So, I've got my trip plan in place for this summer after going over a lot of finances.  While I was initially planning on slapping on Waldameer to this trip, I thought otherwise and will be reducing it to 2 days at Cedar Point (which I essentially have pre-paid in full with a loaded Platinum pass) and my first trek to Indiana Beach prior to that.  I will also be heading to downtown Cleveland, mainly for the Rock and Roll HOF, maybe a Guardians game even if the Reds aren't up there (not likely).  Looking at a late July venture.  I know CP (staying in Port Clinton per usual) and Cleveland alright (could use dining suggestions for downtown Cleveland), but I could use any suggestions on my first Indiana Beach trip.

Crap, the Guardians are out of town the week I am aiming for (the last full week in July).

I have family that lives in Cleveland so I know a bit about the place! I have some great (and affordable) dining options that we usually stop by in downtown Cleveland.

-Momocho (Really good Mexican food and I think you can get a good deal on tacos during happy hour.)

-Sweet Moses (This is an ice cream parlor, but the place is so cute and it is delicious!)

-Slyman's Restaurant (Not very pricey, but you have to get the pastrami and corned beef sandwich! This restaurant is kind of like a deli style.)

-Lola Bistro (This is a bit more pricey, but it is definetly worth it! The bistro was opened by an Iron Chef winner and judge!)

Anyways, hope that helps!

 

I don't mind splurging for at least one meal on my trips, especially this year where I have CP paid in full for everything. 

I haven't made it to downtown Cleveland yet (closest I've been is Rocky River Reservation and Memphis Kiddie Park), but you might want to check out The Arcade while you're there as it's supposed to be a cool place.

I'm probably going to pull a malem and do IB the day I go there.  Afterwards, I will likely be staying in the Ft Wayne area en route to Port Clinton/Sandusky since the lodging options around IB are few.  The northern Ohio portion will be entirely dictated on weather to get the most out of 2 days at CP (I have platinum with the meal and drink plans and all season FL+).  I will be leaving Indiana super early the morning after IB. The rest of the trip will be one day for Port Clinton Beach ERT and one for Cleveland and R&R HOF ERT.

EDIT: I'm realizing that IB news is hard to come by.  The park's website doesn't have ride info up.  It does appear the Schwartzkopf looper will be done on time as most of the updates I have seen are from January with a good chunk of it up.  It should go up quick considering its meant to be a portable coaster. 

Just out of curiosity- how is visiting Indiana Beach on Sundays?

15 hours ago, silver2005 said:

Just out of curiosity- how is visiting Indiana Beach on Sundays?

I would say you should not have issues getting everything ridden. 

^My idea is pretty much having the entire trip revolve around Cedar Point.  I want to hit CP between Monday and Thursday (2 days), allowing me to swap days with going to Cleveland and Port Clinton beach ERT in case of how weather affects things.   Doing IB on a Friday or Sunday is the plan. 

I need to get the budget down soon, too.  A small part of me is still allowing for Waldameer to be re-added.  I should be booking before Mother's Day (still some loose ends on things).  

Upon my route planning for the trip to get around having to use I-80/90 in Indiana, I stumbled upon a eureka moment.  US 24, which looks to be a decent highway, runs from around Indiana Beach all the way through Ft Wayne (where I want to stay) to Toledo (where I know my way to Pt Clinton/Sandusky by memory).  

I've also never been that deep into Indiana before and this will be my first time going through Indianapolis.  

Anyone here know if the whole of Toledo highways are still under construction (was that way the last time I went through)?

I'm just gonna wing it for Cleveland. 

Itinerary looks something like this-

Sunday- Leave Cincy, Indiana Beach all day, stay in Ft Wayne (this is a lloooonnnngg day). 

Monday- Ft Wayne to Port Clinton, get some beach time, maybe explore downtown Port Clinton

Tuesday-Wednesday- Point of Cedar

Thursday- Cleveland exploring, R&R HOF

Well, I've been watching the gas prices go up, and I'm now close to possibly taking off the Indiana Beach portion of this trip.  

With gas prices going up, I am trying to weigh something to give up this year in order to keep Indiana Beach.  I may be giving up going to UC football games sans Homecoming to go.  

Just ran the expenses as if I had my full plans in mind- I can still add in Indiana Beach. 

Also, the R&R HOF is still under covid restrictions with masks and limited capacity (don't mind).  I will wait until the week of to buy that ticket as weather weighs heavily in fitting in 2 days at the Point of Cedar. 

Itinerary- 

Sun, July 24- Leave Cincy and go straight to Indiana Beach open to close, stay in Ft Wayne

Mon. July 25- Ft Wayne to Port Clinton, explore PC, Lake Erie

Tuesday, July 26-Thursday July 28- Cedar Point 2 days and Cleveland/R&RHOF (weather will dictate how it goes because CP weather policies)

Will be bringing swim wear for Lake Erie,  likely use at CP for the day I choose to do the water rides

Who knows, maybe I'll be going late enough in the summer to avoid hitting mayflies   

22 hours ago, silver2005 said:

Who knows, maybe I'll be going late enough in the summer to avoid hitting mayflies   

If there's still out in late July they must be confused, since they are "May"flies. 

29 minutes ago, IndyGuy4KI said:

If there's still out in late July they must be confused, since they are "May"flies. 

 

Just out of curiosity, any weird snafus at Cedar Point this season aside from the 420 ft paperweight?

Also, I'm pretty much writing off riding the Schwarzkopf at IB, at least going by updates I'm reading.   Maybe I'll get lucky?

Still active in looking for the new IB coaster updates, and going by what limited info I've come across, there's a slim chance I may get to ride it, but I'm still not hopeful.  

3 hours ago, silver2005 said:

Still active in looking for the new IB coaster updates, and going by what limited info I've come across, there's a slim chance I may get to ride it, but I'm still not hopeful.  

I have not seen any updates either.

5 hours ago, IndyGuy4KI said:

I have not seen any updates either.

last i heard, the footers didnt line up with the coaster so they have to pour all new footers.

How has CP been so far this season aside from the 420 ft paperweight? 

I haven't been yet this year.  I actually think its one of the most over rated parks I have ever been to

^Overrated?  Yes, but, its still my favorites among chain parks.  Only a hair above KI IMO, mainly due to better ride ops and ride variety (sans wooden coasters), especially in the non-coaster department. 

Also, I love me some Lake Erie. 

Also also IMO- SteVe is currently my favorite steel coaster, Magnum>DB, Millennium Force>Orion, GateKeeper, Raptor, and Rougarou are top notch (yep, I like Rougarou), Maverick, also overrated IMO, is still really good, and I even have soft spots for the rest of their line up.  The only coaster I have slight negative notions to is Corkscrew due to how confined the trains feel, but even it makes up for it with the simple layout and iconic midway corkscrews.  Gemini and Iron Dragon are criminally underrated.  CCMR is still fun despite being smaller, and Blue Streak is a classic.  Valravn is a bit boring aside from the 2 vertical drops, but its nice to look at. 

EDIT: Another one of my goals is to explore downtown Port Clinton a bit more.  Seems like a pleasant place just to walk around and relax.  Getting an early start out of Ft Wayne so I can get some R&R in before 2 days at CP and a downtown Cleveland excursion. 

Millie just received a new cable lift this season, however, the lift isn't running as fast as it normally should. On my first trip up this season (beginning of June), one of her trains stopped halfway up the lift. Actually, that first trip was probably the roughest one considering almost half of the coaster lineup went down due to maintenance issues at some point (Millie, Val, RouRou, Mav, Gem, Keeper).

This second trip (as of yesterday) was way better, even with the onslaught of mayflies. Maverick went down at least two or three times, but everything else was running fine. 

I will say, though, the new Farmhouse restaurant in Frontier Town is an all-around great dining experience. I had the wood-fired steak slices and their roasted smashed potatoes and they were incredible for amusement park food. I wouldn't completely say it was worth bulldozing their second Antique Car ride over, but it's definitely better than something on the level of BSC.

On that note, expect to see a lot of food locations at the park running at half capacity. Even though it was a Monday, two of the major food locations with dual lines/stations (Farmhouse and The Corral) only had one side servicing customers.

1. Is Indiana Beach cashless?

2. Is Indiana Beach Pepsi or Coke?

So apparently there are employees telling guests at IB that the Schwarzkopf will be open by the end of the month, still have my doubts as there are no trains in sight as well as a lot of other work needing completion like the station.  I wonder if they're going to pull a SDL and put new trains on it.  Gerstlauer made those trains and they're decent.  

Crossing my fingers but not hopeful. 

So I will likely be scheduling a IB day trip next year to get the Schwarzkopf at this point.

Also, any downtown Cleveland tips are welcome.

So, I had to cancel this trip at the last second.  I developed a tooth abscess and unfortunately, I'm between dentists due to insurance and I have to wait until Monday to get work done.  Today was supposed to be my day at IB.

I can at least save up for a really nice vacation next year.

On 7/24/2022 at 9:21 AM, silver2005 said:

So, I had to cancel this trip at the last second.  I developed a tooth abscess and unfortunately, I'm between dentists due to insurance and I have to wait until Monday to get work done.  Today was supposed to be my day at IB.

I can at least save up for a really nice vacation next year.

Sorry to har that Silver!

Well, I can at least do a REALLY good trip next season potentially. Might revive my plans for a Missouri trip (SDC, WoF, SFStL), I've also got a VA trip in mind (KD, SFA, BGW with Carowinds and/or HP as possible additions), and I'm actually contemplating a Canada trip now as well (CW and La Ronde). 

I also want to try and do CP annually.