rcji Posted January 19, 2016 Report Share Posted January 19, 2016 Looking for advice - Never been to Cedar Point and this year I finally plan on pulling the trigger to go. I live on Long Island and probably going to make the drive with a few people (8-9 hours). Looked into flying but from what I understand Cleveland is the closest and it's still an hour away plus I'll need to rent a car. Driving seems to be much cheaper when splitting it anyway. Planning to go in the beginning of June. I figure by then Valravn should be open. My main question is hotel. Is it better to stay at the hotel at the park or off-site? Not looking for a 5 star experience. Mainly just a clean place to sleep in. Also - Are there any other parks nearby that are worth a visit? I saw Kings Island is about 3.5 hours south. Wasn't sure if it's worth the extra drive. Any other advice will be greatly appreciated. Thanks all Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Coasterharrison'98 Posted January 19, 2016 Report Share Posted January 19, 2016 I have been to cedar point in the past and we stayed at Breakers Express, which is a hotel not directly in the park but is close enough that you can get in the park an hour early, I would recommend staying there. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Yoshi Posted January 19, 2016 Report Share Posted January 19, 2016 I went to both parks last year at the beginning of June. If you are not a pass holder, there was a Cedar Point and Kings Island combo ticket last year for $64.99 offering 1 day at each park and they probably will offer something similar this year. Crowds were low at Kings Island, most rides were 5 to 15 minutes except Flight of Fear and Firehawk. Cedar Point was much more crowded even on a weekday, more people using Fast Lane and Maverick and Dragster got up to an hour. Kings Island was nice but I enjoyed the coasters at Cedar Point more but I feel Diamondback, Beast and Banshee make it worth a visit plus all the other coasters. At Cedar Point, wait until later in the day to ride the coasters in the front of the park. When I got there Raptor was 45 minutes and Corkscrew was 30 minutes. By 5, Raptor, Corkscrew and Gatekeeper were all less than 5 minutes. The park lives up to the hype, Millennium Force is my #1 steel coaster and other than Mean Streak there isn't a bad coaster in the park. They also have very good operations. Gemini's line literally never stops moving as an example. I also posted a trip report for both parks last year: http://www.greatadventurehistory.com/Forums/index.php?showtopic=4508 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fgcassady Posted January 20, 2016 Report Share Posted January 20, 2016 (edited) I'm in a similar situation, but wanting to fly. I want to stay at hotel breakers, but the park website says it'll cost around 700 dollars to stay, which is out of budget. I'm thinking of having a 2 day ticket while staying at hotel breakers with the Expedia deal (280 dollars). Anyone have a different, better idea? Edited January 20, 2016 by Fgcassady Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
robertleax Posted January 20, 2016 Report Share Posted January 20, 2016 I've been there many times during either late august or mid june. We stayed only off site once which was not bad. On the plus side they kept the pool open till 1am, had a continental breakfast and the shuttle service was pretty quit. I much prefer staying in the resort though. Every time we stayed in the resort it was Hotel Breakers. Not the best room but the pluses are that you get in the park an hour early, you can come and go as you please and even sit and relax at the beach during the mid afternoon if you want. It was also better for food. We had a cooler of soda, milk, oj, butter, cream cheese, deli meats and fruits and veggies; had a cooler for "other beverages" and brought cereal, bagels, bread and snacks. We would eat breakfast in the morning, hit the park for a few hours, go back to the room and make some sandwiches, either hit the beach or back to the park, and then for dinner we would either eat at TGIF in the hotel, go to Sandusky to eat in the park. Very cost effective. Plus getting in the park an hour early is a plus. Last time I took my family to the park my wife and son would sleep in, my daughter and I would get in the park early, hit the few coasters that we open early, even walk around (never knew about the petting zoo until we did that) and by the time they let the rest of the people in, we would hit the other coasters that people don't go to right away. We did not feel rushed at all this way. We did go to Kings Island the last 2 days and really did enjoy it... But the only reason we did that is because we had the Max Pass that year so it was just the cost of a hotel room just outside the park. The problem was that was 2007 and the rooms were only about $150 per night, the outside hotels were about $110 per night. I thought it was worth the difference back then but now the rooms are way over $250 per night. If you go with 4 people, it would not be that bad. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Viper26 Posted January 20, 2016 Report Share Posted January 20, 2016 That's like staying at a Disney hotel with the pricing of the Breakers, but it is well worth it with the additional perks . I would prefer to go to Cedar Point over Disney anyway. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nitro1118 Posted January 21, 2016 Report Share Posted January 21, 2016 I've only been to CP once, all the way back during TTD's opening year. We stayed at Hotel Breakers in the newer wing (closest to WT). I cannot imagine staying off property after that experience. It is pricey, but the rooms are pretty nice, and the view of Lake Erie is amazing with the balcony. I am sure the park view is really sweet as well. It is just a short 2min walk to the entrance by Gatekeeper, which is a nice plus if you decide to wak up early for early entrance, which is a MUST as lines for most attraction are consistently an hour wait or longer all day for the main 5-10 attractions. You can most definitely cut your costs by more than half by staying at Breakers Express, which offers the same perks, but without the location convenience and beautiful rooms. If you must save the money, then there should be no other option as early entry is beyond valuable for such a busy park with such a dense must-do collection of rides. As I said, though, the proper CP experience is a stay at Breakers. I also highly reccomend getting Fastlane +. When I went to CP back in '03, no similar service was available, and even with 2.5 days of riding, I still felt very rushed, with only 1-2 rides on all major coasters besides MF and TTD, which I got on about 5x each. Considering it's the mecca of all parks, you will want as many laps on everything as possible so your memory is crisp and clear, as well as being able to soak in the park's atmosphere and other offerings. This visit I take I will be getting Fastlane + at least 1 days, and regular Fastlane the other 2 days. I would definitely choose staying off property but getting Fastlane over staying on property without Fastlane. You will NOT regret it! I am also looking at a summer trip to the Point; my first visit in 13 years. I am on a VERY tight budget, so making the 8+ hour drive and staying at Breakers Express is a necessity. I definitely plan on getting Fastlane +. I am not too excited about Valravn, but I am strangely still a Dive coaster virhin, so it is a must. I am mostly looking forward to Maverick, as well as refreshing my fond memories of MF and TTD, as well as hiving Raptor a 2nd chance (only got 1 ride on my last trip, and due to the long line and heat I ended up being cranky and disappointed in the ride). Super excited for this summer. Best of luck to you on your trip! Any questions feel free to ask! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Viper26 Posted January 21, 2016 Report Share Posted January 21, 2016 I think Cedar Point needs to have longer hours during the peak summer months, specifically 9 AM to midnight on Saturdays and 9 AM to 11PM the rest of the week. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fgcassady Posted January 21, 2016 Report Share Posted January 21, 2016 What website did you pay for Hotel Breakers on? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Password121 Posted January 21, 2016 Report Share Posted January 21, 2016 I'll be going to Cedar Point and Kings Island (and probably Kentucky Kingdom) in mid-July this year. I stayed at the Breakers Express twice in years past, and I would recommend it if you don't have a platinum pass as it gets you all the benefits of staying on-site at a fraction of the cost. I spent the entire day, open to close, at the park every day I visited, so there really was no reason to pay the extra $100-$200 for staying on-site in my case. If you do want that convenience, however, the Hotel Breakers was just renovated last year and looks very nice. It is definitely costly (rooms ranging from $180 to $1200/night) but if you plan on taking breaks during the day it might not be a bad option. As for myself, I (along with a buddy of mine) have platinum passes so we'll be staying in $49 budget motels so we can spend our money on more time in the park and potentially a Fast Lane wristband one day. It's all up to you and your priorities, though--I just know that I only use hotels for sleeping and bathing when I'm on park trips. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Yoshi Posted January 21, 2016 Report Share Posted January 21, 2016 I also highly reccomend getting Fastlane +. When I went to CP back in '03, no similar service was available, and even with 2.5 days of riding, I still felt very rushed, with only 1-2 rides on all major coasters besides MF and TTD, which I got on about 5x each. Considering it's the mecca of all parks, you will want as many laps on everything as possible so your memory is crisp and clear, as well as being able to soak in the park's atmosphere and other offerings. This visit I take I will be getting Fastlane + at least 1 days, and regular Fastlane the other 2 days. I would definitely choose staying off property but getting Fastlane over staying on property without Fastlane. You will NOT regret it! I kind of regret not getting Fast Lane +. I was able to ride everything I wanted to in 1 day without it but was unable to ride anything more than once except Raptor and Blue Streak and looking back on it, I would have liked to have gotten multiple rides on Millennium Force, Maverick and Dragster as well. I just wish for the price they were charging they sold less of them. When I was there Maverick was an hour in the regular line, and was 30 minutes for Fast Lane +. If they are going to charge up to $100 depending on the day, with Fast Lane + I feel like the rides should be a walk on or maybe a 10 - 15 minute wait at the most and not half the regular line wait time. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DANofNJ Posted January 22, 2016 Report Share Posted January 22, 2016 im making my 3rd year in a row trip out to coastermania this june. I cant wait. I stay offsite have had no issues. im doing my same itinerary as last year. im driving out early Thursday, june 2nd, hitting the park half a day. fri is coastermania, all day for that plus fast lane plus, and sat morning driving to KI for the day and getting fast lane plus again, driving home on sunday. cant wait. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RunawayArrow Posted January 22, 2016 Report Share Posted January 22, 2016 Kings Island is diffidently worth the extra drive Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rcji Posted January 23, 2016 Author Report Share Posted January 23, 2016 Thanks for the info everyone! I looked into Fast Lane as well and thought that was a must. Considering it's not a park I go to often i definitely want to ride everything as much as possible. Wasn't aware that hotel gives you an extra park hour. Thanks again! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mrpq Posted January 26, 2016 Report Share Posted January 26, 2016 (edited) hey I am in Queens, you wanna pick me up on your way?!?! lol. I have been there twice, Although last time I was there was the year before they built mavric, needless to say I am over due for a visit. Deff stay on site. The experiences of hanging out on the beach outside the hotel with the park lit up in the back ground is amazing, Not to mention you get early access June is probably best as far as weather goes. last time I went was in August and the humidity was KILLER. I remember standing in line for TTD, not that the wait was long but just standing there even in the shade I was literally dripping Edited January 26, 2016 by Mrpq Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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