leqant Posted October 5, 2021 Share Posted October 5, 2021 I mean in that (permanent) roller coasters are few to non-existant in the area and if they do exist, the are usually just kiddie coaster at small family entertainment centres. Those cities are not necessarily terrible to live in but have poor access to quality roller coasters. I have a few nominations: Honolulu, HI, USA: There are no (permanent) coaster in Hawaii and the closest decent sized coaster is in Northern California. At least there is a water park in the area Ottawa, ON, Canada: The coaster selection in the are just a SBF Visa Group MX608 at Funhaven and an alpine coaster at Camp Fortune. If you want major roller coasters then you have to drive 200 km (125 mi) east to La Ronde in Montreal. I don't know what's worse, the fact that there are no major amusement parks in the Ottawa area or the fact that the nearest one is La Ronde. Like Honolulu, at least there is a water park no too far from Ottawa Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
joelwee Posted October 5, 2021 Share Posted October 5, 2021 I would say Denver, but their lives are about to improve with the impending demolition of Elitch Gardens. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SharkTums Posted October 5, 2021 Share Posted October 5, 2021 Phoenix and Miami always come to mind. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CP_RULES Posted October 5, 2021 Share Posted October 5, 2021 Denver came to mind first, but Seattle is another dead zone. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Zand Posted October 5, 2021 Share Posted October 5, 2021 I feel like the automatic answer is Denver. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
haydn12 Posted October 6, 2021 Share Posted October 6, 2021 Phoenix has a lack of a major park or coaster. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Haymaker Posted October 6, 2021 Share Posted October 6, 2021 Ottawa is only a 4 hr drive from Canada's Wonderland Phoenix is rough when all you have is Hurricane Harbor. Even the Cali parks are 5-6 hours away. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KBrylczyk Posted October 6, 2021 Share Posted October 6, 2021 4 hours ago, joelwee said: I would say Denver 2 hours ago, CP_RULES said: Denver came to mind first 2 hours ago, Zand said: I feel like the automatic answer is Denver. At least the Denver airport is a major hub so getting anywhere that has coasters is easy and generally decently-priced. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nrthwnd Posted October 6, 2021 Share Posted October 6, 2021 (edited) I wasn't sure whether to post, or not. But ... We do have the Wooden Coaster, although it's been closed for Major Maintenance, etc. etc. And two other smaller coasters that parents can ride with their kids. But.... Edmonton Mall is a half day's drive to get there. And everything with coasters south of Vancouver, really starts in the San Francisco area. As noted before, Seattle's got nothing now, since the Fun Forest closed down. And there's Oaks Park near Portland, OR. Still... Vancouver isn't The Place To Be, for Major Coasters access, etc. EDIT: Oops. Totally forgot Wild Waves Theme Park, south of Seattle. So I stand corrected ... a bit. Edited October 6, 2021 by Nrthwnd Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
thrillseeker4552 Posted October 6, 2021 Share Posted October 6, 2021 The two cities that immediately come to mind are Houston and Phoenix. Both cities are in the top 5 for largest populations in the US. At least Houston had a theme park for several decades. People always point to the extreme heat in Phoenix but it's not like it doesn't also get hot in SoCal, Texas, or Florida. Despite the heat, people still recreate and go outside in the summer. Parks in both of these cities could be year-round too. Perhaps an indoor park in Phoenix would work best - like Adventuredome. Las Vegas' climate is pretty similar to Phoenix. Seattle, Miami, and Memphis are also contenders. At least Miami has a bunch of world class parks a few hours away. Seattle is very isolated with nothing substantial until Silverwood, I think I would place that 3rd behind Houston and Phoenix. Memphis would be a bonus. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sdcfan88 Posted October 6, 2021 Share Posted October 6, 2021 To echo the above Memphis is a good example. Worse off is they used to have a park called Libertyland Theme Park. IIRC Another top contender is Tulsa with the loss of Bells Amusement Park back in '06. That was some dirty doing on the part of the city council against the owner from what I heard. The site is now a backup parking lot for the fairgrounds and expo center. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
swfan1988 Posted October 6, 2021 Share Posted October 6, 2021 Ever heard of the coaster desert? Now that's a terrible place to be a coaster enthusiast... Plus escaping from it ain't the easiest thing either... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lotologist492 Posted October 6, 2021 Share Posted October 6, 2021 Nashville comes to mind. They lost Opryland in the 1990s and nothing has come in to replace it. From there it is a haul to Dollywood, Kentucky Kingdom, or even the small Lake Winnepesaukah near Chattanooga. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AmyUD06 Posted October 6, 2021 Share Posted October 6, 2021 Nashville is only a 3.5 hour drive from Dollywood, an hour to Beech Bend, 2.5 hours to Holiday World, 2.75 to Kentucky Kingdom, etc. I'd say they're pretty well off when it comes to nearby parks. Worst major city in the continental US for access to parks would have to be in the northern middle of the state. Looking at ND, SD, Montana, Wyoming, Nebraska, and most of Kansas not on the border. Most of Idaho and Oregon are pretty poor off too. See my map of all amusement parks in the country that have at least one adult-rideable coaster: 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
michaellynn4 Posted October 6, 2021 Share Posted October 6, 2021 Cool map, but I think it's missing a couple key parks, like Worlds of Fun. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Haymaker Posted October 6, 2021 Share Posted October 6, 2021 10 hours ago, Mike240SX said: Nashville is only a 3.5 hour drive from Dollywood, an hour to Beech Bend, 2.5 hours to Holiday World, 2.75 to Kentucky Kingdom, etc. I'd say they're pretty well off when it comes to nearby parks. And about 4.5 to Kings Island. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
leqant Posted October 6, 2021 Author Share Posted October 6, 2021 15 hours ago, Haymaker said: Ottawa is only a 4 hr drive from Canada's Wonderland I wouldn't say it's practical to do a day trip from Ottawa though (at least compared to La Ronde) 13 hours ago, swfan1988 said: Ever heard of the coaster desert? Now that's a terrible place to be a coaster enthusiast... Plus escaping from it ain't the easiest thing either... I haven't heard of it. Is it in Arizona? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AmyUD06 Posted October 6, 2021 Share Posted October 6, 2021 5 hours ago, michaellynn4 said: Cool map, but I think it's missing a couple key parks, like Worlds of Fun. Whoops....how did I miss that? Yeah if I'm missing anything, send me a PM. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
thrillerman1 Posted October 6, 2021 Share Posted October 6, 2021 Nashville if you don't want to drive an hour out of state to Beech Bend, but that may be all about to change if Storyville Gardens comes to fruition. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
coasterbill Posted October 6, 2021 Share Posted October 6, 2021 Real answers: Honolulu, Fairbanks, any Island nation or city extremely far north or a place where people can’t leave like the Gaza Strip. What I want to say: Montreal 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
domirellativegal Posted October 8, 2021 Share Posted October 8, 2021 I know this is US based but for me personally, living in Switzerland is sooo weird. Home of the big manufacturers but all we have is a PAX creation. A good one, but still weird. At least we have Europa Park really near us Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rcjp Posted October 8, 2021 Share Posted October 8, 2021 ^ Now that I'm living in Switzerland I also think the same thing. But I won't complain much cause I come from a worse place 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lk2500 Posted October 14, 2021 Share Posted October 14, 2021 Definitely Seattle. It's actually very nice here 6-7 months of the year so does not make a lot of sense to me. Wild Waves barely counts as an amusement park. Silverwood in Idaho is a decent drive away; we've been there once but it's not worth going back. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
boldikus Posted October 14, 2021 Share Posted October 14, 2021 This thread is sad. Signed, a Philadelphian 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sdcfan88 Posted October 14, 2021 Share Posted October 14, 2021 On 10/6/2021 at 1:50 PM, Mike240SX said: Whoops....how did I miss that? Yeah if I'm missing anything, send me a PM. Lol WOF be like: "Am I a Joke to you?!" Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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