Anyone else disappointed in the 50th anniversary?

[The Master]

I sure am very disappointed so far in the park's 50th season which is putting it mildly. First issue is all the closed rides and half the park blocked off. Second issue are the curtailed operations on most of the operating rides creating artificially longer lines which is compounded by all the ride closures. Third are the delays in various projects around the park. 

 

IMHO, this season has been a massive disaster. Its easily one of the worst springs I seen at GADV in the over 2.5 decades I have had a season pass. I have visited the park only 3 times this season and neither one did I have a enjoyable time. I just felt like I wasted an afternoon just walking around a half closed park with under capacity rides with needlessly excessive long lines. I rather be home preforming yard work. I am already thinking about not renewing my season pass ic the future of GADV is going to be this downsized. Its they bit off more than they can chew and being cheapskates about it. 

 

Despite my strong feelings I am trying to keep the hyperbore low. I don't want to feel so negative about the park especially for the 50th year but SF are not helping matters. The situation feels like a long term friend who has suddenly turned extremely toxic to the point that you have to end the friendship. The park will have to pull several miracles to save the remainder of the 50th season which I sadly do not see happening, (hopefully I am wrong). I know this isn't likely to be a popular opinion and I understand if many disagree but its something I needed to express. It seems many are just trying to sweep these major issues under the rug. 

Edited May 11 by The Master

[Tower]

I think the harsh reality with GAdv is that it's just not something the Six Flags company feels like they need to invest in anymore. 

 

Despite how poorly the park has been run over the past 15 years, attendance rates are usually sky high, among the best in the chain, because it's located right in between two top five populated cities in the country (NYC and Philly). That tells corporate that there's 0 real reason to invest any money into the park, because there isn't any real potential for growth that hasn't already been maximized.

 

Now if you look at parks such as Great America and Fiesta Texas, if those parks don't receive quality investments every couple of years, it will negatively affect the attendance of those parks, because they're in locations that aren't as highly populated, yet still show alot of potential for growth (San Antonio is a great example of this). Magic Mountain is kind of in its own league since it's the park the chain likes to use as their answer to Cedar Point when it comes to thrills. It also competes locally with Disney and Universal (something no other Six Flags park can do) and finally, if Magic Mountain does poorly, it'll tank the company's stock prices, throwing shareholders who have likely never been to a single Six Flags park into a frenzy.

 

Despite my comments about GAdvs attendance being really high earlier, as of late (the past few years) we've seen attendance decline alot, mainly due to the park being so poorly run, and also due to surrounding parks improving, most notably HersheyPark (they are going to be a top three park in the country eventually, they are the one non Disney/Universal/Seas park that hasn't been afraid to invest in quality attractions lately and it's simply run so much better), Dorney, and even the Jersey shore boardwalk parks. I'm hoping that this will finally make the Six Flags chain take things a little more seriously, because if Six Flags loses the New York and Philly market, they're going to be screwed. 

 

One can only hope things will change, but as of now it's more clear than ever that like most companies, Six Flags values shareholders way more than their actual park guests.

Edited May 10 by Tower

[harry2004]

36 minutes ago, Tower said:

I think the harsh reality with GAdv is that it's just not something the Six Flags company feels like they need to invest in anymore. 

I won't be surprised if six flags ends up selling six flags great adventure to someone like seaworld (rebrand of the park to Busch gardens New Jersey with a theme of north america & south america anyone?)

Edited May 10 by harry2004

[GAcoaster]

The park has always been one of the top earners in the chain, there's no way they sell it unless they either get a great offer or are somehow forced to. I think (hope) things turn around when the merger is complete and Cedar Fair management is running things. Great Adventure always was on par with Cedar Point for attendance and there's no reason why it shouldn't be again with proper investment and maintenance. We should see a similar strategy with Great Adventure as Cedar Point/Kings Island/Canada's Wonderland since all four parks should draw about 3.5 +/- guests a year, and if anything Great Adventure has more growth potential since the area has only had population growth over the past 50 years. Under Time Warner Great Adventure was drawing around 4 million guests a year, there's no reason why it can't again with proper investment, marketing, and maintenance. 

 

While I get people are disappointed with the 50th so far, it's still what they consider the "shoulder season" and the true 50th plans are set to kick off for the peak summer season in June. I get the frustrations with single train operations and things not being ready to open or open yet, but it is always a trade off. Great Adventure is now open 9 months of the year, so as a passholder you're getting a bonus 3 months of pass use. Would you rather have the season of Dorney or Cedar Point where the park is open May-October but all the rides are running from opening day of the season to closing day? Current management has to contend with the decisions of the past-- adding two coasters (KK and ET) that eat up the bulk of the maintenance budget, only having two trains for several coasters so when one is in rehab it only leaves one available to run since there's no spare. If things are still in this state by the peak of summer (end of June) then it's a valid complaint, but for the price of passes that Six Flags has charged you have to set your expectations accordingly. I fully expect that this will be the last year for those bargain basement passes with the whole company moving to the Cedar Fair "if you want more than one park, you'll be paying $300 a pass" instead of the $69-99 Six Flags passes. 

[The Master]

I don't think its entirely longer off seasons causing single train operations. Jersey Devil has four trains but they only operated one during ALL 3 OF MY visits to the park. Its unlikely all of the other 3 are being refurbished at once. During my last trip i saw the other 3 trains were on the storage sidings in JD's barn. In recent past years, even last year the park was already operating multi trains on most of the coasters on most operating days by April. ElToroRyan on Youtube states that the single train operation is being caused by the construction projects in the park. I am not sure how valid that explanation is, perhaps he refers to the park possibly cutting its operating budget to allocate funds to CAPEX projects?   

Edited May 12 by The Master

[Great Adventurer]

Prior to this year, it's admittedly been quite some time since I visited the park in the spring, so I went in thinking single train ops and partial closures may have been par for the course early in the season under this Six Flags management group. That said, I can definitely see where you're coming from if higher capacity ops have been the norm to this point. Jersey Devil in particular surprises me - it has a lot of trains available, is well designed to keep them cycling, and had two of them running the day the park opened.

 

If I'm not mistaken, prices on a bunch of food items were also up $2 during my last visit. I wouldn't mind as much if they did that and dropped the "$.99 Labor Surcharge," but unfortunately the charge remains. I'm also of course disappointed with the closures of Zumanjaro, Jolly Roger, and Tango.

 

Away from certain operational gripes, I truly do love what they've been doing to the park from a decorative perspective. The flowers in the entry area arranged into a 50, the reemergence of the Lion, the return of Dream Street + bricks, and the park timeline/retrospective on the red tent all made me smile. The path between Kingda Ka and El Toro is also a really nice quality of life addition.

 

I am hopeful that they'll be able to ramp things up big time come June, when the full seasonal staff is on board. I was told that they've been very shorthanded from a staffing perspective so far this season. With that in mind, it'll also be interesting to see what Hurricane Harbor is like when it opens on the 25th (one week later than scheduled - perhaps also due to the staffing issue).