Knotts advice?

Well this week me and my friends are headed to Long Beach for Anime Expo. We are staying in buena park at a hotel within walking distance to KBF. Well we where planning on hitting up Knott's on thursday after checking in. We see they have a $25 after 4 deal which would work perfect for us. I was wondering. Do you have any suggestions on how to show my no coaster fan friends a good time? I want them to have a good time but I dont want them to feel bored or anything.

Knotts is small enough that if you just do coasters and a few flats, you won't need a full day. But there are still the usual Cedar Fair flats if they don't wanna do the coasters. There's a fun log flume, the indoor mine ride is a must, the stagecoach is a unique ride , there's a big splash type log ride, big drop ride, a huge kiddie section. I think there's plenty to do even for a non-coaster fan.

They have some "shows" too. But, the one we actually watched while eating lunch was so pathetic I wouldn't even call it a show.

I went there twice as a kid in the 80's and their enclosed log ride is still the best log ride I've been on. It was themed in detail and the first drop was in total darkness. The parachutes were fun too, but I don't remember the coasters (probably because I couldn't ride them yet). The pictures I've seen show some fun looking coasters, but when I return I will not miss the log ride for anything.

I think the log ride is closed right now.

The Calico Mine Train was a very long wait on my visit last Aug/Sept. They had one train (not sure if that's the norm), and the wait was well over an hour. It's a cool and unique dark ride, but I'd suggest hitting it early as the line is deceptively a LOT longer than it appears.

Also, the flume is GREAT! The line for it moved fairly fast.

I would highly recommend eating the Knott's famous fried chicken dinner. It was so much food there was no way I could finish it all!

how big are the restraints on sierra sidewinder and GhostRider? Me and another in my group are kinda big (me:280 6f him:350 6'4) Will we fit on the rides?

I can't comment on Sidewinder as it wasn't open when I was there. But, GhostRider was no different than any other wooden coaster I've been on. They're a tight squeeze because of the seat divider. But, if you can ride other woodies, you'll be ok on here.

I'm pretty positive you won't fit on Xcelerator though.

Was Xcelerator the red-track coaster at the beginning of the movie Knocked Up?? Because if so, it looked better than what people have said about it...

Believe it or not, non-enthusiasts have been know to have fun on coasters too. ;)

Xcelerator was awesome. I've never experienced so much ejector air on a top hat as I have on that ride.

Do make sure to avail yourselves of the larger seats on Silver Bullet. My *guess* would be rows 3 & 6 have the larger seats (identifiable with the dual-seatbelt configuration).

Do NOT miss the following (i.e., non-coaster fans will LOVE these, mostly already mentioned): *awesome* darkride/flume hybrid, Calico Mine Ride, and the stagecoach. Not too many places around where you can ride a stagecoach, and I'm mostly amazed CF has left it operating this long. Sky Cabin is something they also might enjoy (cool, relaxing, and a great place for pics).

thrillerman1 must've hit a really bad day for Calico Mine, I've never waited more than 15-20 mins to ride, and never seen 1-train operation when there was ANY line at all.

Finally, as a certified (certifiable?) Carousel enthusiast - don't skip it! Dentzel-mania... :)

*** Edited 6/25/2007 6:29:57 PM UTC by rollergator***

Calico Mine Ride can be tricky if you're not familiar with the park. I thought it was only running one train too when we were waiting in line. However, after we were on the ride, I realized there was no way there was only one train running. I had no idea it was such a lengthy ride.

EDIT: BTW, Calico is totally worth it. I had no idea what it was and was pleasantly surprised. It truly is a unique ride that I've never seen at any other park. *** Edited 6/25/2007 6:53:33 PM UTC by halltd***

Ditto that. Calico Mine Ride is a must. It's truly one of a kind and quite enjoyable.

I didn't get to any shows at Knotts, but they can't be as bad as the ones at Waldameer. No offense, I love Wallyworld, but . . . blech.

I'm going to Knotts this Thursday too!
We're leaving for Cali the day after tomorrow.

Oh yeah, another piece of advice for Knott's is to avoid the Screamin' Swing. It's an upcharge like at Dorney, but the one at Dorney has a ride cycle like twice that of the Knott's version. Knott's had a cycle time as short as Skyhawk and for an upcharge, I found that appalling.

DO NOT MISS OUT ON MYSTERY LODGE (located in the Wild Water Wilderness section of the park). It's an industry award winning attraction/show. A lot of out of towners going to Knott's for the first time always somehow miss visiting this, which is a shame since it's one of the park's best attractions.

...And may not be around much longer. Yes, the Mystery Lodge is a must.

how do the seats on ghostrider compare to GCI seats?

This is the most recent thread I could find, and I figured with Easter just around the corner it was the perfect time to resurrect it.

But seriously.

The Meyer clan is headed out to the west coast in less than 50 days, and Knotts is on the agenda for one of the days (not any day in particular, just whenever it "feels right"). I'm too young to have an actual bucket list, but this is definitely a place I have always wanted to go.

We're staying in Huntington Beach for a week about a block from the pier, but none of us have ever been here. We're lovers of seafood, live music, and the place we are staying (VRBO) has provided bikes for the four of us so we can do some exploring.

So given all that, any advice about the park or the area in general is greatly appreciated.

XOXO,

Kevin

P.S. And maybe someone could finally answer Zongaboy (above)? He's been waiting 15 years for an answer. Assholes.