thrillseeker4552

My buddy and I are actually doing a very similar trip this summer. We are starting in Chicago and going to Six Flags Great America, Michigan's Adventure, Cedar Point, Kennywood, Waldameer, Six Flags Darien Lake, and Canada's Wonderland. We are doing this the last week of July and into early August. This is the timeframe I usually plan road trips like this and it usually works out well if you can deal with the heat. We did a Dallas to Chicago coaster road trip that same time frame in 2023 and it worked out perfectly. In terms of new coasters opening by then, the only one I am somewhat concerned about is AlpenFury. I think by late July it will be open but I'm remaining skeptical. Wrath of Rakashakalaka is already testing so that will be fine. I'm fairly confident Siren's Curse will open by then, and hopefully TT2 will make it longer than a few weeks. This will also be my first visits to MIA, Kennywood, Waldameer, SFDL, and CW. If I could recommend any time frame to do a trip like this, it would be late July or up until the last week or two that parks are still open daily.

Preview tickets secured for May 4th! Plus another set of tickets booked for July 19th (my birthday)! Can't wait to visit. So far I am hearing nothing but good things, especially about Stardust Racers and Monsters Unchained. So, so cool to have a brand new theme park in our backyard. The second this park can be added to a UOAP option... take my money!

I visited on a Friday in late April 2023 and had great luck with crowds. I had purchased the TimeSaver anyway since it was my first visit and I wanted to ensure I could ride as much as possible, but in the end it wasn't super necessary. Of course LRod was closed and Big Bear was a couple weeks away from opening but I thought it was a wonderful time to visit. The weather was perfect too. Considering going in April again this year.

Question for the locals. When is the best time to visit this park? Canada's Wonderland is one of the last major parks in North America I have yet to visit, and with AlpenFury coming this year it is very high on my priority list to get to Toronto. I know this park gets VERY crowded too. Of course a weekday is likely better than the weekend, I imagine, but what about month? And considering weather too? We would likely plan at least 2 full days at the park with FastLane and probably another day in the city to explore Toronto. Any tips would be appreciated! This new coaster looks awesome.

Good riddance. I know it's a unique coaster with an interesting history but this ride beat the crap out of me when I rode it last year. Uncomfortable + low capacity + high maintenance, so its demolition makes sense. Bring on the B&M Dive!

This looks great (and much needed). I don't hate the name but it is funny how similar it is to Pantheon. I'm mostly relieved the coaster will be the same and it's just a repaint/retheme. Part of me was worried they were going to "TT2-ify" it or something like that but it seemingly will be the same kick-ass coaster we all know and love. 2025 will be a great year for KD.

Thanks for sharing. Growing up in SoCal this was "technically" my home park along with Knott's. My best friend and I would go often in the late 2000s/early 2010s when it felt like the park was in its prime. I remember getting the courage to finally ride Dragon's Tower and Fireball and, at one point, Screamin' Demon ran INSANE and was brutal in the most fun way possible. Also good memories of the Falling Star ride before that got removed. The flume has always been great as well. Sad to see the park in this dire state. I feel like it always had some good potential being in such a heavily populated area and to be offered as a cheaper/lower stress option (kinda like the Fun Spots in Florida) for Inland Empire folks versus fighting traffic into Orange County or down to San Diego for the other parks - but I guess that ship seems to have sailed under its current ownership.

What I find exciting about this coaster is that yeah, the tilt is cool and unique and probably terrifying, but the rest of the layout actually looks REALLY good. It's not just a one trick pony. Some crazy transitions and rolls and airtime pops in there that should be excellent. And we know it will be glossy smooth too. Yay Vekoma!!!

I had the opportunity to experience the "new" Skyrush yesterday. Overall it is a BIG improvement! And that's coming from someone who wasn't really bothered too much by the original restraints. You can truly enjoy the drop and airtime now without your thighs taking a hit. For anyone who wasn't a fan before, I highly recommend riding again! This was an excellent move by the park and, to be honest, I'm still a little shocked they did it. Lots and lots of other parks would not invest in something like this without an obvious ROI. The updated airline/plane theming in the station is also a nice touch. Oh, and Wildcat is awesome too. It's right up there with my favorite RMCs like Iron Gwazi, ArieForce One, and Steel Vengeance. In my opinion Hersheypark now has the best and most diverse coaster lineup out there. There is truly a ride for every enthusiast's or general public's taste.

Boyfriend is out of town this weekend so I had a nice solo visit to the park today. Iron Gwazi had surprisingly "fast" dispatches (average around 90 seconds) which is a sweet spot interval for not stacking trains. Cheetah Hunt was also running 4 trains / 2 stations with decent operations too. Kumba's newly refurbished train 1 is running like a dream and I had some of the best rides I've had on it. It and Montu were also on two trains and dispatching quickly and overall it was a very good day at the park. Only downside is Scorpion was closed (seemingly unexpectedly) and Cheetah Hunt went down in the afternoon. I left around 3:00 and it still hadn't come back up. The weather was also absolutely perfect. Clear skies and upper 70s. Trying to enjoy this nice weather before things start becoming grossly hot next month.

This is fantastic news. The current restraints don't bother me as much as they do some people, but I am still ecstatic about this and for it to hopefully make the ride more comfortable and accessible. Velocicoaster/Pantheon/etc. restraints are really the best in the business right now. If Wildcat's Revenge already wasn't enough, I'm itching to go back even more now. And I was just there in 2022!

I would estimate mid-late May at the earliest, similar to Pipeline last year. The two rides seem to have a similar construction timeline so far. Testing will likely begin in March and commissioning/final touches to the area and theming in April and passholder previews starting in May. Of course the park hasn't announced anything officially yet so the later the better if you're planning a trip.

If your only plan on Tuesday is to ride AF1 and get to Pigeon Forge, I highly recommend taking Route 23 to 441 and up through the Great Smoky Mountains and down into Gatlinburg/Pigeon Forge. I went in April last year and took this route as a last-minute decision (due to crazy Atlanta traffic in the afternoon making the travel times similar, so I may as well see nice scenery). It was the best decision I made that trip and I had a blast. It is generally a longer route, but if you're not planning on visiting Dollywood until Wednesday then I would highly recommend this. Also you will get on AF1 instantly assuming it opens with the park and you could honestly be done in less than an hour. There is absolutely nothing else at the park worth doing IMO, but AF1 is excellent and worth several re-rides.

Velocicoaster has been down since Sunday. I went on Saturday and it was down for most of the day, and pulled a 180 minute wait all evening once it reopened. I think this was because of 2 train operation because there is no other reason that wait time is ever 2x the wait for Hagrid's. Not too surprising if the ride needs some maintenance given that it has been operating 365 for almost 3 years with no significant closures other than weather. Just a little odd it was unscheduled. I know, I know, Intamin. But Universal has done an exceptional job keeping this coaster reliable and running at full capacity pretty much since it's been open it almost doesn't feel like an Intamin from the outside looking in. Hopefully it's back up soon. I suppose weekdays in February, if anything, are a relatively good time for a closure. Just a heads up for anyone heading to the park soon.

In my three most recent visits (2023, 2021, and 2017), I have found August a nice time to go. Particularly mid-late August, and weekdays if you can (basically whatever is the last full week they're open before moving to weekends only). I've also heard May is decent crowd-wise but the flip side is that the park is still getting on its feet from the off-season and staffing/ride availability can be a crap shoot. I would also say the weather in August is generally a bit more reliable than May but that's just luck-of-the-draw when it comes to Sandusky. Anything can happen with the weather and that definitely influences crowds one way or another.