Looking for ValleyFair info

Im going to ValleyFair for the first time next week and dont know much about the park and have ssen few reports.
Does anyone have any tips/info on how to get the most out of my visit. What strategies to use to ride all the ocasters, how busy is the park, what good places are there to eat inside the park, and deals offered for cheaper admission?? Any info on this park or advice would be greatly appreciated and thanks in advance!!

Bob,

ValleyFair! can easily be done in one day. Cans of Mountain Dew contain $10 discounts, however I have not seen that on other Pepsi products. I think local Subways also have discount coupons. Local schools are out at the end of this week, so you will luckily miss the school days at the park. If you go during the week, crowds should not be a problem. I would get to the park at 10am and head straight to Renegade for a front row seat. Get in as many rides on Renegade as possible early in the day when crowds are light. Other busy rides will be Wild Thing and Extreme Swing. Hit these early. High Roller and Steel Venom can also get busy, but still <15 minute waits during the week. Excalibur should be a walk-on. The Skyscraper is a fun intense upgrade charge. The waterpark is very small. VF is on the outskirts of the Twin Cities and traffic should not be a problem. Have fun. Any further questions, feel free to ask. *** Edited 6/7/2007 6:38:42 PM UTC by sws***

Never mind Scott. I'll sell you a platinum Q-Bot for $30! :)

Don't miss the log flume. It's great!

Ride Excalibur in the last row for some serious ejector air on the twisting bunny hop midway through the ride.

Do the Skyscraper. It looks like you're going to hit Wild Thing and it's the strap variety, so you really feel exposed on it!

Playa, you're always going first class all the way. ;)

Bob, Wild Thing Native and I did trip reports from opening day - May 12, and Jeff did a recent one also from when he visited the Twin Cities. You can get a good overview from those.

I think the coupons right now are at Super America. Take a look at Riptide and see which seats are getting wet and decide how wet you want to get, if you want to ride it. I like Wild Thing in all the seats of the first car, HR in the very back (second to last seat has significantly less air), and Renegade all over. That ride should be done front, back, and middle. The food sucks throughout the park, but I prefer the rubbery turkey legs. Those are at a stand right before you get to Renegade. I agree the log flume is better than average. If you have not done an S&S Swing, then Xtreme Swing is a must ride. Also check out the Flying Trapeze as it have a bit of a different feel from your normal wave swinger. Don't forget the Park at the Mall of America while you are here. Have a great time.

Okay, for real this time...

Second to last row on Excalibur. Same air, more comfortable (off-wheel) ride.

The two seats to the farthest extremes of the RipTide gondola stay dry.

While VF's Waterpark is small, the body slides are actually rather good. Don't skip Raging Rapids if you like slides. There's a queue for the tubes directly to the right of the entrance.

If you don't wanna spend $$$ on food, exit the park, turn to the right, drive past VF and in five minutes, you'll be in Shakopee. On or around Marschall Road (turn left) you'll find the usual fast food suspects, a Perkins, a little Chinese Buffet and a Cub Foods just north of Hwy 169.

Otherwise, just walk around and enjoy it. It's a smaller park, they'll get you on and off the rides quickly and there aren't many 'secrets' to be kept--save for which bumper cars handle best or which Tilt-A-Whirl car is the loosest. And nobody gets that outta me!

-'Playa
(edited for more factual goodness)

*** Edited 6/7/2007 7:30:03 PM UTC by CoastaPlaya***

For food options, I've found one thing I haven't found elsewhere: deep fried cheese curds! mmmm mmmmmmmmmm

Actually, I don't think the food is that bad, at least for an amusement park. Sarah likes Panda Express, although the one at MOA is better. It's located by the antique cars. I like the gyros - located near the entrance of High Roller. There's an indoor air-conditioned 50s style diner near Extreme Swing and Wild Thing. It's very small and will be packed on hot days during the lunch hour. However, I've been known to eat most anything, so some people might disagree.

Thanks for the info its greatly appreciated!!