Park Journey
Menu

California's Great America announces South Bay Shores for 2020 Season

8/9/2019

0 Comments

 
Picture
Picture
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:
  • increases the waterpark’s acreage by approximately 50 percent (from 10.5 to 15 acres);
  • nearly doubles the amount of attractions (from 10 to 18);
  • doubles the amount of space to relax; and
  • triples the number of dining options (from one to three).
New attractions coming next summer for water lovers of all ages will include:
  • Shark Reef Plunge – part of the brand new Pacific Surge slide complex, this attraction features four six-story-tall body slides that will simultaneously send four guests – each in a separate enclosed launch chamber – on a nearly vertical free fall when the floor drops out from under them. The high-speed plunge into a series of flat loops and s-curves will provide an amazing adrenaline rush for maximum fun.
  • Feeding Frenzy & The Barracuda – located on the same Pacific Surge structure, these two fivestory tube slides can accommodate guests riding alone or with a friend and will send them winding through an enclosed tunnel before shooting them back out into the sun, through intense drops and turns.
  • Tide Pool – a new family lagoon with eight kid-sized water slides that line the perimeter of a zero-depth-entry pool will give children their own mini water thrills, while giving the grownups a chance to relax under shade structures and enjoy an oversized lounge and sun deck area.
  • Barefoot Beach – this all new sand play and beach area will offer a place for guests to relax and enjoy the sun. Kick back on the beach that is just steps away from the rides and roller coasters of California’s Great America. 
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.

0 Comments

RailBlazer Media Day Report - California's Great America

6/15/2018

0 Comments

 
Picture
Yesterday was Media Day for the amazing new ride RailBlazer at California's Great America. I'm still trying to wrap my head around what an amazing event it was. Thanks to California's Great America not only for inviting us out, but for building RailBlazer. 
I'm also still trying to wrap my head around how much I absolutely LOVED RailBlazer. Because I really did love it. It's just a very fun and unique ride. 

Written by Gregg Condon
First let's start off with some videos, the first being me making a fool out of myself on the Reverse POV. 

Note: We also took some Reverse POV in the back row but are having some issues (old SD card). Going to try and recover it but it's not looking good. Stay Tuned!! 
And of course, the actual RailBlazer POV!! 
Lastly, some of the most amazing B-Roll footage I've seen from any park on any ride. It's seriously amazing and you should all watch this. Like a lot. =) 
Let's get on with the Media Day Festivities!!

Good Morning CGA!! 
Picture
Why Hello There!! 
Picture
Picture
It was a perfect morning
Picture
Some pics of the ride in motion, be sure to click through the slide show
Test Seat!! I didn't have any issues with the leg room. The shoulders are a bit snug, but not too bad. 
Picture
More pics of the ride in motion. Honestly enjoyed taking pics of this ride so much!! 
Picture
As you can see, those in attendance were having a blast! 
Picture
Picture
It's just beautiful to look at 
Picture
Picture
Picture
Oh yeah, they fed us, and fed us well. Sausage Wrapped in Funnel Cake Batter was a favorite. 
Picture
Picture
The new stage looks great, food festivals in this area are going to be awesome. 
Picture
Berserker and Whitewater Falls also got some new signs and landscaping!! 
Picture
Picture
Merchandising, Merchandising, Merchandising!! 

RailBlazer the T-shirt. RailBlazer the Water Bottle. RailBlazer the Hat. RailBlazer the Teddy Bear. 
Picture
RailBlazer the Magnet. RailBlazer the Keychain. 
Picture
Quick shout out to Flight Deck. Happy 25th!! 
Picture
Now back to our regularly scheduled ride pics!! 
Picture
Picture
Picture
And of course, the opening ceremonies complete with fireworks!!! 
We had such a great time at the park, RailBlazer is amazing. I think we were all happy with it and almost kind of shocked at how much we totally loved the ride. It's probably in my top 20. It's THAT good. 
Picture
Hope you all enjoyed!! 

Related Videos:

Related Updates: 
  • Ghost Town Alive 2018 at Knott's Berry Farm
  • Backyard Bands and BBQ and RailBlazer Update from California's Great America 
  • Knott's Boysenberry Festival Opening Weekend Report 
  • Cedar Fair Announces All New Attractions for 2018 Season
  • Trip Report: Canada's Wonderland - A Beautiful Park with two Top 20 Coasters​


​If you enjoyed this update please share with your friends and make sure you "like" us on Facebook and "follow" us on Twitter, Instagram and YouTube. 

If you have any comments, please share them below
0 Comments

Pre-Season Tour at California's Great America

2/24/2018

1 Comment

 
Picture
Hey there, Park Journey Readers! 

This week, we had a wonderful time touring California's Great America courtesy of our friends at ACE NorCal. There is a ton of work being done at the park right now, including the construction of the highly anticipated Railblazer and land clearing for yet-to-be-announced future attractions. 

Come with us as we check out the coasters, construction, and new offerings coming to California's Great America for the 2018 season.

​Written by Andrew Cunningham

We began the morning with a walk-back into Patriot's ride area. The blue pain still looks fresh and vibrant, adding great color and brightness to the surrounding midways. We spent much of the day being ushered back and forth through Patriot's service road since Hometown Square is undergoing a massive repaving project. 
Now, we know you may have come here for Ralblazer photos, but we came for some food! 

The park is debuting a new funnel cake and churro location in the French Quarter, complete with some wild flavors. I really enjoyed the "strawberry shortcake" funnel cake and "hot chocolate" churro. 

And yes, that is a pulled pork funnel cake you see there. It actually worked really well, as the sweetness of the funnel cake and barbecue sauce paired nicely with the saltiness of the pork.  
Next up, we took a peak back in the coaster shop, where the park performs maintenance on the various trains that run on their rides. 

The shop was really fun, as it is decorated with signage from some of Great America's past attractions. 
Picture
Oh, and there may be some new trains parked in here...
Alright perverts, we know what you came here for. Despite the Florida Legislature recently declaring pornography to be a public health risk, we know our audience, and we're here to deliver for you. 

​Take your time. 
Picture
Moving on... 

Did you know that Great America has a secret apartment in the middle of Orleans Square? A remnant of the park's original days as Marriott's Great America, The Consulate is a vacant apartment that is being revived as a private event space for the 2018 season. 
Picture
Did you know that the 2018 College Football Playoff National Championship Game will be held at Levi's Stadium (in Great America's parking lot)?

The park was kind enough to put together a concept board for how they will be remodeling the apartment in time for my inevitable Clemson tailgate. Thanks Great America, I appreciate you! 
Moving back out to the park, there is still work being done on the removal of Logger's Run and the looping starship. While we are really sad to see the flume leave, these removals open up a ton of space for new additions. 
Picture
Speaking of new space opening up, we were also informed that 2018 will be the final season for the go-kart track
Picture
For those of you who are unfamiliar with the park, the map above shows all the space that will be wide open by the end of 2018. 

I'm thinking maybe a waterpark expansion for 2019 and a hyper coaster for 2020?
To wrap things up, we have your daily dose of Railblazer construction. The ride is coming together quickly, with the rockwork and theming being the main focus at the moment. 
​
I can't wait to come back and ride it soon! Hopefully we'll sneak in another construction update or two before the ride opens. 

Thank you for reading, and thank you to ACE NorCal and California's Great America for putting together such a fun tour! 

Related Updates: 
  • Knot's Berry Farm HangTime Update - January 30, 2018
  • Haunt at California's Great America 
  • Knott's Scary Farm Opening Weekend - The Original is still the best 
  • Cedar Fair Announces All New Attractions for 2018 Season
  • Trip Report: Canada's Wonderland - A Beautiful Park with two Top 20 Coasters​


If you enjoyed this update please share with your friends and make sure you "like" us on Facebook and "follow" us on Twitter, Instagram and YouTube. 

If you have any comments, please share them below
1 Comment

Trip Report: First Visit to Haunt at California's Great America

10/13/2017

0 Comments

 
Picture
Happy Friday the 13th everybody!! Hope you all have some scary things planned for the weekend whether it's just watching scary movies or attending a Halloween event. Hopefully it's not something super scary like having to work. 

Today we have another update from California's Great America where my wife and I made our first visit to their Haunt last weekend. 

Written by Gregg Condon
Prior to Haunt we made our way over to the park in the afternoon to do some riding and check out the Great Pumpkin Fest. 
Picture
Lots of graves to mark mazes and scare zones no longer with us 
Picture
Picture
The Pumpkin Patch!! Super cute. 
Picture
Picture
That's foreboding
Picture
After heading back to the hotel for a nap it was time to head back to the park for Haunt 
Picture
Picture
Believe it or not, in all our visits to this park, we had never been here at night. Weird right? 
Picture
Picture
Our first maze of the night was Massacre Manor
Picture
Picture
We had actually gotten a tour of this earlier in the day and it did NOT disappoint 
Picture
Picture
Cornstalkers was up next 
Picture
Nothing creepier than walking through cornstalks ... we had a great time in this maze. 
Picture
This looks like something 
Picture
Hi there!! 
Picture
Our first "surprise" maze of the night. Seriously, I love this maze, may have been my favorite of the night. The song is catchy (it's in my head now) but the maze itself is just a whole lot of fun!! 
Picture
Wonder if Ed Alonzo went back to Bayside? 
Picture
Picture
Picture
This looks different at night ... 
Picture
Picture
Picture
I know this is supposed to be Humpty Dumpty, and maybe it's because it's Friday the 13th ... but ... 

Doesn't this look like Corey Feldman in Friday the 13th Part IV? Google it. Seriously. Do it now!! 
Picture
Another really fun and inventive maze
Picture
Picture
Time for Ed Alonzo!! We've missed him at Knott's Scary Farm!! 
Picture
Believe it or not, this was the only good shot I got of the show. You don't believe me do you? =) 
Picture
The lighting and effects around the park were awesome 
Picture
Picture
Definitely the "Grossest" of the mazes at Haunt 
Picture
Picture
We also took a ride on Demon Re-Ignited!! Not only are the effects for the ride amazing, but I probably had the best ride I've ever had on it, at least in the past 15 years or so. It was running amazing.

​Kudos to the park for not only adding some amazing effects, but for maintaining this classic coaster to such high standards. 
Picture
If you missed our  Demon Re-Ignited Behind The Scenes Tour  earlier this week, be sure to check it out. 
Picture
Last but not least was the all new Backwoods. 

And if this is any indication of the future of Haunt, it's going to be one of those can't miss events for years to come. I thought the maze was a bit on the short side, but it was phenomenal nonetheless. 
Picture
CGA's Haunt has an amazing entry area 
Picture
Fire makes everything better 
Picture
Picture
Picture
Picture
Picture
Probably my favorite picture I've taken this entire Halloween season
Picture
Overall we were very pleasantly surprised with Haunt. The event is a LOT of fun, the talent is into it and the mazes are unique. 

One thing I will say is there needs to be more scare zones, they had a couple but they were kind of small. But other than that, we definitely recommend this event and can't wait to go back next year! 

​Related Updates: 
  • Knott's Scary Farm Opening Weekend - The Original is still the best 
  • Cedar Fair Announces All New Attractions for 2018 Season
  • California's Great America Debut's Single Rail Rollercoaster for 2018
  • Trip Report: Canada's Wonderland - A Beautiful Park with two Top 20 Coasters
  • Red, White and Brews at California's Great America ​​


​If you enjoyed this update please share with your friends and make sure you "like" us on Facebook and "follow" us on Twitter, Instagram and YouTube. 

If you have any comments, please share them below
0 Comments

Exclusive: Behind The Walls Construction Update of RailBlazer at California's Great America

10/12/2017

0 Comments

 
Picture
Today we've got a bit of an exclusive behind the scenes look at RailBlazer construction at California's Great America. We aren't going to try and guess what's going where but we figured you'd all like to see the progress that's been made so far. 
And more progress has already been made in the past few days. 

Written by Gregg Condon
Lots and lots of walls up around RailBlazer 
Picture
Normally this is all we'd be able to show you in a construction update
Picture
Picture
But exclusively for you Park Journey readers ... we have dirt!!! 
Picture
And Rocks!! 
Picture
And piles of dirt!! 
Picture
And trees!! 
Picture
Thanks to the amazing PR staff at California's Great America for allowing us the chance to get a look at construction, we can't wait to see more very very soon!! 

Be sure to come back tomorrow as we'll have our Haunt update from last weekend!! 

​Related Updates: 
  • Behind The Scenes Tour of Demon Re-Ignited at California's Great America 
  • California's Great America to debut RailBlazer in 2018
  • Knott's Scary Farm Opening Weekend - The Original is still the best 
  • Cedar Fair Announces All New Attractions for 2018 Season
  • Trip Report: Canada's Wonderland - A Beautiful Park with two Top 20 Coasters


If you enjoyed this update please share with your friends and make sure you "like" us on Facebook and "follow" us on Twitter, Instagram and YouTube. 

If you have any comments, please share them below
0 Comments
<<Previous

    Categories

    All
    2014 Attractions
    2015 Attractions
    2016 Attractions
    2017 Attractions
    2018 Attractions
    2019 Attractions
    2020 Attractions
    2021 Attractions
    Bear Y Tales
    Bear-y Tales
    Berry Bloom
    Boysenberry Festival
    Calico Mine Ride
    Calico River Rapids
    California's Great America
    Camp Snoopy
    Canada's Wonderland
    Carowinds
    Cedar Fair
    Cedar Point
    Coasting For Kids
    Dorney Park
    Fear VR
    Fury 325
    Ghostrider
    Ghost Town
    Ghost Town Alive
    Gilroy Gardens
    Give Kids The World
    Halloween Haunt
    HangTime
    Kings Dominion
    Kings Island
    Knott's Berry Farm
    Knott's Merry Farm
    Knott's Peanuts Celebration
    Knott's Scary Farm
    Knott's Soak City
    Knott's Spooky Farm
    Komen OC
    Mass Effect New Earth
    Merry Farm
    Michigan's Adventure
    Military Days
    Mystic Timbers
    New Years Eve
    Patriot
    RailBlazer
    Red
    South Bay Shores
    Steel Vengeance
    Valleyfair
    White And Brews
    Winterfest
    Worlds Of Fun

    Archives

    February 2021
    December 2020
    March 2020
    January 2020
    November 2019
    September 2019
    August 2019
    May 2019
    April 2019
    March 2019
    January 2019
    December 2018
    November 2018
    September 2018
    August 2018
    June 2018
    April 2018
    March 2018
    February 2018
    January 2018
    December 2017
    November 2017
    October 2017
    September 2017
    August 2017
    July 2017
    June 2017
    May 2017
    April 2017
    March 2017
    January 2017
    December 2016
    November 2016
    September 2016
    August 2016
    July 2016
    June 2016
    May 2016
    April 2016
    March 2016
    February 2016
    January 2016
    December 2015
    November 2015
    October 2015
    September 2015
    August 2015
    July 2015
    June 2015
    May 2015
    April 2015
    March 2015
    February 2015
    January 2015
    December 2014
    November 2014
    October 2014
    September 2014
    August 2014
    June 2014
    May 2014
    April 2014
    March 2014
    February 2014
    January 2014
    December 2013
    November 2013

    RSS Feed

  • Home
  • Six Flags
  • Cedar Fair
  • Universal Studios
  • Disney Parks
  • SeaWorld Parks
  • Other Parks
  • Beyond The Parks
  • The Other Side of the Tracks
  • Industry News
  • Cruise Journey
  • Park Journey Shop
  • Theme Park Art
  • Past Updates
    • 2019 Updates
    • 2018 Updates
    • 2017 Updates
    • 2016 Updates
    • 2015 Updates
    • 2013 and 2014 Updates
  • Contact Us
  • Home
  • Six Flags
  • Cedar Fair
  • Universal Studios
  • Disney Parks
  • SeaWorld Parks
  • Other Parks
  • Beyond The Parks
  • The Other Side of the Tracks
  • Industry News
  • Cruise Journey
  • Park Journey Shop
  • Theme Park Art
  • Past Updates
    • 2019 Updates
    • 2018 Updates
    • 2017 Updates
    • 2016 Updates
    • 2015 Updates
    • 2013 and 2014 Updates
  • Contact Us