The Knott's Berry Farm (KBF) Discussion Thread

[Manic Monte]

Went to USH and it was the same thing. So slammed that you couldn't even by tickets online by 10 am. I can't even imagine how bad Disney was...

[Arthur_Seaton]

I dropped by Knotts during Saturnalia to process my 2023 pass and the place was pretty slammed then as well. I kind of expected that, though, and really didn't plan on riding anything anyway due to some recent health nonsense. I just did a couple of loops then bailed. The line for Ghost Rider was almost down to the entry cave, Silver Bullet was in the switchbacks, and Hang Time was hanging out of the entrance. I hadn't followed closely, but I knew something was going on with Montezooma's Revenge. I didn't know how hacked up that whole area was, though. Lots of bottlenecking going on over by Sol Spin and whatnot.

[BeatleBen]

Simply an inquiry:

Does anyone out there know where I can find a full recording of the original 1960's organ caverns music from the Calico Mine Ride?

[Nrthwnd]

^ ....Which makes me ask ... has Knott's ever released an LP and/or CD, etc. of it's park music, etc? Just curious, besides what BB asked.

(I have a good sized collection of retro ViewMaster Reels, including a few of Knott's. But that's another thread, lol.)

[BeatleBen]

^  To my knowledge, no they haven't.  But the park certainly has a wealth of audio material to share so we can only hope. 

(I also love the ViewMaster).

[ryder]

They do have a fair number of Spotify play lists.  But it's usually more the atmospheric music, not park specific music.

[CedarFlags]

Been seeing chatter on Instagram / Twitter about Knott's making some huge cuts to their Entertainment.  Such a bummer, especially for Boysenberry Festival where there's always been so much to see.  It's nice to sit and watch a show while working my way through the tasting card and avoiding the crazy lines on the rides during the midday.  It seems like the Camp Snoopy Peanuts show and the outdoor Calico Stage are pretty much the only things to see now.  I just went to Magic Mountain yesterday and one thing that always strikes me when thinking about these two parks is... Magic Mountain has nothing to do except stand in line for rides all day long.  Knott's always has some little extra something to break up the day a little, or keep me amused while I rest my feet.

 

 

[thrillseeker4552]

The park is kind of a mess right now. All of Fiesta Village is dirt and walled off (although some new paint is now starting). We still have no details about what they are doing to Montezooma, nor has there been much noticeable work to the station, loop replacement, paint, anything. One of their headlining coasters has been down for a year. It's sad to see so much entertainment being cut right now in the midst of all this.

[Arthur_Seaton]

On 3/8/2023 at 7:46 PM, thrillseeker4552 said:

The park is kind of a mess right now. All of Fiesta Village is dirt and walled off (although some new paint is now starting). We still have no details about what they are doing to Montezooma, nor has there been much noticeable work to the station, loop replacement, paint, anything. One of their headlining coasters has been down for a year. It's sad to see so much entertainment being cut right now in the midst of all this.

Indeed. I went to the park tonight, mostly to just walk around and people watch. I figured with Spring Break, the lines for rides would be long. In fairness, they weren't that bad, but still much longer than I'm willing to wait. When I went a couple of months ago to process my season pass, you could at least get through a little pathway from Silver Bullet, past Sol Spin / Jaguar, and into the La Revolucion area. But that's all blocked off now. Furthermore, quite a few of the non-fiesta village rides were down, and it just didn't really feel like there was much to do except walk. There's some mass food binge thing happening right now, so it seemed like quite a few guests were just there to stuff their faces. Plus, you can really tell that the glory days of the chaperone policy are over

[wrs28330]

Theme Park Review was invited to preview the reimagined Fiesta Village at Knott's Berry Farm, ahead of the reopening on Friday, May 25th!

As described by Knott's:

"Fiesta Village comes alive both day and night to celebrate the Hispanic influences in Southern California. Guests can enjoy the sounds of Mariachi music, encounter a storyteller spinning whimsical tales of the alebrijes, experience performances of the traditional dance Folklorico and be entertained by interactive puppets and their playful antics. Those who venture through the newly landscaped alebrije gardens can meet Fiesta Village’s very own spirit animal friends. As the sun goes down, the fun heats up with an immersive nighttime street party, Calle Celebración, spanning the entire village, celebrating Mexican traditions of family, love and community through color, music, dancing and giant colorful puppets. Guests can savor the flavors of Fiesta at the new restaurant Casa California with burritos, birria quesadillas and signature tamales. At Cantina Del Sur, plenty of thirst-quenching bebidas will be served.

These cold refreshments pair nicely with the delicious fish tacos at the new Baja Taqueria. Papas Mexicanas brings back a wide variety of toppings for crispy french fries, including a park favorite, the carne asada fries. Not only can guests enjoy all these delicious food options in the area, but this summer’s tasting card, Flavors of Summer, has expanded to include Sabor de Fiesta with food festival booths in Fiesta Village serving items such as potato and chorizo tacos, micheladas and elotes. Guests can stroll down Fiesta Mercado, inspired by Los Angeles’ Olvera Street, and find a variety of merchants with unique and authentic items. New merchandise items inspired by the area include a selection of Chamoy candies, hot sauces and queso. Other additions include carts throughout the village selling wares such as personalized parasols and colorful zarapes. Those looking for a thrill can enjoy the seven refreshed rides reopening in this area. Take a swing on Los Voladores and fly through the air, similar to the Flyers of Mexico. Climb aboard one of the 48 hand-carved animals in the Carrousel de California and enjoy this timeless ride. Due to construction delays, MonteZOOMa: The Forbidden Fortress will not open with Fiesta Village this summer. An opening date has not been scheduled at this time.

 

Welcome back to Fiesta Village!

 

Here is a look at the concept art as seen from above:

 

The former arcade and shopping mall have been converted into a Chipotle-like "build-your-own burrito/bowl" restaurant.

 

One of the best parts of the full refresh, for sure!

 

Plenty of indoor seating, after a really great refresh!

 

 

 

 

 

The center stage area has been refreshed, and features marionette shows, and storytelling performances throughout the day.

 

The Alebrije Gardens:

 

 

 

Here is a closer look at the food options that will be available:

 

 

 

 

 

New Jaguar merchandise:

 

Although MonteZooma: The Forbidden Fortress is not reopening any time soon (with two large track sections not onsite), there is new merchandise:

 

...including hot sauce!

 

The nighttime entertainment "Calle Celebracion", is a great way to end the night! It takes place throughout the village on small stages. We recommend watching at the small stage located in front of the Jaguar pyramid, as light pyrotechnics are used. 

 

 

 

Sally is dressed up in her fiesta finest, and can't wait to see you in Fiesta Village! Thank you to the Knott's PR team for inviting to join them for their re-opening celebration! 

[wrs28330]

Theme Park Review was invited to preview the return of Knott's Summer nights, which runs through the summer season! 

As described by Knott's:

"A summer favorite continues after the sun goes down, with a nighttime summer party that extends the fun into the evening. Guests will have the opportunity to enjoy bands from the local music scene that rotate throughout the event on two stages. Knott's Summer Nights transforms Calico Park into a neighborhood party like no other with a hub of live music, relaxing atmosphere, Instagram-able photo opportunities and family-friendly games.

A summer party is not complete without an abundance of food and drinks, and no theme park does food quite like Knott’s. The Knott’s culinary team creates tasty twists to classic summer dishes, from Sea Salt Caramel Iced Coffee, BLTA Chicken Salad Lettuce Wraps and Mexican Pineapple Pork Sandwiches. A great way to indulge in all the flavors of Summer is by purchasing a tasting card that allows guests to choose from a selection of over four dozen seasonal-inspired dishes and drinks."

We highly recommend the Summer Tasting Card, which is $55 for 6 items. Some items are moderate portions, and others can be considered full portions, so some dishes are highly recommended to maximize the value of the tasting card! 

Let's take a look at the festivities: 

 

Calico Park features several food booths and a main stage:

 

Many of the cold/chilled items, like the Chicken Spring Roll, are going to be a great choice during the warm summer season:

 

Rice, beans, and andouille sausage: 

 

Chicken, Pesto, and Sundried Tomato Flatbread:

 

Big portion alert; highly recommended! Summer Pasta and Steak Salad:

 

Beef Nachos with Avocado Crema:

 

 

Big portion alert, because of the fries. Hot Honey Chicken Biscuit Sandwich with Pickles and Garlic Aioli:

 

Boysenberry Dippin' Dots:

 

S'mores Bar:

 

Pro tip: If you get a tasting card, and find yourself "too full to eat anything else", despite having unused items, go to the Calico Bakery and take a Mom's Chocolate Cake to go:

 

The smaller stage near Calico Park features Ghost Town Alive activities earlier in the day, and stays active into the evening during Knott's Summer Nights:

 

The main stage features a contracted band that plays a great mix of songs from the past and present:

 

Between band sets, a DJ keeps families entertained with a dance party in Charleston Circle:

 

Thank you to the Knott's PR team for inviting us to help welcome back the popular Knott's Summer Nights! Be sure to plan your visit at knotts.com!

[swfan1988]

Hey Everyone!

I picked the absolute worst day ever to visit Knott's.

I decided to go on a Thursday in September thinking "It'll be great! They'll be hardly anyone one there! I can ride all the rides with basically no wait!" Well let's start with all the things at Knott's I did NOT ride...

- Montezooma's Revenge: In pieces and closed till who knows when.

- Xcelerator: In pieces and closed till who knows when.

- Ghostrider: Closed for seasonal refurbishment...

- Calico Mine Ride: Closed for addition of candy for Scary Farm...used Hangtime's "Ride Closed" sign...

- Hangtime: Technical issues all day, lacked a ride closed sign for most of the day so they used a trash can...

- Butterfield Stagecoach: The only ride that actually had a line all day...

Oh and there was basically nobody there so they had nothing going on for entertainment. It essentially felt like an authentic ghost town! (Wait a minute...wasn't that Walter Knott's goal? uh oh...)

Ok, ok so I might be a bit down on this one, but please don't get me wrong. I really wanted to enjoy Knott's and appreciate all the history and cool stuff that is there. But when so many marquee attractions are down for the day (not to mention how Timber Mountain almost missed half a day while I was there...) and has no vide, it's hard to look past it and have fun. 

I did really enjoy the sky tower (the operator on there was awesome, and you could tell he had a passion for the ride! Love it when that happens!), and the train ride was cool albeit a bit awkward with the entertainment.

Plus, Timber Mountain was cool to ride! Definitely a bucket list for theme park history buffs and log flume lovers like me, and I thought Garner Holt's additions were done well for the most park. Not sure about the whole "Haunted Hootenanny" thing, but the rest was good!

My remaining ride thoughts were as follows:

- Pony Express: Just kinda "meh", too short, not all that exciting, ruins the sightlines in Boot Hill...WHO AM I KIDDING PONY EXPRESS IS THE BEST COASTER EVERY OMG!!! (Somebody here will appreciated that...)

- Sierra Sidewinder: Not as spiny or fun as I would like, just kind of an "ok" family coaster.

- Coast Rider: Just a POS wild mouse.

- Jaguar!: "eh" Nice views of a dismantled Zoom.

- Silver Bullet: Considering I forgot to list it with the other inverts I've ridden in the KI trip report...yeah...not that memberable, though definitely a nice people eater for the park.

- Berry Tales: Probably the best Triotech thing I've ridden so far, would rather have had way less screens though. Appreciated the nods to the parks history and the original ride though.

I also made the necessary trip to Mrs. Knott's, and the trek out to Independence Hall. Mrs. Knott's I though was just ok, it felt like everything was just pulled from a warmer when I was there for lunch. Would like to go again for dinner and see if it's different. I like the setting, and the Boysenberry Punch was great!

Independence Hall was a neat slice of Knott's history, and I like it's simplistic albeit effective approach to telling the history of the real independence hall (which I have visited). It was also cool to know that scenes from National Treasure were filmed there, since it's one of my favorite adventure movies.

Also loved this sign in Fiesta Village (which was of course an absolute mess when I was there). I hope it survived the remodel, despite it's questionable appropriateness in today's culture...

And that's all I got for Knott's really. I actually kinda felt sad for the place. It has so much history and cool stories, but it just seems to not be the best operationally. I don't know if that's a Cedar Fair caused problem or just "the way things are", but I also noticed that some smaller areas just seemed to be lacking in maintenance. I hope CF isn't taking a "well if it's broken we won't fix it, just 'remodel' it later" approach long term as I think that will inevitably destroy the unique charm that the park has (or what it still has...). Personally rather than seeing a giga or hyper come (which would be great), I would prefer a greater focus on operational excellence and a restoration/expansion of the details that made the place special to begin with. Maybe that's just me though.

Someday I would like to return Knott's and get all the credits I need, just not sure when that is. Right now I don't feel very motivated to return but we'll see if their future additions change that!

And we did! I got all caught up (except for that 2022 update for my homepark...but we won't talk about that...)! I'm kicking off my 2023 travel season next week with Texas so here's to that and a great summer season for everyone!

See you all next time! 

[Arthur_Seaton]

^ Bummer, but nice report all the same! And good luck with the TX trips. I live there part-time, and SFFT sometimes gets compared to Knotts in terms of decor and whatnot. I don't feel that way myself, and I'm not all that fond of SFFT, but Iron Rattler is fantastic and the park does have some decent rides. Here's my experience from today:

Interesting day at Knotts. I figured it wouldn’t be too busy in the days following Memorial Day, but I was wrong. I rolled in around 3:00 pm, planning to stay well after sunset to check out the new area all lit up. The park was mobbed, though, with a number of lines snaking out of their assigned areas. As such, I wrote off the possibility of getting on any rides at all (60-150 mins pretty much across the board). Instead, I just wandered for a couple of hours and people-watched. It's clear that the teen curfew is lifted during the day, and it was genuinely tricky to navigate the park since so many of the kids were either running at full tilt (I experienced multiple impacts), smashing basketballs into other guests, or glued to screens and therefore oblivious when they’d charge right at you. At risk of sounding all “kids these days,” this lot was straight-up feral. My hat’s off to the parents of teens, many of which I’m sure were happy to let Knotts do the parenting for the day. I decided to cut my losses and bail, but I asked an op at the gate when the curfew kicked back in, and she told me 4:00 pm and that many of the kids would be gone between 6:00 and 7:00 pm. 

Coast Rider line spilling out into the boardwalk. Absolutely not.

Jaguar line starting outside the ziggurat. Absolutely not.

Wait times at around 3:21 pm. Absolutely not. 

Montezooma's Revenge in pieces. Absolutely not.

So, I took off for a while and came back around 7:00 pm to a completely different park. I walked straight onto Supreme Scream (still my favorite drop tower as I tend to prefer less-nerve-wracking experiences on drop rides) then over to Hang Time for a couple of rides. That was hitting 120 mins in the afternoon but dropped down to 15 minutes later. Walked straight onto Sol Spin and La Revolution (both re-themed to fit the new area even more. I still like both very much, even though Sol Spin can be a bit unpredictable and intense. More rides on Supreme Scream, Coast Rider (bin it), Silver Bullet (always loved this one more than most other B&M inverts). Only Ghost Rider pulled a 30-minute wait, but that was hitting 150 minutes earlier in the day. Line jumping in the lower station was really bad, and they ended up having to call a couple of security folks in (some of the more feral lot were still present and were now breaking curfew). Ghost Rider felt a bit crunchy, but I rode it before the major revamp so I’m used to some roughness. Still, one of the best coasters around, period. 

Ghost Town living up to its name. This was around 9:00 pm.

Knotts knows how to build photogenic coasters.

With 10 minutes left before closing, I jumped on the log ride, thinking that a few light splashes wouldn’t be an issue for the ride home. However, something happened that I’d never experienced before. Usually, I find the wettest part of the ride is that indoor drop — in particular, the run-off and subsequent corner when the water tends to splash up and into the log. Right as I started to go down the indoor drop, though, I got hit with what I would describe as a full bucket to the face. I was completely drenched from head to toe immediately, and I don’t see how that part of the ride (literally, that small indoor chute section) could have produced such an immense wave. Is there something new in that part? Or was it just an unfortunate fluke? Either way, it was a total drenching which made for a rough ride home. I'd asked the loading OP which seat would reduce overall wetness, and he said the middle. I couldn't help but think he'd run into that drop space with a bucket in hand (although I doubt that's even possible).

The new area looks fine I suppose (nothing about it really wowed me), but it did seem more spacious than what I remember. There were performances underway, but I have a low threshold when it comes to musical theatre and theme park performances. I got a good sense that the park's created a high-traffic area with enough room for quite a bit of live-action stuff. After sunset, the place is nicely lit with a number of glowing statues. Montezooma’s Revenge is still in pieces, but I hope it’ll be finished sooner than later. I also hope they don’t make any drastic changes, although I totally understand the desire to preserve it as best they can. Given that both spikes remain, my guess is a new launch, a new train, and new special effects. I can’t imagine they’ll build any new structures around it, but who knows?

Illuminated Critter #1

Illuminated Critter #2

Illuminated Critter #3

[IronWolfman]

Any chance that Fast Lane will sell out early this Saturday (6/17)? I'm flying in and won't get to the park until 1-2pm. It'll be my first visit and I know I'm going to need it, but don't want to buy it ahead of time in case there's any flight issues.

[tndank]

No real news yet, but workers were spotted on Xcelerator over the weekend.  Fingers crossed this one comes back onboard this summer.

 

[Rusty Nail]

Knott’s Berry Farm hopes to reopen Xcelerator coaster this summer

https://www.ocregister.com/2023/06/23/knotts-berry-farm-hopes-to-reopen-xcelerator-coaster-this-summer/

[coasterbill]

Why such a rush?

[Rusty Nail]

It appears Timberline Twister and Camp Bus are permanently closed, both attractions are behind walls and have been removed from the Knotts website and app.

[CedarFlags]

16 hours ago, Rusty Nail said:

It appears Timberline Twister and Camp Bus are permanently closed, both attractions are behind walls and have been removed from the Knotts website and app.

Okay, I have to say it... what the eff is going on with Knott's Rides and PR?

• Crickets for a whole year about Xcelerator being down (after the ridiculous decision to close it for a paint job during Merry Farm).
• Montezooma closed and then re-opened, and then re-closed, and has sat untouched for a year after the loop was removed.  Crickets on that.
• Now they're closing and removing rides in Camp Snoopy and... crickets once again.

I used to think it was just a Cedar Fair thing to stone wall all the time, but Carowinds is handling the Fury situation so brilliantly and I can't believe these two parks are part of the same company.

[thrillseeker4552]

I agree, the park is kind of a mess right now. I understand some things are out of their control (I'm sure they want these rides open as much as we do), it's just frustrating as a visitor, especially with a lack of communication or any sense of transparency. The park already has such a low capacity for its attendance as it is, so these closures hit even harder. The Camp Snoopy closures have also struck me as odd given it's the middle of the busy summer season and Camp Snoopy is always PACKED with families constantly.

Summer 2018 and 2019 were "peak Knott's" in my opinion, in its modern era. All rides open and reliable, expanded water park, HangTime, new BBQ restaurant, refurbished Rapids, it was such a great time to visit. I would even say the operations were quite decent on the multiple visits I had over both of those summers. None of it has felt the same post-COVID and especially since Monte and Xcel closed in early '22. Again, not all the park's fault, but regardless.

Was just in SoCal for July 4th weekend and I didn't have any inclination to go to Knott's the way it is currently - we decided to go check out Arctic Rescue at SWSD and visit the SD Fair and SFMM instead. Admittedly the new Fiesta Village does look very nice though, and vastly improved, based on photos and reports from my family that live in the area and visit frequently.

I will likely visit over the holiday season later this year. Fingers crossed Xcel is back open by then. I know Monte won't be, but some further details about what this transformation consists of and any type of status update would be cool to have. We still know so little about what they're doing to the ride.

[Arthur_Seaton]

On 7/14/2023 at 10:04 AM, Rusty Nail said:

It appears Timberline Twister and Camp Bus are permanently closed, both attractions are behind walls and have been removed from the Knotts website and app.

Was at the park today. Camp Bus is still there (looks like it has a couple of flat tires), but Timberline Twister has been gutted.

 

Doesn't seem like anything's changed on Montezooma's Revenge at all since my last visit. The same track pieces are still missing, and there's no action in the area whatsoever. I rode Jaguar to see if I could make out any developments, but nada. The only thing that looked somewhat interesting (likely not) is that there appears to have been some excavation at the base of the reverse spike to access something or other. La Revolucion and Barf Spin were both closed when I was there, but everything else seemed to be running. Also, there's still no Gigacoaster, which is annoying.

Crowd-wise, it was pretty mellow, and the amazing curfew seems to be in place (saw a big sign about it when walking toward the entrance). Waited about 20-30 mins for Ghost Rider, 10-15 for Hang Time, and 5 or so for Silver Bullet. Walked around a lot and rode Supreme Scream over and over and over. I'm really hoping the lack of activity at Montezooma doesn't lead to scrapped plans which, in turn, leads to a scrapped Schwarzkopf. But something's definitely up with the lack of action over there.

[AmyUD06]

7 hours ago, Arthur_Seaton said:

I'm really hoping the lack of activity at Montezooma doesn't lead to scrapped plans which, in turn, leads to a scrapped Schwarzkopf. But something's definitely up with the lack of action over there.

I mean, if you want to be technical, it already was a scrapped Schwarzkopf.  When they destroyed the loop, removed the launch mechanism, and stated they had no plans to reuse the trains...I wouldn't consider a few pieces of track remaining as justification to call it a Schwarzkopf anymore.  Does anyone still call Phantom's Revenge an Arrow coaster because the lift and station didn't have their track changed?

[Arthur_Seaton]

2 hours ago, AmyUD06 said:

I mean, if you want to be technical, it already was a scrapped Schwarzkopf.  When they destroyed the loop, removed the launch mechanism, and stated they had no plans to reuse the trains...I wouldn't consider a few pieces of track remaining as justification to call it a Schwarzkopf anymore.  Does anyone still call Phantom's Revenge an Arrow coaster because the lift and station didn't have their track changed?

By "scrapped," I was thinking more that they've run into issues that make the project no longer viable and end up yanking the whole thing out. In terms of what degree of Schwarzkopf remains, the bulk of the track is there. I can't recall if the loop was fully dismantled or lifted out with the intent of reprofiling it and popping it back in. The excavation that appears at the base of the rear spike could be for some possible reprofiling as that transition is quite abrupt. I guess we'll see.

Phantom's Revenge was a major layout change and redesign, but I haven't heard anything about Knotts doing that much work, and there's certainly not a lot of space to do so. My guess is that there might be some reprofiling on the loop to accommodate a new train design akin to what happened with the old Black Hole Jet Star II design. Maurer worked on that one, but I'd still say it remained a classic Schwarzkopf. 

My guess is that it'll be more of an extended swing launch with a potentially new element replacing the loop (non-inverting loop, perhaps?)

[AmyUD06]

The loop was literally cut into scrap metal.  I don't see how you can continue to call whatever Montezooma is "reimagined" as a Schwarzkopf when you say Phantom's Revenge isn't an Arrow.  You need some consistency LOL.

[Arthur_Seaton]

19 minutes ago, AmyUD06 said:

You need some consistency LOL.

OKAY