I am visiting Knottsberry Farm and Magic Mountain for my first time next weekend. I'm pretty good at planning my DL visits to minimize wait times. I have no idea how to plan for these parks!

Will you tell me which rides typically have the longest waits? I assume those are the ones I should do first thing in the morning?

Also, what are the must-see/must-do items in each park?

TIA!!

I was at Magic Mountain yesterday (Sunday) and it was dead. No lines for anything. In fact the longest line was for the Collosus but mainly because it has low capacity, and for some reason it was just a bit more popular that day. When I say no lines, I mean NO LINES. The cars were half empty. The longest line was maybe three rounds if you wanted to ride in the front or the back of the train. Tatsu will have a line in the morning, but by 3 it will be dead too. We couldn't ride Psyclone because they needed 17 riders minimum.

Your best bet is to go around the park in a circle hitting rides as you go along. Go counter clockwise to avoid going up the steep hills. This park is hilly and spread out, so you will be doing a lot of walking. Nearly all of the rides have stairs leading to the loading platform, so you will be doing a lot of climbing.

Magic Mountain is an extreme park, meaning it is huge scary coasters and not much else. There is a kiddie park but I have no idea what's there.

There is a pretty full list of rides at Wikipedia (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Six_Flags_Magic_Mountain). Pretty much the later the date, the more intense the ride.

Scary: Tatsu, Scream, X (which was closed), Goliath, Batman, Riddler's Revenge, Deja Vu

Semi Scary: Superman (closed as well), Viper

Not so scary: Revolution, Gold Rusher, Jet Stream (water), Colossus (wooden), Ninja (closed), Psyclone (wooden)

Thanks Bytebear! That is very helpful!! I hope Superman is open when we're there.

Can anyone give me similar information for Knottsberry Farm?

Darkbeer can give you way more information but...

You can go to the Knotts Berry Farm webpage and see a layout of thier park and click on each 'area' and see what rides are highlighted.

Rollercoasters, don't ride them so I can't tell you but they are popular. They even have one for the kiddies in Camp Snoopy.

I don't like to miss 'Mystery Lodge', the Mine Train Ride, the Train Ride and Log Ride. The shops are fun to meander through as well as the Western Show is fun to watch.

Big Foot Rapids is fun but it is colder now so...

The crowds will depend on the specials they have going on. I'd try to do the coasters first, just because they are so popular.

There might be a schedule on the webpage and if all else fails, they do hand out a schedule when you go in, check it out and plan your day around that {shows such as ice skating and a parade might be happening, things like that}.

Have fun. During the Christmas holidays they have a 'harvest festival' type of thing going on with crafts and such.

Thanks MouseWife! I'm sure the students will drag me onto the coasters, so it's good to know what non-coaster stuff to prioritize!

I have another question... I haven't found information on the park websites about lockers. They do have lockers, right?

I have seen lockers inside, on the left hand side as you enter.

Also, there are lockers as you are walking to Big Foot Rapids and Mystery Lodge via Ghost Town {not from the other side/other entrance/} next to the bathrooms.

I think, but can not be certain, there are lockers right at the exit...Darkbeer?

Thanks Bytebear! That is very helpful!! I hope Superman is open when we're there.

Can anyone give me similar information for Knottsberry Farm?
Knott's has short lines whenever we go. The longest and worst line I've waited for would be Snoopy's Gr8 Sk8, because it was hot, the line was long, and the ride was sloooww. Jaguar is one of my favorite rides and I was able to go at least 3 times in a row with no line. Then again, I only go on 'whimpy' rides. No Supreme Scream for me! =]

That is true. I think lines can be longer on weekends but they still go pretty fast.

The Log Ride gets a line but they have two logs load at a time. The roller coasters have lines but again, I think they go pretty fast {in comparison to some of the lines at other parks}.

Okay, there is one ride, near Perilous Plunge, oh my gosh. You will have to see it to believe people actually do ride it! I can't remember the name but you will know it when you see it. It reminds me of washing and spinning clothes. It squirts the riders and then 'spins' them. Yuck. But people do love it. I wonder if any of your kids will want to ride this one? Only one in our group did. He didn't get wet, he sat on the outskirts of the ride. But, I think getting wet would help keep from feeling sick.

Dining. Did you ask? Mrs. Knott's Chicken is delicious! I don't think there is a sit down place inside the park but outside you can buy it 'to go' {which would be cheaper with such a group} and *help me Darkbeer!* aren't there picnic areas? I never have such a big group and we just sit and eat at the table at the edge of the stores or actually sit out in the parking lot, setting up chairs and resting on the grass. {hey, we make ourselves at home}

Inside, in Camp Snoopy the eatery there is alright. Burgers and such. They have a barbecue going {the smell...yummy!} Actually, did you see on the website about a bbq included with your admission? I don't know if that was only for the summer....

Food everywhere. That must be hard to plan for a group. I have had problems making groups of 4...

Dining. Did you ask?
haha! I forgot to ask about the most important part!! Thank you for thinking of it for me!

Mrs. Knott's Chicken is delicious! I don't think there is a sit down place inside the park but outside you can buy it 'to go' ....

Do we have to go outside the gates to purchase it? If so I might have to skip it this time. I don't want to let the kids outside the gates before we leave at the end of our day.

I believe you can purchase meals within the park that include the chicken {I would hope so, right there behind the stunt show arena}.

But not the big bucket. So, this would actually let people have more choice.

I didn't even think about how difficult it would be taking them all out with you. Unless you had one person get it but then again, time would be wasted.

Did you check on the webpage, I think there is a link for dining options. There are a lot of burger joints about.

LOL Food is easy to forget...until they get hungry!! :D

I will try to answer the Magic Mountain questions:

LOCKERS:

Pay lockers are scattered around the park (always nickel and diming you), usually at the entrance to the big coasters (as they don't let you go on with backpacks and stuff), however, unless you just don't want to drag things around, there are other options.

Some rides like Tatsu have cubby holes where you can put your stuff in as you ride. Others let you put them on the exit side of the train. I have ridden Collosus where I have put my drink down next to the train, and come back and picked it up.

DO NOT LEAVE ANYTHING OF VALUE LYING AROUND, but a lot of people do use the cubbys for jackets and backpacks with no problem, just be wary. The last option which is probably the best, split up your group and have one group hold the stuff while the other group rides, and then trade off, or have a non-rider hold all the stuff. The lines should be so short that trading off bags doesn't cause a big hassle.

Also, there are gang members who hang out at this park. To be safe, just be aware of your surroundings and be careful of pickpockets.

FOOD:

There are a bunch of fast food type places, but they can be expensive. I would recommend going to the Moose Lodge for a sit down meal. It's about the same price, but way better food and nicer atmosphere. I think you can bring food into the park, but you will have to double check that. There are a few restaurants at the bottom of the hill near the freeway, but they are not within walking distance, and not really worth the hassle of leaving the park, so you are kinda stuck.

SHOWS:
They do have a Batman stunt show, but I don't think it is running. This isn't the park for shows. Sorry.

Other attractions:

There are a few other attractions that are operated by outside vendors, and so cost extra. They are a bungy swing, the go-carts, a rock climb, and a bungy trampoline thing. Unless you really feel the need, I would just ignore them.

Have fun, and remember, you can always just close your eyes, hold on for dear life and scream like a baby!

Thank you! This is really helpful!!

Have fun, and remember, you can always just close your eyes, hold on for dear life and scream like a baby!

LOL, one of the things I looked up on the website is the length of the big rides. If I know it's only 2 minutes long it seems a bit easier!! I have never experienced big coasters before... I hope I can do a few of them!

LOL Leap for Joy! I rode the one called KONG at Marine World, the Nor Cal SixFlags park, I would have sworn it was 5 minutes by the time we got to the station, we watched the tape and clocked it ....1 minute even from lift off to landing...longest minute of my life! Have a blast!

I have never been to Knotts or Magic Kingdom but I wanted to tell you have a good time.

One more tip: The very front car of the train can be a very different experience than in the middle or back. I would recommend being in the middle or back of the train for your first time and then if you like the ride, try the front row. This is particularly true of Batman and Riddler's Revenge. I think Viper is better in the back. X was really scary in the front (which becomes the back), but only because you go up the chain lift backwards which is just wrong.

Now, the opposite is true of wooden coasters, where the rear of the train is generally more wild. And with the lines short, you should be able to hop right back on which I highly recommend. Sometimes it takes three or four trips on the coaster to get used to the ride.