Six Flags New England (SFNE) Discussion Thread

Has Great Adventure ever closed due to cold? I know when they're open everything seems to run.

Yeah, they did last year (I think on a Friday night where they were probably projecting low crowds anyway). Great Adventure can probably weather the storm next week but it will be unseasonably cold and they'll have an interesting time trying to get some of the coasters started next week if temps don't tick up a little (though knowing them, they very well might pull it off). New England is screwed though.

Edit... aaaaaand SFNE is closed today too. Ouch.

I think the day I went to Great Adventue last year was a high somewhere in the 20s. I'd like to think New Englanders are just so used to the cold skiing that they won't care going even on a freezing day.

I hope the week improves. Would suck to see the park have a bad year and not bring it back. Hopefully HITP isn’t one and done based on this crap weather.

I believe 15 degrees is the cut off, but they may close earlier as with wind chill and the motion of the ride will be brutal. Would still totally go though!

Just a heads up: the park is closed today. They're blaming ice, I'm sort of worried that they're done for the year if they're not opening today.

It's 27 degrees today. After today it's plunging to 22 tomorrow and then won't get out of the teens until next Wednesday after the event has concluded.

The roads by me are still terrible. Usually the sand trucks are out in full force, but with schools on vacation, they haven't been out with the same urgency.

I really hope the park can reopen this year. Cold weather is inevitable in New England, but the next 7 days are particularly rough even by our standard.

Hopefully they take this as a sign and invest in better equipment for the coming HITP seasons.

With the temp being in the high 20s, I think it's safe to say that the park can operate, including some coasters considering they have the heaters in the station, it's just that they feel that it's dangerous for customers to get to the park given the crappy road conditions.

After seeing that Great Adventure got Nitro open around 20 degrees, I genuinely do think the closure today was related to the roads. If the park opens tomorrow or Thursday, I really do feel obligated to make it down there.

It's 18 degrees (feels like 2) at park open, and Mind Eraser and Joker are open. That's fantastic.

They should double down on this and allow ice skating on the wave pool

Park just announced they are closed for the season.

https://www.sixflags.com/newengland

^ That's a bummer. Totally understandable, but it's definitely an anticlimactic way to finish the season.

Unfortunately this cold is just unprecedented. I've never seen a stretch of single digit temps last this long here midwinter nevermind in December. Im sure the park was ready for a frigid day or two but nothing like this ever lasts for weeks like this around here.

Bummed I never made it out for Christmas as I really wanted to see it. Based on the reports of good crowds early on I'm sure it'll absolutely be back next year and maybe we'll have temps back to average (or maybe even 70 on Christmas like 2 years ago lol).

I've seen worse cold snaps last for comparable lengths of time, but I've never seen them come this early. Really can't blame them for calling it off early, absolutely no one wants to be outside for any length of time beyond what is necessary right now.

Yeah they can't be getting into this without knowing weather varies. BGW had a year they were running only Griffon and the water kept freezing, which it didn't for the previous 1-2 years they ran it. Their Christmas Town seemed like an experiment the first few years anyway, kind of a good thing. They still have the unusual little local vendors market, though smaller. SFA's HitP makes me wonder if it will make it though.

I'm most likely flying to Boston in late April, looks like SFNE is a reasonable distance away and is open by then, should I do it or is it not worth the trouble? If it is could I maybe get some tips on getting there and anything I'd have to keep in mind etc? (plus are there any other real worth it parks near Boston?)

^Yes, you should! SFNE is one of the best parks in the chain. On your way there or back you need to hit up Lake Compounce and ride Boulder Dash. One of the best woodies in the US.

If you love ejector air it's one of the best parks anywhere. I've only been once so I don't know about that time of year, but it is a popular park, so it would be better to avoid Saturday or have money avail. for Flash Pass. But then we should all know that.

If you love ejector air it's one of the best parks anywhere.

This. WC and Superman are both worth a trip for sure.

The rest of the lineup is a bit of a step down but Batman and Joker are really good, Goliath is fine (based on one ride I had on it), Mind Eraser is a decent SLC, Flashback isn't terrible, etc etc. But Superman and WC are incredible. Also New England Sky Screamer is a pants wetter and a must do.

Agreed with Guy that if you're going from Boston to SFNE you might as well stop at Compounce as well. I'm not a big Boulder Trash fan but lots of people love it for some reason. Phobia is awesome and its a nice park for a stop otherwise.

I'm most likely flying to Boston in late April, looks like SFNE is a reasonable distance away and is open by then, should I do it or is it not worth the trouble? If it is could I maybe get some tips on getting there and anything I'd have to keep in mind etc? (plus are there any other real worth it parks near Boston?)

Will you have a car for your visit? If so, Six Flags New England is about 2 hours west of Boston on the Mass Pike. It's an easy drive as long as you don't leave between 2-7 on a weekday (Boston traffic is awful). Depending how much time you have, Lake Compounce and Quassy are worth a visit for Boulder Dash and Wooden Warrior. They're about an hour south of SFNE.

I'm a huge Canobie fan too (hence my screen name). It's a half hour north of Boston if there's no traffic, but I'd recommend the other parks before Canobie. Canobie is a great traditional park, but they don't have the top notch coasters of the other places.

If you don't have a car, getting to SFNE could be a bit trickier. SFNE is located in Agawam, a small town just south of Springfield. The T (Boston's subway/train system) only goes as far west as Worcester and Springfield is another 60 miles west. That leaves your public transit options as the Amtrak train or Greyhound bus to Springfield and then calling a cab or Uber to finish the route to the park. Both the buses and trains will leave around South Station. Logan has a free Silver Line bus that can connect you to South Station.

SFNE has a Greyhound bus extension in the summer, but I don't believe it will be running in April. I also don't know anyone who has ever taken it so I don't know how good/bad it is. I took my fair share of Greyhound buses in college and it goes without saying they're usually not in the best of neighborhoods. The one in Springfield in particular is in a really bad area, so I don't recommend it. In general, Springfield isn't really a place worth visiting outside of the Basketball Hall of Fame or the Big E in the fall.

Hopefully you will have a car, but if not it is possible to get to SFNE via public transit. It'll just take a while. I don't think you can get to any of the other parks with just public transit.

should I do it or is it not worth the trouble?

Yes you should definitely visit SFNE. For all the reasons others have already said. WC and Superman are worth it alone. If you’ve never been on a free spin The Joker clone is short but fun. The rest of the coaster lineup is solid. Even Thunderbolt is a fun classic woodie. Don’t skip ME / Riddler? thinking it’s going to be a rough SLC. The new trains added this past year with vest restraints have made it a really fun ride. You still get tossed around but no head banging at all. In April the park can get busy but nothing like the summer or fall so you should be able to ride everything even without a flash pass. Maybe just budget for it just in case.

Wicked Cyclone has great airtime. Superman's air on the other hand is pretty overrated and apart from the shield hill really doesn't deliver much.

It also doesn't help that the restraints kill like 90% of the airtime.

I mean yeah the restraints are terrible but Superman has great air.