Tips on Cedar Point?

[YOULLBEBACK]

If this is in the wrong thread please forgive me / move it, but thought this would fit best.  As a KI passholder for several years, but never been to Cedar Point, I am planning on making one "ultimate" CP trip with my 2 sons.  Our primary goal is to hit all coasters with minimal wait (#1 priority for us).  Not really interested in shows or whatnot, just the rides and getting the most out of that.   We know KI inside and out but know CP is a whole different beast to tackle. 

There are a lot of places online with tips, deals, etc.  Not sure where to start so thought I'd ask you guys.  Any tips or suggestions on getting the most out of CP?  2 day visit?  Weekday over weekend?  1 or 2 days with fastlane? 

 

Thanks in advance for your help!

[Creed Bratton]

I'd say 2 days to ensure you get to do everything you want done (and re-rides). I would say Fast Lane Plus for day 1 (buy at the park). I would go Tuesday/Wednesday if possible. 

I would get there early, park in the main lock and walk down the boardwalk. You could either enter the Beach Gate (by WindSeeker) or Resort Gate (by Magnum). I'd conquer everything from the back of the park toward the front. If you want to get to Steel Vengeance first, go to the Resort Gate and get there either for ERT or park open (depending on if you have a Platinum Pass or are staying at one of the resorts). After SV, hit up Maverick...the rest can be semi-easy to get aside from TTD.  

If you have any other specific questions, feel free to ask me here or in a PM.

[YOULLBEBACK]

6 minutes ago, Creed Bratton said:

I'd say 2 days to ensure you get to do everything you want done (and re-rides). I would say Fast Lane Plus for day 1 (buy at the park). I would go Tuesday/Wednesday if possible. 

I would get there early, park in the main lock and walk down the boardwalk. You could either enter the Beach Gate (by WindSeeker) or Resort Gate (by Magnum). I'd conquer everything from the back of the park toward the front. If you want to get to Steel Vengeance first, go to the Resort Gate and get there either for ERT or park open (depending on if you have a Platinum Pass or are staying at one of the resorts). After SV, hit up Maverick...the rest can be semi-easy to get aside from TTD.  

If you have any other specific questions, feel free to ask me here or in a PM.

Thanks!  I may take you up on that when we start to get our ducks in a row.  Watching all the POV's and mapping out a plan for the coasters is fun and somewhat overwhelming.

[Creed Bratton]

2 minutes ago, YOULLBEBACK said:

Thanks!  I may take you up on that when we start to get our ducks in a row.  Watching all the POV's and mapping out a plan for the coasters is fun and somewhat overwhelming.

I totally understand! Feel free anytime! 

[teenageninja]

Definitely go during a weekday, if possible, while local schools are still in session.  Weekends are a bit of a disaster.  Sundays can be not terrible, but Friday and Saturday are generally pretty rough.

Plan for 2 days, that way you have time to hit a few of your favorites up a second or third time.

[silver2005]

- If you can, park by the water park (ask at the parking tolls).  You'll likely be spending most of your time in the back of the park and its super convenient at the end of the day.  Its also much less hectic getting out at the end of the day and you'll get a head start at opening in terms of getting to TTD, SV, Maverick, and Millennium Force early.

- Dining suggestions- Any of the BBQ places in Frontiertown are great.  Toft's has good ice cream.  

- If you do Thunder Canyon and/or Snake River Falls, you may want extra clothes.  You will get extremely wet on them (Thunder Canyon only if the waterfalls are on).

- Use the train and/or Sky Ride if you need to traverse the park a lot.  Your legs will thank you.

- Save GateKeeper, Raptor, and Valravn until mid-afternoon. The lines will be very short after the crowds from the front start their way back (another reason to park by Magnum).  

- If you want the most out of Wicked Twister, ride close to the front or close to the back.  The rest of the coasters are good in any seat. 

- Watch the forecast for high winds, a good amount of the rides will go down for high winds

- Be prepared for your face to make friends with mayflies throughout the day

- Don't forget the flat rides

- I find it better, as in, more with the flow of foot traffic to start at Iron Dragon and make your way clockwise around the back of the park. Also, CP's layout is not ideal for crisscrossing the park.  If you're used to Kings Island's layout, CP is much more stretched out from back to front and there aren't ideal ways from getting around Millennium Island (unless I missed something).  

[BeastForever]

Don't skip out on Cedar Downs!

Fun and very unique carousel.

[calakapepe]

2 day trip?

Go in the spring if possible; go on a Tues or Wednesday.

 

Obviously, you want to get the priority rides in first, but it's actually pretty time smart to get all the rides in one area before moving to the next if possible (CP is roughly the same size as KI, but it's laid out in a very long manner, rather than everything being basically a circle). Use the app for wait estimations. Use lockers once for two coasters if you can.
Have Fun! Try not to get stressed out if it's busy.. or if TTD keeps breaking down.

[HandsUp]

If you're looking to save $$ and like camping, there is a KOA right there. Avoid weekends like the plague. Millennium Force at sunset is a spiritual experience. 

[BeeastFarmer]

As of last year, with a platinum pass, you can get a FLP at a FL price. If you don't have platinum, it might be worth it to upgrade if you're doing a two day trip...plus you may just love it enough to go back again this year! Lodging...in May you can usually get a pretty cheap rate at CP Express. There are plenty of cheap but good motels in Sandusky too.

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[MDMC01]

23 hours ago, BeastForever said:

Don't skip out on Cedar Downs!

Fun and very unique carousel.

Unique is defintely a word to describe this thing.

-MDMC, not a fan.

 

Also, for tips, when you all go, I recommend getting the all-day locker. It's only $10 and it "travels" with you from ride to ride. Here's how it works: Let's say you want to make Valravn your first ride of the day. Before riding, you buy a locker like normal and then enter a special code that you'll use throughout the day. After you are done riding to your heart's content, you can check out of this locker and then head to your next ride(for example, Rougarou). Once you get to Rougarou, you can enter the code and if a free locker is available, you will be assigned a new locker over there. It's a great system.

And yes, visiting on a weekday is strongly encouraged! That's actually a great rule of thumb for heading to any theme park (unless you go to your local theme park multiple times a season and get used to the crowds OR you are going to take advatange of Fast Lane).

Finally, have a good time and let us know what you think of the coasters. My Top 5 list at CP is Steel Vengeance, Valravn, Wicked Twister, Maverick and Rougarou.

[Creed Bratton]

17 minutes ago, MDMC01 said:

Unique is defintely a word to describe this thing.

-MDMC, not a fan.

 

Banned from KIC for breaking the 21st commandment "Thou shall be a fan of Cedar Downs."

[MDMC01]

We know the 11th Commandment pertains to Adventure Express; what are 12-20, then? 

[TombRaiderFTW]

12: No

13: but

14: seriously

15: don't

16: touch

17: Adventure

18: Express

19: okay

20: thanks

[silver2005]

^Wow, religion took a hard left turn somewhere.  Explains so much, yet so little.  

[Creed Bratton]

It's seen some crap.

[BeeastFarmer]

Which commandment is " Whatever you do, don't go in the shed?"

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[Creed Bratton]

5 minutes ago, BeeastFarmer said:

Which commandment is " Whatever you do, don't go in the shed?"

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536

[silver2005]

32 minutes ago, BeeastFarmer said:

Which commandment is " Whatever you do, don't go in the shed?"

Sent from my Pixel XL using Tapatalk
 

@IndyGuy4KI breaks this commandment routinely.  

[IndyGuy4KI]

6 minutes ago, silver2005 said:

@IndyGuy4KI breaks this commandment routinely.  

What can I say, I am the rebel moderator! 

[rhyano]

If possible, and if you have a platinum pass, start in the back of the park and ride Steel Vengeance first from the resort gate, you will save HOURS worth of time as most days Steel Vengeance is consistently a 1-2 hour wait, then ride Maverick and Millennium Force, by that point early entry should be over, after that I would definitely do a small loop to Dragster and do Rougarou, then I don't think Iron Dragon opens until 11, and I know Corkscrew doesn't open until 11, so either ride Dragster, or make your way to some of the area 1 rides (front of the park), hit up Raptor later in the day, as it has a huge wait in the morning most days. If you're willing to spend the money, definitely eat at Melt for lunch or dinner, I think my bill was $30 but it was $30 very well spent as it has the best food in the park (and not in the dining plan ). Most importantly Cedar Point isn't just roller coasters, take some time on the beach, I had a great time swimming in Lake Erie last year. I'm sure I'm forgetting something, but most importantly have fun! 

[McSalsa]

I'm gonna base my advice on my trips to Cedar Point I took in 2017 and 2018, though mostly 2018. The 2018 trips were on 3-day weekends. First up, I second doing Steel Vengeance first if you have ERT. While they began running 3 trains in late 2018 (after my last visit), and it shouldn't be as crazy in year 2, Steel Vengeance was by far the longest wait time of all CP coasters in 2018. Everything else in the park could be 15 minutes or less (aka park is dead in terms of crowds) and Steel Vengeance would still be 90 minutes or more. If you don't have ERT, then expect to wait quite a bit for Steel Vengeance. However, it's also my favorite so far of all the coasters I have ridden, so I'd wait it out if needed- if you have to do this, I'd say wait until night before the park closes, as SV is a epic night ride.

If you have ERT, after riding Steel Vengeance, I would do Maverick next as it is next door and it can also get quite the line even on not-so-busy days. You might also want to do Millennium Force if you can get the first 2 done during ERT, but there may not be time to walk down to it. Otherwise, I'd suggest getting in line for Top Thrill Dragster early because it is yet another ride that can get a wait, and it sucks to wait for it for 1 hour and then it breaks down (and it loves to break down). If you stay long enough to get ERT on 2 days, I would split them up and do Steel Vengeance and Maverick on the 1st ERT day and then do Valravn and Millennium Force on Day 2 ERT.

There is some good news if the park begins to get crowded- not everything usually gets monster lines. The "popular" coaster almost always do (Steel Vengeance, Maverick, Valravn, Top Thrill Dragster, Millennium Force, and Raptor) but the others almost always have noticeably shorter lines (I have seen days where the popular rides are 1 hour+, and the less popular ones were only 5 minutes or less), some of them barely having lines at all. Also it does help that most of Cedar Point's rides are very high capacity. There are also lots of flat rides (If you're looking for a quick thrill, Skyhawk and MaXair both typically had short waits compared to most of the big coasters) as well as the beach, a museum, a train ride, and a petting zoo which IMO are all worth checking out.

[YOULLBEBACK]

On 4/3/2019 at 2:10 PM, silver2005 said:

- If you can, park by the water park (ask at the parking tolls).  You'll likely be spending most of your time in the back of the park and its super convenient at the end of the day.  Its also much less hectic getting out at the end of the day and you'll get a head start at opening in terms of getting to TTD, SV, Maverick, and Millennium Force early.

- Dining suggestions- Any of the BBQ places in Frontiertown are great.  Toft's has good ice cream.  

- If you do Thunder Canyon and/or Snake River Falls, you may want extra clothes.  You will get extremely wet on them (Thunder Canyon only if the waterfalls are on).

- Use the train and/or Sky Ride if you need to traverse the park a lot.  Your legs will thank you.

- Save GateKeeper, Raptor, and Valravn until mid-afternoon. The lines will be very short after the crowds from the front start their way back (another reason to park by Magnum).  

- If you want the most out of Wicked Twister, ride close to the front or close to the back.  The rest of the coasters are good in any seat. 

- Watch the forecast for high winds, a good amount of the rides will go down for high winds

- Be prepared for your face to make friends with mayflies throughout the day 

- Don't forget the flat rides

- I find it better, as in, more with the flow of foot traffic to start at Iron Dragon and make your way clockwise around the back of the park. Also, CP's layout is not ideal for crisscrossing the park.  If you're used to Kings Island's layout, CP is much more stretched out from back to front and there aren't ideal ways from getting around Millennium Island (unless I missed something).  

Thanks!  Back of the park sounds like a given.  The layout makes me appreciate KI's layout more than I do.  Solid tips all around thanks so much. 

On 4/4/2019 at 8:52 PM, McSalsa said:

I'm gonna base my advice on my trips to Cedar Point I took in 2017 and 2018, though mostly 2018. The 2018 trips were on 3-day weekends. First up, I second doing Steel Vengeance first if you have ERT. While they began running 3 trains in late 2018 (after my last visit), and it shouldn't be as crazy in year 2, Steel Vengeance was by far the longest wait time of all CP coasters in 2018. Everything else in the park could be 15 minutes or less (aka park is dead in terms of crowds) and Steel Vengeance would still be 90 minutes or more. If you don't have ERT, then expect to wait quite a bit for Steel Vengeance. However, it's also my favorite so far of all the coasters I have ridden, so I'd wait it out if needed- if you have to do this, I'd say wait until night before the park closes, as SV is a epic night ride.

If you have ERT, after riding Steel Vengeance, I would do Maverick next as it is next door and it can also get quite the line even on not-so-busy days. You might also want to do Millennium Force if you can get the first 2 done during ERT, but there may not be time to walk down to it. Otherwise, I'd suggest getting in line for Top Thrill Dragster early because it is yet another ride that can get a wait, and it sucks to wait for it for 1 hour and then it breaks down (and it loves to break down). If you stay long enough to get ERT on 2 days, I would split them up and do Steel Vengeance and Maverick on the 1st ERT day and then do Valravn and Millennium Force on Day 2 ERT.

There is some good news if the park begins to get crowded- not everything usually gets monster lines. The "popular" coaster almost always do (Steel Vengeance, Maverick, Valravn, Top Thrill Dragster, Millennium Force, and Raptor) but the others almost always have noticeably shorter lines (I have seen days where the popular rides are 1 hour+, and the less popular ones were only 5 minutes or less), some of them barely having lines at all. Also it does help that most of Cedar Point's rides are very high capacity. There are also lots of flat rides (If you're looking for a quick thrill, Skyhawk and MaXair both typically had short waits compared to most of the big coasters) as well as the beach, a museum, a train ride, and a petting zoo which IMO are all worth checking out.

Thanks this helps, makes sense about the popular rides and we'll surely knock them out early and often.  A FL+ might be worth it as well it seems.  Having so many "A+" coasters is tough to wrap my head around and a mental game plan is starting to form .

[flightoffear1996]

My biggest advice honestly to you is don’t plan your day out. Just go and have fun. Those are always the best trips in my find. I know its tempting as well but if you haven’t seen a POV of the rides yet don’t watch them before you go. 

[robintodd]

My wife and I go up to the point 3 times a year (first Sun. Mon. Tues. & Wed. they are open, a weekend with the grandchildren during the year and the last weekend they are open).  My biggest advice would be stay at the Breakers!  It is a little more expensive but early season they do have discounted rooms for platinum pass holders (put in the promo code PASS when reserving online).  You get to park the car and not fight parking each day.  Staying there get's you early entry and allows you to go back to the room and change if you get to wet on the rides or you need a rest.  Plus you can pack sandwiches, etc. to save money on food.  Word of caution, there are NO Coffee makers in the rooms!  We have a small hamilton-beach kureg we always take up with us.  The staff at the Breakers is top-notch and I've always found them more than helpful and friendly.  

Keep in mind that if you go before Memorial day, schools are in session which is a plus, but not all the shows are going (plus the new Frontier land will not be open until Memorial day this year).

Make sure to ride the train, especially from the back of the park (near steel vengence) to the front.  That section has a lot of boneville to enjoy.  The other half is mostly a view of the lake.

You can also get Famous Dave's and carry it back to your room (we have done this after the park has closed.  Seems they keep the gates open for an hour after the park closes.  Perkins in the Breakers is also great for breakfast, dinner or lunch.  Tomo's hibachi grill in the Breakers is our favorite place to eat!  Fridays in my opinion is overpriced and can be skipped.  You can also order Domino's and they will deliver.

Usually I get in an hour early and ride Maverick.  I've ridden in 4 times in a row without getting off in the mornings before the crowds get back there.  GateKeeper is the fastest line in the park so never be scared of the size of the line there.  Also they don't close the line until the park closes so keep that in mind.  Millennium Force has a decent line too but know that if it breaks down don't get out of line.  Usually it is only down for about 10-15 minutes.

Tues and Wed are definitely less crowded and you should have no problem covering the park in 2 days.  If you have a platinum pass flash it everywhere.  Most places (Perkins for example) will give you a discount with it.  Also if you have a FunPix season pass make sure to go to the FunPix location at the front of the park to make sure your platinum pass is "synced" so it will work.  Just ask them to verify they see it in their system.

Finally dress for the weather.  A windbreaker is a MUST.  Know that the weather forecast for Sandusky is different than it is for the Point.  Temps are a little cooler being on the water.

Hope you have a great time!

 

[WhatTheBlazes]

On ‎4‎/‎9‎/‎2019 at 11:40 AM, robintodd said:

Also if you have a FunPix season pass make sure to go to the FunPix location at the front of the park to make sure your platinum pass is "synced" so it will work.  Just ask them to verify they see it in their system.

Do you have to have Platinum pass for your KI FunPix to work at Cedar Point?  I am only going for a day so I did not purchase the platinum pass.  Will my FunPix that is on my KI goldpass work at CP or would i need to purchase a FunPix for that park separately?  

[ldhudsonjr]

So I'm planning my first trip back to Cedar Point since like..2000. Since I missed spring, whats the next best time to hit the park? Should I wait until sometime in August?

[radishman]

Honestly I'd just get fastlane for the day so the crowd shouldn't matter. If nothing else it's worth it alone just to bypass the line for Steel Vengeance. Unless you take your chances that it's up and running for early entry. I've gone twice this season and the first day SV wasn't open till 12 or so. Granted this was the first week, so it was having issues. I didn't bother with it until after 10 on my second go, so no idea if it was open when they let us in. Didn't wanna pass the few coasters that were open only to find it closed and waste time making my way back towards the front.

MF went down shortly after early entry on both my trips, so if I decide to go a 3rd time before summer ends I think I'm just gonna marathon it for the hour until it shuts down lol...

Weekdays seem okay in August going by isitpacked.

[pianoman]

Cedar Point is usually very busy pretty much every day from July 4th through the second week in August. After that, attendance drops off significantly since kids start going back to school. So if you really want lighter crowds, I’d recommend waiting until the 3rd full week of August. Only downfall to that is the park starts 8pm closes during the week.

 

 

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[ldhudsonjr]

3 hours ago, radishman said:

Honestly I'd just get fastlane for the day so the crowd shouldn't matter. If nothing else it's worth it alone just to bypass the line for Steel Vengeance.

Yeah, I think I may just go this route. So much stuff could come up for me between now and August it's probably better to just go sooner when I know I can actually make it and just get the FL. Can't wait!