Season Pass info for out-of-towner

[Smooth Jim B]

This is my first post in your excellent forum.

I have a family of 5, with the kids aged 8, 6, and 2. I actually live only about three miles from the former SFWoA soon to be renamed Geauga Lake once again.

I have never, as yet, taken the family to PKI and seeing that all of the animals attractions we have grown fond of over the last few season as SFWoA season passholders are going to be gone for this season, I am thinking of getting rebated for our 2004 SFWoA season pass vouchers and putting that money toward PKI season passes for the 2004 season.

I am excited to bring my kids to PKI and have them see the all of the great children's attractions and shows. We are spoiled though, living only three miles from the SFWoA and being season passholders, as we enjoy visiting parks at a slow unhurried pace.

I have a few questions about PKI and would welcome any input from those in-the-Know:

1) What are the benefits of the different levels of season passes? Gold, etc.

2) We would probably come down to the park for, say, 2 three day visits during the season and drive our motorhome and camp at the PKI Campground. Does the season pass get you any discounts at the campground?

3) All amusement parks are crowded, especially the newer thrill rides and coasters during weekends in July and Early August. I have read some trip reports of PKI visits complaining of long lines, are there long lines (wait times) for the children's and family attractions?

4) What are the parking options for cars (and Motorhomes) if we drive and park at the park? Season parking pass or other discounts?

5) I see that the waterpark is being completely redone and it will nodoubt be a popular place to be this summer but how have crowds in the past been?

6) Do you get any type of coupon book or other discounts with a season pass. Since I live 3.5 to 4.0 hours away I wouldn't be in a good position to take advantage of special "bring a freind free" days but I could use a coupon to bring a friend free or for a large discount if it was good for a several week period.

7) I would appreciate any other ideas or suggestions you good folks can offer.

[Dane]

Read this...

http://www.pki.com/tickets_season_pass.jsp

It may answer most of your questions.

[derbeast]

The wait times usually aren't that bad during the weekdays but on the weekends they can be hell. With a gold pass you will get walk on weekends but that only includes, Beast, Drop Zone, Delirium, Scooby Doo & the Haunted Castle, and Thornberries River Adventure so it probably wouldn't be worth it for you to come down on the weekends.

[Beastfreak]

Answers:

1)Gold pass basically gets you parking in a marked off area, unless its full, so you don't have to go searching for spots far away. Plus whatever is listed at http://www.pki.com/tickets_gold_pass.jsp

2)Not aware of any discounts at the camp ground.

3)Obviously the new attractions in the kids area can get long lines. Scooby Doo and the Haunted Mansion had +1hr lines almost everyday. The hotter days the Wild Thornberry's log ride gets long lines as well. The rest move pretty quick.

4)As stated above there are prefered parking for gold season pass holders. However, staying at the campground, you can take the shuttle to the main gate since the campground is right next to the parking lot.

5)Crowds in the past have been pretty small in the waterpark over the last few years. However with all these new improvements and the "resort" service of lounge-side serving and other amenities and attractions it is expected to be very busy all summer.

6)Coupons, don't really know. I haven't been a season pass holder in seven years since I work there now. Though, I can say over the past few years, the amount of coupons we receive in food service has gone down tremendously. I know there are the meal deals now, but they are only good at certain food stands during certain months.

[DegenRider]

As a season pass holder you get many coupons every month over the summer. Get your pass now so your eligible for all the gold pass upgrades. I don't know if "normal" white pass holders get the discounts.

[drewbari]

3) All amusement parks are crowded, especially the newer thrill rides and coasters during weekends in July and Early August. I have read some trip reports of PKI visits complaining of long lines, are there long lines (wait times) for the children's and family attractions

They are not as long on weekdays.

5) I see that the waterpark is being completely redone and it will nodoubt be a popular place to be this summer but how have crowds in the past been?

It has not been very busy on weekdays.

7) I would appreciate any other ideas or suggestions you good folks can offer.

The RC's are not as busy at night time.

[coasterrz]

The lines for Scooby really aren`t that bad. The longest I had to wait was about 50 minutes on the pass holder preview night last April. Otherwise, the line for Scooby is closer to half an hour. Weekends tend to be busy. One strategy is to try to plan it around when there is less than perfect weather. However, with the crazy Ohio weather, that may be next to impossible.

[Captain Picard]

2)Not aware of any discounts at the camp ground.

Yes you get one if you have a pass or AAA.

[SOB/Gun Steve-O]

4) What are the parking options for cars (and Motorhomes) if we drive and park at the park? Season parking pass or other discounts?

If you drive into the main parking lot with a motorhome, you will be forced to park in bus parking - which is actually better than the Gold Pass lot!

7) I would appreciate any other ideas or suggestions you good folks can offer.

When you go, turn right when you first enter the park (go to Rivertown and HB) and move counterclockwise. I work in Action Zone on the left side, and we get our biggest crowds in the morning. It starts going downhill at around 1:00 PM usually - other AZers can back me up on this.

You might want to consider going in what we employees call "Hell weeks." These are the weeks in which we have a lot of trouble staffing (hence the name) but the park itself is almost deserted of guests. The only problem is that many of the smaller rides, especially the kids rides, won't operate then because there aren't enough people there to work them. The first week is the week before Memorial Day (3rd week of May). The other is the third week of August.

And don't go on bring a friend free day. The park is insanely crowded on those days.

[Reptarrunner]

The only problem is that many of the smaller rides, especially the kids rides, won't operate then because there aren't enough people there to work them.

However, we do try and guarentee everything, except deep south (biplanes, the kiddie train, and the handcars) being opened by 4 o'clock. And almost everyday last year we succeded. So, if you do choose to come these days, start out in the big park and move over towards HB. But even if you come early to HB the majority of the rides are generally opened. This includes, but is not limited to, SDATHC, Reptar, Beastie, the kiddie carousel, top cat's taxi jam, the swing set, the bumper cars, and the jetson's jet oribitors. As the day progresses the other rides open, and almost all of them are generally opened by 1.

[Euclid Beast]

Hey SJB - Guess I'm thinking like you are thinking... even to the point of both signing up here within days of each other...

I echo your compliments to this well run site as well...

The situation in Aurora is making our crew sick to our collective stomachs. I'm not sure I can handle a season at GL after the new owners just finished shutting down such a beautiful part of the park... we haven't cashed in the SF passes yet, but if it were completely up to me, we'd be PKI passholders already...

Euclid Beast

Who's family enjoyed 80+ visits to SFWoA 2001-2004

And never did everything in the park

[DragonLord]

Lots of great suggestions! I'm glad you guys are on the ball with this.

The big one is to start in the park counter clockwise. Also, do not come on Bring a Friend Free Day. These days are insane, you can't park, most lines are 2+ hours long, we usually end up closing the front gates and not letting anyone else in because of the crowds.

Another really, really good suggestion is not to come to the park at all during the weekends. If you can manage it, get the time off during the week (not a Friday!) to come down. The lines will be much better during the weekdays than a weekend.

If you do come to the park: We do not allow coolers in the park unless they contain baby formula or medicines that have to be kept cold. Water is free at all the food stands that have soda fountains in them, so drink lots of water! Make sure kids have cell phone numbers or pager numbers if they happen to get lost we can call you. We will not page people in the park unless there is a verified police or medical emergancy. Lost kids are escourted to Baby Care, located in HB.

Now, on to some more specifics...

1. The link given earlier will help you out with the pass question. The Gold Passes must be purchased before May 23rd. The perks are nice if you are going to be in the park during the times that they are being offered. Most Gold Pass holders don't read their information and assume all perks are good all the time. They are not! If you are looking into a gold pass, then please make sure you will be able to use the perks that you are paying for. Again refer to the link that was posted earlier.

2. I didn't know this untill I read the post above me somewhere. You should be able to call PKI's information line (which you can find on the www.pki.com site) for more information on the pass holder rates. There are also several nice area hotels and campgrounds that you can look into.

3. If you can't manage to come during the week, weekend lines are much longer. Last year Scooby had some pretty long lines most of the time, ranging from 30 minutes to more than an hour (if people remember when it was wrapped around IS?). The crew for Scooby was pretty awsome last year and had things moving wonderfully and wait wasn't too bad on normal days (non-holidays or special days like BAFFD). Kutos to those who know who they are! Keep it up this year! Other rides in HB have moderate lines during the weekends.

4. It's been mentioned that if you have a moter home, you will be forced to park in the bus lot. This is very true and it is also true that it is pretty close to haveing being in the Gold Pass lot. You will not be able to stay over night in the parking lot, of course. Also, if you stay in the campgound you won't have to worry about driving over, you can walk or take the Campground Shuttle.

5. I didn't work in the Water Park much last year, but the days I did work were crowded. The lines can be long, the wave pool can be packed and there were usually no open seats. It should be much better this year with BB, but since it is a new area it will no doubt be very busy most of the time. Gold Pass holders do get an exclusive weekend, but that is subject to change depending on weather and other circumstances that might arise.

6. You don't get a coupon book with a season pass, at least not that I know of. You will have to go to the link that was posted earlier to find that out.

7. Read all the stuff I wrote at the top!