Nickelodeon Universe Trip Report - 2/7/2015

[VF15]

This weekend, I had a nice break from the offseason when I took a trip to Nickelodeon Universe at the Mall of America, and I had a great time there. For a park that's located in a mall, I think it is quite impressive. A lot of the park is targeted at the younger audience, but they also have plenty of thrilling rides for adults and teens. They have a few fun roller coasters, and also lots of interesting and unique flat rides. The park looks good and is kept clean (being indoors probably helps with that). The operations were sometimes slow, probably since they have mostly low-capacity rides, but they got the job done since I got on most rides within 30 minutes. The crowds actually weren't that bad considering it was a Saturday at one of the largest malls in the world. While none of the coasters here threaten my top 10, and I prefer its outdoor cousin Valleyfair, I'm still very glad we have this park since it allows us Minnesotans to get an offseason coaster fix without making a trip to a warm-weather state (although a trip to Florida or California this time of year would be nice). Overall, Nickelodeon Universe is a really good park for what it is, and I'd recommend visiting it if you're ever in the area. Now onto the pictures...

Entering the mall.

Arriving at the park.

Started the day with Spongebob Squarepants Rock Bottom Plunge.

Unfortunately, my first ride on Spongebob was pretty rough. My back didn't feel great afterwards.

Spongebob, stop trying to kill my back.

Didn't ride Pepsi Orange Streak because I got the credit a while ago and didn't find it particularly interesting.

Very long trains...

Avatar Airbender: I forgot how much fun this ride really is. Spinning + Airtime + Good Drops = Fun Ride.

A ride that I had neglected to ride in the past, and I liked it more than I thought I would.

Good spinning, decent forces, and one or two small pops of air. Nothing amazing, but still fun.

Entrance to Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles Shell Shock.

It's a ride that's hard to describe. You sit in your seat, rock it left and right, and use the control wings to help with that. I almost turned myself inverted, but not quite. It's actually a lot more fun than it looks.

Went to ride Spongebob again, and it was running better.

Next up was the Log Chute, and I can see why a lot of people really like this ride.

Dark queue line.

It has some decent drops.

Avatar Airbender control panel.

Avatar about to start.

Wow. Brain Surge is amazing. You get to control how much you flip, and I probably flipped more than everyone else on the ride. I wish there were more of these.

Now for a few night pictures. Brain Surge looks cool when lit up.

Spongebob looping. When it isn't rough it's my favorite coaster in the park.

This zero-G roll has some nice hangtime.

Nerd picture.

Rode Splat-O-Sphere since it had a short line. It's an okay drop tower, but I've ridden better.

Fairly Odd Coaster control panel.

Fairly Odd Coaster car dropping.

Thanks for a fun day Nickelodeon Universe.

[cfc]

Although I'm glad they kept the Log Chute pretty much as it was during the old Camp Snoopy Days, I was pleasantly surprised by Nick Universe, too. It's a solid family park.