Not just for big kids: A day at Cedar Point with little ones

Any time you think of Cedar Point, you think of the heart-racing, towering scream machines that delight teenagers and adults alike. Most people tend to forget that Cedar Point can be just as exciting for little kids as it is for the big ones. Most people don't know of all the advantages that Cedar Point offers for the ones who aren't quite tall enough for the big rides. Here are a few things to know about taking your little ones to the park and how to make sure that everyone has the best day ever.

How to Visit Cedar Point Like a Pro - Tips from an Avid Roller Coaster Rider and Former Employee

1. Go during the week if possible. The hardest part of deciding when to go is determining how busy the park will be. From experience, Tuesdays and Wednesdays are usually the least busy.

2. Go in early May or late August. If weekdays aren’t possible, go on weekends early in the season while local schools are still in session, or late after they’ve started back up again.

3. Stay at a Cedar Point resort. If you’re planning to go for multiple days, stay at a Cedar Point resort. You get 1 hour of early entry time with fewer people in the park; it’s just resort guests and Platinum Pass holders. These include Breakers Express and Sandcastle Suites.

© Cedar Point

4. Buy a Pass. If you plan on going to the park more than 3 times, buy a pass! It'll save you money while giving you some extra perks. Platinum Passes get you free parking and free entrance to all other Cedar Fair parks as well as a discount at most in park food and retail locations.

5. Start at the back of the park. Skip Raptor and Gatekeeper first thing in the morning as their lines are likely to be longer because people go to the first ride they see. Head to the back and work your way to the front of the park throughout the day.

6. Use the Resort Entrance. This entrance is closer to the back of the park. Park in the lot by Breakers Hotel and enter through the resort entrance to get to the back of the park first while most people are still at the front waiting in lines.

7. Wait out the bad weather. Stick around even if the weather’s bad. There are some amazing live shows and if the weather lightens, you’ll be the first in line.

8. Use collapsible reusable water bottles. The small collapsible water bottles with a clip are amazing. You can take them on just about every ride, since they squish down and can clip to your belt loop. Here’s an example of the ones I’m talking about:

9. Wear a fanny pack or small purse. Most bags cannot be brought onto the major rides or even in their lines. Stay away from backpacks, large purses, or drawstring bags if you don’t want to have to pay for a locker. (This is strictly enforced.)

10. Stay away from the souvenir bottles. Souvenir Drink cups are not allowed on some rides or even in the lines. I recommend the refillable bottles mentioned above. If you must have the souvenir, wait until the end of the day to pick one up.

11. Wait to play the games until later. Just like large bags, large stuffed animal prizes are not allowed on some rides or even in the line. Don’t lose your prize because you can’t take it with you.

12. Don’t buy Fast Lane right away. Wait to buy a Fast Lane until you’ve been in the park long enough to determine how many people are there that day. Many people buy it ahead of time and regret it when the Fast Lane line is the same length as the regular line.

13. Stay hydrated. People often pass out in lines after standing in the sun for long periods of time. One way to prevent this is to stay well hydrated.

© Cedar Point

14. Wear sunscreen. Even on a cloudy day, the sun still can and will burn you. Spending 8 hours in direct sunlight with no protection is the best way to increase chances of heat stroke and sun poisoning. Reapply frequently, especially after getting wet.

15. Be courteous to the employees. Their number one goal is to make sure you have The Best Day Experience - that includes the five cornerstones: courtesy, service, safety, cleanliness, and integrity. The people who run this park can end up being your best friend.

By - Cecelia Dahlinger

 

We would like to celebrate Luminosity's last show of the 2015 season! Here are some pictures from last night's show. Submit your photos to us if you would like to celebrate too! If you were a performer and would like full size photos that CP Rundown took, please contact Carsten

 

On Thursday, June 11, 2015, my family and I headed down to Cedar Point for an impromptu day at the park. We decided that we were going to purchase Fast Lane Plus for the day, as most schools were done for the summer by now and we wanted to get the most riding as possible done in a day. As Platinum Passholders, my mom, brother and I, as well as other Platinum Passholders, are able to upgrade to Fast Lane Plus for the price of regular Fast Lane. As far as I know, it says on Cedar Point’s website that this is a limited time offer.

CLICK HERE TO READ MORE AND VIEW PICTURES!

 

On Saturday, June 6, 2015, my family and I departed from Roseville, Michigan, to Cincinnati, Ohio, to spend the weekend at Kings Island. Kings Island is owned by Cedar Fair and is one of Cedar Point’s sister parks. My mom, brother, and I hit the road about 3 p.m. on Saturday and arrived at our hotel room in northern Cincinnati at around 8 p.m. When we visit Kings Island, we stay at the Red Roof Inn & Suites Cincinnati North-Mason. I highly recommend this hotel as your place to stay when visiting Kings Island if a hotel is needed. The employees are very friendly, the entire hotel is clean, and there is free Wi-Fi, parking, and a continental breakfast, as well as an outdoor pool, and an indoor fitness room with exercise equipment. Smoking and non-smoking rooms are available. This Red Roof location is also pet-friendly.

 

Once we checked into our room, we decided to head over to Kings Island for the last hour and a half that they were open on Saturday night, as the park closed at 10 p.m. During that time, we were able to enjoy our very first dark rides on The Beast and Diamondback. After that, we made a quick trip into a few of the gift shops before heading back to the hotel for the night. Upon our arrival back to the hotel, we relaxed for a bit then went to bed to rest up for the full day at the park the next morning.

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© Jordan Smith

On Saturday, May 9, 2015, Cedar Point debuted Rougarou, the first floorless coaster EVER at America’s Roller Coast. Over these last few weeks, I’ve heard various opinions on coaster enthusiasts’ thoughts on what some would call the rebirth of Mantis. Some enthusiasts are big fans on Rougarou and others preferred Mantis more than Rougarou. Personally, and this is coming from somebody who really enjoyed Mantis, I LOVE Rougarou. It’s a totally different ride experience than Mantis was. To me, the ride is smoother as a sit-down experience than Mantis was as a stand-up experience. Rougarou, although the same speed as Mantis at 60 mph, feels faster to me now, which is really cool. The trains are comfortable and I find that there is less head-banging than there was when the ride was Mantis. Of course, there is still a little bit of head-banging towards the second half of the ride, but this is expected with the track layout being as intense as it is, and can be reduced a little bit by moving your head with the elements of the ride. Those of my friends that like Rougarou agree with me on the above.

Now for the negative feedback I’ve heard. Some say that the ride wasn’t as fast as they expected it to be. Well, maybe that could be true in their eyes. As far as I know, it was never said otherwise that Rougarou would be faster than Mantis. Among other feedback I’ve heard was that the ride theming could be better. I can partially agree with this in that I feel the fog at the bottom of the lift hill’s drop could be a little thicker. Also, I have not had any sightings of the “Rougarou” anywhere throughout the ride or the swamp but I am not sure if Cedar Point had intended on any animatronics for the ride or anything of that nature. One of my favorite things about Rougarou is the sound effects of the Rougarou monster. I love the howling that can be heard near the coaster. It gets me even more pumped up and excited to ride.

One of the park’s slogans for Rougarou is “It Feeds on Screams.” That it does, Cedar Point, and I couldn’t agree more, if you couldn’t already tell by the name of my blog. On the evening of Friday, May 8, 2015, I took my first ride on Rougarou during Season Passholder Preview Night and instantly I fell in love with the ride. I recently invented a new hashtag term you will hear for the first time ever here that I like to call the #RougaFLU, and it’s for anybody who loves Rougarou as much as I do. We have the #RougaFLU and there’s no cure. We could ride Rougarou over and over if we were able to.

© Jordan Smith

To me, it is a brand new ride. I don’t think of it as a re-themed Mantis at all. I think of Rougarou just as the park intended for their guests to do…a new (and very first) floorless coaster at Cedar Point with a unique theme and ride experience. I could ride Rougarou all day and still have just as much fun on the ride as my very first ride on Rougarou during Season Passholder Preview Night. My favorite roller coaster in the park used to be Top Thrill Dragster until I rode Rougarou for the first time ever. Top Thrill Dragster was knocked to my #2 favorite coaster and Rougarou now holds the spot as my #1 favorite roller coaster at Cedar Point. It may be the coaster in the park I’ve screamed with excitement the most on throughout the whole ride, and that’s every time I conquer Rougarou, not just my first ride on it. In my opinion, the speed is perfect, the duration of the ride is great, the track elements are intense, and the airtime is amazing. When I ride Rougarou, I really do feel the need to “Scream like a kid again,” and if you have not yet had the chance to experience Rougarou, then you need to soon. It’s an experience that you’ll never forget.

-Jordan Smith

 

On May 16th and 17th, Cedar Point's sister park to the south, Kings Island, hosted the inaugural event of Coasterstock. This event was open to several coaster enthusiast clubs from around the country. Pre-registration was required for this event, and the fee to attend was minimal based on your need for a ticket or being a passholder. Over 500 people from 24 different states and Canada showed up for this event.

On Saturday morning, check-in began at 6:30 in the morning, allowing registered participants to pick up their lanyards that would give them access to the planned events, as well as all of the free stuff. Each participant received a t-shirt, lanyard with itinerary card, a pin, a drink bottle with free refills on first day, and two free ride photo cards, one for Banshee and one for Beast. The front gates opened up shortly before 8, and we had exclusive ride time (ERT) for two hours before the park opened to the general public. Banshee was a popular spot, as riders raced off and ran around to get in line again and again. The Bat, Delirium, Drop Tower, and Adventure Express were also open for riders to enjoy. Lines were short, and everyone took full advantage of it. Later on in the morning, there was a behind the scenes photo tour of Banshee, where we got to go along a back path and take photos of Banshee as she screamed down the tracks.

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Over the last few years I have been making frequent visits to Cedar Point. I visit multiple times a season thanks to my Platinum Pass. The Platinum Pass at Cedar Point is an upgrade to the regular season pass. In 2013 I purchased my first Platinum Pass. This was something completely new to me as I was a regular season pass holder for a few years. The upgrade to a Platinum Pass is worth it for every Cedar Point fan and every coaster fan. There are a lot of things you can do with your Platinum Pass. When I first purchased my Platinum Pass, it was a big difference from the regular season pass. I realized there were many more perks.

The perks of a Platinum Pass include things such as Ride Nights. You can stay an hour after the park closes to ride a select ride. My first ride night was on Top Thrill Dragster and it was worth the purchase of a Platinum Pass. The fun doesn’t stop there! Another major perk you can get with a Platinum Pass is free parking. But not just at Cedar Point! You can get free parking at any Cedar Fair park. A Platinum Pass will also get you into other Cedar Fair parks as well. One of my favorite perks of having a Platinum Pass is Early Entry. Early Entry lets you enter the park one hour early before the public to ride GateKeeper, Iron Dragon, Lake Erie Eagles, Maverick, Millennium Force, Midway Carousel, Ocean Motion, Pipe Scream, and the rides located in Planet Snoopy. Early Entry is nice because you get the chance to ride those rides with very little waiting. This is extremely beneficial to pass holders, especially with the summer crowds at the park.

Have you ever been through Dinosaurs Alive! at Cedar Point? If you have a Platinum Pass, Dinosaurs Alive! admission is included with your Platinum Pass. This is a really great perk. Dinosaurs Alive! is a great way to relax and learn a lot about dinosaurs. With a Platinum Pass you can see dozens of animatronic dinosaurs! This is a great perk for anyone who has an interest in learning about dinosaurs.

These aren’t the only perks included with a Platinum Pass. Some of the other perks include things such as, food discounts, merchandise discounts, and game discounts. A Platinum Pass will also get you discounted admission on RipCord, Skyscraper, Challenge Golf, Challenge Racing, and North Coast Parasail. Soak City admission is also included with a Cedar Point Platinum Pass. The Platinum Pass also includes admission and perks to other Cedar Fair parks as well. If you like to visit Cedar Point a lot each season I highly suggest that you purchase a Platinum Pass or upgrade your regular season pass to a Platinum Pass. I am a huge Cedar Point fan and I am very happy that I purchased a Platinum Pass because now I realize the great perks that come with them.

-Andrew Smith

© Cedar Point

Recently, Cedar Point launched their new app for iPhone and Android users. This new app is a much needed improvement over the old one. The old one constantly crashed, was hard to read at times, and wasn't updated very often. While it remains to be seen how the new one will be at updating things, it's looking good so far. Here are some of the features of the new app.

© Cedar Point

Everything comes up in nice, easy to read, categorized menus. The main menu or open screen has everything from buying tickets, park hours, to a few fun things. You can use the map to locate your friends or car like on the old app, but the map comes up a lot faster and has more detail to it than the old one. The new app allows you to buy your tickets right on your phone, and scan them directly at the turnstiles, eliminating the need to print them out at home or wait in line to buy them. Click for more!

© Olivia Buzzacco

As we know, Cedar Point is just one of the many amusement parks owned by Cedar Fair. For us Ohioans, we are fortunate to be so close to Cedar Point and Kings Island, both of which are amazing parks. However, this summer I had the opportunity to go to Kings Dominion, another Cedar Fair park in Doswell, Virginia. While Kings Dominion can be compared and contrasted to Cedar Point, it was one of the best experiences I had at any amusement park.

During the summer, my family usually vacations in the Outer Banks of North Carolina. While we drive down there, we always pass Kings Dominion, seeing the tip of the sign above the trees that line the highway. We’ve been going to the Outer Banks for more than a decade, and with each year we’d pass the Kings Dominion sign, we’d become more and more curious about what the park was like. This past summer, we decided to change things up and went to Colonial Williamsburg for a week in July. During our stay, we decided to spend a day at Kings Dominion, as it was only an hour away from our resort (we were aware that Colonial Williamsburg had Busch Gardens close by, but my brother, who is as big of a Cedar Fair nut as I am, was working at Cedar Point that summer and got free admission to any Cedar Fair park). Tickets were a little pricier at Kings Dominion than they were at Cedar Point, but that didn’t stop us from going.

At first, I was skeptical about going to an amusement park in July. From working at Cedar Point in 2012 and 2013, I knew how crowded it would get around the 4th of July week. Also, it was extremely humid in Virginia and I wasn’t looking forward to waiting in long lines in extreme temperatures. But we were in for quite the surprise.