SFMM & Knott's Coasters in 1 Day?!?

[TheCoasterCritic]

I'm taking my first coaster trip out west and I'm heading for SFMM first. I will be there on Thursday, August 14th. The focus of the trip is SFMM especially for Tatsu, X2, & Superman. But considering I may not be back to Cali for a LONG time I found out how close Knott's is to the park and wondered if I could squeeze in their coasters as well.

 

To make things even more difficult my plane doesn't land at LAX until 10:20 AM. So I'm thinking I could be at a park around Noon. Google Maps shows no traffic issues at that time of the day. Is that accurate? My flight back doesn't leave until midnight so I can stay until 10 PM when the parks close.

 

I will be alone and I only ride coasters. So I can take advantage of single rider lines and move pretty quickly throughout the park. I'm also all for buying Flash Passes (even more than one if I have to). I don't know if KBF offers something similar. Another grasp at making this work could be a media pass of some sort. I've gotten several recently including an escort to the front of the line for Ravine Flyer II. Are SFMM and KBF likely to give the same treatment? I'm assuming Rob would know.

 

Xcelerator, Silver Bullet, & Ghost Rider look fun, but I wouldn't want to risk missing SFMM's lineup. With LA's legendary traffic and crowds which park should I hit first? How do I deal with rush hour traffic when I move from the first park to the second? Is this harebrained scheme even possible?

[MixedDrink]

Something tells me you may be able to do this.

But it WOULD be hectic, and maybe even stressful.

Maybe it's not worth it?

[TheCoasterCritic]

Maybe. You bring up a good point, but I'll probably be moving at a pretty fast pace whether I do the two parks or just one. It's not like I'll be leisurely moving through the park like I would be with friends and family. I just want some feedback from people who know these parks and the surrounding areas to see if I should rule this out. Thanks.

[Wes]

I really can't see this as being feasible. Attempting one park *might* work, but it's tough. If your plane lands at 10:20, you aren't going to be out of LAX until 11, and there might be smatterings of lunch time traffic getting to SFMM or KBF. LA traffic is so tough to predict, you could be cruising at 70+ the entire way, and then get caught in 5 miles of traffic that takes an hour.

 

Thursdays are generally REALLY bad in terms of freeway traffic, I can't tell you why, but Thursday commutes are generally worse than Friday's now. Getting from SFMM to KBF (or vice versa) anytime between the hours of 2-8 will not be pleasant. The stretch of the 5 freeway that's only three usable lanes can be nightmarish, and there's a ton of freeway construction right near Knott's as of right now, too.

 

Basically, I'd say just do SFMM, and if it's imperative you make your flight, don't leave the park at 10pm and expect to get to LAX on time. Seriously. Plan your day expecting delays, don't take a chance that you'll get to experience the magic of LA's freeways on a rare off-day.

[SharkTums]

^What he said.

[ebl]

If you're just going for credits, Disney and Knott's in the same day is feasible, being that they're only about five or six miles apart. But throwing SFMM into the mix...try that another time.

 

Eric

[TheCoasterCritic]

Thanks for the feedback. I'll stick to SFMM. Coming from the DC area (usually top 2 or 3 for worst traffic) I can appreciate your warnings. Maybe I'll just spring for an extra flash pass for the $$ I would've spent at KBF. I can still leave the park at 10PM and get to LAX for my 12:30 AM flight, though right?

[SharkTums]

^I assume you're renting a car? Will you have checked luggage or just carryon?

 

Also, the on ramp to the 5 Fwy South coming out of Magic at 10pm can have an extra 20 minute backup so you have to think of that as well.

 

These things will determine what time you should leave.

[TheCoasterCritic]

I won't be checking any bags, but I will be renting a car from Alamo hich is said to be in the terminal. There's really a 20 minute backup to get onto the hwy at 10PM on a Thursday night? That's crazy! I guess I've understimated SFMM's attendance.

[padresguy619]

I went to SFMM yesterday and arrived to the park around 11:30 AM. We were able to hit every coaster including X2 and Tatsu. We were able to ride Tatsu twice and got in line for X2 around 8:30 PM. We got off the ride around 10:45 PM. I'd say it's not likely to hit KBF and SFMM in one day. Besides, X2 will be the greatest experience of your life.

[Wes]

I won't be checking any bags, but I will be renting a car from Alamo hich is said to be in the terminal. There's really a 20 minute backup to get onto the hwy at 10PM on a Thursday night? That's crazy! I guess I've understimated SFMM's attendance.

 

Magic Mountain Parkway (the main freeway entrance and exit) is going through extreme construction as of right now...so the backup is mostly due to that.

[Rollerman87]

First, yours nuts for even thinking you can make those two parks.

 

Second, what's you attack plan for SFMM? If you don't hit the park when it opens, X2 and Tatsu lines can be insane. I'd recommend heading to the back and doing Dejavu and Riddler's and make your way forward, going towards Scream and Colossus, then hitting up Goliath before the park really starts to fill in the back. As for Superman, you never know how that line is. If you're really in a time crunch, I'd say skip it. It's a decent ride, but not worth a wait (except if your trying to rest and get out of the hot sun for a few minutes ). Then, all I can say is good luck with Tatsu and X2. Viper you should do ok if the park isn't that crowded.

 

Hope that helped.

[sfmmrules!]

Um no I wouldn't recomend it. SFMM you need a whole day especially since X2 has a 2 1/2-3 hour wait all day & there are lines for the other coasters like Superman was an hour wait when I went on a Thrus. Plus the only way to get to SFMM is on a freeway-like highway 5 & it takes about an hour or a little more from Buena Park & most likely you would get stuck in traffic which would add on more time. But if you get bored at Knotts which I was after a few hours you can easily hop over to Disney. I would allow a full day at SFMM from morning to night especially since SFMM has ten times better coasters & you deffinately want to get on X2 & Tatsu. Tatsu also has long lines all day. Its best to get Fast Lane tickets. Thats what I did. I got 2. It was so worth it.

[TheCoasterCritic]

sfmmrules, which coasters did you use your flash passes on?

 

Since it sounds like I'm going to pretty much have to throw two hours away for just one ride on X2, I'll be getting a flash pass for use on Tatsu. I'm even contemplating the unlimited flash pass. Any tips on what other coasters I should use the flash pass on? I'm assumming the newest coasters have the longest lines. Goliath, Riddler's Revenge, etc?

 

Rollerman, thanks for the attack plan and overall 'You're crazy!' advice. I thought so, but I think I just needed people familiar with the parks to tell me. Probably should've figured what with CA being the most populous state and all.

[sfmmrules!]

You can get 1 Fast Lane ticket where you can go on any 4 rides that has the Fast Lane:

-Tatsu (WORTH IT! You skip the long line & go right to the boarding station!)

-Goliath

-Riddler's Revenge

-Batman

-Scream

-Colossus

-Gold Rusher

-Revolution

-Tidal Wave

-Jet Stream

-Log Jammer

-Viper

This is the list they give you once you purchase your Fast Lane ticket. I would use your 4 Fast Lanes for Tatsu. None of the other coasters have really long lines. Too bad X2 isn't on there yet. Hopefully by next summer they will add it!

[Rollerman87]

You can get 1 Fast Lane ticket where you can go on any 4 rides that has the Fast Lane:

-Tatsu (WORTH IT! You skip the long line & go right to the boarding station!)

-Goliath

-Riddler's Revenge

-Batman

-Scream

-Colossus

-Gold Rusher

-Revolution

-Tidal Wave

-Jet Stream

-Log Jammer

-Viper

This is the list they give you once you purchase your Fast Lane ticket. I would use your 4 Fast Lanes for Tatsu. None of the other coasters have really long lines. Too bad X2 isn't on there yet. Hopefully by next summer they will add it!

 

If you hit up the back later in the day, I'd recommend using the Flah Pass on Goliath and Batman. Those two rides really start to crowd when the GP realizes that Tatsu, Viper, X2, and Revolution aren't the only rides in the pakr. Riddler's usually has a decent wait, but if you hit the back row, it isn't that bad.

 

Honestly, Tatsu is slightly overrated, so using the Flash Pass purely on it would be a waste (to me). It's an experience, but not THAT great. But hey, if you like it, by all means, go ahead.

[snoflake15]

Are 2 flash passes at SFMM worth it? This is a one-off trip for me and don't want to leave having missed anything. Have got one already but wonder whether I need a second to get round evrything in a day. ITs a Wednesday so its only open 1030 - 7.

 

And will it be dark at all by 7?

[TheCoasterCritic]

I'm in the same situation. That's why I'm even considering the unlimited flash pass. It's costly, but then there should be no question that I'll get multiple rides on most of the coasters. It'd be pretty annoying to fly across the country to just to spend most of my day in line. Plus I already have a season pass so I don't have to worry about admission.

 

Anyone have experience with these passes. I'm assuming you just walk to the station like the electronic flash passes at Great Adventure you just don't have to make an appointment, right?

[BarryH]

You could probably do Knott's in 1/2 day. SFMM and Knott's is probably not doable for all the reasons Wes said.

 

If you are credit whory, Adventure City is a few miles from Knott's and you can probably get 2 credits there.

[wierdo135]

Well considering you chose the two parks notorious for their bad operations, I would say know.

[Top Thrill Dragster]

^From my visits to Knotts, the park has good operations. All rides are open, they are running max trains, and fast dispatches.

[Rollerman87]

^Ditto. Knott's has a good staff, and usually seems pretty upbeat. I think someone just had a bad visit.

[wierdo135]

^Ditto. Knott's has a good staff, and usually seems pretty upbeat. I think someone just had a bad visit.

 

No never been there its just notorious for that.

[MM]

I'm going the last weekdays magic mountain is open (aug 27,28,29th), are the lines still as crazy on these end of summer weekdays as described in this thread?

 

Have fun tomorrow coaster critic.

[TheCoasterCritic]

Thanks for all of the tips and advice. I'm going to head to SFMM and depending on how things go I might leave after rush hour and attempt to get in a few hours at Knott's. This way I'll be much closer to the airport and I won't risk missing SFMM's lineup for Knott's.