Paramount's Great America or Six Flags Marine World?

hi, i'm from england and im visiting san francisco this week. on thursday, i'm hoping to go to a theme park and i can't choose between six flags marine world and paramount's great america. i'm a fan of big thill rides, and i was dissapointed to hear that pga had a flying coaster, and then removed it (although I have already been on air at alton towers in england, and it is amazing!). which park has the best coasters and the best thrill rides, and which one is the best for a 15yr old and his thrill-seeking parents! cheers.

I think that Six Flags Marine World might be the best choice.

You'll get to try a B&M floorless coaster, which there are none of in the UK. Same goes for V2, an impulse. Roar, their GCI woodie is also a good ride. Hopefully SFMW's operations are decent.

I thought their animal attractions were nice and will help round out the day.

PGA is an ok park, but especially without Stealth (the flyer) and Greased Lightnin', I can't really recommend it. You have Nemesis in England, which is probably far superior to their B&M invert, Top Gun. Invertigo is good, but the two rides named above don't equal a full day at a park.

I'd try Six Flags Marine World.

I'd agree with that. Of course if time permits I'd hit both, but if one has to go, I'd keep Marine World.

thanks very much. to be honest i agree, i think nemesis is superior to other roller coasters of its kind. thanks once again,

P.S. i hear its spring break this week. are all the schools on holiday? will the parks be quite busy as well?

Another vote for Marine World.

Marine World, at least until Paramount stops adding to their waterpark. Don't get me wrong, I think the waterpark was a great addition that will definitely boost attendance. But the park has removed two coasters in the last few years...they're overdue for something new.

Cheers very much, Marine World it is! I've heard it's cheaper than pga as well - apparently, if i bring in a bottle of coke i get $20 off admission!

Marine World. I got very bored at PGA last time I was there. I can't believe that I am reccomending a Six Flags over a Paramount but I think PGA is one of the worst Paramount Parks.

LOL, I made the trek to PGA once (stupid Stealth, LOL)....I'd recommend the SF park never having been. Regardless of coasters, or other rides, I can't think of a park where I felt less welcome. Apparently, based on local opinion, the park hasn't changed much and I'm finding it hard to believe that Paramount hasn't done *something* to change the way that place FEELS...it was definitely not a people-friendly place to visit, which has been absolutely UNIQUE in my experience at Paramount parks.

All I have to say is Medusa baby! I love that ride, the SFMW version that is. Oh what good memories...

Another vote for Marine World here. I consider PGA the world's largest kiddie park. Not only is it the least landscaped of the Paramount family, the rides are subpar by today's standards. The ride-ops are slow as all get up, and not even friendly. Plus Marine World is closer to San Francisco than Great America. After a day at the park, you can head to Napa and visit the vineyards.

I vote for Six Flags Marine World, I had this choice before in 2000. I came to the conclusion that SFMW has a better line-up of coasters, attractions and natural beauty at its location high up in hills. The only thing PGA had to offer was Stealth and that is not much to go on. My experience with ROAR! (mmmmmm Millennium Flyers...) was amazing as well as with Medusa. Now that the park has V²: Vertical Velocity and ZONGA , it is even more worth visiting, exceptly since now PG Ahas removed Stealth. *** Edited 3/27/2005 11:13:01 PM UTC by SONiC Senshi***

What's 'Kong' like? I can't find any info about it. Is it any good?

Kong is actually pretty horrible. I found it pretty painful, to be honest.

Even so, with Medusa, V2, Roar, animals and good Huss flat rides, I still give SFMW a good recommendation. Now that I think about it, I found their Boomerang to be non-painful as well.

I will give you my honest opinion about Kong, I thought Kong was pretty good. It isn't the best coaster but it isn't that bad either. It is smooth for the most part but it can get bumpy and there are a few rough spots. There is a little bit of airtime over the top of the lift in the back seat. Unlike most coaster fans, I do not dismiss Vekoma rides and say they suck just because they are Vekoma. I rate each coaster experience sperately and I have found through my experiences that the newer Vekoma coasters are fairly smooth and fun rides. It the case if Kong if you never ridden and if the wait is less than 20 minutes then I would say it is worth it.

Kong is a part of American Coaster History. Kong was originally Hangman at Opryland USA in Nashville, TN- it was the first version of the SLC to hit American shores. T2 at SFKK opened some 4 weeks later.

It was very smooth while at Opryland, has been said that it was the smoothest Vekoma SLC. Something happened during the move- and I hear it's very rough now, but I would still try it- if youv'e never ridden an SLC. *** Edited 3/28/2005 6:20:30 PM UTC by CoastermanX***

Hmmmm, I was *almost certain* that Great Nor'Easter was "the original SLC" and that the layout was designed for Morey's to utilize the (limited) space the pier had....kinda like TT was designed for MoA but then was copied for the other installations...

rcdb says "Custom" for GN'E....but says "prototype" on KK's version...four of them all opened in 1995. Can someone shed some light on this? TiA!

Thankyou very much to everyone who replied to this post. You've helped me make up my mind and I think it's quite obvious where I'm headed. I'm off to San Francisco tomorrow and I'll be at Marine World first thing Thursday morning (despite the jetlag!). Cheers once again.

I also agree you made the better decision. Weather here says sunny and 70's for Vallejo on Thursday, should have a fantastic day! It is Spring Break and all the kids are out, so plan accordingly. Remember to ride Zonga in a non-wheel seat for a smoother ride.

On a related note, in keeping with PGA's tradition of removing 1-2 rides a year without replacements, RIP Triple Play. As the only permanent Troika on the the West Coast, you will be missed :o(

http://www.rollercoasterpro.com/updates/pga3.25.05/DSCN0003_s.shtml

hey everyone. thanks for all your advice, six flags was AMAZING! we have nothing like medusa (best coaster ever, such a smooth ride!) or v2 (very different, and extremely thrilling) in england, so they were both real treats for me! roar is the best wooden coaster ever, i love the first huge drop! kong was pretty good as well, as i was right at the front of the train (although it was quite a rough ride, as was boomerang - that was still very fun also) unfortunately, zonga was closed when i went, did i miss out on anything good?

P.S it was spring break, yet there were hardly any queues for any rides, it was great!