29yrswithaGApass Posted January 22, 2015 Report Share Posted January 22, 2015 Please vote and add your comments. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jdc12192 Posted January 22, 2015 Report Share Posted January 22, 2015 I vote earlier. I rather go in 'spring cold' then 'fall cold' with a chance of snow and early darkness. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KK456 Posted January 22, 2015 Report Share Posted January 22, 2015 ^I agree. The autumn in NJ is actually pretty bad. By the time GADV closes it's freezing already, so if it was to close even later you would have to wear a winter coat to go! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
robertleax Posted January 22, 2015 Report Share Posted January 22, 2015 I voted for earlier but I would rather be open earlier, later and at Christmas time; and increase the Season Passes prices to compensate Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gencx Posted January 22, 2015 Report Share Posted January 22, 2015 earlier start. the sooner i can ride el toro, the better Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pineracer Posted January 22, 2015 Report Share Posted January 22, 2015 add a week and a half to the season on either end and add the Christmas event, I agree with Robert that a slight price hike in season pass may be required. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Yoshi Posted January 22, 2015 Report Share Posted January 22, 2015 I'd rather have the park open earlier. After months of not going to parks and riding coasters opening day can't get here soon enough and a few weeks or a month earlier opening would be great. Even if it meant that rides wouldn't be at 100% capacity like only 2 trains running on Nitro and Bizarro because they were still working on the 3rd train with a shorter offseason or even some minor rides still closed in addition to the water rides. I think that it would be better for the park if they stayed open later into the year for weather reasons. Both times of year can be cold but it's rare to get snow and ice in November and there is a higher chance of it happening in mid March, but if I'd still go with the earlier opening because even though at the end of the season, it would be nice to know you still have a few more weeks left to ride coasters at the end of October, it would be nicer to have the park open sooner after a cold and boring winter. A season pass increase wouldn't bother me if that is what it took to offset some of the costs of a longer operating season. Figuring that I have paid an average of $110 a year for the season pass and parking (including past years where the pass and parking had to be bought individually) and if I average around 18 trips a year, that's just over $6 a visit . If they raised the pass another $15, it wouldn't still average out to under $7 a visit. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
scott Posted January 23, 2015 Report Share Posted January 23, 2015 (edited) I wonder if the results would change if this was asked at the end of the season instead of prior to the opening? I voted for early opening but I bet at the end of the season I would want it open longer. Edited January 23, 2015 by scott Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DANofNJ Posted January 23, 2015 Report Share Posted January 23, 2015 I say open up the season earlier, but id like them to extend the season like Hershey does for the holidays. like someone above said. raise the SP prices. $61.99 for a gold season pass when it was bought at the labor day sale price is way too cheap. it should be min, double of that. CF charges $180. Moreys charges, last I checked, was over $200, and that was a sale price, it might even be way more that that, that's off the top of my head. Hershey charges $155. I think its safe to say, SF has walmart prices on season passes. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ReptileGuy Posted January 24, 2015 Report Share Posted January 24, 2015 In this climate, you can get a foot of snow in November some years. I would much rather go when it is a little cold an might rain a bit than miss days due to snow. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Master Posted January 25, 2015 Report Share Posted January 25, 2015 Neither for me, March can can still be pretty bad. I remember bad snow storms near the end of March. The weather doesn't really start to improve until mid April most years. Early Nov can be rough and it can be mild. Some years there are still days in the 60s and 70s, other years the temps drop hard like a brick into the 30s. I think GADV runs their season as long as it can be for our climate. If you want longer park seasons you are going to have to move south into more mild climates. we are slow to warm up in the spring and quick to cool down in the fall. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
29yrswithaGApass Posted January 25, 2015 Author Report Share Posted January 25, 2015 I love the "newness" of an early spring park visit and the "crispness" of a late autumn one. The cooler (and even colder) temps don't bother me and just further define the different seasons at the park for me. I just make sure to dress accordingly! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Master Posted January 25, 2015 Report Share Posted January 25, 2015 To me roller coasters and many outdoor rides lose their fun in the cold. I remember one cold early spring trip to GADV there was a zero wait for El Toro but I could only ride it once because the windchill on it was very painfull, guess that is why it didn't have a line. There was also another time with a cold ride on Nitro left my hands numb from the windchill, even with gloves on, just had to rush to a rest room to warm them under a hand dryer. My skin was chapped afterwards which wasn't fun. Cold weather also improves the chance of you catching a cold. Never really cared for the change of seasons, fall is the slow decline to a long stretch of bad weather and being bored. Even with heavy winter clothes, the cold will still sink though into your core, they only delay it. The windchill from a moving coaster train will speed your cool down quite a bit. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jollyroger Posted January 26, 2015 Report Share Posted January 26, 2015 Earlier opening, mostly because I want the park season to start sooner. The last time I was at Great Adventure when it was colder not many buildings were heated. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ThemeParkRider Posted January 27, 2015 Report Share Posted January 27, 2015 I think sometimes it can be just as cold in March, so staying open later would just add the benefit of more Fright Fest time. Also by that time any new attractions are (hopefully) open, but with smaller lines. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Master Posted March 1, 2015 Report Share Posted March 1, 2015 (edited) Here it is March and we are still sub-freezing with 3 inches of more snow coming down. Around here March is pretty much a 4th month of winter. April to Oct is the best that can be done in our climate, even early April and late Oct are pushing it. If you want parks with longer seasons you need to move to warmer areas with more mild winters, the northeast has a narrow mild season. Edit, they are predicting even more snow this Thrusday, up to 9 inches followed by another Arctic blast. Edited March 3, 2015 by The Master Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RobertDavid Posted April 8, 2015 Report Share Posted April 8, 2015 It would probably be difficult to stay open later because all the Fright Fest stuff would need to come down, and knowing them they would take forever to do it, so you would have Halloween decorations up through November. I used to love Fall at the park before Fright Fest. Cool, crisp weather with small crowds. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jdc12192 Posted April 10, 2015 Report Share Posted April 10, 2015 ^Taking down actually takes way less time then putting up. Id say about 95% of things are down within two weeks, sometimes faster. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RobertDavid Posted April 10, 2015 Report Share Posted April 10, 2015 Maybe I'm a little too critical, but I don't really think 95% in 2 weeks is something to brag about. The people who come to the park during those 2 weeks have a diminished experience. Remember for some people this will be their only visit to the park. They do not have annual passes and come frequently to see the "progress" that has been made over 2 weeks. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
joeyc98 Posted April 10, 2015 Report Share Posted April 10, 2015 What are you talking about? Fright fest would be over anyway? So why would they have a diminished experience if the park is doing what it is supposed to be doing: taking down fright fest decorations. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jdc12192 Posted April 10, 2015 Report Share Posted April 10, 2015 Maybe I'm a little too critical, but I don't really think 95% in 2 weeks is something to brag about. The people who come to the park during those 2 weeks have a diminished experience. Remember for some people this will be their only visit to the park. They do not have annual passes and come frequently to see the "progress" that has been made over 2 weeks. But there's no problem with decorations being in the process of putting up? The park would be closed anyway, it wouldn't be open during the week. So there would be nothing for them to see. Webs and park wide stuff is down within the first few days. Trails take about 2 days to dismantle. The rest is large heavy stuff or things that need a high reach. That stuff takes a little longer because you can only fit so much on a truck. To take it to storage. I don't think you have any idea what goes into putting up and taking down if you think 2 weeks is a long time. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RobertDavid Posted April 10, 2015 Report Share Posted April 10, 2015 Actually I have a very good idea what goes into these things. It was my job at Disney, and we didn't take 2 weeks to do it. We got it all out of the park and into a backstage area overnight, then took our time repacking it and putting it away out of sight of the guests. It just requires proper planning and execution. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gencx Posted April 10, 2015 Report Share Posted April 10, 2015 I think 2 weeks is a good turnaround time for a park like Great Adventure. Disney is in its own class so comparing Disney to Great Adventure is just setting yourself up for disappointment. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jdc12192 Posted April 10, 2015 Report Share Posted April 10, 2015 Disney also has resources and hands to help that our park doesn't. It also sounds like its a 'job' at disney while at GA its one department and only a few people who choose/volunteer to do it. On average its only about 10 people. If GA needed it done in a few days I'm sure it could be done, but like i said the park is not open so there is no a need to rush. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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