Lines At Parks Compared to Cedar Point

[alilstronger]

Its no question that Saturday is the worst day to visit any theme park. The last time I visited SFOG was a few years ago and it during Emory Universitys nighttime private event (My boyfriend at the time worked at Emory Hospital and im always down for a free trip to Six Flags!) The lines were unbelievably long that night too.

 

The first coaster we rode was Dare Devil Dive and we waited like an hour. Great ride BTW and the line moved at an acceptable rate during our que. Goliath was closed that entire night and I think that had something to do with the lines being long at the other rides. Even the Ninja had a line backed into the que house! I didnt even ride SMUF because the line was so long. Needless to say Dare Devil Dive was the icon of that trip.

 

I've always gone to SFOG on Sundays and ive never been disappointed. Any former SFOG employee knows that Sunday and Wednesday are the 2 best days to go. Any day during the week (during weekly operation) is better than a Saturday but Wednesday beats the rest.

 

I've never been to Cedar Point but if I do plan a trip to Ohio, I already know to plan my CP trip for a Sunday or a Wednesday. Lol. The same goes for Six Flags Great Adventure.

 

Not all parks are packed on weekends. I live near Six Flags America and you can get there at opening and ride every coaster by noon almost every weekend during the season.

[DBru]

A particular example of the ways CP moves guests efficiently is on Magnum. I had it verified several times that they will give you an "operational" if the ride sets up meaning all three trains stack due to you not being fast enough. Getting one operational is one fourth of the way to being fired. Anyone who has worked any ride in their lifetime can tell you that most slowdowns that cause all of the ride's trains to stack is usually caused by a guest. Typically a slow down like this is something along the lines of a guest refusing to put away a phone or camera, an exceptionally sized guest not wanting to leave, or an instance where more than one guest does something like not buckling a seatbelt which slows down the restraint checking progress considerably. In other words, your job security can be affected by your luck with guests.

 

Well, this part isn't exactly true. If the operator is actually behind the cause of the "set-up," said operator will receive an operational. However, if the ride sets up due to the cause of a guest (and this is usually the case), it will be recorded as a "guest operational," and doesn't get counted against the employee.

[ajfelice]

So I take it a Team Leader would decide whether or not Magnum set-up due to you just being sluggish or a guest impeding your efficiency. Sounds a lot more reasonable. Perhaps my sources heard too many horror stories from there to make it seem much more harsh.

 

Believe it or not, I want the challenge of Magnum should I return for some HalloWeekends again after hearing those stories of how many people that ride goes through due to the grueling pace of that ride. My favorite guest complements are about efficiency, because people are so much more pleasant when they feel like attempts are made to move long lines. Magnum would be a great test for efficiency. However, if I were to come in as a latecomer again that doesn't give me too much leverage on ride placement.

[Aceattack52]

Great Adventure wait times can vary a lot. If you go early in the season especially on a Sunday or a weekday before schools let out, it usually isn't crowded, same with Sundays in September (before Fright Fest starts) and Friday nights in September and October. Those Friday nights are one of my favorite times of the year to go to the park since crowds are already low and many of the people there are in line for the trails/mazes so the rides are usually 0 - 10 minute waits.

Tuesdays and Wednesdays during the summer are also very good for Great Adventure.

Edited December 25, 2013 by Aceattack52

[Koasterking48]

Cedar Point definitely prides itself in safety and efficency when it comes to loading and unloading. The ride operators really try their hardest to get as many people on as safely as possible. You may experience 1-2 hour waits, but imagine running one or two trains on everything with 5 minute dispatches. Talk about a nightmare.

[yay101]

I think Cedar Point has had the longest lines of any park I have been to. Every other park I've been to, excluding Six Flags Great America has had a maximum wait of maybe a half-hour in line, but on average the waits were about 15-25 minutes. Six Flags Great America's lines have been over an hour. Raging Bull, Superman, and V2 often get lines of over an hour long.