Knott's Berry Farm — Attraction in Buena Park

I went to Knott's Berry Farm yesterday and the experience was so-so. We got in line for Ghost rider and they only had a single cart running, which was terrible because of how many people were already in line even at that time in the morning. They then temporarily closed the ride (which is understandable for the safety of passengers, I am also aware that it was closed just a couple weeks prior when I last went). I figured they had only one cart running because maybe they needed to do maintenance on the other one, but I do not know that that was the case. I went to Silver Bullet (and the line was extremely long, it filled up basically their entire zig-zag outline for the line, I've never seen it that long. I know the reason was due to the visiting schools) and waited in line. When I was at the halfway point, I saw about 10-20 highschoolers all go to the base of the stairs and skip the majority of the line. No one said anything. Later, when we were at the base of the stairs, the same thing happened again right behind us, and another 10-20 highschoolers skipped the line. As far as I know, no one did or said anything to those highschoolers visiting from their schools. When I came here just a couple weeks ago with my school, they kicked out a student for cutting the line. The fact that nothing was done about the minimum of 20 highschoolers that were cutting while only one student cut before and they kicked them out? The difference is insane. Also, I noticed that at the top of the stairs where they usually have someone guiding the traffic and telling people where and when to go, no one was there. They were having fast pass users check their own wrist bands and the rest of it was chaos. It was very confusing and it was just a mess. Also, unless I missed something when looking at the fast pass line, it would've likely been very easy for someone to just go in that line and skip the rest of it. Anyways, earlier I had mentioned how Ghost Rider was only running one cart. Well, as the day progressed, I saw that many rides were only running one cart. This made the ride lines much longer and the wait time increased significantly. For example, the line for Xcellerator was probably for two-three hours long and it was maybe halfway full, and Ghost Rider alone was four hours. I understand that maintenance needs to be performed on the carts for safety, but the fact that they did a lot of it on a day when they had MULTIPLE schools visiting, (and this kind of thing would've been planned for awhile), it is very inconsiderate to both the students and the regular people attending the park hoping for a good time. For the people who didn't have a fast pass, they were likely only able to get one three-four rides if that. I was there basically all day and that's all I was able to get on. It's not that I mind waiting, but the students come here for a good time with their friends and when it is this inefficient, it can ruin what was supposed to be a memorable experience for them. The students are only there for x amount of time, and because of the wait times they would've been able to go on two maybe three rides (if that) and still not have the time to eat. I would also like to suggest that when they have schools visit for school trips, it may be better for them to have a max of two or maybe three schools attending on the same day. One middle school can bring 300 students (and that's usually only one grade), and that may not sound too bad but when it's multiple schools like that it adds up. Also, a lot of highschools were visiting yesterday, even a freshman class in highschool is typically a LOT bigger than one grade in middle school (typically they were having only one grade from each school that attended) Either way, the combination of so many students and inefficient running of the park on the same day can be really detrimental to an experience. I have always loved Knott's Berry Farm and I will continue to go there, but I must say I am very disappointed in...

Knott’s Berry Farm is a theme park that really knows how to test your limits—and not in the “thrilling ride” sense. If you're looking for an experience that combines the joy of standing in line with the thrill of disappointment, then this place has you covered.

Let’s talk about the basics first: parking. You can park in the “general lot” for a mere $30—or you can pay $50 for the “preferred parking.” And by preferred, they mean slightly closer to the entrance, though still a solid hike from the actual park. So, in essence, you pay extra for the privilege of walking an extra 5 minutes. A great way to kick off your day!

Now, once you’ve navigated through the parking lot (and the $15 frozen lemonade stand that will give you a solid sugar rush), you think you’re in the clear. But nope. It’s time to enter the land of waiting. I’m talking hours of standing in line. For a ride. That lasts less than a minute. Welcome to Knott’s Berry Farm, where you’ll spend 7 out of 10 hours of your day standing in lines. That’s right, we were literally waiting in line for everything. Even the kiddie rides. Even the 4-D experience. If you want a true Knott’s experience, just stand still for 2 hours at home, then get on a ride that lasts 90 seconds. Boom, you’ve done it.

But here’s where the real genius lies: FastLane. Oh, FastLane. If you want to get on the rides without dying of boredom in the general line, you’ve got to fork out anywhere from $12 to $15 per ride (or $75+ for the whole day). Sounds good, right? Here’s the catch: while you’re zooming through the FastLane, the general line is starved. For every FastLane person who zooms past, 10 people in the general line are left watching in horror as they see ride after ride taken by people who “paid for the privilege.” So, while you’re stuck waiting for two hours to get on a kiddie coaster, the FastLane people are living their best life, breezing through. It’s like watching someone skip ahead in line at the grocery store, but they’re buying a whole cart full of stuff, while you’re still holding your carton of milk. Very fair and equitable, right?

Let’s talk rides. GhostRider, the park’s main coaster, had a 3-hour wait. For a ride that’s literally just a glorified shopping cart experience with a roller coaster attached to it. The lines for other rides were similarly soul-crushing, and you get to spend hours of your life that you’ll never get back. Ever. As if the ride itself wasn’t enough to leave you rattled, the idea that you spent an entire afternoon just standing in a queue will make you question your life choices.

And for those thinking, “Maybe I’ll enjoy a show to mix things up,” think again. After spending 90 minutes in line for the bird theater, we were told that the show was full. FULL. After waiting 90 minutes, the only thing we got was a solid 30-second “sorry, no entry.” The employees at Knott’s seem to have perfected the art of apologizing while doing absolutely nothing to make the experience better.

Oh, and let’s not forget the food. Overpriced, underwhelming, and exactly what you would expect from a theme park that prides itself on making you work for everything. You’re more likely to find a seat in the wild west than you are to find a decent meal. At least the churros were good—though it’s hard to enjoy them when you’re too busy pondering why you didn’t just go to Disneyland.

In short, Knott’s Berry Farm is a place where they’re really good at taking your money, and not much else. If you enjoy standing in line for hours, paying for FastLane so other people can wait longer, and eating overpriced food, then by all means, give it a shot. If you value your time, money, and sanity, do yourself a favor and just skip it. It’s Disneyland's sad, little sibling—and not in...

I visited on a weekday and went on most of the coasters and thrill rides, though some were not open. Overall I had a pretty good experience, I hope the Six Flags acquisition doesn't deteriorate the service quality at this park.

Ghostrider - 5/5 First drop was really good, plenty of airtime hills, got a bit bumpy towards the end but not too rattly overall. Some turns had a bit of a sharp sideways force. At the back you get the most speed, at the front it’s a bit more floaty or zero G. Pretty long runtime.

Timber Mountain Log Ride - 5/5 One of the better log rides, featuring two drops and a cool dark ride aspect. You also don’t get too wet, which is the cherry on top! Operations were fast and efficient.

La Revolucion - 5/5 Fun classic, the rotation is enough so that every side gets a chance at all angles. The sway is also fast enough that you get good airtime floating at the top. Even though it’s smaller than the Wonder Woman at SFDK, the floating sensation was better on this.

Hangtime - 4/5 Lift and first drop are suspenseful and fun, though I felt could have been faster. The rest of the ride was alright but unremarkable, with a bit higher than average G forces. It’s also pretty short, wish it were longer. Both front and back had a good first drop experience, but back was maybe marginally better due to faster speeds.

Xcelerator - 4/5 Line for the first row is pretty long and slow, even with Fast Lane, so maybe try doing this one first if you want first row. They also run a single train so the operations are pretty slow overall. Ride was really fun, but again short, only 22 seconds. The first launch is the real wow factor, rest of it is decent but nothing exceptional. Good airtime on the first hill. First row is cool just for the experience, last row has slightly more speed on the first drop. Honestly all rows are equal for the launch, which is the main event anyway. I’d say skip the long first row line and just get on faster on any other row.

Silver Bullet - 4/5 Fun coaster with dangling feet, decently long runtime and some good track layout. I liked the double barrel roll. Moderate G forces, especially the high G spin at the very end. Overall pretty smooth and comfortable. Front row is cool because you don’t know what’s next, back row is a bit bumpier, honestly I prefer front for this one. Fast operations with two trains.

Calico Mine Ride - 3/5 Cool dark ride with a surprisingly long run, but when they only run one train it takes a really long time before the next group can board. Also I wish they had a bit more lighting inside because a lot of it was very dark and hard to see. Another quirk is that the fast lane riders can only get on the first two carts, so I couldn’t go on the last one like I’d wanted.

Sol Spin - 3/5 A lot of random forces, chaotic and interesting but I dunno if it was the most fun. I could see it being nausea inducing though it wasn’t a ton of G forces.

Jaguar! - 3/5 Ok coaster, a bit milder and family oriented, and the curves could use a bit of smoothing.

Calico River Rapids - 3/5 Ok water ride, some potential to get wet, moreso than the log ride. Not much thrill factor, it has some rough parts but no big drop or anything. Probably not worth the risk of getting soaked.

Pony Express - 3/5 Fun concept, I like horse rider style coasters, but the ride is just so short that it felt disappointing. The ride is cool and interesting for the brief few seconds it lasts. Front row is a bit more fun due to being kicked into the last tunnel turn a bit faster.

Coast Rider - 2/5 Very mediocre experience, not really worth riding. Typical sideways G forces for a mouse ride, but not much of a fun track. Also the restraints dig into your shins which was a...