Dorney Park, 8/6/18

[Yoshi]

I went to Dorney yesterday for another visit to the park. I am focusing mostly on Dorney trips before the water park season ends and will then start going back to Hershey and Great Adventure more (and still need to get to Knoebels at least once)

 

The 2nd lot was being used which I haven't seen this season. Wildwater Kingdom was the most crowded I have seen it all year. Aquablast and Patriot's Plunge were at the bottom of the stairs, same with Snake Pit and Aqua Racer. The lazy rivers actually had lines. Unfortunately operations were also the worst I have seen this season. Even with a few people in front of me in the Fast Lane line it was taking up to 10 minutes. I'm not complaining about having to wait 10 minutes in general, just that because of how the slides were being operated that caused the wait. If there was a single rider in front of me in line, the lifeguard only let them on the platform and wouldn't let others take the 2 empty slides even if someone wanted them. Other times, they lifeguards weren't letting people even enter the platform until all 3 lights had turned green. Normally, they let people wait at the top of the slides and then tell them to go when the lights turn green. I was thinking if the Fast Lane line was taking this long, the regular lines must not be moving much at all.

 

Thunder Canyon had at least a 30 minute standby line. Someone asked me how much Fast Lane was and I told them $125 for the whole season. He told me he paid $101 just for the day. I think he was mistaken and that probably was a combo deal that included admission since Fast Lane doesn't go above $68 but I didn't question him. I rode twice and went back to the water park for a few more slides.

 

I went to the ride side of the park and was going to ride each coaster once and a few flats but after 4 rides, the heat and humidity was really getting to me and I decided to just get dinner and leave. The ride side was mostly empty as expected. The only dry rides that had lines were Thunderhawk and Wild Mouse.

 

Haunt is starting up soon and the park is working on setting everything up. The maze near Thunderhawk looked like it was almost complete.

 

Ride Count:

12 water slides

Lazy River

2 Thunder Canyon

Thunderhawk

Steel Force

Cedar Creek Flyers

Whip

[The Master]

Doesn't help that with the Runaway river, they only use one entry stairway out of three anymore. 

[Yoshi]

It would be good to see them all in use again. Maybe because they don't allow multiple laps they stopped? I remember when my family used to go to Sesame Place they had 2 different color inner tubes. Blue tubes entered and exited at one set of stairs, yellow at the other. 

[The Master]

I meant they used to use all three stairs right next to each other by the current entrance. One has been converted into the current exit. Every time I have been to Dorney this year, they allowed tubers to stay on in the Runaway river. 

 

Years ago, HH once did something similar to Sesame Place with 3 color coded exits. It was a total mess as people fought to change tubes. 

[Yoshi]

Yeah, those stairs open would help. I guess allowing people to stay for multiple laps is another one of those policies that is inconsistent depending on the lifeguard. The last 2 times I was at a lazy river in the park, there was someone near the exit making sure people got out of their tubes before the stairs.

 

 

 

 

 

[Pineracer]

Even with Sesame Place's color coded tubes, some colors end up at the wrong station every now and then (at least like 2005-2009). Oh boy, thanks for the nostalgia.