SaraAB87

I have to agree, like the log flume gas powered outdoor gokarts are becoming obsolete, its not about the money, its about the experience, clearly the experience at the indoor tracks with high power gokarts is much better, plus its indoors, you can visit all year around.

$15 Canadian Dollars a ride after taxes and fees and apparently they are the slowest gokarts you will ever go on. The seats are also hard plastic and have no padding whatsoever. Ontario regulations govern gokarts to a certain speed. I heard they rushed pouring the concrete for the track which makes the track incredibly bumpy. I am actually surprised they didn't charge $30 per adult driver for this as they easily could and get away with it. The Gokarts at Darien used to be really cheap, like 2 rides for $5, but at $8 a ride I don't think anyone is paying it. Plus the karts are old and junky. I assume they take at least 4 employees or more to run while most flat rides take 1-2 employees. The park also has other upcharge attractions. If you want to drive something they also have antique cars and bumper cars.

It makes some sense to me. There are never lines to do the Go Karts anymore, and there are never full races. People simply don’t want to pay a large sum of cash to ride Go Karts when they already paid a large sum of cash to get in and ride all the already included rides. Also, that is a really large plot of nice flat land with possible expansion space behind it as well if you were to close a campsite loop or two. A considerable addition or multiple smaller attractions could fit well into that space that is really not earning enough profit anymore. It was time for the Go-Karts to go. This is one thing I totally agree with! The gokarts needed to go. They also require gasoline and lots of staff members to run plus extensive maintenance given how old they are, the swings will require minimal staff, hopefully this will free up staff on limited staff days for other rides. They are also turning an upcharge attraction into an attraction that is included with admission which is also a very good thing and provides more value with admission. Hopefully value added additions are the direction this park continues to move in. Even if there are swings at other locations I don't think these can really compare, it also looks like these have seatbelts and run drastically different than the other 2 area swings which don't have seatbelts. I don't think you can see the falls or much of anything from the FI swings, I have been on them and it was a pretty ordinary ride. Even if you don't see anything from the swings at DL they will still be a good ride.

Its a much needed addition to Darien's lineup of aging flat rides, however its nothing new for me and definitely nothing special, I have already been on the one at FI and the one at the Erie county fair and I can't imagine this being much different. Nothing that's gonna get me into the park especially with a $20 parking charge. I do not have the time commitment for seasons passes. I wish the local parks would coordinate a bit more when it comes to ride selection, as most of the local parks within a 2-3 hour radius have an awful lot of the same type of ride, I get that some rides are staples and are very popular however a little variety when it comes to new additions wouldn't hurt.

My park (Darien Lake, now Six Flags Darien Lake) has weight limits of 170lbs on some adult rides, as in 170lbs per seat on the swing ride. This is an adult swing ride designed to hold adults and I believe has a 48 inch height limit. I have a slight suspicion that quite a few adults are over 170lbs and are still very healthy and of normal size. I haven't encountered what I consider extreme weight limits at any other park and not even cedar point has limits so extreme. I am not sure how to deal with this, as I don't care immensely about the swings but most other similar swing rides cap around 230lbs or 220lbs like Cedar point's which needlessly to say accomodates quite a few more people than a 170lbs limit. Many other rides at this park have weight limits of 200lbs, or weird limits like 197lbs. The other parks in my area do not have posted weight limits, Waldameer, Seabreeze etc, I checked all of them. This is excluding water park limits, as I didn't go over those too well but all parks seem to have those and I haven't seen one under 200lbs yet so that should cover at least the majority of guests. Its completely possible for a person to be healthy and fit at 180lbs and even 210lbs but now they are not able to ride these rides because of the limits. Now they don't weigh you at the park and I am sure the operator of the rides does not care that you are 175lbs and getting on the ride, but the limit is still posted and is there. This park also ironically hosts the UB bulls which is a college football team each year and invites them to go to the park as kind of an inauguration to the team. I would never yell at a ride op for a problem that is clearly with myself even if the weight limit was something like 170lbs on an adult ride as I won't say how much I weigh but I weigh quite a bit less than I used to and I do fit into the higher end of most park's size guide so theoretically I shouldn't have fit issues but yes it can happen (I haven't actually had to take a walk of shame on any ride and I have been on rides that people normally have fit issues with like the KMG fireball when I was much heavier than I am now) and I am certainly not going to be rude about it, I am sure if they are working a ride that they know doesn't accomodate too many big people that they get yelled at a lot. I would probably tell them ahead of time if I thought there would be a problem. If your body is to the point where you have to use a scooter to walk around for the sole reason that you are too fat to walk, then you can't reasonably expect a theme park that you know, is an activity that in general requires some amount of walking to bow down to your every need. I have a bad ankle and I know what I am getting into when I go to a park, and I don't expect the park to fix that problem for me or make special arrangements because I have a problem with myself that might prevent me from walking a long time. I understand people with medical conditions that cause them to gain weight but I think if you have a medical condition like that you probably should not be on rides and its simply not possible for a ride to accomodate all individuals regardless of disability, height, or other factors.

Border crossing depends entirely on what time and day you are crossing and if its a holiday on either side, there is also a website you can visit that shows all the border crossing information so you can plan ahead. We use the rainbow bridge and have never been stuck in a line or had a border crossing problem of course we planned ahead and didn't try to cross on a holiday weekend.

The ride gross seems to go up every year at the ECF so they are obviously making money on it, however I noticed that there is basically no one on the rides during the weekdays, I go on the weekdays and usually leave before dark but a few years ago there would be lines and lineups to get the wristbands and now there are no lines and barely a lineup for wristbands. Some rides turn during weekday afternoons with 1-2 riders per cycle. They must make all their money on the weekend or weeknights on rides, because during the week there is no one. So if you go during the weekday afternoon you will get a lot of rides for your money. If you are going for rides at the fair I think you really need 2 days to do the ECF, one for the rides, and one for the other stuff, if you just skip the rides you can do it in one day, but you won't be able to do it all in one day if you want to stay on the rides for a long time.

Its Erie County Fair season so everyone is there. Not surprising, but theme parks in WNY are clearly a way better value than the fair. Fantasy island doesn't allow food or drink into the park, which I honestly think is a major reason why people are turning back. They are very strict on this and confiscate food and drink at the front gate, at least they did last year. Between this and the parking charges I think people are avoiding it. All of the little extras add up fast when you take a family, families are heavily considering this and parking charges when choosing where to go. I do think they have a family meal deal that isn't very expensive (I think they had some kind of pizza meal deal for $24.99 last year,), and there are a couple restaurants within walking distance, plus there is still the option of eating in your car and bringing a cooler. $24.99 is the cost of a small meal for one person at DL. But the big thing at FI was bringing your own food and holding a picnic in the picnic shelters, removing the possibility of this happening again also removed a lot of attendance. It really is a nice little park with a decent selection of rides and is a much better value than any other ride event in WNY. Last year a pass was $34.99 and included the Halloween event, plus included all of 2018, plus parking.. really cheap. Literally less than a one day rides pass to the ECF, which is $40 on the weekend and you are talking $55 with $10 admission and $5 parking. Though when I see all the completely overpriced local festivals that cost way more than FI does in all aspects including rides, food and parking(and most of these festivals charge for parking too because charity groups take over any lot nearby the festival and charge $5-10 for parking) I wonder how these festivals get so much attendance and clearly something that is a better value doesn't get the attendance? You are going to spend way less at FI for everything than you will at the Erie county fair, canal fest or eden corn fest, and especially the peach fest for everything plus you get a whole park with 2 coasters and a water park.. if you are watching your money. Are people afraid of this park or something.... I don't know. Seems like a no brainer to get a season's pass to FI if you are looking for value. DL also has a coupon from Wendy's for $74.99 for 2 admissions plus free parking.. not half bad.

I don't get this either, its extremely obvious where it came from (even to the GP), and it just seems tacky to put in a failed attraction from the nearest theme park to them. Something like this doesn't do much for the park and its another expense for them, plus they have to have a dedicated employee running it which is yet another expense. Because most people who go to the one WNY park go to the other everyone is going to know where it came from. I wonder if its failing because of cost to play (no one is using the attraction) or because it flat out does not work? I was informed that it works just fine, but nobody wants to ever play it, therefore, it would be better to leave it closed than to pay an employee to sit there all day. Then its still a waste to have purchased it, at least we know it isn't a problem with the attraction itself, maybe they open it on busy weekends? FI isn't a park where people like to spend extra money, don't think its a really good fit for the park. I am guessing it was the same case at DL, no one cared enough to play it.

I don't get this either, its extremely obvious where it came from (even to the GP), and it just seems tacky to put in a failed attraction from the nearest theme park to them. Something like this doesn't do much for the park and its another expense for them, plus they have to have a dedicated employee running it which is yet another expense. Because most people who go to the one WNY park go to the other everyone is going to know where it came from. I wonder if its failing because of cost to play (no one is using the attraction) or because it flat out does not work?

But that’s the problem. It was the same way on the a Fourth of July. They need to get an attraction(s) that will get people in the rides section of the park. But were there people in the water park when you were there? I was there on a Thursday and the water park was packed full of people, and the parking lot had just as many cars in it as I remember there being back in the early Six Flag days. I left around 6pm and there were still cars coming in and most of the people that I saw walking into the park were in bathing suits. So if they want to expand the water park, I say go right ahead. Use the wet rides to bring the people in and the dry side can stay empty for me to play in. Same with family rides, build a bunch to get families in and that will finance the thrill rides. I honestly, don't need a big thrill coaster at DL anytime soon. Tantrum is a great addition. All I want is Predator to be retracked (don't care if it's RMC, I like the layout as is) and get new trains that aren't PTC. The park is huge so a nice train ride around it and through the woods would be epic. And some TLC for everything else. Does anyone remember the walk thru haunt that was in the Nightmare at Phantom Cave building in between the year the coaster was removed and Batman installed. That was so awesome, I wish that would happen again. Remove the bleachers, keep the back half for maintenance and storage, but use the front half for a permanent haunt (doesn't have to be open all season). I can remember it being like this too pretty much all the time where the water park is packed and the dry rides are almost empty, I am not sure if it happens at all parks with included waterparks, but we are having an excruciatingly hot summer here in WNY and I am not surprised the water park is packed. It seems the guests at DL also seem to favor the water park over the dry rides, which is why I suggested water park enhancements many times over even though I don't personally do water parks, its something that is needed for everyone else. We also have few water park facilities in the area, and the splash park in Niagara is long gone leaving the only other one to be Fantasy Island. If you want other options for waterparks you have to travel across the border to Canada or go to Seabreeze or Waldameer. They were supposed to build an indoor water park here in Niagara Falls NY but we all know how that goes and safe to say that did not happen. The one thing that I really agree with is SHADE! DL really needs more shade. Sun exposure is a very very dangerous thing, as well as heatstroke, sunstroke and other heat-related illnesses and yes these do exist. I really hope the park takes that into consideration especially since lines at certain attractions can get very long on some days. Some people out there are also very sensitive to the sun.

That giant discovery looks very cool, I can't see them adding a big ride next year with them just adding a coaster this year but you never know. I would like to see a high capacity flat like that, it would help move lines along. I would like to see them add something truly new and something that has not been seen in WNY or close by in PA, like the discovery mentioned and not just another swing which we already have at the Erie county fair and at fantasy island, the park already has a swing ride so that wouldn't be such a good idea. If they are going to add a ride I don't want it to be a replacement of what they already have or just a repeat of something else that is in the area.

I have to agree with this, I would take no new rides within 5 years over general improvements, staffing improvements and 2 train operations on coasters that need 2 trains and basic maintenance improvements and general park upkeep. I am not saying every coaster has to get 2 trains for next season and all of this has to happen overnight, its obviously going to take time to bring the park up to speed. The GP absolutely does notice the 1 train operations especially when they have been to other parks where the line actually moves for the major coasters. They also need to improve on crowded days where the park absolutely fails. DL's customers are mostly repeat customers who come from local areas to visit the park whether they buy a seasons pass or they make one visit per season and they need to do something to keep the locals coming back for more and that is not necessarily adding new rides.

It takes me probably 45 min to an hour to get to Darien lake from the Falls, I do think a lot of people go to DL just because well, they don't know any better and its the closest big park in the area and their kids beg to go there. Keep in mind most of the visitors are not coaster enthusiasts so they don't really care what the rides are, a lot of WNYer's who only visit DL once a summer haven't been to other parks so they don't know how much of a difference 2 train operation makes when in reality it makes a huge difference. Those who have been to a park with 2 train operation will notice the difference immediately and I have heard non-enthusiasts comment about the operations so people do notice that. I did look at what CW has and it seems to be very worth it especially if you like higher intensity flat rides.

Is going to Canada really a problem for most WNY’ers? I feel like most people with kids/adventurists who would even contemplate going to another park can and already do go to Canada quite often. I also wouldn’t call two-two and a half hours far away. I think it’s fair to say Canada’s Wonderland is Darien’s regional competitor, or at least where standards and targets should be set. It can be, I remember when we went to CW in 05 and it took us 5 hours to get there due to the border and Toronto's awful traffic. Yeah I was kind of basing my initial assumption on the fact that the one time I went to toronto it took us over 4 hours to get there, and its about what, 4-6 hours to CP from WNY, so I just assumed that anyone willing to travel to CW is probably also willing to travel the distance to CP. Again travel time to destinations in Canada varies heavily on your timing and it can also be very random, you could be stuck in hours long traffic at the border depending on which border crossing you use or else you could have a border crossing experience where it takes you less than 5 min. I saw on the news that the 401 in Toronto is one of the most busy highways in the whole world which I assume you need to use it to get to CW so there is that to contend with. Several times I went to DL I met people who have been to CW who preferred DL because it wasn't as crowded. I wonder how long it takes by bus, I think you can get a bus from the Niagara area for around $30 to Toronto.

I guess enough people here have the border crossing stuff these days, its basically required anyways, but its still pretty far away from Darien Lake. Some people do take theme park trips so its not unusual but most people in my area probably wouldn't travel there. I don't see Marineland ads anymore here in Niagara Falls NY. I could see people going from WNY to Cedar Point more than going to CW.

I believe they had all the dining plans, parking and fastpasses/fast lane added, it was somewhere between 400-500 Canadian. Was also last year's numbers. If you go when the park is not extremely crowded you will have a good time, the park falls apart when the crowds get insane and you won't have a good time. This goes for well, most other theme parks out there as well except that some can handle crowds a bit better. My suggestion is to go on a weekday during peak season, avoid the week of kingdom bound obviously and try to avoid going on a day when one of the most popular concerts is being held. We are right upon peak season so this is a great time to visit as you won't hit the staffing cuts that happen when the kids go back to school in August and the park is not in the first few weeks of opening lull when everything is not quite up and running yet. The complaints come from one train operations which mostly affects days when the park has insane crowds and some of the buildings and things that haven't been quite fixed up to the standards of other parks.

The GP thinks of DL as a trash park, its really the only game around here, so yes, it has potential to become absolutely huge. I don't consider Canada's Wonderland to really be an option for those in WNY as its quite far away and you have to drive through Canada to get to it, also its one of the most expensive parks to visit because of Canadian prices that I can personally think of, one of my friends was showing me the season's pass options and a full season's pass to Wonderland with all the options was like $500, and that is a LOT of money. Marineland is a different market altogether and so is Fantasy Island to an extent. It can become a huge destination park just like other parks since they have the resort and camping too. I don't see ticket cost as an issue as well, tickets are already just as expensive as every other park in the nation so its not like this is going to get worse, (as one of my friends said tickets are just as expensive as everywhere else and you get 1/16th the fun of everywhere else) and I think people would be willing to pay a little more if the park was able to function should they go on a day when massive crowds come to the park. They just got a new coaster this year, ride that out and use next year as the transition year to fix the park up, staff the park adequately, and fix everything that is run down such as buildings and structures and just overall work on the guest experience instead of putting in another ride. 2 trains on all coasters when the park is at peak capacity. They need to do what they have to do to make this happen, 2 train operation on coasters, fix the buildings, fix the viper station, fix the run down mini golf or tear it out, and fix the gum wall. The GP absolutely DOES notice 2 train operations. The park should be able to function without 2-3 hour lines on a peak day. Lines should be minimum 45min-1hour on a peak day. Since the WNY park season is so short they need to be able to keep up on peak days since there isn't too much time to spread attendance out over many days.

They aren't spending money while they are standing in line. People get frustrated when they stand in lines all day. One train on The Raven at Holiday World is 10 years older than the other train. Knott's recently acquired a third train for Silver Bullet which opened in 2004. While not Six Flags parks, it has been done before. THIS! People who get stuck waiting in a line for 2-3 hours are not spending money in the park, they are standing there getting frustrated and angry that they are wasting their time in the line for a ride that lasts all of 2-3 minutes at the most and sometimes as little as 90 seconds. Frustrated guests also do not return to the park (bad for DL as they rely on a lot of local business) and tend to leave early because they see the waits at every ride and simply do not want to stay in the park because it becomes not worth it to wait in another 3 hour line for a ride. This is a park that fails hard on super busy days and is fine on days when there are not massive crowds.

We just got a new coaster so I can't expect much in the way of new additions, but if they eventually put 2 trains where its needed and fix operations and staffing issues plus start accepting six flags passes and admission tickets next year those would be great improvements to the park.

Does anyone know if six flags admission tickets, especially six flags admission tickets won in a contest or sweepstakes (I assume these are general six flags admission tickets that are valid at any SF park) will be valid at the park this year because of this?

It really depends on what you are looking for.. If you want an all thrills park with the biggest rides, Canada's Wonderland is it, Toronto also has some other nice attractions. Niagara falls is more state park-ish, do you like woods and outdoor adventure without any rides, then the cave of the winds and the other falls attractions are on the list. The gorge and Devi's hole are also must see's if you like the outdoors. There is also a zip line. If you don't like outdoorsy things the falls will be 20-30 min of looking at the water then you will be bored and want to leave. If you are taking kids they usually get bored of the falls unless they are really into the outdoors, because there isn't much for kids unless you go to the Canadian side with clifton hill. Clifton hill is nice and extremely crowded but its not really quality entertainment for your money, if you want quality I would stick with the outdoor adventures or one of the many theme parks. There is also currently a ton of construction on the Canadian side of the falls which makes getting around on anything but your 2 feet very miserable, hopefully this will be finished by the summer. It is definitely possible to make a day of FI but you are going to have to stretch it and do everything in the park, with a couple hours in the waterpark though you can fill a day, they also do not have free parking anymore and you cannot bring your own food into the park. The park is a good value but they do not have the biggest and best thrill rides. The park is located in the city so there are some restaurants literally within walking distance where you can eat if you don't want to buy overpriced park food. DL will definitely fill a day but there is absolutely nothing around it other than the park and the campgrounds, so you have to either eat your own food that you bring or eat something in the park, if you stay at the campgrounds you can cook your own food, But as another person said it is over an hour from the falls area so its not really close by, so it depends on where you are touring, Buffalo would be about 30-45 min from Darien lake so you would want to keep that in mind. With the campgrounds you can make at least a full weekend vacation of Darien lake. The park has long lines most of the time so you will be spending lots of time in lines especially for the coasters.

I am guessing there isn't 2 train operation at DL because of staffing issues, it's no secret that the park is understaffed most of the season. My suggestion is to NEVER go to a park in WNY unless it's between the 4th of July and before college starts, especially DL since staffing issues hit the park hard early and late in the year. You have a short time to hit a park but this will make your trip infinitly better if you hit a park when they are in full operation. Going to a park during this time period almost guarantees your visit will not be a disaster. Also they will never resolve these staffing issues as the park is in the middle of nowhere, staffing issues at this park have been around since well as long as I have been alive. For the person visiting the falls, there are some fine attractions here but everything about the falls is crappy and overpriced at least on the American side. The Canadian side is 10x as expensive as the American side so that is even worse and the stuff over there is not worth the money for the attractions. My advice is to take 2-4 hours for the American side, see the falls and move on. Once you see the water for 15-30 min you will be done. Picnic lunch or drive out of the area for food, there is zero good food or even edible food in downtown Niagara Falls. Fantasy island is close by and is decent enough but if you want real thrills you will want to forego both DL and FI and the entire Niagara Falls area and head directly to Canada's Wonderland, it's expensive and crowded but it's got enough thrill rides to be worth the money and since you get the whole park you will probably spend less than you do in the Niagara and Clifton hill area for entertainment that is much more worth your time and money and a much better experience overall. Sent from my Moto G Play using Tapatalk

How well did Fantasy Island do last October since Darien Lake had issues in the past with doing a Halloween event thus killing their event altogether? I don't have any hard evidence but I think they did very well with the events last year, the weather was great and surely brought in a lot of people. There really aren't any haunts or haunted houses near Niagara Falls at all, if you want to go to one you have to drive to Buffalo. They were also selling season's passes for $34.99 which covered the end of the 2017 season including all the haunts and full admission for the entire 2018 season which is going to assure that they get as many people in the park as possible.

I definitely get the nostalgia factor as I have nostalgia for many things, but there is a lifespan to any ride and anything for that matter, and well, both of the flumes that have recently been removed from the area were very very old and were probably way past their lifespan. You would have thought it was the end of the world when Fantasy island removed its flume. Its not always possible or cost effective to refurbish an old ride when you can spend the money on a new ride that would draw crowds. I don't know why people don't want new rides, you can't just randomly build a coaster, you have to put it somewhere so there is a tradeoff but I think trading an outdated flume for a new coaster is a pretty good tradeoff. Even if you were a season pass holder and a really dedicated park goer... wouldn't you want new rides? New rides also increase attendance and show the willingness to spend on the park.