Contemplating a trip to Six Flags? Read this, first!

[summerrluvv]

I thought Six Flags Great Adventure was worst Six Flags I ever been too. Dear God if only want ride coast all day I would not went. Don't me I like coasters but I need a break. The safari was awful. I wondering where was the water rides at I don't seen one. I went in 2010 when our Boys scout troop to NYC. I never want go park again. I easy please.

I do like Six Flags over Georgia better because they have mixed of rides for everyone. My kids like it better.

I went years ago to the NJ one and it was awful. Thank goodness the tix were free for AOL members back then. They had rap music blaring and kids walking around in bikinis. Def. not a family atmosphere. The kiddie area was filthy too. I heard it's changed a bit, but I still have no interest!

 

[LisaNJ25]

Six Flags Great Adventure in NJ has lots of stuff to do for the pre-school crowd. I think they have 4 distinct kiddie areas.

And they have something like 13 coasters, two or three of them world-class. The problem seems to be there's very little in between. Maybe 6 to 8 other rides are left, down from over 20 they had in the early 2000s. They really need some good "flat" rides.

The park is cleaner than it had been previously, and employees seem somewhat more motivated. The food, however, continues to suck.

Jim

I havent been to that one in 9 years and wouldnt be sad if I never went again.

 

[nunzia]

Only been to one a long time ago..Six Flags Magic Mountain on a day trip from Disney. Really didn't like it although some of the thrill riders liked the big rides and the monster wood roller coaster. It was clearly a run wild local teen hangout even then and we never went back.

 

[shinysparklybubbles]

Six Flags has never been a place for families with little ones. I have two kids under the age of 5 and we choose not to go there. We go to Sesame Place or Hershey Park instead (Im in PA obviously)!

So with them taking out Thomas the train and other younger age generation type stuff, I dont see the issue with that because I dont think they need to attract families with little kids anyway. They get plenty of teenagers and young adults visiting for the coasters!

I'm assuming you mean Six Flags Great Adventure and I totally agree. Yes they have stuff for the little ones but it is not the environment I want to take my toddler to. It is not what it used to be (I worked there for 5 years and even met DH there)

 

[kelcoppens]

I went years ago to the NJ one and it was awful. Thank goodness the tix were free for AOL members back then. They had rap music blaring and kids walking around in bikinis. Def. not a family atmosphere. The kiddie area was filthy too. I heard it's changed a bit, but I still have no interest!

Exactly my point! Maybe there are a few kiddie rides but I remember overall it just wasnt worth it for us. Hershey Park however, was perfect because it is very family friendly!

But I guess some other SF locations are different like I found from reading this thread. I was just going by the NJ one.

 

[JB2K]

What about Batman?

As I said in my OP, DC Super Heroes (which includes Batman) are not affected by the re-theming...

 

[bigmama67]

We had Season Passes in '08 and '09. Last year we went back to our old Sesame Place passes. Great Adventure and Sesame Place are both the same for us - about 65 miles (takes under 90 minutes). We're thinking of getting Six Flags this year because we don't have to buy a pass for DD. It's only an extra $10 per pass to get the water park added on. We also thought Six Flags in Massachusetts was charming - we ended up going twice. We were less impressed with the one in Maryland but it was OK for a day. We may also be going up to Lake George for vacation this year so it would be great to go to the one there for a day without paying extra. I would think with the play areas in any of these places, DD will have enough to do - but she really LOVED Sesame Place so I'm torn. If we go that route we may just get the Platinum Passes (monthly deduction) and get them for two years.

One thing that bugs me about Six Flags is now they won't cross-honor parking passes so if we get them in NJ we will still have to pay for parking at the other ones (new policy). I was told by a woman at the New England park (I called yesterday) that they expect to have some coupons in the Pass Member books which will defray the cost...but still...

So I'm not sure what to do. But I think DD and DS will enjoy themselves anywhere we go.

 

[Fire14]

I haven;t been in a six Flags park in forever but I remember lack of rides, Flith and horrible food.

 

[hipchickie]

We don't have to pay anything more for the rides once we got in. It was all included. And we had a season pass which cost about $60 and went 4-5 times this past summer which made it worth while.

From their website
What does my admission ticket include?
Your admission ticket includes all rides, shows and attractions. Additional charges apply to the SkyCoaster, Go-Carts, Turbo Bungy and the Rock Climbing Wall.
No, you don't "have" to pay extra, but of course the kids see those and (like me) don't understand why they are not included and want to do them.

I have only been once, and it was 2 years ago, but it seemed like there was a large amt. of rides that were not working too - not sure if they had a bad day or if this is a normal occurance, but that stunk too.

 

[Ava]

I thought Six Flags Great Adventure was worst Six Flags I ever been too. Dear God if only want ride coast all day I would not went. Don't me I like coasters but I need a break. The safari was awful. I wondering where was the water rides at I don't seen one. I went in 2010 when our Boys scout troop to NYC. I never want go park again. I easy please.

I do like Six Flags over Georgia better because they have mixed of rides for everyone. My kids like it better.

The water park is separate at the NJ Six Flags. It's called SF Hurricane Harbor and requires a separate ticket for entrance.

I haven't been to Great Adventure in NJ in a few years now but do remember they don't have much for adults or older kids who are not into big coasters. The only other SF I've been to is the one in MA, and I liked it better. It's smaller, the tickets are cheaper (IIRC) and the water park is included in the same admission ticket as the regular park.

The food in both parks, however, was awful. Very over-priced yucky fast food. What is it with amusement parks having such awful food?

 

[Sagginit]

i used to do season pass to SF in NJ for years when i was in high school into college. it is a bit of a teen hangout, but when your not 21 it provides another option to mall/movies/bowling/applebees. we of course were not the binkini wearing loud mouthed annoyances that other teens can be. i got over my fear of coasters there and developed a love of them. since we were so close (20 min) it was a great deal. we bought one parking pass to share and bought a family pack of 4 season passes in the spring to get the cheapest price. if you stop in once a week for just a few hours and leave its a bargain. it wasnt the cleanest place and i could care less about the characters. as long as the lines werent crazy and the coasters were good i was happy. i will say i was VERY upset when they took down the swings. i wanted to cry, my friend had a fit in the park. the swings had been there since the park opened. my mother rembered going on as a teen, i remember going on as a kid with her, and it was the one ride all my friends went on. i dont have the time to go anymore but i would be sad if they had to close b/c the coasters are amazing.

 

[Zarabear]

I live near the Six Flags Discovery Kingdom and have to agree with a previous poster about how depressing it was near Christmastime. Thomas was already long gone, which wasn't a huge deal because my son is now 8.

The animal shows were all abbreviated and lackluster, the peeling paint and other depressing signs just didn't inspire confidence that I'd be returning as a season pass holder. No matter how much my son believes that Shouka (the killer whale) is his best friend.

 

[Friendly Frog]

We bought passes a couple of years ago. I thought this might help me between my Disney trips. Unfortunately I just could not find enough to keep me happy. I no longer do coasters or spin rides. I basically just enjoy the shows in the Southern Palace, and The Horseshoe, and ride Yosemite Sams and the Roaring Rapids. Unfortunately the shows end before the park cools down enought for me to want to be there.

I found most of the food ( except maybe Panda Express) to be gross and overpriced even for a theme park. The grounds are not so great and there are not many true family rides. I think this is one reason that you mostly see local parents drop ( dump ) their kids off. This makes the feel of the park different than if families visited together. I am concerned that once they start serving alcohol in a park with so many teens and newly 21 adults that it could become a little too rowdy for me. Plus alcohol + greasy food+ thrill rides =

I wish they had a couple more rides like Yosemite, where toddlers to granny could do then together.
Even more, I would like to see a nicely themed restaurant with good food that would draw in adults. Maybe combine dinner with a show in the Palace, then dessert in a cabana under the lights with say a mariachi band. ( ok maybe alcohol served only here. ) Parents could relax with a little romance together while the older kids enjoy the park. Parents could keep better tabs on their kids, kids could still feel like they have freedom. If the food is good and the price is not too crazy, I think adults would buy season passes just for this!

 

[luvdisney00]

We live about a half hour from 6 flags NJ and my kids love it. I think the overall quality of the park has improved over the past 5 or 6 years, it's cleaner and seems to be a bit more family friendly. My DD15 and her friends LOVE coasters and thrill rides so they enjoy the season passes. I don't really care about the theming or characters at all, I just go once or twice a season with my 7 yo DD and we enjoy it. It's not Disney, but it's OK for a local park.