Why does anyone like to go to Magic Mountain?

[Too Many Hats]

RMC restraints are the exact wrong thing for my body type and I hate them immensely. The Gerstlauer trains that run on the first two in Texas actually work much better for me, but apparently everyone at RMC believes that nobody is tall or needs legroom, hence their own monstrosities. Also, their trains have killed my enjoyment of the new Fire in the Hole at Silver Dollar City. It's not quite SLOP at USH bad, but it's close.

That is such a bummer. RMC coasters have been transcendent experiences for me. Hadn’t really considered that the restraints — a fundamental component of what makes the experience so amazing — might be non-inclusive. Are there any RMCs you’ve been able to enjoy?

 

[StarWarsGirl]

RMC restraints are the exact wrong thing for my body type and I hate them immensely. The Gerstlauer trains that run on the first two in Texas actually work much better for me, but apparently everyone at RMC believes that nobody is tall or needs legroom, hence their own monstrosities. Also, their trains have killed my enjoyment of the new Fire in the Hole at Silver Dollar City. It's not quite SLOP at USH bad, but it's close.

I don't like the restraints either. I'm only five feet and feel like I'm going to pop out. It also kills my thighs.

 

[MK-fan]

I don't go into regional parks with the same mindset as a Dis/Uni park. With that said, it doesn't justify some of the poor maintenance/upkeep of their parks... especially SeaWorld. Just because you primarily become a "coaster thrill park", doesn't justify decreasing the guest experience.

I haven’t been to Seawod San Diego in so long bu I remember it being a pleasant experience. I know they’ve gone coaster crazy in recent years and it is starting to look like a Six Flags Park. Is the maintenance/upkeep really beginning to get bad?

 

[dmc493]

Magic Mountain has a special place in my heart as it taught me that I'm a Disney coaster guy, not a roller coaster guy

 

[PiratesMansion]

That is such a bummer. RMC coasters have been transcendent experiences for me. Hadn’t really considered that the restraints — a fundamental component of what makes the experience so amazing — might be non-inclusive. Are there any RMCs you’ve been able to enjoy?

I've been able to do a few (Outlaw Run, Steel Vengeance, Goliath, Twisted Colossus). I probably could have done more if I had traveled to more parks with them, but whereas for many coaster dorks they are a draw, for me they are a deterrent, because it truly feels like the universe flips a coin and that determines whether I'm going to fit or not. For me, it's a height AND body shape issue, and it's not just that I flat out won't fit, but that whether or not I fit is wildly inconsistent.

I literally sat in the station of Steel Vengeance watching my restraint on the restraint-checker screen in the station watching it go from go to no go without me even doing anything.

At the Six Flags I grew up going to (SFGreat America), I literally went on the RMC Goliath when I was too fat to ride V2; then I came back and had lost enough wait to successfully ride V2 but somehow didn't fit on Goliath anymore even though I was several pounds lighter than when I had ridden before! It's all so obnoxious.

So yeah, I hate RMCs and can't wait until the coaster dork community moves on to worshipping another manufacturer.

 

[StarWarsGirl]

I haven’t been to Seawod San Diego in so long bu I remember it being a pleasant experience. I know they’ve gone coaster crazy in recent years and it is starting to look like a Six Flags Park. Is the maintenance/upkeep really beginning to get bad?

I'm planning to go on Sunday so I can review it. It's part of the GoCity all inclusive pass, which also includes San Diego Zoo. The LA one includes Knott's and Universal (actually, the San Diego one includes Knott's as well).

I have been to Busch Gardens Williamsburg a few times, which is owned by the same company, and I honestly can't say a bad word about maintenance/upkeep. Super clean, rides in great condition, staff was friendly...the only thing I understand has gone downhill is the food there. If Sea World is that different, I will be shocked.

 

[PiratesMansion]

I haven’t been to Seawod San Diego in so long bu I remember it being a pleasant experience. I know they’ve gone coaster crazy in recent years and it is starting to look like a Six Flags Park. Is the maintenance/upkeep really beginning to get bad?

I think SWSD still looks pretty decent, though they changed their entrance recently and it's definitely a bit of a downgrade.

Food is the one thing that isn't where it once was; I remember during my first visit in 2017 being pleasantly surprised by the variety and quality of their options; then post-2020 it seems like all of their parks have gone in and removed everything you couldn't find at Six Flags from their menus. They also were basically charging "service fees" (don't remember the exact terminology) and adding an extra percentage charge on all transactions-not sure if that's still a thing, but they were definitely doing it semi-recently.

Oh, and the shows are dull as dishwater now. It's like they're afraid that if they do anything fun they can't claim they're educational anymore, and even the sea lion show is just dull and uneventful.

 

[StarWarsGirl]

They also were basically charging "service fees" (don't remember the exact terminology) and adding an extra percentage charge on all transactions-not sure if that's still a thing, but they were definitely doing it semi-recently.

Yes, Busch Gardens does this too. It irritates me so much. Just raise the prices instead of adding a "service fee."

I feel like that should be illegal, but sadly apparently isn't.

 

[Andrew25]

I haven’t been to Seawod San Diego in so long bu I remember it being a pleasant experience. I know they’ve gone coaster crazy in recent years and it is starting to look like a Six Flags Park. Is the maintenance/upkeep really beginning to get bad?

Can't speak for San Diego, but I cancelled my pass for Busch Gardens Tampa & SeaWorld Orlando after how terrible their park operations are.

It's shocking to say it, but SeaWorld had arguably the best quick service locations about 5-10 years ago. SeaWorld at one point cared about the guest experience, but it's become quite difficult to navigate the parks with slow ride operations and poorly informed/trained employees. They recently changed the parking lot configuration at SWO and it's become a mess.

I'll only go back now during the holidays as their entertainment program is worth the price of admission.

 

[PiratesMansion]

Can't speak for San Diego, but I cancelled my pass for Busch Gardens Tampa & SeaWorld Orlando after how terrible their park operations are.

It's shocking to say it, but SeaWorld had arguably the best quick service locations about 5-10 years ago. SeaWorld at one point cared about the guest experience, but it's become quite difficult to navigate the parks with slow ride operations and poorly informed/trained employees. They recently changed the parking lot configuration at SWO and it's become a mess.

I'll only go back now during the holidays as their entertainment program is worth the price of admission.

Yep. People on this board who love to rant and rave about how much worse Disney's become clearly haven't been to any SeaWorld parks recently.

Also, this was shared by In The Loop recently for the park in Orlando:

$142.99 for everyone 3 & up. No child or height discount whatsoever. Outrageous.

 

[StarWarsGirl]

Can't speak for San Diego, but I cancelled my pass for Busch Gardens Tampa & SeaWorld Orlando after how terrible their park operations are.

It's shocking to say it, but SeaWorld had arguably the best quick service locations about 5-10 years ago. SeaWorld at one point cared about the guest experience, but it's become quite difficult to navigate the parks with slow ride operations and poorly informed/trained employees. They recently changed the parking lot configuration at SWO and it's become a mess.

I'll only go back now during the holidays as their entertainment program is worth the price of admission.

That's disappointing to hear. The Williamsburg location is run quite effectively. We were there in April and never waited more than 30 minutes for a ride. My brother is autistic and qualifies for an ADA pass...we never used it. I also like how they enforce no line cutting...we never had an issue with people cutting us in line because they have plenty of signage letting you know it is not allowed and you will be ejected from the park for cutting in line. They also had plenty of security staff there. We were there when Music in the Parks kids were there, and unfortunately, some were misbehaving, including causing safety issues. I was able to easily find a security guard and report it. I also cannot say I had a bad interaction with an employee there; they were very nearly up to Disney CM standards.

Although I understand they have had the same issues with the food...downhill in quality, especially for the price. There is one location we kept coming back to because their food was very good, but otherwise? Nope. I don't like how they nickel and dime you as well. We find cheap packages for tickets/hotel rooms (I wanna say it was $350 a person last time for 3 days/2 nights including tickets, rooms, and one meal during the day), but then like you have to pay $10 daily for a ride locker because there's no bag storage. Hersheypark* has bag storage on the ride platform or free lockers for rides as needed. And that stupid surcharge discussed earlier.

*I love Hersheypark; if anyone here hasn't been and you're ever in the area, highly recommend. They have amazing coasters.

 

[StarWarsGirl]

Yep. People on this board who love to rant and rave about how much worse Disney's become clearly haven't been to any SeaWorld parks recently.

Also, this was shared by In The Loop recently for the park in Orlando:View attachment 820757

$142.99 for everyone 3 & up. No child or height discount whatsoever. Outrageous.

I hope no one is paying gate prices...

 

[MK-fan]

A single day ticket price is the same as a season pass for the rest year and all of next. Hmmm I wonder which one I should get?

 

[PiratesMansion]

View attachment 820794
A single day ticket price is the same as a season pass for the rest year and all of next. Hmmm I wonder which one I should get?

Depends on how the blackout dates stack up.

But that just feels like it's disengenously making everyone an AP without providing them any benefits, which admittedly isn't the worst in the world but still feels scummy to me. Hopefully they automatically cancel-I had a SW pass a few years ago and there was no way to cancel my pass online-I had to call and wait to be helped to stop from getting charged again.

They also used to have a preschool pass that was free for young children that would have been around 3 or so, which conveniently no longer is offered.

I would sooner get a family zoo membership if I had a young child than pay that much, even if I got a full year out of it, but that might just be me. Even if it's for (more than) a year, I personally can't justify paying that much for SeaWorld.

 

[StarWarsGirl]

I would sooner get a family zoo membership if I had a young child than pay that much, even if I got a full year out of it, but that might just be me. Even if it's for (more than) a year, I personally can't justify paying that much for SeaWorld.

No way should anyone pay that for a Fun card. They periodically run sales when those go down to $99. I've seen the ones for Busch Gardens Williamsburg that include Water country USA go to $150. The Fun cards also don't include parking or discounts.

Looking at the Sea World San Diego passes, the silver tier annual pass is $159, includes parking, in park discounts, and three guest tickets. The Orlando location is on sale for $189 right now.

 

[Andrew25]

SeaWorld is always running sales, rarely do most people pay full admission price. Very common to see 1-day tickets priced at ~$50-60 throughout the year with all of their sales. (They run sales just about every week.)

 

[denyuntilcaught]

LOL @ the thread name. Most humans over the age of 17 do not actually like to go to Magic Mountain.

I completely disagree with you here - both myself and my friend group (say 6-7 folks all 30+) tend to frequent SFMM over Disneyland nowadays. Why?

First, we're all thrill seekers, and sometimes a good, intense roller coaster at SFMM scratches an itch that other parks in SoCal cannot. The park genuinely has some world class roller coasters - X2 is simply unparalleled (clone in Japan aside), Twisted Colossus, Tatsu, West Coast Racers. Even Apocalypse is one hell of an underrated woodie.

Second, the value proposition. I've paid $6/month for years for a SFMM membership - pretty much a bank account rounding error - and that gets me free parking, unlimited admission, and F&B discounts. That alone makes me want to visit more than to pay $206 just to get into Disneyland, let alone ride any worthwhile attraction.

Third, proximity. Living in DTLA, sometimes SFMM is only a 30 minute drive up the 5, versus an hour south.

Like others have said, SFMM has a lot of potential and I'm hoping with the SF/CF merger, that the latter organization can bring a lot of it to the surface through better operations and maintenance.

 

[Professortango1]

When Magic Mountain had more varied attractions I would have fun, but with everything being either a coaster or carnival flat ride, there's not a lot to do. I enjoy coasters, but after 3-4 in a row, I need a pallet cleanser and the park got rid of most of those experiences awhile back.

 

[PiratesMansion]

The park genuinely has some world class roller coasters - West Coast Racers.

You make a good overall case for coaster dorks except for this part.

 

[Touchdown]

I prefer and frequent Knotts more then SFMM, it has the best wooden coaster in California (Ghost Rider,) Hangtime and Accelerator are excellent, the other coasters are solid. It has the best log flume in California (that’s right, fight me) and arguably anywhere in Timber Mtn Log Flume, a super unique dark ride in the Calico Mine Train, Ghost Town to walk around, more flat rides then SFMM, two train rides, a stagecoach, and really great entertainment. It’s really the total package, its main negative is how small it is.