Anyone have experience with Six Flags Fright Fest?

[bcla]

Got the membership about a month ago, but it seems kind of interesting since my local park starts Fright Fest this Friday (open 4-10 PM). I guess each park has its own setup, but it sound like they have a variety of different additions. Before Fright Fest has officially opened, I've seen a few things like Halloween decorations so far, but I'm not sure exactly how it works. One of the rides was shut down during my last visit for some theme alteration.

I see that there's a daily charge as the "haunted houses" aren't included with a season pass or membership. Other Six Flags parks seem to have "maze passes". I thought I saw something about a season pass that would good for multiple visits. They say no masks or costumes are allowed, so I guess it's to avoid confusion with the park workers who will be in costume. Also - my kid is 8, and they don't seem to recommend this for

However, I'm really thinking of this as something to leave early from work, pick up my kid, and visit at night.

 

[Yoshi]

I have been to Fright Fest at Great Adventure in NJ a lot over the last 10 years (some years I was there every week). There should be free scare zones that you can walk through and depending on the park layout, have to walk through to get to certain rides and areas of the park. Crowds are usually bad that time of year. It's so bad at Great Adventure on Saturday's that the main lot, overflow lot and water park lot fill up and they need to use extended queues with ropes and trashcan for the ride lines. I almost always visit on Friday nights since aren't as bad for crowds (but I guess that can vary by each Six Flags park) but it is still crowded.

Even with the maze pass, you may not get to try all the mazes as lines can be long and they all have people who bought priority entrance passes that slow down the lines more.

 

[bcla]

I have been to Fright Fest at Great Adventure in NJ a lot over the last 10 years (some years I was there every week). There should be free scare zones that you can walk through and depending on the park layout, have to walk through to get to certain rides and areas of the park. Crowds are usually bad that time of year. It's so bad at Great Adventure on Saturday's that the main lot, overflow lot and water park lot fill up and they need to use extended queues with ropes and trashcan for the ride lines. I almost always visit on Friday nights since aren't as bad for crowds (but I guess that can vary by each Six Flags park) but it is still crowded.

Even with the maze pass, you may not get to try all the mazes as lines can be long and they all have people who bought priority entrance passes that slow down the lines more.

I have no idea what to expect. I've seen the ads on local TV. I figure worst case scenario is that we have dinner (already paid for with membership) and see if the ride lines are reasonable.

Six Flags Discovery Kingdom (I still think of it as "Marine World") is kind of in an interesting location. No water park on site, but it's across the street from the Solano County Fairgrounds and their large parking lot. We went there last Saturday and it was the first time we'd been directed to the fairgrounds lot. Before I think it might have been left unlocked and some people just parked there for free. I found out it was because there was a Catholic youth event that was drawing Catholics in their 20s/30s from throughout Northern California and Nevada. They weren't really making the food lines longer since they had their own lunch buffet at the group picnic areas. They also had access before and after the normal closing time (6 PM). Some parents were upset that there were people allowed to get in line when they were told no after the official closing time.

http://www.onfirenorcal.com/uploads/1/1/1/3/11131101/onfire-2018-flyer.pdf

 

[RangerPooh]

I have no idea what to expect. I've seen the ads on local TV. I figure worst case scenario is that we have dinner (already paid for with membership) and see if the ride lines are reasonable.

Six Flags Discovery Kingdom (I still think of it as "Marine World") is kind of in an interesting location. No water park on site, but it's across the street from the Solano County Fairgrounds and their large parking lot. We went there last Saturday and it was the first time we'd been directed to the fairgrounds lot. Before I think it might have been left unlocked and some people just parked there for free. I found out it was because there was a Catholic youth event that was drawing Catholics in their 20s/30s from throughout Northern California and Nevada. They weren't really making the food lines longer since they had their own lunch buffet at the group picnic areas. They also had access before and after the normal closing time (6 PM). Some parents were upset that there were people allowed to get in line when they were told no after the official closing time.

http://www.onfirenorcal.com/uploads/1/1/1/3/11131101/onfire-2018-flyer.pdf

It's been over a decade since I attended the Fright Fest (or whatever it was called) at Marine World aka Discovery Kingdom. At that time some of the haunted houses were free and others an additional price. We only stuck with what was free. We did a few of the special features, then hit rides. Only stayed a few hours as we had season passes and had taken niece and nephew who were like 9 and 10 at the time.

 

[Cadiewampus]

Been a couple times in the last few years to Six Flags in Atlanta. Went on a Saturday both nights and was not too crowded. Did not have to wait in line as long as any Disney rides anyway. Our six flags has a tunnel you have to walk through and they fog it up and have characters dressed up scaring people as they walk out. Watching them scare people is the best thing about it. . They also decorated the train and have a fright ride which was fun but the fright maze was just stupid and not worth the extra you pay.

 

[Julie's Haircut]

With an 8 year old, it might be better to go on a weekend afternoon to see if you like the atmosphere. Then if it's appealing you can buy the passes for haunted houses/mazes. The extra cost scary attractions don't open until about 6pm or so.

 

[Julie's Haircut]

I have been to Fright Fest at Great Adventure in NJ a lot over the last 10 years (some years I was there every week). There should be free scare zones that you can walk through and depending on the park layout, have to walk through to get to certain rides and areas of the park. Crowds are usually bad that time of year. It's so bad at Great Adventure on Saturday's that the main lot, overflow lot and water park lot fill up and they need to use extended queues with ropes and trashcan for the ride lines. I almost always visit on Friday nights since aren't as bad for crowds (but I guess that can vary by each Six Flags park) but it is still crowded.

Even with the maze pass, you may not get to try all the mazes as lines can be long and they all have people who bought priority entrance passes that slow down the lines more.

Where is the overflow lot? I've never noticed one.

About five years ago on a Saturday night the line for Skull Mountain extended outside the mountain and made its way past the Chinese restaurant toward the swinging Pirate ship. El Toro's line went under the coaster along the pathway to Medusa. We were there at opening so we got to ride plenty earlier in the day. We left about 830pm and there were still lines of people entering.

 

[Yoshi]

It's next to the pick up / drop off lot. When you enter the roadway to the park, where Hurricane Harbor is on the left, the overflow lot is almost directly opposite of it on the right side.

Edit, I circled it in this overhead picture.

 

[mrcase77]

I've been a few times in recent years to the one in St. Louis. Here, the park essentially runs as normal during the day and then at dusk, they bring out the actors and start running the haunted houses. They made it pretty clear when that was going to happen so people with young kids could get the heck out of dodge before the guys running around with chainsaws and stuff came out. They also (at least here) sell sort of "fraidy cat" necklaces that tell the actors to leave you alone if having them approach you is too intense for you.

It's usually a good time. They usually use the water park and less popular rides for haunted houses. Here it's a great time to go because the weather is usually fantastic as well.

The other fair warning is the haunted houses are an extra ticket separate from general admission (at least here it is). They give you an arm band that says you have haunted house access.

 

[bcla]

I've been a few times in recent years to the one in St. Louis. Here, the park essentially runs as normal during the day and then at dusk, they bring out the actors and start running the haunted houses. They made it pretty clear when that was going to happen so people with young kids could get the heck out of dodge before the guys running around with chainsaws and stuff came out. They also (at least here) sell sort of "fraidy cat" necklaces that tell the actors to leave you alone if having them approach you is too intense for you.

It's usually a good time. They usually use the water park and less popular rides for haunted houses. Here it's a great time to go because the weather is usually fantastic as well.

The other fair warning is the haunted houses are an extra ticket separate from general admission (at least here it is). They give you an arm band that says you have haunted house access.

I looked up the price locally, which is $29.99 purchased online. I probably won't go for that, but I'm wondering about the overall atmosphere. My kid at 8 is actually pretty jaded about this kind of thing. We had a blast at "that block" nearby where

They've also started a rewards program that they say can earn points towards passes, but I'm not sure how many times I'd need to "check in" to get anything.

I'll be curious what the setup is. At least at what used to be "Marine World" there are some little used areas that might be repurposed. I was thinking the old water ski stadium was kept in pretty good shape (outside of bushes growing and blocking the view of the lake), so I'm wondering if that's part of it. There are a lot of closed areas such as where they used to keep elephants and camels.

 

[mrcase77]

I looked up the price locally, which is $29.99 purchased online. I probably won't go for that, but I'm wondering about the overall atmosphere. My kid at 8 is actually pretty jaded about this kind of thing. We had a blast at "that block" nearby where

They've also started a rewards program that they say can earn points towards passes, but I'm not sure how many times I'd need to "check in" to get anything.

I'll be curious what the setup is. At least at what used to be "Marine World" there are some little used areas that might be repurposed. I was thinking the old water ski stadium was kept in pretty good shape (outside of bushes growing and blocking the view of the lake), so I'm wondering if that's part of it. There are a lot of closed areas such as where they used to keep elephants and camels.

Yeah, in St Louis they use the water park, some surrounding grounds, and some less popular rides to stage their haunted houses. Then, the park is decorated for Halloween. They usually dye the water red in some of the fountains and have skulls and cobwebs all over the place and stuff of that nature. During the day, it’s got sort of a “fall festival” feel. At night they have actors running around the park and trying to spook people in lines and on pathways. (People dressed up like Jason Vorhees, scary clowns, people wearing masks running around with chainsaws, etc). Not sure if that helps.

 

[NYCgrrl]

I took my youngest son and some of his friends to the one in NJ one weekend a bit over 20 years ago, LOL.
It was fun at the time, pretty sure the maze cost was included then but we all know how that goes.Still it's pretty far from NYC so doubt I'll be taking DGD any time soon. Should one of her classmates invite her she can go and someone younger than me can do the hustle out there.

I have tickets for: https://hudsonvalley.org/events/bla...MIqJLSleTK3QIVBVSGCh2GAw3ZEAAYASAAEgLmvfD_BwE
in Westchester County this year. Since older sister lives close by I'll let her "share" DGD (her grands live in Australia so she misses some of the fun at times), by taking my sweetness to Sleepy Hollow's Halloween Parade and then serve us hot cider and cider doughnuts at her home.

 

[bcla]

I took my youngest son and some of his friends to the one in NJ one weekend a bit over 20 years ago, LOL.
It was fun at the time, pretty sure the maze cost was included then but we all know how that goes.Still it's pretty far from NYC so doubt I'll be taking DGD any time soon. Should one of her classmates invite her she can go and someone younger than me can do the hustle out there.

I have tickets for: https://hudsonvalley.org/events/blaze/?utm_source=search&utm_medium=digital&utm_content=search&utm_campaign=Blaze 18&gclid=EAIaIQobChMIqJLSleTK3QIVBVSGCh2GAw3ZEAAYASAAEgLmvfD_BwE
in Westchester County this year. Since older sister lives close by I'll let her "share" DGD (her grands live in Australia so she misses some of the fun at times), by taking my sweetness to Sleepy Hollow's Halloween Parade and then serve us hot cider and cider doughnuts at her home.

We've got two major theme parks in the San Francisco Bay Area, so I guess there's some sort of competition even though they're about 60 miles apart. Great America (aka Levi's Stadium auxiliary parking lot, formerly Paramount's Great America, and before that Marriott's Great America) is run by Cedar Fair and uses their "Haunt" name for their Halloween event. I suppose they don't really need to add anything to "The Demon" roller coaster. However, they've also got a pumpkin festival where kids are allowed to wear costumes.

https://www.cagreatamerica.com/play/great-pumpkin-fest
https://www.cagreatamerica.com/tickets-passes/haunt

 

[bcla]

OK went on the first day (yesterday) with a half day off work.

It was actually kind of nice because it was the least crowded I’ve seen it. It was less crowded than even summer weekdays. We got in just after opening time and in the first hour didn’t need to wait in line for any rides other than waiting for the ride to stop and reload. We saw a lot of the premium rides with only 2-5 riders. The kiddie rides were pretty sparse too. There was also a hay maze (closed at 6) for kids, with candy handed out at points in the maze.

It did start getting a bit more crowded, but nothing too bad. They did that Fright Fest theming all over, including some of the store windows. They removed a dolphin statue in their main plaza fountain. Not sure what it was that replaced it, other than a mock-up of human bones hanging from a rack, and the water dyed red. They brought in a freak show act from Coney Island - Donny Vomit and Frankie Sin. He’s got a handlebar mustache and shaved head, while Frankie is a cross between a pinup model and burlesque performer. He did normal freakshow stuff like nails up his nose and sword swallowing, but it was strangely enough family friendly.

The schedule said that they started the various areas with zombies and ghouls at 6:13 PM. We wandered through a few, and wasn’t that bad but my kid was a bit more uncomfortable than I though would be the case. The haunted houses were all extra ($30). The took over several spaces including the dining terrace with a tent, and the bumper car space.

The dining hours were modified, so even with 4-10 hours we could get two meals. Lines were ridiculously short most of the day, although some places were open or opened later. Also, only one location with Dippin Dots.

Not sure what it’s going to be like this weekend, but we’re probably not headed there.

 

[Planogirl]

Do they still do the 3d Elvira attraction at the Six Flags parks? I remember it from many years ago.

 

[bcla]

OK. Have been back a few times, but my kid apparently is a bit more freaked out than I thought would be the case. There’s one particular storefront display of a figure of a woman with a cannonball sized hole through the belly. My kid just doesn’t want to see that display.

Other than that, my kid seems to enjoy trick or treating and at least Friday after work the crowds are sparse. Weekends are crazy, but we go to the kids rides mostly or grab something to eat. The longest line seems to be about 90 minutes for a hybrid wooden roller coaster called The Joker.

It’s kind of hard to avoid all that stuff with a kid. Even in the main kiddie ride area, there are spaces nearby where fog machines are leaking in, and there’s the sound of chainsaws. I don’t know quite what that is since my kid isn’t interested. With the main dining pavilion used for a haunted house, it’s decreased the available tables and the sound of pneumatic devices and screaming leaks out.

I did notice more about how they handle scare zones. They have designated areas, but there are often roving groups of costumed employees looking like zombies or basic Halloween freaks traveling through the park in unison on their way to the haunted houses. They generally ignore people unless they get too close. For the most part they seem to leave young kids alone, or people carrying dinner. Sometimes it’s difficult to get around without going a long way to avoid them. I did see one employee not in costume who specifically was warning people that if they taunted or kicked a performer, that could result in getting tossed. The rules were noted in a Fright Fest brochure/map. The warning did somewhat ruin the illusion and it didn’t seem to be targeted at anyone in particular, but I suppose there have been cases where one has been assaulted.

The really odd thing is that my kid loves the freak show. I don’t quite get it when my kid is otherwise scared of various oddities, but we’ve seen the show maybe 5 times.

 

[barkley]

are the fright nights still the only nights the park is open later in the evening?

i lived really close by when the park was being designed and remember the huge lawsuit the neighboring homeowners did b/c they had bought/built when the future marine world land was a lake and a nice quiet golf course so they weren't keen on heavily lighted and noisy attractions late into the night all summer long. at that point it was agreed that the park would only stay open until fairly early in the evenings which put a damper on allot of locals buying passes.

 

[bcla]

are the fright nights still the only nights the park is open later in the evening?

i lived really close by when the park was being designed and remember the huge lawsuit the neighboring homeowners did b/c they had bought/built when the future marine world land was a lake and a nice quiet golf course so they weren't keen on heavily lighted and noisy attractions late into the night all summer long. at that point it was agreed that the park would only stay open until fairly early in the evenings which put a damper on allot of locals buying passes.

I don't remember it really being a nighttime park when it was primarily limited to animal shows. But yeah I remember when Six Flags took over and proposed adding thrill rides there were concerns about noise and the effect of that noise on the animals.

I guess the one thing is that I can't see any homes from the park. They're all on the other side of various hills, which I suppose serves as a sound wall of sorts.

They've been open until about 9-10PM although around Halloween that will get closer to midnight.

 

[Julie's Haircut]

It's next to the pick up / drop off lot. When you enter the roadway to the park, where Hurricane Harbor is on the left, the overflow lot is almost directly opposite of it on the right side.

Edit, I circled it in this overhead picture.

Thanks for the photo. I guess I never paid much attention to that lot. I think it's partially hidden behind trees.

Do they still do the 3d Elvira attraction at the Six Flags parks? I remember it from many years ago.

At SF in New Jersey, they haven't had the Elvira 3D attraction for about 10 years. The building isn't in use at all anymore. I don't know if other SF parks still have it. I'll be at SF Magic Mountain near L.A. tomorrow and check.

 

[bcla]

are the fright nights still the only nights the park is open later in the evening?

i lived really close by when the park was being designed and remember the huge lawsuit the neighboring homeowners did b/c they had bought/built when the future marine world land was a lake and a nice quiet golf course so they weren't keen on heavily lighted and noisy attractions late into the night all summer long. at that point it was agreed that the park would only stay open until fairly early in the evenings which put a damper on allot of locals buying passes.

Just thinking about it some more, and it opens later in the evening during the summer. I never really visited a whole lot until recently, but I do remember driving by and it's pretty clear that it's open when the rides are operating.

I think part of the reason why things might have changed was that the city ended up taking over when the Marine World Foundation defaulted on their loan. The city gave it to Premier Parks (aka Six Flags) to run before selling it. The other issue was that the biggest employer in town (Mare Island Naval Shipyard) shut down and they preferred more revenue.

I don't really think the noise is that much of an issue given the layout. Freeway noise is a bigger issue to the north and east, and I noted that the homes to the west are blocked by a hillside. I don't think traffic is much of a concern given that the freeway access is good and few people end up going through residential neighborhoods. The place where the neighbors have complained a lot is Great America in Santa Clara, where the terrain doesn't block the sound reaching residential neighborhoods and you're dealing with less than ideal freeway access. And then they threw in an NFL stadium on top of it. That one has gotten crazy because of the issue with weeknight events such as a U2 concert that went past curfew.