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USA Honeymoon Trip
- Thread starter DelPiero
- Start date
Hutch
Strata Poster
delpiero1982 said:
Ooh wouldn't that be awesome if the seats and lap bars were better!
When I rode Magnum last year with my family and relatives, one of my cousins (who is not a goon like me) said the ride would be better with OSTRs. I told her NO WAY, that would make it worse and maybe even a bit boring.
DelPiero
Strata Poster
I'm sure whoever you marry will be happy to go on a theme park honeymoon too! Lets be fair, they will already know about your love for all things coaster related :wink:Radaxian said:
Gotta love the thought process of a non goon. I remember a long time ago when I thought Rita was a great ride and that the restraints are comfy :crazy:Sanchezmran said:
DelPiero
Strata Poster
Park 3 - Busch Gardens Tampa
After a few days of travelling and relaxation on Miami's South Beach, we made our way to Orlando and checked into our final hotel.
Universal was having some Christian music festival on the Saturday so we decided to do BGT. We also decided to drive rather that get a very late shuttle, as we would get at least an extra hour in the park.
My first impression was good. The entrance area of Morocco looks great, I took a pic as I was so impressed.
The plan was to bear left and head towards Gwazi/SheiKra first to miss the initial queues at Cheetah Hunt and Montu. Here I encountered my first(and only) spite of the trip.
I've only heard bad things about this woodie, so I was annoyed that it was closed but not devastated like I would have been if this wasn't open....
I love dive machines, Oblivion is always great, and this is bigger, longer, and has 2 dives!
It was walk-on so I got on with 4 other random GP's, front row.
First up, the gate and floor mechanism is brill! Floorless dive machine <3
The top if the lift gives some great views of the rest of the park, especially the 2 coasters at the entrance. I liked the edge of the drop, but the train felt like it was moving closer to the edge unlike Oblivion's sharp hold and release.
The drop itself was fantastic though, yeah, it's not into a big hole but it's a longer drop with excellent airtime. I especially loved the massive Immelmann.
The 2nd drop isn't quite as good, but the swoop under the water makes up for the small drop, a nice headchopper and, later in the day, water drops splashing your face.
The splashdown is just a spectator effect though. You do feel a small amount of spray if you have a back right or back left seat but its minimal. It is great to watch from a safe distance, and it a easy way to cool down if its a bit too hot.
I got quite a few re-rides on this as it was quiet all day, 5 in total.
I'd say its better than Oblivion, simply due to the height, drop and Immelmann. The 2nd drop and headchopper are a nice bonus, and the splashdown rounds it off as a great coaster to snap.
We had walked past a cred. This was the plan all along, so we went back to grab Air Grover.
The coaster itself is little more than a standard Zierer family ride, but themed well within Sesame Street.
This part of the park is really really good for kids. So many little rides and play areas, as well as a fab Sesame Street show.
After watching some of the show we went back to SheiKra's area to do the water rides. First up was Stanley Falls.
Unfortunately their operations weren't up to scratch here. We had a 15 min queue but the queue doubled just after we got in yet there was no sign of opening the 2nd loading platform. They did open it later in the day, but for such a fiddly loading area it's a surprise it took so long.
The ride itself was good though, the main drop was long and fast, we got wet but not absolutely soaked (which I generally prefer), but the most surprising and enjoyable part was the speed of the boat.
After the first drop the boat flies through the course until it gets to the final lift. It really is fun.
We then decided to get even wetter, so we went on tidal wave.
Another surprise! A great lazy river style boat ride which goes on for ages followed by the standard hill, turn, drop. It was really nice to have this massive boat all to ourselves just floating through lush gardens. It was actually a shame when we got to the lift hill.
The drop was really good though as it had a mid leveller, small but effective and had a huge splash. The whole ride was excellent and is so much better than the normal ones.
We then had a brief look at the animals in Jungala and moved on to the next coaster.
Wonderful ride to watch and listen to, it has one of the best B&M roars I've heard.
I left Helen to take some pics while I got a couple of rides in and she managed this work of art. It's currently my phone wallpaper.
This was officially my first B&M sit down coaster so I was excited and took a back row seat. Up the hill we went taking in the view, and watched as the front of the train started the drop.
I wasn't expecting the drop to be as smooth as it was, it was great, but the loop was better. Got to be one of my favourite loops I've been on.
The excellent ride keeps going through the dive loop but the zero-g lacked well... zero-g.... to me anyway.
Determined to make up for this it threw me into the best cobra roll I've yet to experience. The speed, forces and smoothness was just right. The closeness of the plants on the left and the building on the right as you speed along the ground towards it was perfect when combined with the bridge headchopper before the incline into the roll.
Seriously good.
Anyway, a minor break before the corkscrews, which were very good, no rattle, no bang, and then into the tunnel at a good speed.
The final helix is great in the back, even though its upwards it generated good forces.
I got a front row ride in as well as it was only a 5 min wait. Very similar to the back row ride but not as forceful, I preferred the zero-g here and obviously the view is great.
This is the kind of ride I really like. Forceful, powerful, LOUD but without too much evil. It's no surprise people love it, best ride at the park for me and No.6 in my fave list.
We then did the rapids.
First thing to mention is the totally burdonous way they do the loading/unloading. Constantly boats sitting waiting to be unloaded. Not impressed.
The rapids themselves weren't that great, I got a bit wet but there are a lot better ones out there. They could have done soooo much more with the cave.
However if you just want a nice boat ride in the sun then it's just the ticket.
Timbuktu time.
Next up was the Mack mouse. Surprisingly I really enjoyed this one. Most mice just plain hurt but we had great fun bouncing around. The laterals aren't too forceful and the seats are reasonably comfortable, combining those with decent drops and a great bunny hill it was better than expected.
So far BGT was turning out to be a great park! A couple of really good coasters, some fantastic water rides, a tidy kids area, animals and a good mouse. I was loving it.
Then this happened.
Yuck.
A large queue, in the sun, with assigned seating, with rubbish seats and is rough as hell.
Even the fact that this only has lap bars didn't help, and the helix, which I thought could be quite good, just hurt.
I appreciate this is very old, and roughness is expected but I was so glad to get off.
I then got on this.
Greyed out, not a nice experience. Might go on a different one in the future but I'm pretty sure they will all be minging.
We then milled around looking at some animals and whatnot.
Then decided to go in the train. This was excellent. The animals get really close to the train so you're able to snap away for ages. I also got this pic of Montu's batwing from the train.
We got off the train by SheiKra (another quick go as it was walk-on) and went to see the birds and kangaroos. This cheeky chappy just loves Florida's rays.
It was getting on and the crowds near the front of the park had disappeared. Time for the last 2 coasters. Up first was the newest ride.
This looks great, but slow (oh the irony). I'd seen it while we were on the train and wasn't too excited.
It was a 10 min queue, not too bad. Got a back row seat, didn't fancy waiting for front row.
The trains are nicely themed, in general it's nicely done, just a shame that there's no bite to the ride.
The 1st launch was just to get the train going and really isn't worth commenting on, the 2nd launch was quite fun then got really boring as we got to the top of the figure 8. It's just so slow and meh.
The drop down from the 8 is ok, nothing special, the trench adds to the drop. The quick banked turns are ok as well. But the final launch lacks punch.
Just generally it's a bit middle of the road. Not crap, not good, just adequate. Good for young families.
Final coaster of the day. Montu.
I've heard people rave about this invert, and as an invert fan and Nemesis fanboy, this was my most anticipated coaster at the park. Front row first as there was literally no queue.
Amazeballs!
Really really really good invert and the best of the trip. The first half from the drop to the mcbr is fantastic. The drop is great and even on the front you feel great forces through the first loop and the tunnel into the Immelmann was excellent. I loved how there is next to no track wasted all the way through the zero-g and the batwing, which is also very good.
It's such a shame that the mcbr is there though!!!!!
It doesn't slow to a crawl but its noticeable. The 2nd loop is good, not as good as the first but still good and the excavation trenches are great. But it then loses some speed and purpose before the corkscrew and final turn and hits the brake run.
I went straight back on as I feared Nemesis finally had a rival in this superb coaster. Back row this time.
Obviously lacking the front row view but the entire first half was even better than in the front.
The batwing is just sublime, absolutely perfect, the whip generated as it pulls you down the trench is unbelievable.
But I was even more aware of the mcbr and meander before the corkscrew this time.
It really is amazing, and holds a proud number 7 in my list just behind Kumba, which edges it barely.
**My fave list is done by the best ride I've had on that coaster. So the best ride I've had on Nemesis, which was a wet night during scarefest 2 years ago, was better than my best ride on Montu and Kumba. But it's very close, so close I had to explain this to you. They could easily swap places if I had night rides.**
After the awesomeness of Montu we went back round the park seeing things we missed, and grabbed some fries. Had a couple more goes on Kumba and ShieKra before we left.
All in all this really is a fantastic theme park. I'm glad we decided to drive and have the full day there. It has a great mix of theming, coasters, water rides, interactive zoo, kids area, food.
Ops are hit and miss, and it lacks any good flat rides. That's probably the biggest down for me.
It's still my second fave park. Would love to get to BGW to do a comparison.
Next Up - Fun Spot America
After a few days of travelling and relaxation on Miami's South Beach, we made our way to Orlando and checked into our final hotel.
Universal was having some Christian music festival on the Saturday so we decided to do BGT. We also decided to drive rather that get a very late shuttle, as we would get at least an extra hour in the park.
My first impression was good. The entrance area of Morocco looks great, I took a pic as I was so impressed.
The plan was to bear left and head towards Gwazi/SheiKra first to miss the initial queues at Cheetah Hunt and Montu. Here I encountered my first(and only) spite of the trip.
I've only heard bad things about this woodie, so I was annoyed that it was closed but not devastated like I would have been if this wasn't open....
I love dive machines, Oblivion is always great, and this is bigger, longer, and has 2 dives!
It was walk-on so I got on with 4 other random GP's, front row.
First up, the gate and floor mechanism is brill! Floorless dive machine <3
The top if the lift gives some great views of the rest of the park, especially the 2 coasters at the entrance. I liked the edge of the drop, but the train felt like it was moving closer to the edge unlike Oblivion's sharp hold and release.
The drop itself was fantastic though, yeah, it's not into a big hole but it's a longer drop with excellent airtime. I especially loved the massive Immelmann.
The 2nd drop isn't quite as good, but the swoop under the water makes up for the small drop, a nice headchopper and, later in the day, water drops splashing your face.
The splashdown is just a spectator effect though. You do feel a small amount of spray if you have a back right or back left seat but its minimal. It is great to watch from a safe distance, and it a easy way to cool down if its a bit too hot.
I got quite a few re-rides on this as it was quiet all day, 5 in total.
I'd say its better than Oblivion, simply due to the height, drop and Immelmann. The 2nd drop and headchopper are a nice bonus, and the splashdown rounds it off as a great coaster to snap.
We had walked past a cred. This was the plan all along, so we went back to grab Air Grover.
The coaster itself is little more than a standard Zierer family ride, but themed well within Sesame Street.
This part of the park is really really good for kids. So many little rides and play areas, as well as a fab Sesame Street show.
After watching some of the show we went back to SheiKra's area to do the water rides. First up was Stanley Falls.
Unfortunately their operations weren't up to scratch here. We had a 15 min queue but the queue doubled just after we got in yet there was no sign of opening the 2nd loading platform. They did open it later in the day, but for such a fiddly loading area it's a surprise it took so long.
The ride itself was good though, the main drop was long and fast, we got wet but not absolutely soaked (which I generally prefer), but the most surprising and enjoyable part was the speed of the boat.
After the first drop the boat flies through the course until it gets to the final lift. It really is fun.
We then decided to get even wetter, so we went on tidal wave.
Another surprise! A great lazy river style boat ride which goes on for ages followed by the standard hill, turn, drop. It was really nice to have this massive boat all to ourselves just floating through lush gardens. It was actually a shame when we got to the lift hill.
The drop was really good though as it had a mid leveller, small but effective and had a huge splash. The whole ride was excellent and is so much better than the normal ones.
We then had a brief look at the animals in Jungala and moved on to the next coaster.
Wonderful ride to watch and listen to, it has one of the best B&M roars I've heard.
I left Helen to take some pics while I got a couple of rides in and she managed this work of art. It's currently my phone wallpaper.
This was officially my first B&M sit down coaster so I was excited and took a back row seat. Up the hill we went taking in the view, and watched as the front of the train started the drop.
I wasn't expecting the drop to be as smooth as it was, it was great, but the loop was better. Got to be one of my favourite loops I've been on.
The excellent ride keeps going through the dive loop but the zero-g lacked well... zero-g.... to me anyway.
Determined to make up for this it threw me into the best cobra roll I've yet to experience. The speed, forces and smoothness was just right. The closeness of the plants on the left and the building on the right as you speed along the ground towards it was perfect when combined with the bridge headchopper before the incline into the roll.
Seriously good.
Anyway, a minor break before the corkscrews, which were very good, no rattle, no bang, and then into the tunnel at a good speed.
The final helix is great in the back, even though its upwards it generated good forces.
I got a front row ride in as well as it was only a 5 min wait. Very similar to the back row ride but not as forceful, I preferred the zero-g here and obviously the view is great.
This is the kind of ride I really like. Forceful, powerful, LOUD but without too much evil. It's no surprise people love it, best ride at the park for me and No.6 in my fave list.
We then did the rapids.
First thing to mention is the totally burdonous way they do the loading/unloading. Constantly boats sitting waiting to be unloaded. Not impressed.
The rapids themselves weren't that great, I got a bit wet but there are a lot better ones out there. They could have done soooo much more with the cave.
However if you just want a nice boat ride in the sun then it's just the ticket.
Timbuktu time.
Next up was the Mack mouse. Surprisingly I really enjoyed this one. Most mice just plain hurt but we had great fun bouncing around. The laterals aren't too forceful and the seats are reasonably comfortable, combining those with decent drops and a great bunny hill it was better than expected.
So far BGT was turning out to be a great park! A couple of really good coasters, some fantastic water rides, a tidy kids area, animals and a good mouse. I was loving it.
Then this happened.
Yuck.
A large queue, in the sun, with assigned seating, with rubbish seats and is rough as hell.
Even the fact that this only has lap bars didn't help, and the helix, which I thought could be quite good, just hurt.
I appreciate this is very old, and roughness is expected but I was so glad to get off.
I then got on this.
Greyed out, not a nice experience. Might go on a different one in the future but I'm pretty sure they will all be minging.
We then milled around looking at some animals and whatnot.
Then decided to go in the train. This was excellent. The animals get really close to the train so you're able to snap away for ages. I also got this pic of Montu's batwing from the train.
We got off the train by SheiKra (another quick go as it was walk-on) and went to see the birds and kangaroos. This cheeky chappy just loves Florida's rays.
It was getting on and the crowds near the front of the park had disappeared. Time for the last 2 coasters. Up first was the newest ride.
This looks great, but slow (oh the irony). I'd seen it while we were on the train and wasn't too excited.
It was a 10 min queue, not too bad. Got a back row seat, didn't fancy waiting for front row.
The trains are nicely themed, in general it's nicely done, just a shame that there's no bite to the ride.
The 1st launch was just to get the train going and really isn't worth commenting on, the 2nd launch was quite fun then got really boring as we got to the top of the figure 8. It's just so slow and meh.
The drop down from the 8 is ok, nothing special, the trench adds to the drop. The quick banked turns are ok as well. But the final launch lacks punch.
Just generally it's a bit middle of the road. Not crap, not good, just adequate. Good for young families.
Final coaster of the day. Montu.
I've heard people rave about this invert, and as an invert fan and Nemesis fanboy, this was my most anticipated coaster at the park. Front row first as there was literally no queue.
Amazeballs!
Really really really good invert and the best of the trip. The first half from the drop to the mcbr is fantastic. The drop is great and even on the front you feel great forces through the first loop and the tunnel into the Immelmann was excellent. I loved how there is next to no track wasted all the way through the zero-g and the batwing, which is also very good.
It's such a shame that the mcbr is there though!!!!!
It doesn't slow to a crawl but its noticeable. The 2nd loop is good, not as good as the first but still good and the excavation trenches are great. But it then loses some speed and purpose before the corkscrew and final turn and hits the brake run.
I went straight back on as I feared Nemesis finally had a rival in this superb coaster. Back row this time.
Obviously lacking the front row view but the entire first half was even better than in the front.
The batwing is just sublime, absolutely perfect, the whip generated as it pulls you down the trench is unbelievable.
But I was even more aware of the mcbr and meander before the corkscrew this time.
It really is amazing, and holds a proud number 7 in my list just behind Kumba, which edges it barely.
**My fave list is done by the best ride I've had on that coaster. So the best ride I've had on Nemesis, which was a wet night during scarefest 2 years ago, was better than my best ride on Montu and Kumba. But it's very close, so close I had to explain this to you. They could easily swap places if I had night rides.**
After the awesomeness of Montu we went back round the park seeing things we missed, and grabbed some fries. Had a couple more goes on Kumba and ShieKra before we left.
All in all this really is a fantastic theme park. I'm glad we decided to drive and have the full day there. It has a great mix of theming, coasters, water rides, interactive zoo, kids area, food.
Ops are hit and miss, and it lacks any good flat rides. That's probably the biggest down for me.
It's still my second fave park. Would love to get to BGW to do a comparison.
Next Up - Fun Spot America
Haha! Love the last picture 
Great continuation of the report, again, first time visits to a park as so much more interesting than return ones
I adored Dragon Khan, so can understand why Kumba hits the right spots for you. I think we have pretty similar coaster tastes. Khan dropped down my top ten after the rest of the US too and sits around 7th I think too.
I don't think BGW is much like BGT. Oddly, it's not really "animals" (though BGW has some great animal shows) and it's less about rides (though there are some great rides). BGW is all about being gorgeous :lol:
I find it really hard to work out if Griffon is better than Oblivion too. Well, it IS because it's taller and longer, but... There's a buzz I always get from Oblivion that was either missing from Griffon, or had passed by the time I reached the end of the run. They're very different coasters, oddly
I keep thinking "Florida? Nah, bit over-hyped", then I read this report and thought "nah, looks awesome". You should be a holiday rep
Great continuation of the report, again, first time visits to a park as so much more interesting than return ones
I adored Dragon Khan, so can understand why Kumba hits the right spots for you. I think we have pretty similar coaster tastes. Khan dropped down my top ten after the rest of the US too and sits around 7th I think too.
I don't think BGW is much like BGT. Oddly, it's not really "animals" (though BGW has some great animal shows) and it's less about rides (though there are some great rides). BGW is all about being gorgeous :lol:
I find it really hard to work out if Griffon is better than Oblivion too. Well, it IS because it's taller and longer, but... There's a buzz I always get from Oblivion that was either missing from Griffon, or had passed by the time I reached the end of the run. They're very different coasters, oddly
I keep thinking "Florida? Nah, bit over-hyped", then I read this report and thought "nah, looks awesome". You should be a holiday rep
DelPiero
Strata Poster
PA is so high on my list right now, probably top, it's gonna be very hard to fit it in with my other plans next year though. Khan looks great and I can't wait to see how it stacks up against the original.furie said:
I know what you mean, it's not miles and miles better than Oblivion due to that buzz not being as obvious. I think ShieKra's issue is(weirdly) that it isn't just a hold drop into a scary looking tunnel. There's more to it, you hit the Immelmann and the intense buzz has gone, but the ride is still interesting and long enough to keep your focus.furie said:I find it really hard to work out if Griffon is better than Oblivion too. Well, it IS because it's taller and longer, but... There's a buzz I always get from Oblivion that was either missing from Griffon, or had passed by the time I reached the end of the run. They're very different coasters, oddly
My first real job was a travel agentfurie said:You should be a holiday rep
I still act as one for the family when they need advice/help booking somewhere.
CookieCoasters
Giga Poster
Good report. Such a lovely park.
You must of caught Kumba on a good day. It was pretty rough when I last went on it.
For me both Sheikra and Krake are better than Oblivion, just because there is more to them. I don't get any extra buzz on Oblivion.
Montu is just incredible. I love that ride, best in Florida and a definite top 10 ride for me. Batwing= love.
You must of caught Kumba on a good day. It was pretty rough when I last went on it.
For me both Sheikra and Krake are better than Oblivion, just because there is more to them. I don't get any extra buzz on Oblivion.
Montu is just incredible. I love that ride, best in Florida and a definite top 10 ride for me. Batwing= love.
ATTACKHAMMER
Strata Poster
Great report on my favourite park! Totally agree about Sand Serpent it is the best wild mouse I've been on by a long, long way. Montu it my favourite coaster, glad you liked it, the bat wing is just incredible! I have never personally found Kumba rough. You really didn't miss out of anything with Gwazi. Can't wait for the next part!
Hutch
Strata Poster
Great report of BTG. Gotta make sure I get down there next time I go to Florida.
The landscaping in BGW is beautiful. I'm sure you'd really like it. It's a good balance between theming and thrill. Quite possibly the best park I've ever been to (though I liked Cedar Point more).
I'm looking forward to Universal and SeaWorld (mainly Uni. Last time I visited those parks was about one year before I turned into a goon. I remember loving Manta and even had a blast on Dragon Challenge (I had ridden them before they dueled). I really want to give DC another go, but it probably won't be as good as I remember.
And I remember my last two rides on Hulk a bit meh. So I'm looking forward to your opinion.
The landscaping in BGW is beautiful. I'm sure you'd really like it. It's a good balance between theming and thrill. Quite possibly the best park I've ever been to (though I liked Cedar Point more).
I'm looking forward to Universal and SeaWorld (mainly Uni. Last time I visited those parks was about one year before I turned into a goon. I remember loving Manta and even had a blast on Dragon Challenge (I had ridden them before they dueled). I really want to give DC another go, but it probably won't be as good as I remember.
And I remember my last two rides on Hulk a bit meh. So I'm looking forward to your opinion.
DelPiero
Strata Poster
Would just like to add that there is so much more to BGT than my report, we didn't do the additional safari as we lacked time, but it looked excellent, feeding the giraffes and whatnot.
The gardens themselves are also very beautiful, some of the animals they make out of the shrubbery are awe inspiring, from the Tiger to the kangaroo and butterflies dotted near their respective live counterparts. Just a great park in general.
The gardens themselves are also very beautiful, some of the animals they make out of the shrubbery are awe inspiring, from the Tiger to the kangaroo and butterflies dotted near their respective live counterparts. Just a great park in general.
DelPiero
Strata Poster
Park 4 - Fun Spot America
I've decided to write this one up next as it's reasonably short.
After a full on day at Seaworld and Aquatica we got back to the hotel and changed and went out to grab a quick Taco Bell before going to Fun Spot in the evening.
We arrived and exchanged our Groupon vouchers for a 2 ride wristband each. The place looks like and is run in a carnival style. There is no theming here, just rides, more rides, and food places.
Only 3 creds in total, but one of my most anticipated ones White Lightning!
After Hershey and CP left me a little disappointed with the woodies (Lightning Racer aside), I was desperate to find a good woodie and being that this is brand spanking new and has received good reviews, it was looking a good contender for my No.1 woodie.
After spending a good 10 minutes trying to persuade the wife to join me I ended up solo riding again, she preferred to use her 2 rides on the other 2 creds. No queue, not sure if this is the norm in the evenings, the park was quiet, very quiet.
Back row, by myself I trapped into the Millennium Flyer seats and felt the soft padding all around me. Down came the bar, leaving a good amount of airtime space. No stapling here, thanks ops
It's not very high, only about 70 ft, but you still get some lovely views of Orlando, even at night. I wasn't worried about the lack of height, I already knew that this generated quite some speed considering it's not huge.
So up I went, clankety clank anti roll back clunks filling my ears, expectation and excited giddyness pulsing through me and we were at the top.
Fantastic first drop, the back of the train barely gets over the crest before you're forcefully pulled down with the rest of the train. The airtime generated, even at the turning angle, is astounding, a great floaty feeling all the way to the bottom of the drop.
This is followed by some great G's pushing you down, with an excellent twist at high speed underneath the return structure before you hit the double up. The double up is pretty forceless but settles you slightly for what's to come.
The double down is excellent though, you're again pulled down by the train over the crest which, again, is great floater but it's minor before leveling for a brief moment and then pulled down again, resulting in a double pop of minor floater.
At this point the train is flying towards the turnaround, and the banked curve keeps most of the momentum as it turns and heads towards the earth once more. At this point the coaster goes into mental mode.
You exit the the turnaround into a twisted airtime hill followed by 2 more airtime hills within a couple of seconds before twisting up and over the outbound track at great speed. Another couple of twisty hills follow before a big right turn following the initial drop before 2 more airtime popped hills and it slams into the brake run.
I... was... flabberghasted. What a ride! Very short but so much fun, I went straight back on, back right instead of back left and had another great ride.
This is smooth, punchy and filled with great things. You just don't care that it's so short, being longer would be a waste of it's energy. It's really really good.
Go there, ride it, ride it again, and again, until all your money's gone.
After the best wooden coaster of my trip I went and purchased a couple of single ride tickets for the other 2 creds.
2nd coaster was Freedom Flyer, a Vekoma suspended family coaster. We got front row seats for what looked to be a fun, comfortable ride.
It's exactly that, the seats and restraints are comfortable, nice comfy lap bars, thanks Vekoma The whole ride is just good, clean, comfortable enjoyment. The final helix has some speed and minor force but I think it's a great choice for the park. Exactly what families want.
Finally was their kiddy cred.
Took a while to find someone to operate it, as they man multiple attractions, not bothered, me and the wife chatted about how desperate I was for the cred.
I was super happy to get front seat tho, goon pic alert.
The ride op obviously thought we were nutters but strapped us in and off we went.
This has a pretty long train for the length of the track, it's so long that i was hanging in the front seat white the rest of the train got up the initial hill. I didn't get a drop like the back row would, as I was already at the bottom of the drop when the train followed
We had fun going round the track though, loads of little hills to go up and down. I was expecting 2 laps of the track, but we got 3, YAY!!! Hold on it's still going, 4!!! So excited to get 4 laps. Shamefully got off after cheering the 4th lap. At least it promoted the ride, some kid came along after we'd been on after seeing us have fun
The park has loads of other bits and pieces but we were only there for an hour as I just wanted the 3 credits. There's bumper cars, a load of flats, go karts and a massive sky coaster(which doesn't interest me at all) so there's loads to do, if you have the time.
It's obviously a family park, which has 2 (Skycoaster included) real adult rides. But it is what it is, fun spot - spot on.
Up next - Seaworld
I've decided to write this one up next as it's reasonably short.
After a full on day at Seaworld and Aquatica we got back to the hotel and changed and went out to grab a quick Taco Bell before going to Fun Spot in the evening.
We arrived and exchanged our Groupon vouchers for a 2 ride wristband each. The place looks like and is run in a carnival style. There is no theming here, just rides, more rides, and food places.
Only 3 creds in total, but one of my most anticipated ones White Lightning!
After Hershey and CP left me a little disappointed with the woodies (Lightning Racer aside), I was desperate to find a good woodie and being that this is brand spanking new and has received good reviews, it was looking a good contender for my No.1 woodie.
After spending a good 10 minutes trying to persuade the wife to join me I ended up solo riding again, she preferred to use her 2 rides on the other 2 creds. No queue, not sure if this is the norm in the evenings, the park was quiet, very quiet.
Back row, by myself I trapped into the Millennium Flyer seats and felt the soft padding all around me. Down came the bar, leaving a good amount of airtime space. No stapling here, thanks ops
It's not very high, only about 70 ft, but you still get some lovely views of Orlando, even at night. I wasn't worried about the lack of height, I already knew that this generated quite some speed considering it's not huge.
So up I went, clankety clank anti roll back clunks filling my ears, expectation and excited giddyness pulsing through me and we were at the top.
Fantastic first drop, the back of the train barely gets over the crest before you're forcefully pulled down with the rest of the train. The airtime generated, even at the turning angle, is astounding, a great floaty feeling all the way to the bottom of the drop.
This is followed by some great G's pushing you down, with an excellent twist at high speed underneath the return structure before you hit the double up. The double up is pretty forceless but settles you slightly for what's to come.
The double down is excellent though, you're again pulled down by the train over the crest which, again, is great floater but it's minor before leveling for a brief moment and then pulled down again, resulting in a double pop of minor floater.
At this point the train is flying towards the turnaround, and the banked curve keeps most of the momentum as it turns and heads towards the earth once more. At this point the coaster goes into mental mode.
You exit the the turnaround into a twisted airtime hill followed by 2 more airtime hills within a couple of seconds before twisting up and over the outbound track at great speed. Another couple of twisty hills follow before a big right turn following the initial drop before 2 more airtime popped hills and it slams into the brake run.
I... was... flabberghasted. What a ride! Very short but so much fun, I went straight back on, back right instead of back left and had another great ride.
This is smooth, punchy and filled with great things. You just don't care that it's so short, being longer would be a waste of it's energy. It's really really good.
Go there, ride it, ride it again, and again, until all your money's gone.
After the best wooden coaster of my trip I went and purchased a couple of single ride tickets for the other 2 creds.
2nd coaster was Freedom Flyer, a Vekoma suspended family coaster. We got front row seats for what looked to be a fun, comfortable ride.
It's exactly that, the seats and restraints are comfortable, nice comfy lap bars, thanks Vekoma
The whole ride is just good, clean, comfortable enjoyment. The final helix has some speed and minor force but I think it's a great choice for the park. Exactly what families want.Finally was their kiddy cred.
Took a while to find someone to operate it, as they man multiple attractions, not bothered, me and the wife chatted about how desperate I was for the cred.
I was super happy to get front seat tho, goon pic alert.
The ride op obviously thought we were nutters but strapped us in and off we went.
This has a pretty long train for the length of the track, it's so long that i was hanging in the front seat white the rest of the train got up the initial hill. I didn't get a drop like the back row would, as I was already at the bottom of the drop when the train followed
We had fun going round the track though, loads of little hills to go up and down. I was expecting 2 laps of the track, but we got 3, YAY!!! Hold on it's still going, 4!!! So excited to get 4 laps. Shamefully got off after cheering the 4th lap. At least it promoted the ride, some kid came along after we'd been on after seeing us have fun
The park has loads of other bits and pieces but we were only there for an hour as I just wanted the 3 credits. There's bumper cars, a load of flats, go karts and a massive sky coaster(which doesn't interest me at all) so there's loads to do, if you have the time.
It's obviously a family park, which has 2 (Skycoaster included) real adult rides. But it is what it is, fun spot - spot on.
Up next - Seaworld
ATTACKHAMMER
Strata Poster
Great report, interesting to hear what Fun Spot is like I couldn't go there due to a storm. I love Taco Bell!
DelPiero
Strata Poster
The thing i like about the place is that it's an extra park to go for a couple of hours in the evening once the main parks have closed. We were honestly a bit knackered by this point after a week and a half of non stop holiday making, so we just did the creds and didn't bother with all the flats and stuff.
It's not a theme park at all, but a permanent fair type thing with some decent attractions and one amazing coaster. Next time your over there, just take the 5 min drive whenever you can just to get on WL, it really is that good.
It's not a theme park at all, but a permanent fair type thing with some decent attractions and one amazing coaster. Next time your over there, just take the 5 min drive whenever you can just to get on WL, it really is that good.
DelPiero
Strata Poster
Park 5 - Seaworld
Another day, another park. Today's plan was Seaworld for a few hours to see a couple of shows and enjoy some coasters, and then Aquatica for a couple more hours lazing about and getting super wet.
We got the hotel shuttle to the park and arrived at about 10.
We faffed around looking for a map but they had run out, nevermind, can't be that hard to find everything right. Wandered past the Dolphin pool so stopped for a few mins to watch them rise out of the water like Donny Most. They were cute, but we've all seen dolphins before.
We then took the long way round to get to the first coaster of the day - Kraken.
We stowed our bag and made for the back row, there was no queue but there was only 1 train operating so we had a few minutes wait for the train in front to complete it's circuit.
Unfortunately there isn't much to say about Kraken. It's ok, there are a couple of really good elements, the dive loop after the first loop is really snappy but not uncomfortable. The 2nd loop is nice and forceful and the final corkscrew before the brakes was unexpected and fun.
Other than that it's flatters to deceive. The drop is nothing special, neither is the large loop, nor the cobra roll, nor the zero-g. They aren't bad, i enjoyed the ride, but it's just middle of the road for me. I re rode immediately and had the same experience in the 2nd row. Fun but unspectacular.
Time for Journey to Atlantis as it's right next to Kraken right? Wrong - Spited. It had been working earlier when we got there so I was hopeful, we hung around for 10 mins but decided to try the new ride while we waited.
It only had a 10 min wait so we queued up. We decided to take the mild ride as the queue was a lot shorter. The ride itself is interesting, more to do with the ride system than anything else as the cars cross paths on numerous occasions. I think I actually spent more time watching the movements of the cars than the screens.
Unfortunately the final screen didn't work so we missed the end of the story, we blagged another go without requeuing and the final screen worked on our second go.
I found the story istelf to be interesting and the final 2 rooms are done really well but I think the first large room is focused on a bit too long.
It's easily the best penguin exhibit i've seen, the actual animal enclosure is fantastic and we spent quite a while looking at the different species. It's really cold in there, which is great when it's boiling outside.
We wandered out to find that JTA was still not running and realised we were missing the Shamu show!! We sauntered over to Shamu's stadium and managed to catch the last 5 minutes. It was impressive, feel bad for the people covered in stinky water though
The show ended and I knew there would be a huge wall of people exiting, a lot of which would go on Shamu Express so we ran, yes, ran to the cred before the rest of the GP got there.
Love, Love the train on this! We had to get front row for the extra Shamu experience. The ride is your standard Zierer family coaster with a lovely pink track and it was ok for a kids coaster. We were right to get there quick as the crowds engulfed the coaster and there was at least a trains worth of queues when we exited.
With a lot of the Shamu crowd now milling around the kids area we decided to move onto my most anticipated coaster at the park - Manta.
I was looking forward to the pretzel loop so much, my first one. I'm not a fan of air at Alton as I find it totally forceless and boring, but I appreciate the concept, so this would either make or break flying coasters for me. The queue was a decent 15 min so we got a good look at the aquarium exhibit as we queued. This really is fantastic as you can see so many different species of rays with other fish and sea horses etc, it really is done well. After we had ridden the coaster we went into the exhibit again to spend a bit more time looking at the aquarium.
We opted for the back row again, as I wanted the full force of the pretzel to be apparent and was happy to find that the restraints were very comfortable, after a short wait to be checked we were outta there and up the 140ft lift hill. The drop was great, no pre-drop (the first I remember on the trip) straight down the drop to the right was excellent and into the pretzel. Mind... Blown. Unbelieveable, such a great element. The speed and force at the bottom of it is just astounding, unfortunately the ride slows considerably into the first inline, which is smooth, but a major anticlimax after the first inversion.
Fortunately it picks up speed into the corkscrew which was very good, and the helix over the water into the canyon is also very good and smooth, and the final inline finishes it off well.
It's easily the better flyer of the two i've ridden, and one of the smoothest i've ever been on but apart from the pretzel it's rather forceless. I would love to make it over to Tatsu at some point considering it's reputation. Manta makes excellent use of it's surroundings though and is themed brilliantly. To me, it's the best coaster at the park, if not the most thrilling of the trip, it is up there as the best themed and enjoyable. I would have re-ridden it loads if we had the time but were on a tight schedule.
We had another show to catch so made our way to the sealion, otter and walrus show.
This is a great little show, full of different animals, humour and a story which keeps you interested. It also has quite a bit of audience participation which is a refreshing change to the other sealion shows i've seen.
The set is nicely done, and the actors (both human and mammal) do well to make the audience laugh. It's quite simply the best sealion type show i've seen.
However, Seaworld really need to organise the seating of this better, we got there about 10 minutes before the start and took our seats and the staircase was left open for nearly the entire show for latecomers to walk in and take seats, which is fine, but they should restrict the access to the far sides rather than near the middle as our view was constantly obstructed by people. Install a back/side staircase Seaworld!
After the show we went back to JTA to see if it was open, HURRAH!
Queue joined and 15 minutes later we were on the boat/train. They've obviously put a lot of effort into the boat portion of the ride, although you do get to Atlantis very quickly. The animatronics were good and the large drop was fun but overall I wasn't that impressed, the coaster portion is a bit small and the splashdown doesn't really get you that wet, although it looks good from a spectator viewpoint.
We had a look inside the shop and bought our son some tat and I had a look at the aquarium inside the shop, love Jellyfish.
Time was getting away from us so we decided to leave at this point and head over to Aquatica. I won't bore you with a report from there but it's worth an afternoon getting wet if you have the time. Wet n Wild is better though.
Overall Seaworld is one of those parks where the coasters aren't the stars of the show, but are a welcome addition. We missed a lot of it as it was low down on our priority list, but the shows we did see were excellent and the aquariums we saw were some of the best kept and populated i've seen.
Coaster wise, only Manta really stood out for me, but none of them are a major let down, there are just better elsewhere. If you're just going for creds it takes a couple of hours max.
Next up the final parks - Universal Studios and IOA
Another day, another park. Today's plan was Seaworld for a few hours to see a couple of shows and enjoy some coasters, and then Aquatica for a couple more hours lazing about and getting super wet.
We got the hotel shuttle to the park and arrived at about 10.
We faffed around looking for a map but they had run out, nevermind, can't be that hard to find everything right. Wandered past the Dolphin pool so stopped for a few mins to watch them rise out of the water like Donny Most. They were cute, but we've all seen dolphins before.
We then took the long way round to get to the first coaster of the day - Kraken.
We stowed our bag and made for the back row, there was no queue but there was only 1 train operating so we had a few minutes wait for the train in front to complete it's circuit.
Unfortunately there isn't much to say about Kraken. It's ok, there are a couple of really good elements, the dive loop after the first loop is really snappy but not uncomfortable. The 2nd loop is nice and forceful and the final corkscrew before the brakes was unexpected and fun.
Other than that it's flatters to deceive. The drop is nothing special, neither is the large loop, nor the cobra roll, nor the zero-g. They aren't bad, i enjoyed the ride, but it's just middle of the road for me. I re rode immediately and had the same experience in the 2nd row. Fun but unspectacular.
Time for Journey to Atlantis as it's right next to Kraken right? Wrong - Spited. It had been working earlier when we got there so I was hopeful, we hung around for 10 mins but decided to try the new ride while we waited.
It only had a 10 min wait so we queued up. We decided to take the mild ride as the queue was a lot shorter. The ride itself is interesting, more to do with the ride system than anything else as the cars cross paths on numerous occasions. I think I actually spent more time watching the movements of the cars than the screens.
Unfortunately the final screen didn't work so we missed the end of the story, we blagged another go without requeuing and the final screen worked on our second go.
I found the story istelf to be interesting and the final 2 rooms are done really well but I think the first large room is focused on a bit too long.
It's easily the best penguin exhibit i've seen, the actual animal enclosure is fantastic and we spent quite a while looking at the different species. It's really cold in there, which is great when it's boiling outside.
We wandered out to find that JTA was still not running and realised we were missing the Shamu show!! We sauntered over to Shamu's stadium and managed to catch the last 5 minutes. It was impressive, feel bad for the people covered in stinky water though
The show ended and I knew there would be a huge wall of people exiting, a lot of which would go on Shamu Express so we ran, yes, ran to the cred before the rest of the GP got there.
Love, Love the train on this! We had to get front row for the extra Shamu experience. The ride is your standard Zierer family coaster with a lovely pink track and it was ok for a kids coaster. We were right to get there quick as the crowds engulfed the coaster and there was at least a trains worth of queues when we exited.
With a lot of the Shamu crowd now milling around the kids area we decided to move onto my most anticipated coaster at the park - Manta.
I was looking forward to the pretzel loop so much, my first one. I'm not a fan of air at Alton as I find it totally forceless and boring, but I appreciate the concept, so this would either make or break flying coasters for me. The queue was a decent 15 min so we got a good look at the aquarium exhibit as we queued. This really is fantastic as you can see so many different species of rays with other fish and sea horses etc, it really is done well. After we had ridden the coaster we went into the exhibit again to spend a bit more time looking at the aquarium.
We opted for the back row again, as I wanted the full force of the pretzel to be apparent and was happy to find that the restraints were very comfortable, after a short wait to be checked we were outta there and up the 140ft lift hill. The drop was great, no pre-drop (the first I remember on the trip) straight down the drop to the right was excellent and into the pretzel. Mind... Blown. Unbelieveable, such a great element. The speed and force at the bottom of it is just astounding, unfortunately the ride slows considerably into the first inline, which is smooth, but a major anticlimax after the first inversion.
Fortunately it picks up speed into the corkscrew which was very good, and the helix over the water into the canyon is also very good and smooth, and the final inline finishes it off well.
It's easily the better flyer of the two i've ridden, and one of the smoothest i've ever been on but apart from the pretzel it's rather forceless. I would love to make it over to Tatsu at some point considering it's reputation. Manta makes excellent use of it's surroundings though and is themed brilliantly. To me, it's the best coaster at the park, if not the most thrilling of the trip, it is up there as the best themed and enjoyable. I would have re-ridden it loads if we had the time but were on a tight schedule.
We had another show to catch so made our way to the sealion, otter and walrus show.
This is a great little show, full of different animals, humour and a story which keeps you interested. It also has quite a bit of audience participation which is a refreshing change to the other sealion shows i've seen.
The set is nicely done, and the actors (both human and mammal) do well to make the audience laugh. It's quite simply the best sealion type show i've seen.
However, Seaworld really need to organise the seating of this better, we got there about 10 minutes before the start and took our seats and the staircase was left open for nearly the entire show for latecomers to walk in and take seats, which is fine, but they should restrict the access to the far sides rather than near the middle as our view was constantly obstructed by people. Install a back/side staircase Seaworld!
After the show we went back to JTA to see if it was open, HURRAH!
Queue joined and 15 minutes later we were on the boat/train. They've obviously put a lot of effort into the boat portion of the ride, although you do get to Atlantis very quickly. The animatronics were good and the large drop was fun but overall I wasn't that impressed, the coaster portion is a bit small and the splashdown doesn't really get you that wet, although it looks good from a spectator viewpoint.
We had a look inside the shop and bought our son some tat and I had a look at the aquarium inside the shop, love Jellyfish.
Time was getting away from us so we decided to leave at this point and head over to Aquatica. I won't bore you with a report from there but it's worth an afternoon getting wet if you have the time. Wet n Wild is better though.
Overall Seaworld is one of those parks where the coasters aren't the stars of the show, but are a welcome addition. We missed a lot of it as it was low down on our priority list, but the shows we did see were excellent and the aquariums we saw were some of the best kept and populated i've seen.
Coaster wise, only Manta really stood out for me, but none of them are a major let down, there are just better elsewhere. If you're just going for creds it takes a couple of hours max.
Next up the final parks - Universal Studios and IOA
Hutch
Strata Poster
Besides the major rides and Shamu, I think the only other attraction I did when I went there was the arctic exhibit. It was kinda fun and the temperature was nice and cool. I just wished there were a bit more animals though (there was only one poor polar bear).
But still loving the long report.
I'll try to keep that in mind as I might be visiting Alton next year. I hope I end up liking Air though, but I have a feeling that amazing feeling of flying isn't as amazing as I remember.delpiero1982 said:
But still loving the long report.
CookieCoasters
Giga Poster
Good report. I love SeaWorlds trio (Kraken, Manta and JTA) because they each offer different but excellent ride experiences IMO. I think Krakens first drop is awesome right next to the water and has great airtime at the back. The rest of the ride is typical B&M Multi-looper but is all executed well I think. I love flying coasters (including air), and pretzel loops, so Manta is easily one of my favourite coasters as I also enjoy the slightly more mellow sections. JTA is just a really fun well themed water ride, although I do agree that the coaster section is a bit short.
DelPiero
Strata Poster
Bearing in mind that air was the first of its type it's nowhere near as forceful as the more recent versions, as long as expectations aren't too high you'll probably enjoy it.
Kraken is a good coaster in its own right, it does have some excellent sections but I wasn't sold on the drop.
Manta is enjoyable for many reasons, one of the best has to be the ride quality, smooth as silk.
Hoping to post the last report sometime this week, might need to split it, massive report
Kraken is a good coaster in its own right, it does have some excellent sections but I wasn't sold on the drop.
Manta is enjoyable for many reasons, one of the best has to be the ride quality, smooth as silk.
Hoping to post the last report sometime this week, might need to split it, massive report
PeskyTrimBrake
Hyper Poster
Dayum! What a honeymoon!