coasterbill

Fun fact: Nitro was the last addition at Six Flags Great Adventure that was open on opening day (other than possibly some kiddy rides, I'm not sure). This includes flat rides like Tango, Sky Screamer, and Deja Vu, coasters and even Bizarro the year it was re-named. That's pretty crazy to think about.

They used to try to tap into that market, though I don't know if it was successful. They offered Metro North discount tickets and had ads up in the NYC subways. I don't know if they're still doing that but now that Coney Island has experienced such a major overhaul I would think it would have lost the little appeal that it had. Even with a discounted ticket on Metro North you could get to Coney Island from the subway system and while taking the D train from uptown or the Bronx to Coney Island is akin to the 7th layer of hell it's probably still faster than taking the subway to Grand Central or 125th street, taking Metro North to Rye and then taking a bus.

To be fair I would prefer a stripped wasteland to their Volare.

I grew up with Playland and believe it can succeed with the right ownership group but this has been dragging on for decades now and there's no sign of relief in sight.

... not here to rain on anybody's parade though. Beauty is in the eye of the beholder I guess.

I see virtually zero chance that anything behind the train tracks is open (just for the sake of staffing and managing risk). The rest is a very likely scenario.

This is a tough one to predict. Obviously everything beyond the train tracks will likely be closed but there are a lot of crapshoots here. They can't close any further up than that because they need a kids area. It would be really easy to close off American Thunder and that area by the train bridge and the narrow path near Justice League. The ride could probably run but they'll want to cut back on staff and that's an easy way to do it so I could see this... though it's one of their best rides so it's up in the air. You know Justice League will run, I'm tempted to say Freeze will too. Batman has zero issues with cold (Great Adventure's ran at insane speeds during Holiday in the Park), it'll be open. I'm sure Ninja will too because it's right there. I'm sure Pandemonium will run. Six Flags New England has zero issues running it when temperatures drop into the 30's. They could close off the path near that to the Boss but the Carousel seems like a no brainier to be open and the Skycoaster is an upcharge (and they love upcharges). Even if this area is open I could see Boss being closed. I think it's obvious Mine Train will run. I have to say, they're going to need a lot of staff because there's not much to close off compared to a park like Great Adventure. They're definitely feeling confident about this event risking it at a park like this where they're going to need to front a lot of money for staffing. That's great news.

I know this is an enthusiast forum so it may be overlooked but Safari Off Road Adventure puts Great Adventure on a level that's far superior to the other parks when you combine it with their coaster collection. That ride is the single biggest factor in me considering it the best park in the chain. What other Six Flags park can boast a 90 minute long open air safari with Giraffes, Tigers, Bears, Lions, Rhinos, up close encounters with Lion and Tiger cubs, Bison, Kangaroos, Reptiles, Exotic birds and tons of other animals, some of which are extinct in the wild. And on top of that they have the world's best wood coaster and the tallest coaster in the world plus a ton of other great rides. Discovery Kingdom is the only other park in the chain that can offer anything even approaching that level but they don't even come close to Great Adventure in the coaster department.

I expect NIMBYism in Rockland County to be at unimaginable levels.

This would do very well in Rockland. It may also be the final nail in Playland's coffin.

They suck in cold weather too.

I suffered scrambled brains from reading that post.

I hope you're right but I'm expecting them to cut it off at Wild One with Gotham being closed.

I would agree, I think the back half of the park would be closed which is a shame but Holiday in the Park is always a great event and to see it expanded is excellent news. Congrats guys!

They may adjust those numbers or not open those rides for HITP. Great Adventure gives zero f**ks. Most parks claim they can't start a coaster below 40 degrees but they didn't care one bit. Then again those are all B&M's. Wood coasters are less forgiving. I know at Dollywood they claim it needs to be over 40 degrees to start Thunderhead. Most parks do have temps where they'll shut the coasters down (36 degrees generally) but again, even when it was below freezing Nitro ran at a decent clip and Batman was running (pardon the pun) like a bat out of hell with those cold weather wheels. Anyway guys now that this is essentially confirmed, congratulations. Holiday in the Park makes the park seem like an entirely different place. It brings in a better clientele and the contractor they bring in to do the lights is outstanding. I was blown away by Great Adventure's event and besides the shows I think it goes toe to toe with Dollywood's event. Enjoy it guys!

Yes... as of today it still sucks. I'll keep you posted and let you know if anything changes.

Nope

For those of you worried about temperatures, they didn't care at all at Great Adventure. Even when it got into the 20's they ran the coasters (even Nitro). They never once closed a ride due to low temps. I'm not sure if these are chain wide policies but Six Flags pushed those coasters to the limits and they all ran great. Also if they put those faster cold weather wheels on your Batman clone then get ready because that thing was running insane even in 30 degree temps with half empty trains at the end of the night.

Welcome to what should really be the Conneaut Lake appreciation thread.

That was going to be my suggestion but unless I'm mistaken I believe Hershey and Knoebels are both closed that day and don't open for the season until Saturday. If this is the case and you get to Hershey early I do suggest visiting Chocolate World. It's free, as is parking for 3 hours. And yeah my restrained response is because you would really have to go out of the way to work Knoebels in here. Should you? Absolutely since it's better than every other park you're going to. But it would require some major shuffling around and I know not everyone is as open to that as we would be (because again... we'd do anything to figure out a way to swing by Knoebels).

It's always important to remember that Iron Dragon is a level 4 high thrill ride. The crew shirts from a few years ago proudly boasted this impressive feat in huge text. Lol

Can't wait! I love this addition.

Sounds good to me. If it were me I'd stay in Danville Pa on Saturday night (or even Hershey) which is way more manageable after spending a day in the park and go to Knoebels Sunday since it's opening weekend with buy one get one free wristbands, stay a few hours and then go home after that. That being said I'd do anything for an excuse to swing by Knoebels. Your plan is honestly pretty solid. I'd suggest Hershey's preview thing on Friday but they're not open that day. Bummer... You probably won't need Fast Passes anywhere except maybe Hershey but that system is crap. My only other piece of advice is to get an EZ Pass if you don't have one. They have EZ Pass only lanes on 95 in Virginia that can save you upwards of an hour of travel time in DC traffic. The ones in Maryland by Baltimore are dumb, don't use them.

Do I spy a Blue Streak train (I know they send them to PTC for annual maintenance)? Looks like Cedar Fair has it's own VIP wing of the PTC shop. Lol