Amusement and water parks - Which ones have you been to and/or liked?

[Anacybele]

I'm sure a lot of us have been to an amusement park or two or three before. Which ones? Which is your favorite or favorites? What were your favorite rides? You could also tell which ones you'd like to visit sometime!

I personally grew up going to three in particular myself because I'm from Pittsburgh, PA. You might know which ones they are if you know that city.

I've been here so many times I've lost count! I also once coincidentally met a friend there I knew from preschool when I was a little kid. Had a blast with her! My mom and her mom were friends too. I've been going there since I was little and hopping on and off the Kiddieland rides. lol My favorite ride is the Racer, with the Musik Express close behind (yes, it's spelled with a K, and I don't know why. xP). The Musik Express is a common ride in parks too, I've seen it lots of times! Lucky me. ^^ Fun fact: Kennywood is one of only two parks in the US that's a designated historic landmark. The park is a whopping 120 years old this year! Located in West Mifflin, PA, just 20 minutes from downtown Pittsburgh.

Kennywood's sister park Idlewild is about 50 minutes from Pittsburgh. I actually love this place even more too. My grandma took her daycare there every year for a long time. I attended it, so I went just about every year. My favorite ride is the Scrambler, with the Rollo Coaster close behind. And if you thought Kennywood was old, Idlewild is actually even older by around 20 years, I discovered. Talk about ancient parks. lol I love Idlewild for having unique things like the Storybook Forest and Hootin' Holler areas. I do prefer the old logo to the new one though, despite that the new one obviously lets you know that there's a water park there too. :P This park is also the only one to have an attraction based on the famous Mister Rogers and his neighborhood. He was from near Idlewild's location though, so it makes sense. It's now Daniel Tiger's Neighborhood for the spiritual sequel show of the same name, but the concept is the same. This park is currently my #1 favorite and won a best kids park in the world award!

I couldn't find a better quality image of the logo that also wasn't huge. xP But Sandcastle, located on Pittsburgh's Waterfront area, is the water park I grew up with! It's a fun little place to hit a few water slides, go swimming, relax in the lazy river, etc.

I went to this park a few times when I was living in Germany. This place is so massive that I don't think I ever actually saw it all! I like to call it the Disneyland/World of Europe. It's huge, has a resort, and has mice for its mascot characters, just like Disney. lol Has a lot of great rides, though these days I don't remember them much anymore, so I don't remember my favorite. This place is located somewhere in the southern part of Germany.

Only image I could find of this park logo. This park was close to where I lived in Germany, so I also went here a couple times! It had a variation of my old favorite the Scrambler, called the Spinning Barrel, so of course I loved it the most. lol This place also has a coaster in Roller Coaster Tycoon 3, believe it or not. The Expedition G-Force is in the game and in this park! The park is in Hockenheim, Germany, close to Heidelberg and Mannheim.

I don't think many amusement park fans haven't been to a Six Flags! They're all over the place. I went to this one while I lived in Georgia. I also went to the one in St. Louis when I was a kid, but I don't remember it well at all. I liked the Georgia Cyclone best here! I do think Six Flags is a bit heavy on coasters, but it's nice otherwise!

And I went here when I lived in NC! I actually got to go for my birthday weekend that year. It's got some cool rides. I don't remember which one I liked best though. ...Oh wait, wasn't there a Scrambler there? Then it has to be that one. lol I can't help it, THE SCRAMBLER IS AMAZING.

I went to this place for the first time last year. There was some major family drama, mostly my fault, but this is an awesome park! It really does smell like chocolate too! lol I think Kennywood did the Whip and Turnpike better (and unfortunately, the latter is no longer in Kennywood), but otherwise, this park is so cool. It's huge too. We didn't have time to do the water park portion. Not sure what my favorite ride is here, I liked a lot of them. It has a Racer coaster like Kennywood, but I'm not sure which park did that one better. They're both great! Hershey Park is, of course, in Hershey, PA.

 

I definitely can't not include Disney on this list. I've been to both Disneyland and Disney World, but the latter is the one I remember better due to having been there much more recently. I've not seen the whole place, but I've been to the Magic Kingdom, Animal Kingdom, and Epcot. My favorite ride is Big Thunder Mountain with It's A Small World right behind! My mom hates the latter though, and I like to annoy her about it for fun. XD My friend, the same one I ran into in Kennywood once, and I used to sing the song together as little kids sometimes. lol I had dreamed of riding Big Thunder Mountain ever since I was a kid though, and by golly, did it live up to that dream! Dreams really do come true at Disney!

And I think this one counts too. It's a water park with a big giant hotel attached. It has both indoor and outdoor water park stuff, so you can even go there in winter! I went for the first time just this past January. It's pretty neat, and I'd like to go when it's warm so I can see the outdoor part of the park too. It's located in Ohio, not far from Cedar Point.

I've also been to a small park in Germany called Tripsdrill Park, but that place was...boring. Yeah, for once, I found an amusement park I didn't like. :P

As for parks I'd like to visit, that basically includes as many as I can find in the US. lol I love them! For now though, the ones I have in mind are Cedar Point in Ohio, Waldameer & Water World in Erie, PA, King's Dominion in Virginia, and Family Kingdom in Myrtle Beach, SC. Also, Universal Studios in Orlando, FL when Nintendo World opens up!

 

Edited May 11, 2018 by Anacybele

[Rex Glacies]

Amusement parks have always been a favorite of mine - I've been going to them since an infant.

Waldameer is one I've been to a lot in my childhood, and is a lot of fun. I haven't been to it much lately, but it still has a lot of great rides - the Ravine Flyer II would undoubtedly be the best. I haven't visited the water park in about ~10 years though, and I know they recently updated it, so I am kinda curious about how the place is now.

Kalahari is one I've been to a lot with friends. I believe it's the world's biggest (or second biggest) indoor waterpark, though it does have outdoor sections. I used to visit it annually with a big group of friends and companions, but last year was the last time.

Disney World - always the best. Been there three times and it's always a great experience. What more is there to say? Also, the last time we went we went to Universal as well, which was also a great place. The Hulk ride would be my favorite from there.

I visited Coney Island in New York at the end of a mission trip. My advice? Don't go. Quite expensive, not all that great compared to other places, and altogether quite a boring park. (My 3DS fell out of my pocket on a roller-coaster there. I did get it back, but with damage. Other than that story, quite a forgettable trip.)

Kennywood I went to for the first time last year. It was certainly fun, but the large crowds and long lines kinda cut the enjoyment. The Black Widow would be the best ride. It was a long wait and the last ride of the day, but it was worth it.

Frankly, Cedar Point would be one of my favorites. I went there multiple times with friends, and enjoyed each time. It has the 2nd tallest roller-coaster in the world in the Top Thrill Dragster, which also has a speed of 120 mph (right in your face, if you're insane like my friend and I and take the front seat).

[EricaofRenais]

My city has a local park with rides called Western Playland which is fun, but since I live in the desert my favorite as a kid was the water park which is called Wet'n Wild water world.  The main reason I like Wet'n Wild is because someone set up a day camp for diabetic kids that I used to go to and local places let the kids in the camp going for free on one day of the camp, Wet'n Wild does it every year since the camp started and any company that is nice to diabetic kids gets top marks in my book.

[Anacybele]

1 hour ago, Rex Glacies said:

Kennywood I went to for the first time last year. It was certainly fun, but the large crowds and long lines kinda cut the enjoyment. The Black Widow would be the best ride. It was a long wait and the last ride of the day, but it was worth it.

Huh, Kennywood's lines never struck me as long, except for the Raging Rapids and Jack Rabbit, I guess. But maybe I got used to Disney's lines being SUPER long. We never used the fast passes there very often.

[Reality]

I only regularly visit three.

Six Flags at Kentucky Kingdom ,  Louisville, KY

My Hometown Park :D  It's a little trippy to go there nowadays because the looney tunes and Superhero branding for certain rides has been removed, as has a couple of the rides I was used too. The park also kind of has a bad layout  since it is bi-sected by the interstate, which means that the entire waterpark (and several major rides) can only be accesed by a tedious footbridge. A visit to Kentucky Kingdom can be difficult if you are out of shape. Has the full range of non-rollercoaster thrill rides, so I think of it as the archtypical theme park, and it made it my favorite park when I was younger and too afraid to ride roller caosters.

Holiday World , Santa Claus, IN 

My current  favorite park, many great roller coasters and smaller rides, the free soft drink thing is exceptionally convenient, and it has the largest water park of the three parks, which never dissapoints. It's actually a pretty small and cosy park, which makes it easy to navigate, especially as it's original design had 2 of it's 4 roller coasters right next to each other. The Voyage is probbably my favorite Roller Coaster of all time some really chill attendants that let people ride again if you were near closing time and there was no line helped.

King's Island , Mason OH

Honestly, I think it's roller coasters are good, but I really have a distaste for most of the other rides at king island. This is partly due to doing undergroud queues the "bad" way as opposed to the other parks, but also because for me, King's Island also seems much more crowded than the other parks.  It does have a larger kid's area than most parks which is interesting, which could be nice, but obviously isn't for me (I associate those kind of rides with state fairs more than theme parks )  it's waterpark is somewhat underdeveloped, but functional. 

[Saith]

Ive only been to an amusement park once in my life. and that was for a field trip. sadly all my friends got sick that day, so i had no one to spend the field trip with since the rest of the class hated me. I've hated amusement parks ever since.(not really)

Edited May 12, 2018 by Saith

[Kahvi]

I really love amusement/theme parks and visiting a disneyland (I don't care which one) is definitely on my bucket list. Out of foreign parks, I've only been to Tivoli in Denmark and Legoland Deutschland. The former one I remember absolutely nothing about because I was so young (three years old or something like that). Legoland was pretty fun but I was still pretty young so I'm not quite sure how I'd feel about it now.

But my favourite amusement park, and also the one I've been to the most, is a park called Linnanmäki (located in Finland, where I'm from). It's not the biggest park in the world but it's still such a pretty place. I'd say my favourite ride is the old wooden roller coaster, even if the lines are usually long for it. They also have a Sea Life aquarium there, so that's nice.

As for waterparks, I've been to some waterpark in Germany but I can't remember it's name. I just remember they had a cool slide that went partly outside.

[Anacybele]

Oh yeah, I forgot to mention that I've also been to Sea World and a Busch Gardens, but I was so little then I don't remember. lol

[Michelaar]

A lot of these places sound unfamiliar to you but

I love this Safari park Called 'Beekse Bergen'. You can just step into your car and do a car safari, or step into the bus to receive information while you admire the animals, and also you can go on a boat safari. You can also just walk, of course. It's main focus is african animals. 

I used to work at this amusement park called "Efteling". I'm sure some of you know it. It's a huge theme park with a focus on tales. There is a huge fairy tale forest and really cool rollercoasters. However, it's not really special for me anymore since I used to come there like every day even and I have seen pretty much everything.

I also went to Disneyland Paris with my grandparents and siblings a few years ago. It was really fun and I would love to go again honestly.

I love zoos in general. I have a weakness for animals and love them. 

[MisterIceTeaPeach]

I don't really go to amusement parks anymore nowadays .
Europapark (as in the op already mentioned) is a great park with the highest rollercoaster of Germany (at this time). Idk if it's topped now. I was there about 15 years ago.


I prefer zoos much more.
Burgers Zoo (NL) and Duisbuger Zoo (GER) are fantastic zoos. Latter has the biggest dolphinarium in the world and rare animals like coalas.

[Slumber]

I used to go to Camp Snoopy all the time back when it was at the Mall of America(And I still hate that it's Camp Nickelodeon now. The fuck does Nickelodeon have to do with the Twin Cities?), and occasionally I'd go to Valley Fair. Always loved the water and log rides. 

There was a nice water park I went to as a really small kid(I was probably 4 or 5. I remember watching a Winnie the Pooh video before going), but I couldn't remember the name of it to save my life. There was another, less nice water park I went to with my friends when I was 10 or so, but I also don't remember the name. 

[Von Ithipathachai]

Epcot (I still like to call it EPCOT Center, since that way I can pretend the name still has meaning, and the park still sells retro EPCOT Center T-shirts anyway) has always been my favorite Walt Disney World amusement park, at the very least for the World Showcase.  My fondest memories are of the China pavilion, which is ironic because I'm averse to Asian food despite being half Thai.

I'm still very salty about Norway more or less getting turned into the Frozen pavilion, though.  Also very salty over the closure of The Great Movie Ride in Disney Hollywood Studios, but that's a discussion for another time.

[Jingle Jangle]

The last amusement pack that I went to a couple years ago was Bush Gardens in Tampa, Florida. Before that I went to Aquatica, a waterpark near Seaworld, but not knowing how to swin limited what I could do. More than 6 years ago, I went to Legoland, Universal, and the Magic and Animal Kingdoms at Disney. I want to visit more of theses theme packs during the Summer to see what has changed.