Fast Lane is an optional, pay-per-person line queue system offered on select rides at legacy Cedar Fair amusement parks, now Six Flags amusement parks. The system provides shorter lines, and guests who want access must pay a fee in addition to general park admission. They are given a wristband for identification, and an unspecified, limited number are sold each day to control wait times. First piloted in 2011 at Kings Island, the system was rolled out to the rest of the Cedar Fair chain in 2012. An upgrade called Fast Lane Plus featuring additional rides is available at some parks.
On July 18, 2011, Kings Island announced the introduction of Fast Lane, a separate line queue featuring shorter wait times. [1] The upcharge for access during its debut year was $50 per person, and the purchase did not include park admission. [2] It was also only active from noon until 7:00 PM originally, but the system was later expanded to all-day availability. Cedar Fair wanted to test the system before deploying to every location, and Kings Island was chosen for that purpose. [3] Fast Lane received positive feedback, and it generated nearly $1 million in half a season. [4] Cedar Fair deemed it a success and decided to roll out Fast Lane to the rest of their parks in 2012. [4] Cedar Fair's Fast Lane differs from the virtual queue system utilized at some competing parks such as Disney's Lightning Lane, which allows guests to reserve their place in line without actually standing in line.
Fright Lane, a Halloween version of Fast Lane, is also available during the fall season at Cedar Fair parks. [5] In 2013, Canada's Wonderland, Carowinds, Cedar Point, Kings Dominion, and Kings Island introduced an upgraded tier called Fast Lane Plus, which adds a few additional rides not available to the standard Fast Lane tier. Dorney Park and Worlds of Fun followed suit in 2014, introducing Fast Lane Plus for water park attractions at Wildwater Kingdom and Oceans of Fun.[ citation needed ]
In 2017, Michigan's Adventure launched a season pass add on which allowed users to receive a fast lane wristband every time they visit. This was later expanded to the other Cedar Fair parks in 2018 and 2019.[ citation needed ] Some parks in the Cedar Fair chain also offer Fast Lane during the Christmas season, often featuring a smaller number of rides due to limited ride operation.
Visitors purchase Fast Lane access at the park or online, individually or as a group, with group pricing offering a lower price per group member. Access provides a wrist band to guests that allows them to enter the Fast Lane line queue at attractions that support it. The amount of Fast Lane wrist bands sold per day is restricted to help control wait times.[ citation needed ]
The priority queuing system was originally controversial. An earlier version implemented at Cedar Point in the early 2000s allowed guests to enter a virtual queue, similar to Disney's FastPass at the time, where riders would return to a ride several hours later and skip to the front of the line. The system was first called Ticket to Ride and was later renamed FreeWay. It was discontinued in 2004 due to negative reception, as guests were uncomfortable with the park "sanctioning line-jumping". [6] Fast Lane received higher marks when assessed internally by Cedar Fair, and the system has been in place at all Cedar Fair parks since 2012. [3]
As of March 16,2024 [update] : [7]
Fast Lane | |
---|---|
Barney Oldfield Redwood Rally | Mass Effect: New Earth |
Celebration Swings | Pacific Gliders |
Delirium | Patriot |
Delta Flyer/Eagle's Flight | Patriot |
Demon | RailBlazer |
Drop Tower | Rip Roaring Rapids |
Flight Deck | Rue Le Dodge |
Flying Eagles | The Grizzly |
Gold Striker | Tiki Twirl |
As of 4 April 2024 [update] : [8]
Fast Lane | Fast Lane Plus | |
---|---|---|
Backlot Stunt Coaster | Sledge Hammer | Behemoth |
Drop Tower | Soaring Timbers | Leviathan |
Flight Deck | Swing of the Century | Yukon Striker |
Klockwerks | Timberwolf Falls | |
Krachenwagen | Time Warp | |
Lumberjack | Tundra Twister | |
Mighty Canadian Minebuster | Viking's Rage | |
Psyclone | Vortex | |
Riptide | Wilde Beast | |
Shockwave | Wilde Knight Mares | |
Skyhawk | WindSeeker |
As of March 9,2024 [update] : [9]
As of May 14,2024 [update] : [10]
As of February 5,2024 [update] : [11]
Fast Lane | ||
---|---|---|
Aqua Racer | Meteor | Talon |
Aquablast | MT Buckets | Thunder Canyon |
Boa Blasters | Musik Express | Thunderhawk |
Cedar Creek Cannonball | Possessed | Tilt-A-Whirl |
Constrictor | Python Plummet | Wave Swinger |
Dodgem | Revolution | Whip |
Dominator | Road Rally | White Water Landing |
Hydra the Revenge | Runaway River | Wild Mouse |
Iron Menace | Scrambler | Wildwater River |
Kaleidoscope | Steel Force |
As of March 23,2024 [update] : [12]
As of March 23,2024 [update] : [13]
Fast Lane | ||
---|---|---|
Adventure Express | Flight of Fear | Sol Spin |
Backlot Stunt Coaster | Franklin’s Flyers | Surf Dog |
Banshee | Invertigo | The Beast |
Boo Blasters on Boo Hill | Kings Mills Antique Autos | The Racer |
Cargo Loco | Monster | Thunder Falls |
Charlie Brown’s Rushing River Log Ride | Mystic Timbers | Tropical Plunge |
Delirium | Orion | WindSeeker |
Diamondback | Rendezvous Run | Woodstock’s Air Rail |
Dodgem | Scrambler | Zephyr |
Drop Tower | Shake, Rattle & Roll | Zoom Flume |
Eiffel Tower | Snoopy's Soap Box Racers |
As of December 1,2023 [update] : [14]
As of August 15,2022 [update] : [15]
As of August 5,2022 [update] : [16]
Fast Lane | |
---|---|
Bahnzai Pipeline | Loopy Luge |
Boogie Bahn | Massiv |
Dragon Blasters | Rohr! |
Faust und Furious | Thunder Tub |
Guada Loopy | Wolfpack |
Infinity Racers |
As of August 5,2022 [update] : [17]
Fast Lane | |
---|---|
Black Knight | Master Blaster Uphill Water Coaster |
Boogie Bahn Surf Ride | Raging River Tube Chute |
Congo River Expedition | White Water Tube Chute |
Dragon's Revenge | Wolf Pack Raft Slide |
Hillside Tube Chute |
As of February 7,2023 [update] : [18]
Fast Lane | |
---|---|
Breakers Plunge & Pipeline | Power Tower |
Corkscrew | Renegade |
Delirious | Steel Venom |
Excalibur | SuperCat |
Flying Eagles | The Wave |
High Roller | Thunder Canyon |
Mad Mouse | Wheel of Fortune |
Monster | Wild Thing |
North Star | Xtreme Swing |
Northern Lights |
As of April 16,2024 [update] : [19]
Fast Lane | Fast Lane Plus | |
---|---|---|
Boomerang | Predator's Plunge | Detonator |
Constrictor | Prowler | Hurricane Falls |
Fury of the Nile | Scrambler | Riptide Raceways |
Le Taxi Tour | Shark's Revenge | Spinning Dragons |
Mamba | Steel Hawk | Zambezi Zinger |
Mustang Runner | Timber Wolf | |
Patriot | Viking Voyager |
Cedar Point is a 364-acre (147 ha) amusement park located on a Lake Erie peninsula in Sandusky, Ohio, United States, owned and operated by Six Flags. It opened in 1870 and is considered the second-oldest operating amusement park in the US behind Lake Compounce. Prior to the merger with Six Flags in 2024, Cedar Point served as the "flagship park" of the Cedar Fair amusement park chain and hosted the corporate headquarters. Known as "America's Roller Coast", the park features 17 roller coasters, which ranks third among amusement parks in North America behind sister parks Canada's Wonderland (18) and Six Flags Magic Mountain (20).
Kings Island is a 364-acre (147 ha) amusement park located 24 miles (39 km) northeast of Cincinnati in Mason, Ohio, United States. Owned and operated by Six Flags Entertainment Corporation, the park was built by Taft Broadcasting and opened in 1972. It was part of a larger effort to move and expand Coney Island, a popular resort destination along the banks of the Ohio River that was prone to frequent flooding. After more than $300 million in capital investments over the years, the park has grown to feature over a hundred attractions including fifteen roller coasters and a 33-acre (13 ha) water park.
Paramount Parks was a subsidiary of National Amusements-owned Viacom, headquartered at its Paramount's Carowinds amusement park in Charlotte, North Carolina. At the time of its acquisition, the company owned and operated five amusement park/water parks, which annually attracted 13 million patrons. Viacom assumed control of the company as part of its acquisition of Paramount Pictures in 1994.
Canada's Wonderland, formerly known as Paramount Canada's Wonderland, is a 330-acre (130 ha) amusement park located in Vaughan, Ontario, a municipality within the Greater Toronto Area. Opened in 1981 by the Taft Broadcasting Company and the Great-West Life Assurance Company, it was the first major theme park in Canada and remains the country's largest. Cedar Fair purchased the park from Paramount Parks in 2006, and they have owned and operated the park since then. In 2019, it was the most-visited seasonal amusement park in North America with an estimated 3.9 million guests. The park still retains this record, with an estimated 3.8 million guests in 2022 amid the COVID-19 pandemic.
Cedar Fair Entertainment Company, or simply Cedar Fair, was an American company headquartered at its flagship Cedar Point amusement park in Sandusky, Ohio, United States. The company was a publicly traded master limited partnership that originally formed in 1983 following Cedar Point's acquisition of Valleyfair, in which the name of both parks were combined to form the name Cedar Fair. By 2006, the company's portfolio had grown to eleven amusement parks, eleven outdoor water parks, and one indoor water park in the US and Canada. The acquisition of Schlitterbahn added two more outdoor water parks in 2019.
Kings Dominion is an amusement park in the eastern United States, located in Doswell, Virginia, twenty miles (30 km) north of Richmond and 75 miles (120 km) south of Washington, D.C. Owned and operated by Six Flags, the 280-acre (1.1 km2) park opened to the public on May 3, 1975, and features more than 60 rides, shows and attractions including 13 roller coasters and a 20-acre (8.1 ha) water park. Its name is derived from the name of its sister park, Kings Island near Cincinnati, and the nickname for the state of Virginia, "Old Dominion."
Disney Parks have utilized virtual queue systems since the introduction of the FastPass System in 1999. These systems allow theme park visitors to wait in a virtual queue for an attraction, reducing the time spent in line. Depending on the system, access to virtual queues may come with park admission or may be an additional charge. Currently available virtual queue systems are Disney Genie at Disneyland Resort and Walt Disney World, and Disney Premier Access at Disneyland Paris, Hong Kong Disneyland Resort, Tokyo Disney Resort, and Shanghai Disney Resort. Previous systems include FastPass, FastPass+, and MaxPass.
Carowinds is a 407-acre (165 ha) amusement park primarily located in Charlotte, North Carolina. Owned and operated by Six Flags Entertainment Corporation, the park first opened to the public on March 31, 1973. Carowinds straddles the state line between North and South Carolina, adjacent to Interstate 77, with a portion of the park located in Fort Mill, South Carolina. The park has a sign telling guests where the state line lies. It was constructed at a cost of $70 million following a four-year planning period led by Charlotte businessman Earl Patterson Hall. Carowinds also features Carolina Harbor, a 27-acre (11 ha) water park that is included with park admission. Annual events include the Halloween-themed SCarowinds and the Christmas-themed WinterFest.
Millennium Force is a steel roller coaster located at Cedar Point amusement park in Sandusky, Ohio, United States. Manufactured by Intamin, it was the park's fourteenth roller coaster when it opened in 2000, dating back to the opening of Blue Streak in 1964. Upon completion, Millennium Force broke five world records and was the world's first giga coaster, a term coined by Intamin and Cedar Point to represent a roller coaster that exceeds 300 feet (91 m) in height. It was briefly the tallest and fastest in the world until Steel Dragon 2000 opened later the same year. The ride is also the third-longest roller coaster in North America following The Beast at Kings Island and Fury 325 at Carowinds.
California's Great America, or simply Great America and abbreviated CGA, is a 112-acre (45 ha) amusement park located in Santa Clara, California, United States. Owned and operated by Six Flags Entertainment Corporation, it originally opened in 1976 as one of two parks built by the Marriott Corporation. California's Great America features over 40 rides and attractions, with Gold Striker among its most notable, which has ranked as a top wooden roller coaster in the world in the annual Golden Ticket Awards publication from Amusement Today. Other notable rides include RailBlazer, a single-rail coaster from Rocky Mountain Construction, and Flight Deck, an inverted coaster from Bolliger & Mabillard. The park made appearances in the 1994 films Beverly Hills Cop III and Getting Even with Dad.
Worlds of Fun, is a 235-acre (95 ha) theme park located in Kansas City, Missouri, United States. Owned and operated by Six Flags Entertainment Corporation, it was founded by American businessmen Lamar Hunt and Jack Steadman under the ownership of Hunt's company, Mid-America Enterprises in 1973. Oceans of Fun is a water park that opened in 1982 and is next to the amusement park. Admission to Oceans of Fun is included with the price of admission to Worlds of Fun. Mid-America Enterprises sold both parks to Cedar Fair in 1995 for $40 million.
Skycoaster is the name of a free-fall and flight-simulating amusement park attraction produced and managed by Skycoaster Company, LLC.. On the Skycoaster, riders in groups of 1 to 3 are harnessed in specialized Flight Suits, and are winched to the top of a launch tower; the riders then pull a ripcord to engage their “flight”, upon which they swing several times from a cable tether, back and forth, until finally brought to a rest. The attraction is often compared to a combination of skydiving, bungee jumping, and hang gliding.
Dorney Park & Wildwater Kingdom is an American amusement and water park located in Dorneyville, Pennsylvania, outside Allentown. Owned and operated by Six Flags Entertainment Corporation, the park features 64 rides, including eight roller coasters, several thrill rides and kiddie rides, and a waterpark, Wildwater Kingdom, with 19 water rides.
This is a summary of notable incidents that have taken place at amusement parks, water parks, or theme parks owned or operated by Six Flags that were formerly under Cedar Fair prior to a 2024 merger. This list is not intended to be a comprehensive list of every such event, but only those that had a significant impact on the parks or park operations, or are otherwise significantly newsworthy. The term incidents refers to major accidents, injuries, or deaths that occur at a park. These incidents were required to be reported to regulatory authorities due to where they occurred. They usually fall into one of the following categories:
Drop Tower, formerly known as Drop Zone: Stunt Tower, is the name of five drop tower amusement rides located at Six Flags amusement parks in the United States and Canada. Each installation varies in size and capacity.
Possessed is an inverted impulse launched roller coaster located at Dorney Park & Wildwater Kingdom in Allentown, Pennsylvania. Manufactured by Intamin and designed by Werner Stengel, the roller coaster originally debuted at Six Flags Ohio amusement park as Superman: Ultimate Escape on May 5, 2000. After Cedar Fair purchased the park and restored its Geauga Lake name in early 2004, the coaster was immediately renamed Steel Venom. The ride closed in 2006 and was moved to Dorney Park. It reopened in 2008 briefly under the name Voodoo, and was renamed Possessed for the 2009 season. The model is identical to five other impulse coaster installations at other amusement parks. A larger version called Wicked Twister was located at Cedar Point until its closure in September 2021.
WindSeeker is a 301-foot-tall (92 m) swing ride at several Six Flags parks. The rides are Wind Seeker models manufactured by Mondial. They opened for the 2011 season at Canada's Wonderland in Ontario, Cedar Point and Kings Island in Ohio, and Knott's Berry Farm in California. Carowinds in North Carolina and Kings Dominion in Virginia opened their WindSeekers in 2012. The first four each cost US$5 million, while the remaining two each cost $6.5 million. Cedar Fair relocated the Knott's Berry Farm WindSeeker to Worlds of Fun in 2014, where it reopened as SteelHawk.
Dinosaurs Alive! was an animatronic dinosaur themed area which formerly operated at several amusement parks, but has since been closed.
Boo Blasters on Boo Hill is an interactive family dark ride designed and manufactured by Sally Corporation. The ride opened in 2010 at four Six Flags amusement parks — Canada's Wonderland, Carowinds, Kings Dominion, and Kings Island. The ride was a slight alteration and replacement of Scooby-Doo! and the Haunted Castle after Cedar Fair chose to remove all Hanna-Barbera branding from each of their parks by 2010.
Six Flags Entertainment Corporation, or simply Six Flags, is an American amusement park corporation headquartered in Charlotte, North Carolina, United States. It was formed on July 2, 2024, following a merger between longtime rivals Cedar Fair and the former Six Flags company. The combined company owns and operates 51 properties throughout North America, including amusement parks, water parks, and resorts.