The NFL schedule was released on May 14, 2025 and with it many teams made fun and humorous videos to celebrate usually based on a fun theme from pop culture. This year the Washington Commanders released “Commanders Tycoon” based on the Roller Coaster Tycoon series of games. In the video each week and opponent is themed to a ride or attraction. My favorite has to be the Cheese Chaser Coaster based on the team’s week 2 game against the Green Bay Packers being that I’m originally from Wisconsin and a huge Packer fan. There is also some irony here with the DC area Six Flags America closing after this year.
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SeaWorld to Combat Epic Universe Opening with New Expedition Odyssey Attraction and Free Beer!
Update September 2025: It appears the strategy may have worked as United Parks (SeaWorld parent company) announced that SeaWorld Orlando’s attendance was up in the 2nd quarter of 2025 post Epic Universe’s opening. It’s rare that United Parks announces park specific performance, so it’s obvious they were trying to make a point. CEO Marc Swanson said, “Our attendance at our SeaWorld Orlando park has been up in attendance since Epic opened on May 22,” he said. “It was up for the full second quarter, and it was up if you measured from the date Epic opened through the end of the second quarter. It continues to be up quarter to date in the third quarter through Aug. 6 on a day-to-day basis.” Swanson also said attendance was up at its Aquatica Orlando water park and Discovery Cove, and revenue also was up in Orlando.
Continue readingBinghamton Rumble Ponies and Brooklyn Cyclones Connect Baseball and Amusement Parks
Minor League baseball is known for having some inventive names from the Albuquerque Isotopes to the Rocket City Trash Pandas. However, two teams directly tie into amusement parks, the Binghamton Rumble Ponies and the Brooklyn Cyclones and both are part of the Mets organization. The term Rumble pony is slang for a carousel horse, and the Binghamton, NY area is known for having several carousels. The Brooklyn Cyclones take their name from the Coney Island Cyclone roller coaster with their stadium adjacent to the park!
Continue readingSafari Campground at Wild Adventures Theme Park: Review of an Incredible Camping Experience
We had a chance to tent camp at the new Safari Campground at Wild Adventures Theme Park and it was a great experience. The campground is not only conveniently located to the park, but is full of great amenities as well. Chief among these may be the proximity to one of the largest animal habitats in the park. Sleeping next to wild animals certainly is a huge attraction as at Disney you’ll pay $500/night for that privilege at the Animal Kingdom Lodge while at Safari Campground you can tent camp for $40/night! We couldn’t recommend the campground more and Wild Adventures packed a lot of fun and thought into the facility to create something really great.
Continue readingThe Turnstile: An Underappreciated Theme Park Staple with Fascinating History
There’s a characteristic ratcheting and gear sound you hear as you go through a turnstile. It’s the sound that you hear when many theme parks open and you go through the front gate or when you move from the queue onto the loading platform. It’s a sound that’s filled with excitement and anticipation for most of us, but have you ever wondered about the history of the humble turnstile? I’m a bit of a nerd and so I think about such things. Here’s a brief history of this common theme park device with beginnings in ancient farms and modernized at a Piggly Wiggly grocery store.
Continue readingHidden Hollow Aviation? New “NightFlight” Flying Ride Coming to Dollywood in 2026
September 18, 2025 Update: Looks like we were all a little wrong as Dollywood has announced NightFlight, which appears to be a Mack “rocking boat” ride. This indoor boat ride appear to be version 2.0 of the combination roller coaster and boat rides like Atlantis at SeaWorld Orlando.
Continue readingCould Regular Visits to a Theme Park Save Your Life? Study Shows 150 Minutes of Exercise a Week Reduces Mortality by 31%!
If you spend time at a theme park you know it can be a lot of walking. In some cases it’s 5-10 miles in a day complete with stairs and hills at some parks. That can be a serious workout and a new article in the Canadian Medical Association Journal found that it could actually be incredibly good for your health. The study showed that older adults who got 150 minutes of aerobic activity every week lessened their mortality risk by 31% compared to those who do not exercise. This means that the weekend trip to your local park with your season pass is “healthcare” if it gets you off the couch and away from screens.
Continue readingHerschend to Acquire Palace Entertainment’s U.S. Attractions Including Kennywood, Adventureland, Noah’s Ark and Lake Compounce
Herschend and Parques Reunidos have signed a definitive agreement for Herschend to acquire all of Palace Entertainment’s U.S. entertainment properties from Parques Reunidos (official press release). This includes famous properties such as Pittsburgh’s Kennywood, Iowa’s Adventureland, the massive Noah’s Ark water park in Wisconsin and Lake Compounce, the oldest continuously-operating amusement park in North America. This transaction came a bit out of left field, but the Palace Entertainment parks do seem to be a perfect fit with the culture and personality of Herschend.
Continue readingThe GetOutPass is a Great Value to Visit Local Theme Parks in Georgia and Other States
We’ve had the GetOutPass for Georgia for about a year and couldn’t be more thrilled with it. The GetOutPass is an annual pass that gives you free admission to local attractions either once annually, quarterly or monthly depending upon the attraction. In Georgia this includes admission to Wild Adventures and Fun Spot America Atlanta. However, you’ll also get admission to great non-theme park locations like Zoo Atlanta, BreakOut Games (escape room), Terminus Wake Park and many more. In other states this includes SeaWorld, Busch Gardens, Kentucky Kingdom and Silver Dollar City. GetOutPass prices are so good that the price of an annual GetOutPass is usually less than a single day at ticket to just one of these attractions!
Continue readingBreakout Games Atlanta Escape Room Review. A Great Themed and Immersive Experience!
Breakout Games Atlanta was our first escape room experience and we were blown away. We mostly cover theme parks here, but lines blur sometimes between theme park, amusement park, family entertainment center, etc. I wanted to review our experience here because a theme park is all about immersion and story and our experience at Breakout Games had both of these at a level rivaling the best of theme parks. Our multi-room interactive experience had effects and production value far beyond what I expected from a nondescript office building exterior, providing an hour of amazing entertainment.
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BGT Safari 