First trip to SFGAm Which would you do?

[DaveStroem]

Hello all. We have been on a major coaster tour this year. So far we have been to 13 different parks. Soon we will be heading to SFGAm along with Michigan's Adventure. Our trips have to start on a Saturday Afternoon leaving Columbus, Oh and be back by 10:00 AM on the following Tuesday.

So with this in mind which would you do?

A: Spend the entire day from rope drop to closing at SFGAm on Sunday July 26th and then spend from opening to 6:00 PM at Michigans Adventure.

B: Spend Sunday at MiAd and Monday at SFGAm till 6:00 PM

Most every park that we have been to on a Monday has been quite manageable with most things being walk on to station waits. Sundays too have been great. So the trade off will be more time with potential of larger crowds or less time and hopefully lessor crowds.

I guess the other option would be a q-bot, but I would rather avoid the extra expense since we will be going on several more trips this year. Yes we are SF pass holders CF too for that matter.

[Chitown]

If you don't have to be back home until 10:00am Tuesday, then why would you have to leave a park at 6:00pm on Monday? Columbus isnt that far from either SFGAm or MIA.

I would try to reserve open to close at SFGAm no matter what day you pick. Especially if you are into waterparks as SFGAm's waterpark is included with theme park admission (or season pass in your case).

If you want to experience all that SFGAm has to offer (coasters, flats, shows, waterpark, parades), try open to close on Monday if possible. Do MIA on Sunday.

MIA will not be a problem no matter which day you go. It's waterpark is also included with admission but overall they really don't have alot to do there. I was bored with that park in about 3 hours.

Just so you know, it will take you roughly 4 hours drive time between both of these parks (as long as you don't get caught in any traffic).

[DaveStroem]

It is about 7 hours from the park to work according to google. Starting the trip back home at 10:00 PM would not allow for any sleep and after 2 days at amusment parks, may not be the safest of drives. If it were just me, I might consider it. But I will have my wife, 13 & 10 year old daughters along too.

As to the waterparks, I doubt if we would do this. We are all about the coasters. We currently are at 91 different coasters ridden in 2009. By the time we get to SFGAm we will be well over 100.

I will be looking up older posts as to which coasters to hit first. The thing is it seems that many people have different opinions on what to ride first.

[monsterfan99]

I would do choice A without a question. Crowds tend to be the same most days unless there is an event there: thick. You can do the q-bot, but there is a way to do all the coasters if you use a good touring plan. I've been working on how crowds are during what times during this Summer. Here is what I would do:

1. After opening, run to Superman. Some will say go at close, but the line is still long at close. This will allow you to leave early at night and get the ride will almost no line.
2. Go to Ragin Cajun. The line gets over an hour within the first hour of opening. Other option is single rider line, but it can get long.
3. Go to V2. The thing is just awful with capacity. Hit it then also due to the uncovered que line.
4. Go to Spacley Sprockets Rockets if you have some time before 11 am. Should be a small line, can get over 45 minutes later in the day.
5. At this point, American Eagle and the rest of County Fair opens at 11. Ride both sides of American Eagle here. I've seen the line well over 1 hour as only 1 train is allowed to run at this point while the others stack.
6. Hit Demon next. Line has been getting over 45 minutes by 1 recently.
7. Either head to Southwest Territory or eat lunch. At this point, coaster order does not matter to much as lines are getting thick on most rides. Whizzer and Viper have long lines after opening, so saving then is not a bad idea. Their ques are covered from the sun. Raging Bull and Batman are people eaters and the lines move fast.
8. Do The Dark Knight last if you do not care about the pre-show. They turn off the pre-show before close and will save you time.

While this is not as scientific as the Unoffical Guide to Walt Disney World, effort has been put into it. Guessing on if crowds are the same as a bad crowd day, there should be 3 hours or so of free time at worst. That gives plenty of time to do the flats of your choice, water rides or re-rides.

Thanks

[DaveStroem]

Thanks to both of you.

Yea Flyers always seem to back up the worst. I know the Vekoma flyers that I have been on seem to get a 30-45 minute line from park opening. I always try to hit those first.

I thank you for the touring plan, we are big in to WDW and know the value of a good plan. If your ever heading down there, look up RideMax. It is software that makes your plan for you based on what you want to do and when you are going.

[Chitown]

Well, since you said you don't do waterparks then MIA is going to become even more boring in a shorter amount of time.

I would suggest open to close at SFGAm on Sunday and then hit it again from open till like 1pm on Monday, then drive to MIA. After about 2 hours , you will most likely want to leave MIA. Just not enough to do in the ride area.

[DPFan]

I agree with spending all day at SFGAm.

I also agree with monsterfan99's plan. Just adding my own tip here. Sometimes towards park closing, the rides near the back of the park tend to have little to no wait because the majority of the people are making their way towards the exit.
I would make a point to ride as many of the coasters at night as possible....you do get quite the view!

When riding the Giant Drop, on a clear day, you can see both Lake Michigan and the Chicago skyline from the top of it's tower. Sorry, but I dont remember which cars give u that view. Maybe somebody on here can help? I think it's cars 1 and 2?

Anyways....enjoy your trip! SFGAm is an awesome park!

[monsterfan99]

I also agree with monsterfan99's plan. Just adding my own tip here. Sometimes towards park closing, the rides near the back of the park tend to have little to no wait because the majority of the people are making their way towards the exit.
I would make a point to ride as many of the coasters at night as possible....you do get quite the view!

Agreed with trying to make re-rides at night on at the very least Batman (front row) and Viper. Viper was booking at coaster after dark last week.

The only reason I put the coaster's earlier, as I've seen them close coaster lines with no warning well before closing. I understand why they do it, but it can be unpredictable.

[saylorman47]

Viper was booking at coaster after dark last week.

That was pretty bad, even though the crew was amazing!

[Ilovthevu']

Thanks to both of you.

Yea Flyers always seem to back up the worst. I know the Vekoma flyers that I have been on seem to get a 30-45 minute line from park opening. I always try to hit those first.

I thank you for the touring plan, we are big in to WDW and know the value of a good plan. If your ever heading down there, look up RideMax. It is software that makes your plan for you based on what you want to do and when you are going.

In my opinion, the ride for Superman is longer (more than a minute and a half), and they only run one train at a time. They have 2 trains, but there is nothing in block brakes during the course of the ride till the very end. It's a really stupid design if you ask me that you have to wait completely until the other train is done with the circuit. It's much longer than a ride like Batman the Ride. Batman is the other ride like that, but yet that ride goes faster through the layout. Target capacity for Superman was like 800, but Batman is 990.

Superman isn't as slow as a Vekoma though even though I think it has a poor design as in the running of trains. It gets a big line because it's the first thing people see.

In my opinion for at least Superman, the workers should check across the rows instead of front of the train to back of the train because the train is so long.

[DaveStroem]

Well we are heading out Saturday night for Chicago. Planning on doing SFGAm on Sunday and maybe Monday morning then heading to Indiana Beach for the rest of the day. This is a bit closer to home and will allow more ride time with less driving.

We have had a good week here at work so I just may opt for a flash pass, maybe even a gold one.

Now hoping that the weather cooperates with us. Right now it is supposed to be partly cloudy on Sunday.

[Chitown]

Much better choice to hit Indiana Beach instead of Michigans Adventure.

Have fun,,,