The Future of Geauga Lake

[cstrwomann]

A recent news article posted on The Point Online stated that Cedar Fair laid off several workers at GL&WWK. The attendence is down at this park and Cedar Fair wants to cut costs. Is Geauga Lake's future uncertain?

[The Interpreter]

And they aren't selling season passes at Geauga Lake, even though it closes next weekend. And Cedar Point apparently isn't offering combo passes with just GLP, even though it is only 90 minutes away, nor even combo parking passes. Recent attractions installed at Geauga since Cedar Fair took over all all easily moved.

And Cedar Fair is approximately $2 billion in debt.

All this could mean something. Or it could mean nothing at all.

[LongLiveTheSmurfRide]

Looks like they aren't going to do any special CP/GL combo. Last year they were selling those passes for $130. Now they're offering the Maxx pass for $125 (which they still advertise GL with on the CP website) so it's a no brainer.

[cstrwomann]

I just visited Geauga Lake and Wild Water Kingdom today and they are selling season passes for 2007. The cost is $69.95 for a regular season pass for ages 3-61 48" or taller. Junior/Senior passes under 48" or over 62 years of age are $49.95. Maxx Pass is $125, Maxx Pass Plus is $149.95 for ages 3-61, Junior/Senior Maxx Pass Plus is $79.95. Season long parking pass is available for GL&WWK for $45.00 Sticker only. 2007 Season passes must be ordered by November 15, 2006. They are doing this via mail. If we purchase season passes and GL&WWK closes will we get a refund? They also have a phone number for information to call 330-562-7131 ext 0. Mail order with payment to: Geauga Lake 1060 N. Aurora Rd., Aurora, OH 44202 Attn: Season Pass Orders. Please allow 7-10 business days to process orders. Vouchers for new orders will be mailed 3-5 days after order is processed. Renewal orders will be processed when received; however, new ID cards for renewal orders will not be mailed until April 2007. All orders will be sent through US mail.

[The New England Snapper]

Its not gonna close anytime soon. Attendance has been alot better this year!

[The Interpreter]

I sure hope that's right! Some of my favorite coasters live at Geauga Lake, from Steel Venom to Big Dipper to X Flight. I always, always have fun there. And the park even has good pizza!

[CoastersNSich]

Thanks for the season pass info, cstrwomann.

Cedar Fair would not have purchased a park that they truly felt was a sinking ship. Trying to correct the mistakes of Six Flags as well as their own is not easy, but they still see the potential in the place. The mistake they made in doing away with wildlife is being softened with Wildwater Kingdom. It's possible WWK will become the focal point of Geauga Lake, and you may see some rides, especially large coasters, dismantled and moved to other Cedar Fair parks. I still believe that Six Flags grew the place too fast, yet I still believe in Geauga Lake as a great amusement park. Give them a few more years.

[The Interpreter]

The BIGGEST mistake Six Flags made was buying Seaworld...especially at the price they paid. I imagine Busch is still very happy with that deal.

[Swanky333]

Is Geuga lake even that good?

[The Interpreter]

Is Geuga lake even that good?

In a word, yes.

Some of the better coasters in the country are there.

And typical Cedar Fair entertainment.

[Swanky333]

hmm, i looked at GL, and ThunderHawk and X Flight looked the best.

[The Interpreter]

Thunderhawk?

You got to ride that thing and report back to us all! You can't tell much about Thunderhawk by looking at it.

That's for sure!

[The New England Snapper]

Thuderhawk is a pretty smooth SLC if you get the blue train!

[Gordon Bombay]

I had heard nothing but bad things about thunderhawk but when I rode it, blue train, it was actually really fun. It didnt bang my head around one bit, but it was very forceful. The layout over the nasty lake water is pretty neat.

[TheKlockster]

I have only been on one SLC - and I loved it. It was also one that people gripe alot about. T2.

[The Interpreter]

When I was a person of a certain size, I loved T2 and raved about it at every opportunity. People thought I was NUTS. Then I lost most of that size...and now T2 is the same pain machine others always told me it was. Who said there is no benefit to being statuesque?

[cstrwomann]

I feel Geauga Lake and Wild Water Kingdom is a very good park. They have 10 coasters and they all are great. The park side isn't as nice as the water park side but I feel if Cedar Fair spends some money and fixes it up-repaint stuffs, fixes ride ques loading stations, and remodels it and adds a new coaster this will boost attendence. They haven't put a major coaster into this park in years and they need a hyper coaster or a steel coaster with alot of hills, tunnels, and I feel this would draw more people into the park.

[Captain Picard]

I think if the attendance don't return in the next couple of years they could close it. They will have still done what they was out to do and that was keeping some competition from getting it.

The economic environment is not what it was years ago. Busch knew when to get out. When you look at it today you can see that they made the right move.

[The Interpreter]

And there is the fact that that northern locale was too far north to comfortably keep the marine animals. Busch, indeed, got out at a very good time, and for a very good price. And it is Cedar Fair, not Busch, who will be remembered (wrongly, in this case) for taking the animals "away."

[KIBeast]

^How true, Interpreter. Busch was losing money on that particular Sea World and it was only from the profits from the other parks that it existed for as long as it did.

I love Geauga Lake. It has a nice collection of coasters and a kick butt waterpark. I think that their next move should be to clean up the old waterpark and bring in some better food. The only good food is over in WWK. If I'm spending the day on the rides side, I don't want to have to walk all the way over there for a decent meal.

Then, they really need to address the roughness of the Villain and fix the trains on SuperVenom. After that, I would expand on the WWK side again, since it is the main draw to that park. In a couple of years, if attendance has gone up, then introduce a new coaster or flat ride. Sometimes people underestimate the draw of a major flat.

[Kenban]

When I was there I did not see a single line for any coaster. Right now there is good capacity on the dry side of the park if they just run the trains. The wet side though seemed badly layed out but very busy.

[The Interpreter]

The coasters have capacity, yes. What would be missing capacity, if the park were busy, as was painfully apparent in the Six Flags days, are the midways, restaurants, restrooms, seating, shops and concessions. Quite simply, Six Flags dropped rides everywhere, Roller Coaster Tycoon style, without beefing up the infrastructure of the park to handle the crowds. Many remember waiting an hour to buy a hot dog, thirty minutes to use the women's restroom, and being jostled by huge throngs on the midway, such that it was nearly impossible to walk without being touched on at least two sides by other park guests. The old waterpark was dreadfully small, but Cedar Fair has fixed that.

I think this failure to upgrade the infrastructure was one of the major factors in losing repeat business, along with typical Six Flags levels of service for the time (which wasn't much, or was bad), losing the animals and Cedar Fair's unwise decision to build the new water park with nonunion labor, a decision that at least somewhat still affects attendance. It was also quite amazing how quickly Six Flags let the wonderful, beautiful place that was Seaworld become decrepit, run down and dilapidated. By the time Cedar Fair got there, it looked very worn out and bordered on ugly. The marvelous Busch food was also long gone.

[cstrwomann]

I feel Geauga Lake needs to have a buffet type of restraunt added to the park where people can eat for a fair price of $10 I think more people would eat in the park if they had this type of set up in the pavillions/restraunt and you buy a ticket before you enter the park and buy it by a certain time of the day. If they allow people to buy a parking pass for the park people will spend more on food and souveneirs when they visit and play more games. I also think they need to put an aerator/chlorine in the ponds around the park and get rid of the green stinking algea. This isn't very appealing to look at or smell at an amusement park.

[KIBeast]

^I agree that the algae looks pretty foul. Especially under Thunderhawk. It was so thick that a flip flop was just laying on top of the greenery, so to speak. Could be that it would float on water, but, it still needs to be dealt with.

[Avatar]

I feel Geauga Lake needs to have a buffet type of restraunt added to the park where people can eat for a fair price of $10 I think more people would eat in the park if they had this

That would be nice I wish all Cedar Fair Parks offered a buffet style dinners, including Kings Island (that would be cool). Well here's to hoping.

[TheKlockster]

Six Flags dropped rides everywhere, Roller Coaster Tycoon style, without beefing up the infrastructure of the park to handle the crowds. Many remember waiting an hour to buy a hot dog, thirty minutes to use the women's restroom, and being jostled by huge throngs on the midway, such that it was nearly impossible to walk without being touched on at least two sides by other park guests.

When I went to Holiday World this year - there was a 35 minute line to buy an ice cream. It started pouring down rain and EVERYBODY went to Kringles Cafe. It was so packed in there. I took out my umbrella - I always have one with me just in case - and walked around the park taking some pictures of people cowering under any roof they can find - such as the gazebo at the Paul Reveres entrance, or the patio in front of Rough Riders.

[cstrwomann]

I went to Geauga Lake for the last day of the season on Sunday Sept. 17th it was the Octoberfest. I hope they bring it back next year for a few weekends and bring back Halloween Haunt. It seems strange that they're only open 4 months and the other parks are open 6-7 months. I'm going to miss the park this Fall and Halloween Haunt. Also I feel they should add more authentic German food vendors and have more German selections/dinners instead of sandwiches.

[KIBeast]

So, I went to GL's web site and basically sent them my recent trip report. I got a letter back today thanking me for taking the time to write them and let them know how much I liked my trip there. I know that they don't always have time to respond to everyone and it was just nice that they took the time to do this. I did leave my constructive criticisms in there so they would know where they can improve their park. Hopefully if my suggestions are the same as many others, these things may happen. Namely, I want better food choices on the rides side. Actually, the choices aren't bad, but the product is not very good. Maybe they need some sponsored food stands like KI.

[Browntggrr]

Attendance has been alot better this year!

Actually, it hasn't. The attenance looks to be below the 700,000 mark achieved in '04 & '05.

http://www.pointbuzz.com/news.htm?id=1009

I would be surprised to see CF throw in the towel this quick. When they took over, it was generally understood what they were getting into just because of how poorly SF ran the park. There was no quick fix.

Probably more than half the people that live within 70 miles of GL still don't even know that it has been under new ownership for the last couple years now. It is going to take time for people go back to GL, especially with CP some 50 miles West competing against them.

[jzarley]

I was talking to a co-worker last week who said how she was happy her daughter would be old enough to go to Sea World next Summer... And, I said "oh, are you going to Orlando?" And she said, "no, we'll just go to the Sea World up by Cleveland."

She was pretty shocked to learn that Sea World had been gone for six years...three years before her daughter was even born!

This was a "pre-meeting" casual conversation with five people in the room, three of them did not realize there was no longer a Sea World Ohio (let alone the whole SF/CF jumble...) I found that very suprising...