Travel tips? Six Flags Magic Mountain

[aussienetman]

As per topic title. Anyone visited Six Flags Magic Mountain and have some hot tips for a one day visit?

[Aimsley81]

Hi @aussienetman,

Not sure what time of year you’re thinking of going but I recommend getting the flash pass if you can. It’s pricey but on busy days it’s worth every cent - especially if you’re only going the one day and want to maximise your ride time. 
 

If you want to ride X2, put your belongings in a locker before getting in the queue. They only have a limited amount on the station and you will have to wait longer to rent one at times. 
 

The staff don’t manage the ride queues like they do here. For most rides it’s like ‘self serve’. You choose a gate and wait, they don’t tell you which one to go to. And you’ll often see trains go with empty seats here and there. If you’re a single rider and don’t care where you sit, watch out for these!

 

I’m sure there are other here you can give you more info as I’ve only been the once. But this video helped me. It’s a bit old but still good  

 

[rappa]

The rides are great but the parks awful to deal with. Pay the money and get the stupid expensive flash pass, and add X2. 
Not sure if only get one ride on Colossus still but if you do, start your day lining up for that and use your flash pass for a re ride later. Easily the best coaster in the park if not one of the best ever. 

[DaptoFunlandGuy]

Yep, I think this is going to be an entire thread of the exact same message.

If you only have one day, buy the flash pass. Allow time to collect it, and get in early - the park has metal detectors \ bag search and then ticket gates to get through to get into the park proper, so allow extra time for that. Don't aim to arrive 10 minutes before gates open and expect to be riding 20 minutes later.

Once inside, getting the flash pass (at least when I got it last) requires you to go into a building and watch a stupid instructional video on how to operate it, before joining the queue to pay \ show your online payment receipt and get the pass. it may have changed but it was stupid inefficient last time i got it.

Study the park map. For the most part, the park circles the mountain, with a couple of paths over it. Work out your strategy on what you want to do first, and when. Use the flash pass wisely - think about the direction you're heading, and what popular rides you're heading for. book those, so the time is up by the time you reach it.

Have the list of must-dos mapped out, cross them off, check it often. I've been several times and have still to this day never been on jet streams or tidal wave.

Avoid backtracking. It IS a FUCKING MOUNTAIN. If you get to apocalypse and your X2 or Colossus flash pass time is ready, its a long, steep walk. try to start at one side, and work your way around, instead of criss-crossing the park.

I made this mistake and had to leave Apocalypse to make my X2 time, and then never ended up going back to it.

In addition to your must-do list, look at what they have that you don't mind missing. You may have to make some difficult choices if you're running out of time, and if you've given some thought to what you don't necessarily 'need' to ride it can help as well - for example - Lex Luthor's Drop of Doom went down due to high wind just as our flash pass was ready for it... rather than come back 2 hours later when it reopened (and we were on the other side of the park) we decided we were ok to skip it, since we had Giant Drop.

...and on that, in case I haven't mentioned it yet, the park is half built on a fucking mountain. it gets high winds at times, and sometimes bad weather. keep an eye on the forecast, and try to knock off things that will close in high winds or inclement weather early if they're on your must-do list.

[Gazza]

18 minutes ago, AlexB said:

jet streams or tidal wave.

And you never will now.

Riddlers, Revolution, Lex Luthor and Viper have single rider so dont waste flash pass on them.

Edited March 8, 2020 by Gazza

[DaptoFunlandGuy]

28 minutes ago, Gazza said:

Riddlers, Revolution, Lex Luthor and Viper have single rider so dont waste flash pass on them.

Thats a good point - strategies differ depending on if you're travelling solo or with a group. Single rider is fine when you're by yourself, but when you want to ride with your group, its not an option.

 

[Gazza]

Quote

But when you want to ride with your group, its not an option.

It is an option, because riding single on Viper means you save enough time to ride together on an actual important ride.

[DaptoFunlandGuy]

Legit, my wedding vows included a line to the effect of 'i will never use the single rider line again'.

So, not always an option.... 🤣

[rappa]

2 hours ago, AlexB said:

Legit, my wedding vows included a line to the effect of 'i will never use the single rider line again'.

So, not always an option.... 🤣

Look I don’t know if that’s something to brag about, but the point is valid 😛

[MacPark]

Some non ride advice I can offer is to be aware of your belongings. The park has a high rate of theft and does have some issues with teens that hang out there. They have their own police station believe it or not. Its not unsafe but just be sure to be aware of your self and belongings a bit more than you might be used to in Aussie parks.

Also it can get cool there even on a hot day. I left LA on a hot sunny day and got there and froze my butt off and had to buy a jumper in the park.

 

You can street view walk the whole park on google as well https://www.google.com.au/maps/place/Six+Flags+Magic+Mountain/@34.4235468,-118.5960072,1667m/data=!3m1!1e3!4m5!3m4!1s0x80c280a5bffa65c5:0x8f03c1443c734740!8m2!3d34.4253305!4d-118.5972191

Edited March 9, 2020 by MacPark

[DaptoFunlandGuy]

15 minutes ago, MacPark said:

You can street view walk the whole park

I actually did this not too long ago, but I think it was shot a while back - it didn't even have Lex Luthor or Full Throttle, so it must have been a while ago...

[Gazza]

2 hours ago, MacPark said:

Some non ride advice I can offer is to be aware of your belongings. The park has a high rate of theft and does have some issues with teens that hang out there. They have their own police station believe it or not. Its not unsafe but just be sure to be aware of your self and belongings a bit more than you might be used to in Aussie parks.

Also it can get cool there even on a hot day. I left LA on a hot sunny day and got there and froze my butt off and had to buy a jumper in the park.

 

You can street view walk the whole park on google as well https://www.google.com.au/maps/place/Six+Flags+Magic+Mountain/@34.4235468,-118.5960072,1667m/data=!3m1!1e3!4m5!3m4!1s0x80c280a5bffa65c5:0x8f03c1443c734740!8m2!3d34.4253305!4d-118.5972191

+1

I went there in July pretty much straight from the airport on my first day and had my wallet stolen and they used my credit cards in the park before i could block them.

[MickeyD]

^ I remember getting harassed by a gang of teens there Waaaaaay back in the late 90's, sorry to hear not much has changed since?

One other thing I do remember about MM is the layout and it's impact on your feet. This place will destroy your soles worse than any trip to Disney or Universal ever would. When you enter you basically go left or right -the Hill/Mountain is at the Centre & the Park surrounds it, well sort of. It's a very taxing day on your feet. I had blisters on my blisters. With so many "must do" Coasters, a lot of time is needed just to make your way around the Park once!

So yeah, travel light, try not to look like too much of a Tourist & wear good walking shoes 😀

Edited March 9, 2020 by MickeyD

[colonelbmx]

fast pass is a must as said before, some rides you only get 1 go,  x2, full throttle and twisted I think now, watch times tho as if its busy fast pass times can get long too, I've been in peak and off peak and even on a slow day x2, twisted and full throttle get a 2 hour wait pretty quick

Buy online they have limited fast passes in peak season, also getting tickets and fast pass at the park is time consuming, 

Comfy shoes the place is a workout thats for sure, 

skip the shows their basic at best, altho they do a big looney tunes park opening, 

If planning on visiting any other six flags parks get a season pass they get entry to all of them with the one pass way cheaper.

hire a car and drive there first time I went I was on a tour bus and it got there late and left early and last time I went there parking was free, go early and your can do national lampoons pic at the gate. 

Single rider lines can be faster then fast pass but not all coasters have them. 

Check the weather for what day you want to go, I've been there and had x2, superman, riddlers and twisted all closed just with light rain, they did eventually open when the rain had completely stopped

 

 

[DaptoFunlandGuy]

14 hours ago, MickeyD said:

One other thing I do remember about MM is the layout and it's impact on your feet. This place will destroy your soles worse than any trip to Disney or Universal ever would. When you enter you basically go left or right -the Hill/Mountain is at the Centre & the Park surrounds it, well sort of. It's a very taxing day on your feet. I had blisters on my blisters. With so many "must do" Coasters, a lot of time is needed just to make your way around the Park once!

Only thing I'd add is that its built on a fucking mountain, and you bloody well know it at the end of the day.

[New display name]

Any true theme park enthusiast would have done the training to combat these situations.  Don't tell me you haven't taken the stairs over the escalators at Universal to beat the crowds.

 

 

[DaptoFunlandGuy]

15 minutes ago, Skeeta said:

Any true theme park enthusiast would have done the training to combat these situations.  Don't tell me you haven't taken the stairs over the escalators at Universal to beat the crowds.

I am lazy AF and have never once taken the stairs over the escalators.

[New display name]

Now I know how to beat you in a race to a ride.  I'll just hit the stop button on the escalator leaving you stuck mid-climb 😂😂😂😂

[DaptoFunlandGuy]

Heh. I've long since given up on rope dropping anything. these days i plan more days for each stop so i don't have to rush.

34 minutes ago, Skeeta said:

I'll just hit the stop button

good luck with that in some parks. it may not be labelled, it may only stop the escalator slowly, or it may only stop some of the escalators, but not all of them.

[New display name]

1 hour ago, AlexB said:

I am lazy AF and have never once taken the stairs over the escalators.

 

40 minutes ago, AlexB said:

Heh. I've long since given up on rope dropping anything. these days i plan more days for each stop so i don't have to rush.

Or next time you go to Disney you can get a DAS card do Disney from a wheelchair.

[DaptoFunlandGuy]

I'm not disabled. i'm lazy.

sure, many others who bring ECVs to the parks aren't disabled either, but that doesn't make it right.

[New display name]

2 hours ago, AlexB said:

I'm not disabled. i'm lazy.

sure, many others who bring ECVs to the parks aren't disabled either, but that doesn't make it right.

It's not wrong either.  It's not like you would be taking up a disabled person parking spot.  Disney don't have a limit on how many they issue in a day.

[DaptoFunlandGuy]

I read a book by David Koenig once called Mouse Tales. It told a story of a busy day in the park, when Space Mountain's wait time ballooned.

The supervisor for Tomorrowland went to the lead for Space and asked why capacity was so low.

He replied that they were running at their top efficiency, but wheelchairs were killing him.

The supervisor proceeded to walk down the line of waiting wheelchair-bound guests, interrogating them on what their disability was (of course, nobody would dream of doing that today...). The supervisor ended up confiscating quite a few wheelchairs that day though.

I know Disney accommodates special needs very well, and i've seen the lengths they go to for a wheelchair bound guest, as i've accompanied one once. But i've also seen how that can impact on 'the show' - for example in Haunted Mansion - the omnimover is stopped so that a wheelchair-bound guest can load without a time pressure. They stay on board at unload, and travel past the maintenance bay back to load, where they board their wheelchair and are taken back to ground level in the stretching room elevator in reverse. Guests have their ride interrupted, and the wheelchair bound guest breaks the spell by going past maintenance, and going up in the stretching room.

But beyond that, i've also seen how quickly and efficiently a wheelchair-bound guest can jump the queue, skip the fastpass, and ride everything far quicker than anyone else. And I can only imagine what 100 of those in a park would do to capacity and everyone else's guest experience.

I'm not contributing to that, unless it is a need.

[New display name]

If you're not comfortable in a wheelchair go a walking stick.   You could even grow a mustache like Charlie Chaplin.  

 

 

 

 

 

[DaptoFunlandGuy]

that's fair. then when you went to run past me, I could hook your ankle with my stick and make you go splat.