Geauga Lake 5/28/06

The wife and I made a last minute decision to go to the park on Sunday, based mostly on the draw of Wildwater Kingdom - she doesn't ride coasters at all, so we needed a different reason to go.

Last year I had a season pass to the park (combo with Cedar Point), but didn't go even once, since every time I've been up there in the last couple of years it just seems like a crappy, burdonsome experience. But friends of mine had been and said it was better, so we headed out.

First mistake was forgetting that they only take cash for the parking lot. Doh! Had a season pass to CP for so long that I haven't paid parking for ages, and I was more than a little peeved to have to turn round and go find an ATM. We parked on the WWK side.

Once we were inside the park, it was obvious that a *lot* of work had been done. The new management clearly have a vision of where they are going to take this thing and how they are going to do it.

The park was busier than I've ever seen it, but things seemed to be running smoothly. Ruth wanted to ride Americana (Ferris Wheel) first, so we headed across the lake for that. I'd told her I wanted to get a ride on the newly retracked Raging Wolf Bobs, so we headed over there. En Route I noticed Dominator had no line, so Ruth waited while I got a quick ride. This turned out to be a good decision, because a Guest Relations type person interviewed Ruth while she was waiting, with a basic survey of what we liked, why we were here, would we come again and so on. We got a free 16-oz refill cup for her time! That came in very handy throughout the day - $ 2.00 refills are good on a hot day.

RWB was running really nicely, the CF guys have done wonders for this coaster. I took front seat of the 2nd car, and thoroughly enjoyed the ride. I'll be back for that for sure.

We headed over to the WWK side, hit the Scrambler and Pirate Boats, and then got into the wave pool. Pretty crowded, but good fun. The wave cycle is cool, but the water was like a warm bath - in spots it felt cooler *out* of the water than in it. But fun nonetheless. The relocated waterslides were great too.

Hung around at the wave pool some more, then back to the Scrambler and 25c Cotton Candy. From a guest perspective, the Cotton Candy at 25c is just unbeatable; there was a long line of people waiting for it.

We left fairly early (around 4-ish) since we had other commitments for the evening.

My impressions of the park are dramatically changed. The CF magic wand seems to have transformed the place into a great family destination. Sure, there may still be some teething troubles, but the staff seem friendly and energised; and my overall memory of the day is "that was great" and not "that was mediocre at best".

Long May It Last.

With good reports coming in, this might be the year I get to GL. My sister is coming in in July and she loves wooden coasters. We are certainly going to KW and if we do go to another park, it will most likely be GL.

---

panman said:
First mistake was forgetting that they only take cash for the parking lot. Doh! Had a season pass to CP for so long that I haven't paid parking for ages, and I was more than a little peeved to have to turn round and go find an ATM. We parked on the WWK side.

---

Now thay you (and I) have learned the hard way, let me stress: Never, EVER, try to park without plenty of cash! One time, I thought that this one downtown Cincinnati garagedidn't collect the parking fee until exit, during events nearby at the U.S. Bank Arena. BIG mistake. A clueless parking staff and downright mad cars behind me trying to get in! Some garages may accept cards, but to most places, plastic is Greek to them.

Back on topic, I for one can't wait to go back to Geauga Lake on Saturday, for CoasterEXT. I've never been to the water park, so I'll probably spend some time there - I've been wantting to do the large, tall waterslide complex they relocated. *** Edited 5/29/2006 3:39:12 PM UTC by CoastersNSich***

Regarding for parking without cash -- OK if you are going to KW, KB, or HW. Free parking!

I was at GL also mainly for WWK on Saturday the 27th. I was honestly expecting more from the wavepool. The wavepool back by Superman had a "wavemaker" that sent humongous waves out to the end of the pool. For this new one, the waves all move side-to-side in the pool. Once they hit a certain point they sort of meander to the end of the pool, but it's a very "watered down" experience compared to the previous wavepool or others that I've been to, such as Sandcastle's in Pittsburgh.

Now, since Geauga is trying to market themselves as a family-oriented park, they are doing a great job of it because this wave "program" is a lot more family friendly ... a lot smaller kids and kids that might be a little more afraid of the big waves have a lot more area in this new wavepool to splash around, but if you're looking for an intense, huge-amplitude (that's teh word I was looking for!) pool, this ain't it.

And I agree with the original writer here too, crowds this year are a little larger ... we parked near the back of the rides side parking lot for the first time in probably 3 years. Still had a great day at the park, except for the sunburn which is STILL kicking our asses! ;)

Did the interviewer ask your wife how much money you intended to spend at the park? I'm glad you had a great time, but I'm a bit disappointed that Geauga Lake is attracting visitors with no money...

No offense, but I'm just a selfish guy who owns FUN stock. I like my distributions and low per-cap spending at GL means less $ for me.

I don't own PKS stock, but my wife and I spent over $50 on parking, food and souvenirs yesterday at La Ronde. Is it time to by PKS?

On saturday when i went, i would say that was the most crowded i have seen it since the buyout of the park. The last time i saw it that crowded was in the old six flags days the first year. Things are really starting to look up on this acquistition. The lines for coasters are still the same, but at least now they are finally sending full trains.

I agree that the wave pool has less flavor than the old one, but i guess it really is for the family, they have so much room for additions to the area back there for more slides and such, but it really is a pristine thing for that park right now.

Attracting visitors is the whole reason prices are so low on the admission and some of the concessions. It is there to appeal to families so you can have a good time without spending so much money that you can enjoy the experience.

To me albeit early, geauga lake has easily jumped out to being my favorite park this year. Cedar Point has had operational problems, and just doesnt equal the atmostsphere of geauga lake. The employees have went the extra mile to the guests trying to get us to play the games, may be annoying but at least they try without killing you. I have been treated well, like by a guy running a food stand where i got a 2 buck refill on my giant souvenir mug i bought for my cousin to drink outta, he saw i cut my finger and looked for a bandage for me, and he didnt have on so he told me where first aid was. Now they have some character people back in the mix as employees.

Bravo Geauga Lake, you have got me supporting you for the year. Matter of fact i plan to go there on my birthday which is on June 5th i will pass on CP and PKI just to have a better time.

I am very glad you're enjoying our rides, being a ride op on Dominator, I am glad you're enjoying our park, that just makes my job and my day alot greater :).

My wife and I took our son Jacob out to the park today and we had a pretty good time as well. I haven't been to the park much since I was younger but I have to say it's probably one park that is getting overlooked.

My wife was able to grab all of her credits (9), go to the waterpark, and still manage to take care of our son's feeding needs.

Really the only problem we had were the men acting like apes and drooling all over her at the park when she would ride alone. So if there was a way to fix the clientele problem I'm sure it'd be an awesome park.

~Rob Willi

This is why I never leave my Wife's side at any park. If they see me, they bother someone else. I tend to be intimidating, but when the park really has no control over it in some cases, you gotta do what ya gotta do. Ignorant people, ya know?

Anyway, I'm really glad to hear these reports from my home park. The park has been close to my heart for over 25 years, and this really means something to me. *** Edited 5/30/2006 5:53:06 AM UTC by lakecrystal***