bert425

Turtle is old and unique. . tho for DAYS after, we kept cracking each other up by saying "Tuuuuuurtlllllllle". . as the soundtrack that plays during the ride is hysterical. Kangaroo? WAY more fun than it has any right to be, and absolutely worth standing in line for.

Talon is intense, and feels much faster than it is. but I loved Great Bear too.

yep. that's why we are gonna be there from 7/11-7/15. .we avoided the 4th, because we knew it would be packed. fingers crossed the mid-week and heat will keep crowds to a minimum, but even if crowded, we've budgeted 3 days for BGT, so should be able to do everything anyways.

Wow, really??? You did this??? What an a$$hole. The verification process is that they are actually putting some trust in people not to crash the morning EMH sessions. It's people like you that will make it so they have to put more rules and restrictions into place at the parks. Oh, and you're banned from our forum. This happens WAYYYY more than youd think. Having used to be a CM at the gates we experienced this quite often, and would usually just let the party inside instead or creating a scene and arguing. Never really saw it as a big deal. Seems a bit unfair on the people who have probably spent years saving for that once in a lifetime trip in a Disney hotel including the perks of early entry especially by rewarding people who are intentionally breaking the rules. My wife and I always talk about doing Florida but we don't think we could afford Disney hotels for our family and that puts us off a little since we feel with the only 2 weeks we get off being the busiest in the calendar year, so on top of huge queues, prices will be highest for hotels and airplane etc... fastpass+ and early reservation (for example be our guest) is something we would definitely need. If we ever do reach that point where we could do a Disney hotel for those perks and i'm talking 10 years of putting every little bit away it'd be really, really disheartening to see anyone walking in after all that saving "to avoid a scene." I mean, I know there will always be people who break the rules intentionally and be horrible if you call them out on it (look at my last Everland TR) but it seems a big difference between people cutting in line and smoking anywhere compared to going into what is essentially almost a private event. You wouldn't be allowed in the fast pass line without a ticket and I doubt a group would be allowed on if they used the single rider line even if you caused a scene in public so I'm not sure why this is different. Sorry, didn't mean to turn it into such a lengthy rant. Don't let not being able to afford a Disney property be the reason to keep you away from the parks. You can find VERY reasonable hotels in the Orlando and if you have a larger family I suggest VRBO or Air BNB in Orlando. You can also save money skipping the meals plans, the food is very meh and the cattle herding style of some of the restaurants is off-putting. Airfare will be your biggest expense! I was gonna suggest the Hilton in Disney Springs -- it's where we stay when we go. tho not "Disney Branded" it IS considered a Disney Hotel, and you get all the perks of it: Disney Store in the lobby, purchases made in the park shipped to your hotel for you, extra magic hours, character breakfast, etc. . (in addition to the free shuttle to/from the parks). and the cost really is much less than a Disney Branded hotel, although it's up there for a typical Hilton. still reasonable tho

we were there a couple of years back during the Carousel Organ festival. . .there were tons of them thruout the park, and was quite fun (but crowded)

LOL (and the night time Kinetix show is up and running already, gonna try to catch it on our first evening there. . we get in around 2pm, so by the time check into Hotel, should still be able to get a few hours in at the park -- hopefully on a non-crowded Sunday evening -- to catch Cobra's Curse, and the evening Kinetix show). how is the evening show at SeaWorld? is it worth it to go to? or better to spend time in line at a ride (or driving back to Tampa)?

We went to BGT today also and heading to SWO tomorrow. BGT was better than I expected. any "can't miss" things you'd recommend? (we're doing the Safari on Monday. . and then, to keep w/ this thread, lemme know what you think of SW, so we can plan that too ). I guess it depends on what you like, don't skip out on all the animals for coasters, but don't miss any of the coasters either! Besides the safari which is awesome, there are kangaroo and lorikeet feeding, but if you go later in the day they're less interested. I like all the shows (including Iceploration!) and they're good to do if the rides are closed for weather. I definitely loved Kinetix (night show) last year and I haven't heard but I assume it's already started up this year. Also, Jambo Junction and Curiosity Caverns are tucked away and easily missed, but they're nice quiet animal areas with smaller animals. The flamingos are LEGIT I love the flamingos! Esp if you can get a keeper to give you some of the food to feed them. Also, don't miss the cheetah run! don't wanna hijack the SWO thread for BGT (sorry!). . . but we're gonna be there for at least 2 full days (likely 2 1/2), and then one full day at SWO. so should have plenty of time for everything! (including all shows) thanks for the advice!

It takes a hour and 10 mins to go for me seaworld to bgt I always take the free mears shuttle to bgt from seaworld we'll have a rental car (we're going to Weeki Wachee too).. so will be driving, but it's very cool they offer the shuttle back and forth. didn't realize it was free tho!

We went to BGT today also and heading to SWO tomorrow. BGT was better than I expected. any "can't miss" things you'd recommend? (we're doing the Safari on Monday. . and then, to keep w/ this thread, lemme know what you think of SW, so we can plan that too ).

I hope SWO isn't 2 hours from BGT (since the website says less than an hour). cause we're going to BGT on Sunday, and doing a day trip to SWO

I haven't been on Kumba (remedying that in about a week tho!).. but the way S:KC plays with the canyon walls? (the first drop is a dive off the top!) is hard to beat, I can't imagine putting on a headset and missing that!

We are at Busch Gardens Tampa on 7/11-7/12, and SeaWorld Orlando on either the 13th or 14th. can't wait!

Do you really think it's unreasonable that people on a roller coaster forum would be discussing whether a major new roller coaster (and one of the best in the world) is running reliably or not so they can try and ride it this summer? THEME PARK forum. but yes, there is a healthy appreciation of Roller Coasters here. (there's also overall park discussions and Cruise Ship discussions). But page after page of folks complaining it's up/ it's not up / is it up? and the "itwillneveropen" hashtag stuff? yeah, I DO think that's unreasonable, and entitled. but hey, that's just my 2cents. Your mileage may (and does, apparently) vary. I took blame, I totally realize I could avoid the thread, but I'm the one who clicks on it. After sitting on my hands for over a week, just wanted to voice my opinion on it.

TOTALLY my fault, because I keep coming to this thread every time I see it bumped. but sheesh, the sense of entitlement is just astounding -- and is really unlike what I've seen over the years i've been coming to TPR. seriously, who gives a crap if LR is up or down? Dollywood seems to be a beautiful park I (and is on my bucket list to make it to some day). . go enjoy the rest of the park, and if the new coaster is open? great. If not, stop bitching about it and go enjoy other things in the park. (steps down off soapbox).

who's that? my friends are huge "ShinyRibs" fans and follow them all over Texas. but seriously, lemme know when next in town, and we can do a lunch or something. . always wanting to meet TPR folks

the lodge was comparable to a Holiday Inn. . so if he's staying overnight anyways, yeah staying at the lodge (which makes parking free, gives you the hour extra the day of, and an opportunity to buy cheaper tickets). yeah, I recommended the Lodge. Maybe it was the dates I looked for a quote but when I looked it was in the ballpark of $400/night for the lodge for the cheapest available. We ended up booking elsewhere for $85/night. Who knows, maybe the time he is looking will be a good time? that's shocking for the Lodge (for the higher end Hotel Hershey, I could see that). we paid less than $140 a night, and if you stay mid-week, it's even cheaper. but yeah, with the new "waterpark" opening at the lodge, and they ARE in the High-Season (the Summer) now, the weekend price does seem to be hovering between $220-$280 a night. Still reasonable (depending what level of comfort you want in a hotel). but maybe out of Jamor's range.

the lodge was comparable to a Holiday Inn. . so if he's staying overnight anyways, yeah staying at the lodge (which makes parking free, gives you the hour extra the day of, and an opportunity to buy cheaper tickets). yeah, I recommended the Lodge.

are you by chance, staying overnight? if yes, book 1 night at Hershey Lodge -- you'll get not only early admission on Sat, but the parking is free and they offer shuttle to park for Friday Night and Sat ( you have to show your room key tho to get on). they also sell discounted tix in the lobby

hmm. . to me, it makes me think of a Chute the Chutes -- where everyone in the boat is gonna get wet (ie: covered). HersheyPark doesn't have one of those, do they? (tho they do have that awesome flume ride). They definitely have a chute the chute. (Tidal Force) it's one of the best chute the chutes ever! The splash is GIGANTIC! I guess we didn't ride it, as I'm not remembering it at all. maybe they will "enclose" it. . LOL, and call it something new?

just don't skip Kangaroo. it's an extremely unique ride, and is WAY more fun than it looks like it's going to be

hmm. . to me, it makes me think of a Chute the Chutes -- where everyone in the boat is gonna get wet (ie: covered). HersheyPark doesn't have one of those, do they? (tho they do have that awesome flume ride).

^ that is literally less than a mile from my house. you should have posted you were coming to Texas for this! I would have met up w/ you for some awesome Austin food!

[youtu_be] [/youtu_be]

TWCN Austin (our local 24 hour news station) is running a report on the VR being installed at Fiesta Texas. on the one hand, it's very cool that they have keyed it specifically to the themeing (it's a fight between Superman and Luthor per the screen shots they showed).. .but on the other hand, I HATE that they put VR on Superman, since that's one of the best rides in the park, and a big reason is the beautiful way the coaster interacts with the cliffs walls. oh well. they do make a point about how they can easily switch out the VR, so the story can change to update within a day to keep it "fresh"