VegasBaby

Agreed, with Potter it will finally be a full day park. I would hit all the Potter stuff at opening as your line pass probably won't be valid for those attractions (if they follow USO). Then you can spend the rest of the day skipping the lines with your pass and then circle back to Potter before close to get re-rides. The USH line pass also includes reserved seating for the shows, so you can just show up a few minutes before showtime and still get great seats.

I just have a hard time believing that Universal would get rid of Dragons. I was there a few months ago and both sides were running great. The coasters are huge people eaters and really help alleviate the Harry Potter crowds. Yes, it sucks that they don't duel anymore, but they are still two of the best B&M inverts and it would be a shame if they got scraped. USO has enough 3D motion rides, the park needs Dragons and the other coasters to balance out the ride selection.

If you have a smart phone on you at the park, download the official app. Their in-app map is AMAZING. Who needs paper? The app is definitely a must for visiting Hershey. The wait times are pretty accurate and it will also guide you to any ride in the park. You just pick which ride you want to go to and it will lead you there Google maps style.

The Hilton Garden Inn is a very nice property and it's as close as you can get to the park. The free shuttle will save you $$$ on SFMM parking and there is no additional charge for parking at the hotel. There is no free breakfast though and the breakfast buffet is pricey ($15), so keep that in mind. There are many restaurants and fast food choices near the hotel, so you can go grab breakfast before taking the shuttle.

Thanks for posting that, it makes me very happy to hear that the Ghostrider rehab is more extensive than what they did with Gwazi. I just hope that the finished product gives us a ride similar to the early 2000's era Ghostrider. It sounds like they are taking all the right steps (re-profiling, new trains, no MCBR, etc), so I am cautiously optimistic that this will be the case.

I'm on board with all three of these picks, especially Roar and Wildcat. Roar would seem like a no brainer for Six Flags since its twin is already getting the RMC treatment. You would think SF would be able to save a bunch of money by using The Joker's design for SFA's Roar. Wildcat seems unnecessary at Hershey since they have 2 other great woodies in Comet (classic out & back) and Lightning Racer (racing coaster). Wildcat is just rough and not very fun, so it's a prime RMC candidate to me.

Totally agree with you on Hershey, I took the family there for three days this past summer and we absolutely loved it. The coaster collection is rock solid and pretty diverse, there really is something for everyone. My 5 year old absolutely loved SDL, Comet, and Laff Track (the new indoor spinning coaster), while the older kids and myself were blown away by Skyrush, Storm Runner, and Lightning Racer. My daughter said Lightning Racer was her favorite woodie ever and it was pretty much a walk on during our whole trip. The park is absolutely beautiful, there are tons of trees and plenty of benches to rest on throughout the park. The waterpark could use another slide tower, but it's not a separate admission and had enough attractions to take up 1/2 a day. Plus, Chocolate World is right outside the park entrance with even more attractions (including a free chocolate factory tour with samples) and a huge food court that was reasonably priced. Our family's goal is to visit a new park in a different part of the country every summer, but my kids are already asking when we can go back to Hershey.

I'm envisioning something like San Diego's Manta, only with "jet ski" trains. Could be really good. I'm always in favor or new dark rides, too. If the new coaster at SWSA is anything like Manta at SD, then I would consider that a win for the park. Manta is a really fun little coaster, the multiple launches are fairly powerful and the ride is always butter smooth. Manta turned out much better than I expected considering the stupid height restriction that they have to deal with. I was at the park two weeks ago and got about 10 rides in throughout the day. I really liked that they were running two trains even though the park was fairly dead.

I've never found Rockit to be overly rough, and I think the giant lap bars are really pretty comfortable. I was at the park a few weeks ago and rode Rockit about 12 times in a 2 hour period (thank you single rider line!) and thought it was running great.

You make a good point, SeaWorld San Antonio is another park that is "due" for a new coaster. They did get Atlantis in 2007, but their last major coaster was Steel Eel in 1999. SWSD got Manta in 2012, BGW got Tempesto this year, BGT and SWO are both getting new coasters in 16, so it would make sense for SWSA to get the next major coaster addition.

Hard to argue with this list. I would substitute a Star Flyer for the Screaming Swing, but that's just personal preference. Hershey is already one of the top parks in the country, but these additions would make it even better. Giving Wildcat the Iron Horse treatment just makes too much sense, especially since the park already has two other superior woodies in Comet and Lightning Racer. RMC's typically have a 48 inch height requirement (same as Wildcat), so it would still be family friendly even with an inversion or two.

Wow, the colors on those track pieces really pop! I've been really impressed with what Six Flags has done with SFDK lately. They got the first Premier Sky Rocket II in the world in 2012 and then a custom RMC in 2016. Most parks would kill for one of those coasters in that time frame, yet SFDK got both of them. There's such a huge population base in NorCal that I think SF sees the opportunity to be the premier park in the region and they are going for it.

Agreed, a coaster like SFOG's Goliath would be perfect for SFSTL. As the only Six Flags without a RMC or a hyper, I really think a hyper would be a great fit for the park and round out their coaster collection. Since the 2016 investment in SFSTL is minimal, hopefully the park will finally be getting their hyper in 2017.

The GhostRider announcement was about as good as I could've imagined, short of RMC putting topper track on it (which we all know wasn't going to happen). Love that they are replacing the trains with new MFs and they look great in the renderings. But the best news of all is the removal of the MCBR! It's going to be great to fly through the course again without coming to a complete stop. Hopefully the retracking/reprofiling turns out to be a long term solution and GR rides great for years to come. Not so excited about the Ghost Town Alive announcement though. I wasn't too bummed to lose Screaming Swing since it was an upcharge attraction that had very little traffic, but I was hoping to get some sort of flat or a new & improved Haunted Shack. Maybe the GP will enjoy it, but I sure won't be spending my day wondering around the barber shop and playing poker with the Sheriff. Knott's is short on space to begin with and I hate seeing wasted on something like this.

Of the Six Flags park, I would say that SFStl is probably the most deserving of a new coaster. With the announcement of The Joker, SFStl will be the only SF park without a hyper or a RMC (I don't count La Ronde or Great Escape as true SF parks). SFStl got a relocated Boomerang in 2013, but the last new coaster was really American Thunder in 2008. I know it got JL:BFM last year, but it still doesn't have that signature coaster. I think a B&M hyper would be a great fit for the park and really round out their coaster collection. The park has 3 pretty good woodies (love American Thunder!), so I'd choose a hyper over a RMC for them. As for CF parks, I gotta go with Michigan's Adventure. If you ever think your local park has it bad, just remember that this park has it worse. The last coaster at MIA was Geauga Lake's relocated SLC in 2008 but really the last new major coaster was Shivering Timbers in 1998! MIA has been really neglected by CF and maybe the park's revenues don't justify the capital investment of a new coaster. But when I think of a park that really needs a new coaster, MIA springs to the top of the list.

Agreed, a Mack spinner would be a great addition for KK. It's a good first big coaster for kids since they usually have a 42" height requirement. Plus, they are lots of fun and it gives the park something the whole family can ride together.

American Thunder was our favorite ride at SFStl (along with Mr. Freeze) when we visited the park last summer. It had some great airtime and was one of the smoothest traditional woodies I've ridden. Granted it's only 7 years old but SFStl has done a great job of maintaining it. I truly hope that Knott's continues to give GhostRider the TLC it deserves in the years following this re-tracking. If that means they shut it down for 1-2 months during the during the offseason for maintenance, then that's what they should do.

The big dirt lot where the Screaming Swing was is very intriguing to me. I would assume that a new ride or attraction would go there since I doubt they would leave it as a dirt lot. The area is not big enough for a coaster, but there's plenty of room for a flat. Knott's actually has a pretty decent flat ride collection, but an Air Race or a Star Flyer would offer something new. I don't know that either of those would fit into the Ghost Town theme though. I'm guessing that we will get an announcement in mid-November as that is when they announced Iron Reef.

Why does Kumba need a massive refurb, that thing still rides (and looks) like a top 10 steel coaster? Kumba doesn't need a massive refurb at all. I rode it last week and thought it ran great. It's still one of the most forceful B&Ms out there and it has aged really well.

I just don't see them making changes to the layout. Even after 16 years, it was still one of the most popular rides at the park and was the signature ride when the park opened. I can see new trains with the B&M vest type restraints and on board audio. I can see an enhanced queue area. I can see a new launch system. But I just don't see them making changes to the layout.

You should be good any weekday, I was there this past Wed and it was completely dead. Cheetah was a walk on for the first hour or so and then the highest wait I saw for it was 20 min. Every other ride was a walk on, I was able to do Falcon's Fury 11-12 times in a row in about an hour.

I've found this to be the case as well, I always head straight to Yolo during the Gold early entry. I've done as many as 4 rides without having to get off and it's a great way to start the day!

Wow, that's a pretty underwhelming announcement, especially compared to the RMC that SFDK is getting. The additions at SFDK over the last 5-6 years have far outpaced CGA. I wonder if CF is just going to continue to neglect CGA and not invest much capital into it while they try to unload it?

Double post.