If was in charge of the park, I would see a perfectly intact very large section having zero rides and left entirely unused as a higher priority than the other areas. The areas you mentioned can all use new rides but it’s not dire. In addition, I think having the safari as a major component of the park is very important going forward. I would love to see a revamped golden kingdom with a new safari station and portal, family attractions, shows, and educational animal exhibits.
State of the Park
- Thread starter GASM
- Start date
Knowing nothing about the actual financials of the park, I expect that the safari just bleeds money. It's poorly connected both inside and outside the park, is included with admission, and animals and the care they require are just expensive. There's no shot Savannah Sunset is helping things imo. I think they have to work on integrating the park and the safari big time (train ride!!! build a train!!!) or start phasing it out. It also doesn't help that it seems like things like the giraffe feeding (which many would (and did in the past, when the tours had a "midstation") gladly pay for) are exclusive to the (empty) resort now.
Me too, but if we don't see that (or any kind of more widespread monetzation/utilization), the safari kinda just seems like an enduring financial anchor
Me too, but if we don't see that (or any kind of more widespread monetzation/utilization), the safari kinda just seems like an enduring financial anchor
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Big agreement with @Adventure UP and @northdetective here. If Great Adventure is going to continue being an animal park, they need to actually integrate (and, in turn, financially capitalize on) the animals in the park. Like @northdetective said, the fixed costs inflicted by the zoological component at Great Adventure are ENORMOUS and, currently, they are somewhere between a massively underutilized asset and an anchor chained around the park's neck.
If (and yes, I do think that has to be a discussion) the animal components of Great Adventure are set to stay, Golden Kingdom is likely the most cost effective way to begin reintegrating zoo back into Great Adventure. Short-term, I think that would be a reasonable justification for considering reopening parts of Golden Kingdom.
Long-term, I think anyone proposing dropping Golden Kingdom entirely years down the line is out of their minds. Nostalgia sells. Kingda Ka is one of the most iconic coasters in history. Six Flags shouldn't revisit Kingda Ka or a major Golden Kingdom coaster now, but 12 years from now when the park needs another absolutely insane, flagship, high-intensity thrill coaster? It would be malpractice not to capitalize on Kingda Ka's legacy eventually.
If (and yes, I do think that has to be a discussion) the animal components of Great Adventure are set to stay, Golden Kingdom is likely the most cost effective way to begin reintegrating zoo back into Great Adventure. Short-term, I think that would be a reasonable justification for considering reopening parts of Golden Kingdom.
Long-term, I think anyone proposing dropping Golden Kingdom entirely years down the line is out of their minds. Nostalgia sells. Kingda Ka is one of the most iconic coasters in history. Six Flags shouldn't revisit Kingda Ka or a major Golden Kingdom coaster now, but 12 years from now when the park needs another absolutely insane, flagship, high-intensity thrill coaster? It would be malpractice not to capitalize on Kingda Ka's legacy eventually.
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I have very particular thoughts on this but in the meantime I demand a physical gravesite/shrine and it would be very easy to do while building the Bakunawa station
Full disclosure that I forgot where my source on this bit came from, the "source" probably had the credibility of the dippin dots guy, and that someone should correct me if I'm wrong, but I think I remember seeing smth about how in the sale between the og family and six flags, they specified that six flags couldn't separate the safari from the park or it goes back to the original family? Again if anyone has grounds to challenge this statement be my guest lol
Anyways, assuming they could even close it down in the first place, (to my knowledge) its not like cedar fair management has been big on animal exhibits (bar the cepo petting zoo), and I wonder how that affects gadv's safari (and also discovery kingdom) in the longer term. It at least seems like current park management wants to do a little more in highlighting the safari, tho
Anyways, assuming they could even close it down in the first place, (to my knowledge) its not like cedar fair management has been big on animal exhibits (bar the cepo petting zoo), and I wonder how that affects gadv's safari (and also discovery kingdom) in the longer term. It at least seems like current park management wants to do a little more in highlighting the safari, tho
I know I was taking about a backlog, but do you think they'll let GK sit that long unused? I was thinking they'll reno it sometime in the next 6-8 years, considering it does leading to a prime open coaster plot, and slots in nicely to two quality areas between new-Boardwalk and Plaza.
I hadn't thought of the Kingda Ka legacy revival angle though, that's really clever and a long term slam dunk. Definitely sounds like something the new Cedar Fair/Six Flags company would be all over, with their recent additions.
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There was a legal battle over the initial sale of the land. The Switlik family believed there would only be a safari built and tried to pull out of the sale entirely when they learned the scale of the theme park development. They lost in court and Great Adventure got built as we know it so I don't think their wishes matter much. Maybe there's some sort of deed restriction idk about tho
Based on messaging from Ryan from multiple interviews, they have been hinting at a major coaster in KA location. A big thrill coaster themed to a tiger like “Tigris” or “Son of KA” would be an awesome recognition to KA. A high capacity full circuit launch coaster with a top hat would be the dream. We may see a family coaster first somewhere else in the park though. Regardless of what coaster we get next, I am hoping the golden kingdom will be next project after the boardwalk and would expect to get investments within 2-4 years.
My personal imagination remains that I want to see them to is to do a full retool of the Golden Kingdom and play up an ancient jungle ruins/temple feel. I'd play up into the lore, and imply the ruins was found under the wreckage of Ka.
As my personal tastes go, I don't want a "successor" to Ka. I want something better. Give me either a really nicely themed family dark coaster (mild launch is acceptable here), or give us a traditional Giga if we want a thrill coaster.
My impossible one off dream is a traditional strata. But I don't think that will ever happen anywhere.
As my personal tastes go, I don't want a "successor" to Ka. I want something better. Give me either a really nicely themed family dark coaster (mild launch is acceptable here), or give us a traditional Giga if we want a thrill coaster.
My impossible one off dream is a traditional strata. But I don't think that will ever happen anywhere.
I don't know. I wouldn't be surprised to see Ka's plot used for the next major thrill coaster, but I also wouldn't be surprised to see the land sit empty for 15+ years. Frankly, I think there's a good chance SFGAdv has no idea yet, either.
So often park investment plans are driven in very large part by what's dying and, hence, what's in need of replacement. In the next two decades, a TON of the park's existing coaster collection is going to age out. Like, just look at this list. I think the list of coasters likely to die before 2046 is longer than the ones likely to survive.
Runaway Mine Train (1974)
Batman The Ride (1993)
Skull Mountain (1996)
Harley Quinn Crazy Train (1999)
Medusa (1999)
Lil' Devil Coaster (
Nitro (2001)
Superman - Ultimate Flight (2003)
Barrels O' Fun (
El Toro (2006)
Dark Knight (2008)
Joker (2016)
Jersey Devil Coaster (2021)
Flash: Vertical Velocity (2025)
Realistically, SFGAdv could quickly end up on a treadmill of sorts in the next handful of years—in a cycle of having their hand forced over and over again by having to replace major attractions that aren't worth saving any longer. Say Bakunawa is 2027, that rumored drop tower is 2028, 2029 is a major family coaster a la Werewolf Gorge, and then, say, Batman bites the dust in 2030 or 2031. From there on out, it really looks to me like the dominos will inevitably start to fall at about the pace we should realistically expect major investments.
The upheaval coming to Great Adventure in the next two decades is likely to be immense in my estimation. Not only do we have the management transition, not only do we have what seems to be a radical change in direction for the park, but I do think the park's attraction lineup is coming up on a crazy, mass aging-out too.
Will be fascinating to watch.
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I guess my dream/big brained idea isn’t going to be super well received then:
Don’t bring Golden Kingdom back.
Well where it is.
Expand Plaza Del Carnival.
I know Wild Safari is its own ticket thing already but - expand on it. Make Golden Kingdom a massive kids ride area attached to the safari. Keep this park smaller and more family oriented. Like Six Flags own version of Sesame Place. Now it gives you reason to build an on site hotel and treat this park and land like a mini-resort. Then you could reasonably offer packages with shuttles that go to Dorney.
Don’t bring Golden Kingdom back.
Well where it is.
Expand Plaza Del Carnival.
I know Wild Safari is its own ticket thing already but - expand on it. Make Golden Kingdom a massive kids ride area attached to the safari. Keep this park smaller and more family oriented. Like Six Flags own version of Sesame Place. Now it gives you reason to build an on site hotel and treat this park and land like a mini-resort. Then you could reasonably offer packages with shuttles that go to Dorney.
Just a reminder that this is the State of the Park thread. While that can have a fairly broad meaning, please don't fall into the trap pf making it a junk drawer. We have several discussions designated for more specific topics, which make finding comments and ideas easier to find in the future. If you don't see a thread that is appropriate fr your thoughts, you can also crrate a new one.
This happens at SFGA but I assume could happen at other parks too.
I'm getting a "No packages found" error when trying to buy, at the end of August 2026, a season photo pass for my 2026 season pass. I assume the item was delisted on the site (which should not have happened).
I opened a ticket w/support and called the national helpdesk. No workaround from either.
Has anyone else experienced this problem and, if so, what did you do?
I'm getting a "No packages found" error when trying to buy, at the end of August 2026, a season photo pass for my 2026 season pass. I assume the item was delisted on the site (which should not have happened).
I opened a ticket w/support and called the national helpdesk. No workaround from either.
Has anyone else experienced this problem and, if so, what did you do?
Not sure if you're intending to get a season pass next year, but if things still function as they used to, the 2027 photo pass will entitle you to the remainder of 2026 as well (for this reason, maybe they saw it as redundant). I remember buying a 2025 photo pass to get all of my pictures from Kingda Ka's final operating days.
I had a good time at the park this past weekend despite the crowds. I was there on a Monday and it was packed.
I'll miss going on a Saturday in the summer and seeing walk-ons or station waits for everything, but having crowds in the park makes the park feel much livelier. Its really nice that the park is turning itself around.
That being said, operations definitely aren't as good as they used to be. 1 train on Toro is brutal. Flash wasn't hustling like they were last year. JD is on 2 trains when they should be running 3. I had to buy Fast Lane if I wanted to get anything done without standing in a long line. Nitro crew made up for it though. They were really hustling to get trains out, plus the park decided to actually run the ride at full capacity, so a line snaking out to the entrance was only a 30 min wait.
Shoreline Pier is amazing though. Very well-done. The area used to look tired and now there's some new life to it.
I think I prefer Bakunawa's placement over KK's. KK was set so far back from the rest of the park that, you couldn't really see it unless you were up close to it or hanging out around Toro. Bakunawa is placed closer to everything so it commands a bigger presence despite not being as tall. It still feels weird looking at Toro and not seeing KK looming behind it though. I miss that view for sure. I'll also miss seeing KK on the drive into the park. I always loved that view.
I did notice Toro still has a bit of roughness. Idk if that's due to the one train it has needing maintenance or if the first retrack is already starting to wear down. I sat in a middle row in the back car and I definitely felt some shakiness in the bowl section and the first turnaround (the usual rough spots I guess). That being said, the ride glides a lot better now. The airtime hills going into the Rolling Thunder hill give really nice floater pops when they didn't before.
I had a good day overall though. Aside from the heavy crowds for the coasters, everything ran just fine.
I'll miss going on a Saturday in the summer and seeing walk-ons or station waits for everything, but having crowds in the park makes the park feel much livelier. Its really nice that the park is turning itself around.
That being said, operations definitely aren't as good as they used to be. 1 train on Toro is brutal. Flash wasn't hustling like they were last year. JD is on 2 trains when they should be running 3. I had to buy Fast Lane if I wanted to get anything done without standing in a long line. Nitro crew made up for it though. They were really hustling to get trains out, plus the park decided to actually run the ride at full capacity, so a line snaking out to the entrance was only a 30 min wait.
Shoreline Pier is amazing though. Very well-done. The area used to look tired and now there's some new life to it.
I think I prefer Bakunawa's placement over KK's. KK was set so far back from the rest of the park that, you couldn't really see it unless you were up close to it or hanging out around Toro. Bakunawa is placed closer to everything so it commands a bigger presence despite not being as tall. It still feels weird looking at Toro and not seeing KK looming behind it though. I miss that view for sure. I'll also miss seeing KK on the drive into the park. I always loved that view.
I did notice Toro still has a bit of roughness. Idk if that's due to the one train it has needing maintenance or if the first retrack is already starting to wear down. I sat in a middle row in the back car and I definitely felt some shakiness in the bowl section and the first turnaround (the usual rough spots I guess). That being said, the ride glides a lot better now. The airtime hills going into the Rolling Thunder hill give really nice floater pops when they didn't before.
I had a good day overall though. Aside from the heavy crowds for the coasters, everything ran just fine.
I'm not, as this is a one time trip for a while, so I'm stuck. My alternatives of buying the 2027 season pass, or individual 2026 photo passes would cost 2x as much -- something I'd like to avoid for a site problem.
I see - that's a tough one. Beyond hoping that support gets back to you, I will say that the people who work the photo desk at the park are beyond helpful (I badger them at least a half dozen times each year), and they often respond directly to queries sent via the site that hosts the photo retrieval service.
If you've only contacted Six Flags itself, submitting a ticket via the photo website after creating an account (which you'd have to do after buying the photo pass anyway) might be worth a try.
Thank you! Hopefully I can resolve it before I get to the park
Fright Fest is just about ready. Also, finally got to see the new Boardwalk and Shoreline Pier signs.
Also more Bakunawa advertising.
Also more Bakunawa advertising.
