Coronavirus and Amusement Parks- What will re-opening look like?

 Amusement Parks, Coronavirus and Re-opening.. oh my? 

 Nothing is normal and nothing will be the same for a long time. So how is this going to effect the summer season? 





 Amusement parks and theme parks across the country are starting to prep for reopening and what is left of the summer park season. With announcements beginning today and more expected to break their silence in the next week.

 As of 5/21/20, several parks have announced opening days including Six Flags Great Adventure and Holiday World. With social distancing in place, face masks required and dozens of new sanitation rules in place- the changes to your summer park fun are going to be massive. It's now time to take a look at what this strange, new amusement park world is likely going to look like.

Six Flags Announces Identical Flat Rides for Great Adventure, Georgia, Discovery Kingdom and America

Along with the announcement of far more interesting things this morning, the folks at Six Flags announced that 4 "new coasters" would be coming to their parks in 2015 as well.

Six Flags Great Adventure, America, Discovery Kingdom and Over Georgia will be getting the clones for 2015 and while they're labeled as "roller coasters" they're not. Not even the largest, pretty much stock and not that uncommon out there at all. Bad Six Flags, bad!

Anyway, what goes where from the image up there? Here's the little run down:

• Six Flags Great Adventure - Looping Dragon
• Six Flags Discovery Kingdom - DareDevil: Chaos Coaster
• Six Flags America - Bourbon Street Fireball
• Six Flags Over Georgia - The Joker: Chaos Coaster

Interestingly enough, Six Flags Over Georgia is also adding a Harley Quinn themed tilt-a-whirl named Harley Quinn: Spinsanity. Okay, so not really that interesting, but there it is.

That said, all of these are not coasters, so don't be fooled by the Six Flags marketing machine. These Larson Loops are typically found at carnivals and county/state fairs throughout the US and elsewhere. They are fully powered and there's really no "coasting" going on with them. How they're passing these things off as new coasters is a bit of a mystery and a huge disservice to park guests. Six Flags, just stop, they're flat rides. Get over it.

Anyway, here's video of one of the new rides. They're all the same so it'll give you enough of an idea of what's going on with each:


Stay tuned for more updates from the rest of the Six Flags parks as more announcements have been released about projects for 2015 at every park!

*Breaking News* - Zoomanjaro Passholder Event Cancelled, July 4th Opening Questionable!

Looks like Six Flags Great Adventure has a bit of a problem on their hand with their newest ride, Zoomanjaro: Drop of Doom.

According to the park, they had to cancel their media event that was scheduled earlier today and the season passholder preview tomorrow. The reason? Well, it appears that the state of New Jersey hasn't fully inspected the ride and given clearance for the park to open it. Oops!

While the folks at Great Adventure are no doubt trying to get this little hiccup resolved, it brings the full opening that is planned for Friday, July 4th into question. Here's to hoping that they can things taken care of, but knowing how these things work, it could be a long shot and I wouldn't bank on it happening.

UPDATE 7/6/14: Turns out Six Flags Great Adventure was able to get the permits necessary and the ride was able to be opened on July 4th to the public as planned.

Why do I say that? Well, the park itself has come out and said that they would be rescheduling the passholder event and that likely means the media event as well on Twitter.

Stay tuned for a new date for #zumanjaro season pass holder preview day! #worldstallest
— Great Adventure (@SFGrAdventure) July 2, 2014

Since those two things usually happen before they officially open the ride, it's safe to say they wont' have it open this weekend at all.

Stay tuned for more updates on this as the info reaches our ears!

World's Tallest Drop Ride - Zoomanjaro: Drop of Doom - Opening Announced!

After a bit of a delay, the folks at Six Flags Great Adventure in Jackson, New Jersey have announced that their record breaking drop ride, Zoomanjaro, will open this coming weekend!

Yep, that's right, for those brave enough to take the 415ft plunge at speeds of 90mph, your wait is almost over.

On Friday, July 3rd, the ride will be open for a preview event that is limited to Season Passholders. Then, on July 4th, it'll be open for everyone to experience the insanity of it all.

The ride, attached to the support structure for the world's tallest and fastest roller-coaster, Kingda Ka, should definitely be one helluva experience for all those who are brave enough. Here's to hoping that high winds don't keep this one closed like they can Kingda Ka at times.

Curious of what it'll be like? We got ya covered. Here's POV from one of the recent test runs that Six Flags Great Adventure!


While we're not sure if we'll be making it to Six Flags Great Adventure this year, we'd love to hear of your experience on Zoomanjaro if you do go. Comment and let us know what you think of it and of your ride if you do go!

Rumor Mill - Six Flags Great Adventure to get a New Coaster for 2015?

Rumors are circulating that Six Flags Great Adventure in Jackson, NJ could be preparing to build a new coaster for the 2015 season. This would fit in line with the park needing something new in the coaster end of things, especially with so many other parks opening new rides and attractions this year.

That said, it's hard to pin down just what they might do at this point. There's a lot of options a park like Great Adventure can go with.

Screamscape seems to be on the line of thinking that they could go with a Rocky Mountain Coaster of some kind, maybe similar to Six Flags Great America's Goliath. Would be interesting and with Rolling Thunder being gone, the park only has one wooden coaster. There's a ton of other options out there too which would work for the park. Since the departure of Batman & Robin: The Chiller, there hasn't been a launch coaster in the park for quite a long while either. Maybe something similar to Cheetah Hunt or something along those lines? It's definitely possible. Another likely choice would be a wing coaster like Gatekeeper at Cedar Point. Not sure I'd be 100% happy with that, but anything could happen.

The only other question would be, where to put it? Well, I'm kind of with Screamscape here on this one as well. The back of the park doesn't have a lot going on for it these days and it's been a really long time since new blood was infused into that area at all. Definitely could see something happening either towards Nitro or even near the old ski show area too. If the rumor of the RMC coaster that "goes under the lake" is true, it would have to be back somewhere in either area.

All we know right is that this is a rumor and until further details come out from Six Flags about this, all we can do is speculate. Hopefully we'll find out more concrete information on this in the near future!

Six Flags Great Adventure- One Part of Rolling Thunder still stands..

Image from Screamscape

Six Flags Great Adventure- One Part of 'Rolling Thunder' still stands..

 While Six Flags Great Adventure many have demolished the classic wooden coaster "Rolling Thunder" for a pathway to their new drop tower 'Zumanjaro'.. one part of the ride still stands.

 The cross over section which ran under El Toro during a drop hasn't been removed and is still in place. Honestly, I haven't a clue why this piece also wasn't removed during the demolition but while sad, it's nice to see that Rolling Thunder still has some presence in the park. Even if that's only a small part which may be a thorn in the parks side.

Six Flags Great Adventure- Zumanjaro Delays Kingda Ka Opening

Zumanjaro Delays Kingda Ka Opening at Six Flags Great Adventure.

Image from Great Adventure Online

 In not overly surprising news, it seems that the construction on Zumanjaro, the newest drop ride which it attached to Kingda Ka at Six Flags Great Adventure, has also delayed the opening of the roller coaster this season.

 Originally these signs said the coaster wouldn't open until Memorial Day Weekend. The signs have changed, now stating the coaster won't open until "late spring". Which is a problem with a coaster that is already plagued with delays and closures to begin with (mostly to due wind).

 "Late Spring" will likely delay the opening of the ride another month, giving the park more time to complete the project which up until last month was deemed to be 'on time' construction wise.

 More info when we hear it!

Six Flags Great Adventure- Severe Parking Price Hike

Six Flags Great Adventure Raising Parking Prices to $25 
..I only wish I was kidding about that. 
 

 The park has lost their minds!

 $25 for parking is by far the highest rate I've seen yet. More so when you consider the condition of their parking lot, let's just say "moon craters" isn't a stretch when discussing the parking situation at this park. Yes, it's been several years since we've been to Great Adventure but from what I've heard- parking lot upkeep hasn't been a priority.

 Again, I can't speak for recently but during our last visit (when parking as a high $20 per car) 'security' wasn't exactly a thing either. Sure, they've got plenty of guard towers around but each of them was empty.

 So Honestly, I can't figure out how they can justify $25 to park. 

Six Flags Great Adventure- Kingda Ka gets more support

Image from NotesPlusNews

Six Flags Great Adventure add heavier supports to Kingda Ka.

 Six Flags Great Adventure is getting prepared for their new drop ride which will be attached to the Kingda Ka roller coaster.

 While causing the death of Rolling Thunder, Zumanjaro is moving along in progress. This new drop ride is causing Six Flags to adding some heavier, additional supports to the Kingda Ka tower track.

 While these types of roller coasters are often plagued by wind speed closures perhaps these new supports will add in keeping both Kingda Ka and Zumanjaro open longer in the future.

 Zumanjaro will have a total of three drop tracks running the length of the Kingda Ka tower. In the image you can see the track for Zumanjaro and it appears ready to go into place.

Six Flags Great Adventure- Building A Resort Hotel?

 Interesting rumor from Six Flags Great Adventure in Jackson, New Jersey has surfaced this week!

 It's long been rumored that the property has wanted to build a resort hotel but these plans have never come to pass, between Six Flags having money issues and the park passing through different general managers over the years.

 Jackson, New Jersey is pretty much a wasteland. It doesn't have any major hotels nearby but there was one small bed and breakfast place within several miles but I've no idea if it's still in business.  Honestly, there isn't much there expect a few small chain restaurants located by the Outlet Mall.

 So if they did built the rumored resort hotel, it would make the park a multi-day visit. Which would be helpful as in the summer it's nearly impossible to ride everything in a single day due to crowds, plus a multi-day ticket would be a nice addition as the price of the park is an insane $65.99 (online) plus an extra $20 for parking.

Saying Goodbye to a Friend- Rolling Thunder Demolition

Image from Theme Park Review's Twitter Page

 Sad News- It looks like we've go no choice but to say goodbye to a friend.

 The image to the left is from Six Flags Great Adventure, the beloved roller coaster "Rolling Thunder' now seems to be pile of wooden rubble waiting to be removed. Nicknamed "Rotting Lumber" by fans, the park neglected this coaster for years in hopes of finally making it disappear.  It seems as of last week, this is a reality.

 Lumber litters the ground to make way for 'progress'. That progress is called 'Zumanjaro'.. the new drop tower getting attached to the back side of Kingda Ka. Which raises the question- Do we really need ANOTHER drop tower ride?

 Many of us reached out to Six Flags asking them not to remove this attraction- trust me, they've got the land to build fresh but it seems our pleading once again fell upon deaf ears.

  Some days I really, really hate "progress".

  Goodbye my old friend.

Rumor Alert- New Coaster for Six Flags Great Adventure in 2015?

 Screamscape has posted a rumor today regarding Six Flags Great Adventure, one that seems interesting to those of us who know the park.

 Rumor has it that Six Flags Great Adventure may be building a new roller coaster for 2015. This will something to replace the loss of Rolling Thunder which is being removed to make way for the 2014 "Zumanjaro" drop tower that is attached to the back of Kingda Ka.  Apparently this rumor has been popping up since it was announced that Six Flags would be removing Roller Thunder. Screamscapes best guess is that this could be yet another Rocky Mountain Coaster, similar to Goliath which is being added to their Chicago park.

 However, they point out a very valid point which I fully agree with. By removing Rolling Thunder the park now lacks a basic wooden coaster, one that younger and new riders can 'get their feet wet' with before going after some of the bigger rides.  While I'm all for crazy and new things, the classic has a special charm and Six Flags Great Adventure is quickly loosing that as more classic coasters are being removed.

 More on this rumor as gossip filters in!

Six Flags Great Adventure- Zumanjaro: Drop of Doom for 2014

 Well, Six Flags Great Adventure located in Jackson, New Jersey has gone completely batty. It seems today all of the 2014 projects for all the Six Flags amusement parks have gone live and Great Adventure isn't to be left out.

Coming in 2014, they are sticking not one but THREE drop tower cars to the Kingda Ka track. Sitting at 415 feet tall with a top speed of 90 miles per hour, 'Zumanjaro' will plummet riders straight down the structure of the Kingda Ka Coaster.

At which point they claim "Kingda Ka will zoom around you as you drop". I assume that means they expect the giant lawn-ornament to run more in the 2014 season. Although I admit, I'm wondering a lot of this new and massive addition to the structure will also be subject to random closures during windy periods of time? This is often what close's down Kingda Ka.

Image from Coaster-net.com

Sadly, this new drop ride is coming with a very steep price. The classic wooden coaster "Rolling Thunder" (often called 'Rotting Lumber' as Six Flags has willfully neglected this ride for years now) will be removed to make room for this addition.  Honestly, I'd rather they put the money into fixing Rolling Thunder then put a Drop Tower onto the lawn ornament.  Rolling Thunder was and is a great ride, it has just always need a lot more love and affection then Six Flags has ever shown it.

The last day of operations for the classic wooden coaster will be September 8th, not giving fans much time to say their goodbyes. So I suggest you head over there quickly and get your last rides in now.