Longboards, woodies and classic surf music are the order of the day as Knott’s Soak City opens for the 2014 season this Saturday, May 17. Knott’s 13-acre City has a decidedly Southern California theme inspired by beach and surf towns of the 1950s Orange and Los Angeles County coast.

Reflecting the local theme, water rides and attractions at Knott’s Soak City pay tribute to Orange and Los Angeles County’s rich surfing heritage with names like Malibu Run and Laguna Storm Watch Tower. Fun facts about the water park include:

• NEW FOR 2014 Season Passholders can start their day off with a complimentary yoga class every Friday and Saturday morning from 8:45-9:45am  (June 27- August 9)
  
• NEW FOR 2014 Knott’s Soak City, Gold and Platinum Season Passholders can enter the water park an hour and half before it opens to the general public with exclusive early entry starting at 8:30 a.m.
  
• 1.8 million cumulative gallons of water in all Knott’s Soak City rides and attractions  (Water is continually recycled, filtered and chlorinated.)
  
• 7,670 cumulative length in feet of all water chutes, slides and rivers inside the City (1.45 mi.)
  
• 50-75 certified Knott’s Soak City lifeguards on duty at any given time.

BUENA PARK, Calif. (May 2014) – Summer fun is just around the corner at the 13-acre water wonder world, Knott’s Soak City. Adjacent to the world-famous Knott's Berry Farm Theme Park, the water park will open for the season May 17 through September 14.

Soak City is Southern California’s prominent water park with a theme inspired by beach and surf towns of the 1950’s Orange and Los Angeles County coast.  Water slides and attractions at Knott’s Soak City pay tribute to the area’s rich surfing heritage with names like Malibu Run and Laguna Storm Watch Tower.  And like those at Knott’s Theme Park, the rides and attractions at Knott’s Soak City are truly world-class. 

Pacific Spin is Soak City’s most action-packed water adventure to date, carrying 700 passengers per hour at a maximum speed of 35 feet per second! This thrilling multi-person raft ride includes a 132-foot long tunnel that drops its riders 75 feet into a six-story funnel.  After pitching riders back and forth through 5,500 gallons of swirling water, the ride culminates in a waterfall splash.  If you have the need for more speed, brave the waves from high atop Old Man Falls or race your friends as you go headfirst on a mat down the multi-lane speed slides of Banzai Falls.  If you care to slow it down, the 750,000-gallon Tidal Wave Bay wave pool is one of the world’s largest.  In addition, the park’s 1,700-foot.-long (1/3 mile), figure-eight Sunset River is the widest and one of the longest water park lazy rivers anywhere!

Time to relax?  With 35 semi-private cabanas available for rent by the day, guests can have it made in the shade.  Soak City cabanas are furnished with lounge chairs and your own semi-private dining area; complete with waiter service and free inner-tube rentals.  For cabana reservations visit soakcityoc.com or call (714) 761-6268.

New for the 2014 season, Season Passholders can start their day off with a complimentary yoga class every Friday and Saturday morning from 8:45-9:45am.  A certified yoga instructor will lead invigorating classes on the grass near the newly painted Gremmie Lagoon. Additionally, every Friday and Saturday June 27 - August 9, all 2014 Knott’s Soak City, Gold and Platinum Season Passholders can enter the water park an hour and half before it opens to the general public with exclusive early entry starting at 8:30 a.m.

Knott’s Soak City Orange County also owns the distinction of being one of the safest water parks in the United States. For the twelfth consecutive year the lifeguard staff of Soak City Orange County has been awarded the Platinum National Aquatic Safety Award for consistently exceeding the criteria for aquatic safety. This award is granted only to facilities scoring in the top 8 percent of the audit criteria as established by Jeff Ellis & Associates, a leader in aquatic safety consulting for water parks worldwide. Soak City Orange County was also awarded the Decade of Aquatic Safety Excellence Award at the 2013 IASS Training in Arizona.

This commitment to both safety and family fun continues for the 2014 season.   Soak City Water Park officially opens May 17, and then continues operation daily May 24 through September 1, 2014.  Operation will continue weekends only September 6 through 14, 2014. Regular admission is just $36 and $26 for juniors (ages 3-11) and seniors (62 and over) and includes unlimited use of all water park rides and attractions. Kids under 3 years old are always free! 

Also providing value is a Knott’s Soak City Season Pass valid every day of the 2014 operating season. Season Pass prices passes are currently $66 or 6 payments of $11; prices go up May 26th. Guests can maximize their summertime fun by upgrading to a Gold Season Pass and ride and slide at both the Knott’s theme park and Soak City every day of the 2014 season.

During the summer, Knott’s Soak City Water Park will also offer its guests the opportunity to purchase an All Day Dining Plan. The Plan can be purchased online while guests plan their fun-filled day at soakcityoc.com, or it can be purchased in-park on the day of their visit for just $29.99+tax and applicable fees. Every 90 minutes guests can dine again and enjoy a wide variety of entrées at Soak City’s Long Board Grill.

Single Meal Deals, available exclusively online for just $13.99+tax and applicable fees, offer the convenience of pre-purchased vouchers redeemable for a variety of combo meals at the lowest available price. Upon arrival at Knott’s Soak City, guests can redeem their Single Meal Deal vouchers for various appetizing meals at Long Board’s Grill that include an entrée, a side and a 20 oz. fountain drink.

Families can also take advantage of Knott’s affordable vacation packages.  The Knott’s Berry Farm Hotel, just steps away from the theme park, offers many family vacation options including theme park and water park tickets. Vacation package information is located at www.knottshotel.com or guests can call Knott’s Berry Farm Hotel Reservations at (866) 752-2444.

Operating hours vary and are subject to change as are prices, promotions and attraction availability.  For information on the day that you plan to visit, please call (714) 220-5200 or visit us online at www.soakcityoc.com. Join the conversation by using #SoakCityOC.

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Knott's sent us the following press-release about a new dining plan they have for  both the theme park and Knott's Soak City. Looks to be a pretty good deal considering you can get a meal every 90 minutes. We'll have to check it out soon!! 

Knott's Berry Farm will now offer its guests a new way to customize their stress free visit to the Park while enjoying valuable savings, with the introduction of two new dining options: the All Day Dining Plan and Single Meal Deals. During the summer, Knott’s Soak City Water Park will also offer its guests the opportunity to purchase the All Day Dining Plan and Single Meal Deals.

Both options serve up inventive and convenient ways for guests to savor the variety of entrees at dining locations throughout the theme park.

All Day Dining Plan

• Can be purchased online while guests plan their fun-filled day on knotts.com
  
• Costs just $29.99+tax and applicable fee
  
• Guests can dine again every 90 minu
  
• Up to 20 different food combinations to try!
  

Single Meal Deals

• Only available online
  
• Cost is just $13.99+tax and applicable fees
  
• Voucher is redeemable for one meal
  
• Meals include an entrée, a side and a 20 oz. fountain drink
  

The press release is below: 

NOTT’S BERRY FARM OFFERS UNIQUE NEW DINING OPTIONS FOR GUESTS

Guests Pay Once and Dine All Day at the Park Famous for its Food

BUENA PARK, CA (May 2014) Knott’s Berry Farm offers its guests a new way to customize visits to the theme park while enjoying valuable savings with the introduction of two new dining options: the All Day Dining Plan and Single Meal Deals. Both options serve up inventive and convenient ways for guests to savor the variety of entrees at dining locations throughout the theme park.

The All Day Dining Plan can be purchased online while guests plan their fun-filled day atknotts.com. For just $29.99+tax and applicable fees, guests can enjoy a wide variety of entrées, including mouth-watering pizza, flavorful tacos, and juicy burgers.  Every 90 minutes, guests can dine again and select from one of 20 combinations at any of the six participating dining locations throughout the park.

Single Meal Deals, available exclusively online for just $13.99+tax and applicable fees, offer the convenience of pre-purchased vouchers redeemable for a variety of combo meals at the lowest available price. Upon arrival at Knott’s Berry Farm, guests can redeem their Single Meal Deal vouchers for one of nearly two dozen meals that include an entrée, a side and a 20 oz. fountain drink.  Single Meal Deals are available at six dining locations throughout the park, including Sutter’s in historic Ghost Town and Coasters in the new Boardwalk area. Knott’s Soak City Water Park guests can enjoy the new dining plans at Long Board’s Grill, summer long.

These convenient additions make the Knott’s Berry Farm dining experience more fun and affordable than ever.  In 1920, delicious boysenberry recipes made the Farm famous, and that same commitment to outstanding culinary quality and superior guest service is why guests from all over the world return to Knott’s again and again. 

For information about Knott's Berry Farm, and a complete list of All Day Dining and Single Meal Deal entrees and locations, visit www.knotts.com. (Locations and entrees are subject to change.)

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Knott's announced today that the updated Mine Ride and all new Camp Snoopy will officially open on June 14th. 

All of the information is below. Get excited!!! 

BUENA PARK, CA (May 2014) Knott’s Berry Farm is proud to announce that the Calico Mine Ride will reopen on June 14, 2014. The top-to-bottom refurbishment began in early January and includes dozens of new richly-detailed animatronic figures, state-of-the art lighting, audio, and all-new special effects.  When the classic railroad adventure reopens in June, passengers will embark on the most immersive mining journeys the “Calico Mining Company” has ever offered.

The basis of the iconic attraction was a simple handshake agreement between Knott’s founder, Walter Knott, and theme park pioneer Bud Hurlbut in 1959. From that handshake emerged a first-of-its-kind “dark ride” with elaborate show scenes and full-sized human figures. The attraction was an instant hit with guests at its original November 22, 1960 opening, and earned back Hurlbut’s initial $1 million investment in less than two years.  The groundbreaking attraction had a special place in Walter Knott’s heart, who worked in actual mines around the turn of the century in the Calico mining region of San Bernardino County before calling Buena Park home.  Hurlbut worked tirelessly to incorporate authentic touches into the attraction.   For the real stories of men who worked in the frequently dangerous mining world, he befriended actual miners and visited dozens of mining sites around California to observe the workmen, their tools and environment.

Knott’s Berry Farm’s Design Team, in partnership with Garner Holt Productions, Inc., has elevated Hurlbut’s 1960 design while preserving the original mining experience. Nearly fifty animatronic humans and dozens more animals populate the updated adventure, with more than 120 characters spread through classic and re-imagined scenes.  New denizens of the mountain include an old miner just inside the first tunnel who will welcome guests into the Calico Mine and warn them of dangers that lie along the rails ahead. Despite the massive mining operation depicted inside the Calico Mine, since the attraction first opened, no character has ever actually found gold in the mountain. As part of the renovation, beginning June 14, one lucky miner will be seen striking it rich with gold in-hand!

New excitement is also coming to the “chain lift”, where trains will pass by a nervous miner carrying a canary in a cage for safety into the unknown diggings ahead. The animatronic canary is just one of many new animals coming to the attraction.  Other wildlife will include a donkey, vultures, a playful dog, countless bats, and blind fish in the eerie Lake Room.

The attraction’s rustic wooden loading platform has been refreshed and now includes a “peek-in” similar to those found throughout Ghost Town, offering guests windows into the rich mining history of the 1850s on their way toward boarding the mine train car. A new guest and employee elevator has been installed to improve access to the attraction, especially for guests seeking ADA accommodations.

Guests will soon embark on the eight minute journey aboard fully refurbished, hand painted mining cars featuring new speakers and a digital amplification system, pulled by beautifully-detailed locomotives. Garner Holt Productions, Inc. installed a cutting-edge RFID playback system in the ride vehicles to play the all-new on-ride narration and audio effects through the crystal-clear digital system. “The spiel is based on the original 1960 script, and will have all-new points of interest and stories in the voices of three all-new character narrators so that each trip through the Mine will be unique,” explains Garner Holt, founder and president of the San Bernardino based Garner Holt Productions, Inc.  “The updated script includes references to a number of real historic mining practices and personalities. The on-board audio narrator will also interact with animatronics and special effects in some scenes.”

The twisting, turning tunnels and expansive caverns were completely repainted, including a brilliant new color scheme in the spectacular “Heaven Room.”  Here, guests will thrill to the glorious sight of the thousands of spectacular stalagmite and stalactites accompanied by the original musical score, which has been digitally re-recorded. Original special effects have been lovingly re-created, like real steam in the Bubbling Pots scene with its surprising steam geyser and tipping barrels and other effects in the Explosion Room finale.

Beginning June 14, 2014, Knott’s Berry Farm invites guests to embark on new mining adventures through the twisting tunnels and unforgettable scenes of the beautifully resorted Calico Mine Ride.  Also celebrating its grand reopening on June 14 is a fresh Camp Snoopy, featuring three new rides and exciting surprises around every corner of the high sierra playground for kids and families. 

For more information on Knott’s Berry Farm, the Calico Mine Ride, and Camp Snoopy’s renovation, visit Knotts.com or download the Knott's Berry Farm app for your smart phone. Join the conversation using #MineRide

Beginning June 14, 2014, Knott’s Berry Farm invites guests to embark on new mining adventures through the twisting tunnels and unforgettable scenes of the beautifully resorted Calico Mine Ride.  Also celebrating its grand reopening on June 14 is a fresh Camp Snoopy, featuring three new rides and exciting surprises around every corner of the high sierra playground for kids and families. 

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