chargersmichael

I have lots of new coasters to add! Recently visited Dorney Park and Knoebels for the first time and Hersheypark since 2013. The last coaster I rode was today at Hersheypark which was Storm Runner in the front row! Absolutely amazing ride!

I was on Stormrunner just around this time today! I could have seen you in line! I've spent several days in the Hershey area going to Dorney Park and Knoebels. All fantastic trips. I really enjoyed Hersheypark the most and I will be working on a full review later.

I'm heading to Dorney for the first time tomorrow and I will have the Fast Lane. What plan does anyone recommend to navigate the park/start with? Looking to ride as much as possible and maybe hit up the water park if the weather clears up. Thanks!

Universal did test this system out almost a year ago at Wet N Wild. You were given an armband at the entrance. Even for slides with no wait, you had to go reserve the slide and then check in. Both times I went I was able to go on every slide immediately after reserving because I went right at opening and there were not a lot of people, but I'm curious how the results turned out from this. Let's just say the water coaster breaks down for 20 minutes...how will that play along to my reservation that claimed a 30 minute wait? Also, I'm curious about when severe weather comes. When all of the slides close and reopen an hour later when the sun comes back out (typical FL weather), what will happen then? I'm very curious to see how this plays out. (Btw...shouldn't all of this discussion be in the Universal thread?)

I think the new addition to Typhoon Lagoon is great! I like seeing new additions, especially to one of my favorite water parks! However, I was a huge fan of being able to snorkel and swim with sharks at Typhoon Lagoon. I still can't believe it is gone! I know it was never too crowded over there and I know Disney knows what they're doing...but that was one of the biggest reasons why I liked Typhoon Lagoon so much! That experience couldn't be found at any other water park (unless you take a trip to Discovery Cove). I'm welcoming the new addition but I'll always miss the snorkeling.

Went to the park today! Here's a quick trip report: I'm not sure what it is about when they open the parking lot, but they are always running late! Every time I've been going to SeaWorld, they have open the parking lot 15 to 20 minutes before park opening. I still have a lot of time, but I thought it was supposed to be 30 minutes before opening. Once the park opened at 9am, we instantly went to Mako...but the back half of the park wasn't going to open until 10am. Wish someone told us before we walked all the way over there! Nevertheless, we just headed back to the front to ride Manta. There's something about the back row of Manta that is just absolutely amazing! Next we went to get a front row ride on Kraken. It wasn't as rough as my last visit which was great! Such an intense coaster! Antarctica was next. The air conditioning wasn't on in certain parts of the queue (which I didn't mind too much because of how cold it is at the end of the ride). Other than that, the penguins are really awesome to see!! Now it was just about time for Mako to open! We were on the first train of the day in the front row and then immediately hopped in the back row of the same train after our first ride! Absolutely NO WAIT! Definitely my favorite coaster at SeaWorld and in Orlando. We caught up with the Sea Lion High show...it was good...but I do miss the pirate themed show. After the show we got lunch and walked around to see all of the marine life. All in all it was an awesome day at SeaWorld! Ride Count: -Manta (Back) -Kraken (Front) -Antarctica -Mako (Front) -Mako (Back)

1. Montu - Busch Gardens Tampa 2. Afterburn - Carowinds 3. Dragon Challenge - Chinese Fireball - Islands of Adventure 4. Dragon Challenge - Hungarian Horntail - Islands of Adventure 5. Alpengeist - Busch Gardens Williamsburg

I was at the parks today for Super Bowl Sunday (aka no Americans at the parks). Managed to get 16 rides in less than 2.5 hours. -Dragon Challenge Fire x2 -Dragon Challenge Ice x1 -HP and the Forbidden Journey x1 -Hulk x2 -Dr. Doom x1 -Spiderman x1 -Rockit x1 -Mummy x2 -Transformers x1 -Men in Black x2 -Escape from Gringotts x2 Btw on the Hulk...the paint is all gone on the wheel placement of the rails on the track. It is starting to really show some wear and tear. Also, the footers in the lagoon are really showing some rust too.

Hey everyone, I will be at the park on January 1st. How crowded will the park be on this day? The quick queue prices are a bit high on this day for everyone in my party to purchase one. Thanks!

Sorry for the double post...but I have a few more questions... It looks like it will be pretty cold on Friday night. Do all of the rides stay open? Also, does Dare Devil Dive have the Santa VR for Dare Devil Dive? Thanks for everyone's help!

^Thanks for the advice! Looking forward to the event!

I have a question about Holiday in the Park. I will be in Atlanta next weekend. The only time we would be able to go is on Friday night, however, we won't be able to get there when it opens. How crowded does the event get? Is it worth it to go?

It is hard to keep up with all that Universal is doing at once! -Newly Opened Toothsome Chocolate Emporium -New Coke Store by MIB -Volcano Bay -Jimmy Fallon -Aventura Hotel -Cabana Bay Hotel Expansion -Fast & Furious -Wet n Wild Closing -Purchasing of new land off of I-drive Even though I'm getting a bit irritated of all of the screen based rides, I am excited to see all of these new additions! I wonder what the Universal Orlando Resort will be like 10 years from now!

A Pre-K pass? That sounds awesome! I have family in Virginia. My cousins are 3 and 2. They will turn 4 and 3 in April and May respectively. I'm sure my Aunt and Uncle are going to love this new Pre-K pass! I think this is a great idea that more parks should do!

It truly is amazing to think about everything Universal is/was working on this year. Skull Island: Reign of Kong, Hulk Coaster, Toothsome Chocolate Emporium, Sapphire Falls, Jimmy Fallon, Fast & Furious, Volcano Bay, and the new tower at Cabana Bay. I might be missing something since there is so much going on! Having been on Kong twice now, I really think it is a good ride, but it could have been better. With all of the hype for the attraction, and all of the hype the queue built up, I guess I expected a bit more from the ride. The ending with Kong was really neat, but it almost felt random. Like, "as you look to your right, you will see a King Kong animatronic." I thought this part was going to be more interactive with Kong and actually look like he is angry and then you see his soft side and lets everyone go kind of thing. But I still think it is amazing technology and a must-ride attraction if you have never visited the park before. I'll be at the parks next week to ride HULK! I can't wait! The media update was amazing and all great pictures! Just got me more excited to visit the parks again next week!

I was at the park yesterday so I could get my first ride on King Kong and I thoroughly enjoyed it. I know some people don't like simulators, but I don't mind them. The theming was great and the experience was really cool. When I was leaving the park, I SAW HULK TESTING! It was absolutely amazing! It definitely has to be faster than old hulk. It really catapults out of the tunnel and tears right through the first inversion flying through the Cobra Roll and Loop following it. When comparing testing videos from Old Hulk to New Hulk, the new testing proves that it has been testing a lot faster than it originally ran! I can't wait until this opens in a few weeks!!!

Skull Island: Reign of Kong is officially OPEN!!! The TODAY Show opened the ride today! Both times I went to the park recently, it rained in the afternoon just as they were about to open kong in "technical rehearsal" mode. I'll be sure that there is little rain chance so I can get a chance of "reign" on my next visit lol. Glad Kong is finally opened!!! http://blog.universalorlando.com/extras/live-blog-reign-of-kong/

That seems like a frustrating day! When I was at the park back in May, it was absolutely empty..which was great! (somewhat). The only ride that was opened at park opening was Cheetah Hunt in which we were the first ones on but didn't get off until about 20 minutes later! The operations were so slow that I've never seen them like that! Falcon's Fury wasn't opened, Sand Serpent wasn't opened, Scorpion wasn't opened, Sheikra wasn't opened...on top of that they have the Rhino Rally ride gone just sitting there as well as Gwazi and Tidal Wave. Cobra's Curse seems like a fantastic addition and Busch Gardens USED to be one of my favorite parks...but seeing reports like this and how my previous visits over the past few years makes me question my future visits. I really love the park but it certainly has lost its unique atmosphere and charm in these past few years. The employees aren't as nice, slow operations, ride closures, etc etc. I really want the park to succeed too! It just seems like the charm and unique qualities of the park has faded over the past few years. However, based on how Cobra's Curse looks...it seems like the park is stepping in the right direction!

I can't tell if Disco H2O is included in the mix but I definitely picked out Brain Wash (Puihi), Aqua Drag Racer (Punga Racers) and Black Hole (Taniwha Tubes). In addition, it looks like Volcano Bay will be getting the US's first ProSlide Flying Saucer installation as well as a double Tornado Wave. From the description on the website, I'm thinking maybe they will have the Disco H2O slide but of course remove all of the disco theming and repaint it. As for the Black Hole, based on my last visit to Universal and Wet N Wild last weekend, I believe Taniwha Tubes are already installed. If you drive by, you will see a slide complex filled with blue and green tube slides.

New details about Volcano Bay! Universal Orlando Blog: http://blog.universalorlando.com/whats-new/volcano-bay-details-revealed/ Even more details on the Universal Orlando website. https://www.universalorlando.com/Theme-Parks/volcano-bay.aspx From the descriptions of the attractions, it seems some slides might be transferred over from Wet N Wild such as Aqua Drag Racer, Brain Wash, and Disco H2O. Additionally, from my previous visit to Wet N Wild this past weekend, a new ride reservation system testing took place. Everyone received a blue wristband before entering the park. At each slide, you check in to a station outside the entrance that lists a wait time. You scan your wristband and receive a return time to slide. Therefore, when you return to the slide, there is no wait and you slide right away. However, you can only check in to one slide at a time. I believe this new system will definitely take place at Volcano Bay to minimize people waiting in a line. As for the unannounced "marquee attraction," I believe it will be a ProSlide water coaster because you can see the slide parts of it in the lot next to Wet N Wild. Also, it seems this is the only slide that hasn't been announced. I'm very much looking forward to the opening of this water park!!! I can't wait until it opens!

Mako, Maverick, and Millennium Force!!!

I was just at Wet N Wild recently and saw all of the slides! I can't believe there was a fire over there! However, Volcano Bay is really shaping up as a lot of slides are already constructed and the volcano is really becoming visible from many areas! Looking forward to see the finished product

Just got back from an overall great day at SeaWorld! This was the first time I have been to the park since Manta's opening in 2009. We arrived around 8:15 a.m. The parking tolls didn't let people in until almost 8:45! Either way we were right to the rope drop so we could be the first ones on Mako. The park was announced to be opened at 9 but the workers were instructed to hold us at the rope as they were doing filming of the ride. They didn't let people into the area until 9:35 this morning which of course made Mako have a huge line this morning. Regardless, we were instructed into the Nautilus Theatre and there was no opened door for the exit which became a mess really quick as people didn't know where to go and began to cut everyone. Finally, after opening a bunch of different doors a person came in and instructed us what to do but some people became angry as they lost their spot in line. First ones on for the day in the front row! I absolutely loved this coaster! I think it is a perfect addition to SeaWorld. The first turn is really interesting and unique. Every hill I was not even touching the seat because of the amount of airtime! Personally, it feels a lot faster to me on the ride than it does when observing. The front row really did have great pops of air throughout the whole ride. Great theming and great experience! Next we headed to Manta. I forgot how intense the Back Row was! Definitely an underrated attraction. Everything about this coaster is absolutely fun! Especially enjoy the splashdown effect towards the end of the ride. Then we did Kraken front row. This seemed a lot rougher than I remembered but it is still an intense and fast coaster! This was my first time experiencing Antarctica. I haven't watched any POVs as I like to be surprised and it wasn't as bad as the reviews were for me personally. Do I believe it is short? Yes. Do I believe it could have been better? Yes. Will I ride it every time I'm there? Probably not. However, this is a really interesting ride incorporating "cool" technology with a great penguin exhibit at the end of the attraction. It was definitely colder than I thought! Journey to Atlantis was the same as I remembered and that's a good thing! This water ride is always a lot of fun! We didn't really care to do Turtle Trek or Wild Arctic but we did care to see some shows. We saw One Ocean and Sea Lion High. Both great shows! Right after the One Ocean show, Mako only had a 15 minute wait! As soon as we got in line, it broke down...we waited about an hour for it to reopen and it never did. After we left the park, we saw them testing the ride... Other than a slow morning...we truly had a great day at SeaWorld! I believe Mako is the best coaster in Orlando and is a must-ride! Lots of airtime and lots of fun!

I'll be at SeaWorld tomorrow. I haven't been to SeaWorld in a while (since Manta opened in 2009). My mom always wears a fanny pack to theme parks and when Manta opened it wasn't allowed on. Has this policy changed? Also does anyone know if fanny packs are allowed on Mako?? Thanks!

^That sounds great! I'm going to the park on Monday early in the morning. What row do you recommend is the best? We were thinking of doing once in the front and once in the back but if the line is really long by the time we get off, we might just do it once. What do you guys recommend?