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Canobie Lake Park Discussion Thread


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Who else has seen those plans for the water park expansion? I LOVE IT! It looks so creative having the wave pool entry, the lazy rive that splits off of it, and then the slide complex on the island made by the lazy river. It always makes me happy to see such small parks adding such large new rides!

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http://www.unionleader.com/article/20171026/NEWS02/171029444&template=mobileart

 

New water attraction at Canobie Lake Park wins conditional approval

 

Tidal River, Canobie Lake Park's first major new attraction in years, will feature a lazy river to float down, water slides and other features. The planning board approved plans for the new attraction earlier this week, though some permits and other conditions remain to be met before construction can begin.

 

Tidal River will be located on the southwest area of the park near the existing Castaway water playground. Features include a lazy river ride patrons can float along on a tube, a handicap accessible wave pool, water slides, food and drink shops, a lounge area, and restrooms and changing rooms. The constantly flowing river will surround an island with water slides and a wave pool near one of the bends. There will be a bridge for patrons to cross the river to get to the water slides. In all, the new attraction will cover nearly 2 acres.

 

According to George Fredette, president of SFC Engineering Partnership, Inc. in Windham, who is representing Canobie Lake, the park likes to make a splash now and again. “Canobie Lake Park, since its early years, had a swimming pool,” he said. “It was a very large Olympic-sized pool.” It was a popular attraction, Fredette said, but in 2006 was closed to make room for the park's main gate. Tidal River will be a place for patrons to cool off and relax during the summer season, he said. “We're expecting that the Tidal River keeps them coming to Canobie,” Fredette said.

 

No significant increases to vehicle traffic are expected as a result of the project. While the park depends on Salem for other municipal services, a memo from Director of Municipal Services Roy Sorenson assured planners this wouldn't be a problem.

 

The planning board was asked if that assessment includes an expected increase in demand for services due to the Tuscan Village development at the former Rockingham Park. “I believe (Sorenson) did take that into account,” Town Planner Ross Moldoff replied.

 

The last ride to be added to Salem's Main Street amusement park was the Untamed roller coaster in 2011. New additions to a park keep the experience fresh for patrons, according to Fredette. “Canobie Lake Park continues to make upgrades to keep people interested in coming,” he said.

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  • 2 months later...

The park has their hours posted online. They seem to have a lot less 10 pm closings than they've had in the past. In past years they've closed at 10 pm pretty much everyday in July and August. This year it looks like the 10 pm closings are only on the weekends.

 

The park is definitely trying to hype up their water park expansion, as the first thing you see is "New Waterpark" on the front page with a lazy river graphic. Oddly enough, there's no link to any news article or ride page listing the attractions. I do think this addition is going to do wonders for the park. Castaway needed the added capacity on hot summer days.

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  • 1 month later...
  • 3 months later...

I have a question about this park.

 

So the plan is to spend a day at great escape, and the following day at Great Escape till 1 or so and head to canobie lake for the twilight deal.

 

Can the park be done by doing the twilight, or is it a better idea to do a full day at the park? It will be a weeknight, and they close at 9pm. That gives us 4 hours in the park if we do the twilight.

 

Our main concerns are the coasters, dark ride, log flume, and a couple of flats.

 

If we do a full day, are there any coupons out there?

 

Thanks for any input.

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I'd argue you don't need more than a day at Great Escape. If you're into mini golf, definitely don't miss Around the World Mini Golf on the way out of Lake George.

 

As for Canobie, on a weeknight you'll likely see half hour waits for Yankee Cannonball (they close the queue a half hour before closing), under 15 minutes for the Corkscrew, 15 minutes for Untamed (single rider offered too), and 5-10 minutes for Dragon. If you do the Flume and Mine of Lost Souls once the sun sets, you can usually walk right onto those and save a half hour wait. Their best flat is the Turkish Twist and it's usually just a one cycle wait. Caterpillar is unique and also a one cycle wait as well.

 

If you only plan to do each coaster once, the flume, dark ride, and a few flats, 4 hours is enough. Just know Yankee Cannonball is first come first served for seats. The best seat is the back and you may not get it if you only ride it once. I'd also be leery of traffic coming towards the park when you plan the drive. If you do want a full day, I believe McDonalds offers discount admission.

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I'd argue you don't need more than a day at Great Escape. If you're into mini golf, definitely don't miss Around the World Mini Golf on the way out of Lake George.

 

As for Canobie, on a weeknight you'll likely see half hour waits for Yankee Cannonball (they close the queue a half hour before closing), under 15 minutes for the Corkscrew, 15 minutes for Untamed (single rider offered too), and 5-10 minutes for Dragon. If you do the Flume and Mine of Lost Souls once the sun sets, you can usually walk right onto those and save a half hour wait. Their best flat is the Turkish Twist and it's usually just a one cycle wait. Caterpillar is unique and also a one cycle wait as well.

 

If you only plan to do each coaster once, the flume, dark ride, and a few flats, 4 hours is enough. Just know Yankee Cannonball is first come first served for seats. The best seat is the back and you may not get it if you only ride it once. I'd also be leery of traffic coming towards the park when you plan the drive. If you do want a full day, I believe McDonalds offers discount admission.

 

Thanks for the tips!

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  • 3 weeks later...

It would have been criminal not to take advantage of the beautiful weather this afternoon, so I decided to drop by Canobie after work. Here are the things that are new for 2018.

 

To start, the park has unfortunately slashed some of their hours. For as long as I can remember, Canobie always closed at 10 pm all summer. This summer, they have 9 pm closings on Monday-Thursday. I was hoping they would have started the Twilight Ticket an hour earlier to compensate, but it still starts at 5 pm. Fortunately it wasn't too crowded, but there were a few things I needed to cut out due to time.

 

The big addition for 2018 is the water park. While it isn't quite ready yet, the slide tower, restaurant, and entrance look ready to go. It looks like they need to finish the wave pool and lazy river. I'm hoping they can get this open by the end of the summer. But whenever it opens, it should be a real game changer for the park having a legit water park.

 

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Previously their water play structure was called "Castaway Island". From this sign, it looks like they're giving that name to the whole water park.

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Here's the big slide tower. I love the octopus at the top!

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Another new restaurant is on its way too.

 

To create room for the water park, they flattened a patch of trees behind the Pirate and rerouted the Canobie Express. The train actually has a new entrance near the Dragon Coaster/kiddie rides. The train route is considerably shorter than before and they still have the old train station standing. That spot looks prime for a new addition in the coming years.

 

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The train has left the station already, permanently.

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Now it's down by the Dragon Coaster, right next to the water.

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If you refer to the park index, you can see just how many trees used to be behind the Pirate. Now it's so barren!

 

For a local park, Canobie has always had an impressive array of shows. Their big musical tribute this year is to Aerosmith and they've also brought back the Bruno Mars show. Since the latter is at the Midway Stage directly across from the Yankee Cannonball's queue, I was able to watch it while queuing for the park's signature attraction. It seemed identical to the show last year with no new songs (unless I missed one or two at the start).

 

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Who needs Fun TV when you have a live performance to enjoy while queuing for a coaster?

 

Last but not least, I noticed two things related to games. One, it appears you won't be able to fool the guesser this year. The little stand is nowhere to be found, although the signage still remains. Two, it appears they updated the theming on the "Guess Your Speed" baseball game. Previously the scoreboard said the Red Sox were playing the Yankees. Now they're just playing a generic visitor. I'm sort of shocked they changed it since it's not like New Hampshire is poisoned with Yankee fever like Connecticut.

 

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Looks like the guesser won't be getting anything wrong in the near future. They also won't be getting anything right either.

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Apparently the Red Sox are playing a high school team or the Kansas City Royals.

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  • 3 weeks later...
  • 2 weeks later...

I stopped by the park tonight after work and checked in on the progress of the water park. I have to think it may just open in time for the end of summer. The lazy river was filled and had empty rafts cycling. Then the splash pad had water going as well.

 

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The lazy river is filled with water and tubes. That sure looks like a good sign.

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Do those sprayers seem to be pretty close to the ground? I'm just picturing a kid running over them.

 

Also the park closed 45 minutes early due to a thunderstorm. I didn't expect to get a free ticket or anything considering it was so late in the day, but employees were stationed by the exit giving free twilight passes. That's awesome customer service! Hopefully I can come back once they get their water park open.

 

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I wasn't expecting a free ticket, but I'll take it. Thanks Canobie!

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  • 2 weeks later...
Today was an awesome day to stop by Canobie after work. The downpour earlier made the park a ghost town and I got to witness this beautiful rainbow over the Yankee Cannonball.

 

Great pic of my favorite wooden coaster! Thanks for sharing.

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  • 1 month later...

I stopped in last night to check out Screeemfest (yes that's how they actually spell it) for the second year in a row. And I have to say, that the park has really done an excellent job. I find the interactivity of the scare actors in haunts and the midways exceeds the other New England haunts. For example, a dude dressed as a rabbit with a chainsaw chased a group of teenagers all the way from the Palace Arcace past Star Blaster. That's dedication!

 

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Yes it really does have 3 Es in a row.

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There were scare actors everywhere. Far more than last year.

 

The park was very empty. I suspected persistent rain through the afternoon and the fact that it was still September would keep people away and I was right. The longest I waited for any haunt or ride was 10 minutes, but most attractions were walk-ons. For comparison, the Friday right before Halloween last year was pulling half hour plus waits for all haunts and the Yankee Cannonball. One new addition this year is an express pass for all the haunts. For $15, you can skip all the haunt queues. I barely saw anyone using it tonight, but that would be a big timesaver once crowds pick up.

 

I tried all 5 haunts since gate admission is all inclusive. The best by far is Carnivus. The ride perfectly embraces the carnival theme and nails the abandoned carnival feel. There's something unsettling and cool walking down a dimly lit midway of carnival games only to have a scare actor jump out. This haunt also has the most to look at and the lighting made it possible to see everything. This is a perfect example where you can make an effective haunt while still having enough light to actually see the entire set. Plus it has some neat tricks towards the end like a claustrophobic tunnel, mirror maze, and vertigo tunnel.

 

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This is the haunt that makes Screeemfest worth it.

 

The Canobie Hotel had very good theming, but it was so dark that it was hard to notice all the details. I can't recall any special tricks, but there were plenty of scare actors.

 

To be perfectly honest, I'm not a big fan of the Village. As a haunt persepctive, I found it to be the least inspired. There was barely any theming and it was very reliant on the chainsaw scare. I believe I counted no less than 5-6 actors with chainsaws. From a park perspective, it's placement in the park causes the closure of Mine of Lost Souls. It's bizarre the park has to close their "haunted house" during their haunt event, but this has been happening for years. The highlight was the employee at the entrance. He was really into his character and going as far to drink a gallon of blood (aka red water). This is the most skippable of all the haunts.

 

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The Village's church entrance looks impressive, but after that it's mostly chaibsaw gags.

 

The Culling returned from last year and it's just as bizarre. While most live actors in haunts spend time directly scaring guests, the Culling is somehwat unsettling since half the scare actors are quietly participating in cult rituals. This makes the actor who does try to scare you all the more surprising.

 

The odd thing is that the last haunt (Facility 235) could only be accessed by first doing the Culling. The Culling's exit dumped you right off in the queue for Facility 235. I imagine they may try to connect it to the park if possible since the current configuration is a bit weird. As for the haunt, it was just ok. I lile how they reused some old ride vehicles in there, but other than that, nothing stood out.

 

And I still had plenty of time to ride all the park's best flats and coasters. I got 9 rides on the Yankee Cannonball and it was running well despite the cooler temperatures.

 

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Some theming for the Yankee Cannonball.

 

I found it interesting they removed the Xtreme Frisbee from the Screeemfest ride list entirely considering it was running towards the end of summer. Xtreme Frisbee joined the water rides and Mine of Lost Souls on the list of rides not open for the event. They also had Skater running despite it being closed all summer.

 

I was shocked by the number of unsupervised teenagers in the park. Finding a parent in the park would have been like finding Waldo. This led to some less than stellar behavior like people sliding their legs out the side of the Rowdy Roosters and jumping out before it came to a complete stop.

 

I still think Lake Compounce's Haunted Graveyard is the top dog in New England, but Canobie really does have a great event.

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  • 8 months later...

I went to Canobie after work today hoping to try their new for 2018 new for 2019 water park. Today was one of the hottest days of the year so it seemed perfect.

 

Unfortunately it closed at 4. Their website announced the closure with the weather icon, but it was actually for a private event. That actually reassured me because I'd be terrified if 80 degrees was too cold for a water park in New England.

 

I checked with the park and they said it should close at 6 on most days. It's small, but it looks nice for a park like Canobie.

 

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They also started construction on a surprise new addition. They demolished the pathway between the Sky Ride and Over the Rainbow. In its place they're erecting a double decker carousel.

 

I find the move a bit odd considering they already have a classic carousel on the other side of the park and a kiddie carousel next to this one. They must've been inspired by Six Flags New England. You know, the park that built two boomerangs and two wipeouts next to each other.

 

But the artwork of the carousel and garden looks really nice. It didn't say if it was for 2019 or 2020, but Canobie does tend to open rides in the fall.

 

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And the park has a lot of new coaster apparel. Like this awesome Yankee Cannonball sweatshirt.

 

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It's not cold. I'm just too lazy to carry a bag or put this in the car. I'd totally go to a water park right now if it were open.

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  • 4 weeks later...

When I got off work yesterday, I was stunned Canobie hadn't closed since it had been pouring for most of the afternoon. So I figured it'd be the perfect evening to try their new Castaway Island water park.

 

The water park is cute. It's very small, but they have tropical music playing and a lot of small touches like palm trees, tiki heads, etc. Plus it had heated water! That was the biggest surprise.

 

None of the big 3 water slides were particularly fast. If you're traveling a distance, the water park is very skippable. To be honest, I don't feel the need to go back since I'm more of an amusement park person.

 

That being said, it's an amazing addition for the park. The employees were saying the water park has been hitting capacity most days and there has been a queue just to enter. I'm glad the park is getting a return on their investment.

 

The park ended up closing early at 6:30, but they gave return tickets for everyone left. So I'll take 1.5 hours of free Canobie plus a future visit.

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Um, looking at this photo...I really didn't want to read too much into this....but....

you must admit, does this look "sort of dirty"?

 

Thanks for all the updates!

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  • 3 weeks later...

So I finally made it to Canobie Lake Park after many failed attempts (for one reason or another) and I have to say that it was a very enjoyable park and pretty much what I thought it would be. It was a beautiful independent park that actually seemed much larger than the map would make it out to be. And rides were spaced out very well including some of the smaller kid rides mixed in as well which is always appreciated.

 

As for coasters they are somewhat underwhelming compared to most parks including many in the same size bracket.

 

Dragon: it's a kiddie Zamperla, not much else. It did have a ridiculously slow loading and unloading though for a kid coaster. 3/10

 

Corkscrew : Again it's a off the shelf Corkscrew model, nothing special. It was a little smoother than most but not perfect.

5/10

 

Untamed: Not a bad ride other than a little shuffling and one rough transition into the helix. If it had the newer Eurofighter cars it would be much better. Still a decent ride, but again a off the shelf model.

7/10

 

Yankee Cannonball : easily the best coaster and one of the best rides in the park. Still not a great Wooden Coaster but for being as old as it is it was fairly smooth, however there wasn't as much air time as I was expecting based on the layout and hills. Also one train made for slightly slow loading.

8/10

 

Overall the park has a nice collection of flats and classics but nothing really putting them on the map as a destination. Just a really good regional Park. My biggest complaint was the park patrons here, way too much line jumping and rude people pushing and bumping into every one for my likes. I know it's close to Boston so maybe that explains a lot (I'm from Central NY so I have my certain biases lol). Some ride operators were also painfully slow and looked like they could care less about being there. Yet we also saw many who were having tons of fun and were very pleasant.

 

The food we had was average but serviceable. We ate at Sons of Liberty tavern which was unusual that they take your order like a sit down but it's fast like a counter service. I did love the small themed areas like the Old Canobie Village and Colonial Boston section. Overall it was an enjoyable add on to our Maine Vacation but in no means would I drive much more out of my way to get there, I actually think from an overall perspective I liked Santa's Village up North better despite being a more kid friendly park. Who knows maybe of they add a big new coaster we will be back but for now we're good.

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Glad you enjoyed Canobie!

 

As for the line jumping, most of the clientele tends to be unsupervised teens so I'm guessing that's who was line jumping.

 

The Yankee Cannonball used to have more air before it was retracked a few years ago. But as you noted, the ride is remarkably smooth so it paid off in that regard.

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  • 1 month later...

Thank you coneyislandchris for making me aware of this, but Canobie Lake Park is going to offer a season pass for the first time next year! It looks like they can only be purchased at the park currently, but Canobie says they'll be available online sometime soon. And if you buy one at the park, you get Screeemfest free so I know what I'll be doing.

 

I'm interested to see what type of impact this has on their crowds. Canobie already pulls a good business without a season pass and I've heard the reason they've been hesitant to offer one was a fear of becoming a daycare center.

 

2020 is looking to be a great year for amusement parks, but this is the addition that most excites me and it isn't close.

 

Canobie Lake Park is proud to now offer Season Passes!!!

 

9/21/19: Currently, the only place to purchase your 2020 Season Pass is to visit our Welcome Center located in the center of the Park behind Kiddieland to take advantage of our “In-Park Special”. The person listed on the pass must be present for the transaction to take their photo. Anyone purchasing a 2020 Season Pass gets the rest of Screeemfest 2019 for FREE!!! We anticipate the passes being available to purchase online in the coming weeks.

 

There are 2 types of Season Passes: 2020 Season Pass (blackout dates apply) and the 2020 Platinum Season Pass (no blackout dates). Our Welcome Center accepts Visa, MasterCard and American Express only, we do not have cash sales. Want to add a front-of-line Screeem Express pass? No problem!

 

2020 Season Pass

Currently available in-Park only

The 2020 Season Pass is valid for Park admission any operating day of 2020 (black out dates apply). The 2020 Season Pass is blacked out on Saturdays & Sundays in July & August as well as Saturdays during Canobie Lake Park Screeemfest. Regular price is $139 but our in-Park Special is $99. The pass is nontransferable and nonrefundable. Anyone purchasing their 2020 Season Pass during Screeemfest 2019 gets the rest of Screeemfest 2019 FREE!

 

Any individuals getting the pass must be present in our Welcome Center so we may take their photograph as part of the purchase. Those wishing to purchase for other people who are not present or wishing to purchase as gifts for other people will need to wait until the online purchasing is active in the coming weeks.

 

Platinum Season Pass

Currently available in-Park only

The 2020 Platinum Season Pass is valid for Park admission any operating day of 2020 (no blackout dates). Regular price is $199 but our in-Park Special is $159. The pass is nontransferable and nonrefundable. Anyone purchasing their 2020 Platinum Season Pass during Screeemfest 2019 gets the rest of Screeemfest 2019 FREE!

 

Any individuals getting the pass must be present in our Welcome Center so we may take their photograph as part of the purchase. Those wishing to purchase for other people who are not present or wishing to purchase as gifts for other people will need to wait until the online purchasing is active in the coming weeks.

 

https://www.canobie.com/season-passes/

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