YoshiFan

They were testing El Diablo with riders at around 7:00. It was drawing a small crowd with some people disappointed it wasn't open. Zumanjaro is still closed and Kingda Ka was closed for part of the day. Other than Kingda Ka with about a 15 minute wait after it opened, nothing else was more than a 1 to 2 train wait the entire time I was at the park.

Some notes from today: Zumanjaro was closed the entire time I was at the park, it seems like it has been having a lot of problems this season. This was my 5th visit to the park this year and I have only managed to get 2 rides in because of the multiple breakdowns and closings. Operations were good with less stacking at most rides. There were a lot of school groups with Physics Day and Music In The Parks but overall crowds were very low with my longest wait of the day being 10 minutes for Kingda Ka which was only because it had reopened after a breakdown so a lot of people went to the ride then. I got 19 coaster rides from 1:30 to closing at 6:00. Multiple trains were running early in the day but as the schools left or went to the award ceremonies, some rides took off trains. Bizarro went to 2 trains and Green Lantern went to 1 train.

Today was more crowded than the past 3 Sundays, maybe because today was the final day for to process the passes with the free parking offer when 2 or more passes were purchased. Twister is still closed and Zumanjaro continues to have problems. It broke down when I was next to ride 2 weeks ago and last week when everyone was buckled and and about to dispatch. Today it broke down earlier in the day and then broke down at around 5:30 and I don't think ever reopened. El Toro also broke down twice including when the train I was in got to the brake run. With Zumanjaro breaking down, everyone seems to be going to Kingda Ka with it having a line of around 45 minutes even at 7:00.

Unfortunately they stopped having Fall Family Night. Either 2011 or 2012 was the last year they had it when Fright Fest started to begin in mid September. In 2013 when they were open Friday nights in September it was basically the same thing as a season pass night since the park was so empty but they stopped that too since attendance was so low on those nights.

I just hope if hardly anyone shows up they don't cancel it or close early. In 2008 I went to the fall season pass night and it had been raining all day but stopped before 5, when the event started. Multiple people called the park to make sure the event was still going to happen and the park wouldn't close early. At 7:00 they made the announcement the park was closing at 7:30 instead of 10. I later heard attendance was barely over 400 people which I believe. I took the Skyway that day and saw 5 people total walking around that section of the park. It was a great 2 1/2 hours for power riding for anyone that got there at opening but others drove to the park getting there around 7 and got turned away from entering in the parking lot.

I also avoid the park on any Saturday. For Fright Fest I only go to the park on Friday nights and Columbus Day because I have seen enough pictures and reports from Saturday Fright Fest days to know I don't want to go. Reports that the main lot, overflow lot, Hurricane Harbor lot are all full with cars parked on the grass and seeing pictures of Nitro's line to the game stand near the arcade and Barman with an almost full queue doesn't sound like a fun day at the park.

I was happy to see that change. I always had people cut in front of me because I refused to climb over the bars and if the park is crowded enough to have that section of the queue being used, I don't want to be there anyway (the past few years during Fright Fest they even had an overflow queue with chains and trashcans for Green Lantern and other coasters).

The park isn't too crowded. Nitro was 30 minutes, Batman was a 1 train wait, Skull Mountain looks to be about 15 minutes. The park is emptying out at around 5, SUF and Green Lantern both 1 train waits, Zumanjaro 2 cycle wait

I'll post about crowd levels in about an hour after I get to the park. I purposely chose today over yesterday since it is supposed to be about 20 degrees cooler today and I hoped crowds would be lower today.

They were running 2 trains today.

El Toro around 2 hours ago

It's likely because of the group that used to buyout the park on Easter no longer does that and now their event is at the park today. I made the mistake of going on the day they were there a few years ago. It was so crowded I had a 20 minute wait for Nitro with an exit pass (from Funatics Rewards).

White Lightning at Fun Spot, coaster number #99 and I want my 100th coaster to be something better than my 50th which was Rollie's Coaster at Morey's Piers.

I just got back from the park, there were a lot more people there today compared to Easter last year. There were some breakdowns. Green Lantern broke down twice the 2nd time it got stuck on the lift and riders had to be walked down the stairs. El Toro was testing with water dummies around 11:30 and when I got back to the ride later in the day the line was to the 60 minute sign and hearing how long dispatches took on Friday, I skipped it today. Zumanjaro broke down when I was at the loading area but reopened around 15 minutes later. Nitro was running 2 trains but there seemed to be problems with the restraints with dispatches taking much longer than normal and restraints having to be rechecked. From the 60 minute sign it took almost 45 minutes when with normal dispatches it would be around 25 minutes with 2 trains.

That's good to hear, it's one of the many reasons I prefer Great Adventure to other local parks.

I have always been allowed re-rides at Great Adventure if there is an empty row. The ride ops usually encourage it if there is no line and empty rows.

I'd be surprised if a new ride ever opens on opening day again. With a larger coaster or major ride I can understand but it was the same with Adventure Alley. Sky Screamer wasn't ready and the bumper cars weren't either but there was no reason Deja Vu and Air Jumbo (especially since Air Jumbo was already at the park in storage) couldn't have been ready. My guess is it's for marketing reasons, that way people who visit early in the season will go back for a return visit to ride the new attraction and maybe buy a season pass instead of a 1 day ticket.

That's great to hear they added that, along with hearing that 3 trains are running on Nitro. They normally don't have the 3rd train ready until late April or early May.

White Lightning at Fun Spot yesterday.

The Dark Knight (Great Adventure) Green Lantern (Great Adventure) Fahrenheit Expedition Everest Runaway Train (Gillian's Wonderland Pier) Pirates Gold Rush Barnstormer Stinger

When we visited on a busy Saturday a few weeks after Zumanjaro opened this is what we experienced. It sounds like it's not typical but it was absolutely the case on at least one occasion. It was also happening on a Friday in October. The line took almost 20 minutes with the line in the station and going to a middle row.

Great Adventure is my home park and I voted for worse than last year but not by much. It was still overall a very good 2014 season but there were more negatives compared to past years: -Zumanjaro opening in July, and then Kingda Ka's capacity being cut in half (I know it's the state that is causing the problems) -No early entry for Gold Passholders all 6 times I went to the park during Fright Fest -Ride lines for every ride in the park closing as much as 30 minutes early, even if there was no one in line. Other times, it was 15 - 20 minutes early, again with no lines. -Much shorter operating schedule compared to past years. They opened 3 weeks later in 2014 than 2013 and there was no season pass night in the fall or any Friday night operating days in September like in 2013 (crowds probably didn't warrant it).

It's sometimes April, sometimes May 2014 was April 25th 2013 was April 26th 2012 was May 4th 2011 was May 6th 2012 was good because the park was open to the public the entire day rather than just the school groups like the other days the event is held.

I think opening weekend except Easter Sunday is going to be very crowded this year if the weather is ok. Normally the park opens the weekend before Easter and not Easter weekend. I went on opening day 2012 which was the Thursday before Easter and it was jammed. I got there at 10:00 and the line of cars to get to the parking booths was almost up to 537 and after getting a few rides at Nitro with no wait, lines started to get bad (even Runaway Mine Train was 30 minutes). Almost all schools should be closed on Friday and the Saturday before Easter is usually crowded too. This year I am going to try to go to the park on Easter Sunday. I went last year and lines were very short, mostly 5 - 10 minutes except for Batman which was 20 minutes. I also went to the park on Easter Sunday 2011 and other than Nitro running 1 train with an hour wait (it had been running 2 trains earlier in the day), lines were short for everything else then as well.

In the US: Cedar Point, Kings Island, Six Flags Over Georgia, Carowinds Rest of the World: Tokyo Disneyland, Tokyo Disney Sea, Alton Towers, Blackpool Pleasure Beach, Mirabilandia (Italy), Port Aventura Also I don't know if they count since I have been to these parks before becoming an enthusiast, and basically need almost all the coaster credits there so it would almost be like a new park Canada's Wonderland (only rode Ghoster Coaster) King's Dominion (only rode Ghoster Coaster and 1 side of Rebel Yell) Busch Gardens (only rode Loch Ness Monster and Wild Maus when the park had it)