As a relatively new enthusiast, this is my first posted trip report. Nothing too glamorous - just a rainy autumn day in North Yorkshire at a much maligned park.
It was a long planned visit with my girlfriend who had been wanting to do a theme park trip with me all year, as normally i go with my two sons. It was good to get her thoughts on the rides, being someone with little previous knowledge of coasters.
We arrived about 10:30, with grey skies and persistent drizzle, a sharp contrast to the 30 degree sunshine on my previous visit here in the summer holidays.
The park was relatively quiet considering it was half-term, but as always with Flamingo Land, slow operations have the potential to ruin even a quiet day on the park. Sik was our first target. This ride had impressed me massively a couple of months ago, and was excited to get back on it. I quickly noticed that car 5 (out of 6) was locked out of aciton, and would remain so all day. No idea why. This of course reduced capacity, but still we only waited maybe 10 minutes and got a back row ride. It was a hugely underwhelming start to the day, with the back row having a significant rattle, and the mist was turned off. First drop packed a serious punch though.
Next up was Hero. Would have happily skipped this, but my partner wanted to give it a go. We had our longest wait of the day, over 30 minutes. Despite the operations team getting the cars loaded fast, there were only 2 cars on track which limited capacity. The ride experience was as bad as i remember. the whiff from the spit-splattered chin rests was overwhelming. Whilst the drops and rolls were bearable, the sharp turnarounds were excrucitating. I'll admit i screamed like a baby heading into every turn, with my left leg taking the worst of the punishment. An abomination of a ride. Saying that, i can see why the GP are drawn to it. It looks great with the spiral lift and futuristic design.
We headed over to Kumali after this, which thanks to some great 1-train operations was a walk-on. We started with a back row ride, which was surprisingly smooth throughout - i recall it being somewhat rough during the heat of the summer. We got 2 further rides during the day on Kumali with minimal wait, including a brilliant 2nd row ride which was a totally different experience, as you are really pushed into the versions.
Velocity was another ride we got on 3 times, with a max 10 minute wait thanks to some great operations. Had the best rides I've ever had on Velocity. Wasn't too constrained by the restraints, and felt as though i could almost 'stand up' on the air time hills, it was so much fun. It was the girlfriends top ranked ride of the day.
Mumbo Jumbo has the most awfully slow operations. A queue that appeared short was taking 60 minutes. Despite entering the queue several times we left without riding, which was a shame as normally i enjoy this coaster. Took the brave decision to do the lost river ride in the late october drizzle, with no wateproofs. Its a really fun ride, could do with some more audio and effects. Got suitably drenched and spent and age in the walk-in dryers.
Had a magnificent ride on Cliff Hanger. It was on the mode where you get the shot and the drop, and was an absolute rush. Think i prefer the shot, its forceful and the ejector airtime at the top is insane. Love it. Usually take sandwiches, but on this occasion bought dinner (or lunch for you southerners) from the chinese food outlet. Its more like a normal takeaway you'd find in any british town. Huge menu, decent prices, massive portions. Honestly the box of delicious special fried singapore noodles i had for £8.50 weighed about a kilo. Needless to say I didn't finish it.
Had two further rides on Sik - and after being disappointed in the morning - the afternoon more than made up for it. As the sun finally broke through at around 3pm, the mist effects were turned on. Had two mid-train rides, and on both the comfortable lap bar gave me loads of room to move around. These rides were smooth, relentless and thrilling. the mist effect was clearly on boost-mode it engulfed half the coaster and was so dis-orientating. The whole ride is supreme, but the 4 x barrel rolls are just a pure joy, whilst the the final inversion over the path and into the fog and station has to be the BEST inversion on any coaster I've been on. Everyone comes off the ride smiling and laughing, which tells you all you need to know about the ride. I really hope Flamingo Land keep maintaining it to a high level, because it really is a step-up for them in every way.
Elsewhere, Flip Flop was operating, but always had a bit of a queue so missed it. Voodoo remains closed, and the Disco wasn't operating. General impressions of the park were positive,
Overall a really fun day. Operations were mixed, but only had one significant wait all day for Hero. My partner loved it , and was impressed with all rides that we went on, she even quite liked Hero.
I think in the next couple of years would be good to see the park just invest in modernizing and tidying up the park, perhaps a couple of new flats, and its definitely lacking a dark ride or indoor experience.
For those thinking of visiting, whilst the park can be hit-and-miss, the surrounding area is wonderful. Whether its visiting York, or the North Yorkshire Moors, this part of the world is fantastic.
It was a long planned visit with my girlfriend who had been wanting to do a theme park trip with me all year, as normally i go with my two sons. It was good to get her thoughts on the rides, being someone with little previous knowledge of coasters.
We arrived about 10:30, with grey skies and persistent drizzle, a sharp contrast to the 30 degree sunshine on my previous visit here in the summer holidays.
The park was relatively quiet considering it was half-term, but as always with Flamingo Land, slow operations have the potential to ruin even a quiet day on the park. Sik was our first target. This ride had impressed me massively a couple of months ago, and was excited to get back on it. I quickly noticed that car 5 (out of 6) was locked out of aciton, and would remain so all day. No idea why. This of course reduced capacity, but still we only waited maybe 10 minutes and got a back row ride. It was a hugely underwhelming start to the day, with the back row having a significant rattle, and the mist was turned off. First drop packed a serious punch though.
Next up was Hero. Would have happily skipped this, but my partner wanted to give it a go. We had our longest wait of the day, over 30 minutes. Despite the operations team getting the cars loaded fast, there were only 2 cars on track which limited capacity. The ride experience was as bad as i remember. the whiff from the spit-splattered chin rests was overwhelming. Whilst the drops and rolls were bearable, the sharp turnarounds were excrucitating. I'll admit i screamed like a baby heading into every turn, with my left leg taking the worst of the punishment. An abomination of a ride. Saying that, i can see why the GP are drawn to it. It looks great with the spiral lift and futuristic design.
We headed over to Kumali after this, which thanks to some great 1-train operations was a walk-on. We started with a back row ride, which was surprisingly smooth throughout - i recall it being somewhat rough during the heat of the summer. We got 2 further rides during the day on Kumali with minimal wait, including a brilliant 2nd row ride which was a totally different experience, as you are really pushed into the versions.
Velocity was another ride we got on 3 times, with a max 10 minute wait thanks to some great operations. Had the best rides I've ever had on Velocity. Wasn't too constrained by the restraints, and felt as though i could almost 'stand up' on the air time hills, it was so much fun. It was the girlfriends top ranked ride of the day.
Mumbo Jumbo has the most awfully slow operations. A queue that appeared short was taking 60 minutes. Despite entering the queue several times we left without riding, which was a shame as normally i enjoy this coaster. Took the brave decision to do the lost river ride in the late october drizzle, with no wateproofs. Its a really fun ride, could do with some more audio and effects. Got suitably drenched and spent and age in the walk-in dryers.
Had a magnificent ride on Cliff Hanger. It was on the mode where you get the shot and the drop, and was an absolute rush. Think i prefer the shot, its forceful and the ejector airtime at the top is insane. Love it. Usually take sandwiches, but on this occasion bought dinner (or lunch for you southerners) from the chinese food outlet. Its more like a normal takeaway you'd find in any british town. Huge menu, decent prices, massive portions. Honestly the box of delicious special fried singapore noodles i had for £8.50 weighed about a kilo. Needless to say I didn't finish it.
Had two further rides on Sik - and after being disappointed in the morning - the afternoon more than made up for it. As the sun finally broke through at around 3pm, the mist effects were turned on. Had two mid-train rides, and on both the comfortable lap bar gave me loads of room to move around. These rides were smooth, relentless and thrilling. the mist effect was clearly on boost-mode it engulfed half the coaster and was so dis-orientating. The whole ride is supreme, but the 4 x barrel rolls are just a pure joy, whilst the the final inversion over the path and into the fog and station has to be the BEST inversion on any coaster I've been on. Everyone comes off the ride smiling and laughing, which tells you all you need to know about the ride. I really hope Flamingo Land keep maintaining it to a high level, because it really is a step-up for them in every way.
Elsewhere, Flip Flop was operating, but always had a bit of a queue so missed it. Voodoo remains closed, and the Disco wasn't operating. General impressions of the park were positive,
Overall a really fun day. Operations were mixed, but only had one significant wait all day for Hero. My partner loved it , and was impressed with all rides that we went on, she even quite liked Hero.
I think in the next couple of years would be good to see the park just invest in modernizing and tidying up the park, perhaps a couple of new flats, and its definitely lacking a dark ride or indoor experience.
For those thinking of visiting, whilst the park can be hit-and-miss, the surrounding area is wonderful. Whether its visiting York, or the North Yorkshire Moors, this part of the world is fantastic.
