Michigan's Adventure Expanding Season in 2023 With Tricks and Treats Fall Fest

© Michigan's Adventure

It's finally happening - Michigan's Adventure has announced that they will extend their operating season into September and October in 2023 by holding their first ever signature event, Tricks and Treats Fall Fest.  The event appears to be modeled as a 'lite' version of the large events of a similar name that opened at California's Great America and Valleyfair this season.  Like those events, Tricks and Treats Fall Fest at Michigan's Adventure will offer visitors spooky (not scary) family fun on Saturdays and Sundays from September 16th, 2023 until October 15th, 2023.

“This new event will add even more value for our Michigan’s Adventure season pass holders and offer an exciting and unique opportunity for the community,” said Camille Jourden-Mark, vice president and general manager. “Our entire team is looking forward to extending our season and offering all-in-one Halloween, fall and Michigan fun next year.”

 

The amusement park will offer guests the chance "to step into a larger-than-life spooky Halloween adventure, surrounded by the sights, sounds and tastes of Michigan in the fall.  Families will also be able to enjoy select rides – including attractions at Camp “Spooky,” the park’s new kids’ area where kids, parents and grandparents can all ride together – all included with admission."

 

© Michigan's Adventure

Offerings at the event include special decorations, live entertainment, family activities plus Snoopy and his Peanuts friends dressed in their Halloween finest - perfect for the costume contest that the park will hold.  The park will also offer an immersive trick-or-treat experience, seasonal craft activities, special games and even a pumpkin decorating station.

 

Families will also be able to enjoy the Brews and Boos Lakeside Patio which will offer local craft brews, Michigan-made wines and for kids, special magical potions.  The new Tricks and Treats Fall Fest event will be included in the park's season pass, giving passes more value than ever before.

Cedar Fair Parks Release Schedules for Summer Seasons

© Michigan's Adventure

Many Cedar Fair parks just released their summer schedules, through Labor Day, giving us the ability to plan out our summer trips.  The schedules vary by park, but generally speaking the plans seem pretty conservative right now at many of the parks.  Cedar Point released their plans earlier and we already covered that here, so we'll skip that park in this post.  Most parks previously released their opening dates as well, with their full schedules as the new information shared here.  Right now Knott's Berry Farm, California's Great America and Canada's Wonderland have not released their full schedules.  Let's dig in!

© Worlds of Fun

Worlds of Fun will open May 22nd and Ocean of Fun will open on May 29th.  They've announced that Grand Carnivale will run July 24th through August 8th and Halloween Haunt will take place September 17th through October 31st.  They are the only park so far to confirm they are holding Halloween Haunt.  They also note that WinterFest will not be taking place this year.  

Their season through Labor Day is around 80 operating days, with hours varying from 11 am to 7 pm on weekdays, staying open to 8 pm on weekends and 9 pm during Grand Carnivale.  During their summer season the park will be open 7 days a week.

Dorney Park will open May 22nd and Wildwater Kingdom will open on May 29th.  The park will announce hours for the fall later this year.  Grand Carnivale will be returning it looks like July 24th through August 8th.  The park shows around 75 operating days through Labor Day.  The park will remain closed on Tuesdays during the summer season.  Hours are 11 am to 7 pm each day, with the exception of closing at 9 pm during Grand Carnivale.

© Valleyfair

Valleyfair will open on May 22nd and Soak City will open on May 29th.  Grand Carnivale will take place starting July 24th and run through August 8th.  Fall hours will be announced later, and through Labor Day there are around 64 operating days.  The park will remain closed Mondays, Tuesdays and Wednesday with some exceptions, like when Grand Carnivale is running.  Hours vary from 11 am to 7 pm some weekdays, 10 am to 8 pm on weekends and a 10 pm closing time during Grand Carnivale.

Michigan's Adventure will open on May 29th and WildWater Adventure will open on June 19th.  They will have around 63 operating days through Labor Day, but that will be their whole season as the park does not usually operate in the Fall.  The park will be closed Tuesdays and Wednesdays during their season.  Hours are 11 am to 6 pm in the early season, then 11 am to 7 pm the rest of the time.

© Carowinds

Carowinds will open on May 22nd and Carolina Harbor will open on May 29th.  Fall hours will be announced later, and the park will hold Grand Carnivale from July 17th through August 1st.  Featuring around 87 operating days through Labor Day, Carowinds will stay open 7 days a week.  Hours are generally 11 am to 7 pm on early season week days, then closing at 8 pm mid-summer and a 9 pm close during Grand Carnivale.

Kings Dominion will open on May 22nd and Soak City will open on May 29th.  Like the other parks, Fall hours will be announced later and Grand Carnivale will be held July 17th through August 1st.  The calendar reflects 76 or so operating days through Labor Day, and the park will stay open 7 days a week during its busy season - however they do switch to weekends only pretty early in August.  Hours are generally 11 am to 7 pm weekdays and 11 am to 9 pm on weekends.

© Kings Island

Kings Island will have a pass holders weekend on May 8th and 9th, then open to all on May 15th.  Soak City will open on May 29th.  Fall and winter hours will be announced later, and while I do not see Grand Carnival mentioned just yet if they do have it I'd assume it would run July 17th through August 1st as the company has three "sets" of the event and that is the only time slot available.  There are around 91 operating days listed through Labor Day, and the park will stay open 7 days a week.  Hours vary with an 11 am opening and closing anywhere from 8 pm to 10 pm.

Additionally, Schlitterbahn New Braunfels will open on May 8th and Schlitterbahn Galveston will open on May 15th.

While some other park operators are adding as many operating days as they can, we're seeing the opposite approach for most of the Cedar Fair parks.  It is important to remember that it's easier for parks to start with less operating days and add more should the demand need it, but I also think that a big consideration here is the current labor market.  Things are changing quickly with regard to vaccinations and the public feeling much more comfortable going out, so it will be interesting to see how things progress as the season happens.

Cedar Fair Parks Release 2021 Opening Dates

© Dorney Park

This past week several Cedar Fair parks sent out e-mails to their mailing lists that provided their opening dates for the 2021 season.  We previously heard from Cedar Fair that they were evaluating opening some parks later this season, and that did happen for some parks in varying degrees.  The full operating calendars have not been released yet, just the opening dates.  The parks promise more information on operating days and hours in the coming weeks.

The earliest opening announced is for Kings Island, which plans to have a season passholder weekend preview on May 8th and 9th.  This is later than their usual opening in April each year.  While it was not stated yet when operations begin for all visitors, it is hoped it will be the following weekend.

Cedar Point will open on Friday, May 14th, which is similar to past (normal) seasons pre-pandemic.  Canada's Wonderland also announced plans to open on May 14th.  That park was not able to open at all during 2020, so fingers are crossed that this given date works out in the end.

The weekend after, specifically Saturday, May 22nd, will be the opening date for a longer list of other Cedar Fair parks.  These include Dorney Park, Kings Dominion, Carowinds, Valleyfair and Worlds of Fun.  This date is just a few weeks later than pre-pandemic opening dates for many of these parks, but much later for some like Carowinds, Worlds of Fun and Kings Dominion.

California's Great America also announced plans to open on May 22nd, and since we know that no amusement or theme parks are currently allowed to open in California we hope that happens for them.

Last but not least, Michigan's Adventure plans to open on Saturday May 29th, just in time for Memorial Day Weekend.

The parks appear to be planning to continue the safety measures that were in place when they closed for the 2020 season - though they are not ready to release details on that just yet.

Elitch Gardens to Stay Closed in 2020 + Michigan's Adventure Update

© Elitch Gardens

Elitch Gardens has decided to keep the park closed for the 2020 season, it has announced.  Not an easy call to make, but with Colorado not providing an estimate for when they may be allowed to operate, too much of the year has already slipped away.

The park's full explanation of their decision is below, and I think you can tell from it that they feel pretty disappointed about how things have progressed in the state.

"Even though about 85% of the theme and water parks are open and operating safely around the U.S., and almost all other attractions in our Denver area community and throughout Colorado have been given permission to re-open, Elitch Gardens continues to be denied that opportunity.  We have held out hope for so long that our park would be treated fairly as we watched the Denver Zoo, Botanical Gardens, Aquarium, the Museum of Science & Nature open in various stages,  the casinos welcome back players, the ski resorts’ summertime attractions go into full swing, and even Red Rocks re-open this month for concerts. Park management has spent months consulting with industry experts and government officials to develop a comprehensive plan, including new sanitation and social distancing protocols, that would allow the Park to operate safely. We have also spent a considerable amount of resources training employees, inspecting rides, filling pools, and sprucing up the property, all in anticipation of opening day. Unfortunately, despite management’s substantial efforts, we have been unable to obtain government approval to open. As a result, Elitch Gardens will remain closed in 2020."

The park will transfer all guests who purchased a 2020 season pass into a new 2021 season pass VIP program.  Benefits include free admission, free parking, free souvenir cup with $0.99 refills, one free meal pass, one free skip the line pass, early ride times and plenty more.  The park estimates that their VIP program is worth $500 per pass.

© Michigan's Adventure

A curious thing happened at the end of this past week to Michigan's Adventure.  According to local news sources, the park was told they have to close once again due to an executive order from the State that calls for Michigan amusement and water parks to close.  The state is still mitigating COVID-19 cases and the order covers many outdoor recreational activities.

According to this article local health officials have confirmed that the park has to close, but there was a lot of confusion about the wording of the order and whether or not Michigan's Adventure, which is operating right now only as a water park, has to close.  There was another article that appears to make it perfectly clear that the park has to close again.

However, the amusement park posted on their social media yesterday evening that they will continue to be open throughout the month as scheduled, ending their season on September 7th. 

Either the park has some information that others do not, or perhaps they are digging their feet into the sand on the issue... not totally clear yet.  The park still has their hours listed on their website for the rest of the season.

Michigan's Adventure + Six Flags Great America Opening Only Waterparks Soon

© Cedar Fair

Cedar Fair's Michigan's Adventure has announced that they will open the property's water park, WildWater Adventure, on July 16th.  The first day will only be for season pass holders, then starting July 17th all ticket types are welcome.

At the same time of this announcement, the park has also made it clear that the rides in Michigan's Adventure will not be operating in 2020.  The park has always had a much shorter season than the other Cedar Fair parks, closing out the season at the end of summer, so in that regard this makes sense.

The parks that have opened ride-only operations appear to be having light attendance - not only for Cedar Fair - so the method of opening a water park only makes sense to me.  It's been a rather hot summer so far in many parts of the country, so perhaps there will be a larger draw for the water attractions rather than steel rides.  Also of note, I am not sure and did not research whether Michigan and Illinois are allowing theme parks to open, it could be that only water parks are allowed at this point.

WildWater Adventure at Michigan's Adventure will require a reservation to visit, and the park will follow the same standards that other Cedar Fair parks have employed - including mandatory face masks.  Right now the park's hours reflect operations Thursday through Sunday only, 11 am to 6 pm each day.

© Six Flags Great America

Six Flags Great America is going with a similar plan as it has announced opening Hurricane Harbor Chicago starting on July 20th.  The park will be open only for season pass holders and members from that date until July 26th.  Starting July 27th the park is planned to open to all ticket types.

The safety standards set in place at other Six Flags parks that have already opened will be used at Hurricane Harbor Chicago.  Guests must make a reservation to visit ahead of time, wear masks and practice social distancing while at the park.

Hurricane Harbor Chicago was set to debut a brand new water roller coaster, named Tsunami Surge, which has now officially been delayed until the 2021 season. 

For now the park appears to be saying that the theme park is remaining closed at the moment, I'm not seeing them list that it definitely will not open in 2020 as Michigan's Adventure said.

Michigan's Adventure Working Through Winter Toward Camp Snoopy Grand Opening

Back in August Michigan's Adventure announced that Camp Snoopy would be coming to the park in 2020, an addition many of us have been waiting years for.  It seems a natural fit for the park to make this expansion, adding a cohesively themed area that's meant just for kids and their families.  And taking full advantage of the Peanuts licensing is a great move as well.

Camp Snoopy, opening May 22nd, will contain a total of five rides and the woodsy setting that Cedar Fair has created at other properties for Camp Snoopy.  Since the announcement the park has been hard at work on the expansion, let's check out what has been going on.

© Michigan's Adventure

Before the park's 2019 operating season was even over the park had cleared out a huge area for Camp Snoopy.  Happily, seen above the park has been careful to keep as many trees as they possibly can for the site.  Camp Snoopy will be replacing Be-Bop Blvd., a children's car ride.

© Michigan's Adventure

Moving further into the off-season, the park had already poured foundations for many of the new paths in Camp Snoopy and some of the ride foundation pads as well.  This general view into the area gives an idea of that, and you can see the pad for the Mud Buggies in the upper right of this photo.  The park had also already started to install the themed light poles for the area.

© Michigan's Adventure

Even more recently, the new rides for the area have begun to arrive at the park.  Above is the large center for Beagle Scout Lookout, which will take families up in hot air balloons for a view of the entire Camp Snoopy area.

© Michigan's Adventure

Also hiding inside away from the snow are the vehicles for Trail Blazers, a kiddie style whip ride that spin riders in a circular track.  The brightly colored vehicles, seen above, will simulate an off-road trip for kids.

Camp Snoopy will also contain a kiddie roller coaster, the Camp Bus and Mud Buggies along with a large play area, Beagle Scout Acres.  Below is the drawing originally released for the project.  Can't wait to watch the project move even further along!

© Michigan's Adventure

Michigan's Adventure to Feature All-New Camp Snoopy Themed Area in 2020

The 2020 season at Michigan's Adventure will be all about Snoopy and his Peanuts friends, as the park introduces a large new family area named Camp Snoopy.

Featuring a wooded setting with plenty of shaded seating areas and a relaxing atmosphere, Planet Snoopy will occupy space in the center of the amusement park that is currently occupied by Be-Bop Blvd., which was recently announced to be retiring.  The Camp Snoopy and Planet Snoopy areas at other Cedar Fair parks have remained popular after many years, and the Camp Snoopy theme will fit in especially well with Michigan's Adventure.  While the park has long has plenty of kiddie rides, they have never been located in one area with a cohesive theme like that which will be found in Camp Snoopy.

© Michigan's Adventure

This aerial view shows all that Camp Snoopy will offer among its winding pathways.  The area will feature five kids rides, and a large play area.  The new rides include:

 - Woodstock Express, a family roller coaster
 - Trail Blazers, featuring cars that zoom around a small track
 - Mud Buggies, off road themed vehicles that bounce up and down as they spin
 - Camp Bus, a bus that zooms around in a vertical circle with Snoopy at the wheel
 - Beagle Scout Lookout, with hot air balloons that riders spin up toward the sky in

© Michigan's Adventure

The expansion also includes two play areas, together known as Beagle Scout Acres.  The areas are both aimed at kids, but one is for smaller tots and the other includes activities sure to keep older kids busy.  A similar addition was a part of Carowinds' Camp Snoopy, and was a big hit with families.

“The significant expansion and imaginative theming of our children’s attractions reinforces Michigan’s Adventure as one of the region’s top destinations for families,” said Camille Jourden-Mark, Vice President and General Manager at Michigan’s Adventure. “The new Camp Snoopy joins attractions such as the award-winning Shivering Timbers roller coaster and WildWater Adventure water park in providing our guests with unique opportunities for creating family memories for generations to come.”

Michigan's Adventure Removing Family Car Ride ... New for 2020 Addition?

© Michigan's Adventure

Today Michigan's Adventure shared on social media the news that the park's electric car ride, called Be-Bop Blvd, will close forever after August 11th.  That gives fans of the attraction just a handful more days to take a spin on the classic 1950's car inspired attraction.

The ride was one of the last to be built at the park before Cedar Fair purchased it in 2001.  The attraction was actually meant to open in 2000, but due to construction delays was never opened until the following season or maybe the one after that.  The ride was manufactured by D.H. Morgan, who made ten or so of these rides nearly all of which have already been removed.

As a classic antique auto style attraction, Be-Bop Blvd was different in that the cars were electrically driven, which according to some has made it have plenty of maintenance issues through the years.

© Google

The attraction takes up a decent amount of room on prime real estate within the center of the rides side of Michigan's Adventure.  The ride is outlined in blue above, giving an idea of the space it takes up.  Just from the image you can see that the park's older Arrow corkscrew ride could almost fit in the area... to give some scale.

Now the park has not said anything about why the ride is being removed or if it has to do with a new for 2020 attraction, but we can speculate that it is!  Michigan's Adventure is well known for not adding any new attractions season after season, with only some very small additions here and there.  A set of Flying Scooters, kids water area and a petting zoo are examples.

Many have long thought that the park's kiddie rides could be better collected in a Camp Snoopy style area, and this removal would give plenty of room for a small version of that.  Or maybe the park is finally due for a major thrill ride?  I wouldn't speculate on a roller coaster to be honest, but you never know.  Then again, with Kings Island just having added back antique autos this year, maybe the park will just swap out their old cars for some less maintenance-intensive antique autos next season?  We'll have to stay tuned.

Michigan's Adventure Releases Concept Art for 2017 Expansion

Toward the end of this past summer Michigan's Adventure released plans for an expansion of the Half Pint Paradise kids area in their WildWater Adventure water park.  At the time there was no concept art for the development, but since then the park has given us a look at the new area:

© Michigan's Adventure

The new Half Pint Paradise will be a combination of several small water slides for kids, along with a splash pad play area.  In the art above (click for more detail), you can see that the expansion will have a colorful and modern look, just like similar expansions at other Cedar Fair parks in recent years.  This area will also be connected to the Beach Party interactive water funhouse as well via some new pathways, creating a larger section aimed at smaller guests.  Additional seating and cabanas are also a part of the plans.

Michigan's Adventures plans to have work on the expanded Half Pint Paradise ready for WildWater Adventure's 2017 opening day.

New and Expanded Kids Water Area Opening at Michigan's Adventure in 2017

Families with small kids will have more ways than ever before to enjoy the day at WildWater Adventure in Michigan's Adventure next season, a result of a renovated and expanded children's play area.  The work will be completed in time for the start of the water park's 2017 season.

© Michigan's Adventure

The area of focus within WildWater Adventure will be the Half Pint Paradise space.  The area already includes several small slides for kids, but next year all new ones, 7 in total, will replace the existing slides.  The area will also see the instillation of a new Splash Pad, complete with fun theming, like "water play features shaped to reflect a sailboat navigating through fish, a sea serpent, and other sea creatures."  Along with these interactive features, there will be dumping buckets, bubbling geysers and more in the Splash Pad.

© Google

The changes will include some rearranging of existing areas of the water park.  Above is a look at the area - toward the top of the image is the current Half Pint Paradise, and down toward the bottom is the large water play structure known as Beach Party.  The area between them will be renovated to connect the two more easily, forming a large area dedicated to kids and families.  There will also be additional seating and cabanas added as well.

The entrance to Funnel of Fear, the large pink and yellow Tornado slide, will be relocated as part of the changes to make navigation even easier for visitors.

From The Vault: Michigan's Adventure 1996 Brochure

I actually pulled out Michigan's Adventure's 1995 brochure to scan for this week's From The Vault, but realized that I had already featured that here on NPN - almost five years ago already! The next logical choice was the 1996 brochure, which looks an awful lot like the '95 version, but let's take a look anyway.

This brochure is extremely straightforward, and I like that.  The cover quickly explains that there is both an amusement and water park on the grounds.  The back cover, like a good back cover of the 1990s should, gave all the details you needed to plan a trip.  We have a nice grid calendar of operating days, admission prices, and a map!  Note that the admission fee was only $16 for an adult - looks like it's around $30 nowadays.

The next section of the brochure shows off all that is new to the park.  1995 was actually when Adventure Falls, a large shoot-the-chutes ride, was added - but a big ride like that deserved some space of its own the following year as well.

The actual new ride for 1996 was Chaos, a spinning and flipping flat ride that eventually caused quite a bit of chaos at the park... not the fun kind though.

The large fold out section in the center has a nice collage of different rides and slides that Michigan's Adventure offers visitors.  Naturally there are plenty of smiling and laughing faces in the shots!  This brochure is of course pre-Cedar Fair purchase, when it was still a family run park.  The water park - WildWater Adventure - even features "heated, clean, filtered water" thank goodness!  Hmm... not the type of thing you often see listed in a corporate park's advertising, now is it. 

The water park actually received a big addition the year after this one and remains one of the park's strongest draws - and I'm sure it still features clean water!

Michigan's Adventure Readies the Lakeyside Gliders

© Michigan's Adventure

After the seeming endless Winter, well, ended, Michigan's Adventure took advantage of the nicer weather to get moving on their new project for 2013.  The park has removed their go-karts and are replacing them with a nice new area adjacent to the park's lake, which will also be home to the Lakeside Gliders - a new set of Flying Scooters.

The go-karts took up more space than needed for the new flat ride, so there will also be a new area with seats and shaded cover, it appears.

© Michigan's Adventure

The park has also shared a photo of some of the Lakeside Glider's cars in storage - from the paint and color scheme it appears as though this ride and its counterpart at Knott's Berry Farm will look the same.  I like the look, though!  It is simple but pretty.

I hope both rides are a huge hit for the parks and they continue to spread throughout the Cedar Fair chain!  Michigan's Adventure opens for the 2013 season on May 22nd.

Weekly Rewind 1.12.13

WhiteWater has completed their first SilkGel slide resurfacing project at the West Edmonton Mall.  The photo on the left shows the before slide on the left, and after on the right.  The technology allows slides to be resurfaced and brightened, offering superior protection and resistant color fading.

Michigan's Adventure has given a name to their new Larson Flying Scooters, the Lakeside Gliders.  According to this story, the new ride will be set up near the park's main lake, hence the name.

Disney Parks had quite a management shake up this past week, with many executive level positions changing jobs.  The leader of Disneyland will now oversee the entire Disney World resort, and the former leader of Animal Kingdom will take over Disneyland - among many other switches.  Read the full details here.

The heavy work is now underway to Fun Spot America, as seen in many recent photos that the park is sharing.  The work right now is focused on the park's new Skycoaster and the White Lightning wooden coaster, as well as some of the park's other buildings.  Looking good!

The ground is exploding at Six Flags St. Louis.  But on purpose!  They're blowing up the ground as part of the foundation work for the new Boomerang roller coaster.  Check out video of that here.

Down with big vacations, and forever live on the Staycations!  That is the future, or at least a big part of it, so says Cedar Fair CEO Matt Ouimet.  And he should care, considering that his kingdom of parks are all regional and perfect for staycations.

Kings Island does a great job with their social media presence, and has introduced yet another neat feature on their website.  The park is now cooking up a photo of the day, the first week of which has featured some neat looks back at the park's history.

More expansion seems to be on the agenda for Legoland Florida, where many believe that a Pirate themed area will be added this year.  The park is not saying anything official on the new, however, so we will have to wait to see if those rumors are true.

Pointbuzz has up a new video about recent developments at both Cedar Point and Cedar Fair, including an early look at GateKeeper's keyhole element being fabricated.  The interviews with Matt Ouimet and Rob Decker are definitely worth a watch.

Flying Scooters Headed to Michigan's Adventure

The Flying Scooters at Knoebels

Michigan's Adventure made a pleasant announcement today regarding their new for 2013 ride, which will be a Larson Flying Scooters flat ride.  Highly regarded among ride fans, the Flying Scooters allows riders to control their ride vehicle using a large wing, and with enough practice guests can create a rather wild ride.

The official name for the ride has not been announced yet, nor has the location in the park where it will be located.

Michigan's Adventure will also celebrate the 25th anniversary of the Wolverine Wildcat roller coaster, and the 15th anniversary of the mighty Shivering Timbers in 2013.

It is nice to see the Flying Scooters popping up at more parks lately, this is one of several already announced for next year.  The Great Escape, Knott's Berry Farm, and I believe Fun Spot will build them as well in 2013.

Even more interesting to me is how late this announcement came after Cedar Fair's 'big' rides were revealed.  I had heard that Mr. Ouimet was taking a hard look at some of the plans for parks, and making some changes.  Perhaps this announcement is the result of one of those careful evaluations.  Or perhaps not, but it's a nice addition for the park either way!

Tweeting With Cedar Fair

There are a lot of parks, suppliers, and other Amusement Industry members that NPN follows on Twitter - you never really know what you'll read each day.  We also use it to help keep everyone aware of what we're posting - make sure to follow us, too!

A recent change I've noticed - and one that I really love - is that suddenly Cedar Fair park General Managers are taking on Twitter accounts and posting some great content.  The kind of stuff park fans really go for, the little things that are no where near big enough for a press release, or even a blog post.

© Kings Island

Greg Scheid, the GM of Kings Island, already has a handful of tweets under his belt.  One of the recent ones features the photo above, which is work on Soak City's Adventure River, which will feature a zero depth entry this season.  From rubber mulch to new food offerings, there's lots of neat details.

Cedar Point's GM, John Hildebrandt has been sharing plenty of goodies, too.  Want to know the specific names of the colors they've painted Soak City's water slides?  How about what kind of new lockers the park is adding?  Check and check. 

© Dorney Park

Dorney Park updates can be found via Jason McClure, the park's GM.  Above is a photo just shared of the entrance to Dinosaurs Alive! being created.  Also seen on the feed is a close up of Stinger's eye, and some teases about this year's Halloween Haunt.

Others who just recently joined Twitter are Camille Jourden-Mark, GM of Michigan's Adventure, Worlds of Fun's GM Frank Wilburn, and Phil Bender, the chain's Executive VP of Operations.

I'm hoping that Rob Decker, the company's VP of Planning and Design, joins, too!  I'd love to see some of the things he could tweet...

All in all I think this is a fantastic move by the company!

Weekly Rewind 7.9.11

Premier Rides has opened a new LIM launched shuttle ride at Trans Studio theme park in Indonesia.  The ride sends trains across the track at 62 mph into a mini Mr. Freeze layout.

I know we've covered Michigan's Adventure's new Beach Party interactive water fun house here before, but this article has some nice photos and video of the attraction that are worth checking out.  That geyser must be a ton of fun on a really windy day!

County Commissioners have removed spectator fees for Westchester residents visiting Playland Park.  Previous, residents had to pay a $5 fee to enter the park, which was started to help the park's finances.

Fuji-Q Highland has opened Takabisha, which is now the world's steepest coaster.  The 141 ft. drop on the ride curves inward at 121 degrees.  This story has amazing photographs, just ignore the one where they call Fujiyama Takabisha!

Knott's Berry Farm will attempt to break the world record for the most people husking corn at one time on July 14th.  No really, they are!

A new theme park is being planned to open outside Beijing, called the Monkey Kingdom.  The Funland Blog has a look at the concept art, which makes the park look quite pretty.

I'm a sucker for fountain shows, and Efteling is adding a huge one next year named Aquanura.  WET Design is behind the addition, famous for the Bellagio Dubai fountains.  Should be spectacular.

Disney California Adventure had some behind-the-walls photos shared of Cars Land construction.  It's amazing how massive the project is - this is going to be one fantastic ride when it opens next year.

Joey Chestnut once again won the hot dog eating contest held yearly at Coney Island, this year eating 62 dogs and buns in 10 minutes.  Ohhhh my stomach turns at the thought....

Time For A Beach Party!

WhiteWater West is proud to do a little bragging about Beach Party at Michigan's Adventure, and rightfully so - just look at the geyser!  Here's a release from the company:

"Richmond, Canada (June 8, 2011) - It's Beach Party time at Michigan's Adventure Park! Beach Party is the first waterpark attraction to debut WhiteWater's gigantic water geyser feature that erupts high above its AquaPlay RainFortress multi-level interactive structure.

At the height of the geyser's eruption, this newest and coolest AquaPlay feature surges water up 95 feet in the air from a three-dimensional, custom-themed lighthouse! The explosion of water then splashes down to an eruption of laughter and squeals, as guests get drenched below.

The custom beach-themed AquaPlay RainFortress bursts with over 150 play elements including a large tipping bucket, dozens of interactive spray jets, water guns, net bridges, and 8 waterslides that cater to kids of all ages."

Weekly Rewind 6.4.11

The continuing transformation of Paradise Pier at Disney California Adventure intrigues me. It's not often that we get to see a theme park totally renovated while still operating. This video gives a peek at the latest section getting ready to open.

According to the Funland Blog, the Green Lantern at Six Flags Magic Mountain now has a July 1st opening date, slightly pushed back from their previous opening date.

The new Splash Zoo area at Legoland California's water park has opened.  The area caters to the toddler set, and looks like a ton of fun!

The Disneyland Resort has a busy Soundsational Summer season planned, with the addition of the Little Mermaid attraction, Star Tour, and a brand new parade.  I'd love to go check out all the new attractions.

Valleyfair Zone has posted a really nice review of Valleyfair's new Planet Snoopy.  The photos are beautiful! 

Universal has stayed pretty quiet on their new Transformers ride for Hollywood and Singapore, but some new art of the ride's queue and station have leaked. 

Knott's is continuing to build their Wind Seeker, and Westcoaster is sharing some photos of the ride going up.  I'm still digging the paint scheme.

KI Extreme has added a new gallery of historical Kings Island photos.  Check out the rainbow in some of the shots!

Finally!  Some footage of the 90 ft. geyser that launches off the top of Michigan's Adventure's new Beach Part attraction.  This news clip shows water soaring up over the attraction.

Bay Beach Amusement Park's new recreated Zippin Pippin had a very successful Memorial Day weekend when over 14,000 rides were given.  Now public parks everywhere start building wooden coasters, please!

The end has finally come for Wild Rivers in Irvine, CA.  The park's lease will not be renewed as the land it sits on will be used for apartments.  The park is looking into relocating.

Canada's Wonderland has opened their Wind Seeker - if you'd like to see these rides in action then be sure to check out this video.