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New ride for 2008?


DropZone99
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Well, if you give much credence to the Amusement Today Golden Ticket Awards, Kings Island has the best children`s area of any amusement park. And Cedar Point was ranked as the Best Amusement Park.

But it is generally accepted that the Golden Ticket Awards are a popularity contest and used by parks as a marketing tool. They are not really reflective of which park or park`s children`s area is better.

If people are looking for world class record breaking coasters, they will likely go to Cedar Point. But if they want a well themed children`s area that is themed to the Nick toons, they would likely choose Kings Island. Not to say that the Peanuts areas at Cedar Point are not good, or that Kings Island doesn`t have some recored breaking, or world class roller coasters. But each park is marketing to a slightly different demographic. And since both parks are owned by Cedar Fair, does it really matter if a guest visits Kings Island versus Cedar Point? Cedar Fair will still get money from said guest. All that would be different is which park records that person`s revenue and attendance.

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KI has more family rides then CP will ever have. PLUS, we are a lot more organized. We have them in a very well themed kid area, and CP hass them in sevral scattered areas.

1) What do you consider a family ride?

2) Also, being a parent, I would rather have several kids areas as opposed to one area. When the wife and I want to go on Raptor, we use the Parent Swap Program, so the kids can hit the rides at Kiddie Kingdom and one of us can wait for Raptor. The same idea goes when we want to go on TTD, Magnum and Gemini. One of waits in line, while the other watches the kids at Camp Snoopy which is close by. We use a Motorola to communicate as to when we are going to be getting on the ride.

While Nick U is more appealing, it is a pain in the butt when we want to go on Firehawk, FoF, and Vortex and there is nothing in the immediate area that can occupy the kids' time while one of us waits in line.

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^That, is a very good point. Most parks do have just the one kiddy area from Mickeys toontown to Dr Seus's whimsical world, to Nickolodeon Universe. Maybe more parks should look into having two kids areas. Or at least express travel from one, to the other side of the park.

Then there is that place in Jackson, New Jersey that has not one kids area, not two, not even three, but FOUR....and rumors of a fifth to come in an outyear....

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^That, is a very good point. Most parks do have just the one kiddy area from Mickeys toontown to Dr Seus's whimsical world, to Nickolodeon Universe. Maybe more parks should look into having two kids areas. Or at least express travel from one, to the other side of the park.

Then there is that place in Jackson, New Jersey that has not one kids area, not two, not even three, but FOUR....and rumors of a fifth to come in an outyear....

Well you do say that park does many things right, aside from their steep one visit price point (which you have never told me to be wrong or right, just that it costs as much as Disney). I really would like to take a trip out to Gadv, it seems to be one of the keystones of the Six Flags franchise (other than some cleanliness issues, I greatly enjoyed my trip to SFOG which also seems to be one of their nicer parks). It would be great to come across someone that knows the park well and what all to enjoy, at the park sometime, if I am ever able to make it out there.

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I get very limited vacation time and may have to use some of it for a wedding, but depending on what I do I'll either be leaving work for a week to record my bands' second cd or purchasing airfare to new york to stay with family, see the 9/11 memorial/NYC, and visiting Six Flags Great Adventure!

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KI has more family rides then CP will ever have. PLUS, we are a lot more organized. We have them in a very well themed kid area, and CP hass them in sevral scattered areas.

1) What do you consider a family ride?

2) Also, being a parent, I would rather have several kids areas as opposed to one area. When the wife and I want to go on Raptor, we use the Parent Swap Program, so the kids can hit the rides at Kiddie Kingdom and one of us can wait for Raptor. The same idea goes when we want to go on TTD, Magnum and Gemini. One of waits in line, while the other watches the kids at Camp Snoopy which is close by. We use a Motorola to communicate as to when we are going to be getting on the ride.

While Nick U is more appealing, it is a pain in the butt when we want to go on Firehawk, FoF, and Vortex and there is nothing in the immediate area that can occupy the kids' time while one of us waits in line.

Could you imagine if CP only had one Kiddie Land and you had to hike from one extreme of the park to the other to take your kids to the rides. Just imiganie trying to ride Magnum, Gemini, TTD, Mantis, and Millie if the only kiddie area was Kiddie Kingdom. Not gonna happen.

Kings Island can somewhat get away with having just one Kiddie area, but on a busy summer day NU is packed, where as CP can spread the family crowd out between their various kiddie lands. I will honestly say KI could use another smaller kiddie section over around Vortex or FoF.

Also CP and KI are very similar parks, lots of family rides, record breaking coasters, and a great water park. The difference is that CP markets as a resort destination for the entire family and also pitches its product towards the thrillseekers out there as Americas Roller Coast. Where as KI markets more for the weekend family destination while pitching NU and Boomerang Bay. But if you compare rides they are very similar.

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Well I guess it depends on how old your kids are. When I was young (10 years ago) my family would always hit up rides like Congo Falls, Viking Fury, Octopus, Scrambler, Dodgems, Shake Rattle and Roll, Sponge-bob 3-D, The Eagles. All of which are very family friendly rides scattered throughout the park.

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Well I guess it depends on how old your kids are. When I was young (10 years ago) my family would always hit up rides like Congo Falls, Viking Fury, Octopus, Scrambler, Dodgems, Shake Rattle and Roll, Sponge-bob 3-D, The Eagles. All of which are very family friendly rides scattered throughout the park.

That's the key to things. Have something for everyone. That's why it's refreshing to see Entertainment as a more important piece of CF's vision. Who would have thought that an entertainment company (Paramount/Viacom) would do away with entertainment?

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well, after you have been to the park a while or, have a map, it is easier. But, that is one of the things I dont like about Cedar Point, Some stuff is tucked away, or somewhat hidden on the map, rather than having a midway-spoke design they have things just thrown everywhere. Mainly due to size constraints I would say. Busch Gardens Africa doesnt fall to far from that tree either, it is a beautiful park, and most everything is done right, the themed lands are awesome. Trying to read that park map however is a pain in the rear, and somethings are tucked away a little off the beaten path.

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Well I guess it depends on how old your kids are. When I was young (10 years ago) my family would always hit up rides like Congo Falls, Viking Fury, Octopus, Scrambler, Dodgems, Shake Rattle and Roll, Sponge-bob 3-D, The Eagles. All of which are very family friendly rides scattered throughout the park.

That's the key to things. Have something for everyone. That's why it's refreshing to see Entertainment as a more important piece of CF's vision. Who would have thought that an entertainment company (Paramount/Viacom) would do away with entertainment?

Couldnt agree more, who would have though Paramount would eliminate entertainment options and it would take a company like CF to bring it back.

Also Cedar Point has no choice about that parks layout, its basically a big rectangle of land, thank goodness for the skyride and the train to aid in getting around the park. Nothing like taking the sky ride across the midway at the end of a long day. You must admit CP has one of the best traditional main midways around.

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Also Cedar Point has no choice about that parks layout, its basically a big rectangle of land, thank goodness for the skyride and the train to aid in getting around the park. Nothing taking the sky ride across the midway at the end of a long day. You must admit CP has one of the best traditional main midways around.

You should have seen the second skyride that went from just West of SRF to the midway East of ID.

It was a very comfortable ride over what could really only be described as wetlands.

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I just don't like how the goofy drawings are unrealistic and disproportional. I don't mind a little cartoon as long as it is in the realm of reason and possibitlity. But when they take a ride and make it like gigantic compared to everything else, with little people on it, it bothers me.

So I like that kind of map better (refering to the old kind)

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Just my preference here but I really prefer the little cartoon drawings of rides, etc. Dollywood uses that older style map and it really bothers me. You look at the map and all you see is a bunch of blocks with names it's hard to tell what any ride would be like at all and in some cases it's hard to tell that something is actually a ride.

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Well, the goofy drawings take things way out of proportion, and it may mislead people. But the older style map does not mislead at all.

The only thing that I see wrong with the old map is that it has limited space.

I'm not sure you think that proportions are necessarily important to a park map. They often want to point out and advertise some of the larger attractions. Don't think for one minute though the simple block style creates proportion, it's cracked me up many times looking at the Dollywood map. If you looked at that map you'd think there was mile or two between Mystery Mine and TN Tornado when in fact it's about 750ft and even less the way the crow flies. I know some of the drawings don't do justice for some of the rides but simply for an out of towner visiting I think the drawings really help. You can look at a coaster picture and see that it goes upside down that can and will influence the way people walk around the park, which in turn is what the maps are designed to do. There's a lot of science that goes into parks there's big reason most parks are laid out in either a figure 8 layout or a circle. It's why food places are in the places your most likely to be at lunch time and dinner time and why most gift shops are near the exit. The park maps are an aid to it... think of the maps as in park advertising then I think the drawings may make better sense to you.

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I know I'm probably a little different from the normal guest. When I look at something like the map, I'd like something similar to a blueprint. I know that's weird, but it's just me.

and I am to really... the only reason I even picked up a Dollywood map this year it because it'll be the last one before the loop is finished and it'll be interesting to see how the somewhat J shaped map turns into a circle... but like all of our other wants for parks we're a different (and better IMHO) league of park patrons.

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