Sunday, September 20

[pashacar]

Yesterday was a really ideal day at the park. Personally, it was a nice welcome back after a multi-year hiatus (save for a hurried and unsatisfying trip this July). Mild weather, modest crowds, and a really nice, well-behaved, family-heavy guest mix.

 

My first observation was that the Fright Fest decoration budget has clearly been cut. Barely any corn/pumpkins/hay or other props. Demon District in particular was a real joke: A few traffic cones and five guys in bright masks holding cardboard swords. The sign they covered the nice Movie Town portal with looks like it was printed at Kinkos for $19.95. Beyond that, Blood Shed was disappointing, some of the ghouls at the Fountain were effective, but mostly I enjoyed the day as a regular one at the park, and not for Fright Fest.

 

El Toro was running beautifully. Nitro too, even in the maligned C train. They were united with Skull Mountain and The Dark Knight in the station-wait-all-day club, which was really lovely. RMT had a small line in the afternoon, but was also a lot of fun and smoother than on my last ride. Sticking with the middle rows in three-row cars is definitely the right move.

 

The park was clean, and there were even some flowers around. Bathrooms were good, and staffing was generally friendly and plentiful, keeping lines short for most rides and nearly everything else (security, food, etc.). You got the sense they expected a considerably larger crowd than they got -- Six Flags isn't especially keen on overstaffing (though it sure makes a difference to the Guest experience).

 

This trip was with my girlfriend, who isn't the biggest daredevil, so I also got to ride more flats than I normally would. Buccaneer was a lot of fun for a one-cycle wait, even if the cycle was awfully short. The Sky Ride was fun in both directions. Big Wheel was lovely, even if the loading procedure was frustratingly inefficient.

 

And then there's the safari. I loved the drive-through version, but this was my first time on SORA. And I have to say, WOW. This is an E-ticket attraction if there ever was one. Far better than Kilimanjaro Safaris, first off, and with the off-road, open-air vehicles and knowledgable guide, decidedly better than the drive-through version as well. It was amazing to see so many animals up close, and they seemed happy in their open space, plus were surprisingly active given that our ride was at 4:00 p.m. Camp Aventura was a fun pit stop, and they did a great job with the design -- it really felt like you were somewhere else. Plus the animal staff there was eager to chat about the various animals.

 

The two guides we had were both good; I wouldn't say either was great, and that felt like the one area the experience could improve. I know a lot of Guests are repeat riders, but I would have appreciated some more intro and conclusion info; there was nothing like "We're off to explore our 350-acre wildlife preserve with animals from X, Y, and Z areas," or "We're pulling up to Camp Aventura, where we keep some of our smaller animals, like X, Y, and Z" (they did note that there was a bathroom and snack bar, which was good -- but it's that larger context that would really help orient visitors, and sell them on the experience that much more). I also couldn't believe the size of the team in charge of the attraction -- it has to be 50+ people on a given day, and generally they seemed happy with their jobs and treated guests well. This really is an attraction that deserves to be in the name of the park itself.

 

As I said above, Fright Fest was an afterthought, which is probably better because for me because a lot of it was disappointing. The ghouls weren't very effective, and The Bloody Fountain was the only scare zone where there were enough of them that you saw more than a couple while walking through. Blood Shed was very weak, as others have said. The Awakening sorely needed the Ghoulmaster; it was seriously boring and Guests were walking away in droves. Dead Man's Party, as well, was very tired, with lower energy and a worse song mix than I can remember from any previous year.

 

But that room for improvement doesn't mean we had anything less than a lovely day. The park was firing on all cylinders, and with a modest Guest count, it made for a pleasant and very fun time.

Edited September 21, 2015 by pashacar

[Matt Kaiser]

Dead Man's Party, as well, was very tired, with lower energy and a worse song mix than I can remember from any previous year.

 

I find that impressive considering it's the exact same song mix as last year. Hell, the mix usually doesn't change much year-to-year.

[Yoshi]

I'm glad to hear the trip to the park was better than the one you had in July.

 

I agree about the middle rows at RMT being smoother. I usually go for the front row of a car since there is more leg room (same with Skull Mountain but with the last row of a car).

[jdc12192]

Glad you had a nice trip and look at the positives while providing constructive criticism.

Also glad you had a good safari ride with active animals that late in the day.

 

Fright fest is lacking some decorations, however i don't fully put the blame on them. As excited as everyone is for HITP, you can thank them for lack of decor in a lot of areas considering a lot of stuff couldn't be touched or decorated because they have to put lights up.

 

It was just the opening weekend for FF so hopefully ghouls are finding their ways and experimenting different things to scare.

[pashacar]

 

I find that impressive considering it's the exact same song mix as last year. Hell, the mix usually doesn't change much year-to-year.

 

The last time I saw it, it was in front of the Big Wheel, so I'm a few years out of date. I think the new location makes it a bit tougher to keep the energy up, even though, of course, it makes more sense crowd flow-wise.

[29yrswithaGApass]

It is nice to hear you had a good time.

 

Typically, the natural decorations (pumpkins, hay, gourds, etc.) arrive around the last week of September. I am not sure if this is because of availability or something else with their supplier but these things usually crop up the second weekend or so of FF along with the annual big "pumpkin man" display made out of hay.

[Matt Kaiser]

 

The last time I saw it, it was in front of the Big Wheel, so I'm a few years out of date. I think the new location makes it a bit tougher to keep the energy up, even though, of course, it makes more sense crowd flow-wise.

 

Song changes since the last year at the big wheel (2011)

 

Added:

Dragula

They're coming to take me away

 

Removed:

Boogeyman/ Meet the creeper

Phantom of the Opera / Walking with a Zombie

 

 

I particularly miss the original fire and think that contributes to a much less intense show. You just don't get the same effect or heat that you used to. At least it seems like there's slightly more pyrotechnics than last year.

[The Master]

I noticed most parks do not decorate much for holidays anymore.

[RunawayArrow]

I thought demon district was really sad also I think my front yard looks better the what they did now if they named it off limits or something and had zombie construction workers Id get it more.

[29yrswithaGApass]

Pashacar, I was really happy to hear your opinion about the Safari. I too feel that it is an E-ticket attraction and better than comparable rides at Disney, Busch, etc. It's always nice to see so many families enjoying this attraction which is still as popular as the day it opened in 2013.

[scott]

I was telling people yesterday that I enjoy SORA better than when the safari was a self drive. I think it is mostly because of the guides. I never liked the radio narration. I enjoy the guides, they have been knowledgeable and can tell everyone about the animal we are currently seeing when the radio would tell about all of the animals in the section.

[jdc12192]

Good thing Sora gets positive reviews. Could anyone imagine what it'd be like if it got a negative response instead?