Six Flags Great America (SFGAm) Discussion Thread

[glouthan]

^Surprisingly, they actually race the rides together this year.

[Jojo19799]

I love skip-the line systems including Gold Regular Flash Pass but Platinum Flash Passes are pretty terrible and I totally understand why people react the way they do.

 

I like Flash Pass and i'm always happy to have that option when I'm visiting a park I haven't been to but the idea of letting people re-ride screws everything up. Most people go to parks in groups of more than 2, and when people re-ride in one of the rows a group is lining up for it either leads to a mad scramble to find 2 people who want to go ahead of them or in most cases rows going out empty and it kills capacity. This effect is amplified if a group of 2 is trying to ride with another group of 2 and let people go ahead of them to even it up (which happens all the time) and now the next few trains are equally screwed up. We got the Platinum Flash Pass once at Magic Mountain and on most rides we felt like complete jerks for screwing everyone up. Re-rides really shouldn't be allowed. As far as I know Six Flags is the only park that offers them.

 

I am going to have to disagree with you about re-rides screwing up everything. When I was there on Tuesday (using a gold flash pass), whatever ride I was at, the employees would let the rest of the guests waiting know about the platinum pass re-ride policy (if there was a plat pass group riding). I saw a lot of groups with plat pass too. With the employees letting people know of the re-rides, that would give you ample time to rearrange your group if needed. I just think of the re-rides as an added bonus.

 

My friend and I purchased a gold qbot on Tuesday since I had an add a friend for free coupon. I'm glad we did! The park was busy and it made our day much more enjoyable. I didn't hear anyone make a complain when walking through the flash pass line, and really I don't care if they were upset or not. I've waited in line before while loads of people with qbots have walked passed me. Yes, SF is expensive, but so is Sea World, Universal, Disney and Cedar Fair. If a family is there on vacation then there's a good chance they will spring for a skip the line pass. If you're a local, you typically don't unless it's a busy day and you have a friend or two in town and would like to enjoy your day (like I did). It's all what you make out of the situation.

[anewman35]

I got a Platinum Flash Pass a couple of weeks ago, it was $220 for me and my sister, and we got some of the rudest looks, and people we were bypassing in line saying stuff like " They suck" " That's not fair" etc.. If you choose not to spend the money, and wait in the regular line, how is that not fair to the people who opt to spend extra money?? I never get a Flash Pass at my home park of SFOG, of course I never go when it's busy, but if I do decide to go and have to wait in line because of flash pass users, that's my choice, I'm not going to get mad at people who choose not to wait in line..

 

If you buy a flash pass, you're buying shorter lines, you're nnot buying acceptance from the general public. I get why the park loves it (money!), but Flash Passes are the worst thing that's ever happened, and I basically hate every single person I ever see using one. I know some people might save up and do it once in a lifetime, but way too many appear to just be kids who's parents have too much money and have no idea how other people live. Basically, if you want to buy one it's your right - but it's my right to hate you (and I do).

[tooooobbe]

If you buy a flash pass, you're buying shorter lines, you're nnot buying acceptance from the general public. I get why the park loves it (money!), but Flash Passes are the worst thing that's ever happened, and I basically hate every single person I ever see using one. I know some people might save up and do it once in a lifetime, but way too many appear to just be kids who's parents have too much money and have no idea how other people live. Basically, if you want to buy one it's your right - but it's my right to hate you (and I do).

 

 

Do you hate on people driving a nicer car?

 

Do you hate on people who upgrade their flight tickets?

 

Remember that flashpass is an great income for the park that probaly keep the ticket price lower. Some people might never afford to go to a theme park if it would't be for flashpass.

 

How is it even possible to hate someone for that little... gosh.

[WallyWorldOrBust]

I just flat-out refuse to ride American Eagle anymore. I hate having to make the hike up through the old queuing steps just for not even a ten-minute wait, and to go up the first track on either red or blue and feel it BUCK. And if we were allowed to take our phones on the ride and snap pictures of how bad it looks going up the first hill....oh good lord. It's rickety, and I'm getting jostled around even more terribly than I was on ShockWave when it was still there, and I'm squeezed in really tightly next to me fiancee where it's just uncomfortable.

 

I almost wish American Eagle had gotten that rumored iron horse overhaul instead of SFGAm getting Goliath. Goliath is pretty awesome, but American Eagle has seen better days. It's depressing.

[anewman35]

Do you hate on people driving a nicer car?

 

Do you hate on people who upgrade their flight tickets?

 

Remember that flashpass is an great income for the park that probaly keep the ticket price lower. Some people might never afford to go to a theme park if it would't be for flashpass.

 

How is it even possible to hate someone for that little... gosh.

 

I don't care if people have a nice car or a first class seat, because that doesn't effect me. People with flash pass directly impact my experience at the park. I miss the days when everybody at the park would have the potential for an equal experience, rather than being able to pay more for a better one. I'm usually not a person who would confront anyone (and I never would in person), but when I see a post that strikes as so out-of-touch with the reality of how much money a flash pass is to some people I can't help myself. Keep your flash pass, just don't expect me to be happy for you.

 

Also,'m aware the park makes a lot of money on flashpass, but I think the idea that they charge less for other tickets because of they utterly ridiculous. They charge as much as they can for everything they can (and I'm fine with that, they're a business). I promise you everything in the park is vastly more expensive than before flash pass (and at a higher rate than the rate of inflation).

[WallyWorldOrBust]

I'm going to make the argument FOR a FlashPass here. While I have never invested in one before, I think of the future when my fiancee and I get around to having kids. Okay, our kids aren't going to be big enough to go on rollercoasters for a while. If we take a visit to an amusement park with other family members, say we hand off our kids on Grandma or Grandpa or a friend we're with to ride a rollercoaster. We don't want them to be waiting around 2 hours so we can go on Raging Bull. Hey! We have a FlashPass so they don't have to worry about that!

 

Seriously, I don't judge the people who want to pay the money for a FlashPass. That's your money that you want to spend, so it's not my business.

[beenagins87]

Do you hate on people driving a nicer car?

 

Do you hate on people who upgrade their flight tickets?

 

Remember that flashpass is an great income for the park that probaly keep the ticket price lower. Some people might never afford to go to a theme park if it would't be for flashpass.

 

How is it even possible to hate someone for that little... gosh.

 

I don't care if people have a nice car or a first class seat, because that doesn't effect me. People with flash pass directly impact my experience at the park. I miss the days when everybody at the park would have the potential for an equal experience, rather than being able to pay more for a better one. I'm usually not a person who would confront anyone (and I never would in person), but when I see a post that strikes as so out-of-touch with the reality of how much money a flash pass is to some people I can't help myself. Keep your flash pass, just don't expect me to be happy for you.

 

Also,'m aware the park makes a lot of money on flashpass, but I think the idea that they charge less for other tickets because of they utterly ridiculous. They charge as much as they can for everything they can (and I'm fine with that, they're a business). I promise you everything in the park is vastly more expensive than before flash pass (and at a higher rate than the rate of inflation).

 

 

How was my post out of touch?? Some people have money to spend on things such as flash pass, some don't.I don't have tons of extra income laying around, I just so happened to know I was only going to have a day and a half at the park, so I splurged a little since I saved on admission and parking with my season pass from Georgia. If you choose to spend hours in a hot miserable line, that's your choice, you shouldn't "hate" me or other people and let it affect your day. I visited Magic Mountain on a busy Saturday in April of 2007, it was my last full day in Ca, and I didn't know when I would go back, I didn't have the money for a flash pass, so I sucked it up and waited in line and got on everything I wanted at least once including X, and I had a blast, sure flash pass people got more rides in than me that day, but I made the best of what I had.

[Atter]

I think getting mad over someone using a flashpass is pointless really. It's their choice and the people who buy it aren't doing it to rub it in that they get to get on faster or have more money, they do it to enjoy there day at the park. Its unfair to a person when they get rude comments from someone just for having a flashpass and are trying to enjoy their day. I got a platinum pass a couple weeks ago at this park and I had an amazing day.I was able to accomplish all the rides I needed to ride on a saturday in July! Having the flashpass available was a great opportunity. I live no where near this park,so this was my only chance to be at this park for a long time. I just wanted to say my thoughts on the flashpass thing.

[anewman35]

I'm going to make the argument FOR a FlashPass here. While I have never invested in one before, I think of the future when my fiancee and I get around to having kids. Okay, our kids aren't going to be big enough to go on rollercoasters for a while. If we take a visit to an amusement park with other family members, say we hand off our kids on Grandma or Grandpa or a friend we're with to ride a rollercoaster. We don't want them to be waiting around 2 hours so we can go on Raging Bull. Hey! We have a FlashPass so they don't have to worry about that!

 

Seriously, I don't judge the people who want to pay the money for a FlashPass. That's your money that you want to spend, so it's not my business.

 

Sure, I get that, I'm sure using a flash pass is great. Who wants to wait in lines, especially with kids? The thing is, because you have more money than me (or you're less concerned with saving it), you get to go ahead of me. It's a zero-sum game for everybody who benefits from flash pass, somebody gets hurt. If you choose not to care, that's on you, I just get a little bitter at being (increasingly) a second (or, really, fourth) class citizen at a place that used to be so much more equal.

[anewman35]

This is America. People have the right to get flash passes. People also have the right to hate anybody who has a flash pass. I'm going to leave it there.

[Atter]

^This is also Six Flags, so I don't expect anything to be perfect with the flashpass system. Someone is is going to find something to hate about it.

Edited August 1, 2014 by Atter

[RCjunkie]

This is America. People have the right to get flash passes. People also have the right to hate anybody who has a flash pass. I'm going to leave it there.

 

Exactly. And we who buy Flash Passes have the right to hate you right back for your pettiness and/or jealousy. It goes both ways. To each his own, enjoy!

[coasterrich]

Here is a thought. What would those who are anti Flash Pass think if Flash Passes' disappeared and the season pass price rose to $180/$200? (still cheaper than a Merlin pass in the UK).

 

I visited SFGAm a couple of weekends ago. It was my first visit to the park as I was over from the UK on business and was able to fit in a trip. To me, it appears that the single day visitor is the one most disadvantaged by Flash Passes. Season Passes are great value, you can visit the park multiple times a year and deal with the lines, but I looked at the cost of a single day and realised I wouldn't even get round the parks roller coaster collection once unless I bought a Flash Pass. So, I stumped up for a Platinum Flash Pass because I wasn't sure when i'd be back and wanted to ride everything on offer.

 

Cheap season passes also drive up attendance, which in turn drives up the length of the lines. So, as a day visitor who had to stump up $$$ to get round the park, should I "hate" all season pass holders for clogging up the lines? Of course not....

 

I looked at all the options before hand and made my choice, the fact that it cost me $160 for one day and 20 rides was acceptable to me ($8 a ride and I didn't use the re-ride option on anything but Raging Bull). I suspect there are plenty of Season pass holders racking up way more than 100 rides in a season for just $70. I guess the price of 70 cent rides is waiting in long lines....

 

PS. You guys have some great rides there - Batman, Whizzer, Goliath and Raging Bull all top class for different reasons....

[Woodie Warrior]

Also, if Flash Passes didn't exist, the people who would've gotten them would have to wait in line along with everybody else, making the wait just as long for you.

[HARLEYGUYJB]

Does anyone know exactly how many Flash Passes they have and sell everyday on average?

[anewman35]

Also, if Flash Passes didn't exist, the people who would've gotten them would have to wait in line along with everybody else, making the wait just as long for you.

 

Not true. If I'm in line without flash pass, the new person would be in line after me. With flash pass, they can go ahead of me. Therefore, there are more people in front of me, so my line is longer. And don't get me started on rerides...

 

I'll say this again: there is no way to make lines shorter for some people without making lines longer for other people. I know people who use flash pass don't consider that, but it's a fact, and, to me, it's a negative thing.

 

I'm curious: if you like/support flashpass, is there any point where it would be too much? Like, if they had "Ultimate Flash Pass" for $500, but you could reride for an hour on any ride with no waiting - would you be ok with that?

[Password121]

Just wanted to put my opinion on this...

I have never used Flash Pass, but have used and will use again Cedar Point's Fast Lane. I will say that I think if the system was tweaked a little bit, the Fast Lane system seems very fair and is a great way for those that can't visit often to experience the park without worrying too much about lines, like myself at Cedar Point. Although I have never used Flash Pass, the re-ride policy on Platinum is rediculous.

[Woodie Warrior]

I'm curious: if you like/support flashpass, is there any point where it would be too much? Like, if they had "Ultimate Flash Pass" for $500, but you could reride for an hour on any ride with no waiting - would you be ok with that?

No. Honestly, I think the cutoff price for my family is around $90. I think Platinum Pass is way too pricey at $110, especially when Universal Studios pass is $30 cheaper at $80 (which still wasn't that great of a deal IMO). SeaWorlds was a bargain at $30 and really made our day a million times more enjoyable.

 

However, it really depends on how much people can afford to spend.

[coasterrich]

Not true. If I'm in line without flash pass, the new person would be in line after me. With flash pass, they can go ahead of me. Therefore, there are more people in front of me, so my line is longer. And don't get me started on rerides...

 

I'll say this again: there is no way to make lines shorter for some people without making lines longer for other people. I know people who use flash pass don't consider that, but it's a fact, and, to me, it's a negative thing.

 

Not necessarily true. It really depends on what the person with Flash Pass does whilst waiting for his reservation and the reservation delay. If someone takes the basic flash pass, and does nothing but play games or eat food whilst waiting for their reservation, there would be zero impact on those in the stand by line. However, in practice this isn't the case obviously.

 

Personally, I'm fine with free Fast Passes such as those as Disney, but never been that happy with paid for fast passes. Would I pay for a Flash Pass - yep, and I did so two weeks ago because I was happy to pay a premium. Did it mean others waiting longer - yes, it did, but then they didn't pay the $170 I did for the day. I would say the vast majority of the guests (and virtually everyone on this forum) is well aware they will have longer lines due to Fast Pass - everyone is free to make a choice to visit knowing that or not. Is the issue so much about someones "time" or more about the "cost per ride" - one is probably more important than others.

 

SFGAm do VIP packages too, with a personal "guide" to get you front of line on everything. Thats even more $$$. C'est la vie as they say in France...

[Jodon]

I'll bite on this discussion...

 

Last Friday my brother and I got Platinum Flash passes at Great America and then we went to Cedar Point and had a VIP tour there. There are extenuating circumstances why we did both and we were very pleased with both experiences. First off, I can understand some frustration over the whole Flash pass process, but they are never going away. Period. They make the park too much money with little overhead. Also, a lot of the posted wait times are including flash pass users, and if there is a grouper in the station, most of the wait times are less than posted as you won't have a 5 train wait in the station. Would your wait be less if there were no Flash Passes? Yes. Is your wait significantly longer with Flash Passes? Probably not.

 

I am a season pass holder for SF and I have been to Great America 8 times this season and had never gotten a Flash Pass before last Friday. One of the biggest reasons we got the Platinum Flash pass was that my brother has not been to Great America in 10 years or so and we had to leave the park by 6 pm. The only way we were going to be able to do everything we wanted to ride, was get a Flash Pass. I was happy to pay extra money to be able to experience all the rides with my brother.

 

I will say that the I don't think that the Platinum should have re-rides. I also found that the only ride where the 90% less wait time really mattered was for Goliath. If Goliath weren't only available on the Platinum, the Gold would be more than enough for most users.

 

If you are interested in my experience with the VIP tour, you can read my Photo TR on the forums.

 

If you want to get upset at people using Flash Pass, that is certainly your prerogative. However, you are going to get upset a lot as it is not going to go away.

[beenagins87]

I'm curious: if you like/support flashpass, is there any point where it would be too much? Like, if they had "Ultimate Flash Pass" for $500, but you could reride for an hour on any ride with no waiting - would you be ok with that?

 

 

Reriding a ride for a whole hour would get old, and I doubt there's many people out there who would want to ride the same ride for an hour, I mean Batman, Superman, Raging Bull, Viper, X-Flight are all great rides, but an hour straight would be redundant for most people, so that argument really holds no water, but if someone wanted to spend $500 to do it, that would be their prerogative, and I would have no issue.

[Sfgam_Bong66]

So maybe I am looking way too far into this but yesterday and today, while scrolling the ol' Twitter and Facebook, I saw SFGAm had posted a vintage picture on FB with Sky Whirl included and today on Twitter the park posted another vintage picture that looks like it was taken from Sky Whirl.

Now I'm not trying to start anything, but a return and re-design of Sky Whirl by Intamin for 2015 would be awesome! Especially considering the park is lacking any real Ferris wheel.

[GayCoasterGuy]

^As much as I LOVED that ride and would LOVE to ride it again (at my home park or anywhere), I don't see it happening. Mainly due to the YOLO crowds; how does Great Adventure still get away with having a sky ride? Six Flags attracts some super-acting-out folks; it would have to have shoulder bars to keep you seated at this point. Watch me eat my words. I would love to see Sky Whirl again.

 

Geez, memories! I remember driving past the park before all the trees grew in. The 2 sky rides, Sky Whirl and Tidal Wave dominated the skyline. Demon was a real monster, too! Then of course Eagle was built, and it was like WOW!

[ArgoZ]

Well you have to feel for some of the people who are angry. If they have a family of 4 and can barely afford tickets to the park, they find it unfair that others can spend more to have more benefits. I always thought that there should be a Flash Pass option for season pass holders because they are the biggest supporters of parks. But there is no reason to shout rude comments or any of that. It's just plain immature.

 

There are many families of four who can not even afford a day at the park, never mind a flash pass. Should they be angry or show resentment at those that can afford to go to Six Flags? Attending a theme park is not a right, it's a privilege. Patrons should be thankful that they can do so, as others are not as fortunate as them. Someone is always going to have more money, more possessions and more perks.