Park Capacity

I would bet that Cedar Point's capacity is much larger than 80,000. I went on a memorial day weekend, and all the hotels in Sundusky were sold out, we got the last of 3 rooms left in the city. They were sending everyone down to Norwalk for any rooms that were left. And, the lady at the desk at the Compfort Inn told us that they were expecting 1,000,000. People over the weekend.I did a little math based on Capacity. If just 7 coasters have a combined wait time of 3 hours at any given point, with a capacity of 1900 an hour per ride. That works out to 39,900 for just those 7 coasters in a 3 hour period. That does not include the people already on those coasters, or all of the other 60 some odd rides. Nor does it include all the people on foot, riding the train, shopping eating, playing the games. Just 7 coasters. So take that number and easily multiply it 10 fold.I was at Cedar Point the day that M-force had a 7 hour line, with people backed up all the way into frontier town. The math on that alone, based on 1900 an hour capacity is 12,400 for 1 ride!! I'm guessing that Cedar Point could have half a million in the park, and it is so big nobody could tell.And, since they no longer report their exact numbers, when they do they are on the low side. Like saying their lot can only hold 2,000 cars. Hmmmm, even at 80,000, that's 40 people per car. Balony.If they have a set limit, I'm guessing it's huge, so high they would never reach it.
I have also worked for a carnival, and out our 4th of july set up date, and location, we had 350,000 in just a small area, about the size of one of Cedar Point's parking lots. You take that same 350,000 and send them into Cedar Point, it would look like a typical day.
I left out the shows at the park. Usually high capactiy as well.

You are insane, sir. I've been to a music festival at which there were 80,000 confirmed in attendance. Just imagining that number of people at Cedar Point is bananas. A million people? Seriously?

More math. If the park is open every day from April through September or 131 days, with their reported 3 million visitors a year. (Which is bull) That would work out to only 22,130 per day. Sure would like to be there on those days. There would be no wait for anything.

One million guests sounds like a reasonable number for a max at a park that does 3 mill in a full year... 350,000 guests would look like a typical day? I think you need to move some decimal points.

I have never heard of Cedar Point turning away people except last year at Halloweekends. Someone said it was a 2 to 3 hour wait just to get into Cedar Point.

Timber-Rider said:
I would bet that Cedar Point's capacity is much larger than 80,000... with their reported 3 million visitors a year. (Which is bull)

You would lose that bet. And 3 million annual has been the park's average probably for the last decade and a half. It topped out in 1994 (Raptor) around 3.4, and I believe the range since has been between 2.9 and 3.2.

I asked around, and 40k is the popular "good for business, but way too crowded" figure. It's also not very common.

If CP could hold half a million people on a given day, where would parking be, mid-Toledo?

40k sounds about right for a park CP's size. I recall hearing back around 2001/2002 that 25k to 30k at SFNE was an extraordinarily busy day there. My ballparking brain says that makes some sense.

Timber-Rider said: That would work out to only 22,130 per day. Sure would like to be there on those days. There would be no wait for anything.

Except Maverick.

I didn't say a million people in one day. I said a million people that Mememrial day weekend, which includes friday, saturday, Sunday, and monday, which broken down is 250,000 a day. And, I was quoting what the lady at the compfort in told me, not actual numbers. So, 350,000 people at a traveling carnival, which takes up the size of a grocery store parking lot, with people body to body, still worked compared to Cedar Popint, which covers over 300 acers. Please. I also went to the Allegan fair for the KISS/Motley Crue concert, which had 19,000 just for the concert, not including the thousands at the fair. Also been at a poison concert in Muskegon with 21,000 at the concert, with an estimated 35,000 at the fair. In a small area. Also the Ionia Free fair for Def Leppard, with 25,000 at the concert, and anoter 20,000, at the fair. So, still wanna call me insane? I have been at Cedar Point, and waited in a 3 hour line for 1 ride, which at 1900 capacity is 5,700 waiting in line for 1 ride. Want to tell me I'm crazy again?

Because anecdotes from one person's point of view is indisputable fact.

So even if 10 coasters at Cedar Point have just an hour wait, and don't tell me they dont, because most waits are well over an hour. That's 19,000, just waiting in line for those 10 rides, and that is queue times on the low side. Based on 40,000 people, that doesn't leave many doing anything else in the park. No Masses on the midways, no lines for food. I have been going there for years. And, I have never been there on a day when you don't have to wait.I have been at events with way more than 40,000 people, and the do not touch the crowds at Cedar Point. Especially waiting 3 hours for one ride.

As for parking, they do have busses that take people to Cedar Point. Not everyone arrives by car. It would be interesting to know what their bus lot capacity is. Anyways, I have been at a lot of fairs and carnivals with numbers of people in the 40,000 range, and never had to wait 3 hours for a ride, and they only have a fraction of the attractions that Cedar Point has. Lucky if I waited more than 10 minutes.

A million over Memorial Day weekend is still about ten times too high. Comparing music festivals to Cedar Point doesn't really translate well. Trust me if they empty Lollapalooza into Cedar Point you will see how it doesn't work.

Ok based on Concerts. Kings Island and Canada's wonderland had concerts. Don't know if they still do. But they easily have several thousand people at those, and the parks seem to operate just fine. And, the state fairs seem to able to handle the 19,000+ concert folks, along with the fair visitors. So why wouldn't a place 10 to 20 times the size of a fair be abe to handle it? No 2 and 3 hour lines for the rides there either.

At the very least, I find it fascinating how the logic process works for different people.

Wow, I don't even know how to respond, other than to recall my father's advice against getting into an argument with a fool.

Another comment about state fairs. In it's more popular years, the Ionia free fair in Michigan would have over 1,000,000 visitors in a very short time. The fair used to run for only 2 weeks. It's not the big draw it used to be anymore. But if a fair can bring in that many people, what make anyone thing that the largest amusment park in the world, can't have that many as well.The fair I worked at had 350,000 in a single day. I worked one of the hot dog carts, and we sold 20,000 hot dogs during the time that we were open. From 10 am until 1 in the morning. Our stand alone made almost $100,000.00 in single night. The 350,000 was part of the Fourth Of July Festival in downtown GR. Which in the area around the carnival had another 300,000 just for the fireworks.Yet we were not overcrowded at all. The fair lasted 4 days, and on most days we would get 60,000 to 75,000 people total each day. We went through a semi-load and a half of hot dogs, in one night.

Even with evidence presented by someone who got the info by asking, we're still refusing to accept.

It's not about the theoretical maximum, but about the allowable capacity.

Just another irritating math fact based on capacity. If a coaster has a 1 hour wait all day long, and the park is open from 10 until midnight. That one coaster has given 26,600 rides. That is more people than what I came up with for the daily park attendance for a year. For one coaster. 26,600 rides for one coaster in one day. With an average of 22,130 people per day in the whole park based on 131 days, at 3 million annual visitors. That's why I say their numbers are BS.
I checked again. And the average daily park visit based on 3,000,000 a year on 131 days is 22,900.