Wildwood, NJ or Ocean city, Maryland?

[lukenick1]

Thinking of taking our kids to Six Flags Great Adventure in New Jersey and was looking to do something else for a few days while there. We have 5 kids in our group ranging in age 9-12. Which is a better place to go? Any budget, newer hotel recommendations? Looking to spend less than $150 per night for hotel.
Thanks

 

[katrina1122]

First off, I'd rethink 6 flags NJ. That place flat out scares me. The rides aren't kept up, they just dump money into what ever the newest coaster is and the rest seem to just fly by with minimal care. I actually had a bolt come out of the lap bar on a wooden coaster and had to hold it in. When I got out and showed it to the ride operator he just tossed it aside and let the next riders on! We also noticed a huge wad of gum on the side of a concessions building one year and made note of how high up it was and it must of been a pain to get it up there. 3 years later we took a friend who insisted on going, that same gum was there!

Their Hurricane Harbor water park on the other hand is very nice and we go a few times a season since we only live 20 minutes away.

I'd say skip it altoghther and just hit Wildwood. Their boardwalk has more rides than disneyland ranging fom kiddie up to super thrill roller coasters. I grew up going there from VA as my mom is from Wildwood. Plus the boardwalk has 2 or 3 waterparks that are really nice too. Stay in Wildwood Crest as it tends to be more family friendly and quieter. I still have a few family members living in the crest. In Wildwood you'll find 50's still motels or condos/rebuilds in all price ranges. Last time we went we did a b&b. Also you can head over to Cape May which is alot of fun too.

 

[mom2cookies]

ocean city NEW JERSEY is more family friendly. THey have two amusement parks that would satisfy your kids age group, there are a few hotels, ( check renting a house usually cheaper). Also a water park on the boardwalk as well. There is a nearby zoo ( about 20 minutes) You can rent bikes and bike in the morning on the boards.
IMO, Wildwood is more geared toward older kids.
We go every year Labor Day week. FYI, new jersey does charge you to go on their beaches, but some rental houses include beach tags. ( they aren't very expensive)

 

[Claudine877]

We are staying at the PanAmerican Hotel in Wildwood Crest. It's newer, on the beach and extremely clean! the pool and restaurant are wonderful too.

 

[mtquinn]

I live in PA, and have been to both locations many times. I also have two girls, ages 7 and 10.5.

Both have their pluses, but to me hands down OC MD is way better than Wildwood. The beaches are MUCH cleaner, less of a walk from the boards to the actual ocean. Wildwood's beach makes you walk seemingly forever to get to the water.

Better boardwalk, in my opinion, in MD. Much more family oriented as well. Cleaner and nicer, but still very much a typical boardwalk with tons of shopping, food, games and rides. Lots to do.

Wildwood is still a nice place to visit, but there is a bit more of a teenager element there, which I just don't appreciate anymore.

When I stay, I like to rent a condo. Feels more like home. Check vrbo.com, or just google 'ocean city md rentals.' Tons of sights will come up. Of course, there are lots of hotels as well.

When you go will determine what you pay. Rentals can be had, but usually not during peak summer months (June-August). Go with a hotel/motel instead if you are traveling at those times.

Have fun! Should be a great time.

 

[lukenick1]

I live in PA, and have been to both locations many times. I also have two girls, ages 7 and 10.5.

Both have their pluses, but to me hands down OC MD is way better than Wildwood. The beaches are MUCH cleaner, less of a walk from the boards to the actual ocean. Wildwood's beach makes you walk seemingly forever to get to the water.

Better boardwalk, in my opinion, in MD. Much more family oriented as well. Cleaner and nicer, but still very much a typical boardwalk with tons of shopping, food, games and rides. Lots to do.

Wildwood is still a nice place to visit, but there is a bit more of a teenager element there, which I just don't appreciate anymore.

When I stay, I like to rent a condo. Feels more like home. Check vrbo.com, or just google 'ocean city md rentals.' Tons of sights will come up. Of course, there are lots of hotels as well.

When you go will determine what you pay. Rentals can be had, but usually not during peak summer months (June-August). Go with a hotel/motel instead if you are traveling at those times.

Have fun! Should be a great time.

We were looking to go for a few nights mid week in August so I don't think a condo rental is for us.

 

[mtquinn]

I agree with the previous post that Ocean City NJ is the very best place to stay...over Wildwood and OC MD (though I do love OC MD).

I also agree that Six Flags is gross. Dorney park in PA, or maybe Clementon Park in NJ? Here is a link:

http://www.clementonpark.com/index.html

There are far better options than Six Flags. It's pretty beat up there. In the end, OC NJ is ideal. Has everything.

 

[lukenick1]

I agree with the previous post that Ocean City NJ is the very best place to stay...over Wildwood and OC MD (though I do love OC MD).

I also agree that Six Flags is gross. Dorney park in PA, or maybe Clementon Park in NJ? Here is a link:

http://www.clementonpark.com/index.html

There are far better options than Six Flags. It's pretty beat up there. In the end, OC NJ is ideal. Has everything.

The only reason we were going to take them to Six Flags is because we have Season Passes to the one here at home. Thanks for the warning. Geez I really should talk to my neighbor across the street he is the President of ours. I think he should be aware of what people are saying about the NJ one. That's not a good reputation at all.

 

[Yoshi]

I am a season passholder to Great Adventure and I think the park has really changed over the last few years. It used to be a lot more dirty and many closed rides but it has become a lot better.

The park is much more cleaner, security guards and managers even walk around with trash grabbers to pick up any litter on the ground they see and the employees are also nicer. Almost all of them say enjoy your ride or tell you to have a nice day when you exit the ride. The new management reopened closed rides and this year they are adding some family rides (a scrambler and bumper cars) since family rides have been neglected. Operations are also better, sometimes coasters used to run 1 train, now the coasters run 2 or 3 trains even when the park is empty (except the rides that only have 1 train of course)

Just don't go on a weekend because it can be very crowded.

 

[jenbelle]

another vote for ocean city, NJ. i've never been to ocean city in maryland and wildwood is kind of dirty. it's definitely not as family friendly as oc. if you do want to go to the beach, but don't want to pay, then you can hop in the car and head to nearby strathmere. it's free and there are lifeguards on duty. the zoo that has been mentioned is the cape may zoo. they have a decent amount of animals for being a zoo sustained merely on donations and they have a few playgrounds as well.

 

[cmac609]

Thinking of taking our kids to Six Flags Great Adventure in New Jersey and was looking to do something else for a few days while there. We have 5 kids in our group ranging in age 9-12. Which is a better place to go? Any budget, newer hotel recommendations? Looking to spend less than $150 per night for hotel.
Thanks

First of all I have never been to 6 Flags in NJ, we usually go to Dorney Park or Hershey Park so I can't comment on that.

As for OC, MD it is very nice family place to relax and hang on the beach but not much for rides, etc. I grew up going to Wildwood and even though it isn't as nice as it once was, it is still a great place for kids of all ages to go on rides. Especially the ages you have. I would either stay in North Wildwood or Wildwood Crest (not Wildwood itself). OC, NJ is very nice too but the rides are for much younger kids nothing really for 15 year olds.

 

[waltsghost]

First off, I'd rethink 6 flags NJ. That place flat out scares me. The rides aren't kept up, they just dump money into what ever the newest coaster is and the rest seem to just fly by with minimal care. I actually had a bolt come out of the lap bar on a wooden coaster and had to hold it in. When I got out and showed it to the ride operator he just tossed it aside and let the next riders on! We also noticed a huge wad of gum on the side of a concessions building one year and made note of how high up it was and it must of been a pain to get it up there. 3 years later we took a friend who insisted on going, that same gum was there!

Their Hurricane Harbor water park on the other hand is very nice and we go a few times a season since we only live 20 minutes away.

I'd say skip it altoghther and just hit Wildwood. Their boardwalk has more rides than disneyland ranging fom kiddie up to super thrill roller coasters. I grew up going there from VA as my mom is from Wildwood. Plus the boardwalk has 2 or 3 waterparks that are really nice too. Stay in Wildwood Crest as it tends to be more family friendly and quieter. I still have a few family members living in the crest. In Wildwood you'll find 50's still motels or condos/rebuilds in all price ranges. Last time we went we did a b&b. Also you can head over to Cape May which is alot of fun too.

I'm sorry I usually keep my mouth shut and let ignorant comments be ignorant comments but I feel the need to intercede on this one considering I have actually worked at both parks. While I loved working for Disney more than any other job I ever had, one thing I can say for sure is that the safety at Disney SCARES me! Your afraid of Six Flags NJ....you really have no clue. Disney relies WAY too heavily on computer systems and guests to check their own restraints! Next time you go to Disney tell me I'm wrong?! This "pull up on your own reatraint" crap is one of the unsafest things I ever heard of! All roller coaster designers manuals say to PUSH DOWN then pull up on the restraint to make sure its properly in place. This is because if the person doesn't pull it down far enough if they are pulling up on it its not gonna matter if its too high anyway! The death on Superman: ride of steel at SF New England in the early 2000s was due to the restraint NOT BEING PUSHED DOWN and only pulled up to check! Since that incident Six Flags makes sure to push down and pull up via their workers! Disney is too concerned with making the line move quicker than safety! They can lie thru their teeth all they want that they have safety as their number one goal but if that were true cast members would be physically checking belts! But I have actually heard stories of cast members at disney who were reprimanded for physically checking guest restraints!

But don't take my word for it lets look at the number of deaths shall we! Six Flags Great Adventure has not had a death at the park since the early 80's with the terrible haunted house fire tragedy. Disney on the other hand in the past 10 years alone has at least 4 deaths that I can think of off hand at WDW alone. 2 guests on mission: space; the monorail accident and a worker on primevil whirl who was hit by a coaster train. Don't let the fascade of the Disney name fool you they are just very good at covering up incidents or getting them out of the spotlight quick so people forget, but take it from someone who has visited every major theme park east of the Mississippi River of all the parks I've seen besides some rundown tiny no-name parks....Disney is one of the most unsafe there is.

 

[lukenick1]

Yikes.....scary thought! How is the Safari at Six Flags NJ? Do the animals really come up and damage cars?

 

[FozzieFan]

The safari isn't as bad anymore. It was really the baboons that used to sit on your car and cause damage. A few years ago they put a barrier up so they couldn't reach the cars. The safari has always been one of my favorite things about great adventure.

 

[addicted2dizney]

Yikes.....scary thought! How is the Safari at Six Flags NJ? Do the animals really come up and damage cars?

you can actually take a bus if you don't want to chance it with your own car, it's a nominal fee and you go to a certain pick up spot. The animals are close but I've been through with no damage a few times.

 

[Kathi OD]

OCNJ is really quite nice.

However be forewarned, if you enjoy a drink w/ your meal, know that OCNJ is a dry town. There are no bars or restaurants that sell alcoholic beverages in town. There are also no stores that sell alcohol in town. You'll have to buy your grown-up beverages out of town and bring them in with you.

 

[Safari Queen]

Walt's Ghost, none of the incidents you mention involved a failure of safety straps.

 

[SpaceMounatin]

As someone who used to work at Great Adventure I can say that Great Adventure really is no where near as bad as you guys say it is! Yes, the park gets a bad rep because of some history and annoying locals. But the family entertainment values are there. And don't you dare say our rides aren't safe! GADV maintains their rides just as well as any other theme parks do. It's the law! I've never felt unsafe on any of the rides at Great Adventure.

Also, to the person who suggested Clementon! LMAO! Clementon has to be one of the dirtiest, least family friendly park out of any of the NJ parks. Though I will say, Dorney Park and Hersheypark are really good places to visit as well. But I hold Great Adventure true and near to my heart. It really isn't that bad

 

[nchulka]

I've been to all the places you're talking about (although it was when I was a teenager) and enjoyed them all. I liked Wildwood more than Ocean City, but they were both great and I'm sure your kids will enjoy either. I'm glad to hear that Ocean City is a dry town, that will probably sway me to go there instead of Wildwood when I take my kids East. I hate drinking! Six Flags NJ was awesome! The animal safari was so cool. I loved the baboons climbing on our car, especially since we had a sunroof. Of course it was my parents car, not mine, so I wasn't worried about damage! I understand what pp mean about Six Flags looking awful, we live near the St. Louis one and have season passes and it is pretty disgusting and run down. However we love the rides and always feel safe on them!!! They have a sign out front that says "We have a 10 for cleanliness" and my kids and I always joke that it's out of 100

 

[serene56]

we go to wildwood. (family of 4) and we get the family pass .

It costs 200. but it gives me two days of fun so the price is awesome.
you can use the pass for two days but its not advertised. so i think most people use it all on one day.

The pass gives you the three water parks for one day and all the rides the next day.

well we use the rides one day and the water park the day we are leaving.

check it out. moreyspier.com