ytterbiumanalyst

Wow, that's a massive amount of work in just the last couple of weeks. Looking good!

^ Same reason you might not fly out of the closest airport. Price.

That's fun. Loving the TPR sticker on some of those photos. My minivan's been sporting one just like it the last few years!

Every Knoebels trip report is awesome, but I love all the great photos here. Really brings me back and makes me wish I lived closer.

Not super surprising given they just built a new version. My kids liked both of them when we were there last, but definitely preferred Kima Bay.

^ I agree with everything Mark said here. The main difference between the trains for you is going to be the the diner. First-class accommodations also vary, but it sounds like price is an issue and coach is really good on Amtrak already. Your two trains to Chicago are the Illinois Zephyr and the Southwest Chief. The Zephyr only has a cafe car, which has microwaved meals. It's not good. The Southwest Chief has a full diner and it's really great. I would highly recommend taking the Southwest Chief (leaves around 11:25 from Galesburg) and get lunch along the trip to Chicago. Transferring is easy in Union Station, and keep in mind that you can leave the station and re-enter any time. They do have metal detectors, but it's super easy to get through security and you'll only need to be back at Union Station about 30 minutes before departure. Plus, the Southwest Chief has checked baggage (Illinois Zephyr doesn't), so if you've taken that train, you won't need to worry about having bags in Chicago. The two trains east of Chicago are virtually identical, so schedule is the biggest difference. The Capitol Limited departs earlier and gets you into Sandusky around 12:40 AM. The Lake Shore Limited departs later and gets into Sandusky around 4 AM. Both have a diner-lite, which is better than the cafe car, but the quality of food is more like airplane food. I'd eat dinner in Chicago. Also, Amtrak has a reputation for being late, but in all my train trips, I've only had a late train once, and that by 2 hours. I had a flight delay of 6 hours once, so you know, stuff happens when you're travelling. Still, you'll want to use Amtrak's train tracker so you'll know where your train is: https://www.amtrak.com/track-your-train.html?stop_mobi=yes&ref=stop_mobile Hope that helps; having more information always makes me less nervous.

^ Yes. Also, this particular park has an African theme to the waterpark, whereas the dry side is themed to holidays. Theme is extremely important to them, so they will find a way to fit a ride into the theme of that area.

Amtrak runs from Galesburg to Sandusky! From your direction it arrives and departs Sandusky in the middle of the night, but it's something! The trains I checked were about $130-150 round trip in coach for various dates in July and August.

Looks great! Very excited about checking this out this weekend.

Oh no, not Super Horsemanship!

Fastest of its type, whatever type that is. And I agree that it will be in the waterpark. Although maybe Halloween section, connection to Kitty Claws? That's a stretch, but including it just to be thorough.

Well, if you're going to have a cliffhanger, Fiesta Texas is the best place to do it! Glad you liked this park; it really is the best of the bunch (though I really like Great Adventure as well). Old Rattler was a piece of garbage; the Iron version is incredible. That right there is proof of why if you have a crappy roller coaster, you should call RMC right this second.

Prozach, I found the beer for you.

I'm glad it's staying, for a little while anyway. My kids love it. They don't ride it. They stand on the bridge and get sprayed by it. Too much fun.

Fun! Adventureland really is great. I enjoyed your Holiday World comparison; I think that really is appropriate. Both parks look kind of average on paper, but once you get there and experience the hospitality, you get what makes them special.

I really enjoyed the Carnegie Library. It's a combination art & natural history museum, as well as being an actual library too. Also take the incline railway up to the top, the views from there are amazing.

^

I get it, man. I have issues with anxiety too, and it's amazing how it can hit something perfectly normal that you've done for years. In my case it was driving. Counseling and medication helped, and I've been good for a few years now. Talk to your doctors; it's a slow process, but you can come back from this.

That's a really fun event. Kennywood has done the whole campaign around this new ride perfectly.

Oh awesome! I was skeptical of this at first since Union Station hasn't lived up to the promise of the first renovation. But glad they're doing this. We'll support it when it's finished.

Awesome! Really looking forward to this.

As far as trolling goes, saying SFStL isn't getting a coaster next year is playing it SUPER safe. Better than 99% chance of being right on that one.

FTFY.

There's not much down that road, honestly. I know there's a McDonald's and a Wawa, and maybe a couple other fast food places? I'd say you would be best off picnicking in the parking lot, but the security line is stupid there. I'd suggest the Go Fresh Cafe. It's not great, but it's healthier than the others they offer. Liberty Tavern has the beer U want.

^ Nah, man, I get it, and I agree with you. The thing about Cedar Point is that it's totally awesome and you're going to have a good time no matter what--except for one aspect, and that's food. All the rides are great; you really can't go wrong with any of them. There are no bad decisions there. The quality of food though, is highly variable. There are some really good places and there are some downright awful places. So it may seem like a silly discussion, but this is an important aspect to plan for. You eat at Famous Dave's or Melt or Chickie's and Pete's, you're going to have a good time. You eat at Coasters Drive-In or any of the chicken strip places, less fun will result.