Cedar Fair is one of the largest theme park chains in the world. The chain currently has 11 amusement
parks in its portfolio. These parks are most well-known for their roller coasters, several
of which were record-setters or award-winners. But they also tend to be known for their cleanliness,
operations, and incorporation of Peanuts characters. So in this video, I will rank
all 11 parks in the chain. Before starting the list,
I want to note two exclusions. First, this list will only include the chain’s
current parks. Over the years, the chain has owned or operated a few additional theme parks such as
Gilroy Gardens or the then Knott’s Camp Snoopy at the Mall of America. This list will also not
include any of the Six Flags parks. The two chains are merging, but the deal isn’t yet complete.
Second, this list will only cover the amusement parks. I will not be ranking
the chain’s water parks nor will I factor the attached ones into the park rankings. While I
have visited all the theme parks, I have not visited all their standalone water parks.
11) Michigan’s Adventure in Muskegon, Michigan- While this is an enjoyable park,
it just doesn’t have the ride lineup of the parks higher on this list. The flat ride lineup is quite
basic and it lacks any standouts such as a drop tower or large pendulum ride. Then most coasters
at this park are ok at best. The one exception is Shivering Timbers. This CCI wood coaster is
one of the best rides in the world for floater airtime and it’s the main reason to visit this
park. Then the coasters beyond Shivering Timbers have a tendency to run just one train, causing
lines to crawl. This park does have some nice water ride options for the hot summer days. And
I do like the overall look of this park though, especially how rides are placed around the lake.
10) Valleyfair! In Shakopee, Minnesota- This is another park with a weaker coaster lineup
relative to the others in the chain, but there are more good coasters than
Michigan’s Adventure. There’s a quirky Arrow in Excalibur with some wild airtime moments,
a large Morgan hyper in Wild Thing with a good first half, an Intamin impulse coaster in Steel
Venom that still has an operating holding brake, and most importantly a feisty GCI wood coaster in
Renegade. The latter is delightfully fast-paced. Then this park has a solid flat ride lineup,
including a large drop tower in Power Tower and an S&S screamin’ swing in Xtreme Swing. And this park
has a decent river rapids ride in Thunder Canyon tucked a ways back from the midway. Operations
here are fine and this park has a colorful atmosphere in the front half of the park.
9) Dorney Park in Allentown, Pennsylvania- This park is good across the board. This park probably
has the weakest signature ride of any Cedar Fair park in Steel Force, but this Morgan hyper coaster
still has plenty of floater airtime. Then this park has a decent supporting coaster
lineup with a few B&M loopers, an Intamin impulse coaster in Possessed, and a classic wood coaster
in Thunderhawk. Then this park has a nice flat ride lineup with all the staples plus a really
unique drop tower in Demon Drop. That ride is genuinely terrifying. And the water ride
offerings are fantastic with a unique log flume on a hill in Thunder Creek Mountain, a large
shoot the chutes ride in White Water Landing, and one of the most soaking rapids rides in the world
in Thunder Canyon. Then this park has a nice atmosphere and fantastic operations. The latter
is why lines are usually minimal here most days. 8) Worlds of Fun in Kansas City, Missouri- This
park moved up my ranks this past year for two reasons. One, the park got a fun new coaster in
Zambezi Zinger. This is a peppy GCI hybrid coaster with some sweet laterals. Two, this park lessened
the trims on Mamba, so this Morgan hyper coaster now offers some wild airtime on the return run.
This is in addition to a coaster lineup that had a great terrain-based GCI wood coaster in Prowler,
a fun inverted coaster in Patriot, and a now smooth wood coaster in Timber Wolf. Then this park
has two really great flat rides. Cyclone Sam’s is a unique indoor wipeout with epic laterals.
Then Detonator is an early S&S space shot with wicked ejector airtime at the top. Then this
park has two fine water rides to round out the ride lineup. This park has a bit more theming
than the parks earlier on this list. Crowds aren’t usually a major issue here, but I have come across
a lot of ride closures here in my visits. 7) California’s Great America in Santa Clara,
California- It’s a bummer this park may one day close because it’s really nice. Several areas
have a lot of charm, particularly the entrance area. Then the ride lineup is quite good. The
park’s top three coasters compliment each other perfectly. RailBlazer is a cartoonishly fast
RMC Raptor with some of the most powerful ejector airtime out there. Gold Striker has a case as the
most intense GCI between its speed, pacing, and forces. Then Flight Deck is a short but punchy B&M
invert. The coaster lineup thins out fast though. Then this park has some really good flat rides,
including a large Intamin drop tower, a set of flying scooters that are very much snappable,
a set of bumper cars with some fast and powerful cars, and a solid frisbee. Then this park has two
nice water rides. Whitewater Falls is an Intamin shoot the chutes with some surprising airtime.
And Rip Roaring Rapids is a solid rapids ride. The operations are not the best at this park between
dispatch speeds and ride availability though. 6) Kings Dominion in Doswell, Virginia- This
park has a strong case for the best 1-2 punch of any theme park. Intimidator 305 is arguably the
world’s most intense coaster, as this Intamin giga has height, speed, and downright violent
transitions. Then Twisted Timbers is an RMC hybrid coaster that’s an ejector airtime machine. Then
this park has some other solid coasters like the recently retracked Grizzly wood coaster,
a lengthy B&M floorless coaster in Dominator, and a disorienting indoor launch coaster in
Flight of Fear. Then this park has a solid flat ride lineup, anchored by 3 giant towers. Drop
Tower has a great freefall. Windseeker offers great views spinning high in the air. Then the
Eiffel Tower is a photographer’s dream. Then this park also has two nice water rides tucked in the
woods. And there’s even a lengthy shooting dark ride in Boo Blasters. Lines usually aren’t too bad
here and I love this park’s atmosphere. The entry street looks fantastic, the right half is woodsy,
and the Jungle X-pedition area has a shockingly high level of theming for the
chain. There are so many details to appreciate. 5) Carowinds in Charlotte, North Carolina- This
park is uniquely on the border of two states. And their signature coaster crosses into both
in Fury 325. This is a B&M giga coaster with blistering speed, some sweet laterals, and
some fantastic fl-jector airtime. Then there are three other great coasters. There’s a diverse Mack
multi-launch coaster in Copperhead Strike, a B&M hyper coaster full of floater airtime in Thunder
Striker, and a snappy B&M inverted coaster in Afterburn. I also enjoy the unique Vekoma flying
coaster in Nighthawk. The coaster lineup does significantly decrease in quality after that. This
park does have some good flat rides. This includes a punchy Intamin drop tower, a set of flying
scooters where the ops actually encourage you to snap, and a rare Mondial top scan that wildly
flips you through the air. And this park even has a decent shooting dark ride in Boo Blasters. This
park is oddly lacking any water rides, which is a major oversight given the hot climate. Operations
at this park are quick for their headlining coasters and I like the improvements they’ve made
in the presentation and aesthetics department. 4) Knott’s Berry Farm in Bunea Park, California-
This is definitely the best themed park in the chain. The Ghost Town area is a masterpiece with
all the shops and demos, but some other areas like Camp Snoopy and Fiesta Village have a lot
of character to them as well. Then this park has a great overall ride lineup. I’d love to see this
park get a world-class steel coaster, but their current steel coasters are good. Silver Bullet
is a sprawling B&M invert with some power. Xcelerator is an Intamin accelerator coaster
with one of the world’s best launches and a top hat chalk full of ejector airtime. Montezooma’s
Revenge is a classic shuttle loop with a fun launch and forceful loop. HangTime is an ultra
compact Gerstlauer with a great drop and some cool inversions. And then this park has some
family coasters worth experiencing, including the deceptively wild Sierra Sidewinder. But the
headlining coaster is undeniably GhostRider, a long CCI creation with a beautiful blend of
airtime and laterals. Then the non-coaster lineup is strong too. There are some decent dark rides,
a solid flat ride lineup, and two standout water rides. Calico River Rapids is a rapids
ride plussed with animatronics in recent years. Then Timber Mountain Log Ride is a fantastic flume
with a long dark ride bit. And I also have to praise this park’s legendary Scary Farm Halloween
event. It’s one of the best in the industry. This park doesn’t have the best operations
though between their rain policy, capacities, and dispatch speeds, which keep it out of the top 3.
3) Canada’s Wonderland in Vaughan, Ontario- This is the chain’s only international park
and it does a lot of things well. The entry area is so unique with the mountain in front of you.
Then I like the overall feel of most areas in the park, particularly the Frontier Canada section.
And the ride lineup is stacked. This is actually the park in the chain with the most coasters,
not Cedar Point. Their older coasters aren’t the best, but their newer ones are excellent,
specifically their top 3. Leviathan is the prototype B&M giga with some standout elements.
Behemoth is a B&M hyper coaster that has tons of floater airtime. Yukon Striker is the best B&M
dive machine between its size and inversion heavy layout. Then this is not just the best park in the
chain for flat rides, it’s one of the best parks in the world in that department. This park has a
series of funky and thrilling flats, many of which are unique. This park also has some soaking water
rides and even two dark rides. One is the hybrid coaster and shooting dark ride in Wonder Mountain
Guardian. The other is a straight up shooter in Boo Blasters. This park gets extremely busy,
but the operations are very good between their weather policy and dispatch speeds.
2) Kings Island in Mason, Ohio- This is another excellent park top to bottom. This has one of
the chain’s deepest coaster lineups in terms of quantity and quality. Orion is a B&M giga coaster
with an incredible drop and great elements. Mystic Timbers is the best GCI, as this wood coaster
has an agile layout through the woods. Beast is another wood coaster going deep into the woods and
while the layout isn’t too crazy, the final helix is quite the thrill. Diamondback is another B&M
hyper that’s a floater airtime machine. Banshee is a large and forceful B&M invert. Flight of
Fear is just as good as its cousin in Virginia. Then there are plenty of other solid supporting
coasters. For flat rides, this park has some large ones that should not be missed. This includes the
thrilling Drop Tower, the supersized Delirium frisbee, the Windseeker swing ride, and the
Eiffel Tower if you’re into photography. Then this park also has three solid water rides, including
a shoot the chutes ride with some sneaky airtime. There’s even a Boo Blasters dark ride with a more
complex ride system than the others in the chain. And kids have an award-winning Planet Snoopy area
with tons of rides that can accommodate the whole family. This park has incredible operations in
terms of dispatches and weather policy. And this park has such a nice atmosphere between
the music, midways, and use of trees. 1) Cedar Point in Sandusky, Ohio- This is
the chain’s flagship park and it’s arguably the world’s best park for roller coasters. This park
is filled with record-setting and award-winning coasters spanning most major genres. Steel
Vengeance is the star. This RMC hyper hybrid has the most airtime of any coaster, and it’s
mostly ejector too. Millennium Force is a speed demon. This giga coaster doesn’t slow down and
also throws in a few notable elements. Maverick is a jack-of-all trades that is ultra forceful.
Magnum XL-200 is an older hyper coaster with some of the strongest airtime of any ride on the return
run. Top Thrill is a giant strata coaster with a ferocious launch, and it’s reopening in 2024 with
an LSM launch and a spike. Then this park features all sorts of B&M loopers, many of which are among
the largest of its kind. Then there are some older coasters with some sneaky good airtime and plenty
of family coasters to round things out. This park has two decent water rides and for flat rides,
this park also likes to go big. The largest ones offer nice airtime and/or spectacular views,
as this park has a gorgeous setting on a peninsula jutting into Lake Erie. This helps mightily with
the park’s atmosphere. The midways themselves are clean and vibrant. Then the Frontier Trail section
is a nicely themed western area that is a relaxing contrast from the park’s other areas. This park
has friendly employees and fast operations, but there are two cons. One, this park gets extremely
busy. Two, this park is prone to weather closures in both rainy and windy conditions. But this park
is exceptional and a must for thrill seekers. So that is how I rank all 11 parks in the
Cedar Fair chain. I think everyone knew what number one would be, but the next 3 parks are
constantly jockeying for the number two spot. What are your favorite parks in the chain? Let
me know down in the comments. If you enjoyed this countdown, I would appreciate it if you
gave this video a like and you considered subscribing since there will be a lot more
roller coaster and amusement park videos here at Canobie Coaster. Thanks for watching!