Reader Aaron says that his trip to Six Flags was ruined by their new policy of making riders check even very small bags before each ride — at the cost of $1 a ride.
We got into the park (after the security guy searched our bag and made us throw away our dangerous bottle of water) and made a bee-line for the Dark Knight coaster.
The line was short, about 25 minutes, but there was a catch – a security person at the entrance was turning people away if they had any kind of bag, be it a small purse or a big backpack.
There were lockers right at the entrance for a $1 each. You had to stow your bag to ride the ride.We saw this a while ago when Kingda Ka opened, though it was $2 then, but that was the only coaster with this requirement.
Not knowing what to expect from Dark Knight, we ponied up the buck and got in line.The ride was a major disappointment. More like a carny ride at Coney Park than what we’ve come to expect from Great Adventure. Without exaggeration, this is the worst ride in the park. The tea-cups are more fun than the Dark Knight.
And the real kicker, the seats on the ride were big and open, and we could have easily and safely taken my GF’s purse with us. We were a little annoyed that they got us for another buck, but kind of just went with it.
We retrieved our bag and went on our way. (The lockers have a 2 hour time limit, btw, after which the contents will be “discarded.”)We went to get on Batman: The Ride across the way, and were blocked because they had the same lockers.
That’s when we realized that all the major coasters in the park now require you to stow your bag, and charge you a buck a ride for the privilege.
We opted instead to walk back to the car and just ditch the bag in the trunk. Leaving behind the Dramamine, our hats, extra sunblock and her eyeglasses. Stuff we’d like to have with us, but weren’t critical.We thought it was pretty lousy that rides we’ve been going on for years and taking the bag on, or stowing it in a cubby-hole on the platform, now suddenly charged a buck each. As if the park isn’t already nickel and diming you to death, this was the last straw.
We decided next year to go to Hershey Park instead.
What do you think of this policy?
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Hi! I’m the OP, I’ll answer a few things:
Six Flags Great Adventure in New Jersey.
This didn’t “ruin my day”, but it was really annoying.
My GF has carried a small purse with her on rides at a dozen parks for the last 8 years, no problem. And no safety risk. We’re talking something that’s maybe the size of a 1 qt zip-lock.
The fee-per-ride thing is brand new to us.
They used to have cubby holes at all the rides, and it was at your own risk. So I’d stow the camera in my pocket and risk the eye glasses and sunblock being stolen.
This was just nickle-and-dime annoying.
@Lo-Pan: Agreed. I would love to see the bruise/damage to your insides after the G’s slam your body into the padded immobile harness which is blocked by your pointy keys in your purse.
@Tightlines: those signs never work, people would still bitch and moan that the poor bastard that works the ride didn’t watch thier stuff.
it would be nice if it did work, but it wouldn’t.
No matter what the park Disney world,Six Flags, Busch Gardens..ect There will ALWAYS be local people that buy season passes to these parks just to troll the parks pray on and steal from tourists.
At Disney world My Olympus SLR camera was on me at all times. Even when I went on water rides I wrapped it up in two hefty trash bags! lol
Even though there is a “stroller parking” attendant….they don’t really watch your stuff.
for one thing, most parks have a central area where you can rent a locker all day. It might cost a few bucks, but it’s all day. You go up to the cashier and they give you a key. It’s yours till you give it back. The more centrally located you can get, the easier it will be to access that extra stuff in case you need it. King’s Dominion has those in the main park as well as the water park for changing clothes, etc.
For all we know, Six Flags might have had a big problem with employees or other ridegoers pilfering cameras, flip-flops, Oakleys, and giant stuffed animals from the bins, so they had to get rid of them. Not to mention that the ride takes longer to fill up and get out of the station because everyone’s got to deal with all their cargo AFTER waiting with it in line for 30 minutes.
I don’t think they should charge for the stationside lockers, but I’ve seen them even at Dorney Park for the log flume and river rapids rides because they won’t let you anywhere near it with bags or other detritus that you don’t want to lose.
@Lo-Pan: “b. do you know for a fact the bag won’t make the ride unsafe in the least
3. what the hell do you need to lug around a park all day.”
1 – On the Dark Knight, yes I know for a FACT that you could carry an open dufflebag full of hammers on the ride and it not be unsafe. There was ONE small dip on the whole ride. It was a joke.
3 – As stated in the original article (reading is fundamental!) eyeglasses, dramamine, sunblock and our hats (to stow them while riding.) Nothing we *needed* but stuff that was intended to make our day more enjoyable – which was the point.
I wonder if this policy applies to fanny packs.
what’s to stop you from stowing at one ride, going around, and then coming back after you are done with all of the rides?
@Shadowfire: WDW and WDL have rides that are a bit more tame than this
@jchabotte: that guy
(and this is from friends who have worked these gigs) isn’t watching your shit. he doesn’t care about it. and god forbid some hottie gets on the ride, then he really won’t watch your shit.
one of my friends did in fact watch some guys stuff once, it was the guys prosthetic leg though. that is a bit different than a bag. the guy can’t really put it in a locker, he needs it, and i don’t think it would be a good idea to take it on a coaster.
Add this to the many reasons why I don’t go to Six Flags anymore. The staff there are rude and pushy, the food is uber expensive (and petty lousy to boot) and the lines are always long because half the rides (at least at the water park) are closed for no apparent reason.
As an aside, I recall the batman ride a few years ago the last time I went to the park. They had cubby’s where you could keep your stuff. Atop it was a giant sign that said, “six flags not responsible for lost/stolen items,” I’d rather take my chances than be FORCED to pay $1 for walking around with my bag.
“I wonder if this policy applies to fanny packs.”
Yes. Anything external to your clothing was the enforcement I saw.
“what’s to stop you from stowing at one ride, going around, and then coming back after you are done with all of the rides?”
After 2 hours, your stuff will be tossed (or so the sign says.) Considering some rides have 30 – 60 minute waits, you’re taking your chances on even 2 rides under 1 locker.
@atrixe: I think the fanny pack industry might be behind this!
@rockergal: Right on with Knoebel’s! My favorite!
Great Adventure is overrated anyway and has been nickle and diming people for years.
Hershey Park is a better place to go, hands down.
@jerros: At your feet, of course. Wrap a strap around your ankle, hold it between your ankles, or put your feet on it, either way, it tends to be ok there. If your bag is well-closed, then you don’t have to worry about anything flying out.
Now, true, this doesn’t work on coasters where you hang free (but then those would need a cubbyhole/locker), but it does work on most coasters.
@AaronZ: yeah I read it. need was the word there. how often do you take the dramamime? sunblock works for several hours, and the hats and glasses. well you got me there, sorry on that.
side note: i think the fact that the bag or other things could get stuck in the wheels or other important parts if it fell may come into play too. ever seen those people get stuck upside down for hours?
@Dead Wrestlers Society: There were several lockers that still had the keys in them, but when I opened them up, someone’s stuff was inside. A good way to save $1, maybe at the expensive of having your stuff stolen.
Sounds like a money making opportunity to me – put in a dollar, take the key. When the owners come to pick up their stuff, offer to sell them the key for 5 dollars.
I don’t see what the big deal is. Why do you need that much stuff anyway? I only see it as a big deal if they make you do this on ALL rides including the ferris wheel, bumper cars etc. What could you possibly be carrying around or want to carry around all day that doesn’t fit in your pockets? It makes sense too from a theft perspective but also from just a waiting perspective. The lines for some new coasters can be over an hour. under the old way, there were always people who walk through the coaster to put stuff by the exit before attempting to get themselves situated in the seat. it probably adds a good amount of wait time to the line.
@TinyBug: LOL. Or I could open up my own eBay hot merchandise store.
@Lo-Pan: Rock’n'Roller Coaster at WDW has loops and my small bag was not a problem. It could be that the ride has a place inside the car to stow your goods (but I may be thinking of Indiana Jones/Dinosaur). Still, considering the speeds it’s going at, the forces should be sufficient to keep the bag where it is, much like the forces are keeping you where you are. Also, if the bag is at your feet like I mentioned in my last post, you’re keeping the bag where it is.
…having said that, I won’t go on a coaster with loops without a shoulder harness. Not for any rational reason, but because I’m a pussy.
Sounds like a huge scam.
Sea World Orlando does the same thing, but the lockers are $0.50. I carry a bag when I go to the parks to carry whatever I need like aspirin, my refillable cup (saves alot of money if you go to parks a few times a year), sunscreen, digital camera, etc.
The only time the lockers have ever annoyed me was when they took my money and I couldn’t get the key loose.
@LostAngeles: forgot about rockin’.
actually haven’t had the chance yet (sad because i live pretty close). Is it good?
Kennywood Park in Pittsburgh, PA charges $.50 for an all-day locker.
Universal Hollywood has the lockers on only one attraction, The Mummy, however they are free for 1 hour, and they are bio-locked with your fingerprint. No money or card is required until you go past that magical hour mark. That is a much better system in my opinion.
@Propaniac: Those common-area lockers would only be a better deal if you could ride more than 9 rides a day. With the lines last time I was there, $1 per ride is pretty close.
I think the park would be better to have more all day rentals (around the park) that people could use all day, then to have temporary rentals at each coaster.
But I do understand the need to make sure people stop bringing extra things on with them on coasters – I once got hit in the head with a flying hat from someone else on the coaster – luckily it was just a hat and it did not hurt me – but something like sunglasses hitting your eye just right, or something like a bottle or camera could do some real damage going 50+ MPH on the rides….. and like someone else said, it would most likely be the park being sued and not the person who lost the item.
…. and I would much rather have the attendants watching the ride then watching over what is in those little cubbey holes where you can quickly stash your stuff… and hope that someone does not grab it as you are on the ride (which would be simple enough).
Anyway, my opinion – offer more all-day lockers. Charge $20 to get a locker – then at the end of the day when you return the key, you get $10-$15 back.
I would much rather have the stuffed checked in than be whacked on the head by someone’s junk flying loose while the roller coaster is spinning. Most 6 Flags have regular lockers for personal stuff. Use those while going on the heavy duty rides and drink your bottle when you buy it. You should be used to putting up with no water thanks to TSA by now.
anyone know what’s happening at cedar point?
when i went last year to ride the maverick there were signs saying i had to remove my earrings. whaaa….?
A buck a ride is ridiculous. Just use the rental lockers at the entrance to the park. Of course that means you’ll actually have to walk back to the lockers when you want to access the ten pounds of stuff you brought with you in an attempt to avoid buying overpriced crap inside the park. The minute you paid the entrance fee so you could stand in line and sweat for an hour plus per ride you got screwed so you might as well go with it.
Universal Studios Hollywood does something like this too for it’s Mummy rollercoaster ride. Except their lockers uses a fingerprint system with a time limit of an hour, but it’s free!
This happened to us on whatever ride they had opened up last year. Except we had already waited in line for about half an hour before we reached the actual “entrance” of the ride. The attendant let us know we had to put our bags away. I asked if we could get back into our place in line after stowing our bags and he said no! I had waited in line for half an hour for NOTHING. I was beyond pissed.
@vliam: Touché.
@Git Em SteveDave’s G3 hearts a certain MBP: I don’t have a problem with the “no bags on the rides” part; I do, however, think it’s tacky and ridiculous to charge your customers $1.00 per ride to stow their bags. Even Disneyland — the king of crass commercialism — has little mesh pouches on the rides for storing stuff.
Unless it changed this year, six flags in NJ had lockers right at the entrance where you could put stuff and i’m pretty sure it lasted all day. If those still exist then i think this is a nonissue. just use those if you don’t want to pay for the ones at the ride.
@pgh9fan: woot for Kennywood! It will always be my favorite.
I’ll speak up for Knoebels as well… great park, and..
Golden Ticket Awards:
Voted best park food like 8 years in a row now.
2nd favorite park
3rd friendliest park staff
2nd best dark ride
4th best Halloween event
The last time I went, I spent more in food than tickets to ride… mmmm I love that white broccoli pizza from Ceasari’s.
To all the “what do you need to carry with you” questions:
The first thing that comes to mind for me is an epi-pen. Something that has to be in reach, that can’t be stored in a locker or trunk all day. It’s a bit too big to carry in a pocket. What if someone who’s severely allergic gets stung by a bee? Or someone who has food allergies can have an anaphylactic reaction triggered by adrenalin and not even know they were susceptible to it.
Sure, for some people carrying a bag is a convenience, but for other people, it’s a necessity.
@marsneedsrabbits: Shouldn’t be bring goats to the park anyways.
@morganlh85: Kennywood! Wow, takes me back… 35 years, padawans
@bravo369:
Q: What could you possibly be carrying around or want to carry around all day that doesn’t fit in your pockets?
A: EpiPen (and no, they DON’T fit in my pockets). Do I win anything?
there is a new owner in town and he is there expecting to turn things around and make money. he will most likely succeed.
They did this to us at Magic Mountain, but only on the Tatsu for some reason! All the other rides let you put your bag in a “free” cubby right before you get on the ride… it’s not like we had bars of solid gold in there! just fruit and granola bars. It’s just a greedy policy to get an extra dollar from people.
@pmathews: yah. that’s what i recall the last time I went to a six flags. the charge was so some prankster doesn’t just go and lock up all the lockers. when we return the key to the locker, the money would come back out for us.
@mzhartz: No kidding. People are awfully judgmental about other peoples’ needs without knowing anything about them.
I don’t and would not carry a large bag of crap to an amusement park, but very few things fit into the pockets of typical women’s clothing.
I won’t bother to go into some of the things that women need to carry (ahem!) that don’t fit into your pockets and wouldn’t work out very well if they got wet on a ride, anyway.
@Git Em SteveDave’s G3 hearts a certain MBP: I wasn’t trying to bring anything on the ride. I’m talking about my glasses. On my face. So I can see. And they confiscated them.
What puts them more at risk? The odds of my glasses falling off my face and somehow “damaging” the ride, or me tripping trying to get off the ride because I can’t see?
ugh, i had to deal with this last monday at great adventure. i ended up stashing my purse in the lockers for the full 2 hours in one area… doign all the stuff in that area, then moving on to the next one (it was a slow day there). it’s absolutely RETARDED that you cant bring your crap on some of those rides. FYI, dark knight WAS the most retarded thing i’ve ever been on
For those of you wondering why you need these cubbies – if you wear glasses or a hat – you need to take them off before riding coasters. I can’t fit a hat in my pocket, and I’m not going to pay to store it. Many people take off their flip flops, too, especially if it’s a coaster with lots of inversions.
I’ve been to most of the Paramount parks (King’s Island, King’s Dominion, Carowinds) multiple times and have never had anything stolen from the cubby. I really hope they haven’t started this trend this year.
I wonder if this applies to my refillable cup, can I leave that at the load/unload area or am I supposed to get a locker for it?
I went to Six Flags over Texas a few weeks ago and there was only one ride that had the lockers in front of it. All the others you put your stuff in the bin and hope it doesn’t get stolen. Once I was at Astroworld and they wouldn’t let me ride the roller coaster because I had earrings in the top of my ear. I couldn’t take them out without pliers. I threw a fit, said, “I don’t care if I walk off this ride looking like Evander Holyfield, just let me ride the damn ride!” (This was right after the ear biting incident) Security escorted me out. Had I not pulled my hair up, they never would have noticed. And there were all kinds of people wearing belly, eyebrow, and nose rings on the ride. And I used to work at Disney and Sea World, there are not “attendants” watching your shit at the stroller parking. We had at least one guest a day claiming that they lost an expensive video camera because they “thought people were honest”. If that happens to you, they take your name and put it on a list, if you ever “lose” something again they’ll say “tough shit”. You can get banned from the park for “gift seeking” too much.
Coaster enthusiast here.
I wholly support Six Flags in this policy, and they are not the only ones to implement something like this. Cedar Fair, the world’s third largest amusement company also has a policy like this. Plain and simple, it’s for the safety of everyone on the rides. I’ve been hit twice by objects that people have snuck on the rides. One, a disposable camera, and two a small fanny pack. Those little things hurt at 30+ miles per hour.
Now, in terms of evilness, Six Flags is much worse than Cedar Fair. CF provides bins on the exit side of the stations on most of it’s coasters where you may set your belongings somewhat securely while you are on the ride. They’re open and closed by the ride operators. Only on the rides which have a loading system that prevents this do they enforce a locker policy. And, what can I say? They’re a business, they need to make money.
Oh, and the bottle of water? No outside food or drink, read the policies before you go to the park.
Oh, and when we went to Six Flags, we got the “flash pass”. Totally worth the extra $60 to get on rides in less than 5 minutes. Even with it we spent 8 hours there, but rode everything but Mr. Freeze. Mom wouldn’t let me after I nearly passed out on Titan and Batman. Okay, I’m way older than that sounds, and yes, my mother still rides roller coasters. We had to wait in line for more than an hour twice to get refills on our souvenir cups, forget food. We just went to the Trail Dust Steakhouse afterwards.