Kennywood or Gaeuga Lake???

This is a no-brainer for me: 3 days at Kennywood, 1 at Geauga Lake, 0 at Cedar Point. Conicidentally, this corresponds to the number of good wooden coasters the respective parks have! ;)

I dunno I'm still sticking with KW, if there are two parks one must visit in a lifetime they would be CP and KW. GL is a lot better that last year, as far as ride ops, customer service, and cleanliness goes, but I still can't spend more than a few hours at GL with out becoming increditablty bored.

Thought I'd finally come up with at least an uninspired signature for now:

I'd go to Kennywood, not because of the phantom, but because of the Thunderbolt. The fries help too.

---

Chaindog said:
I dunno - since you're driving accross PA anyway, I would consider dumping both of them and stopping at Knoebel's.

But that's just me.

If I had to choose between the aforementioned, I'd probably pick Kennywood. it is a better park, no doubt.

---

Good point, why not stop there as well? But I guess this is only making it harder. Id say GL. Like mentioned they need money if we want to see improvements we all expect to happen. I know KW has alot of history, but so does GL! Also, anything else notice their slogan of "The Fun Is Back!" sounds like a big slap in the face to SF inc lol, as if when they bought it all of the fun left until CF "rescued it" (which they did, its just funny lol)

Fubar - there is a lot more to a park than good wood. Quit trying to be "Super Enthusiast" and ride what is fun.

My vote goes to Kennywood.

Two votes for fries...

It isn't that GL is that bad, but rather that KW is that good. For real... the cheesy bacon fries would beat GL anyday.

Who in their right mind could spend three straight days at Kennywood? Geez, I had a hard time spending two straight days at Cedar Point. Ya need a change of scenery ...

Talk about just confusing the kid people ... but I'm curious to hear which you pick, especially considering the vast array of opinions here

--Brett, who refuses to ride Phantom's Revenge more than twice in a day out of reverence for my baby which was removed for it's inferior current incarnation ;)

Kennywood is a definate. The history is a big key, but they have world class wooden roller coasters and rides. They have the previously mentioned rides from yesteryear (Carousel, Turtle, Paratrooper, Old Mill, now Garfield's Nightmare, Old Kennywood RR, Noah's Ark, Kangaroo, and Whip) that are near extinction. They have good dark rides (Noah's Ark, Gold Rusher, and Old Mill/GN), GREAT coasters, and an atmosphere that can probally only found a Tivoli Gardens in Europe. They also have the modern spin and pukes (a Top Spin, Enterprise, Wipeout, Wave Swinger, Swing Around, Pirate, Magic Carpet, Bayern Kurve, and a Zamperella Hawk 48).

Even though GL has history, and all those coasters, Kennywood is still a better choice.

Oh, and if you go to KW, don't miss the Cheese-on-a-stick or fried Oreos. :)

---

Impulse-ive said:

--Brett, who refuses to ride Phantom's Revenge more than twice in a day out of reverence for my baby which was removed for it's inferior current incarnation

---

I still maintain that the original Phantom would easily win a spot in my top 20 favorite coasters of all time.

But PR would just as easily land in the top 5. (make that top 4 - ok, quite possibly top 3 :) )

They made a great coaster into an outstanding one.

My husband and I just got back from a trip that included our first visit to both parks. I would vote for Kennywood hands down. Thunderbolt is amazing, and the others are also first class.

Don't believe the hype on the fries. IMHO Worst. Fries. Ever.

The rest of the park, sensational. Go to Kennywood.

Boooo.... tambo.... boooo

Living close to both parks, I usually able to make it to both each year. That being said, you will be happy with either choice.

However, one point that I disageree on is the Thunderbolt. While the layout is nice, and has some unique elements, it is a very rough ride. Kennywood's fries are OK, but often times undercooked. I like a well done fry, and each time I eat them at Kennywood, it usually seems that they have been a tad under cooked.

Cedar Point's French Fries are very good from the Happy Friar. Make sure you get them from there, as they sell different fries in the park at different stands. You want the thick fries found there, Hot Potato or Mr. Potato. Just look for a picture of a guy holding a very large basket of fries... http://www.pointbuzz.com/Gallery.aspx?i=412

However, if you want the BEST fries bar none... Berardis in Huron (5 minutes from Cedar Point) is the place to go. Berardis was the original french fry vendor at Cedar Pointfor many years before CP took over all the concessions. While the above mentioned fries taste similar, the originals are still the best.

When Six Flags branded the park in 2000, they listed a vision of things they wanted to happen. If only they followed through like someguy named Walt did in central Florida (and some guy named Michael is basterdizing, but thats another thread) we wouldnt be having this discussion. However, they didnt, and we have new owners. Dick Kinzel said one of his biggest regrets was not buying Geauga Lake when he had the chance. Now he has it at probably a better bargin (both Sea World and Geauga Lake, 5 additional coasters) than what he would have got it for before the SF experiment, lets see what he can do with it. I am not expecting Cedar Point 2 in Aurora, as Michigans Adventure, Dorney and Valley Fair are doing just fine as smaller, family parks.

I do enjoy the Jack Rabbit at KW though. That double dip with a very loose and non adjustable leather strap for a seatbelt is incredible. If you pick KW, and ride Phantoms Revenge, sit in the middle for max air time. I have to admit, I do like Phantoms Revenge better than the original, as I always left the original with a headache from the horse collar banging against my head. It took the loops WAY to fast. Now you can put your hands up.

I have noticed that people have mentioned Kennywood history. However, nobody has mentioned the Big Dipper. It was built in 1926 buy some guy you may have heard of named John Miller. He built the Pippen, Racer and Jack Rabbit at Kennywood.

Kennywood looks like it has been around for over 100 years, but I mean that in a good way. Very clean, and well maintained. Some of the buildings are ancient. Geauga Lake onthe other hand, although it is well over 100 seasons does not have that old time feel to it. Kennywood has a lot of older rides that make you feel like you have stepped through a time warp (because they are clean and well maintained, and do not look that old). GL looks like it could have opened 20 years ago. You cant even find Pac-Man machine at GL much less a fortune teller machine or anything else from yesteryear. Not to brag, but I feel I am in the best location there is with having Cedar Point and Geauga Lake (modern parks) and Kennywood, Waldammer and Coneaut Lake (older family style parks) all within a 2 hour drive at most. I love the state-of-the-art stuff at the super parks, but I love the atmosphere and short lines (and older rides) of the older, more traditional parks. I love retro, and I love the future. :)

1ej

I say Go to Geauga Lake. Its pretty decent this year and all the coaster's are running great. (All that are open). Anyways, yes Kennywood is good if you want classic rides, fries and (my opinion) very overrated woodies. If you want to go for coaster's, hit Geauga.Impulse, floorless, 2 woddies, flyer,arrow looper, inverted, and a boomerang.(Total, your trip would consist of 26 (cp & Gl)coaster's vs. 21 (cp & kw)). Both are very fun parks and offer a decent amount of stuff to do. Geauga Lake, you have a water park and thrill park. Kenny Wood you have a traditional family park with one major coaster(Phantom). (All though the veiw from pitt fall is amaizing.)This is just my opinion and what I think. I hope which ever you choose you have a great time!

ok, i have never been to GL, but (i'm gonna get kicked for this one) i went to kennywood last year and wasn't real impressed. PR did nothing for me, and i can't say i was thrilled with the rest of the coasters. ok, i admit i was in very bad company and it didn't help, but not a great amusement park experience for me :(

I'm biased -- I've never been to Geauga Lake.

But, if you like woodies or have never ridden a world-class wooden roller coaster, pick Kennywood. Cedar Point has the world's greatest selection of modern steel coasters, but their woodie selection is nothing to brag about. Mean Streak is fast with lots of rough curves and very little no airtime -- I've always found myself hanging on rather than enjoying the ride. Blue Streak has a bit of airtime, but it's small and quite tame. Gemini is just a steel coaster with a wooden support structure.

Kennywood has two amazing woodies -- Thunderbolt (1968) and Jackrabbit (1921) plus a smooth-running classic -- Racer (1927). None of these are as fast as Mean Streak, but Jackrabbit and Thunderbolt both deliver quality airtime. (I didn't think Thunderbolt was rough, but it's been two years...) Racer is just as smooth as Gemini, just not as fast and a few decades older. Try them, I bet you'll like them.

Like CoastingThru, I don't think Phantom's Revenge is worth a special trip. The dive off the lift hill is great, but the rest of the ride is inferior, especially compared to Magnum XL-200 at Cedar Point (which has virtually the same drop-height). The only noteworthy steel coaster is the spinning wild-mouse Exterminator, which is excellent if the line is short. (I waited +70 minutes in May 2002.)

Also, I must agree with Chaindog. If you REALLY love wooden roller coasters, consider detouring to Knobels instead. Their steel coaster selection is poor and the park is much smaller than Kennywood, but on Pheonix, you get air on every little bump right up to the brake station, and Twister is an amazing helix-coaster, with lots of roaring curves (that don't hurt like Mean Streak). Both Knobels and Kennywood have lots of good flat rides, classic and modern. The ride-through haunted house at Knobels (extra charge) is better than Disney's haunted mansion. At Kennywood, you can literally ride history -- the dark boat ride, The Old Mill, is over 100 years old.

One word of caution - Kennywood is in a suburb of Pittsburg, so many of the visitors will be unsupervised teenagers. I don't know if it will be any different in Geauga Lake, but in my experience, the further the park is from the city, the less likely parents will abandon their kids at the gate, substituting park staff for proper supervision. Kids without parents are much more likely to cut in line, smoke in line, and harrass other patrons. Knobels is so remote, it's like Disneyworld - kids don't go without their folks. Cedar Point, Hersheypark, Paramount Canada's Wonderland and Six Flags Darien Lake are well beyond normal public transit service, which means parents must go out of their way to drop their kids off. Kennywood, Dorney Park, and Six Flags La Ronde are located in town, close to public transit, so kids can get their on their own. See my Trip Report for Six Flags La Ronde for a worst-case scenario. *** Edited 6/10/2004 6:16:49 PM UTC by greatwhitenorth***

Hey, "Word", what's with the "super enthusiast" stuff, the original poster said "I do love woodies", and I was commenting from that point of view. Trust me, I ride AND enjoy everything you can call a coaster, and many other rides.

Theres no comparison that Kennywood should be your trip and will cost you alot less. You can get tickets at local area Blockbuster stores for only $18.00 each compared to the $28.95 they charge at the gate. The coasters are the best in the world. And im not just saying that cause I work there.