It pays to arrive early at a theme park

[BarryH]

Robb and Elissa have said to arrive early at a theme park to get on the rides with a miminal amount of wait. Well, they are correct! I went to IOA on Sunday, 4/10. I arrived at 8:30. People were being let in at around 8:45 and were able to get on the rides too. In the first 45 minutes, I did 2 Hulk coaster rides, 1 Fearfall ride, and 1 Spider-Man ride. I only had to wait a few minutes. At around 11:00, the waits for the same rides were 30 minutes!

 

Other things I noticed at IOA and USF:

- The guess your weight/age booth in the Lost Continent had winged donkeys! I guess I should have won one for Robb.

 

- Mythos is great!

 

- At USF, the second Shrek 4-D theater opened and it cut down on wait times signifcantly.

 

 

I also went to the Holy Land Experience on 4/9. The place was well-done, but it felt like church with a $30 admission fee.

[Movieguy]

It almost always pays to show up early at these places. It also helps to have threats of bad weather. The first day I was in BGW, there were threats of brief thunderstorms...so, a lot of the park was empty, we didn't get hit by anything big, and I got to go on Alpengeist three times in a row.

 

Anyway, I keep hearing about how great this Mythos place is. Seeing as how I might be going to IOA at some point in the future. What would you recommend from there?

[Sir Clinksalot]

Dunno how we missed you, Barry.

 

We were there (obstensibly for "pickup shots" for our vid entry) Sunday morning as well.

[Mr Stratosphere]

Arriving early is a great idea! I found that out 3 weeks ago when me and my Dad took a trip to Walt Disney World. Staying on the resort actually helped when you can get those "Extra Magic Hours" Where the parks open 2 hours early, and can stay open up to 3 hours after normal closing. Arriving early to Disney MGM Studios I was able to get 7 rides on Tower of Terror and 4 rides on Rockin Roller Coaster with no longer than a 10 minute wait. One Wednesday when we were there Magic Kingdom was open 3 hours later than closing which was great because all the little kiddies went off to bed. So all the rides were pretty much a walk on. Even for Spring Break no stand-by line was over 90 minutes. The weather that week was also a little patchy so that helped with the lines a bit. Well if anyone comes out to Vegas to ride the rides at the Stratosphere, I recommend to come during the day, there is no wait, During the evening the lines to get to the tower are not that bad, X-Scream, Big Shot, and High Roller barely ever have a wait because of our quick dispatches. But Insanity's line has averaged a 2 hour wait every night. We even expanded the Queue area for this. But the best time to come up is Sunset when we have the High Roller closed for its daily maintinence. Around 6 P.M. is the best time to come up, and watch the city come alive. But this is kinda the same thing Get to those parks early!

[socalMAN123]

I went to DCA a couple of weeks ago and we were one of the first people in the park. We got GRR Fastpasses, two rides on MM, two rides on Maliboomer, and three rides on CA Screamin in the first 30 minutes of the park opening. The crowds eventually got bigger, so we ended up using Single Rider a lot.

---Brent 8)

[Coasters 4 ever]

Less than a week ago, I went to Hersheypark Springtime in the Park. Got there a half hour before the park opened so when it did, the rides were all walk-ons! It really does pay to arrive early at parks.

[pianojohn]

Anyway, I keep hearing about how great this Mythos place is. Seeing as how I might be going to IOA at some point in the future. What would you recommend from there?

 

They rotate the menu a little bit each time I have gone. I would recommend almost everything on the menu, and they usually have a dessert display as well. The best part, though, is the atmosphere. I just love the setting, decor, and location right on the water.

 

Make sure you check ahead since the hours change quite often. The best time is a late lunch (1:30-2) or just before sunset. That way, you can check out the great neon from across the water at Marvel Superhero Island.

[Movieguy]

Wow, that sounds pretty cool. I haven't been to restaurant with a good view and great atmosphere for quite a while now.

[CoasterExpert13]

Yeah, it's true, but it's not always great.....I remeber whe i went to Cedar Point last summer (june 2004) i arrived at Cedar Point abotu a hour and a half early.....there were alot of people there. but they were mostly chit-chatting in the parking lot, so i eased my way to the front fo the ticket booth so i could haul a** after getting passed the ticket booth. As soon as they let me in i was a blur....I took off, sprinting toward the Millennium Force...I looked left of me and saw a middle aged lady and her kids running a few feet beside me with the look of determination on their faces...so I sped up...then the next thing i know..I here more people running..more & more & more...so I tried my best to put on the Oosters (boosters....to run at maximum speed) but some people were just faster...and im a pretty fast guy...anywho..i was almost trampled as I reached the Millennium Force queve lines...I ended up being about 23rd in line (i counted) which wasn't that far behind....but it is opposed to being in line first. Oh well.....

[shepp]

It almost always pays to show up early at these places. It also helps to have threats of bad weather. The first day I was in BGW, there were threats of brief thunderstorms...so, a lot of the park was empty, we didn't get hit by anything big, and I got to go on Alpengeist three times in a row.

 

So does anyone know if BGW still has the "If it rains, you get the next day free" policy? Anyone taken advantage of it? Just how rainy does it have to be?

[palmerleeberry]

I have to agree that being an early bird to a theme park means that you can hit several attractions (even ride a ride twice in a row) in no time flat. Plus, there was two times when showing up at a park very early I didn't have to to pay for parking (that's right, the parking attendant waved me through).

 

But there is also a flip side to this: staying up late inside a park usually means the queing lines to rides are short. Of course, that isn't always the case to the newer rides, but many of the older rides would see their lines drop to nearly non-existent in the late afternoon to evening. Trust me on this; I've seen it happened more than once, and it feels like you've stepped into another world. One coaster (I cannot remember which one) had a one and a half hour wait time when I first entered the park. By six o'clock, I come back and found that the long line had disappeared and the riders were walking up to the station, getting on the trains, and riding.

 

Finally, you cannot beat ERT whenever the park holds special events. When Six Flags Great Adventure held its Coaster Event, Skull Mountain was one of the coasters running during it's nighttime ERT. While riders were getting ride after ride on its newest coaster "El Toro", my friend and I ended up riding Skull Mountain Twice: Once with the lights on and the other with the lights turned off (the attendants did that because we were the only two riders at that time - we didn't mind; it made us feel like VIP's).

 

"Hey, I don't have any lines forming for those who want to lie their heads upon me and head to dreamland, so why don't you ride me?"

[Ed Farmer]

It almost always pays to show up early at these places. It also helps to have threats of bad weather. The first day I was in BGW, there were threats of brief thunderstorms...so, a lot of the park was empty, we didn't get hit by anything big, and I got to go on Alpengeist three times in a row.

 

So does anyone know if BGW still has the "If it rains, you get the next day free" policy? Anyone taken advantage of it? Just how rainy does it have to be?

 

I was the beneficiary of this at Busch Tampa during the winter of '99. Nice and sunny upon entering the park in the morning, hopped on Gwazi, and it's pouring by the time we got off the ride. All the rides were closed for the rest of the day but we took in the exhibits and what not. Upon exiting for the day we asked about a rain check and to our surprise it was no problem. Really nice of the park to do, especially being in Florida and all where rain just kinda happens. A lot. Coming from a family of 5 children, that visit wasn't cheap. It endeared Busch to my family, especially the guy with the wallet.

 

Luckily now I have a summer (winter?) townhouse in Seminole and if it rains- no biggie, my passport lets me come back whenever.

[Geauga Dog]

You have to be trained to run marathons when it comes to being at CP first thing in the morning, especially if you are at the front gate and want to hit Millennium Force or Maverick first thing.

 

My experiences with early park arrivals center around season pass perks.For a few years back in the early 00's I had added the extra Joe Cool perk to my CP season pass, which allowed guests to have early entry before the GP. At the time they had MF and Dragster open and I went to Dragster. What a waste! By the time I got to ride Dragster they were already letting the GP into the park thus I was not able to get a ride on the Force before 10 AM.

 

Under Paramount I got a Gold Pass every year to Kings Island between 2003 and 2007. I loved how Paramount would open certain sections of the park for early rides, in particular Action Zone, where I was able to hit Delirium, Face/Off, Drop Zone, and even SOB before the masses. Would get plenty of rides in that one hour before they opened. In a sense I miss those days and those type of perks. I bought a Gold Pass to Kings Island when they went on sale last October, my first since 2007, and was able to get multiple rides on Diamondback and The Beast during morning ERT for Gold/Platinum passholders. It was fabulous.

[alilstronger]

I always get to a park before they open and stay till they close. I am someone that likes to ride every coaster and flat ride - I guess I am just a total ride whore!

 

I've noticed that when the park opens it the best time to visit the water park part of a park. Most people know that mid day in the summer the lines for water slides are crazy long. So I get them finished and out of the way first thing and then enjoy the rest of park in the afternoon. The heat doesn't bother me at all.