Hey look, I kept my promise and wrote another blog post! Okay, now on to the actual stuff lol!
Ranking roller coasters is hard. Ranking parks is harder. When you start to consider your opinions on parks, you’re not only looking at the coasters they have but the overall quality of the rides, the setting, how your experience was that day: rainy or sunny, warm or cold, crowded or not crowded, etc. It’s for all of those reasons that sitting down and figuring out this list was super hard. Now before we dive in I need to say that for this list, I will NOT be including Dollywood. As most of you know, Dollywood is my home park and therefore I have a bias towards it and a very hard time ranking it among other parks. With that said, let’s jump into the list!
5: Disneyland, Anaheim, California.
Disneyland absolutely blew me away. Queue the Backstory. As a kid, I was not into theme parks or rides, and I really didn’t care for much of anything Disney, so we never went to their parks for vacation. And that remained true until 2019. After becoming an enthusiast and learning about the community, I began to want to visit the Disney Parks. I had a certain fascination with theming beyond belief, and while Dollywood offered better theming than most, no parks could compare to Disney. Over time I also realized that I was in love with the history of the Disney parks and that led me to want to visit Disneyland first before going to Walt Disney World. Why do you ask? One simple reason. I wanted to experience Walt’s Park. And the best part of all of that, my wish came true. What awaited me when we visited was one of the craziest things ever. Walking down Main Street USA, riding Pirates of the Caribbean, laughing my head off on Matterhorn, being the spy on star tours, and to top it all off, experiencing Star Wars Galaxies Edge… I could go on and on. Anytime I think back to that day I just become happy. The theming was insane, the rides were a ton of fun, and the memories are going to last me forever. So while I am a roller coaster guy, the charm of Disneyland blows a lot of other parks out of the water! Plus, why did no one tell me that Matterhorn was so good? (On a complete happy accident, the day we visited Disneyland was the one year anniversary of Thrilling Moments Photography, so I can actually say I pulled the “I’m going to Disneyland” joke!)
*This is one of few parks I don't have pictures from, so just insert generic Disneyland photos here*
4: Cedar Point, Sandusky, Ohio.
I don’t think anyone is shocked seeing this on the list. Cedar Point is one of those parks that is hard to hate, and easy to love. From its three insane Intamins to its great collections of B&M’s, the park has just a little bit of everything. Being situated right on Lake Erie is also one of the best settings for any park ever and makes for a beautiful backdrop to an already pretty park. I mean there really isn't much else to say about this park because it’s all been said before so I’ll just leave you some pictures.
3: Universal Studios Islands of Adventure, Orlando, Florida.
It is about to become very obvious how much value I place in theming. Since my first visit in 2017, I knew I loved Islands of Adventure, but after my recent visit in November 2020, I was reminded why it is such an amazing park. From the second you walk up to the Port of Entry, you are fully immersed in your surroundings. Every land, every attraction, it is all planned out perfectly. Walking between each of the lands you are seamlessly transported from Toon town to Jurassic Park, to Hogsmeade. Not to mention their phenomenal selection of rides including The Incredible Hulk. Hagrid’s, Forbidden Journey, as well as many more. Every ride immerses you in the experience and makes you get off and want to get right back in line. Overall, I just love every part of this park and would gladly spend hours walking around the park and riding the rides.
2: Knott’s Berry Farm, Anaheim, California.
Disney may be able to immersive beyond belief, but Knott’s combined that with coasters. Enter Ghost Town Alive. From the second I stepped into Ghost Town I was in love. The live actors, buildings, felling, and prettiness captured my attention for that day and for years to come. There was something about being able to interact with the characters and run errands for them. Sitting down and playing Poker with the Sheriff is something I will never forget either (And neither will my wallet!). Throw all of that in, along with Ghostrider, and you have one of the best areas ever created in a theme park. Alongside Ghost Town, a fabulous kids area and boardwalk area, with some fantastic coasters made me fall in love with this park. I would gladly hop on a plane and fly to California for this park if I could.
1: Silver Dollar City, Branson, Missouri.
Taking the top spot is the crowning jewel of American themed entertainment. Silver Dollar City, located in the heart of the Ozark Mountains, is one of the most beautiful places on earth and also home to one of the best collections of rides and attractions anywhere on earth. Every Single Roller Coaster at the park easily tops the list for rides of their kind. Time Traveler is easily one of the most unique attractions ever created, Outlaw Run is one of the most revolutionary, and Wildfire is one of the prettiest ever created. You can begin to see why I love it so much. The whole park has a charm unmatched by any other, truly losing you in the story and making you forget about any worries you had when you walked in the park that day. It really does feel like you have taken a step back in time, experiencing the world of yesterday, all alongside a multitude of world-class attractions that I would easily drive halfway across the country for in a heartbeat.
So to conclude, these are my favorites. That doesn’t mean they have to be yours. Each of these parks has something unique that makes me enjoy each of them more than others I have visited. I hope you have enjoyed reading my list and hearing my thoughts on each of these parks. Stay tuned for more posts coming soon!
Ride-On!
- Jack