California’s Great America Makes Waves with Completely Transformed Waterpark, “South Bay Shores” New attractions, cabanas and food anchor the expanded coastal-themed area, opening in 2020 SANTA CLARA, CA – Northern California’s premiere amusement park is getting bigger and better in summer 2020, when California’s Great America debuts the new South Bay Shores waterpark. Guests will be immersed in a completely transformed waterpark experience featuring seven new water attractions including four drop slides, two tube slides, and a new lagoon area. Guests will also enjoy new and upgraded food and merchandise locations, upgraded cabanas and a sandy beach play area – all richly themed to reflect the excitement and fun of the Northern California coast and South Bay regions. This significant transformation:
New attractions coming next summer for water lovers of all ages will include:
For food lovers, the new Pier 76 Cafe will cook up delicious new offerings like fried shrimp and fresh fish tacos, plus park favorites including hand-breaded chicken tenders, sliders and waffle fries. Shaded outdoor seating will offer guests the perfect spot to enjoy a meal and cool off. The waterpark’s top-to-bottom transformation into South Bay Shores will also bring a brand new entrance, new family changing/showering areas, more lounge chairs, additional shade and lush landscaping with native plants. The waterpark’s existing slides and attractions will receive makeovers as well, and will receive new names highlighting coastal theming of South Bay Shores. Updated cabanas located near the Breakers Bay wave pool and new Tide Pool lagoon will be the perfect places for families and groups to relax. Upgrades include free Wi-Fi, charging stations, ceiling fans, TVs and dedicated food and beverage service. “South Bay Shores represents the newest phase of a multi-year revitalization of California’s Great America, building on our nearly 50 year heritage of giving Bay Area residents even more reasons to call the park their favorite destination for fun,” said Manny Gonzalez, vice president and general manager of California’s Great America. “Along with the waterpark, recent investments such as the innovative RailBlazer roller coaster, new dining venues, and general park improvements are showing guests and the community that the park’s transformation is fully underway here in the South Bay.” Construction on South Bay Shores is already in progress, and will continue throughout the winter. Guests who want to get the most out of their summer with repeat visits to South Bay Shores will want to purchase a 2020 Gold Season Pass, which will be on sale on August 15. The Gold Season Pass includes unlimited visits to California’s Great America and South Bay Shores on every public operating day for the rest of 2019 and all of 2020, including Halloween Haunt and WinterFest, plus passholder-only perks like free parking, special events, early ride times, in-park discounts and more. About California’s Great America and Cedar Fair Entertainment Company California’s Great America is a 100-acre theme and waterpark located in Santa Clara, Calif. As Northern California’s premier amusement park, featuring thrill rides, live entertainment, and in 2020 the new South Bay Shores waterpark, California’s Great America is the top destination for thrill-seekers and families alike. California’s Great America is owned and operated by Cedar Fair Entertainment Company (NYSE: FUN), one of the largest regional amusement-resort operators in the world. Focused on its mission to make people happy by providing fun, immersive and memorable experiences, the Company owns and operates 11 amusement parks, four outdoor waterparks, an indoor waterpark and resort accommodations totaling more than 2,300 rooms and more than 600 luxury RV sites. For more information, visit www.cedarfair.com.
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 Yesterday we were invited out to Knott's Berry Farm for the Calico River Rapids Media Night. The latest "plussed" ride at Knott's definitely does not disappoint. And just like they did with the Mine Train, Log Ride and Peanut's Train, they've kicked up the rapids ride to the next level. Let's head in and have some fun!! Written by Gregg Condon As we usually do when there is an evening media night at Knott's, I took a half-day of work so we could at least beat "some" of the traffic down. And of course, have some fun in the park.  While we were trying to figure out what to have for a late lunch, we headed over to the ride to get some daytime pics (we ended up having a fabulous meal at Boardwalk BBQ).   The ride looks amazing!!   Hi Walter The Salmon!!! (there is a story here, but that comes later)   More on these later as well. =)  After a quick lunch we decided to ride a few things since the park was pretty empty.  We took a LOT of video during the day, the first was a slo-mo of HangTime. Because why the heck not. Hadn't done the Dragon Swing in a LOT of years, so decided to give it a spin. Great ride.  The stage is set for the opening of the ride!!    Before you even get to the ride, the queue is simply spectacular. So much to see. There were some questions about the height requirement, so here you go. 46". Not sure if this is the same as Bigfoot Rapids. Can anybody confirm?  We did a walk-through of the queue of course.  The detail is amazing, and the smell of fresh wood is everywhere.    Bear Cub  Campground   Hey little guy!!  Arooooooooooo!!!  Remember the old switchbacks from Bigfoot Rapids?   Well, this is them now.  The cabin looks amazing    So much detail to take in   How much wood could a woodchuck chuck ... oh, woodpecker!! =)   For when you need to take a nap (totally don't take a nap here)   Even the ride loading area got some love    Armed and ready to go for our POV's!!   The ride is seriously so much fun. I think it's evident by our video that it is. We've never been one for ultra super duper 5000k versions of videos, it's just not us. But we've always liked to show just how fun stuff is. And as you can see from the video, with each subsequent ride, we got a bit sillier. So the story behind Walter the Fish. The Citizens of Calico were out and about the entire night, showing off their new adventure and having fun with the media. Note, can't wait to see the interactions in this area for Ghost Town Alive. One of the interactive parts is exploding of "dynamite" (as you'll see in the video below). In talking to one of the citizens, they asked if we lost anybody on our voyage. And we of course said yes. Gabe (from Theme Park Duo) said his name was Walter and that he ended up in the mouth of a bear. And then, without missing a beat, the citizen asked if it was a Salmon. And thus, Walter The Salmon was born.  Sadly, we didn't get this interaction on video, but as you can see below, we had a great time blasting people on the ride. As I'm sure you will all have as well!!  They also had Pony Express open for us, and because it was Media Night, we were able to get a POV of this as well. Score!!  As the sun went down we were able to get some nice night shots of the ride.  As well as a quick interview with Garner Holt who talked about the ride and the other creations he's done for Knott's.       To say we were impressed and blown away with the updates to the ride would be an understatement. I think with this one, the upgrades are definitely more jarring than they were with the Log or Mine Ride (because, let's face it, those rides have always had a great story). Bigfoot Rapids was always fun, but it's story was that it was just a Rapids Ride. Now? The ride fits squarely in with the rest of Calico and has a great story and theme. And it's still the fun rapids ride you remember. Lastly, we'll leave you with our Nighttime POV. Sure it's kind of hard to see, it's night and we're using GoPro's with no lighting. But SO fun to ride at night. We seriously can't wait to ride this on those warm summer nights. Or those scorching Knott's Scary Farm nights. Thanks again to Knott's for having us out, we had a blast as usual. We can't wait for Ghost Town Alive in a couple of weeks. Make sure you head out and ride Calico River Rapids!! Related Videos:
Related Updates:  Last weekend we were invited out to the Knott's Berry Farm Boysenberry Festival to take in the festivities and of course the food. The event is growing each year and is definitely popular. We of course had an amazing time, but we also do have a few things we'd like to see updated since the event is growing so much, things to alleviate some of the growing pains. Written by Gregg Condon I think this is the right place  Let's get to eating!!  Our first stop was for a waffle and chips with ice cream. You know, for Breakfast. Both were good, although the Waffle needed something, and that something is the ice cream. We got the chips later in the day and they were just as good. Both are found at the Ghost Town Bakery.  Three things we got to try at the tasting preview, and they were just as good, if not better than they were then. All Three are available at Wagon Wheel Pizza across from Ghostrider.  Something that we didn't know was coming, and isn't on your tasting card, but is delicious, found in Spurs Chop House.  They are made to order, which is nice. I will say though, if we got this again we'd get it without the Hummus. I think that's part of the Shawarma, but I think we would have preferred a bit less of it.  After eating all that food, it was time to take in some of the sights.  Spring has sprung    Goatses  The merch game was on point  Definitely my philosophy  Cannot recommend the Boysenberry Cobbler enough. It's super easy and super good.  Yo, Yo, Yo ... that's my jam  Our faces all day  You can smell the boysenberries as you approach, so if you want to smell like boysenberries after a bath, get all this stuff.  And then of course, wrap yourself in your boysenberry towel  The wine and Beer tasting was back, although we have to say the "pours" you'd get with the tasting card were very inconsistent. By the end of the day you'd pretty much get a "shot" of Boysenberry beer.  The chili was a hit in our group (Outside Wilderness Dance Hall)  As was the sausage (also found Outside Wilderness Dance Hall)   It's not very often you could spend all day at a theme park, only ride 2 rides and feel like you had a full day, but you can at the Boysenberry Festival    Green Frog, Blue Frog, Green Frog ...
Purple Fly?  We didn't catch the Jam-Boree, but I'm sure it's great for those who are into that kind of thing   BOBA!!! (Starbucks inside the park)  Let's get back to the food, skirt steak skewer (also towards the front of the park)  Chicken Wings (by Ghostrider)  Chicken Skewer (Indian Trails)  Pulled Pork Fries (Calico Fry Co)  This brings us to one of the things we'd like to see changed. All of the food we just shared above other than the Chili, Boba and Sausage was at the very front of the park, mostly along the path to Ghostrider. That's a lot of food in a very small area, and an area with not a lot of seating (although you could sit in Spurs Chop House, which was nice). We'd really like to see them spread this out to the rest of the park. 95% of everything was in Ghost Town. Things like the Tostada could have easily been put in Fiesta Village to give the festival more room to spread out among the park. It also would have helped with seating and food lines. Just a suggestion. We also heard from some others that food locations and the Dance Hall closed early on Sunday. The park was PACKED. Not sure if that's a scheduling issue or what, but hopefully that's something they address. Alright, we have a bit of a Rapids Construction update below, but before we get to that, we also have our top 5 food items to share:
Let's take a look at the Rapids construction, there are finally a few walls up  Not a whole lot of visible work in this area     They are definitely doing some work in the queue   Alrighty, that's gonna wrap it up. We will probably head back to the park for more Boysenberry food at least once more during the Boysenberry Festival, probably in a few weeks. Be sure you head out to the park to check it out. You won't be disappointed. More details about the Boysenberry Festival can be found here. Related Videos:
Related Updates:  This past Tuesday we were invited out to Knott's Berry Farm for an evening of tastings featuring many new items that will be available at this years Boysenberry Festival. Among the delectable eats were some truly tasty treats, many flowing drinks and of course, all the fun that Knott's has to offer. We also have a quick park update before we get started on the food. Welcome to Knott's!!  Every time we try and ride Jaguar it seems to go down. But we rode it hundreds of times during Coasting for Kids so we probably are good to not ride this again, ever.  A must-ride, every visit. Usually more than once.  Over at the Timber Mountain Log Ride, they've made some nice updates to the Fast Lane process. Previously Fast Lane would go through the exit, which created issues for those exiting the logs, and probably a safety issue as well.  Now the entrance is through the regular line  The regular line gets held on the right under the sign, while Fast Lane goes to the left.  They wait for the line to pass the cave before letting the next group go.  It actually seemed to work really well, hopefully they're thinking of ways to make Fast Lane better at some of the other rides. Namely Montezoomas Revenge and the Rapids.  Unfortunately HangTime was down all day.  Pony Express was also getting some offseason love.  Speaking of the rapids, some work is definitely going on, we could hear them pounding away at something. Could be another reason Pony Express was closed.  Lots of room for new landscaping or other things.   They were working on the queue  Not sure how well you can see them, but there are ropes strung across in a few areas here. Not sure what they are for.    The Galloping Goose was out, always a nice treat.   Alright, let's get on with the food. The first of three videos where we talk about all of the food we tried. Don't worry, we cut out the part where we eat the food. Nobody needs to see that. =) Boysenberry Tostada with pulled pork. Super delicious.  Boysenberry Salmon, nice and tasty.  Boysenberry Habanero Mac and Cheese. This was a hit, and we can't wait to have it again soon.  Jambalaya. It was quite good. Everything a Jambalaya should be. Didn't taste much Boysenberry, but that was ok.  Chili in a Boysenberry Bread Bowl. Fantastic Chili. Yummy Bread Bowl.  Chicken and Flank Steak skewers. We actually preferred the chicken, but both were very good.  Boysenberry Pot Roast and Boysenberry Mashed Potatoes. Both were melt in your mouth good. Josh doesn't usually like Mashed Potatoes, but he loved these.  Boysenberry Hummus. Think this is a carry-over from last year, but it was fantastic. The pita was perfect.  Knott's also announced that an all new Boysenberry Pie Frozen Yogurt will be available at ALL Yogurtland locations (yes, that one down the street from you) beginning on March 18th. It's so worth it.
 Lastly and certainly not least, is the Berry Beast. Be sure to check out the video on how this thing was born.  Some great merchandise will be available as well  Back again is the Tied Up In Knott's display which showcases some great artwork featuring Knott's history.  Some really fantastic art on display.   This Walter Knott art is sure to go very quickly.  Same with the Catawampus.   This is all so good, we'd be surprised if it's not all sold the very first day of the Festival.   Some great Beary Tales and Kingdom of the Dinosaurs art   Classic Knott's  Thanks to Knott's for having us out, we had a fantastic time, ate too much, caught up with great friends and we can't wait to do it again soon!!  Related Videos:
Related Updates:  Last weekend we were invited out for the second year of the Knott's Peanut's Celebration. In it's second year there are more shows, more treats and more fun around every corner. Let's check it out!! Written by Gregg Condon Welcome to the Peanut's Celebration!!  Some pretty amazing photo ops at the front of the park  Photoshop contest!!  There are a couple of things Knott's has been stepping up the past few years, one of them is the Merchandise. I'll be the first to admit I'm not a huge "theme park shirt" person (other than Halloween stuff), but I really love some of this merch.     The other thing they've stepped up the last few years is the food. Let's take a look at some of the great treats for the Peanut's Celebration.        Lots of fun with the Peanut's Characters all over the park  Pig Pen is back!!  Another of the new things this year is the Woodstock's Birds-Eye View. Check out a POV!! Love all of these great signs around Camp Snoopy   It's somebody's birthday, or a Charlie Brown Thanksgiving (the best Charlie Brown special, don't @ us)       So we'll be the first to admit, most of the shows at Peanut's Celebration aren't really made for us, but we thought this show was pretty fun. Some video of the show and highlights of the entire Celebration Moo  We of course had to take a couple of minutes to check out the progress on the rapids     Flags in the ground, Hyper confirmed!! (some people on Twitter didn't get the joke)  Last year the Sketch School had Peanut's specials showing between Show Times, but sadly not this year.   We also managed to get a new POV of the Calico Mine Ride since we had the cart almost to ourselves. One of the best rides at the park, or anywhere for that matter. Coolest store!!  Thanks Knott's for having us out, we had an absolute blast as always.  Knott's Peanut's Celebration runs through March 10th. Check out all of the info about the event here! Related Videos:
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