Fright Fest 2017

[Lemur]

On 9/18/2017 at 3:30 AM, The Master said:

I just got back from Sunday night trip to FF and used the free maze ticket they were giving out at the gate. So this year I tried Bloodshed. The line was long, and moved very slowly as they barely let stand by people go, but let fast pass holders go in near constantly. After waiting over an hour, the Bloodshed maze was just ok, but a poorman's version of Dorney's Cornstalkers. You pay upcharge admission to GADV's houses, and either wait in a long and slow moving line or pay an additional upcharge to skip it, and the mazes are still only mediocre at best despite all the cash inflows. 

 

I honestly believe that half of the issue with the mazes is picking when to go.  I intentionally avoid the first weekend, the staffing level isn't where it needs to be and the bugs haven't been worked out yet.  It's usually super crowded to the point of using overflow parking and it seems like half of the Five Burroughs is there.  Sundays, especially when the Giants, Jets and Eagles are playing, is usually better.  Less people also means more ghoul interaction.  

[The Master]

21 minutes ago, Lemur said:

 

I honestly believe that half of the issue with the mazes is picking when to go.  I intentionally avoid the first weekend, the staffing level isn't where it needs to be and the bugs haven't been worked out yet.  It's usually super crowded to the point of using overflow parking and it seems like half of the Five Burroughs is there.  Sundays, especially when the Giants, Jets and Eagles are playing, is usually better.  Less people also means more ghoul interaction.  

 

Its more than just opening weekend bugs. The mazes at GADV are built sparse on props and sets. Cornstalkers at Dorney is a similar theme, but it does not have any empty or bare spots like Bloodshed.  Last year I did Voodoo Island and it was laughable, mostly just wooden fence sections you can buy at Home Depot, very little in sets or props. It was intentional that the standby line moved slowly, it is a similar setup to HH lines with Flashpass slowing down standby lines. 

 

Also, in the former pathway they use for Bloodshed's queue, there are two more Needle Palm trees that are still alive. Both look better than the ones on the still open pathways in GK.  I think its because those two are in south facing locations and are protected by the Bamboo. 

[Lemur]

19 minutes ago, The Master said:

 

Its more than just opening weekend bugs. The mazes at GADV are built sparse on props and sets. Cornstalkers at Dorney is a similar theme, but it does not have any empty or bare spots like Bloodshed.  Last year I did Voodoo Island and it was laughable, mostly just wooden fence sections you can buy at Home Depot, very little in sets or props. It was intentional that the standby line moved slowly, it is a similar setup to HH lines with Flashpass slowing down standby lines. 

 

So how many of the mazes did you actually do?  Did you do last year?  Did you do them all or are you merely basing your opinion on one maze done early in the FF season?

[The Master]

I do one each year with the free pass. Bloodshed is better than Voodoo Island was last year, but both are subpar compared to Dorney's mazes. But with Dorney's big decline in quality in their operations this year, especially in their water park, who knows how Haunt will be this year since I have not been to it yet. 

 

Have you ever been to Dorney's Haunt mazes? As of last year, they are excellent. 

[Lemur]

31 minutes ago, The Master said:

I do one each year with the free pass. Bloodshed is better than Voodoo Island was last year, but both are subpar compared to Dorney's mazes. But with Dorney's big decline in quality in their operations this year, especially in their water park, who knows how Haunt will be this year since I have not been to it yet. 

 

Have you ever been to Dorney's Haunt mazes? As of last year, they are excellent. 

 

Not in a while.  I remember them being good though.  I did GA's last year and the year before, some of them multiple times.  The quality varies greatly depending on the staffing levels and crowd size in my opinion. Your mileage my vary. 

[Mr.Six]

Hello guys.  I'm thinking of getting the all season maze.  Do they put it on your physical pass or on your pass like dining?  I use the app, so I don't know.

[Lemur]

25 minutes ago, Mr.Six said:

Hello guys.  I'm thinking of getting the all season maze.  Do they put it on your physical pass or on your pass like dining?  I use the app, so I don't know.

I have stickers on the back of my card.  No idea how they handle it with the app.  I know when I pre-bought my maze pass online, it wasn't in anyway tied to my ID number.

[Viper26]

How crowded is the park expected to be this weekend? If I don't go tomorrow after my practice, I may end up going on the weekend so I can still visit the park this month.

[Matt Kaiser]

1 hour ago, Mr.Six said:

Hello guys.  I'm thinking of getting the all season maze.  Do they put it on your physical pass or on your pass like dining?  I use the app, so I don't know.

 

They give you another physical card (which is actually better quality than the season pass card) and they write the last 4 digits of your season pass number on it.

 

When you enter the line for a maze, the guard makes sure the number on the maze pass matches your season pass. (I'm not sure if they let you use the app for that, but I've seen a guest they do)

[TylerRRC1972]

Park was Packed today. Cars were out to the first light before the park on 537. All food Lines were 10-25 deep. A ton of rides closed( Nitro, Congo Rapids, Log Flume and El Toro just to name a few) Nitro was testing at 14:00.

[Viper26]

1 hour ago, TylerRRC1972 said:

Park was Packed today. Cars were out to the first light before the park on 537. All food Lines were 10-25 deep. A ton of rides closed( Nitro, Congo Rapids, Log Flume and El Toro just to name a few) Nitro was testing at 14:00.

How can it be crowded on a Thursday? I'm thinking it's because of Rosh Hashanah, and Lakewood and a further extent, Cherry Hill have a large Jewish population. Unfortunately I won't be able to go this weekend anymore but hopefully the park is not crowded when I go next Friday.

[scott]

1 hour ago, TylerRRC1972 said:

Park was Packed today. Cars were out to the first light before the park on 537. All food Lines were 10-25 deep. A ton of rides closed( Nitro, Congo Rapids, Log Flume and El Toro just to name a few) Nitro was testing at 14:00.

 

I got there today at 3:30 and left at 5. Nitro and El Toro are the only coasters I made it on.  Nitro was only a 15 minute wait and El Toro was a 30minute wait. I wonder when they closed.

[scott]

4 minutes ago, Viper26 said:

How can it be crowded on a Thursday? I'm thinking it's because of Rosh Hashanah, and Lakewood and a further extent, Cherry Hill have a large Jewish population. Unfortunately I won't be able to go this weekend anymore but hopefully the park is not crowded when I go next Friday.

 

I thought the same thing. I thought I was going to run through the park in my hour and a half but the park was not as empty as I thought. So when Fright Fest was going to start I assume it was going to/did fill up

[Viper26]

1 hour ago, scott said:

 

I thought the same thing. I thought I was going to run through the park in my hour and a half but the park was not as empty as I thought. So when Fright Fest was going to start I assume it was going to/did fill up

Fright Fest on weeknights can be a hit or miss crowd wise. Some days it can be dead while other days such as last year's preview night the park was crowded. Usually the crowded weeknights are because of religious holidays.

[Yoshi]

Crowds seemed to get lower the later it got. I walked onto Zumanjaro at around 7 and when I left after 8, Green Lantern's station had empty waiting rows. The one maze I walked past looked like it had a short line as well (Forgotten Carnival?). The coaster lines didn't seem too bad, other rides like Deja Vu had a full queue probably because the crowd was a lot of families with kids.

[TylerRRC1972]

5 hours ago, Viper26 said:

How can it be crowded on a Thursday? I'm thinking it's because of Rosh Hashanah, and Lakewood and a further extent, Cherry Hill have a large Jewish population. Unfortunately I won't be able to go this weekend anymore but hopefully the park is not crowded when I go next Friday.

Obviously all Catholic Schools in NJ had school today as well as Urban Districts( Perth Amboy, Trenton, Newark and Jersey City) but NYC and Philly Schools were closed. Also GA was the only Park Open, Storybook Land, Sesame Place, Dutch Wonderland, Dorney Park and Hershey Park we're all closed.

[Lemur]

So the Facebook consensus was that the big delay getting into the park was caused by a car broken down in the right entry lane, that the crowd was largely families and peaked in the late afternoon before thinning out as the sun went down and night fully set in.  

[dougdrummer]

I'm thinking of camping in the area and doing FF on Oct 13, 14, or 15.  Does it get more crowded with each successive weekend as you approach Halloween.  We will not be doing any of the extra pay walk throughs.  We just go for the sights, decorations, food and maybe a few rides.  We've already gone at least 10 times this season so our passes and food plans owe us nothing!

[Lemur]

43 minutes ago, dougdrummer said:

I'm thinking of camping in the area and doing FF on Oct 13, 14, or 15.  Does it get more crowded with each successive weekend as you approach Halloween.  We will not be doing any of the extra pay walk throughs.  We just go for the sights, decorations, food and maybe a few rides.  We've already gone at least 10 times this season so our passes and food plans owe us nothing!

My personal experience is that Friday and Saturday nights are the most crowded but the best for ambiance (more people usually means better energy from the ghouls).  Sundays are best for rides.  Others may disagree. 

[scott]

1 hour ago, Lemur said:

My personal experience is that Friday and Saturday nights are the most crowded but the best for ambiance (more people usually means better energy from the ghouls).  Sundays are best for rides.  Others may disagree. 

I agree

The park is most crowded on Fridays and Saturdays for FF and it gets to a point that you cant tell if its any more or less crowded.  As soon as the lot is full and they move cars to HH for parking you cant tell how much more crowded it is, its just packed.

I also agree that during FF the most fun is seeing the decorations and how the people react to the ghouls.

The worst part of FF, trying to exit at the end of the night. I've been as much as 2 hours trying to get out of the parking lot.

[mugnezz]

no graphics of the Halloween theme site?

[Lemur]

The Book of Faces is indicating light crowds and a less-than-half full parking lot right now.  So if any of you lucky folks can make a run at it, it's a good time for it. 

[29yrswithaGApass]

 

Quote

 

Six Tips for Surviving Friday the 13^th of October

from the Fear Experts at Six Flags

 

JACKSON, N.J. — October 9, 2017 — With the immense popularity of Halloween, October has become synonymous with all things frightful. For those with “friggatriskaidekaphobia” – fear of Friday the 13^th – the second Friday of this month is particularly distressing. So what is a friggatriskaidekaphobic to do?

 

The nine-syllable word is derived from Frigg, the Norse goddess of wisdom after whom Friday is named, and the Greek words “triskaideka” meaning 13, plus “phobia” meaning fear. Since this terrifying day typically makes an October appearance once every five to six years, emotional and physical preparation is mandatory.

 

Fear experts at Six Flags Great Adventure recommend Six Tips for Surviving Friday the 13^th this month:

 

1.    Know the Enemy – Whether it’s a black cat crossing the street, a ladder leaning against the side of a building, or a rogue salt shaker getting in the way at the table, be aware of the surroundings and what lurks just around the corner.

 

2.    Eat Finger Foods – Crossing a fork and knife at the dinner table is said to be an invitation for bad luck and often symbolizes difficult times to come. By eating fish sticks, jalapeno poppers or chicken fingers, there are no utensils involved. Phew!

 

3.    Hang Out with 11 of your Closest Friends – If you dare to leave the house, make sure your friend group doesn’t include more than 12 people, including yourself. A group of 13 people on Friday the 13^th is a perfect recipe for rotten luck.

 

4.    Knock on Wood – It doesn’t matter whether it’s oak, cherry or mahogany. If you’re in a pickle, you can always just knock on wood. The origin of this superstition comes from the Germans who believed that if bad luck is present, knocking on wood grants protection from mystical tree fairies.
 

5.    Stay Positive – Chances are, if you think bad things are going to happen, they probably will -- so keep the good vibes flowing. Think positive, and not even a broken mirror can bring you down. If you’re feeling particularly daring, test your luck! Step on that crack, walk under a ladder, and dance the tango with lady luck. If you’re a little hesitant, cross your fingers.

 

6.    Embrace Friday the 13^th – If all else fails, embrace the fear and bad luck that comes with this day, and what better way to do it than by visiting Six Flags Great Adventure for Fright Fest? Terrifying zombies, clowns and mutants roam the streets all night long. If that’s not your speed, there are tons of thrilling rides and spook-tacular monstertainment to help you celebrate the most feared day of the year in terror-ific style.

 

Fright Fest runs Friday nights, Saturdays and Sundays through Oct. 29 plus Monday, Oct. 30 and Tuesday, Oct. 31. For more information, call 732-928-2000 or visit www.sixflags.com/greatadventure

 

 

Source:  Six Flags Great Adventure

 

[Mrpq]

Anyone check out the "Wicked Brew''  is it good and were exactly in the park is it?

[dougdrummer]

Looks like I'll be going the 28th or 29th, which are the last two days.  I wonder how crowded it will be then?