to 10, with 10 being Europa-Park and 0 being Uncle Bernie’s, I give Hersheypark a 9. But if you took away Chocolate World and Chocolate Town, it would fall to like a 4. Although, if you did take those away, I’m not sure how you would get in and out of the park. Maybe the trolley? Wait…are we still on the trolley? What year is this? [*screaming from inside the house*]

To touch on this, it is now official: Peanuts licensing contract extended. Surprising absolutely no one, except the click-baity YouTubers who threw everyone into a panic over the contract "being allowed to expire because SFEC is going bankrupt!!!!!11!!!" https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20250910481132/en/Six-Flags-Entertainment-and-Peanuts-Worldwide-Extend-Licensing-Agreement-to-2030

The only thing worse than finding a cockroach in your cheeseburger: finding half of a cockroach in your cheeseburger.

Supernovae Productions on a theme park road trip to Sweden Summer vacation 2025 was all about a trip with the final destination: Liseberg in Sweden. To prepare, we used coast2coaster to plan out a route hitting several parks along the way. We kicked things off in Rotterdam and headed through Germany, Denmark, Sweden, and then back to the Netherlands. If you want to watch a vlog full of random nonsense, click this link: Let’s start with Day 1. Monday, August 11th First stop: Tier- und Freizeitpark Thüle, about a 4-hour drive from home. The park is a mix of a small zoo and an amusement park, mostly known for its Heege rides. None of us had been there before, so it felt like the perfect little stop on our way. We arrived around early afternoon, and first things first: food. No lunch yet, so obviously we went for currywurst – the ultimate German snack that you just have to try at least once when visiting our eastern neighbors. After filling up, time to check out the park. We started with the zoo section – nice, but nothing too special. On to the rides! First coaster: Lost World – a dinosaur-themed powered coaster by Wiegand. Cute little layout, fun theming, and you can tell the park really put some effort into it. Dinosaurs along the track, tunnels, and the tiny 2-person cars actually have a decent speed. Opened in 2022, it’s a solid addition for a park this size. We already decided we’d reride this one later in the day. Next up: Drachen-Achterbahn by Zierer. Honestly, nothing groundbreaking, but hey – if you’ve got a YouTube channel and need onrides, you’ve gotta ride these too. Been there, done that. Then Storchenturm, basically the same ride as Wirbelbaum in Toverland. Of course the teenager had to test how fast we could spin… let’s just say, we saw some beautiful stripes afterwards. Time for “slip ‘n slide” on the Rundbootrutsche, a round boat water slide with a helix in the layout. You never know if you’ll come out forwards or backwards since you spin the whole way down. On the way to the next ride we saw this random building – no clue what was inside. Funhouse? Haunted house? Walkthrough? The capacity was terrible, only four people at a time with a long pause in between groups. So we waited. And waited. Finally our turn! First part was a walkthrough with some guy on a screen talking about… well, no idea what. Then a room full of glowing special effects – cool, but we still didn’t know what the main attraction was. Finally, we got into a 4-person bench hanging from a track. Surprise! It turned out to be a dark ride + flying theater hybrid called Tiki-Tahiti Adventure. We “flew” past a bunch of screens with movement effects – nothing too wild, but if you’ve got a weak stomach, maybe skip it. Some masked dude was the main character, no clue what the story was, but it was funny. And hey, there was even a mine train coaster in the film. Does that secretly count as another coaster credit? When we got out, we all agreed it wasn’t worth the insane wait, but hey, sometimes you’ve just got to try things as a theme park fan. Plenty more flat rides and Heege attractions to hit, so we moved on. Wildwasserondell – basically a jetski ride – always fun. Supernovaejunior wanted to try the Nautic Jet, so he did that while the rest of us filmed some offrides nearby. Then the Kontiki swing boat by Zierer, followed by the Sindbad Schaukelschiff – a classic pirate ship, pretty much the same as the one in Toverland. After that, we hopped on Eiertanz, where you sit in half eggs swinging around on spinning arms. Fun ride, but it took forever to stop spinning afterwards – longer than the ride itself. Guess they forgot the brakes? Next door was Airboat, a Huss flat ride, but we had to wait since the same operator also ran Eiertanz. Not great for capacity, but hey, that’s just how the park rolls. We wrapped things up with another ride on Lost World and some of the typical Heege rides: Sailbahn, Schmetterling and Komet Schaukel. After that it was time to head out to our first overnight stop in Bad Oeynhausen. Final thoughts on Tier- und Freizeitpark Thüle Cute little park with a nice atmosphere. The addition of Lost World and Tiki-Tahiti Adventure are good steps toward becoming a “more serious” theme park. It’s not big enough to spend a full day (unless you’ve got small kids), but as a half-day stop on the way to bigger parks, it’s perfect. On to Day 2: Potts Park!

Last Friday I had the chance to attend one of two "UOAP Nights" at Universal Studios Florida, hosted for annual passholders at no additional cost (though reservations were required and did "sell out"). The event featured a significantly reduced capacity in the park, resulting in shorter wait times for the rides that were open. Also included was a pre-party event, a number of surprise meet and greets, speciality food and beverage options, a private showing of the Cinesational nighttime spectacular and a party atmosphere throughout the park. It was also notable that these two event nights took place during the last two days of operation for Hollywood Rip Ride Rockit before its permanent closure. Not previously announced or included in past events was this "pre-party" offering... At first glance this looks a little overwhelming but to Universal's credit, it is a well thought-out queue that leads guests to a number of neat meet and greets and other offerings to enjoy inside. Plus we were given a free UOAP button to commemorate attending the night's event. Beyond the special meet and greets in the pre-party, there were additional meet and greet options available throughout the park. In addition to many of the normal dining venues being open with their normal menus served, the event had a few special tastes available to order at key locations in the park. The pre-party featured a DJ playing lively music to keep the vibes going. While Doc Brown isn't uncommon to still find roaming Universal Studios Florida, it is incredibly rare to see him accompanied by Einstein! John Hammond was another rare character brought out for the event. The Ecto-1 from the Universal Mega Movie Parade was parked in the pre-party studio and served as a backdrop for a rare meet and greet with the Spenglers from Ghostbusters: Afterlife and Frozen Empire. It's easier to appreciate the little details on this float when it isn't in motion. This was a nice surprise and delight moment for the event. Woody and Winnie Woodpecker were available for meet and greets as well. The UOAP Nights event was presented by Coca-Cola and as such, they had a free sample bar for Coca-Cola Orange Cream as well as the zero sugar version. While not my favorite flavor, it was still a delicious and refreshing Coca-Cola. There was special event merchandise available to purchase as well. After the pre-party it was time to head back out into the park to enjoy all that was available to us. The app featured a narrowed filter on the offerings exclusive to the event. Exiting the pre-party studio presented me with a chance to snag a few more photos of Hollywood Rip Ride Rockit operating during the daytime. Only a few more drops left in this one... Edgy angles for an edgy coaster. Given that we had our five year old with us for the event, our priorities were clear. I'm not going to complain that my son loves Race Through New York Starring Jimmy Fallon. A look at the event's exclusive cupcakes. A must-do, especially when the queue is short. A pretty sunset and a reminder that there would be an exclusive showing of Cinesational later in the evening. A photo op for those who really wanted to flaunt their status as passholders. I went to go ride Rockit for the last time, only to find that it was temporarily closed with riders stuck in recline on the lift hill. On the other side of the park it was time to wait for something out of this world... \ When it comes to special meet and greets, I'm easy to please. I mean, this is awesome. "The world is a carousel of color..." Cinesational features a combination of water fountains, lasers, projections (on water and on buildings), fireworks and drones. Being totally honest it isn't my favorite show. The projected visuals are nearly impossible to make out clearly and the choice of segments is odd. That said, the fountains, drones and lasers paired with the fireworks make for an enjoyable spectacle. I just wish the content was more in line with the Universal Cinematic Spectacular--a show that highlighted some of Universal most iconic scenes and sounds on the lagoon. The show has a few highlights. A fun little nod to the event at the end of the night. Over in the Music Plaza there was a DJ playing the Cha Cha Slide for those who wished to dance along. Now it's time to say goodbye... After about a 35 minute wait, I hit it one more time with a final "Hasta!" in the front row. I'll give them credit... This shirt plays to my local nostalgia. This UOAP Nights was quite possibly the best passholder event I've attended at Universal to date. The unique pre-party, the extra meet and greets, the short wait times and the event showing of Cinesational really made for a great evening in the park... Not realizing the significance of the date, I got this souvenir to close out my saga with Hollywood Rip Ride Rockit. While I didn’t plan it this way, it was kind of fitting that my last ride on Hollywood Rip Ride Rockit was exactly 16 years to the date from my first, during its first day of soft opening guest previews. I watched the track arrive in the staging land that now is Volcano Bay as I took the bus to high school every day. And at least once a week I’d visit Universal to document the construction progress, including the installation (and in some cases, removal and reinstallation) of each section of track. It wasn’t a particularly great coaster but it also wasn’t the worst. Some unique elements, and in the right seats, great airtime, all with the added benefit of a solid selection of default songs and a plentiful set list of hidden songs to Rockit through. The ride had a troubled start and a rocky lifespan but it was memorable enough. My favorite songs to listen to onboard were: Kickstart My Heart by Motley Crue Harder, Better, Faster, Stronger by Daft Punk Float On by Modest Mouse Moving Right Along by The Muppets Crocodile Rock by Elton John Harder, Better, Faster, Stronger was the first song I ever experienced while riding and Float On closed out my final ride at the UOAP Nights event. Something bigger, better, more reliable is coming in to replace Rockit and I’m fine to see it go. I’m thankful for the memories (rocky at times as they may have been) and ready for something new to take a spin in its place…

He has expressed disdain for enthusiasts and this hobby repeatedly and yet he spends a lot of time on here communicating with said enthusiasts; a classic bully. Don't waste the time, he isn't worth it. Instead lets celebrate you! Congrats on doing what makes you happy and achieving a goal, doesn't matter a wink what others think. As a parent and teacher I want to congratulate you personally for advocating for yourself! I know from first hand experience that is often a difficult thing for someone on the spectrum to do. So, live the life that makes you happy, be kind, be accepting, and focus on the things and people that make you feel happy and fulfilled. Good luck!!

Holiday in the Park canned AND 2026 coaster will not be happening for at least one more year. Thank you Cedar Fair for officially destroying everything good about this park.

A few weeks ago I had a chance to visit Universal Studios Florida and it gave me a chance to see a bit of the construction progress on the successor to Hollywood Rip Ride Rockit as well as checking out the park's offerings celebrating the 50th anniversary of Jaws. Construction on the new coaster is happening all around Hollywood Rip Ride Rockit, despite that coaster still being in operation. Over in the San Francisco section of the park, a mini version of Amity had sprung up in honor of the 50th anniversary of Jaws. It was nice to see this iconic sign back up in the park. Featuring food booths inspired by the food locations that used to be found in the former Amity section of the park. Chez Alcatraz continues to serve up Jaws-inspired alcoholic beverages. There's a neat Amity Boat Tours photo ops featuring imagery from the former Jaws ride and at times, former Jaws skippers come out to perform the ride's spiels live for guests. The San Francisco Candy Company has received a temporary overlay to match the outside Jaws theme. Some former props from the film and former ride queue can be found in this display case. Eagle-eyed fans will notice this lanyard which was given out to riders on the final night of operation for Jaws at Universal Studios Florida. Theme Park Review was there on the final day of operation, filming two different POVs before the ride's closure. Props inspired by the former park land can be found throughout the shop. I love this poster! Fans of the ride will surely recommend these boathouse doors. There is even a neat 3-D map of the ride's layout and show scenes. The candy shop even has a few Jaws-inspired treats. Just totally normal theming... Totally normal. Amity Fried Chicken certainly brings back memories... Time to take the plunge... Geronimo. This trip report being posted two weeks later confirmed one thing... I lived. This was actually quite good. Another Amity throwback. But I passed on this menu. Shifting from one extinct attraction to a soon-to-be one... This view will be very different soon. I wonder if the firehouse will be restored once Rockit is removed. Artsy. A new resident from The Secret Life of Pets can now be found in the New York section of the park. Not long for this world. Going down... The non-inverting loop does have a neat silhouette. This fly-by turn has always been one of the coaster's better elements. Oh those ringy-ding-ding-a-lings. Only a few more weeks to Rockit. Outside the park, the path between Universal Studios Florida and Islands of Adventure has become a city of walls while preparation is under way for the new coaster. On my way out I noticed that the Hemisphere Dancer, the famous plane once belonging to Jimmy Buffett had been restored and placed back at its home at the Lone Palm Airport bar. Apparently this was the bar's grand reopening. A little bit of backstory to close out this report...

Day 1: Waldameer Basically more of a pit stop than anything, but it was my first time here. Arrived shortly before 5 and was pleased to see they offered an after 5pm wristband for $29 (I was prepared to buy $40-50 in tickets) so my day was already off to a good start. Started off with a front row ride on Ravine Flyer II as it was only running 1 train, but ops were decently quick with loading. Front row was pretty good, a few pops of air but nothing to really write home about. But I would return later... Stopped by Pirates Cove which was a walk on and certainly an interesting walk through fun house. Lots of cool gas and a couple dizzying crooked sections. You don't find these too often anymore so it was really awesome checking this out. Intended on riding the Flume next but it was down and drained with maintenance milling about in various areas. So I continued back to get by Steel Dragon credit. Pretty much a walk on, not the greatest spinner but a couple briefly intense sections. Didn't spin a whole lot. Right next door was the awesome Larson drop tower XScream. I would be perfectly happy lapping one of these for hours on end. I was on limited time, or I would've done the same here. I love these things. Wish there were more of them. Noted the Flume was starting to fill back up with water, I quickly detoured over to Comet to get my final credit of the day (with only two hours I wasn't wasting my time with the kiddie coaster and the Visa). This was running 2 trains and was a really fun, perfectly smooth family woodie. Even had a couple quick moments of floater. Too bad these junior woodies are as rare as they are, they almost all run good. Headed back over towards the empty Log Flume which was cycling empty logs. As fate would have it, maintenance shouted down to the greeter to open the ride right when I walked up and I would be the first one in. This is a really awesome Flume. Neat tunnel section at the beginning and two good drops. Nice splash but not totally soaking. Two thumbs up for this flume, which is very popular as the line filled right up behind me so I'm glad I got to it when I did. Unlike Great Adventure, Waldameer knows how to quickly get a Fluke fixed and back running! Was 6:15 by this point and I rode everything I wanted except Whacky Shack which had a long slow line, so I headed back to Ravine Flyer for a 20 minute wait and back row ride. This is absolutely a back row coaster, the first drop is insane back there and the intensity throughout is turned up to 10. While the front felt kind of controlled and graceful, the back felt like a rampage through most of the ride. I thought this coaster felt similar to Excalibur at Funtown, maybe slightly more intense. Hope to get back to it someday. Walking back through the park I noticed the line for Whacky Shack was a lot shorter so I hopped on. Another very fun dark ride. Really enjoyed this just as much as its neighbor. Finished up with one more quick ride on XScream. Had to hit the road to Michigan and was sad to have to leave the park so quick. This is a great little park with a world class woodie, a couple fun support coasters, a great flume, 2 fun dark rides, a Larson Tower, and what looked like a very good package of flats. Not to mention it has a lot of charm and is very family friendly. Felt like a better Canobie. Off to Michigan's Adventure tomorrow and FINALLY riding Shivering Timbers for the first time. Can't wait!

got way far behind, with so much stuff going on since my last update here (SFOT Coasterthon, Holiday World Holliwood Nights, SFFT Roller Coaster Rodeo). . but gonna do my best to catch up on several reports over the next week or so! Day 12 (pt 1) 1/2 day stop at our final (and surprise) park, Gulliver's Land: Owned by the same company that owns Gulliver's World - that we stopped into earlier on the trip - this was the 2nd (of the 4 I believe) "Gulliver's Park" in the UK. this one was bigger and had larger rides than Gulliver's World had, and seemed a bit more geared towards older kids/teens - with some bigger and more thrilling rides. And as we were here on a Weekend day, there were way more families visiting as well, so we weren't the odd adults in a park full of small children and it was way less weird it was a bit overcast off and on, but never really got anything more than a slight drizzle. added bonus is that we got to say hi to Caroline, who is local and swung by the park to meet up with us. you can tell from outside the park, that it's a little more adult ride wise than Gulliver's World had been. TPR is ready to enjoy Gulliver's Land! the main street USA version for this park. the Castle at the end housed a restaurant in the bottom, and a playground area on the top. Dragon Siege was small, but intense. loved the theming. and yes, it went upside-down for full rotations this is behind the castle, and is the large Gulliver's Travels ride (it would open up in a short bit), and the upper level, over the bridge from the top of the castle, was a HUGE fairy tale walk thru area, called "Once Upon A Time" - that really had to be experienced, as describing it sells it short. (pics of that in part 2) a small jungle raft ride was also well themed thruout the park there were these push button kiosks that had animatronics inside them. not all worked, but all of them were entertaining. the Orangutan Band was near the jungle river ride. so was the animatronic snake. 3 family coasters at this park. 1st up was the racing coaster, called Grand Prix Racers, and I think it was an exact clone of the one at Gulliver's World tons of rides scattered thruout the park, including smaller rides for the little ones. Like this little race track. and a Pony Express (that adults weren't allowed to ride. . . sad face) not a bad log flume for a park this size. . and TONS of photo ops all over the place. there was a shooting dark ride, the Silver Mine, that was fairly popular. . tho I seem to recall a lot of the targets didn't do a whole lot. but most of us rode it. an overview of the park, via a park map. it's a fairy good size the interactive Fort area, with lots of things to climb on and swing on. the park's 2nd coaster is called "Runaway Train" and is a Zamperla family coaster. as the Bear out front told me, it was located in "Western World" over here was also a smaller train ride. I had to wait a cycle (and then was the only rider), but was told it was ok for adults to ride, so I took a spin on it. I rode in the Caboose, and the operator was kind enough to snap a picture for me. I rode the flume too, and it did get me fairly moist by now the Gulliver's Travels ride was open, so headed back over that way. it has the same ride system as the Princess ride at Gulliver's World, so I was prepared to love it. (and had been told there's an amazing scene inside) yup. . a full sized Gulliver, being tied down by little men. . LOL also lots of princesses. . or fairies. . I dunno. not many of my onride pics came out usable. but of course I LOVED it, and rode it a few times. as did Stacy & Nick and Robb & Elissa and Jack & Jackie anyone who knows me, knows I love photo ops . . especially with park mascots. so I was in heaven when so many of the Gulliver's mascots were out and about today. I still have NO idea what the one on my left is. . (the one on the right is a bunny, I think). . but the one on the left? an anthropomorphic squash? and Gulliver's Girlfriend!! the third coaster in the park, is an indoor roller skater called the Crazy Mouse. it was a coaster, and it was indoors. and it had some big props.. . . these pics are from the loading station, but the park does its best to keep the riders in the dark, as there's no description or view of the coaster from the queue line, and in fact the keep the doors to inside closed, and only open them up to load the next riders onto the platform. this pic is from the platform, before I put my phone away see? big props. some pics of the playground area on top of the castle (before heading across the bridge to the walkthru). it looked like they were doing some construction up here, so the area was roped off. we still had some time at the park, so some of us headed over to the jungle rapids ride. a "snug" fit, but fun. to be continued. . .

It's new. All of the flats in the front corner of the park around Lightning Run were either removed (so long Cyclos) or moved to Discovery Meadow in the back. That whole area is lined with fences and there's a bit of development happening in there. Snuck a day away to go check out Discovery Meadow, and honestly? It's actually super nice. Felt like a move Herschend money could definitely pull off. One of the biggest things I've noted before was how alone Storm Chaser felt. Now the entire path between Roller Skater (Hollyhock & Roll) all the way to Wind Chaser is lined with rides, and a ton of shady sitting spots under existing trees. My biggest surprise was seeing the pirate ship put in a perfect spot next to Mile High, so close to the splash but angled perfectly to avoid the wave. Speaking of waves, this heat wave has been pretty intense lately so I didn't stick around too long. I mainly wanted to get my steps in then cool off, so I only did Wind Chaser and Treetop Drop. From what I could see, they reprofiled Woodland Run's first drop and I'm seeing a ton of crazy hairtime from riders in the back seat, so take note of that for anyone else who goes.

I didn't get an ask NOT to say anything, so I will share. I spoke with Jeffrey Siebert multiple times during Roller Coaster Rodeo this weekend, and at one point I was teasing him how I hope the new coaster at SFOT is named "El Toro" , as it's in the Spain section of the park. Name it that just to watch enthusiasts heads' explode. he laughed and told me that in all seriousness, they *were* planning on using a name from elsewhere, but he insisted (and won that battle) for a unique name. --> so the new dive coaster will have a unique name in the chain. (similar to the way they went with Chubacabra for the Goliath rename at SFFT). I followed up asking if it's themed to bull fighting as it's in the Spain area, and they aren't planning on changing that. and the response was "you'll just have to wait and see" but yeah.. unique name for this new coaster.

After our great day at Holiday Park. we arrived in the late evening at the Hotel Charles Lindbergh, our final hotel of the trip. We were surprised by the hotel's generous welcome wagon, setting us up with a dinner at the hotel's exclusive 1919 restaurant. We were told to drop our bags at our "cabins" and then meet for dinner... From the moment you arrive at the Hotel Charles Lindberg, you feel like you're in an entirely different realm. The hotel's signature "Aeronaut Cabins" are part of the incredible experience of staying at this particular property, onsite at Phantasialand. The interiors aren't spacious, but that's kind of the point--but the room design is wholly unique and unlike anything I've experienced, anywhere. They're meant for transient travelers who are flying between destinations, at least as far as the story is concerned. Why would I share a photo of the cabin's bathroom? Because this window actually doubles as a door to a secondary verandah that looks out into Rookburgh... And the view from this side is incredible. Even with F.L.Y. not in operation, it is hard not to stare at the coaster. As much as I wanted to stay and roam, I wasn't going to pass up the chance to have my first meal at 1919 and it was well worth it! After our late dinner, I took advantage of another benefit of staying onsite at the Hotel Charles Lindbergh... Guests staying at this property have the exclusive access to freely roam the land of Rookburgh outside of park hours. And I took advantage of this benefit for each of the three nights we were here. The layering of levels, detail and track found within the land is astounding. I probably should have warned you at the start of this update that there would be a lot of photos of F.L.Y. But the honest truth is, there are a lot of photos of F.L.Y. to be found in my remaining updates. It goes without saying that I was utterly enchanted by this land, and by extension, our hotel. It wouldn't even matter if the coaster wasn't good (which it is--it is VERY good), because it is so visually impressive that that is an achievement of its own. The way this coaster weaves in and around the hotel is incredible. There's an entire lower section of the land that has tunnels and water as well. So few words can be used to express how taken aback by this place I was. I didn't want to stop roaming, but I needed to get a few hours of sleep before our full day ahead. Morning came and it was time to finally explore the rest of the park. That didn't stop me from grabbing a few photos from the verandah outside of our bathroom. If we had had more time, I was tempted to experience Pirates 4-D one more time, in German. But sadly, it was not meant to be. Early access for resort guests allowed us to enjoy a few rides before lines kicked in. Double decker carousels are fun. Black Mamba isn't something that is talked about nearly as often now that F.L.Y. and Taron exist in this park, but it is a really great B&M invert not unlike Montu. The station is very neat! I love just how much this coaster weaves in and out of the Deep in Africa realm of the park. I'd come back to experience the Colorado Adventure coaster, but I was impressed to see just how expansive it is. We rushed over to Klugheim, but probably not for the reason you'd think. With Raik being a one-train coaster, we figured it was best to get it out of the way sooner rather than later. Also, it is very difficult to get Taron and Raik in operation in the same photo. The Raik tower for both lift hills is nicely themed. Not unlike F.L.Y. this update has a lot of Taron photos. I love this fly-through structure! I love the design of this coaster. So photogenic! Chiapas wasn't running for the day, but I couldn't help but stare. For whatever reason, this was one of my most anticipated attractions of the trip, and I'm not even a big fan of log flumes. Wuze Town was far weirder and more grand than I had possibly imagined. I'd been hearing raves about Winjas - Fear and Force for a very long time. Watching Winjas in motion is almost as fun as riding them... Almost. Back for more Taron envy... Airtime! Twisty bits! Taron has some great overbanked turns as well. Rutmor's Tavern was our stop for lunch on day one and it started with a hearty charcuterie selection... Spinatspätzle was the dish of choice for our entree and it was fantastic. Have I mentioned yet that I really like Taron? Mystery Quest was something we planned to ride the next day, in the hopes of doing all of the park's water rides at the same general time. Mystery Castle on the other hand was high on our priority list. My first time riding an Intamin drop tower like this and it was great! Longing for Chiapas to open... You get these little beauties when staying at the Hotel Charles Lindbergh,, which grant you access to an exclusive priority line to the ride just for guests staying at that resort. What have we here? This looks oddly familiar... Similar yet different. The (Michael Jackson-less) Colorado Adventure was a fun mine train with an expansive layout... But it definitely gets a little rough at times. Geister Rikscha falls into the category of "derivative of Haunted Mansion" while also oddly unique... Some of it is very much its own thing. Some of it, not so much. It even has a section that's vaguely derivative of Pirates of the Caribbean! Similar but different. I have no clue. Back to Taron. Those curves. Rare are photos of Raik in action. But I was determined to get a few. With some more Taron thrown in the mix. What a great coaster! As dusk fell upon Klugheim it was time for something especially fun... Extra ride time on Taron after the park closed! What an awesome way to close out our day in the park! I might have gotten my own train (by happenstance) multiple times during the ERT... I might have. But I was willing to share a train with my good friend Chuck. Seriously. Phantasialand had shown us in multiple ways within the last 24 hours just how welcome we were. And we still had one full day left! Dinner at 1919 once again did not disappoint. Dessert was great there too! I took one more moment out the bathroom verandah to enjoy the view before getting some rest. Tomorrow would be the last day of the trip...

After an amazing two and a half days at Europa Park, we made the road trip via bus towards Phantasialand (our final stop of the trip). Conveniently enough, Holiday Park is close enough along the path that Robb & Elissa arranged a half day itinerary that gave us a chance to experience all of the park's main attractions and to get a taste of their Halloween Fright Nights event. It is probably worth noting that in the time since our visit, Holiday Park has begun the process to be officially renamed as Plopsaland Deutschland. Quite a view to walk into... Their entry plaza is quite nice for a relatively humble-sized park like this. Faux-stained glass. I genuinely appreciate how the park has built out a decently-sized indoor attraction space. Holiday Park is part of the Plopsa family of parks, and as such, they took their use of the House of Anubis IP rights and applied the franchise to their drop tower. We were hooked up with some Express Passes for the day... You could use this punch card up to nine times for any combination of attractions. Fortunately enough the lines for most of the other attractions besides Sky Scream and Expedition GeForce were short, which allowed us to use the express passes for those. And they certainly came in handy. Through the trees! Over the trees! Sky Scream is only the third Premier Rides Sky Rocket II but it was one probably the best one I've been on. Going down! A look at the full look at the coaster's layout. I'll never complain about a park keeping parts of their former coasters as theming. Super Wirbel lives on here. Wickieland is the park's viking-themed area and matches the cartoony styles of the other Plopsa parks. I love how much Expedition GeForce towers over and wraps Wickieland. Wickie Splash is a really fun log flume with some interesting tricks up its sleeve. The Big Wave is a large Zamperla Disk'O with a nicely themed base. I enjoyed seeing Expedition GeForce fly by as I waited for my ride on The Big Wave to begin. It was quite a good time! Without a doubt the best thing in the entire park. Magical things happen in this section of Wickie Splash. Die Schlumpfe. But in all seriousness, the park's Burg Falkenstein dark ride closed a few years earlier as it has been updated to be new Smurfs-themed attraction. I couldn't complain about this hearty Jägerschnitzel lunch at Restaurant Pfalzgraf. It was a little too cold for my liking to ride Dino Splash, but I greatly appreciated the theme. Quite photogenic. Anubis was quite a fun ride. Time to explore the Heidi-themed Holiday indoor section of the park. It's essentially a studio/warehouse building with play areas, a few small rides and a small food & beverage counter. But the variety inside is nice and the vibe is quite whimsical. Some pretty neat theming found within, though I'm not familiar with the IP myself. A unique little carousel inside... And they even fit a kiddie coaster in here (with a decently sized section hidden behind the rock wall. Back outside for more staring at Expedition GeForce. Can't stop. Won't stop. If you've been a part of TPR as long as I have, you're already familiar with this sign. Silhouettes in the sun. Over the Pipi Station! Through the curve! "It's like Coca-Cola but frozen!" Seriously incredible design. If you're a fan of grilled sausage, well then have I got the park for you! The park has a very cute Maya the Bee-themed kiddie area that is kind of off of the beaten path from the rest of the park. But we didn't have a lot of time to explore because we needed to get back to the front of the park for something else... While we had to be on the road within a few hours of the event start, the park treated us to a VIP tour with priority access to four of the event houses... I appreciate the fact that the park actually ranks the fear factor of each house and scare zone for guests to choose what they're able to handle and what to avoid. \ A look at how much of the park is involved in the Halloween Fright Nights event. If there is one thing that Halloween Fright Nights has going for it, it is the fact that the scare actors are super in character and super vulgar in the process! All kinds of sass was experienced before we even entered the house! I've never experienced a house that took your photo within and gave it to you. Sadly the camera was out of focus but still a neat souvenir and concept. Mad Rat was the next house we experienced. Actors were unafraid to curse, use suggestive language and more. Words to live by: "Make Love, Not Rats." Absolutely insane (in a good way) to me was the fact that the park's Schnitzel Haus restaurant actually becomes a haunted house for the event, where you actually walk through (and briefly sit in) the dining room, the kitchen, and even the restroom... It was wild. The final house of our tour was the most anticipated and most bizarre. Titty Twister is an adults-only house themed around a haunted strip club. And that description is the tamest way to explain it. Unlike any other haunted house I've ever been in and entirely over the top in the most memorable of ways. We had a great time at Holiday park for sure! As the sun set it was time to head back to the bus for our final destination of the trip...

^ I saw that, too. Great Adventure is talking a big game about 2026, but for all we know it could be breaking the record for longest wacky worm. The thing that gives me pause about that article is that there are no facts, no evidence, just "i know a guy who said this thing." Also it states that they're in contact with various amusement companies and waiting on the right bidder, so that means it's a concept that's about to become as real as Orlando's Polercoaster.

After the incredible day and a half we'd had at Europa Park so far, it was both reassuring and incredibly sad to know that we had only one day left. This park had lived up to the hype and then some, and I wished (as I still do) that more time could have been squeezed in to enjoy more of the vast property's many offerings. That said, we still had a full day ahead of us, capped off with an evening at Traumatica, a Halloween event hailed as Europe's most sophisticated Halloween event. Our morning started off with some exclusive ride time on the Can Can Coaster... I love that Eurosat had such name recognition, that the new version still retains its branding, even subtly. Not unlike the queue for the attached Phantom of the Opera Coastiality experience, the queue for the Eurosat - Can Can Coaster features lots of related props and decor to set the stage for the attraction. I love how the queue embraces different parts of the lore and history of Moulin Rouge. A few props from the former version of Eurosat have found a home in the new queue. I absolutely adore this station design. And to be honest, I appreciated the Can Can Coaster far more than I expected. What feels like it was originally built as Europa Park's answer to Space Mountain has become a really fun tribute to the iconic sounds and sights of the Moulin Rouge, right down to the famous Can Can song. Next up for morning ERT was a ride of Silver Star. Now, I will admit that I almost definitely set myself up for a let down with this one. For years, I watched Robb & Elissa's earliest Europa Park videos and this B&M hyper looked to deliver a really fantastic experience. One such video that would always hype me up: In the years that followed, I'd have a chance to ride some of the biggest B&M hyper coasters back home, even getting one in Orlando. None of this to say that Silver Star isn't a good, if not great, hyper coaster--because it is. It is just that, hyper coasters don't have the same effect on me that they did when they weren't such a commodity. I enjoyed this one, but nowhere near the levels of awe I had somehow built myself up to expect before riding. The moral of the story here? Sometimes it is best to just enjoy a thing for what it is, and be surprised with how it ends up being when you actually get to ride it. I absolutely adore this section of the park. It didn't hurt that the Euro-Tower was nearby to give us a chance to view the park from above. One section of the park that I had less time than I would have liked, was the Ireland area. So many great things in one view. Swiss Bob Run looks great from above! No, this isn't a Spaceship Earth knockoff... Nor is it the only park with a geodesic sphere in it. We got a sneak peek at Traumatica from up here... Such a neat place to watch Voltron Neverra in operation... Speaking of which. We simply couldn't stop. Wouldn't stop. This might be one of my favorite ride photos ever... The insane variety of facial expressions sums up just how wild this experience can be in every sense. Nearby we rode the Snowflake Sleigh Ride which... Exists. This could probably be replaced with something more modern. This on the other hand, I hope they never change. "Dubi dam dam, da dubi daba dibi dam..." I love that they have a replica of The Globe Theatre and I regret that I didn't have a chance to go inside. Similar but different. I know many poke fun at how Pirates of Batavia feels like a knock off of Pirates of the Caribbean, but there is a lot to the experience that is unique. It had moments that reminded me less of Pirates and more of Sinbad's Storybook Voyages at Tokyo DisneySea. I think they really did a great job recovering and revamping this attraction in the wake of the fire. Did you even go to Europe if you didn't get poffertjes along the way? Had to go back to ride Snorri Touren again! I'll admit I had a degree of FOMO about not getting the chance to dine at FoodLoop but gimmick seemed just fine to observe from afar without eating there. Still blown away by this section of the park. I couldn't help but to stare at the Stave Church in the park. The Scandinavian section of the park (and its similar-themed hotels) was among my favorite areas of the park. Blue Fire is a great coaster that lived up to the hype. There aren't many swing rides that look as good as Vindjammer. We spotted a bit of Traumatica history while waiting for the Voltron 4-D film. Taverna Mykonos had an awesome platter for lunch that was a fantastic value. Pegasus packs a punch despite it being a family coaster. Tesla gave me a bit of side-eye as I walked back up for more time to watch Voltron up close. But it was worth it. I mean, look at this thing! Less side-eye given, now that I was going back in to ride. The maneuver from the brake run into this corkscrew is practically a launch. The first and only time I was able to capture a shot of the inverted stall... What a masterclass in coaster design! Old meets new. Action shots in motion... I just love it. Still delicious. Still refreshing. Time to start making our way out of the park... But the day was far from over. Silver Star looking great from afar. Europa Park takes on a gorgeously different tone at night. I wish I had more time to explore the rest of the park in the evening. But it was time to be traumatized. Welcome to Traumatica! The park's houses/mazes are definitely lower-tech than you'd find in some of the stateside parks, but if anything, that challenges the park to be more imaginative and creative with their effects and scares. The event features a main stage with a rotation of themed acts including musicians, dancers and freak-show acts. The Hill is quite literally a maze built upon a hill on the edge of the property. It was one of the most basic experiences of the event, but I give them credit for leaning into the theme simply and effectively. Something that surprised me about Traumatica was the sheer amount of fire found throughout. These fire pits were found throughout the event grounds... Never in America could guests be trusted to openly access such fire, for a variety of sad ("this is why we can't have nice things") reasons. Roaming scare actors were some of the best parts of the event and some of them even carried sparklers and fire sticks as they moved through the crowds. How about an action shot? POP! The houses each had a unique way of approaching the theme--and to the park's credit, none of them really went the way you'd expect. The entrance experience in this house alone, sold me on the entire experience. My favorite house of the entire event! The event also featured a variety of food trucks and booths in case you needed a bite or some liquid courage. I highly recommend experiencing Traumatica if you have the time to experience Europa Park during the season! What an absolutely gorgeous sight upon which to end our final evening at Europa Park...

Oh I am so excited to visit! We will be there the at the very beginning of Oct. Figured that was the best compromise between kids back in school, a little past hurricane peak, and a little before the worst of the Halloween crowds; plus we'll get to do the HHN stuff as well. I bought the 3 day package that includes one day at Epic and then went back in and bought a single day Epic ticket. So, figured we would have 6 days counting check in and check out day with tickets for 4 of them and be able to go to Epic twice. Then thought we will just buy HHN tickets for a day and go to the park late and that we would probably pop over to SW one day. Not sure why you can't add on single day Epic tickets as an extra when getting a vacation package, that seems like an oversight, but you do have to do a separate booking on that. Then I realized I had made a mistake on line while booking (my fault) and had to call customer service right away to correct it. I had an excellent customer service experience and then icing on the cake she offered me entry into IOA and US for the entirety of the stay (so the two days I previously had not purchased tickets for) for a grand total of $48. Not per person but for the entire party. Icing on the cake for sure! However, for the first time we are not staying at RP but at Aventura. The prices really have popped up on RP which is 100% not surprising, plus I needed two rooms, so since the included express doesn't include Epic which will be our main focus for the trip and we can spend our IOA and US time on our favorites and that we are hoping crowds aren't too bad that time of year.......I'm opting to spend the savings on extras like HHN and/or express at Epic only.

I got to attend the opening of the DCUniverse area the other weekend at Six Flags Fiesta Texas (it also overlapped with the Mardi Gras celebration, so did some of that too). the area looks great, and with this open now, SFFT has the biggest assortment of DC Universe themed rides in North America (even if we don't count Kid Flash, which has been a paperweight for a long time now, and seeing the announcements that it's getting removed? just confirms whatever lawsuit was going on is now concluded). anyways. . here's some pics. my quick takes on the 3 brand new rides? Cyborg (Nebulaz) - it's great, running both forwards and in reverse, with heavy theming (Kilg%re takes over control of the quantum mechanism and makes the ride go crazy) - forwards is slightly more nauseating than the backwards portion. I actually fit in this Nebulaz, tho I saw many people get walks of shame - so if you don't fit in a seat, ask to try another one, as even tho they claim the seats are all the same? some of them have slightly longer seat belt clamps and I had no issue riding - 1st time I've ever fit on a Nebulaz. Shazam (spinning drop tower) - a very gentle ride, it reminded me a LOT of the SFOT parachute drop. really long cycle, and more of an upscale "bounce tower" than a drop tower. looks amazing at night with the lighting package. Metropolis Transit Authority ("Monorail") - the station is a *stunner*.. . subway tile, and a queue that looks like waiting at a train station. the ride itself is a bit short (shorter than I expected it to be, and it actually looks shorter than the original plans showed (where it went around the Gotham City Crime Wave swings) - it now cuts in front of it. There is no onride audio (a shame, as it would be great if it pointed out things you pass), tho there is audio in the station that teases the train arriving and leaving. it's high enough to get some great views, and with even a slight breeze was very comfortable on a warm day. They do only allow 3 adults and one child maximum in each car - so this could cause quite the line on a busy day, as there are only two trains with 4 cars each. I have to assume that is for safety reasons, as out car - with 3 adults - seemed a bit shaky on some of the turns. it adds to the thrill level of this gentle ride tho, I thought. Batgirl (the kiddie coaster) is running great still and the new colors look really nice on it. same with Green Lantern (zoom jets) - the new color scheme is fantastic. Poison Ivy (up up and Away), really works well with the gondolas redone as giant fruit with vines (and shade) in the queue now. I did not ride Penguin (convoy) even tho it had opened with some statues in place, as they still are not quite done with it, and expect a few more dioramas to be added to the track area. anyhow. . here are some pics even the Batmobile at "Batman" (the 1st S&S Freespin built) has been refurbed the new DC Universe area (where the main concentration of rides are) a look at Green Lantern, the Monorail, Cyborg, Shazam, and Batman Poison Ivy (the revamped up, up, and away) the new entry sign from Spassburg (it lights up, and the other side say DC Universe across the top) the Metropolis Transit Authority (Monorail) queue building up high enough you get a nice view towards the front of the park from the station and a great view of the DCU area LTR: Superman Krypton Coaster, Cyborg, Green Lantern, and the base of Supergirl (Skyscreamer) In this pic you can see most of the land, plus Wonder Woman golden lasso coaster on the upper right looking across at the MTA queue building, and on the right some of Penguin. . they are still going to be putting up some dioramas here to drive thru. looking down into Penguin, you can see some of the statues that have been placed, but as of a week ago, there was still some work to be done on it. it IS up and running tho. pulling into the station, you get a great close up of Shazam, and in the distance the top of Gotham City Crimewave, Joker, and Superman Krypton Coaster they have some DCU characters out. for the month of March, they are starting out with Flash and Harley Quinn I may have gotten "confused" meeting "the Flash" during Mardi Gras. . . I didn't get any beads, but the actors all had a good laugh. yeah. . Boomerang. but it sure is picturesque. that's Dr. Diabolical's Cliffhanger in the right window there. View from the VIP lounge patio. why hello Mr. Jeffery Siebert! got a mini behind the scenes warehouse tour and got to see the maintenance shed where they keep the extra trains for all the coasters. and then found out Harley was out now. . so went back to DCU for a pic. kinda behaved myself this time. also went to see the new for Mardi Gras show, "Voodoo Dolls" it's very, very good. (and indoors with cushioned seats and air conditioning) some of the voodoo queens get special effects for their numbers.. such as bubbles! and to top it off, I got to ride on a parade float for the evening Mardi Gras parade. for once, I got to be a Pirate, instead of being the swiss girl - (for some reason, when I do the parade, they always wanna dress me up as the swiss girl) ready for the parade to start, and to toss out hundreds of beads! the area looks great, the park is fantastic, and the Mardi Gras food is all really good. Highly recommend checking it out while the event is still going on!

I can't wait for some review to start to leak out, Starfall Racers is a top 10 coaster/it's too rattley and the restraints are uncomfortable. Or the Wolfman Coaster is so short/it didn't spin enough/it was better than 7 dwarfs mine train. The instant knee jerk reactions from people are one of my favorite things in this fandom, can't wait lol.

I personally wouldn't have any problem with that, although I'm not sure how big a logistical pain in the ass it would be for the park. Price increases are definitely a way to cull the herd a bit and the park can legit say it is due to demand and no one would be able to argue with that. I do agree that privileges have been abused or perhaps in my view very very unappreciated. I have seen entitled behavior amongst some coaster enthusiasts increase (of course I guess you could say the same in general across all walks of life) but not necessarily more people feeling entitled but rather those that veer that way getting louder and more insistent. As we were leaving an event very late one night I was thanking all the employees on the way out for staying so late for us to have fun, which I could tell they appreciated, and another attendee kind of mocked me and said "you know they get paid right?".........ummmm, ok, doesn't mean you can't exhibit some gratitude. Geeez.

Our next day started out with a visit to Legoland Deutschland (with a brief stop at Peppa Pig Park next door). The second Legoland property I’ve been to so far, this was a really charming park! The lineup features some unique coasters (including a bizarre wing-rider that’s not quite for kids but also not a super-thrilling ride compared to some of the larger versions of this coaster type) and lots of fun smaller experiences throughout the park. We had express access to all of the park’s major rides, which cut our wait times down to minutes at a time. Similar to Legoland Florida but different. But first... Somehow I ended up experiencing Peppa Pig Park in Germany before ever getting to its counterpart in Florida. What you see in this photo is the majority of what the park is/includes. There are water play areas... And a few family flat rides... The youngest of kids will find the experience exciting. Papa Wutz´Achterbahn was the real reason we were here. It features a themed zero car, a traditional lift hill and a booster launch (Zamperla is known for big, launched coasters after all). Bis Bald Peppa Pig Park! Now on to the main event! Rope drop included a cute dance number featuring some LEGO characters. Bavarian LEGOmeister is the best! Familiar but different. Really, really picturesque on a level I hadn't expected. It feels like I've been here before. I thought it was kind of interesting that they had one of these kinds of rides in Legoland only to have a similar, albeit smaller experience in Peppa Pig Park. The newest addition to Legoland was our first stop of the visit. The realm features many mythical creatures built out in LEGO form. The station and queue building for Maximus - Der Flug des Wächters is pretty neat. I've been on a few B&M wing-riders before, but never a kid-oriented version. The coaster wraps around the mini-land's many elements. A look at the coaster's trains up close. One of the coaster's two inversions twists directly overhead the land's entrance/exit corridor. TPR takeover! After riding this one, I’m not convinced family/kid-friendly B&M wing-riders need to exist anywhere else. Drachenjagd was a fun junior coaster near the larger, more traditional Feuerdrache (Dragon) coaster. Feuerdrache was a good time. The park's express pass system is handled entirely through your own mobile device and allows you to reserve a priority entrance within a few minutes' time. The system seriously worked great! Power Builders is the original KUKA arm-based attraction and it was quite fun to experience the highest intensity program. Flying Ninjago was the first time I've ridden a Gerstlauer Sky Fly and for whatever reason, I couldn't get the thing to flip... But others around me were spinning the entire ride through. Das Große LEGO Rennen is a carbon copy of the one in Florida. It has its value with a few pops of airtime and some sharp turns. Lunch was a surprisingly great plate of veal spare ribs and a baked potato for good measure. It doesn't matter what the attraction is themed to, this is the quintessential Legoland experience. Temple X-Pedition was short but fun. This section of the park was quite nice with a kinetic energy thanks to several moving attractions within view. I do like that this park has an observation tower. A look at the bulk of the layout of Maximus. Jungle X-Pedition was a fun log flume with a few surprise twists. This looks familiar! A moving LEGO model of Ninjago was one of my favorite elements of this park's Miniland. It's like apple juice but carbonated! Fun to see this guy here, considering he has a near-identical twin at Disney Springs. Love this! Dinner was unsurprisingly another bowl of our favorite truffle oil pasta... By now, I think you know the rule. Hi Robb and Jack! One of the oldest attractions at Oktoberfest. The size of these portable funhouses never ceases to amaze me. There's just something about that Oktoberfest nighttime glow... Back for more... Elissa beat the Toboggan with style! Sarah nailed the lift as well! This is one time where I definitely recommend looking down. This Jumanji-inspired funhouse, complete with a knock-off Robin Williams continued to crack me up throughout our time at Oktoberfest. There aren't many Enterprises left out there, so it was fun to see one here. Voodoo Jumper is one of the best flat rides at Oktoberfest to observe, in addition to riding! Our next day would be our big day at Oktoberfest with time at the Lowenbrau tent, rides and more festival food ahead!