how do you all park so much

I was just wondering how so many of you always seem to go to parks so much-is it just you plan one big trip and hit em all in a week or so-or just have very very flexible jobs. tell me because I am so jealous of some of you!!!

2 Ways.

Day trips:

These would include parks with in a 4 hour drive from Home.

"One big trip":

Usually hit a few on vacation: Last years vacation included Marineland (Ont), Martin's Fantasy Island, Seabreeze, Great Escape, Canobie Lake, Funtown USA, Palace Playland, Lake Compounce, Rye Playland all in 9 days. (the North East black out kept us from Canada's Wonderland and the extreme heat kept us from Six Flags New England)

This year's 2 week planned vacation in June will consist of: Carowinds, Myrtle Beach Pavillion, Family Kingdom, Boomers (Dania FL), Miracle Strip (is that place still open?), Wild Adventures (Valdosta GA), Six Flags Over Georgia and Dollywood. IF time permits, Visionland and Lake Winnie will also be in there. *** Edited 5/6/2004 4:17:12 PM UTC by SLFAKE***

I can't imagine myself enjoying a trip like that. I know some people go for weeks at a time, but I get to the point where I'd much rather do anything than ride coasters after a few days.

I'm thankful that my parents were willing to take me to so many parks when I was living with them, but, at the ripe old age of 20, I find myself going to NYC or Boston or Vermont more than anything else these days. Back in High School I could easily add 30 or 40 coasters to my track record every year. This year I'll be lucky if I add 10.

The fact that all I do is work and go to school helps, too. ;) *** Edited 5/6/2004 4:24:20 PM UTC by matt.***

It's simple: I didn't go on long trips to parks until I held a job that afforded me to pay for them.

I don't. I go to my "home parks" once a year, and if I'm lucky, I get one more road trip to a park that's within a 5-hour drive.

If I'm planning a major vacation and there happens to be a park nearby, I'll try to include it, but 3-4 park visits a year is par for the course for me.

I have a very flexible job....doesn't pay too well, working for *The State*, but it does give me LOTS of leave time. I just have to make sure not to overspend on any specific trip, and then I can take MORE of them...

My two "big trips" this year include(d) the SoCal Solace trip, and the upcoming *Tejas Adventure*, including THREE coaster events (Shark Bash, FiestaFest, and Rip Roarin' Rampage). Every park on this upcoming trip, including all the SF Texas parks, Schlitterbahn, LibertyLand, VisionLand, Magic Springs, Bell's, and Frontier City, are "new to me".

After that trip, I'll be pretty much done for the year, everything else will have to be "long weekend excursions"...like CoasterMania and/or IB's Lost Coaster Weekend...;)

EDIT: SLFAKE....yes, Miracle Strip IS still open, but this is the "swansong" for the park. Come Labor Day, MSAP will be no more...so DO get there this year....or not at all...:(
*** Edited 5/6/2004 4:41:05 PM UTC by rollergator***

We travel to parks every two weeks from march to november. We try to do all the local parks early....then we go away on weekend trips. We are members of a choice hotel rewards programs and another program that allows us a free night after staying two nights so that allows us some exra hotel stays. Also we buy season passes for parks such as 6 sf and cf where you can use your pass at other parks. It helps alot.

also, there are so many parks close to where we are located in pa . NJ,MD,PA,VA and OH are all within 6 hours from us.

I usually do one "big" week long trip in the summer, and a bunch of 2 or 3 day trips. Usually my big trip will be new parks and my short trips are parks I've been to before.

Doing that I can probably hit 10-20 parks a year if i'm lucky.

Like Moosh said a good job and flexible helps alot too.

What Moosh said. I have a good job with lots of vacation time (also lots of responsibility -- the tradeoffs). As a result, I can take trips sometimes. Amazing what a good education gets you...

I always try to have a flexible job, and my up and coming job will be for the state. As gator said, not alot of $$$$, but you get mad leave time (in WV its 10 hrs of vacation a month, 12 hr sick a month).

I have always visited atleast one large park a year(often times 2), and we always used to go to Myrtle Beach once a year(now I'm good if I go every other year, but I'm getting back in the habit), and there are 2 amusment parks and a few fun parks with rides/coasters down there as well.

Then, if I know that something major is going on with family(like a childbirth, graduation, wedding, etc. But always something good;)), and we have to go to another state for it, I plan on trying to visit a park while I'm there. In june, we're going to Mass to see my nephew graduate high school, and The Beaver is going to SFNE more than likely.

Plus, now that I have friends that live closer to Pitt, I'll be hitting Kennywood.

I only plan on one major trip a year besides vacation(vacation, again, is Myrtle). This year, the Major trip will be Beast buzz. But I' m planning a second trip with friends to CP and GL in early fall.

Since I already had to go to N.C. and be near charolette this month, I'm going a day early to hit carowinds with Andy(already printed tix online).

But the most important factors is haveing a job that supports your habits, and haveing the time to do it.

Route planning so that you can hit multiple parks without criss-cross driving is the main thing. Getting to bed relatively early while you're out so you can get an early start on driving to the next park is another tactic I use. Also, can't beat a Hampton Inn with free all you can eat breakfast ;)

I think a lot of us hit local parks and then do a coaster trip every so often. Gotta do regular trips somethines too ya know (Hawaii for example). ;)

on "all you can eat breakfasts":

We wound up staying at two Hampton Inns (just east of Kennywood and one in Saco ME near Funtown) and a Comfort Inn in Batavia NY (very close to SFDL and not all that bad for Seabreeze either) that offered this.

The complimentary contential breakfasts at these places did a few things. 1) It saved us money 2) It saved us time.

My season begins in March with my coaster pilgramige to BGW, SFA opens up a couple of weeks later. I'm starting my own annual memorial day weekend tour this year with a trip that will take me to BGW, PKD, SFA, HP in a matter of one week. Before the end of the summer, I will trek either to Sea World San Antonio, SFoT and SFFT, or SFNE, Lake Compounce, Great Escape, Darien Lake and possibly Seabreeze. Weekend trips for me will include William's Grove, Dorney Park and Camden Park.

I'm going to try and con my wife into going to Dollywood and BGT for a weekend trips this fall and my sister lives in Orlando so a trip there with the right airfare is always a possibility.

In early January, my friend and I are planning a trip to Las Vegas for the Consumer Electronics Show. I plan on riding coasters there as well.

So basically, anywhere I go that has a coaster, I ride it (well, except the brothels in Las Vegas).
*** Edited 5/6/2004 6:49:21 PM UTC by coasterguts***

I usually only make one or two relatively (3 or 4 parks) big trips a summer. Students have a ton of time during the summer between class and job and then job and class to squeeze in a couple of big trips. Moneywise, being a student also means knowing lots of people from all over the country (well, if you go to a big school). I've only stayed in a motel one night because of coastering and have yet to need to rent a car. I'm always staying with friends and getting "passed around" to their different houses and home parks. I use online stuff for airfare and can usually find flights for around $100 for wherever I'm going. It also helps that my parents fly to Hong Kong and back regularly so they have FFMiles pouring out their ears.

Yes. I get passed around. There. I said it.

How do I park so much? Well, I drive a lot and everytime I stop driving, I have to park.

Ba-dum-ching!

I just find out who's planning a big summer trip, then befriend them and invite myself. :)

But seriously, I wouldn't travel nearly as much as I do if I hadn't made good coaster friends. The "normal" friends are only good for 1, maybe 2, park visits a year, and they're generally only wanting to hit local parks or big parks they've heard about (CP).

I'm also a big advocate of the long weekend. Sure, it's a little crazy to drive 1000 miles in 3 days, but it's fun, and you only live once, you know? And if you can afford it, flying for long weekends is even better (taking my 4th long weekend to Vegas in June :) ).

I know I'm hittin' Hershey and Dorney, but that's it. *** Edited 5/6/2004 7:32:50 PM UTC by SixFlagsAmericaFan***

dawnmarie sez: "I just find out who's planning a big summer trip, then befriend them and invite myself."

Buying cards and calendars helps, too ;)

mOOSH

*** Edited 5/6/2004 7:44:10 PM UTC by Mamoosh***

I can one-up the having a job that provides money and flexibility to travel---and that's having a job that requires travel to a wide variety of places. Last summer I visited six parks as a side effect of business trips.

You can't count on this, though. This summer it seems that all of my business trips are to the same city for some reason.