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Cedar Fair Trip


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I'm taking a trip to Kings Island, Carowinds, Kings Dominion, Dorney Park, and Cedar Point this summer.  I've been to Kings Island and Cedar Point many times, so those are out of the question because I've been on every coaster at both of the parks.  What are the coasters/rides that I should go to at Carowinds, Kings Dominion, and Dorney?  I'm ok with recommendations for the water park, but, I'm only going to be at each for a day.

I've done my research and want someone else's opinion.

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Carowinds:  Obviously don't skip Fury.  Copperhead Strike is also great, but don't expect Maverick.  Otherwise every coaster there is worth riding, and if you're there on a weekday you should be able to hit everything easily.  Never been to the water park.

Kings Dominion:  Obviously don't skip I305 or Twisted Timbers.  Backlot and Flight of Fear are identical to their Kings Island counterparts.  Dominator is possibly the best floorless in the US.  Racer 75 and Grizzly can be decent.  Anaconda can be skipped unless you want the credit.  Avalanche is awesome but won't be open this year.  Water park is pretty good, but you probably won't have time for it.

Dorney:  Obviously don't skip Talon.  The rest of the coasters, except Wild Mouse, are decent.  They've got a lot of rare flats (Whip, Apollo, Enterprise) too.  Water park is awesome, and you'll definitely have time for it here.

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Dorney:  I really liked Talon and Steel Force. They were worth re-rides. Thunderhawk and Hydra were both fine, but unremarkable other than Hydra's jojo roll, which I think Copperhead Strike does better.  If financially feasible, I'd hit Knoebels and Hersheypark while in the area. Both are far superior to Dorney. Even though it would be criminal, I'd go to Knoebels just to ride that fabulous airtime machine called Phoenix. 

 

Carowinds: My home park. I'd ride Fury 325, Afterburn, Copperhead Strike, and Intimidator in that that order. Then re-ride your favorites. I always skip Vortex (truly awful), Nighthawk (painful and ruins my stomach for the day), Hurler, and the boomerang, because well, it's a boomerang. Once a year I ride Carolina Cyclone and Carolina Goldrusher for nostalgia's sake because I rode them as a kid. Cyclone isn't the worst of the Arrow loopers still running, but it is far from the best. Goldrusher is a middle of the pack Arrow mine train, IMO.

If you really want to ride the wild mouse or Nighthawk, do it early. The lines and throughput are bad.

 

Kings Dominion: Boogie back to Twisted Timbers. If you do ride Hurler at Carowinds, think of its potential because TT was the exact same coaster at one point.  Dominator is among the best floorless coasters I have ridden. Intimidator 305 is probably my favorite ride in the park. The lines have always been manageable because of its intensity. Racer 75 is a fine old out-and-back racing woodie. I find Grizzly to be unenjoyable, and good luck finding the entrance if you decide to ride it. Anaconda is a hard pass unless you are trying to be an Arrow looper completist. You could skip the clones and add the flume ride, IMO. Also, if you imbibe, The Parched Pig is a fine place to stop for a beer.

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4 hours ago, coasterbill said:

My only advice is to ride the coasters at Dorney once, ride Demon Drop, ride Thunder Creek Mountain and then leave immediately and go to Knoebels / Great Adventure / Hershey... anything.

 

Gotta do Zephyr. The conductor / story teller is great!

I would skip the Wild Mouse at Dorney, if you aren't there early, you are going to burn time waiting and it's nothing special.

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5 minutes ago, jconsolmagno said:

 

Gotta do Zephyr. The conductor / story teller is great!

I would skip the Wild Mouse at Dorney, if you aren't there early, you are going to burn time waiting and it's nothing special.

based on that it's one of the few rides I took pics of while we were at Dorney (along with Demon Drop and a few of the coasters - mainly Possessed and that sea of concrete with no shade), I'd agree.

 

IMG_0764.jpg

IMG_0765.jpg

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5 minutes ago, bert425 said:

based on that it's one of the few rides I took pics of while we were at Dorney (along with Demon Drop and a few of the coasters - mainly Possessed and that sea of concrete with no shade), I'd agree.

 

IMG_0764.jpg

IMG_0765.jpg

I never miss the Zephyr, that little old man loves his job. Since 2016,  when I first started going, I have seen him work weekends, weekdays, everything... Be a shame the one day he's not there.

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Dorney:  Make sure to get a night ride on Talon if you can.  B&M inverts definitely behave differently from beginning of the day to the end,  Same with Steel Force.  In my memory, front row on Steel Force had better air time than back row.  It's also totally in the back corner of the park, so just be aware that it's a hike.

I also second the opinion that Knoebels should be your first choice.  Dorney is fine, but nothing there is really special.  Knoebels has a lot to offer that you can't necessarily get at any of the major chains.  Dorney can be a half day park. if you've got some time to kill.  My one and only visit was during a Haunt night and I hit every coaster plus mazes, plus re-rides.... all in about 6 hours.  I tried to do a half day at Knoebles and I left without seeing several things I wanted to.

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  • 1 month later...

So, my trip starts on Saturday.  Going to the parks in this order.  Kings Island, Carowinds, Kings Dominion, Dorney Park, then Cedar Point.  I'm doing the Cedar Fair because I have the season pass with the Fast Lane Plus, so I won't have to purchase anything but food, gas, and hotels.  I'm looking forward to it and I plan to be at each park for a day, except for Cedar Point, where I will be there for 2.  I hope the lines are not that bad, but we will see.

Thank you all for the suggestions and I'm really looking forward to the trip.

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Yeah, with FL+ you'll be fine with one day everywhere and two at Cedar Point, especially if you're not planning on spending time in the water parks.

As for Dorney, assuming you've dedicated a full day to it, when you're done with all the rides there in two hours, drive to Knoebels.  You'll thank me later.

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7 minutes ago, Mike240SX said:

Yeah, with FL+ you'll be fine with one day everywhere and two at Cedar Point, especially if you're not planning on spending time in the water parks.

As for Dorney, assuming you've dedicated a full day to it, when you're done with all the rides there in two hours, drive to Knoebels.  You'll thank me later.

Well, I have a little drive from Kings Dominion that morning and I already have a room in Allentown, so I won't be able to make it to Knobels.  I was also thinking of going to the water park since I went there with my father a few years ago.  I'm doing a trip next year and will definitely hit Knobels.

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Copy that.  Dorney's waterpark isn't the most up to date (they've got a capsule-drop but that's about it in terms of "modern" slides), but I still find it a solid place to spend a day.  Bonus:  FL+ works on some of their slide towers, and both lazy rivers.

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Here are my rides up to this point.  Cedar Point this weekend.

 

Kings Island

The Bat

The Banshee x 2

Adventure Express x 2

The Racer

Orion x 3

Flight of Fear

Backlot Stunt Coaster

The Beast

Mystic Timber’s x 2

Diamondback x 3

 

Carowinds (Only had 5 hours in the park do to a storm)

Fury 325 x 3

Copperhead Strike x 3

Afterburn x 2

Intimidator  x 2

Hurler

Scream weaver

Carolina Goldrusher

Southern Stars 

 

Kings Dominion (Heat index was ungodly to ride any more rides.  Would have liked I305 once more.)

Twisted Timbers x 3

Apple Zapple

Grizzly

Intimidator 305 x 2

Flight of Fear

Dominator

Racer 75

Backlot Stunt Coaster

 

Dorney Park

Thunderhawk 

Steel Force

Possessed

Demon Drop

Hydra The Revenge

Wild Mouse

Talon

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