ambe_bambe

I think you might be looking at version 1 - there's a reworked version 2 I've posted which includes BGW. SFGA just isn't going to work into the plans for this trip though I agree it's a great park and I'm well overdue for another visit as my last was in 2013. As someone mentioned earlier, the hard thing with USA is that there's always something awesome that's just a little bit further so there's always going to be something you have to skip. Tour B will have an optional Houston & San Antonio portion after finishing at SFOT that will be discussed once I get an idea of numbers, I'm trying to keep the tours to a reasonable length each as not everyone can get away from work for such a long time. As it stands at the moment, Tour A is looking to be 13 Days and Tour B 14 Days, and I feel that adding an extra 3 (or 4) days onto the end of Tour B would just make it too long for many people to get off work, particularly factoring in that 2-3 days of travel is required from AU/NZ. Regarding ERT - I'm not promising anything, I will be trying but I need an idea of group size first so I have something to take to the parks. If I can get some ERT, I don't expect it would be TPR level but fingers crossed I can get at least something... I've been emailing with my contact in the USA again today, she is just waiting on confirmation from one bus company who was after clarification regarding some travel routes and times I requested - my contact is hoping to send me what will hopefully be much more reasonable pricing in the next few days. As noted in one of my earlier posts, everything needs to be run via admin first but once I get admin approval happy to share more details and pricing.

I'm happy to provide the parks however I need to chat with admin before I'm allowed to post any info regarding book or prices - but I can't do that til I'm sure on the prices - it's definitely more than the 2-3k someone has suggested above as its included Top Tier Front of Line passes where available, as well as a majority of meals and anything else I could include in advance - I'm a big believer in paying as much as you can before you go so all you need to worry about is spending money. Tour A Parks: Six Flags over Georgia, Lake Winnie, Dollywood & Splash Country, Carowinds 1.5 Days, Busch Gardens Williamsburg, Kings Dominion, Six Flags America, HersheyPark, Knoebels, Lakemont, Idlewild & Kennywood Tour B Parks: Cedar Point 2 Days (Tour A+B participants 3 Days), Kings Island 2.5 Days, Kentucky Kingdom & Hurricane Bay, Holiday World & Splashin Safari, Six Flags St Louis, City Museum, Worlds of Fun, Silver Dollar City, Frontier City, Six Flags over Texas - optional extension to add Huston and San Antonio Parks to be discussed with group members after booking.

I'm more of a swag girl I have a nice hot pink one that I love dearly. The cost was around $2500-3000 higher than what I felt was reasonable for each trip...

I am! after 9 weeks I finally got costings back from my wholesaler and they were well over what I was expecting and have paid for similar trips before so I've sent it off to another for a second opinion and hopefully a better price!

Find a good Travel Agent - they can save you or often offer bonus value adds (free upgrades, breakfast, etc). Personally, I know which wholesalers/companies give my clients the best rates or inclusions and I definitely exploit that a lot! A good agent will also tell you if you save money by taking an Uber vs pre-booking a transfer, and other tidbits like that.

What time of year are you looking at? My answer will greatly vary - I would assume October-ish if you're talking about Fright Nights... Both Coasts have their pro's and con's - If you're comparing just Southern California and Central Florida - Central Florida hands down is a better "once in a lifetime" if you're looking at Roadtripping, East Coast is better for theme parks in close proximity than West Coast - and features some awesome parks however most parks outside of Florida are seasonal and close over winter, and will open weekends or limited hours depending on the park when outside of Summer... If you need help planning please get in touch - I specialize in Theme Park Travel and have covered a majority of major East Coast theme parks, and of course the SoCal and Central Florida parks. I respectfully disagree here - I visited Vegas as both a 17 and 18 year old and certainly didn't feel I was missing out (at least once I was 18, there were things I couldn't do at 17!) - Short of Gambling and Drinking I was able to do everything else in Vegas, I'm heading back there next year as a 25-year-old and honestly I'll probably do much the same experiences as I did when I was younger, though different shows of course!

Definitely a good minimum, though you can get a 10 Day Disneyland/California Adventure Hopper (exclusive to AU/NZ residents). 3 Days is your bare minimum for Disneyland Resort to get through the highlights. You really don't need any more time than that at any of the other parks to get through everything, only if you're after a lot of re-rides. You could also look at hitting up some of the smaller parks (Castle Park, Adventure City Anaheim, Santa Monica Pier, Belmont Park) as well as Legoland and Sea World San Diego.

I promise it's still coming! I had to rework the itinerary as there was one day where the drive was much longer than permitted for the bus driver, after a day of thought I really didn't like the alternative I had created. The new itinerary is actually based on a longer trip, removing Orlando and adding some Pennsylvania parks. Basically works out as Atlanta - Pittsburg for Tour A (this is completely aligned with QLD school holidays as there are a lot of family-friendly parks) Tour B is Sandusky - Dallas (and an optional San Antonio/Houston extension will be discussed). The only parks removed from the original itinerary were Busch Gardens Tampa, Wild Adventures, Adventure Landing & Magic Springs - but I've been able to add loads more such as Busch Gardens Williamsburg, Hershey Park, Kings Dominion, Knoebels and a handful of others. It's taking a lot of time due to the odd locations that my tour operator wouldn't usually visit & doesn't have contracted hotel rates for. The New Tour Dates are: Tour A: Monday 1 July - Saturday 13 July Tour B: Sunday 14 July - Saturday 27 July with the optional San Antonio/Houston Extension to be discussed with group once bookings in. I really like the idea of finishing in Dallas as it's convenient to fly back to Australia I expect that with the extension of the trip most people will be able to join only one of the other - for anyone on both - there would be an extra day in Cedar Point between the 2 tours.

Hey Everyone, thanks for the feedback so far. I've just finished re-working the itinerary to remove Magic Springs & Lake Winnie and include Six Flags Fiesta Texas and Sea World San Antonio instead - to do this I've had to pop a flight in the middle but I think it will be well worth it in the end!

Fastlane Plus! Any park with any sort of front of line service I've gone for Top Tier. Thank you so much for the feedback, this is what I currently have in the plan but I've had an American friend look over it and flag that the time might be quite tight. KI is one the handful of parks on the trip I don't have personal experience with.

Didn't know grizzly peak was a part of Dreamworld now....

Hey Everyone, I should have my first idea of pricing by the end of the week. Wondering on your preference below. a) 9 Hours at Kings Island and 2 Full Days at Cedar Point b) Full Day at Kings Island and 1.5 Days Cedar Point Keeping in mind everyone will have Fastlane for both parks.

I'm not opposed to babies on tour after the first one, I'll be looking to do a USA trip and another location each year so there's always next time.

That's a great point, it's very hard because you're right, there's always a park just a little further away! I was discussing this with an American enthusiast friend and came to the conclusion that if there was anything to offer in LA i would have routed the itinerary that way to accommodate San Antonio. I love the idea of adding Kennywood however I'm trying to keep the full trip within 3 weeks so it might be something that could be offered as an optional add on or DIY, I think given it's another bit over 3 hours from Cedar Point and based on the routings coming from Texas there's no way to even make it work at the detriment of another park.

It will be marginally more expensive at that time of year, however I have allowed for the fact a lot of the parks are seasonal, and once school goes back in August a lot of parks reduce hours or close weekdays which makes it infinitely harder to do. June is no go as you need to accommodate for any delays in new rides opening. The weather will be hot but if there's a decent water park attached, I'll look to include tickets with the water parks. The dates also work best for Australian School Holidays. The previous set of Holidays over easter are too early and the September Holidays are too late.

Slim hope, but hope. I would need to negotiate non-standard terms with the operator. Also keeping in mind this will be a family-friendly tour so I have to ensure any familys are comfortable too. I'll keep you posted once I get pricing.

Was most definitely considered however considering time constraints and the average amount of leave a person can take - I can't make the extra roughly 9 hours of travel work easily. Ideally SFFT and Schlitterbahn would have both been included. After I get this first trip off the ground, this is something I'll be looking to do every year - most likely 1x USA Trip and 1x Somewhere else trip. Yes I agree Tour A is definitely weaker but has been planned in a way that it could accommodate families that are interested while missing minimal school. It is also designed so people can do Pre-Tour Orlando and visit WDW, Universal Orlando and SeaWorld on their own as these are easy access parks. This was done intentionally - those parks are very easy to access and some people will want to spend more time at USO and others more at WDW (and then you have SeaWorld, LegoLand and a myriad of water parks to consider) - so people can fly in early and do those on their own. I personally will be flying in a week before to hit up the Orlando parks again As much as you want inside the parks! Generally alcohol is not allowed on the bus. I unfortunately can't publish approx timings spent at each park yet as I need to make sure the timings I have calculated work with bus driver regulations. Potential Coaster List for those interested - I actually had my intial count too low as I added the Fun Spots after my initial count and hadn't accounted for new constructions at Carowinds and Dollywood. I don't necessarily agree with the "Scale" I have listed on some of these but I've pulled those straight from RCDB. Tour A Tour B Tour A+B Theme Park Ride Name Manufacturer Type Wood/Steel/Hybrid Scale 1 1 Fun Spot Kissimmee Kiddie Coaster E&F Miler Single Helix 11.5ft Steel Family 2 2 Fun Spot Kissimmee Mine Blower Gravitykraft Corporation Wood Extreme 3 3 Fun Spot Kissimmee Rockstar Coaster Zamperla Wild Mouse Twister Coaster 420STD Steel Thrill 4 4 Fun Spot Orlando Freedom Flyer Vekoma Suspended Family Coaster 395m Steel Family 5 5 Fun Spot Orlando Sea Serpent E&F Miler Oval Steel Family 6 6 Fun Spot Orlando White Lightning GCI Wood Thrill 7 7 Busch Gardens Tampa Air Grover Zierer Force 190 Steel Family 8 8 Busch Gardens Tampa Cheetah Hunt Intamin Blitz Custom Steel Extreme 9 9 Busch Gardens Tampa Cobra's Curse Mack Spinning Steel Thrill 10 10 Busch Gardens Tampa Kumba B&M Sitting Steel Extreme 11 11 Busch Gardens Tampa Montu B&M Invert Steel Extreme 12 12 Busch Gardens Tampa Sand Serpent Mack Wild Maus Compact Mobile Steel Thrill 13 13 Busch Gardens Tampa Scorpion Schwarzkopf Silverarrow Steel Extreme 14 14 Busch Gardens Tampa SheiKra B&M Dive Coaster Steel Extreme 15 15 Wild Adventures Ant Farm Express Vekoma Junior 207m Steel Family 16 16 Wild Adventures Boomerang Vekoma Boomerang Steel Extreme 17 17 Wild Adventures Cheetah CCI Wood Extreme 18 18 Wild Adventures Go Bananas! Mack Wild Maus Classic - Right Steel Thrill 19 19 Wild Adventures Swamp Thing Vekoma Suspended Family Coaster 342m Steel Family 20 20 Wild Adventures Twisted Typhoon Vekoma SLC 689m Standard Steel Extreme 21 21 Wild Adventures Viking Voyage E&F Miler Hi-Miler 52ft Steel Family 22 22 Six Flags Over Georgia Batman The Ride B&M Invert - Batman Steel Extreme 23 23 Six Flags Over Georgia Blue Hawk Vekoma Custom MK-1200 Steel Extreme 24 24 Six Flags Over Georgia Dahlonega Mine Train Arrow Dynamics Mine Train Steel Thrill 25 25 Six Flags Over Georgia Dare Devil Dive Gerstlauer Euro-Fighter Custom Steel Extreme 26 26 Six Flags Over Georgia Georgia Scorcher B&M Stand Up Steel Extreme 27 27 Six Flags Over Georgia Goliath B&M Hyper Steel Extreme 28 28 Six Flags Over Georgia Great American Scream Machine PTC Wood Extreme 29 29 Six Flags Over Georgia Joker Funhouse Coaster Chance Big Dipper Custom Steel Family 30 30 Six Flags Over Georgia Mind Mender Schwarzkopf Steel Extreme 31 31 Six Flags Over Georgia Superman - Ultimate Flight B&M Flying - Superman Steel Extreme 32 32 Six Flags Over Georgia Twisted Cyclone Rocky Mountain Hybrid Extreme 33 33 Carowinds UNKNOWN - UNDER CONSTRUCTION Mack Steel Extreme 34 34 Carowinds Afterburn B&M Invert - Custom Steel Extreme 35 35 Carowinds Carolina Cyclone Arrow Dynamics Custom Looping Steel Extreme 36 36 Carowinds Carolina Goldrusher Arrow Dynamics Mine Train Steel Thrill 37 37 Carowinds Flying Cobras Vekoma Boomerang Steel Extreme 38 38 Carowinds Fury 325 B&M Hyper Steel Extreme 39 39 Carowinds Hurler International Coasters Triple Out and Back Wood Extreme 40 40 Carowinds Intimidator B&M Hyper Steel Extreme 41 41 Carowinds Kiddy Hawk Vekoma Suspended Family Coaster 342m Steel Family 42 42 Carowinds Nighthawk Vekoma Flying Dutchman 843m Prototype Steel Extreme 43 43 Carowinds Ricochet Mack Wild Maus - Compact Park Steel Thrill 44 44 Carowinds Vortex B&M Stand Up Steel Extreme 45 45 Carowinds Wilderness Run E&F Miler 16ft Oval with Helix on Left Steel Family 46 46 Carowinds Woodstock Express PTC Wood Family 47 47 Dollywood UNKNOWN - UNDER CONSTRUCTION Suspended Steel Family 48 48 Dollywood Blazing Fury Steel Family 49 49 Dollywood FireChaser Express Gerstlauer Custom Family Coaster Steel Family 50 50 Dollywood Lightning Rod Rocky Mountain Custom Topper Track Hybrid Extreme 51 51 Dollywood Mystery Mine Gerstlauer Euro-Fighter Custom Steel Extreme 52 52 Dollywood Tenessee Tornado Arrow Dynamics Custom Looping Steel Extreme 53 53 Dollywood Thunderhead GCI Twister Wood Extreme 54 54 Dollywood Whistle Punk Chaser Zamperla Family Gravity Coaster 80STD Steel Family 55 55 Dollywood Wild Eagle B&M Custom Wing Coaster Steel Extreme 56 56 Lake Winnie Cannon Ball PTC Out and Back Wood Thrill 57 57 Lake Winnie Wacky Worm Fajume Big Apple Wacky Worm Steel Kiddie 58 58 Lake Winnie Wild Lightnin' L&T Systems Wild Mouse 30x20 Steel Thrill 59 59 Magic Springs & Crystal Falls Arkansas Twister Michael Black & Associates Out and Back Wood Extreme 60 60 Magic Springs & Crystal Falls Big Bad John Arrow Dynamics Mine Train Steel Thrill 61 61 Magic Springs & Crystal Falls Diamond Mine Run E&F Miler 16ft Outside Spiral CCW Steel Family 62 62 Magic Springs & Crystal Falls Gauntlet Vekoma SLC 689m Standard Steel Extreme 63 63 Magic Springs & Crystal Falls X Coaster Maurer Skyloop XT150 Steel Extreme 64 1 64 Six Flags Over Texas Batman The Ride B&M Invert - Batman Steel Extreme 65 2 65 Six Flags Over Texas Joker S&S Sansei Free Spin Steel Extreme 66 3 66 Six Flags Over Texas Judge Roy Scream Wood Thrill 67 4 67 Six Flags Over Texas La Vibora Intamin Swiss Bob - Sarajevo Bobsled Steel Thrill 68 5 68 Six Flags Over Texas Mini Mine Train Arrow Dynamics Mine Train Steel Family 69 6 69 Six Flags Over Texas Mr Freeze Reverse Blast Premier LIM Shuttle Loop Steel Extreme 70 7 70 Six Flags Over Texas New Texas Giant Rocky Mountain Ibox Track - Custom Hybrid Extreme 71 8 71 Six Flags Over Texas Pandemonium Gerstlauer Spinning - 420/4 Extended Steel Thrill 72 9 72 Six Flags Over Texas Runaway Mine Train Arrow Dynamics Mine Train Steel Thrill 73 10 73 Six Flags Over Texas Runaway Mountain Premier Standard Coaster Steel Thrill 74 11 74 Six Flags Over Texas Shock Wave Schwarzkopf Steel Extreme 75 12 75 Six Flags Over Texas Titan Giovanola Mega Coaster Steel Extreme 76 13 76 Six Flags Over Texas Wile E. Coyote's Grand Canyon Blaster Chance Big Dipper Steel Family 14 77 Frontier City Diamond Back Arrow Dynamics Launched Loop Steel Extreme 15 78 Frontier City Silver Bullet Schwarzkopf Looping Star Steel Extreme 16 79 Frontier City Steel Lasso Vekoma Suspended Family Coaster 294m Steel Family 17 80 Frontier City Wild Kitty Allan Herschell Little Dipper Steel Kiddie 18 81 Frontier City Wildcat National Amusement Device Company Out and Back Wood Thrill 19 82 Silver Dollar City Fire in the Hole Steel Family 20 83 Silver Dollar City Grand Exposition Coaster Zamperla Family Gravity Coaster 80STD Steel Family 21 84 Silver Dollar City Outlaw Run Rocky Mountain Custom Topper Track Hybrid Extreme 22 85 Silver Dollar City Powder Keg: A Blast in the Wilderness Premier & S&S Steel Extreme 23 86 Silver Dollar City Thunderation Arrow Dynamics Mine Train Steel Thrill 24 87 Silver Dollar City Time Traveler Mack X-Treme Spinning Coaster Custom Steel Extreme 25 88 Silver Dollar City Wildfire B&M Sitting Steel Extreme 26 89 Worlds of Fun Boomerang Vekoma Boomerang Steel Extreme 27 90 Worlds of Fun Cosmic Coaster Preston & Barbieri Wacky Worm Steel Family 28 91 Worlds of Fun Mamba Morgan Out and Back Steel Extreme 29 92 Worlds of Fun Patriot B&M Invert - Custom Steel Extreme 30 93 Worlds of Fun Prowler GCI Wood Extreme 31 94 Worlds of Fun Spinning Dragons Gerstlauer Spinning - 420/4 Steel Thrill 32 95 Worlds of Fun Timber Wolf Dinn Corporation Wood Extreme 33 96 Six Flags St Louis American Thunder GCI Wood Thrill 34 97 Six Flags St Louis Batman The Ride B&M Invert - Batman Steel Extreme 35 98 Six Flags St Louis Boomerang Vekoma Boomerang Steel Extreme 36 99 Six Flags St Louis Boss CCI Terrain Wood Extreme 37 100 Six Flags St Louis Mr Freeze Reverse Blast Premier LIM Shuttle Loop Steel Extreme 38 101 Six Flags St Louis Ninja Vekoma Custom MK-1200 Steel Extreme 39 102 Six Flags St Louis Pandemonium Gerstlauer Spinning 420/4 (Extended) Steel Thrill 40 103 Six Flags St Louis River King Mine Train Arrow Dynamics Mine Train Steel Thrill 41 104 Six Flags St Louis Screamin Eagle PTC Wood Extreme 42 105 Holiday World Howler Zamperla Family Gravity Coaster 80STD Steel Family 43 106 Holiday World Legend CCI Terrain Wood Extreme 44 107 Holiday World Raven CCI Terrain Wood Extreme 45 108 Holiday World Thunderbird B&M Custom Wing Coaster Steel Extreme 46 109 Holiday World Voyage Wood Extreme 47 110 Kentucky Kingdom Lightning Run Chance Hyper GT-X Coaster Steel Extreme 48 111 Kentucky Kingdom Roller Skater Vekoma Junior 207m Steel Kiddie 49 112 Kentucky Kingdom Storm Chaser Rocky Mountain Ibox Track - Custom Steel Extreme 50 113 Kentucky Kingdom T3 Vekoma SLC 662 Prototype Steel Extreme 51 114 Kentucky Kingdom Thunder Run Dinn Corporation Wood Thrill 52 115 Kings Island Adventure Express Arrow Dynamics Mine Train Steel Thrill 53 116 Kings Island Backlot Stunt Coaster Premier Steel Extreme 54 117 Kings Island Banshee B&M Invert - Custom Steel Extreme 55 118 Kings Island Bat Arrow Dynamics Suspended Steel Thrill 56 119 Kings Island Beast PTC Terrain Wood Extreme 57 120 Kings Island Diamondback B&M Hyper Steel Extreme 58 121 Kings Island Firehawk Vekoma Flying Dutchman 1018m Steel Extreme 59 122 Kings Island Flight of Fear Premier LIM Coaster Steel Extreme 60 123 Kings Island Flying Ace Aerial Chase Vekoma Suspended Family Coaster 342m Steel Family 61 124 Kings Island Great Pumpkin Coaster E&F Miler Oval Steel Family 62 125 Kings Island Invertigo Vekoma Invertigo Steel Extreme 63 126 Kings Island Mystic Timbers GCI Wood Extreme 64 127 Kings Island Racer PTC Wood Extreme 65 128 Kings Island Vortex Arrow Dynamics Custom Looping Steel Extreme 66 129 Kings Island Woodstock Express PTC Wood Family 67 130 Cedar Point Blue Streak PTC Wood Thrill 68 131 Cedar Point Cedar Creek Mine Train Arrow Dynamics Mine Train Steel Thrill 69 132 Cedar Point Corkscrew Arrow Dynamics Custom Looping Steel Extreme 70 133 Cedar Point GateKeeper B&M Custom Wing Coaster Steel Extreme 71 134 Cedar Point Gemini Arrow Dynamics Special Coaster Systems Hybrid Thrill 72 135 Cedar Point Iron Dragon Arrow Dynamics Suspended Steel Thrill 73 136 Cedar Point Magnum XL-200 Arrow Dynamics Hyper Steel Extreme 74 137 Cedar Point Maverick Intamin Blitz Custom Steel Extreme 75 138 Cedar Point Millenium Force Intamin Giga Steel Extreme 76 139 Cedar Point Raptor B&M Invert - Raptor Steel Extreme 77 140 Cedar Point Rougarou B&M Floorless Steel Extreme 78 141 Cedar Point Steel Vengance Rocky Mountain Ibox Track - Custom Hybrid Extreme 79 142 Cedar Point Top Thrill Dragster Intamin Accelerator Steel Extreme 80 143 Cedar Point Valravn B&M Dive Coaster Steel Extreme 81 144 Cedar Point Wicked Twister Intamin Impulse -Twist & Twist Steel Extreme 82 145 Cedar Point Wilderness Run Intamin Childrens Coaster Steel Kiddie 83 146 Cedar Point Woodstock Express Vekoma Junior 335m Steel Family

Hi All, I tend to lurk on these forums but think it's about time for a post! I'm a mad coaster nut who also happens to be a travel agent that specializes in groups. I'm looking to put together a group tour next year and was wondering if anyone might be interested in this? Currently I have the tour working in three ways - Tour A is - 11 Days - Starting Orlando, Finishing Arlington - July 7th - 17th 2019 Tour B is - 12 Day - Starting Arlington, Finishing Cleveland - July 16th - 27th 2019 Tour A+B - 21 Day - Full Tour from Orlando to Cleveland - July 7th - 27th 2019 Theme Parks I'm looking to include are: Tours A: Fun Spot Orlando Fun Spot Kissimmee Busch Gardens Tampa Adventure Landing - Jacksonville Beach Wild Adventures Six Flags Over Georgia Carowinds Dollywood Lake Winnie Magic Springs & Crystal Falls Six Flags Over Texas Tour B Six Flags Over Texas Frontier City Silver Dollar City Worlds of Fun City Museum Six Flags St Louis Holiday World Kentucky Kingdom Kings Island Cedar Point All up, based on these theme parks current offerings the full 21 days would offer the chance to ride up to 138 coasters! I'm in the midst of working on pricing but in the meantime, would love any feedback on this and check out the level of interest.

not totally sure, they have started construction on a building in the disk-o area, and there is some metal rods (I presume for the concrete footings) but from what I could tell the only thing that's been done in the coaster area is the fencing and a camping-style gazebo in place. I would presume it wouldn't be too long though, considering how few months it is til they are supposed to open.

some photos I took on Thursday. I'm there most Thursdays so I will make sure I look each week and take photos of the progress. these are the area for 'Coaster' its by the entrance where the bus bay used to be. this is the 'disk-o' construction zone. taken from ground level these ones are take from inside wild thornberrys enjoy.