Touring plans for MM & Knott's

[auntyjenn]

Anyone have a good plan for touring MM or Knott's? My husband and I want to go on all the major coasters at MM. I assume we want to start with the X, then tatsu, and sort of work our way around clockwise, then go back for the 'second string' rides. The problem is, I don't know which rides are the most popular that we want to hit on the first trip around.

For Knott's Berry Farm I wasn't very worried (I figured there weren't going to be that many rides we absulutely had to do), but we went to Silverwood (in Idaho) this last week and we waited in lines forever because we didn't know anything about the park.

By the way, we will be there the first Tuesday in September if that makes a difference.

Thanks

 

[DLR29]

For SFMM here are a list of long lines, medium lines, and short lines for the coasters:

Long lines: X (first thing or it's an hour+)
Tatsu (pretty much same thing)
Deja Vu
Riddler's Revenge (not bad in the morning)
Batman (same as Riddler)

Medium lines: Scream
Goliath
Colossus
Superman

Short lines: Viper
Revolution
Ninja
Gold Rusher

At Knotts, you should ride Ghostrider(I'd recommend first or last thing), Xcelerator, Silver Bullet, and Sierra Sidewinder in the morning, saving Montezuma's Revenge and Jaguar for later. Also Perilous Plunge has long lines on hot days, but the crowds should be very small because of schools starting and it being a weekday. But the hours will be short, so get there at opening and stay all day.

 

[LittleWoodenHead]

By all means get to MM when it opens, hit X first, and then proceed clockwise from there.

Personally, I go on Viper (still one of my favorites) right after X, skip Revolution, and then proceed to Tatsu. Save Ninja for later (maybe), skip Superman entirely, and trek down the hill to Deja Vu. From there, it's on to Riddler's Revenge, Batman, Colossus and Scream. This means that you'll be hitting Goliath fairly late -- but see the next paragraph...

You might consider buying at least one set of 4 Flash Passes. That will give you and your husband priority boarding on 2 rides. (My recommendations would be Tatsu and Goliath.) Note: Neither X nor Deja Vu take Flash Passes, so you'll be stuck standing in those lines regardless. Also, even if you ride Tatsu with a Flash Pass, I'd still recommend waiting in the regular line for a second trip so you can get the front row. It makes a huge difference in the "thrill factor" on this ride in particular.

Have a great time!

 

[Danauk]

Can you not choose to wait for the front seat when using a flash pass?

 

[LittleWoodenHead]

Can you not choose to wait for the front seat when using a flash pass?

I haven't been this year, but unless they changed it from last year, it would be extremely difficult (if not impossible) to sit in the front. That's because the Flash Pass queue fed the rear section of the train, so there were about a half a dozen rows of non-FP people between you and the front. If you know anything about MM boarding areas (which are extremely chaotic and the absolute worst part of any ride there), navigating those rows would take super-human abilities -- if it could be done at all.

 

[cats mom]

I haven't been this year, but unless they changed it from last year, it would be extremely difficult (if not impossible) to sit in the front. That's because the Flash Pass queue fed the rear section of the train, so there were about a half a dozen rows of non-FP people between you and the front. If you know anything about MM boarding areas (which are extremely chaotic and the absolute worst part of any ride there), navigating those rows would take super-human abilities -- if it could be done at all.

Boy is that ever a true statement!
I love the coasters at MM, but I really have to prepare myself mentally to deal with those boarding areas.

 

[Danauk]

I have never been to a six flags park but have heard people complain about the boarding areas a lot, what is the problem with them?

 

[LittleWoodenHead]

I have never been to a six flags park but have heard people complain about the boarding areas a lot, what is the problem with them?

The biggest problem is that MM never seems to staff anybody for crowd control in the boarding area.

At Disneyland, for example, there is always at least one Cast Member stationed where the main queue reaches the boarding area. This CM will ask how many are in your party and then direct you to a boarding row. They also serve to hold back the rest of the queue from spilling out onto the boarding platform.

Take this person away, as is the case with MM, and chaos ensues.

Groups will split up to grab places in different rows, then have to scramble to try to get back together again... People will pile into the boarding rows nearest the queue, overflowing them, and blocking access to boarding rows further down the platform... Some boarding areas have railings that create mini-queues leading to the front-of-train boarding rows, but, being unmonitored, they only add to the confusion (in addition to providing ample opportunity for line jumpers)... The shear crush of bodies, combined with the heat and the noise and the sometimes inadequate ventilation can make you feel like you've entered one of the circles of Hell....

But the 'coasters themselves are AWESOME!!!

 

[auntyjenn]

Thank you. Very helpful to know which lines are longest. You never know just by looking at the name or picture of the ride on the website which will be most popular.

Hm, I'll have to go look how much flash passes are. Still, it's a weekday and we won't have any bored/whiny kids with us, so we might just hope for the best on the lines. If we get stuck in a line my hubby and I might have to resort to something drastic and talk to eachother (we don't usually run in to that problem at Disneyland).