Six Flags America (SFA) Discussion Thread

[MillenniumFangirl]

Thank you for all the tips. I would go to Great Adventure (seriously) but my folks want to stay in the general D.C. area. Are there any other good parks around there that are less than an hour or two away?

[coasterbill]

Yes! Kings Dominion. It's infinitely better than Six Flags America. If you go to Six Flags America instead of Kings Dominion you'll never forgive yourself. Kings Dominion is actually one of our favorite parks. It has some great, very unique coasters... it's very clean and well landscaped and actually has trees in it. None of those things are true of Six Flags America. Busch Gardens Williamsburg might be a bit too far but it's a great option too.

 

Seriously, don't go to Six Flags America instead of Kings Dominion... don't do it. The parks aren't even close to being on the same level.

[Highridin]

^^^ You did notice that I was only being facetious, right?

 

Lol,..yeah I knew!

Edited January 6, 2016 by Highridin

[Highridin]

I like it as much as Kings Dominion.

 

Are you high? Even comparing this park to Kings Dominion (or any other park anywhere short of maybe Lakemont and Conneaut Lake) is an insult.

 

Six Flags America is slowly improving but it's still terrible.

 

Ha ha,..you missed what I said. I'm not comparing. The rides (some)--(dry side) are better than SFA. My favorite (Volcano) is there. I'm just going off how good a time 'I' usually have. I've gone to KD and have been pissed off on the way out on a few occasions. Never SFA, well maybe once. I don't know what it is. I always go to both a lot. SFA a little more because it's close.

[Vonni]

These awful Winter temperatures makes the 2016 addition for SFA sound a little more enticing! I'm so ready for Summer weather!

[Highridin]

These awful Winter temperatures makes the 2016 addition for SFA sound a little more enticing! I'm so ready for Summer weather!

 

Lol,..ready for that big bucket of water, huh?

[Highridin]

These awful Winter temperatures makes the 2016 addition for SFA sound a little more enticing! I'm so ready for Summer weather!

 

Lol,..ready for that big bucket of water, huh?

[ejot]

Thank you for all the tips. I would go to Great Adventure (seriously) but my folks want to stay in the general D.C. area. Are there any other good parks around there that are less than an hour or two away?

 

Rcdb has the greatest trip planning tool ever, for this kind of question!

 

As you can see, Hershey could also be up for consideration. It is an outstanding park, one of my very favorites.

 

But I also don't see anything wrong with visiting SFA if your family is going on a trip that is otherwise centered around DC. I had a perfectly enjoyable day there and will probably visit again within a few years. The final helix on Wild One is great!

[MillenniumFangirl]

Oh, I had totally forgotten about Kings Dominion! That could certainly be another option.

[I305forever]

^ It's a pretty long drive from DC if you're planning on doing it as a day trip.

[Philrad71]

^And let's not forget that you have to travel the I-95 corridor to get there and back - ugggghhhh.

 

I think I would rather go the extra ten miles or so and go the opposite direction to Hershey instead.

[coasterbill]

Kings Dominion and Hershey are both great options. Six Flags America on the other hand is not.

[Password121]

If you're pressed for time or don't want to drive so far, Six Flags America is the best option. You can have a full day with the waterpark and re-rides in all coasters in about six hours.

Speaking of, their waterpark is probably the best of the three parks.

 

Although SFA doesn't have the newest, biggest or best coasters like I-305 or Skyrush, they do have a few rides that are certainly fun and respectable, no matter what park it's at. Superman, Wild One and Jokers Jinx are all great fun and Batwing is a fun flying coaster if you don't hate that type of ride.

Don't count out SFA just yet (although I agree Kings Dominion and Hershey are overall better parks).

[Highridin]

If you're pressed for time or don't want to drive so far, Six Flags America is the best option. You can have a full day with the waterpark and re-rides in all coasters in about six hours.

Speaking of, their waterpark is probably the best of the three parks.

 

Although SFA doesn't have the newest, biggest or best coasters like I-305 or Skyrush, they do have a few rides that are certainly fun and respectable, no matter what park it's at. Superman, Wild One and Jokers Jinx are all great fun and Batwing is a fun flying coaster if you don't hate that type of ride.

Don't count out SFA just yet (although I agree Kings Dominion and Hershey are overall better parks).

Edited January 7, 2016 by Highridin

[Highridin]

If you're pressed for time or don't want to drive so far, Six Flags America is the best option. You can have a full day with the waterpark and re-rides in all coasters in about six hours.

Speaking of, their waterpark is probably the best of the three parks.

 

Although SFA doesn't have the newest, biggest or best coasters like I-305 or Skyrush, they do have a few rides that are certainly fun and respectable, no matter what park it's at. Superman, Wild One and Jokers Jinx are all great fun and Batwing is a fun flying coaster if you don't hate that type of ride.

Don't count out SFA just yet (although I agree Kings Dominion and Hershey are overall better parks).

 

This says it all. Most people when they think of SFA: Once a bad reputation, always a bad reputation. To be honest, I told myself that I wouldn't go back until my daughter talked me into it in 2012; glad she did .

 

Water park tops others in the areas by far. Dry side is fun enough. You will have a good time. Make sure to take in the shows and stay off Apocalyse (unless you have Excedrin handy).

[jarmor]

Oh, yes they will replace your season pass.

That's actually not true. I called Six Flags Over Texas and asked and they said I must wait for Six Flags America to open back up which means my trip to Texas this winter is now canceled.

 

Not to mention I live in NC. I happened to be in the DC area and grabbed a season pass membership while on vacation, never expecting I was going to have my wallet stolen. Now I am paying a monthly membership fee and no way to replace my card unless I plan another vacation to Washington DC.

You didn't need your physical pass. You are in the system. They can always look it up for you and allow access that day.

[Vonni]

These awful Winter temperatures makes the 2016 addition for SFA sound a little more enticing! I'm so ready for Summer weather!

 

Lol,..ready for that big bucket of water, huh?

 

 

Lol well I'm definitely ready for the appropriate temperatures that call for that big bucket of water

[bill_s]

KD and BGW are some of the most respected parks anywhere. If you get plenty of riding and are looking for the best, those would be the choices. However, if you rarely get to ride, or are near parks that tend to be crowded or you can only get to at crowded times, SFA could be just fine, or maybe even a breath of fresh air.

 

On my latest visit, I was actually finding I'm starting to think SFA has more character and better theming than KD, but this may be a symptom I've ben going to KD too much! The previous visit turned out to be overcrowded (unusual, except Saturdays) and I can't find much about SFA that's worth going through that.

[coasterfreak101]

^ It's a pretty long drive from DC if you're planning on doing it as a day trip.

It's an hour and a half - hardly a long drive. Heck, I've never even done Busch as longer than a day trip.

[MillenniumFangirl]

SFA doesn't look to be a bad place to head out to, although I'd much rather go to KD. I'll see how it all plans out. Summer is still a few months away, after all.

[Vonni]

^ I definitely want to go for the credits some day, but SFA is the only park in the chain that I don't have a strong desire to visit. Definitely at the bottom of the bucket list for me. No offense to those who like the park. It just doesn't have much draw for me.

[boldikus]

SFA as a park in general does leave a bit to be desired, but I feel it gets more slack than it deserves. If its not crowded you could get everything done in just 2-3 hours, which we were able to do, and then we spent the rest of the day re-riding what we liked. That said, Superman, Wild One and Jokers Jinx are all great coasters, the rest of the line-up goes from kinda lame (Roar, Mind Eraser) to flat out terrible (Apocalypse, Ragin Cajun, Batwing).

 

Kings Dominion on the other hand I've heard mostly good things about and its a park that sits very very high on my bucketlist (mostly because of I305 but a good chunk of the rest of the line-up looks good too).

[Highridin]

Something tells me that they are in deep thought about putting HITP here. It's the only SF park (I checked a few) that I saw that doesn't have their schedule up for the year yet.

[ScreaminNewEngland]

SFA as a park in general does leave a bit to be desired, but I feel it gets more slack than it deserves. If its not crowded you could get everything done in just 2-3 hours, which we were able to do, and then we spent the rest of the day re-riding what we liked. That said, Superman, Wild One and Jokers Jinx are all great coasters, the rest of the line-up goes from kinda lame (Roar, Mind Eraser) to flat out terrible (Apocalypse, Ragin Cajun, Batwing).

 

Kings Dominion on the other hand I've heard mostly good things about and its a park that sits very very high on my bucketlist (mostly because of I305 but a good chunk of the rest of the line-up looks good too).

 

I found Batwing to be one of the best coasters there. I do agree with Apacolypse but Rajin Cajjun does its job very well, to please families. And Batwing seems to be a crowd pleaser.

 

I was impressed with this park for what it was when I visited. An RMC upgrade to roar or a new coaster in the back field would do the park wonders.

[coasterbill]

Something tells me that they are in deep thought about putting HITP here. It's the only SF park (I checked a few) that I saw that doesn't have their schedule up for the year yet.

 

I love that idea simply because it's an indicator that the Great Adventure event was a success. I would think that they would just open the front of the park though and that's a shame since the only good coaster that would probably be open would be Wild One. I don't see them expanding back into Gotham City because then you'd basically have to open the whole park, wouldn't you?