Cedar Point Trip

[Madison]

For the fun of it -

Dorney Park -- nice park, but there's a bit too much, uh, concrete. It was vastly developed after being acquired by Cedar Fair, LLP and it shows. The upper part of the park has no shade and that awful white pavement. For my money, Laser and Talon are the best rides there, but I'd bet Hydra: The Revenge offers something nice, too. If you're near Dorney, don't visit nearby Six Flags Great Adventure. Instead, visit Knoebel's in Elysburg, PA.

Hersheypark -- this is a gorgeous park in an amazing little town. It is great for a family and offers some of the best wooden coasters on the east coast in Lightning Racer and Wildcat. Storm Runner's probably not too shabby, either.

Six Flags Great Adventure -- this park has some pretty nice rides, but is exceptionally lackluster in operation. In 1999, they installed, along with Medusa, an amazing package of some of the most unique flat rides in the United States -- many of which had largely been seen only in Europe. By last year, most of those rides were gone. Still, Medusa is a top-notch ride and Batman & Robin: The Chiller is among the best if you catch it running. This park has so much potential and isn't quite as bad as Six Flags Magic Mountain, but could be getting closer.

Six Flags Magic Mountain -- this park is ruined by the most horrid operations I've seen at an amusement park, and I know a thing or two about amusement parks. I went with the Golds last summer and, though there was, at most, 100 cars in their lot, the wait times for the small handful of their 16 roller coasters that were open were atrocious. I waited in line for 45 minutes for Riddler's Revenge despite their being no line outside its station because of single-train operation. That's unacceptable for a park of its size and I doubt I'll go back there anytime in the near future.

Cedar Point -- it's a clean, large, well-run park with a lot of history. But, I agree that it's missing something and may actually be a bit too clean and generic these days. It's roller coasters, while varied, are largely lackluster and uninspired. They have some other unique rides, and in the past have had some very unique rides, but they're quickly disappearing.