wildcattb5

Yeahhh let's just say it's not Fiesta Texas. It's not just that Nitro has never received a repaint or that Kingda Ka's "scenery" has turned into an overgrown forest. To me, the most embarrassing aspects of the park are the simple things like faded/peeling guide signs and the gift shop "tents" before the outpost section looking half-abandoned despite being on one of the major pathways. Even parks that we consider "neglected" like Darien Lake seem to at least touch up their pathways and signage. Most people dismiss these negatives with the usual "well it's Six Flags, what are you expecting, Cedar Fair?" but still, c'mon... It's like your favorite dive bar. Yeah it looks like a dump, and is a dump, but the food (or in this case, coasters) is amazing and it's always (mostly) a good time, so yeah, you love that dump. And the Jersey Devil expansion is a beautiful shining beacon amidst everything else...

Well regardless of what the overall corporate stance is, New Jersey is one of the last states that (as of now) still has an indoor mask mandate. The Great Adventure-specific announcement takes this into account; not surprisingly the Texas parks' policies reflect that state's more lenient stance on masks. While one can certainly disagree with NJ still having this mandate (and as someone who has been supportive of cautious measures up to now, I do disagree with them not evolving with the science), at the end of the day the Six Flags legal and PR teams are just being careful with making sure they're not ticking off any state regulatory authority. That's not to say they haven't taken Covid seriously, but they've made it known the entire time of the pandemic that by entering the park, you're assuming any and all risks that come with congregating with a bunch of strangers on rides and in queues. They're a business who (like others of its kind) experienced massive losses last year and is ensuring they won't experience any further loss from a potential lawsuit or fines.

Updated guidance for mask wearing:

For me, the REAL question is whether Storm Runner or Knoebel's Flyers will open first. And not even joking, because one opening before the other would really sway where I'd go to first once the parks are open for daily operations...

- Like any other big SF park, if you're going on a weekend or really nice day that would make it busy, allow enough time to enter the park. Fortunately the new touchless security process is a massive improvement over the previous lines. - If you see Kingda Ka operating and want to ride it, make it a priority and head straight there, as it can (and will) break down and may not reopen when it does. - The Golden Kingdom is tricky to find for first-time visitors: the entrance is to the right of Twister (the top spin) - Kingda Ka's queue entrance can also be tricky, it's to the right and behind of its locker area. - When planning out your day, your best/signature attractions are on opposite ends of the park (Kingda Ka/Zumanjaro/El Toro/Bizarro to the north, Nitro/Batman/WW/soon Jersey Devil to the south). While I don't mind the walk, some might find it exhausting; if open, the Skyway is your best friend to get from one side to the other as well as for photo ops. - Do be sure to stop by the lagoon near the log flume to take in that famous view of El Toro with Kingda Ka towering above it. It is truly one of the best photo vantage points one will find at any amusement park.

Not a surprise as this is the most financially viable option. Since bringing it back impromptu last year during the lockdown, they have definitely improved the experience with an audio guide, refreshed signage, and a gift shop/food stand at the exit (versus just porta-johns last year). It'll continue to attract an audience who maybe wouldn't normally pay admission to go into the park, even if they were just interested in the safari. Staffing wise you're only adding gate attendants (which anyone can do) while not utilizing caravan drivers that would command a higher wage and specialized skills; the animal caretakers obviously continue to work 24/7/365 as usual. And any liability concerns have been addressed (mainly not having the baboons tear up vehicles). Is this a viable long-term solution? I don't know. But there's currently no sense in bringing it back as an included-with-admission attraction when there's financial benefits to be reaped from the drive-thru operation, just as there had been for years previously.

The SFGAdv FB page is doing some teasing....

Just got back from today's Coaster Power Hour. As others have already mentioned, it really is a fantastic ERT event with a VIP feel and in 5 hours it is easy to rack up as many rides as you would on a normal full day. Big shout-out to all the Ride Ops who were really flexible with re-rides; even after the first hour of unlimited rides ended, you could pretty much get back on and/or move spots as long as you weren't keeping a new rider from getting on. This was the best way to snag a back row (or near the back row) as the queue-ops would try to load sequentially from the front like normal (but usually accommodated if you asked to go elsewhere). Some notable parts of the day: - Got 8 rides on El Toro, and could've early done more if only my body could handle it. - Kingda Ka (and the entire Golden Kingdom) were closed for the whole day. - I was ecstatic to hear the Mortal Kombat theme on one of my Nitro rides. It seems like it now is part of a station playlist similar to Kingda Ka where there are several songs on a loop (though the rest of the soundtrack is not only ridiculously generic but does nothing to pump anyone up). - The Skull Mountain "remix" was...meh. - First time in years riding Dark Knight and not the least bit surprised SF has let it slowly but surely deteriorate from an effects standpoint. - Got an entire train to myself on Batman, which for whatever reason seemed to be the forgotten coaster today. - Nice to spot one of Jersey Devil's trains to continue the tease and anticipation. (Also the menu at the Jersey Devil BBQ stand near Nitro's exit sounds amazing and mouth-watering even if it is yet another overpriced food stand)

Hello all, new to the forum (though I've been reading it for years) but I am a SFGAdv season passholder and today's park experience was what finally prompted me to register. As most of you know, Isaias came through yesterday forcing the region's parks to close. Everything reopened today with the weather fine but the area still rebounding from sporadic power outages. I had already made a rez to arrive at 10:30. I knew the park didn't officially open until 11 so I wasn't sure what to expect, the line in moved just fine and people were let in without delay. But it was weird because apart from Joker testing, none of the other rides were in test cycles 10 minutes before "opening". The park was still pretty empty, I felt like I was just walking amongst staff, like I shouldn't even be on the premises yet. But alas I made my way to El Toro which was starting its test runs, as well as Kingda Ka. The small crowd waited patiently (it was after "opening" at this point) and it seemed like it would open soon. All of a sudden a ride op makes an announcement that not only will there be a delay due to technical difficulties, but that "no other rides are operating at the moment". Sure enough there were no test runs of any sort happening. El Toro's A train was also stuck on the approach to the lift, suggesting there may have been a power issue perhaps. I took a lap around between Plaza del Carnival, Golden Kingdom, Boardwalk, and Frontier Adventures and the scene was the same throughout, just people waiting around for something, anything to open. Sure enough I see Runaway Mine Train testing as well as the Skyway. I make my way over and it looked promising, they already had 2 cycles with riders. But then a stuck restraint occured when trying to unload, causing the ride to shut again. At this point it's been an hour and I'm contemplating whether I should even bother waiting around. I live an hour away in the northern Philly suburbs so it's hard to just be like "okay I'll try again tomorrow" after driving out there, but I also know how Six Flags can be in trying to "resolve" these issues. In typical SF fashion there was no overall communication on what was causing practically the entire park to not be operating, no apologies or reassurances, unless you happened to ask a staff member personally. I understand that the ops and staff don't know any more than the public why things aren't going as planned, especially being the day after a tropical storm, but it is still frustrating, even making an announcement with a BS reason would be better than no communication apart from the one moment from the El Toro ride op. It's just asking for the GP to get riled up, especially if you aren't a passholder and spent good money to bring your family to the park. Eventually certain flat rides did open up, and Runaway Mine Train and Bizarro both tested again. This was at the same time that both the Skyway and SkyScreamer would break down and strand riders in the air. It was then that I decided to cut my losses, and I bought/reserved tickets to Hersheypark to try to salvage my day, even though it's 2 hrs away from GAdv and I practically have to drive back home and go in the opposite direction. I left at 12 without a single ride, as people kept entering the park; Kingda Ka was resuming tests but I also know not to hold my breath with it staying open. Sure enough I did check in Hershey what the ride status was and El Toro, Kingda Ka, Superman, and Wonder Woman were all closed. It would've been a wasted day if I stayed, I can only imagine the lines for the open rides such as Nitro, Batman, and Bizarro, especially now with the Covid restrictions. Ultimately even only a half day at Hershey got me multiple rides on Skyrush, and rides on Candymonium, Fahrenheit, and several others. El Toro's train stuck on the lift approach Very muddy water