Six Flags Great America (SFGAm) Discussion Thread

[Password121]

Does Great America hit 3 million annually? I thought Great Adventure and Magic Mountain had the highest attendance in the chain (Gadv's more concentrated), and that park never seems too horribly crowded outside of October Saturdays.

[n1ch0las]

I know there are tons of cities with no 'big' parks (at all), but I've always wondered what it would look like if there were another Great America-sized park on either the west or south side of Chicagoland? It certainly seems like the interest (from the public, in going to an amusement park) is there.....I guess, at this point, it'd have to be Cedar Fair who'd have to be interested in a Chicago area park...right? And, yes, I know it's unheard of for a major chain to build from the ground up (as of late), but the crazy attendance at this park (and it's inability to truly do a major expansion) makes me wonder.

 

These crowds are very typical for the 3rd and 4th weeks of Fright Fest. The park has been doing these numbers for years now, and the attendance in peak summer really isn't much higher than what was typical in the 90s and 2000s. The difference to guest satisfaction and lines is decreased staffing (which leads to decreased engagement because their shifts are a living hell) in F&B joints and increased use of Flash Pass and EAP. 10 years ago (when Flash Pass existed) Bull could clear a full queue house in 45 minutes, full queue in an hour and 15. I bet over the weekend some people waited over 2 1/2 for a ride. Don't even get me started on Goliath, that station can become a disaster, especially when they make those poor people in wheel chairs cram along the side of Iron Wolf's tiny exit ramp. Needless to say, poor Operations are a bigger deal than increased crowds.

[kcurry11]

^This. The park feels so much busier all the time. There aren't more people coming in, it is the operations. And I feel like it is only getting worse. And that scares me. This being my home park, but 2.5 hours away makes it difficult. I want to go as much as I can, but I can't make ab150 minute trip to wait in lines all day.

[Jodon]

I know there are tons of cities with no 'big' parks (at all), but I've always wondered what it would look like if there were another Great America-sized park on either the west or south side of Chicagoland? It certainly seems like the interest (from the public, in going to an amusement park) is there.....I guess, at this point, it'd have to be Cedar Fair who'd have to be interested in a Chicago area park...right? And, yes, I know it's unheard of for a major chain to build from the ground up (as of late), but the crazy attendance at this park (and it's inability to truly do a major expansion) makes me wonder.

 

I've thought for years that a second park in the Joliet area or a little closer to the city would be great for the area. Great America is too small to pull from this large of a market (Chicago, Milwaukee, NW Indiana, Springfield, Iowa, etc). A second park in the area could easily be supported by the tourism and size of the Chicago market. I don't even think the new park would have to start out full size. Something like Holiday World where you have great operations and 3 to 4 marquee attractions could easily attract some good crowds in this market and then be able to grow into a true SFGAm competitor.

[hazelgreen]

My teenage son and I ended up going later on Saturday. I thought that we might get lucky and the crowds wouldn't be bad since it had been raining/off most of the morning, but as we pulled in around 2 pm, I realized that was stupid thinking. Tons of cars waiting to get in, we parked in the back lot all the way towards the back. Decided to splurge on platinum fast pass and waited in line for 1 hr for that. They had one register for us regular folk and two to three registers for Discover cardholders. Then we stood in line for food for an hour at Aunt Martha's. Finally started going on rides about two and a half hours later. Most lines were 2 hrs or more. I also think they definitely sold too many fast passes, as even some of the rides had lines for fast pass riders. And I wonder if they didn't sell them at all, would the lines move faster? Probably. It is just absurd that to be able to ride more than a couple rides you would need a fast pass. I don't always get one as I think they're such a ripoff, but I'm glad I did this time.

 

Not as many scary characters walking around as I've seen in years prior either. While standing in line for 40 minutes for a mediocre pretzel around 8 pm, there was a makeup demonstration and the girl said they have over 400 characters in the park. Not sure how the haunted houses were, my son isn't a fan of them unfortunately. We were in line for V2 around 1130 or so and it got stuck on it's return to station for about 5-10 minutes. A lot of people left the line when that happened and my son didn't want to go on, as we were the next ones in line. He's ridden every ride at Great America (except V2) and Cedar Point, but for some reason V2 freaks him out.

 

They need to hire more people for Fright Fest. It shouldn't take an hour to get popcorn or pizza. It's just ridiculous. It is pure greed? I felt bad for the workers as I know they were crazed. I wonder how Cedar Point is this time of year, if they have enough workers or is this just standard for fall seasons. Is there a capacity GA has to abide by or they just let how ever many they want in? With the amount of money I spent, I feel like Cedar Point is almost a better value that Great America. Which is sad since I'm only a little over an hour away from GA.

 

As far as next weekend, I thought the last weekend was the worst for Fright Fest? Not sure where I heard that though.

[scottm13]

Second to last weekend, specifically the second to last Saturday is always the worst.

[Jason82807]

I'm planning to go to Great America this Saturday 10/31. Does anyone know if they still do early entry for Gold season pass holders? Park opens at 11:00 am but if I recall correctly gold pass holders can enter an hour early to ride Goliath, but I'm not sure if they're still doing it for Fright Fest.

[jamessamuel]

It is really one of the best in the country and is a great place to visit with family. This summers we visited here and had done a lot of fun. It is a very good theme park for kids also as there are so may arrangement for kids also.

[PKI Jizzman]

Went on Sunday. It was an absolutely perfect day...and combined with the 2016 passes on sale that get you for free the rest of the 2015 season, it was one of the most crowded days I've experienced.

 

So out of my 6 visits this year, I'd say 5 were on par with every ride having a full/overflowing queue. One visit there were a few rides that had manageable 30 minute waits for half the rides. Every visit to the park I see massive lines for food/drinks. This park is all about getting as many people in as possible so they can profit off of food/drinks and force guests with extra money to buy the fast pass. I don't see this changing next year, and it seems like to enjoy this park and get one more than 4 or 5 coasters, you need a flash pass. Honestly...you could probably ride Goliath and X Flight from 10AM-Noon, then wait an hour for Batman, maybe 45 for Demon or Whizzer...then 90 for Raging Bull and a couple flats, most of your time is gone. There are some great rides at this park, but I'm not going to wait 90-120 minutes for Bull, Batman, Am Eagle, V2, Superman, or even Goliath. I really don't want to wait 60+ minutes for Dark Knight, Giant Drop, Demon or Whizzer either. Viper is the only manageable wait simply because its full queue is about a 30 minute wait. This park just isn't enjoyable in all aspects - wait times, food quality and service, operations (most of the time), rude guests, difficulty to get free water, parking, and I guess the environment is meh. For 65 bucks I'll get a pass since it's the only park near me. But I'm struggling, here!

 

Single rider lines were being used at Superman - 2 hour wait. Line down the stairs and tucked up to the side against the flash pass/exit pathway. Goliath's SRL was apparently open for a moment but quickly closed as the wait was 2.5 hours shortly after 1PM.

 

I'll say this again - I've never ridden Goliath after 12PM. Why? Because you have to get to the park at opening to ride it! Unless you want to wait 120-150 minutes, haha. I'm all for paying extra for the fast pass...but I wish I didn't have to use it each visit to have a good time! Looking forward to spending most of my time in the water park next year...

[AirMBTB]

^This. The park feels so much busier all the time. There aren't more people coming in, it is the operations. And I feel like it is only getting worse. And that scares me. This being my home park, but 2.5 hours away makes it difficult. I want to go as much as I can, but I can't make ab150 minute trip to wait in lines all day.

 

Missing the days when Demon, Whizzer and Eagle had a train dispatch every minute. True story. As poor as the operations are (see the single register in Angelo's? There used to be 4 there), I think we still have the best Six Flags park. I try to keep my visits on weekdays before school lets out, and summer/fall nights after 8pm.

Edited October 27, 2015 by AirMBTB

[scottm13]

^This. The park feels so much busier all the time. There aren't more people coming in, it is the operations. And I feel like it is only getting worse. And that scares me. This being my home park, but 2.5 hours away makes it difficult. I want to go as much as I can, but I can't make ab150 minute trip to wait in lines all day.

 

Missing the days when Demon, Whizzer and Eagle had a train dispatch every minute. True story. As poor as the operations are (see the single register in Angelo's? There used to be 4 there), I think we still have the best Six Flags park I'll stick to weekdays before school lets out... mostly.

This park has been the best park in the chain for quite a while now. Not even 5-10 years ago their (ride) operations were pretty much on par with CP and CF parks.

[AirMBTB]

This park has been the best park in the chain for quite a while now. Not even 5-10 years ago their (ride) operations were pretty much on par with CP and CF parks.

 

That might be stretching it a bit, do you think? I mean, SFGAm capacity was once great, but... As it is now, they get about 1/2 the capacity of comparable rides at CP. Just watch the dispatch times.

[scottm13]

This park has been the best park in the chain for quite a while now. Not even 5-10 years ago their (ride) operations were pretty much on par with CP and CF parks.

 

That might be stretching it a bit, do you think? I mean, SFGAm capacity was once great, but... As it is now, they get about 1/2 the capacity of comparable rides at CP. Just watch the dispatch times.

Sorry, thats what I was saying. That their operations used to be pretty much on par with CP. And that they are nowhere close anymore, but they are still the best in the chain. Which at this point is like being the skinniest kid at fat camp, because their numbers are pretty abysmal these days. Which just means that the other parks are doing even worse than this one.

[AirMBTB]

but they are still the best in the chain. Which at this point is like being the skinniest kid at fat camp, because their numbers are pretty abysmal these days.

 

Teehee Yes, sad but true. I have a picture somewhere of Raging Bull on a Saturday July 3rd, with 10 empty seats (and assigning seats isn't a good alternative, but unfortunately the parks like doing that).

 

Which just means that the other parks are doing even worse than this one.

 

Having also been at SFNEngland, La Ronde and SFOG this year, I can definitely back that statement up.

[scottm13]

Teehee Yes, sad but true. I have a picture somewhere of Raging Bull on a Saturday July 3rd, with 10 empty seats (and assigning seats isn't a good alternative, but unfortunately the parks like doing that)

Well... If you're complaining about empty seats how else is the park supposed to fill them without grouping riders?

[AirMBTB]

It's a good set-up to assign seats as people come in, but also let people wait for the front or back if they wish. It takes a little people skills, which doesn't seem to be a part of ride op training anymore.

 

(Grouping riders is one thing, but you can do that with out telling every person who comes into the station which row to line up for. In many instances where "assigned seating" happens, picking the front or back is out of the question. Some Cedar Fair ride operations will not let you wait for a particular seat. In my experience, SF is much more lenient.)

 

Also, I've seen some SF rides start new procedures with assigned seating, and the trains still stack...

[PKI Jizzman]

Sunday was also the first time I experienced Goliath *strictly* assigning seats. Even when the back seat was open they assigned you to a certain row. Doesn't really matter for me but I was at the park with friends who had never been on Goliath before and were stuck in the middle. lame.

[RaceBoarder]

Sunday was also the first time I experienced Goliath *strictly* assigning seats. Even when the back seat was open they assigned you to a certain row. Doesn't really matter for me but I was at the park with friends who had never been on Goliath before and were stuck in the middle. lame.

Hrm... My buddy and I were able to request the last seat when we rode in the late afternoon...

[Jason82807]

I don't know if this has been suggested before but I think they should consider making Goliath a "no carry-on" ride like certain rides at Cedar Point. This should speed up dispatch times.

[AirMBTB]

Sunday was also the first time I experienced Goliath *strictly* assigning seats. Even when the back seat was open they assigned you to a certain row. Doesn't really matter for me but I was at the park with friends who had never been on Goliath before and were stuck in the middle. lame.

 

It's ok to politely ask for a seat. They will usually give it to you.

[PKI Jizzman]

Sunday was also the first time I experienced Goliath *strictly* assigning seats. Even when the back seat was open they assigned you to a certain row. Doesn't really matter for me but I was at the park with friends who had never been on Goliath before and were stuck in the middle. lame.

 

It's ok to politely ask for a seat. They will usually give it to you.

 

I was insinuating that I asked for the back seat - hence the guy said no and assigned as to the middle. I had never been denied a requested row before my Sunday visit.

[AirMBTB]

^Gotcha. I didn't assume you asked for the back

 

The only time I've been denied certain seats... was at Cedar Fair parks. I don't like to "count heads to get a certain seat," but if I'm desperate, I'll do it.

[batmanfan80]

I write stuff here just as much for Six Flags corporate to supposedly read as for anyone else. And after attempting to go there yesterday, I can say I'm just about done with this place. People on here are correct, they just want to cram as many people in here as possible. The lot was the most full I had ever seen it, we didn't even go in. When I tried to call a couple weeks ago to ask about crowds, I get a labyrinth of options and the only one that leads to a person is the season pass line. And I was on hold for a while before I hung up. Great America does not have the resources to handle the mammoth crowds it attracts. Halloween was 20 min max wait for every ride according to someone we know that went. That suggests to me that a lot of the crowd is very local and makes decisions on when to go impulsively. If weather is good during FF, crowds will be insane. Last year the last weekend was not crowded. My trip reports are still on here. We have a 50 some mile drive which is a good investment of time and driving expenses just to have it wasted by Six Flags. I'm sure the reason they don't post ride times or crowd levels on their site or answer the phone is because they don't want to dissuade anyone from going.

 

So we head over to Gurnee Mills instead. There are no parking spaces available aside from a few in front of Shopper's World. The mall lot was that packed. For whatever reason, people that live in the Gurnee area love crowds and lines. You'd think Gurnee Mills wouldn't be that crowded. And it actually didn't feel like there were a ton of people inside, not hundreds of cars worth. Maybe a bunch of Six Flags attendees used Gurnee Mills as a second parking lot?

 

Six Flags really needs to rethink their branding and pricing. I would not be surprised if upwards of 70% of the people who go there aren't really all that profitable. They buy a season pass for $65 or whatever, get the upgrade Gold Pass for free with the parking, and then tailgate in the parking lot. After that they're probably just taking up space and not spending money. We saw a lot of people walking into the park from across the street. Lot of cars just dropping off the kids too. My guess is that the Six Flags business plan is to cram as many people as possible and not think much about how to make them want to come back. They know the only people who will have a good time are those that pay for Platinum Flash passes or who love lines. But there's always millions of new kids who will show up next year. Apparently word doesn't reach them that the lines and operations are horrible or they just don't care.

 

Six Flags still lags far behind Disney and Universal in revenue, right? The lines I waited in at Universal weren't that short but they really know how to move them along. Given that their queues are about 5x the length of Eagle's, I'd say a lot of the lines were like a full Eagle queue. Those same lines at Six Flags would probably take 3x as long. The lines would have taken even less time if Universal didn't have employees giving literal 10 minute speeches about how we shouldn't take pics and videos on the ride. My experience with Cedar Point and the one long line for Maverick that took over an hour was that it was like a two hour Great America line. The long lines at Cedar Point were largely caused by wind ride closures and all the fast passers clogging up Corkscrew while we were waiting for it, for example.

 

I'm frankly surprised the first two weeks of Fright Fest this year reported short lines. I guess if they have 20,000 people instead of 50,000, lines can be reasonable. But 20,000 just isn't enough attendance apparently. We spent over $400 on passes for the both of us including one gold and two dinner. They give enough on the meal pass that you could probably get away with sharing one between two people. Even though lines are pretty reasonable for most of May and June, the park closes early a lot. Wasn't it open daily 10-10 during the Marriott era? That's what the sign says in videos. I got the impression that Great America will close between 7-9 unless it's FF or peak season from mid July-end of August. Great America also loves to close earlier than advertised if they don't like the attendance. So why should I go when it's raining if they decide to close several hours early?

 

I rarely see lines at any of the stores. They're usually pretty empty. Merchandise just isn't flying off the walls. Yeah, I can't recall any time out of my dozens of visits where there was ever a line at a store register anywhere in the park. That tells me most of the crowd isn't there to buy merchandise. We bought the shopping pass and would've used it more except for the fact that there wasn't time to waste a lot and that ride lockers cost money and eat up ride time. At least they included a sports bottle with each season pass. This way I'm not out the $14.99 if it gets stolen again because they're too cheap to buy Cedar Point style bins that lock. The non-locking bins they put in some of the rides are a joke. People just slide the doors open after a ride op closes them. Does Six Flags really not have a couple hundred bucks for a few locking bins?

 

The rides are starting to feel more dated than classic to me. Whizzer I think holds up a lot better than Eagle and Demon, both of which can be somewhat rough/violent in spots. As much as I love Batman, I always feel like it's over too fast. Montu is just so much more creative even if it's badly paced in the second half. Think I got more rides in on that than I did on Batman in the last year. Pretzelman draws huge crowds here but is a joke compared to Manta and I imagine Tatsu too. Maybe we should take the $400 some we spent at Six Flags and use it towards Busch Gardens passes and airfare. I bet there's a good chance they let pass holders attend Sea World too.

 

Great America really only makes sense as an option for people who live within 20, maybe 30 miles of it who either love lines or have nothing better to do. Outside of June and the first week or two in July, you're really just wasting your time and money on this place unless you splurge on flash passes. Even then, there's no flash pass for the restaurants and on a lot of rides the FP sticks you at points where you still have a 20 minute wait. I'm not sure why they don't just let them up the exit ramp like the EAP people. If I'm paying $110 for a pass, I don't want to wait at the stairs for 20 min. I still believe FP sales should be limited to maybe 100-200. They act like there's a limited supply but they never stop selling them.

 

Six Flags needs to provide incentives for people who drive over 30 or 40 miles to attend. I'd say they need to limit usage of passes for people who live under 30-40 miles away if they're gonna charge next to nothing. Or raise season pass prices to $100-$150. Ban tailgating. Give any pass holder traveling over 40 miles two flash passes for free per year. Give flash pass discounts to anyone traveling 100 miles or more on top of that. The place is flooded because so many people don't have to invest any money in going nor do they have to drive very far. You could live down the street and buy the dining pass and have free meals and dessert almost every day during the summer and fright fest as long as you're sometimes willing to wait an hour at Aunt Martha's, JB's, Angelo's, etc. For a lot of parents Six Flags is an excellent babysitting service. They're attracting the lowest spending consumers possible. And the ones who spend $400 for their family to go one day feel disrespected and write bad reviews on Yelp. Maybe they feel they need 50,000 attendees to get 1000 who spend some money.

 

So maybe next year we'll buy the cheapest tickets possible to go a couple times in June and 4th of July. But the parking is so expensive we might not bother at all. 4 visits would be $100 in parking. Maybe that's the big scam. Charge a bunch of people obscene parking fees before they know they won't be able to ride anything but flat rides. Not everyone is checking Yelp apparently. I'm curious how the company's debt levels are. If they're digging out of that bankruptcy hole well. This quantity over quality mentality is only going to take them so far with all the damage they're doing to their brand. Maybe they're just trying to ramp up as much short-term revenue as they can before going bankrupt again and selling the company's assets off. Bunch of geniuses running this company I tell ya.

[the_man]

Sounds like a classic example of being crappy due to lack of competition. There are 10 million people that live in Chicagoland alone, what incentive does Six Flags have to try and be good when the place is always jam packed anyway? If another park opened up in the area i'm sure you would see a big improvement, although that will never happen because SFGAm has such a huge head start and a big waterpark nobody has that kind of money to build something that would compete.

[the_man]

Also another thing to remember about Six Flags is that for the past few years the company has actually been making money. So their current strategy (cheap season pass/sell lots of Flashpass/ads all over the place/build cheaper rides) seems to be working. Obviously it makes the parks feel more like money grabs than full fledged theme parks, but since it's making money I seriously doubt the CEO is going to change strategies. The shot callers aren't standing in lines in the park, they are in the back room looking at the amount of money they are making by selling more Flash Pass. I'm sure they get a lot of letters from people complaining, but like I said, with no competition it's just one of those things where people can either go to Six Flags and deal with it or not ride roller coasters (maybe a very small percentile will travel to CP instead, but those are a very small amount of statistical outliers).