utahTPR

Do they sell pickles anywhere in the park? Not the spicy kind... I got one of those at Knott's and it almost did me in.

How is Mach Tower supposed to compare to Drop Tower at KD?

They both look pretty ugly to me.

^ So what's the new color? The neon green?

Maybe there should be cameras pointed at the crowd so that the booers can be disgraced on a Coaster Expedition video.

Very timely, what with the Smurf nostalgia going on at the KD thread right now and all. Guess KD's never getting Smurf stuff back now.

Between the singing mushrooms and the Smurfs and Yogi Bear walking around, I'm guessing it was a pretty fun place to be a little loopy.

I was browsing the BGW website and ran across the Dining page. 1) Dining Certificates Here's the rundown: Silver: entree & drink, $11.99 Gold: entree, side & drink, $13.49 Platinum: entree, 2 sides & drink, $14.79 Do they give free water at the restaurants? Is this the equivalent of getting a free drink? Or is it better than that? 2) They've got a Souvenir Drink Cup Certificate listed for $5.59. How much are souvenir cups normally? 3) They've also got something listed called the Busch Gardens Williamsburg Meal Deal Package for $26.99: Does anyone know what that includes? Is it essentially 2 Silver Dining Certificates and 1 Souvenir Drink Cup? We won't be back again this year after this trip. If I recall correctly, they said that parking is going to be $13 this year, so that's $26 for 2 days, $39 for 3. So I suppose if we end up going for 3 days, it'll be almost free to get the 1-year pass.

Harsh. I'm not a big fan of fan voting for much of anything these days. You see situations where Yao Ming and Tracy McGrady are voted into the NBA All Star game even though they're both injured and out for the year. It's all a take it with a grain of salt situation. Still, they have their place because they're fun to participate in and polls on big name websites like About.com help attract mainstream attention to the industry and that's a good thing, right? After all, parks need more than just the enthusiasts' dollars to build ginormous coasters like i305. A prevalent problem with coaster polls seems to be that people haven't been on all of the options. It's not like the Fans' Choice Awards with movies that are released everywhere. This poll had a coaster in China and one in UAE, I think? Not very likely that voters had been on all 5 of the listed coasters, in my opinion. I'm guessing that Robb and some other TPR members are among the few exceptions. Gauging off of a very small sample size of comments, it seemed like a sizable contingent of the Carowinds Intimidator fans in particular hadn't been on any of the other 4. But that could have just been my perception of it.

Thanks for the feedback. The problem with $35 tickets is that it's an extra stop and no free parking, so that'd be $140 + $20 for parking, so ~$160. The park is only open until 6 PM on the days I'm going, so after 4 PM tickets isn't really an option. Thanks for the suggestion to check eBay. I'll take a look.

I put a similar post in the BGW thread, but my wife and I will be in the Williamsburg area over spring break. Planning on going to KD for 1 or 2 days, depending on weather. Thinking the best strategy for the 1 or 2-day flexibility and cheapest price is to get one VIP Season Pass and then use the $25.00 Bring a Friend Discount for the other admission. According to the single day ticket page, the online discount is $15.00 and the online price is $42.99. That puts the regular price at $57.99, and the Bring a Friend Discount price to $32.99+tax, right? 1-day would be $89.99 + $32.99 = ~$123 2-day would be $89.99 + $32.99 + $32.99 = ~$156 Anyone have a better strategy?

Wife and I will be at BGW over spring break. Looking at 2 or 3 days in the park, depending on weather and other such factors. Thinking the best combination of price & flexibility is to get 2 Fun Cards and pay for parking. We'll also be hitting KD for a day or two, depending on the weather, and also Colonial Williamsburg, if that influences anything. I looked at the Bounce Ticket and a few others, but it didn't look like it included the Governor's Mansion tour, so I think we'll be paying for Colonial Williamsburg and any other historical sites separately if we decide to go there. Does that sound like a good plan? Any reason to get the 1-year pass over the Fun Card?

Wish granted LOL Since this thread was started over a year ago, I'm curious how many of the suggested rides actually have been closed down.

I don't have a problem with any bad ride that attracts a big line. Keeps the lines to the better rides shorter.

Is it worth making a 6-hour drive to ride it before it disappears? What else in Vegas is worth riding besides the stuff at Stratosphere? We've been to the State Line and ridden Desperado. That was pretty decent, but it was hot and rattled us around quite a bit. Not sure we'd pay the money to ride it again. Speed is significantly better, right? Hopefully?

I'd go with Mean Streak, but you can add me to the list of back injuries for GhostRider. I've met a lot more people who like GhostRider than who like Mean Streak and since there are fewer rides at Knott's, it seems a bit more important. It also attracts a lot of people into its line, making the line for Silver Bullet and Xcelerator shorter. I hope whoever said Silver Bullet wasn't serious. I love that ride. Also curious whether all the people who said S:TE would still stick with that choice since its redesign.

Wicked launches from a horizontal track... Volcano IIRC has two launches. One outside the station and a vertical launch inside the volcano going into the first inversion on top of the volcano. I'm always surprised to see people talking about Wicked, even amongst enthusiasts.

Really? With the cost of gas, I'd think that'd about double the cost of the meal.

As long as the insane night rides don't end up putting us out of commission for the next day, I'm all for it. Unfortunately, the park closes at 6 on the weekdays we're there, I think. What are the tips for economical or cost effective dining (aside from bringing a cooler in the trunk) these days?

Nice. We'll be there the week of April 18, so I guess both will be in play. Does Rebel Yell still run backwards?

Of the woodies at KD, only Rebel Yell is worth riding, right? I mean for people who aren't too fond of headaches and/or vomiting? My recollection is that Hurler and Grizzly are both extremely rough, right?

Wow, someone really, really likes those hydraulic launch coasters. Three of the top 10? What a mess.

I'm not in the SoCal area but I'll be heading there this weekend, so I'm wondering whether the park will be open on Saturday. The plan was to go to Knott's tomorrow and then Magic Mountain on Saturday, but it's looking like Knott's will be closed for a 5th consecutive day. Weather's supposed to be better on Saturday, but the forecast still calls for some rain last I checked. What are the chances Magic Mountain will be open?

Going to be there on the 23rd. Looking to hit as much as possible, but if they're open, the coasters we'd love to hit are: X2 Tatsu Goliath Batman: The Ride Terminator Salvation Viper Deja Vu Scream Colossus Revolution Any strategies/tips/tricks/recommendations? I'll admit I haven't read through the whole thread... Where should we eat our 2+ meals that day? Thanks in advance.