you cant be a park primarily targeted to families who cant afford places like disney...and raise prices at a time where the middle class is actively dying out
@@cocopie9971 how are they a boomer? Are you solely Judging by their correct statement that the middle class has been shrinking over the last 50 years in a coordinated effort to create a desperate plentiful multi-job dependent lower class? Boomers were responsible for this, practice reading comprehension
As an EX six flags employee, I will say these parks are very disfunctional. They are poorly maintained and management keeps cutting budget to the point where all you can do is go on rides and that's it. So if a ride breaks down for a few hours, there is no entertainment or shows to go watch while the get the ride up an running again. If you got to universal or Busch Gardens even Disney, they spend millions a year on entertainment. They need to stop building rides, and fix up what they already have. 1. hire landscaper to gut the old and plant new, creatively. 2. hire entertainment maybe even celebrity appearances for addition cost. 3. start park opening and/or park closing shows IE, water, lights lasers, fireworks 4. pay for music licensing for park music, ensure park speakers are working. 4 clean up rides, repaint them, update some visuals, nothing cheesy. if you do all this, people will return.
Floats need repairs and some need new speakers. Uprising has been having issues with floats breaking down less than half way through the show. But in general Entertainment needs some TLC. Employees are also tense and stressed out asf because of how many ppl he’s laid off. I’m afraid this is going to lead to burnt out employees and a hostile working environment. My boyfriend and I have many concerns about six flags. He’s completely convinced it’s already got one foot in the grave.
I grew up with six flags Great adventure in the 90s and early 2010s, and it was always the same place whenever I went back which is not a good thing. The park feels so dated like you have solid plate glass windows acting as walls for your arcade which is in a circus tent roof building. I like keeping some of the history around but some of it just does not look good to the public. They need to stop doing themed rides to superheroes, instead of licensing it from DC, just come up with a new unique theme for each Batman ride and save yourself some money. Put the money back into the park.
In it's early days Six Flags was a completely different experience, much closer to Disney. There were actually a lot of musical, comedy, action, etc. shows at Six Flags, so like Disney you could take a break between rides, rest, and cool off. The employee to guest ratio and the park and cleanliness was close to Disney. They would greet you walking around and it felt like a real theme park. But that changed long before even the current downfall, and by the 90's it was pretty much all about the rides. Companies sometimes lose sight of what brought them success trying to make an extra 10%, and then have trouble getting back to it. And as a customer, the idea of them getting by with fewer employees running rides doesn't give me a great feeling about safety being a priority.
In the beginning, the parks were owned by the Wynne family. They wanted parks that took the idea of Disney but were closer and more affordable. I agree, it was a great place to visit back then!! I spent many days there as a teen and young adult. However, when the parks were sold to the group who ran Warner Bros, it all went downhill. It became all about the money, selling the branded merchandise, and the personal "family" atmosphere was washed away by corporate greed
@@NICKI814 it's not that, after the pandemic, the place died off. Social media posting did help them gain more guests. But with the park's history with retarded fights with dumb reasons killed off the fun for everyone else. Those fights made fright fest boring
It never occured to me as a child the things that would change as we grew up. Nearly everything from my childhood memories has closed and become only nostalgia. You don't think about these things until you're older. Although we don't go back to these places, they are places we love to see the next generation enjoy. It's scary knowing how fast life passes us up. Always be thankful for today, and remember every day is a memory, so make it a great memory to be had.
Places closing actually late is nostalgia. I'm currently in a half hour line for the one drive thru place actually opened past midnight for my drink. 😑
Honestly, all the things I enjoyed when I was younger have been or are currently being ruined by corporate greed and the pursuit of short-term profits at the expense of the consumer. This is no different.
I don't really know why they haven't yet. Considering how much nostalgia dominates this day and age, it seems like a no brainer to bring him back to drum up interest in people who remember visiting the parks as a kid.
this past summer i took my girlfriend to six flags over texas and when i tell you it was one of the worst things that we could've done. there were multiple rides closed, a worker told me it was due to the "lack of staff". what makes me mad is that i paid for tickets to ride ALL the rides not a FEW of the rides.
The lack of staff issue is actually true. Partially the problem that has caused Six Flags to go downhill. For the longest, Six Flags underpaid and overworked their employees. They would hire people from Southern American countries to get around any employee complaints over the crap wage. It’s all now catching up to them. In a way they brought this on themselves.
We stopped going to Six Flags Atlanta years ago. It was totally unsafe for families. The park was overrun with unruly teens. They were cutting lines, yelling profanities, starting fights, etc. No security in the park itself. All of the security staff were just milling around the entrance area. The rides were primarily operated by teens who were more interested in their cell phones than in actually checking that the guests were safely strapped in. We got off three rides before they started due to the staff not checking that everyone was secured in the seats. I complained to a person that looked like some sort of a supervisor and was told to leave if I didn't like what was happening. We did, and never looked back.
Went to six flags for possibly the last time this year. got tickets free from work for me and the wife. We were shocked to find out that parking had been raised to $40 dollars (I think 60 for preferred parking). Inside the park was pretty much empty. I was able to ride every major coaster before lunch (the ones that were open anyway). This was nice since that's the only reason I come to the park, however there was a strange dystopian vibe from the emptiness of the park that made me want to leave as soon as I was done riding the coasters.
I know the feeling. It's sad watching videographers sneak into closed parks. You can hear the kids laughing and playing, so much excitement. The smells, sights and sounds. I'm old and went to at least a couple cirsus' when I was young. There are no more big tops. 😢
@Tee Grizzle Hopefully you're just trolling as this is the internet, but this implies a falsehood and assumes no responsibility on the end of the business owners. 1.) Covid wasn't invented or "created" by anyone, it is a disease type which has new variants pop up occasionally via evolution. 2.) Despite Covid Six Flags has been having difficulties as of late anyway. Even pre covid the parks we're often dirty, unkept and overall with occasional exceptions, not a great experience.
He fired people I worked with who had been with the company over TWENTY YEARS with little to same-day notice of termination. Absolutely ridiculous and killing the company from the inside out.
Six flags is trying to pull a Disney but they fail to understand one major thing.... DISNEY IS NOT PLAYING THE AMUSEMENT PARK GAME. Disney is selling the Disney experience... no one can compete with that experience... it's its own entire thing.
@@Jushwa not sure if that's sarcasm or delusional, but the numbers speak. The people have entirely different expectations between the 2, and they ARE flocking to Disney for what they offer and do well. Six Flags, can't even do its own thing properly and for some mind boggling reason think they can compete with whats essential a God, while they are just the middling homeless man that everyone sorta minds.
@@Jushwa yes the Disney experience where they put the effort into making sure every little detail matters to said area of the park/ ride that really helps the magic of Disney come to life. The lines r worth the wait id say as you see a lot in said rides, and from there makes you want to wait again to see if you can spot something new the next time you ride. If you don’t wanna wait, just get the fast past. Disney has more entertainment then major rides to waste your time on. Keeps you entertained. The Disney Experience y’all, we’re keeping your guest happy actually is put into play.
This may be something exclusive to me but, part of the fun and excitement of going to a huge park like Six Flags or anything like that is seeing so many other people also being excited to have fun with their friends and family too. It's no wonder his strategy failed. A lot of people probably agree or feel similar. I also vaguely remember the teenage girl getting both her feet severed. So, if rides aren't safe, prices are high, and no ones there, what exactly IS the entire point of going? It would feel depressing just being there, even more so when you get on a roller coaster and no ones there to scream and put their hands up with you.
My family of 4 have had a membership to Six Flags for over 7 years. In the beginning we would make the 45 min drive to Magic Mountain about once a month. For a couple of years we even had the food passes for me and my wife that gave you lunch and snack, then dinner and snack at around $80 each for the year. This was great because between the 4 of us we could all eat during each visit and it paid for itself in 2 visits because the price of the food was crazy. Then it just got worse, less options for meals and half of the places you could choose from would be closed. Huge lines to order in the places that are open because there are only 2 of the 8 registers open and 65% of the people in line just want a drink refill. The heat in CA is really the killing factor for Magic Mountain. It's built in the desert, so you think they would have plenty of shade for the guests that are waiting 1 to 3 hours in line for a ride.. nope! It's just gotten worse, as they build more rides it feels like less thought goes into how they are going to funnel guest to it. Trees and areas that used to be great places to relax and stay cool have been removed and replaced with concrete. The staff has just gotten bitter it seems over the past few years. They are not taken care of by the company and they pass that distain for their employer directly on to the guest. It's really rare to find anyone working at the park that really cares that the guest are the people that are the reason for their paycheck. We only go about 2 or 3 times a year now, and it's not during the summer. Haven't been to Hurricane Harbor in years. It's extremely overcrowded and dirty. The last time we did go we were there for about 5 hours and were only able to ride 2 of the rides, and the lazy river was practically shoulder to shoulder. It's just not enjoyable anymore. The events that used to be good are now just a money grab. Fright Night used to be fun until they started charging extra for the mazes. The only good thing about it now is being able to ride Tatsu in the dark, if its running, and if it's not a 3 hour wait... Writing all this out has really made me second guess why I still pay for these passes... I honestly would rather drive 2 hours to go to Knotts where they still have shows and an atmosphere that feels welcoming, and way better food...
We went to knotts last fall over six flags. The roses looked scary/unsafe from a distance. Knotts definitely still has that family entertainment atmosphere
Since they've stopped offering new memberships, if you cancel the ones you have, they're gone forever. So there's that. They do still honor the ones they sold in the past, with all the benefits. So if they can survive to the next CEO, or get bought out, maybe things will change for the better. They need an advisory committee made up of guests who are local to each park, that makes suggestions applicable to that park. Ideally, it would be made up of people who, like those of us commenting on this video, have been going to the park for a long time and remember what it was like in the "good old days". At least one member of the board of directors should attend each committee meeting, along with that local park's management, so that they too can learn what each park's truest fans find important. Over Texas seemed to be heading in that direction with "The Pirates of Speelunker Cave" but though it just opened this past year, it was closed when we went to Holiday in the Park so I still haven't gotten to ride it.
If Six Flags goes out of business I’d love to see a new company (not Cedar Fair or any other preexisting group) swoop in and buy the liquidated parks and bring them back to life. I feel like we’re long overdue for a new take on theme parks!
The last time I went to six flags it wasn't too bad. They had these incredible murals made of chewing gum stuck onto all the trees that you can look at while you wait for the ride. And the lucky people on the superman ride got to be on it for almost an hour.
I spent $325 with my kids to attend Great Adventures this year. What I saw since I last visited back in 2016 was the park was mostly the same and less value. New rides were boring or not interesting at all. It had become a teenager hangout place and most of the value is pushed towards paying for meal plans instead of building on the park’s experience. We won’t be back again unless a major upgrade to their theme experience.
2 Words: BAD MANAGEMENT!! I live in Houston and Six Flags owned Astroworld which had been here since 1965. The management closed down the park in 2005 and told everyone that the land was more valuable than the use as an amusement park. Really, so they tore it down and now 17 years later there sits the vacant land. Good management would have tried to keep a park open in a metro area like Houston (over 5 million people and growing. Disgusting! And you know what several parks have opened here since they pulled out and these new parks are doing fine crowds and profits....
Maybe it’s because I grew up at Hershey, but Hershey park is still one of the greatest singular parks I’ve ever seen, I’d love if you ever did a video on how well it preforms, the shows, the rides, the friendly atmosphere, the Halloween and Christmas stuff they have.
the problem with lost customers is that once they are lost.. it is VERY difficult to get them back, especially when you don't actually change anything for a couple years
I find it an interesting study that numerous high profile individuals demonstrate less common sense in their leadership roles than do random people on RUclips. And that's not sarcasm. I've seen a RUclips commenter post film ideas that were better than the movie a major studio released in an established franchise. I've seen people online demonstrate more intelligence than highly paid political commentators. Six Flags leadership team could have literally sat in a conference room and watched content creators and gleaned their good ideas and the results would have been more productive than hiring a new CEO and going with conventional corporate methods. And it would have been free advice.
@@matthewmosier8439 Thing is, SIX maxed out at $70 in 2018 ($65 for most of the year) and then backslid for the first year since 2010, with the 2019 share price at $55. Pandemic then dumped the price to $20 in 2020, with a climb back to $45 in 2021. Now to the Board, that 2018-2019 backslide was probably worrying because it meant they couldn't continue to do what they did from 2010-2018. They had that seed of doubt planted before the pandemic. After the pandemic crash and the return to $45, that seed would have grown and they'd be asking themselves "what if the stick never gets back to $70 because we're not doing enough?" That kind of doubting moment, where people are looking for direction, is when people are vulnerable. In comes this guy with The Direction; he says with full confidence that if they implement his changes, they'll not only undo the pandemic losses but reverse the slide and get back to or above $70/share. His confidence will offset that doubt and they'll go with him. That's the thing - if a company is doing well, they have no incentive to change. If they're not doing well, they just need the right person in the right place at the right time to push them another way. Marvel, for example, has been printing money for a while so it was unlikely that they were to go a change-up. First change-up they did was after Thor 2 flopped; they did a tonal 180 and Thor 3 and Thor 4 became comedies. Second change-up was after Endgame because the actors were aging up and aging out. X-men had already tried just rebooting their own series and that wasn't successful, so just doing Avengers 2.0 wasn't the way forward. So they introduced the canonical miniseries, which took the place of some movies and gave their creative talent more to do since they weren't constrained to a 2-hour movie format. In related but non-Marvel media we can even see a change-up fail if we know where to look: the Josh Trank Fantastic Four movie. Fantastic Four was a dead property at Fox, so the decided to change-up with an indie sci-fi director to do an adaptation of the Ultimates storyline (from when the comics basically did a reboot of the old origin story). This went poorly, the studio tried to step in to save it after focus groups panned it, that made it worse, and the movie flopped. Fantastic Four went dead again until Fox was sold to Disney and Disney made their own version for the MCU.
@@ajjdgj6tmgedvnmtmek You make some good points. I appreciate you doing a deeper dive into the subject because it got me interested in digging into what I thought about it, more. I just keep returning to the fact that proximity to money and power is a blinding situation for a person to live in. The mental restrictions of having to live with peer pressure from very powerful people can be destructive to common sense, I think. I agree, in the context you gave, a new CEO's bad idea, if packaged with the proper "energy" would definitely have been tempting to a grouo who had just ridden out the pandemic. That said, I think you are seeing, also, the bad ideas which have been growing under the surface of corporations for years, finally coming out in more recent days. Basically, a lot of corporate minds were steeped in Commie propoganda all through their university days. This is especially true of CEOs from old money who come from the demographic which supplies the bulk of hyper-progressivism's radicals. They think ESG scores and China are going to take over the world soon (an idea which I believe they went with way early and which will wind up reseting political things a few decades into the past, very soon) This mindset of an elite wealthy class (maybe the top 30% or so of the American public) tempts CEO's, including at places like Disney, to cater only to that group of people, something which involves raising prices and essentially limiting accessibility for everybody else. Anyway, this has just been my observation of the world at large, during and since, the pandemic. The wealthy think that their time has come to destroy the cruise industry, theme parks, etc. All of the lower cost things that common people utilize to enjoy their lives.
It wasn’t even price in my area. It was the gangs and lack of security. You’d go to the park just to get cut by well a gang of people. We had yearly stabbing and the place was a dump. Middle class families never had the chance. Once you lose customers, it’s extremely hard to get them back.
Just went to Six Flags over Georgia this past month and it was a nightmare. I've always gone to my hometown's park Dollywood, and I've been to Carowinds a few times. Carowinds is significantly cleaner, better ran, and the employees didn't seem miserable. SFOG was one of the worst park experiences I've ever had; long waits, rude staff (probably exhausted), bad food, and the bathrooms were disgusting. I felt like I was a RollerCoasterTycoon NPC that had a big frowny face. Also, majority of the coasters at SFOG were closed down. It was clear weather, and about 60 degrees, so I *heavily* doubt it was the weather.
That's so unfortunate. I used to finally the time and it wasn't always great but it was definitely not that awful... I really hope it doesn't close forever
Agreed 6flags in GA sucks. I've been to most of the parks in Florida (Disney, Epcot, universal, island of adventure, busch gardens, etc)and six flags was a complete disaster. You can even compare the parks. The ones in FL are far superior overall.
Saving Six Flags isn't even hard. It bothers me that they bring in these CEOs who can't figure this out, when someone like me can. It's so simple: stop focusing on only THRILLS and start building out EXPERIENCES. make Six Flags a place where people actually want to come and spend the entire day. More/Better shows, WAY better meet and greets, experiential landscaping, cohesive design, and merchandise that people actually WANT to buy and wear. Rebrand. Let's go.
In the 90s and early 2000s six flags St Louis was always packed. They had a new water park right when every other small park had closed. They had 3 new DC themed rides(superman, batman, joker) one of which had a mirror clone at universal Orlando. There were rock climbing walls tucked between rides, old west style storefronts where you could dress up and get pictures taken, an amphitheatre where at least 6 shows played daily and outside acts performed regularly. Every area had flavor actors but the medieval area was always packed with extras doing a year round ren-fair. At Halloween hundreds of extras would be hired and haunted houses would open up that smashed every local competitor. Some rides did date back to the 40s but they were well-maintained and people around here loved having older and smaller rides between the new and huge coasters. Kids and adults had plenty to choose from and there was also a kid specific area on top of the rides that were just out of date. At Christmas they sponsored a nearby campsite partner to put up an insane drive-thru light display. They would showcase cutting edge VR technology in huge plazas with 50 plus seats and headsets in addition to having one off machines on the departure walkways for rides. The train could actually be used to navigate the park because it was just so big that people needed the break, but it'd also take you to areas that couldn't be seen on foot that had unique narratives. Now when you go most of that is shut down. There are no extras, no random actors spouting area appropriate dialogue. No small attractions squirrelled away between rides. Nothing. Six flags St Louis was a small city in its own right. Now it's almost dead. In the past ten years local haunted houses have far surpassed six flags in effort and execution so the old tradition of everyone going to six flags and seeing people they knew is gone. There's a dozen better, cheaper, closer options. And almost everyone over 30 working at those outside haunted houses used to work six flags, at the very least for Halloween. Even some owners got their start there. What hurt me, and lots of other people I've spoken to, was the loss of iconic and even historic rides at the park. Those things tied generations together and now they're gone, the continuity broken. For a couple months I worked at a machine shop in eureka, right next to the park. Some days it was still busy and afternoon traffic was a nightmare but most days I couldn't hear any rides running or any water splashing or kids yelling. It was sad and it hurt. That place was an amusement park well before six flags came along so I hope when they fold someone local picks it up again and treats it right. Everyone in St Louis would come right back. Maybe one day soon...
I grew up going to six flags st. Louis. And I couldn't agree more. Everything that gave it character was removed in the early 2000s to make room for something that could make money. Fake Western storefronts that gave the place atmosphere were removed and food stands put in their place. Places to sit and rest in the shade were replaces with things like vending machines and snack stands. Attractions that weren't rides or food were gone, even if they made money. The park could make more money selling soda in those spots. Last time I went I paid 6$ for a warm cup of soda bc they were out of ice and I waited 20 mins in the sun for it. And I've never gone back. We all know these places exist to separate you from your money but there is no value to Six Flags anymore.
Very well written! As a child of the 80's, Six Flags was a yearly excursion for myself, my sister and my parents, up until my younger brothers were born. I miss all of those classic rides, like Jet Scream, Hannibarrels, Tom's Twister, Mo-MO The Monster, the too-short-lived Condor and probably several others I can't think of at the moment. And my favorite part of every excursion was getting a three-scoop ice cream cone from that First Cone place located near the front of the park. The last time I went to Six Flags was way back in 2004, and it was a very forgettable experience. I'm 43 now, and I often daydream about going back and maybe recapturing some of that old childhood magic, but too any changes in the park keep making me consider otherwise.
I worked at six flags st Louis a year before the pandemic and it was brutal. Rare days it would be packed and the rest id barely see 100. Pay was shit, they’d force me to stay over hours, management was all teens or early 20 somethings
I went to this park a ton through the 90’s and early 2000’s. It used to be packed. We went for the first time in several years this past weekend and I was amazed walking through the extremely long queue for the Boss and remembering how that line was packed with people for a very long time. We were able to walk right up and get on without a wait. I’m not complaining of course. It was nice being able to get right on every ride, but walking those extremely long queues, was part annoying/part depressing, thinking how they used to actually need them like that.
You can't increase prices if the quality doesn't increase beyond the idea decreasing too much crowd. For some theme park goers, the idea of big crowds also is a psychological boost to show that the park is popular and where they should be.
Ride safety is THE most important aspect of these places! It doesn’t matter what the theme or the name of the ride is, if there’s ANY word of a ride being unsafe or maintenance concerns, it’s gonna be ghost town advertised by news stations
ride safety isnt really an issue (assuming they're following proper protocol issued by the ride's manufacturer which i assume they are). you're safer on the rides than you are on your drive to the park, dare i say it may just be one of the safest places to be in the park.
@@MaluuhLive the ride kinda operates itself for the most part… the main problem is in maintenance, which has been hit by the staffing issues. to my knowledge, el toro at great adventure is the only ride that has been impacted by this, but that needed some major care to begin with
the apparent lack of ride safety is why I don't find thrill rides thrilling, but genuinely terrifying. and why I don't go on rides that are made to be moved, like at the fair. no thanks I'll ride the batman themed tild a whirl.
Went to Six Flags over Texas as a kid in the early 2000s. Easily my favorite theme park experience to this date. Going to theme and amusement parks nowadays just don’t compare to that golden age of Six Flags
Glad I learned this. I stopped going to six flags because I couldn’t even get into the park because the lot was literally overflowing into the streets. I hope it stays like this so I can actually get on more than 2 rides a trip without getting frustrated with the waits
honestly as a 6 flags mm employee its been pretty hard on us. going from working 6 days a week 8-12 hr shifts. to only being open to 4 days… its been difficult for people trying to pay bills. they expect us to be ok working 2-3 days and expect our 100% for $16.50 an hour. but then expect us to be happy go lucky when we have 0 staffing to work the holiday season. then over work us. the company is losing employees. guests. and money.
New ride op is ot and it's been stressful trying to give guests a good experience but I want to operate multiple rides and have more rides that I can suggest to guests reliablly
Question. Did Six Flags used to close later? I see they close at 5 or 6 pm on some days and the latest they close is at 9 pm which is ridiculous! I want to experience all the rides in one day but so little time!
@@onmas909 yeahh honestly the only time we will be open later than 5 in the near future is holiday seasons/holidays….special events or weekends. the park should only be open friday-monday tho when its off season starting a couple weeks back
...that's what happens when wage minimums get hiked up in the service industries...corporate tells managers to hire a lot of people and have them all come in for just a few hours to where it looks good for PR, but gives no real living wage to the people who counted on a wage increase as a comeup..there is absolutely no company loyalty, the employees tend to do drugs in the bathrooms and breakooms, food is spitefully removed from slop buckets and served to customers they have issue with (like law enforcement during the "defund" bullshit) and it reflects in the attitudes of customers, who think nothing now of obliterating the lobbies of service establishments over a lack of ketchup.... I was at one McDonald's in a very small city that had 50 employees and a whole lot of problems and the hours and wage wouldn't cover my rent on a tiny shit apartment... ...most corporations need to get a 7 minute beatdown against a barbed wire fence, figuratively speaking....
This makes me cry - I worked at 6F Dallas in 1996 and they had all kinds of shows, mascots walking the grounds, pop-up contests and fun stuff everywhere. Those of us stuck in the caricature booths were so jealous - but this? Oh man …
@@backlogbuddies We called it ‘Dallas’ cuz the whole area was a blur to our guests 😁, even tho it’s in Arlington. Fiesta and Astro called us Dallas internally, too.
This is so crazy, I used to go to Six Flags Magic Mountain in L.A. and it was awesome when I was a kid (late 80s and early 90s) and I loved it. I worked at that same park later on in my early 20’s as a roller coaster mechanic and I loved that job. The amount of back systems that are in place for safety (at least at Magic Mountain) was incredible, lots of extra safety systems in place.
I grew up going to Six Flags in Eureka MO. In the '70's and '80's it was kind of a big deal. They had a nice amphitheater where I saw Jerry Lee Lewis, Merle Haggard and Blue Oyster Cult. The year they opened The Screamin' Eagle, a rollercoaster with a drop of significant depth, we waited in line for 90 minutes to ride that thing. Good times.
We have a water park in Phoenix formally called wet n' wild. That is until six flags took over. My family and I had season passes every year. Then comes six flags. It became quite clear that it was all about the money with no regard to the guests. For instance, there used to be a bunch of provided tubes for each ride, then all of the sudden there was almost none. They wanted you to rent their tubes. The last time we went we were there for more than 4 hours and got on 3 slides when we used to get on multiple slides per hour. Needless to say, we quit being season pass owners. The new six flags model is all about the money, and by doing so, they are screwing themselves out of it.
Wet n' wild was never good, though. It was dirty, there were always rides broken or down and it was so hot with little to no shade what so ever. It was one of the most popular and big parks around. Just got from bad to worse really.
Wow it feels weird to see someone mention wet n wild. I literally grew up walking distance from it. It was never great but it did have a nice family friendly vibe. Never too packed and season passes were worth it you could just kill a ton of time starting the day running Kilimanjaro and then chill in the lazy river or some shit. Once six flags took over the first year was awesome for season passes. After that it was absolute garbage, not even worth the money to go anymore because it's packed and they still want to nickel and dime you to death. They tried to be all fancy and new but that's not what made wet n wild fun. I used to go to the mini train park right next door a lot for funsies too.
I remember going to Astroworld as a kid and my family complaining about the same points you just named. Six flags went to shit because their parks weren’t clean, terrible service, terrible food, and outrageous prices. Just a horrible experience all around. Especially compared to when I went to Knotts berry farm and Disney.
I wholeheartedly agree with your point about high quality rides not being enough to carry an experience. I visited Great America for the first time this summer and while their coaster lineup is elite; the abhorrent wait times, dirty atmosphere, and rude staff made it one of my least favorite days I've ever had at any park. 2 hours to ride Raging Bull with the flash pass on a Tuesday in June was where I hit my limit.
Yeah, i'm super sorry to hear that. I guess i was lucky when I went, because the flash pass entrance was the exit for the ride, because it was less busy. The default flash pass pretty much acted like a platinum, so I could ride 5 cycles in a row and that was amazing! I don't think the staff were exceptional, but they were alright. In all, I think it depends on when you go. Sorry to hear about that.
I just recently cancelled my Diamond Platinum Membership (with Dining) after 5 years. This past summer was the nail in the coffin for me - half the coasters closed, rude/awful employees, terrible food, and overall a very unenjoyable experience. I’d rather just spend the extra $$ and go to Universal Orlando or to Cedar Fair parks.
I did the same at Great Adventure. Cancelled two Diamond Elite Plus and 4 Platinum (with Meal and Drink) after 5 years. They took almost every dining option away during the Summer with only basically nasty chicken tenders and dry pizza. Upcharge for fries. I won't go back unless Salim is out and Spanos hired back. Took my hard earned money and put it to 2023 Hershey Park King Size passes.
@Maddox2021 - Comedy and More Alternate Wow. Why are you so angry? I can fix the post. Did someone hurt your feelings today?😆 Your hair isn't blue and you have a nose ring do you???😆😆😆 Don't worry. The store will be getting more Soy Milk in soon.
@Maddox2021 - Comedy and More Alternate and unless you're the Perfect Human, get off your high horse. I don't mind correction or criticism, it's how it's presented. I'll see myself OUT.
I definitely agree that the food is terrible now. Immediately after I ate it I had stomach problems which also could be my problem but it never happened before.
Same. Cancelled Diamond Platinum Membership that we've had for years. They got rid of my favorite event Holiday in the Park at Great America (Gurnee/Chicago area). That was literally the only time of year I spent in the park. I still have an entire year of free "make-up" months to use in 2023 though.
I loved six flags as a kid! My dad would always take my sister and I whenever we visited my Grandma in the summer. It’s tragic to know the parks are in trouble.
Worth noting that this year, many parks in the system heavily released their Full-Time staff and supervisors. People with sometimes decades of experience in the parks. Even if somehow the parks rebound spontaneously? The service and staffing will be years behind recovering in experience and quality.
Just hilarious to hear the CEO blame gas prices and inclement weather. As of the other theme parks exist in an alternate dimension with teleportation and an absence of weather. When leaders can’t admit they’re wrong, people suffer.
God man this breaks my heart. Six flags was my life as a kid. Even planned on going this summer with my fiancé. But I literally had no idea any of this was happening until I saw this on my recommended. Man I would really hate to see this place go.
U ain't missing much. I remember back when we had a raise from 7.25 to 9. They threatened to take it back. Because some rides got sloppy with cleaning. This was back in 2017. At least the area i worked at which was Texas giant.
@@Hero5slayer it honestly isn’t even that fun anymore I am an enthusiast and live near Great America a park with the best lineup but it really isn’t that good to me
100 to 200 inner city kids with no adult supervision running around causing havoc makes me glad the shit hole is closing... And I'm being generous on the 100 to 200 numbers I'm sure it was alot more... I seen the bullshit first hand... 💯
@ACE Venture honestly the amount of times I had to call lost and found for was ridiculous. Like who tf leaves a 4 year old at the entrance of a ride for 2 hrs!
Like I understand Six Flag’s CEO and wanting to reduce wait times. I myself have constantly complained about multiple hour waits or even 45 minute waits on every ride. With that being said, the problem is, I’M ALWAYS ALREADY INSIDE THE PARK WHEN I’M COMPLAINING. Like not once did I ever want to go to an amusement park and decide not to because of long lines. Usually weather, felling sick, unforeseen events, lack of money are why I wouldn’t be able to go. If a person or family wants to go to an amusement park, unless it’s one of those options above, they’re gonna go regardless. The whole line problem is faced when the tickets are purchased and they’re already inside the park. At that point as a business you won, you got the customer inside your park and with long lines they’ll probably want to look at stores in hopes of the time reducing in like an hour. Nowadays, I expect all rides to take like at least 20 minutes to get on (Besides opening, closing, or events like parades happening) and I feel many of us have come to accept it. Maybe one visit you’re lucky and find your favorite ride with a 10 minute wait but no one expects that same wait each time they go. The long wait in line is just tradition at this point so to try to have that as a selling point isn’t believable because the CEO doesn’t control how many people decide to come into the park on a day. If multiple people see quick wait times, they’ll come more possibly and more people will come until either the CEO ups the price even more, alienating whatever minimal customers are left or the same cycle of multiple hour long lines occur and that turns people away along with the expensive ticket price. Overall, just a stupid idea from a stubborn idiot who is just further proof that people with money aren’t always the brightest.
Seems like SF has been declining for years now. I’ll never forget they they did to AstroWorld. It’s heartbreaking, a lot of my childhood, especially late teen years, was spent at SF busy they can’t seem to get out of their own way.
"Rides bring people in and beautification gets them to come back." Definitely true. It's one of the reasons Six Flags Ohio failed. They added 6 new coasters in 2 years, but spent no effort on improving the in park experience. That's why total guests increased the first year or two, but then took a nose dive. All the out of towners came, saw how badly run it was, and did not come back.
As a long time resident of the San Antonio area, I used to love Fiesta Texas as a kid. It was never Cedar Point (which I frequented as a child, living in SE Michigan) but it was fun, relatively clean, and had decent rides. My girlfriend and I spent a day there a few years ago, and it was pretty much exactly the same as it was when I was a kid. And that’s not a good thing. Everything was older, more worn looking, and they hadn’t added very much since then. Maybe 1 or 2 rides that were shut down on our visit. The few rides that were actually open were the same rides that have been at the park for decades. It doesn’t look like they’ve put any money into the park in 20+ years. Attendance was way down when we went, likely because it doesn’t offer anything different than it ever has. It’s sad, but that’s I guess how the parks are gonna be.
Yeah. I’m a genxer in west texas. Last time I went was around 95. Now have four kids. Took the 8 and 6 year old this year around may. It looked the SAME!!🤣 It was kind of comforting for me at first seeing ‘looney toons’ drawings. Felt like a time warp. Then I noticed the dilapidated, worn atmosphere, and the general cliental socio economic status and it hit me this wasnt just due to the pandemic.
The things that ticked me off about Six Flags is 1) In 2022 the Season Passes no longer let you go to any park and you had to pick only one. Luckily there was a Black Friday sale that gave you an upgrade to go to all parks. That wasn't available again in 2023, 2) The price of the Dining Plan went from $109 to $149 and dropped the Snack and dropped the free drinks. I still got a Season Pass, but we won't be going but a couple of times next year.
Will a couple of times even save you money? I've been to Universal/Islands a couple of times and Disney once. All when I was 40+. I didn't pay any time. My buddy worked for Universal. I won't go back to Disney. It's def. for children. Not to mention, the political BS.
That's because other than the initial park, Cedar Point, none of them have Cedar in the name. Cedar Park grew by acquiring other amusement parks, including the Paramount parks. They own parks like Knott's Berry Farm, King's Dominion, California's Great America, King's Island, etc.
My wife and I went to SFOT by ourselves last week because our 11 year old didn’t want to go. He said the lines suck and the rides aren’t very good anymore. We experienced a dirty park, rude staff and long lines. We definitely aren’t going back. Ever.
Awww that's so sad how far the OG has fallen. I've only been there once way back in 1997 and it was an amazing experience for me personally (I was 15). Breaks my heart to hear there.
Excellent video! When six flags shut down in Houston, I was sad. I had visit one time before it shut down. I’m gonna have to rewatch this again. Very informative! Great stuff
So I participated in a Cedar Fair focus group for one of their lesser parks that they never invest in, ValleyFair. What these theme parks all want to hear that their guests really don't want a brand new $20 Million roller coaster, but want to go to their parks to see cheap entertainment shows, play their rigged carnival games, and eat their overpriced food. So they kept asking questions like "what food offerings would prompt you to visit more", "what games do you want to come play" "What shows would you come to see". Meanwhile everyone in the focus group is literally answering "we want a big new roller coaster" to every question. Focus groups are only useful if you're open to answers you don't want to hear.
@maddox121 As a Kentucky girl who grew up in Louisville, went to KK more times than I could count, and LOVED that park with all my heart, I was SO glad to see Sucks Flags go!! They gutted the quality of the park, and did us really dirty when they left. Good riddance. Thankfully, Kentucky Kingdom is now open again, under new management and thriving!
This makes me so sad. I grew up getting season passes to Six Flags Over Texas every summer and always having an amazing time. Since leaving the DFW area over 10 years ago I always talk about wanting to to back since I haven’t been since leaving the area. I had no idea how much conditions had deteriorated. Truly depressing.
As a Georgia native and someone who loved six flags as a kid and my first roller coaster ride I ever took was at six flags over Georgia this is sad to see.
My Dad worked at E Systems in Greenville and bought me a season pass and gave me 25 dollars a day every summer when I came to visit. He would pick me up each evening and always have the sitter drop me off at the front gate about 10am every day. I had the best time at Six Flags over Texas for 3 summers. I never got tired of it. That was in the mid 70s and I still remember it well.
It is nothing like the experience I had growing up. Back then (1995-2005ish) it was a shock to see a ride closed. The food was good to decent, the rides worked, the live shows were operating routinely, and it was literally an overall experience. Took my sons back in 2019 before the Covid crash and the live shows was minimum to none, half of the good rides were closed and the train that goes around the park was not functioning. The only thing that made the experience ok was the kid world, in which my boys enjoyed. It sad to see SFOG go downhill like this. 🤦🏿♂️
I just finished my final days working at Six Flags MM, and god do they treat us like trash. I worked in food and beverage. I hated being in those buildings, they were disgusting. The food is all frozen(obviously), but prepping it after it being defrosted is one of the grossest things I’ve ever done. My leads and supervisors are all 19-20 year olds who just like to order everyone around even tho leads make $0.25 more than regular team members. Also they never do anything to make the working conditions safer or cleaner. There were 3 rats living in the break area, nothing ever happened despite constant complains, and I can’t tell you how many times a day I almost slipped and cracked my head open. HR begged me to stay after I handed in my two weeks, they personally called my building, to come down to them to beg me to stay, obviously I told them no. Don’t go to six flags it’s a waste of money. And their employees are treated like trash
As a former employee of Six Flags, it was awful. In ONE SEASON, I was almost hospitalized 3 times, assaulted by my Lead for wearing transition lenses, and forced to work from 8 am to 3am, only to be yelled at by a supervisor for working past my hours because my replacement didn't bother to call in. It was my 1st real job after high school and I wasn't aware of my worker's rights. Not something taught to Special Ed students as we're not expected to be able to work on our own. On July 4th, our POS was down parkwide, our soda dispensers broke down, and half our rides broke down. But we were still expected to up-sell those over priced Sports Bottles, sell food and drink, and keep the rides that worked going. All we got for the death threats, screaming, complains, and working double shifts, our compensation were half melted Slurpees at 3 am and an expectation to be back at 8:30 am for another day of abuse. I wouldn't go even if someone payed for everything. The only good thing about Six Flags was "Ride Night", the only time employees were allowed to play games because we could cheat in front of guests to "steal" prizes. I got a Supergirl guitar in Ring Toss because they didn't stock prizes for the game. It's hanging in my dad's tournament hall. Happy I left when I did because they changed how to clock in the season I was suppose to go back for my 3rd season.
Even when I went to SF over texas as a kid, the park felt dirty, run down, and dated. And its been 10+ years since I've been, so I imagine it's much worse. I always enjoyed going there, so its sad to see it falling like this, but it's definitely not a surprise with how poorly its been maintained. Beautification really does need to be their focus for a little while. I've never been to Disney, but what I know from all the things I've heard about their parks is the atmosphere, cleanliness, etc. So much of the park looks old and faded from sitting in the sun and not being kept up. So many things made out of wood that are dried up and ugly looking, such as the fences that are everywhere, buildings, and even a few rides. Everything looks filthy and dry. Like look at 4:53 and how dull and old it looks... They really go for the rustic old western look in a lot of places, but it comes off as dull and dated instead of charming.
I went in October and it was horrible. Half the rides were closed, there were like 2 employees and while i didnt have wait times i missed the park being full and lively. I like low ride waits but not at the cost of making the place feel dead
This is what happens when your view of the business is based upon a spreadsheet and earnings report. You need to understand the wants and desires of your customers and deliver that at a reasonable price…a truly dying concept these days.
As someone who used to work there (four years to be exact across two departments at Six Flags New England), the primary issue about Six Flags are the following: 1.) They max out their occupancy as much as possible, creating a gross, sweaty and nasty miserable experience which ruins any "bargan" price they think they have. 2.) They do nothing but cut costs and raise prices, they're always looking for cheaper ingredients, materials, labor and giving the guest less and less for the same or higher price, on top of NEVER upgrading any of the equipment, on top of reducing maintenance leaving the parks dirty and worn down Note: I'm ok with older equipment, but like anything it needs to be maintained which they don't do, so little to no maintenance and never replaced 3.) Employees are treated like shit. Example One: we couldn't clock in while getting make up done for acting or until we were at our kitchen location despite needing to walk across the park which often takes fifteen to thirty minutes depending on how busy it was, and before we left our kitchen or acting station we also had to clock out, meaning a half hour to an hour of your time could be spent at the park while not being paid, though while you were still on the premises you were expected to help guests, even if you're on break and you work the entire time helping a guest it still counts as your break! Example Two: They refused to take care of the Employee Parking lot which was made of dirt and due to poor maintenance, it was not uncommon for employee's cars to get damaged getting in and out due to potholes, rocks, broken glass, etc and no way to report or be compensated for said damage Note: there was a lawsuit against them not too long ago about the stolen time and our compensation was $23.00 when they inevitably lost the suit, I worked there every weekend during fall and all week during the summer for four years, so even when giving them the benefit of the doubt, at the very least they stole (40 days * 2 for walking in and out) = 80 * .25(15 minutes quarter of an hour spent walking through the park before and after clocking in to get in and out) = 20 hours for summer (16 days * 2) = 32 * .25 = 8 hours, so 28 hours a year, four years = 112 112 UNPAID HOURS, not even including when we'd be forced to stay late after clocking out or get threatened of being fired, which (minimum wage was 9.00/hour at that time) results in $1008.00 being stolen from high school me. So yeah, its more cost effective for them to be douchebags unfortunately. Hopefully they changed this by now, but I doubt it. My advice to anyone thinking of working at SFNE, unless they fixed the issues I listed above, don't work there. They'll treat you like shit, rob you of time you should be on break or paid for, work you like a dog, and right you up when they don't call you in but wanted you in and then you have to prove they're wrong and it takes three weeks robbing you of working for the season to save up for college or a laptop.
It's strange that I've seen almost identical issues at my job...but I don't work at a theme park. But the more I hear about similar things from peers from _various_ backgrounds, the more I honestly think this is a corporate and generational issue, not the job itself
@@13Kr4zYAzN13 I think that with regards to amusement parks...... What happened was this - at the inception, apparently, they were targeted for middle class. To put it bluntly white middle class families. Since then that middle class evaporated. It looks like either tickets are way too affordable or there are some discount programs for financially challenged families of which I do not know. I believe I paid in excess or $100 per person to visit Disney World on a week day in August 2018. It was jam-packed and lines were atrocious. With August Florida heat it was something opposite of fun. We left in the middle of the day to re-enter closer to firework time and then dashed for the space mountain. Still spent about 30 minutes in the line. There is something wrong with this business. Too many people. I find $100/day ticket price to be outrageous. So I do not know how much it should cost to keep the crowds low. I certainly would not pay that price. As for 6 Flags. In Chicago I had a very reasonably priced season pass and also would visit on weekday. No crowds. It did look a bit run down, but most of the rides worked and we did not have to wait in line for more than 15 minutes. Frankly I consider 6 Flags to be a much better deal - you get straight to business, the rides and that is. In Disney World there is all this "atmosphere" that you have to "soak in". And I am not sure that kids these days even connect to all this Cinderella & Mickey Mouse thing and much of the old themed stuff.
I worked at SFNE too, I can back this up - don't forget that they make us work 12 hours shifts and only give us 1 day off basically _ever._ Screw this company. Smh.
Lived like 40 minutes from Magic Mountain in CA. Rides could be jank af at times but awesome memories. I worked for Blockbuster when they...went to live on a farm for old retail chains...and I'd hate to lose another pillar of childhood.
My bf and I love Six Flags so much, being our first date 7 years ago (high school sweethearts). We had the Diamond Elite membership 2018-2019 and let me tell you, the discounts on merchandise and food had me buying things I didn't need. That was peak of the potential for Six Flags. The park was FULL. I still have like 15 SF hoodies in my closet. For our anniversary this year, I purchased the 2023 Diamond Pass and Platinum Season FastPass for ourselves ($1k in total). This is not only a huge price jump from pre-pandemic times, but the perks themselves fall short. They even put a ONE-time use per visit of the FastPass for certain rides! This CEO's plan will destroy SF. I just hope it falls apart after 2023 so our passes don't go out in vain :(((
About 20 years ago, I worked at a cedar fair park. I took a trip to the nearby six flags, and I couldn't fathom how they were even in business. The only ride open was one of the carousels, with no signs of maintenance making an effort. The park was utterly filthy. Things that we would have gotten fired for at our park seemed to be the norm at six flags. The really sad part was that the park was a local park that was fairly well maintained prior to six flags purchasing them. Now it's abandoned.
went to six flags over texas arlington a few months ago and it was god awful. We paid for fast passes and in my recollection it was sooo pricey, like $200 each but that may be an over exaggeration. However what i do remember is the fact that the fast pass does not allow you to use it on every ride… just 5 of them. 3 of them were shut down. Employees for the other 2 weren’t aware of how it worked. Awful experience got to ride 2 rides and nothing else. Hated every moment. Felt bad my bf spent so much money and we had no prior knowledge because the people helping at the gate left out the fact the fast pass only applied to certain rides.
Raising the price without improving the product only worked before the internet existed. Now people can see photos, videos, and reviews detailing why the new price isn't worth it and make the choice to stay away *before* spending their money.
@Maddox2021 - Comedy and More Alternate It was an obvious joke, but just so you know demoing steel does give you money rather than just costing money. Scrappers pay bank for metal.
I worked at Great Adventure, '99-'07. As the 2000s progressed it got a little dicey as large groups of, um, "undesirables," would make a presence in the park. One year, I watched some rapper I never heard of get a beat down by some other rivals' boys. That same year, a New York spanish station had some big concert planned and tickets were sold. The day of, the show producers couldn't, or wouldn't, pay for the theater rental so the concert was cancelled which resulted in a little riot. I worked in cash control that year and was given a bag with over $70,000 to take to the front gate for refunds.
Got free tickets to Six Flags Great America in ‘06. We were put off by the high parking fee. But worse was the astronomical prices for water and subpar food like tepid, cardboard like “pizza.” I cannot imagine what the price and quality of their food is now. And $40 to park?! Forget about it! The kids were not impressed. The kids NEVER asked about Six Flags. It just never came up. When an amusement park can’t impress kids, they’re done.
I think the biggest issue with Six Flags is that at the end of the day, it's an amusement park heavily geared towards rollercoaster fans and adrenaline junkies. This is a niche product that is in a genre that NEEDS constant attendance. Worse is that it essentially locks away a major demographic these products need, families, children, and people who aren't adrenaline junkies/rollercoaster fans. That means Six Flags locked out a major chunk of revenue and essentially can't charge as much as, say, Universal, Disney, Knotts, etc. So yeah, since the parks decided to remain focused on it's niche, it needed to do a lot more than just have rollercoasters to keep people coming back on a regular basis.
I was just thinking this. My family went to Six Flags a lot when i was a kid because my mom got free (or discounted, i don't remember) tickets from her job. I was the youngest and Soft(TM) so i largely prefered the baby rides and the calmer rides. I started to enjoy the coasters more as i got older, but i never became an enthusiast so i've never had the desire to return to (and pay for) the park as an adult. When i think of walking around my local six flags, i just remember the big flat concrete walkway. Having stone or brick walkways would do wonders for the atmosphere, especially if they added more green spaces.
Six Flags isn’t meant to be like Disney or Universal, it’s meant to be all about the rollercoasters and if Six Flags drifts away from that aspect of their parks, it’s gonna die! First Toys R Us, now Six Flags!
@@wanderer34 I know it's not, but you ignored that I stated that because it's geared heavily towards a very niche crowd, it's never gonna be that successful unless they drastically change it to be more appealing to families (meaning far less thrill rides and more family oriented attractions that everyone can enjoy). You're not gonna get anywhere close to the numbers Disney and Universal has, ESPECIALLY if you raise the prices on something that is not an experience, but what is essentially cheap thrills. The owners of Six Flags are ignoring this and in turn are gonna lead Six Flags to shut down because they're just not gonna be able to get the amount of guests needed to make it even slightly successful.
Sad.. I’ve lived in Arlington my whole life and it’s sad watching a place I spent so much time as a child/teen just completely go to trash. Back in the 90s six flags was everything! Clean up the parks, keep up with the maintenance, and fix the horrible food!!
I went to that location last year and it seemed like it was in the same condition it’s always been. 🤷🏻♂️ My issue though is the long waits for the rides. We even bought a speed pass and it still was a long wait, not to mention the inconvenience of having to schedule your rides from the speed pass. The problem is DFW metro is growing fast, but the park remains the same size. And there are no real competitors.
@@lastname-Nm Man aint that the truth. I remember when the Wild Waves up here in WA did just that, it was Enchanted Village on one side and Wild Waves on another. PERFECT park. THEN came the buyout of Six Flags. DOWNHILL from there. Will be sad if the entire park closes... It is definitely not the same, the upkeep and cleanliness is definitely something that should alone be addressed..
It’s completely surreal to see a vid about a park that I drive by nearly everyday. As a local, I can say someone should let the new ceo that the best superficial improvement they could make is to spruce up the ‘behind the scenes,’ employees only areas many of which are unfortunately in full view of everyone driving on interstate-30. From that viewpoint, the park presents as a rust-buckety, trailer park-ish mess, true story. This area is where they would get the most bang for their buck in aesthetic improvements, it’s the ultimate version of curb appeal. First impressions mean everything, write that down.
Loved six flags so much! Used to go from school a couple of times. Went to magic mountain last year and it was the worst experience i've ever had on a theme park. Covid had to do with it but i spent over 2 hours trying to get my flash pass bracelet and i was only able to ride like 5 rides during the whole day 😭
I remember seeing Six Flags over Texas decline in real-time. Every time I go there it just looks worse and worse. It makes me really sad, especially when I hear my mom talk about when the park was new and she used to go with her family.
Yeah I remember they came out with the new Harley Quinn ride six Flags Arlington, and like not even a year later they shut it down permanently. Got to ride it once and it was sick
Guest experience is really what’s killing them as a company. I was a season ticket holder for years but had an experience so bad I don’t feel safe going back. Back in 2018 me and my son went to six flags America and they were having issues checking visitors into the park. We stood outside of the gates for an hour and a half, once we finally got inside they had to shut down the water park. Everyone in the park rushed for the drink stands all at once. My son who was only 3 ended up passing out, I started crying and panicking and no employees helped at all, I had the push him in his stroller all the way across the park to the first aid center.
Haven't been to SF over Georgia since 2019 but i remember how it looked. Paint has gotten old plant life under maintained. They could use a remodel and pretty the place up. Maybe in the process make it a bit more themed, not disney level, but you shouldn't be able to see the parking lot from the park. Went to busch gardens this summer and just having that immersion ups the experience of being there even when some of the rides were closed and lines long
I used to go to Six Flags Magic Mountain about twice a year from the mid 80's to late 90's. The atmosphere was great, place was clean. I returned with my kids in 2014 and the place seemed like at been taken over by carnies.
Ive always loved six flags, its so sad to see this happen. Why can’t rich people just let poor people have things? Six flags is a great amusement park, and there isnt anything wrong with being marketed towards people who can’t afford disneyland, I’ve been a loyal attendee of six flags since I was 6 lol, but I can’t afford to go anymore and I used to try to go a couple times a year. I went to six flags for my 8th grade field trip, for many birthdays and friends birthdays, and many other celebrations. I love roller coasters, so really, if six flags isnt the affordable option with an exhilarating experience anymore, I’ll go somewhere else. It seems like everyone else will too.
The prices outpaced the experience, park size, shows and features, rides and amenities by a huge margin starting back in mid 90s. Someone else said it right when they said the number of side shows and park costume characters, took a HUGE dive, then they made a big booboo by wholesaling season passes at a super cheap price causing the lines to be ridiculous. The food prices where as much as the park tickers lol. I personally haven't been to a Six Flags in over 20 years and I live right up the road from them in San Antonio lol
I worked as an entertainment technician at Six Flags Over Texas for the 2009 park season. Had a lot of good times doing it. But I will say it was pretty obvious to the staff that a shit storm was on the rise to the employees.
This CEO looks like the kinda guy that’s never ridden a roller coaster in his life and couldn’t tell the difference between Batman: The Ride and The Joker.
About a month ago I went to Six Flags and immediately went on a rollercoaster which broke down mid-ride. Naturally, this was an unsettling experience. When I spoke to a manager about my concerns, they were very condescending and unempathetic. They literally said "I can't account for your feelings". I left feeling 3 inches tall. This place is nowhere near where it used to be and I can definitely see it's going down hill.
Sounds like a toxic work environment. Employees are barely being payed if at all, I assume. They're the kinds to say "I'm sorry you feel that way." That phrase is almost always an indicator of a toxic relationship.
The issue is that they are tired of hearing it. Every F'n person at the park believes their opinion is unique and important and needs to be heard and you can bet it's neither unique and certainly not important at the time. The employee working on the ride isn't at fault, they can't do a damn F'n thing for you at the time. Their only concern is getting people off safely and getting the ride back up and running for all the other people still waiting. Your self important complaint is irrelevant to all their other current duties at the time and only serves to slow progress down. If you have a complaint, take it to the offices where there are legit people there to take down your complaint.
actually if i remember correctly, supervisors are encouraged to offer a courtesy pass to anyone on a ride when it breaks down, but that depends on how bad the incident was. So technically some customer concerns of that type are their concern. not that I'd expect them to actually care about and adhere to that tho
@@hughjanus7589 No, it's not the concern of anyone currently working at the ride whose duty is to get the ride functional again. They don't have time to listen to everyone complain, that's what the office is for.
We visited a Six Flags on Labor Day weekend and half of the rides, shops, restaurants, and attractions weren’t even open. Most of the employees looked miserable. It was a massive waste of money and time to go. In the past we’ve stayed nearby and visited half the park one day and the rest the next. We didn’t even stay the full day this time. We ran out of things to do and we’re hungry.
Funny enough, 9 mins in shows the Mr freeze ride at six flags over Texas, last time I rode that the lines were terrible, and when the train went back into the tunnel to go back into the station I could smell a very sugary scent (which I immediately recognized because I have an old car) which is the smell of coolant burning a little too much. Unsurprisingly the ride was closed within the next 10 minutes for overheating maintenance.
Disney’s biggest victory is their name brand. They have brain washed buyers who still haven’t learned. Disney has declined heavily since 2015. The better experiences right now with high caliber staff, food, and rides are parks like Dollywood and Universal Orlando in my opinion.
lol Seriously? The food was about as good a what you get a Country Buffet or Golden Corral. ...Actually that's kind of offensive to Country Buffet and Golden Corral. It's far worse. It's more like the stuff at any buffet that's been under the heat lamps all day drying out but 10x the price. And why people especially adult love Disney is beyond me. It's one of the worst companies out there yet its fans turn a blind eye to how horrible the are.
Food quality was garbage at Cedar Point the time I went. Even the Cinnabon was stale. The chicken strips were subpar, but still edible I guess. Big money for garbge. These parks need to focus more on easier stuff to manage like hot dogs. Hot dogs are extremely easy and the best park food you can have. Put hot dog stands at every friggin intersection and ride location in the park and watch the money flow. Most people just want good tasting nourishment and hot dogs provide that. Cheap to buy, cheap to cook and maintain freshness and good profits and most everyone likes a good hot dog. Easy to carry and eat while walking. Forgot all the pizza and chicken and fish and all that other nonsense that is 10x the effort to cook and maintain.
this is the truth, 9 times outta 10 me and the boys are hitting up the McDonald’s or dennys by magic mountain, but I’ll go to knotts all the time just for the food
I remember Six Flags Astroworld fondly, the only thing that remains standing is the bridge that goes over the 610 loop. Especially since in junior high the entire school used to go once a year. Given it closed in 2005, the only thing that really comes to mind in those last few years is the lack of maintenance and the impression that it became a giant glorified weekend daycare rather than an amusement park.
Lots of gang activity too. It just wasn't a safe place. Astroworld was the absolute best six flags park too!! Probably because it wasn't originally a 6 flags park it was originally family owned and they nailed all the fun themed stuff. I was born in the 80s and grew up in the 90s so Astroworld was everything back then! Man, I miss that place. 6 flags has screwed up so much.
Astroworld in Houston, TX was awesome back in the 80s and 90s when I was a kid. Fun place. Sad when it closed. Many fun times there. Wish it was still there and going.
Lot of good memories at Six Flags. Feels like a world that doesn't really exist anymore. The theme parks of the future will all be in the virtual space. RIP humanity (unless you escape to the rural space and start kicking ass).
We grew up having season passes to 6 flags over texas as kids. It was the highlight of our summers to go ride the rides multiple times a week there and at hurricane harbor. It’s been massively disappointing to watch their demise. Many of the rides I was excited to ride again are now consistently broken. And do not appear to ever have repairmen working on them. All of the times I went in the last year, the Joker ride has been broken and closed, among several others. The food/drinks are very expensive. And the park grounds don’t seem to be very well maintained. With a noticeable lack of employees working the park. It’s lost all of its appeal to me. Coming from someone that loves roller coasters, it’s been sad to watch their downfall
This guy is such an idiot at such a high level of incompetence that if I was that board of directors I would make sure he could never become a ceo of any other company ever again in his life because that's how dangerously stupid he is.
@@ffwast well, you either lead by executive or committee, and the history of business is that committees suck at developing comprehensive strategies in actionable time frames - and we won’t even get into lack of performance ownership. You need someone with solid experience and have their personal compensation be high stakes for the decisions they make to ensure focus and accountability. It’s not like in the past few hundred years alternative approaches weren’t tried.
That’s why Hershey park was always magical when I was younger. I lived an hour away and went all the time with my parents and sister. The rides were a main attraction but looking back on it the best part was the amazing park itself, so so many different things to do. As a 21 year old I would 100% still go with friends, it’s a great place.
That's because Hershey personifies the phrase "Jack of all trades, master of none." but it also has the advantage of being privately owned and using its brand.
I agrée! We went to Hershey Park for the first time this last summer. It was a fantastic introduction to roller coasters for my 11 year old daughter. Clean, good food and very well maintained.
The price increase is absolutely insane when there have been no improvements to the parks. You use to be able to pay 60-70$ and get a season pass which gave you access to all parks for the year. Now if you want a season pass with access to all the parks, you have to pay 250$ for the highest tier diamond pass.
Living 30 minutes away from Six Flags Over Texas, it was a STAPLE for my childhood. Birthdays, holidays, basically any excuse my parents could make so we could go. You used to be able to bring coke cans to the park for discounts on tickets, and there were times when I would just stand in the glass making shop for hours just watching them make the little glass figures while my sister would stand in line for rides I didn't like. I haven't gone back in years because of the prices. We drove by a few days ago and I watched as one of the roller coasters went by only carrying 3 or 4 people. It's pretty depressing to see something from my childhood just slowly die like this.
Me and my family went to Six flags over texas a few years back while vacationing in Texas: it was a good time that was cut short. But got on the big rides which was nice
We went about a month ago. Half the rides were closed, but it was nice to get on all the open coasters really fast. They also found my wallet under one of the coasters and called me the next day to let me know. Nice employees, but sad to see them not get the what they deserve, i.e. better rides, etc.
Cedar Fair by far is just better at managing their parks and just overall bringing a better guest experience to their parks. Plus, all their huge parks: Cedar Point, Kings Island, Carowinds, Canada's Wonderland, and Knotts' Berry Farm are all profit makers for them, and those parks do exceptionally well. Heck, Knotts' Berry Farm does over 6 million guests annually and Canada's Wonderland is the 2nd most visited at around 3.96 million (2019 figures). So clearly, Cedar Fair is smarter with their business strategies and money, and they are conservative when they need to be. So it's no wonder why their stock price is higher, they're able to gain more income from less parks, and that their attendance numbers are just going up way more.
Totally agree. They struggled in 2021, but have bounced back tremendously this year. They did this even while the revenue from Canada’s Wonderland was being slashed due the current weakness of the Canadian dollar vs the US dollar.
@@AttractionIdeas I don't want Six Flags to go away completely, but looking at the bigger picture, I can't really see myself wanting to visit a Six Flags park. Like why visit Six Flags Magic Mountain and Six Flags Discovery Kingdom, over like California's Great America or Knotts' Berry Farm, despite Magic Mountain having great rides.
The main 6 Flags park I went to growing up (Great Escape) wasn’t always run by 6 Flags - it was bought by them when I was like 7 years old in 2001. So maybe it will go back to how it was when I was a little kid.
My parents actually met while working at Six Flags Over Texas, so I owe my very existence in part to that park. We went there all the time as kids, and it was always magical to me, especially given how important it is to our family history. Seeing it now almost makes me want to cry with how far it's fallen. I love that park, and I really hope that they can pull through and become something amazing again.
@@mobetterent.gamerzunited2529 They most likely won’t go out of business, but don’t be surprised if they start selling off some of their properties. This is far from the first time Six Flags has dug themselves into a financial hole.
I went to Six Flags ATL the day before they switched to a weekend only schedule. It was great because there were fewer people, but it was also bad because the place looked abandoned
We took our kids to Six Flags over Texas last year. I was disappointed in the low number of rides actually open. There wasn't that much attendence to be such a beautiful day. It was the same park we took them to about 8 years ago and it looks like night and day in comparison to people. I really think it's the higher prices.
I concur 100% . Last visit to SF Magic Mountain, the park was full of mean muggers with the long shorts and high socks, jumping lines and daring you to say something. Dirty bathrooms and long waits. Oh, and the stabbing in the parking lot was the icing on the cake.
@patrickholland4708 Can NO ONE SAY ANYTHING with some idiot saying you were being racist?!?! So WHAT he said mean muggers? So WHAT? In your definition, all mean muggers are black people so therefore we can’t talk about them and point out that there are dangerous people at that park because they are probably black? So yeah, let’s just ignore very important facts because someone MIGHT BE BLACK?
I had similar experience at 6 Flags in Dallas a year ago, even my credit card info got stolen at the parking payment booth. I didn't risk going to the bathroom though, so giving them benefit of the doubt on that one.
you cant be a park primarily targeted to families who cant afford places like disney...and raise prices at a time where the middle class is actively dying out
The middle class is NOT dying out. Take your false marxist propaganda and spew it somewhere else.
@@MrBaden77 found the boomer
@@cocopie9971 how are they a boomer? Are you solely Judging by their correct statement that the middle class has been shrinking over the last 50 years in a coordinated effort to create a desperate plentiful multi-job dependent lower class? Boomers were responsible for this, practice reading comprehension
@@hntrsmoke8664 the middle class IS dying out. You misinterpreted my response.
@@MrBaden77 lol that's just economics my dude 😂
As an EX six flags employee, I will say these parks are very disfunctional. They are poorly maintained and management keeps cutting budget to the point where all you can do is go on rides and that's it. So if a ride breaks down for a few hours, there is no entertainment or shows to go watch while the get the ride up an running again. If you got to universal or Busch Gardens even Disney, they spend millions a year on entertainment. They need to stop building rides, and fix up what they already have. 1. hire landscaper to gut the old and plant new, creatively. 2. hire entertainment maybe even celebrity appearances for addition cost. 3. start park opening and/or park closing shows IE, water, lights lasers, fireworks 4. pay for music licensing for park music, ensure park speakers are working. 4 clean up rides, repaint them, update some visuals, nothing cheesy. if you do all this, people will return.
We must save this company!
Floats need repairs and some need new speakers. Uprising has been having issues with floats breaking down less than half way through the show. But in general Entertainment needs some TLC. Employees are also tense and stressed out asf because of how many ppl he’s laid off. I’m afraid this is going to lead to burnt out employees and a hostile working environment. My boyfriend and I have many concerns about six flags. He’s completely convinced it’s already got one foot in the grave.
Welcome to the great reset. They think you will just keep giving money (not just here) without getting the service.
I grew up with six flags Great adventure in the 90s and early 2010s, and it was always the same place whenever I went back which is not a good thing. The park feels so dated like you have solid plate glass windows acting as walls for your arcade which is in a circus tent roof building. I like keeping some of the history around but some of it just does not look good to the public. They need to stop doing themed rides to superheroes, instead of licensing it from DC, just come up with a new unique theme for each Batman ride and save yourself some money. Put the money back into the park.
Great ideas
In it's early days Six Flags was a completely different experience, much closer to Disney. There were actually a lot of musical, comedy, action, etc. shows at Six Flags, so like Disney you could take a break between rides, rest, and cool off. The employee to guest ratio and the park and cleanliness was close to Disney. They would greet you walking around and it felt like a real theme park. But that changed long before even the current downfall, and by the 90's it was pretty much all about the rides. Companies sometimes lose sight of what brought them success trying to make an extra 10%, and then have trouble getting back to it.
And as a customer, the idea of them getting by with fewer employees running rides doesn't give me a great feeling about safety being a priority.
I just said I’m not going back because of the idea of there being fewer employees …
In the beginning, the parks were owned by the Wynne family. They wanted parks that took the idea of Disney but were closer and more affordable. I agree, it was a great place to visit back then!! I spent many days there as a teen and young adult. However, when the parks were sold to the group who ran Warner Bros, it all went downhill. It became all about the money, selling the branded merchandise, and the personal "family" atmosphere was washed away by corporate greed
social media ruined it. kids/teens/adults do nothing but glue their hands to their phones sigh
@@NICKI814 it's not that, after the pandemic, the place died off. Social media posting did help them gain more guests. But with the park's history with retarded fights with dumb reasons killed off the fun for everyone else. Those fights made fright fest boring
It never occured to me as a child the things that would change as we grew up. Nearly everything from my childhood memories has closed and become only nostalgia. You don't think about these things until you're older. Although we don't go back to these places, they are places we love to see the next generation enjoy. It's scary knowing how fast life passes us up. Always be thankful for today, and remember every day is a memory, so make it a great memory to be had.
💯
Places closing actually late is nostalgia. I'm currently in a half hour line for the one drive thru place actually opened past midnight for my drink. 😑
It doesn't have to be like this. Vote right.
Honestly, all the things I enjoyed when I was younger have been or are currently being ruined by corporate greed and the pursuit of short-term profits at the expense of the consumer. This is no different.
Would never argue the contrary.
It's simple. Bring back Mr. Six.
I don't really know why they haven't yet. Considering how much nostalgia dominates this day and age, it seems like a no brainer to bring him back to drum up interest in people who remember visiting the parks as a kid.
I think the president of Six Flags should dress up as Mr Six. 🤡
@Maddox2021 - Comedy and More Alternate fax
Nope. ...referring to Mr. Bassoul not Mr. Teeson.
I’ve never even been to a Six Flags park, but any and every time I hear We Like to Party I automatically think of the party bus.
this past summer i took my girlfriend to six flags over texas and when i tell you it was one of the worst things that we could've done. there were multiple rides closed, a worker told me it was due to the "lack of staff". what makes me mad is that i paid for tickets to ride ALL the rides not a FEW of the rides.
The lack of staff issue is actually true. Partially the problem that has caused Six Flags to go downhill. For the longest, Six Flags underpaid and overworked their employees. They would hire people from Southern American countries to get around any employee complaints over the crap wage.
It’s all now catching up to them. In a way they brought this on themselves.
Hope u didnt take it out on the worker
lmfao around that time I also went to six flags over texas and the first ride I had ever ridden there broke immediately
@@thecritter519 i didn't. i didn't even say anything to them about it. in fact, i told them that my job was low on workers as well.
@@bepsi_wav8594 crazy. what ride was it?
We stopped going to Six Flags Atlanta years ago. It was totally unsafe for families. The park was overrun with unruly teens. They were cutting lines, yelling profanities, starting fights, etc. No security in the park itself. All of the security staff were just milling around the entrance area.
The rides were primarily operated by teens who were more interested in their cell phones than in actually checking that the guests were safely strapped in. We got off three rides before they started due to the staff not checking that everyone was secured in the seats. I complained to a person that looked like some sort of a supervisor and was told to leave if I didn't like what was happening. We did, and never looked back.
Correction: "The park was overrun with unruly BLACK teens".
@@neilm7902 Really? So rebellious white teenagers don’t exist then?
@@neilm7902 tf does that have to do with this
@@neilm7902 let me guess,, your a proper white person who married your 3rd cousin..🤣
Oh boy, here we go.
Went to six flags for possibly the last time this year. got tickets free from work for me and the wife. We were shocked to find out that parking had been raised to $40 dollars (I think 60 for preferred parking). Inside the park was pretty much empty. I was able to ride every major coaster before lunch (the ones that were open anyway). This was nice since that's the only reason I come to the park, however there was a strange dystopian vibe from the emptiness of the park that made me want to leave as soon as I was done riding the coasters.
I know the feeling. It's sad watching videographers sneak into closed parks. You can hear the kids laughing and playing, so much excitement. The smells, sights and sounds. I'm old and went to at least a couple cirsus' when I was young. There are no more big tops. 😢
40 dollars for parking??? wtf...
Parks like this are in decline in general due to the dwindling middle class. Unfortunate, but true.
@Tee Grizzle Hopefully you're just trolling as this is the internet, but this implies a falsehood and assumes no responsibility on the end of the business owners.
1.) Covid wasn't invented or "created" by anyone, it is a disease type which has new variants pop up occasionally via evolution.
2.) Despite Covid Six Flags has been having difficulties as of late anyway. Even pre covid the parks we're often dirty, unkept and overall with occasional exceptions, not a great experience.
@Tee Grizzle Oh look... a racist.
He fired people I worked with who had been with the company over TWENTY YEARS with little to same-day notice of termination. Absolutely ridiculous and killing the company from the inside out.
Maybe he owns Disney stock?
Companies all ways go after long term employees so they don’t have to pay benefits
@@lavonnethompson4355 school districts do this, too.
His golden parachute is worth FAR more than what he's got going now, apparently.
@@sana-cm7oc lol
Six flags is trying to pull a Disney but they fail to understand one major thing.... DISNEY IS NOT PLAYING THE AMUSEMENT PARK GAME. Disney is selling the Disney experience... no one can compete with that experience... it's its own entire thing.
Yes the experience of line waiting for test track for 4 and a half hours, ah yes love Disney.
@@Jushwa not sure if that's sarcasm or delusional, but the numbers speak.
The people have entirely different expectations between the 2, and they ARE flocking to Disney for what they offer and do well.
Six Flags, can't even do its own thing properly and for some mind boggling reason think they can compete with whats essential a God, while they are just the middling homeless man that everyone sorta minds.
@@Jushwa yes the Disney experience where they put the effort into making sure every little detail matters to said area of the park/ ride that really helps the magic of Disney come to life. The lines r worth the wait id say as you see a lot in said rides, and from there makes you want to wait again to see if you can spot something new the next time you ride. If you don’t wanna wait, just get the fast past. Disney has more entertainment then major rides to waste your time on. Keeps you entertained. The Disney Experience y’all, we’re keeping your guest happy actually is put into play.
Your correct
BEST COMMENT on this video!
This may be something exclusive to me but, part of the fun and excitement of going to a huge park like Six Flags or anything like that is seeing so many other people also being excited to have fun with their friends and family too. It's no wonder his strategy failed. A lot of people probably agree or feel similar. I also vaguely remember the teenage girl getting both her feet severed. So, if rides aren't safe, prices are high, and no ones there, what exactly IS the entire point of going? It would feel depressing just being there, even more so when you get on a roller coaster and no ones there to scream and put their hands up with you.
My family of 4 have had a membership to Six Flags for over 7 years. In the beginning we would make the 45 min drive to Magic Mountain about once a month. For a couple of years we even had the food passes for me and my wife that gave you lunch and snack, then dinner and snack at around $80 each for the year. This was great because between the 4 of us we could all eat during each visit and it paid for itself in 2 visits because the price of the food was crazy. Then it just got worse, less options for meals and half of the places you could choose from would be closed. Huge lines to order in the places that are open because there are only 2 of the 8 registers open and 65% of the people in line just want a drink refill.
The heat in CA is really the killing factor for Magic Mountain. It's built in the desert, so you think they would have plenty of shade for the guests that are waiting 1 to 3 hours in line for a ride.. nope! It's just gotten worse, as they build more rides it feels like less thought goes into how they are going to funnel guest to it. Trees and areas that used to be great places to relax and stay cool have been removed and replaced with concrete.
The staff has just gotten bitter it seems over the past few years. They are not taken care of by the company and they pass that distain for their employer directly on to the guest. It's really rare to find anyone working at the park that really cares that the guest are the people that are the reason for their paycheck.
We only go about 2 or 3 times a year now, and it's not during the summer.
Haven't been to Hurricane Harbor in years. It's extremely overcrowded and dirty. The last time we did go we were there for about 5 hours and were only able to ride 2 of the rides, and the lazy river was practically shoulder to shoulder.
It's just not enjoyable anymore. The events that used to be good are now just a money grab. Fright Night used to be fun until they started charging extra for the mazes. The only good thing about it now is being able to ride Tatsu in the dark, if its running, and if it's not a 3 hour wait...
Writing all this out has really made me second guess why I still pay for these passes...
I honestly would rather drive 2 hours to go to Knotts where they still have shows and an atmosphere that feels welcoming, and way better food...
Couldn't have said it better, that is exactly correct. Spot on.
You're from Bakersfield huh
We went to knotts last fall over six flags. The roses looked scary/unsafe from a distance. Knotts definitely still has that family entertainment atmosphere
Since they've stopped offering new memberships, if you cancel the ones you have, they're gone forever. So there's that. They do still honor the ones they sold in the past, with all the benefits. So if they can survive to the next CEO, or get bought out, maybe things will change for the better.
They need an advisory committee made up of guests who are local to each park, that makes suggestions applicable to that park. Ideally, it would be made up of people who, like those of us commenting on this video, have been going to the park for a long time and remember what it was like in the "good old days". At least one member of the board of directors should attend each committee meeting, along with that local park's management, so that they too can learn what each park's truest fans find important.
Over Texas seemed to be heading in that direction with "The Pirates of Speelunker Cave" but though it just opened this past year, it was closed when we went to Holiday in the Park so I still haven't gotten to ride it.
@@yourenotthere I know this is kind of off-topic, but I feel like after Covid the whole Six Flags chain has went downhill.
If Six Flags goes out of business I’d love to see a new company (not Cedar Fair or any other preexisting group) swoop in and buy the liquidated parks and bring them back to life. I feel like we’re long overdue for a new take on theme parks!
Elon Musk might buy them
Well said, if so, then that’s what needs to be done, this place if ghetto af
Would be to expensive this is a fleeting business taken over by Disney and a few others. Close the doors and call it quits 🤣
@@lifthill3819 the amount of deaths hed now be responsibke for😶
Cedar Fair is working though let’s be honest - ANYONE is better than now.
The last time I went to six flags it wasn't too bad. They had these incredible murals made of chewing gum stuck onto all the trees that you can look at while you wait for the ride. And the lucky people on the superman ride got to be on it for almost an hour.
Totally underrated comment lol
😂👍
I was on that line for 2 hours last year
Had us in the first half ngl
This is the six flags experience
I spent $325 with my kids to attend Great Adventures this year. What I saw since I last visited back in 2016 was the park was mostly the same and less value. New rides were boring or not interesting at all. It had become a teenager hangout place and most of the value is pushed towards paying for meal plans instead of building on the park’s experience. We won’t be back again unless a major upgrade to their theme experience.
So you wouldn't suggest going then? Thought of going next summer.
2 Words: BAD MANAGEMENT!! I live in Houston and Six Flags owned Astroworld which had been here since 1965. The management closed down the park in 2005 and told everyone that the land was more valuable than the use as an amusement park. Really, so they tore it down and now 17 years later there sits the vacant land. Good management would have tried to keep a park open in a metro area like Houston (over 5 million people and growing. Disgusting! And you know what several parks have opened here since they pulled out and these new parks are doing fine crowds and profits....
Maybe it’s because I grew up at Hershey, but Hershey park is still one of the greatest singular parks I’ve ever seen, I’d love if you ever did a video on how well it preforms, the shows, the rides, the friendly atmosphere, the Halloween and Christmas stuff they have.
I love Hershey: Clean, well managed, cute.
I used to go there every summer as a kid.
I went to Hershey once and loved it
the problem with lost customers is that once they are lost.. it is VERY difficult to get them back, especially when you don't actually change anything for a couple years
And just like these comments, which are good to have, word of mouth is still king when it comes to advertisement. Thank you for the heads up.
I find it an interesting study that numerous high profile individuals demonstrate less common sense in their leadership roles than do random people on RUclips. And that's not sarcasm. I've seen a RUclips commenter post film ideas that were better than the movie a major studio released in an established franchise. I've seen people online demonstrate more intelligence than highly paid political commentators. Six Flags leadership team could have literally sat in a conference room and watched content creators and gleaned their good ideas and the results would have been more productive than hiring a new CEO and going with conventional corporate methods.
And it would have been free advice.
@@matthewmosier8439 Thing is, SIX maxed out at $70 in 2018 ($65 for most of the year) and then backslid for the first year since 2010, with the 2019 share price at $55. Pandemic then dumped the price to $20 in 2020, with a climb back to $45 in 2021. Now to the Board, that 2018-2019 backslide was probably worrying because it meant they couldn't continue to do what they did from 2010-2018. They had that seed of doubt planted before the pandemic. After the pandemic crash and the return to $45, that seed would have grown and they'd be asking themselves "what if the stick never gets back to $70 because we're not doing enough?" That kind of doubting moment, where people are looking for direction, is when people are vulnerable. In comes this guy with The Direction; he says with full confidence that if they implement his changes, they'll not only undo the pandemic losses but reverse the slide and get back to or above $70/share. His confidence will offset that doubt and they'll go with him.
That's the thing - if a company is doing well, they have no incentive to change. If they're not doing well, they just need the right person in the right place at the right time to push them another way. Marvel, for example, has been printing money for a while so it was unlikely that they were to go a change-up. First change-up they did was after Thor 2 flopped; they did a tonal 180 and Thor 3 and Thor 4 became comedies. Second change-up was after Endgame because the actors were aging up and aging out. X-men had already tried just rebooting their own series and that wasn't successful, so just doing Avengers 2.0 wasn't the way forward. So they introduced the canonical miniseries, which took the place of some movies and gave their creative talent more to do since they weren't constrained to a 2-hour movie format. In related but non-Marvel media we can even see a change-up fail if we know where to look: the Josh Trank Fantastic Four movie. Fantastic Four was a dead property at Fox, so the decided to change-up with an indie sci-fi director to do an adaptation of the Ultimates storyline (from when the comics basically did a reboot of the old origin story). This went poorly, the studio tried to step in to save it after focus groups panned it, that made it worse, and the movie flopped. Fantastic Four went dead again until Fox was sold to Disney and Disney made their own version for the MCU.
@@ajjdgj6tmgedvnmtmek You make some good points. I appreciate you doing a deeper dive into the subject because it got me interested in digging into what I thought about it, more.
I just keep returning to the fact that proximity to money and power is a blinding situation for a person to live in. The mental restrictions of having to live with peer pressure from very powerful people can be destructive to common sense, I think. I agree, in the context you gave, a new CEO's bad idea, if packaged with the proper "energy" would definitely have been tempting to a grouo who had just ridden out the pandemic.
That said, I think you are seeing, also, the bad ideas which have been growing under the surface of corporations for years, finally coming out in more recent days. Basically, a lot of corporate minds were steeped in Commie propoganda all through their university days. This is especially true of CEOs from old money who come from the demographic which supplies the bulk of hyper-progressivism's radicals. They think ESG scores and China are going to take over the world soon (an idea which I believe they went with way early and which will wind up reseting political things a few decades into the past, very soon) This mindset of an elite wealthy class (maybe the top 30% or so of the American public) tempts CEO's, including at places like Disney, to cater only to that group of people, something which involves raising prices and essentially limiting accessibility for everybody else.
Anyway, this has just been my observation of the world at large, during and since, the pandemic. The wealthy think that their time has come to destroy the cruise industry, theme parks, etc. All of the lower cost things that common people utilize to enjoy their lives.
It wasn’t even price in my area. It was the gangs and lack of security. You’d go to the park just to get cut by well a gang of people. We had yearly stabbing and the place was a dump. Middle class families never had the chance. Once you lose customers, it’s extremely hard to get them back.
Just went to Six Flags over Georgia this past month and it was a nightmare. I've always gone to my hometown's park Dollywood, and I've been to Carowinds a few times. Carowinds is significantly cleaner, better ran, and the employees didn't seem miserable. SFOG was one of the worst park experiences I've ever had; long waits, rude staff (probably exhausted), bad food, and the bathrooms were disgusting. I felt like I was a RollerCoasterTycoon NPC that had a big frowny face. Also, majority of the coasters at SFOG were closed down. It was clear weather, and about 60 degrees, so I *heavily* doubt it was the weather.
I agree with you. It’s sad what happened to this park. I pretty much grew up going to this park and it is for sure ruined.
but other than that, it was probably the best day of your life, right?
lol jk Ive never been to a six flags so I have no idea.
It's Atlanta what do you expect. Atlanta is a giant hood
That's so unfortunate. I used to finally the time and it wasn't always great but it was definitely not that awful... I really hope it doesn't close forever
Agreed 6flags in GA sucks. I've been to most of the parks in Florida (Disney, Epcot, universal, island of adventure, busch gardens, etc)and six flags was a complete disaster. You can even compare the parks. The ones in FL are far superior overall.
Saving Six Flags isn't even hard. It bothers me that they bring in these CEOs who can't figure this out, when someone like me can.
It's so simple: stop focusing on only THRILLS and start building out EXPERIENCES. make Six Flags a place where people actually want to come and spend the entire day.
More/Better shows, WAY better meet and greets, experiential landscaping, cohesive design, and merchandise that people actually WANT to buy and wear. Rebrand. Let's go.
In the 90s and early 2000s six flags St Louis was always packed. They had a new water park right when every other small park had closed. They had 3 new DC themed rides(superman, batman, joker) one of which had a mirror clone at universal Orlando. There were rock climbing walls tucked between rides, old west style storefronts where you could dress up and get pictures taken, an amphitheatre where at least 6 shows played daily and outside acts performed regularly. Every area had flavor actors but the medieval area was always packed with extras doing a year round ren-fair. At Halloween hundreds of extras would be hired and haunted houses would open up that smashed every local competitor. Some rides did date back to the 40s but they were well-maintained and people around here loved having older and smaller rides between the new and huge coasters. Kids and adults had plenty to choose from and there was also a kid specific area on top of the rides that were just out of date. At Christmas they sponsored a nearby campsite partner to put up an insane drive-thru light display. They would showcase cutting edge VR technology in huge plazas with 50 plus seats and headsets in addition to having one off machines on the departure walkways for rides. The train could actually be used to navigate the park because it was just so big that people needed the break, but it'd also take you to areas that couldn't be seen on foot that had unique narratives.
Now when you go most of that is shut down. There are no extras, no random actors spouting area appropriate dialogue. No small attractions squirrelled away between rides. Nothing. Six flags St Louis was a small city in its own right. Now it's almost dead.
In the past ten years local haunted houses have far surpassed six flags in effort and execution so the old tradition of everyone going to six flags and seeing people they knew is gone. There's a dozen better, cheaper, closer options. And almost everyone over 30 working at those outside haunted houses used to work six flags, at the very least for Halloween. Even some owners got their start there.
What hurt me, and lots of other people I've spoken to, was the loss of iconic and even historic rides at the park. Those things tied generations together and now they're gone, the continuity broken.
For a couple months I worked at a machine shop in eureka, right next to the park. Some days it was still busy and afternoon traffic was a nightmare but most days I couldn't hear any rides running or any water splashing or kids yelling. It was sad and it hurt.
That place was an amusement park well before six flags came along so I hope when they fold someone local picks it up again and treats it right. Everyone in St Louis would come right back. Maybe one day soon...
I grew up going to six flags st. Louis. And I couldn't agree more. Everything that gave it character was removed in the early 2000s to make room for something that could make money. Fake Western storefronts that gave the place atmosphere were removed and food stands put in their place. Places to sit and rest in the shade were replaces with things like vending machines and snack stands. Attractions that weren't rides or food were gone, even if they made money. The park could make more money selling soda in those spots.
Last time I went I paid 6$ for a warm cup of soda bc they were out of ice and I waited 20 mins in the sun for it. And I've never gone back.
We all know these places exist to separate you from your money but there is no value to Six Flags anymore.
Very well written! As a child of the 80's, Six Flags was a yearly excursion for myself, my sister and my parents, up until my younger brothers were born. I miss all of those classic rides, like Jet Scream, Hannibarrels, Tom's Twister, Mo-MO The Monster, the too-short-lived Condor and probably several others I can't think of at the moment. And my favorite part of every excursion was getting a three-scoop ice cream cone from that First Cone place located near the front of the park. The last time I went to Six Flags was way back in 2004, and it was a very forgettable experience. I'm 43 now, and I often daydream about going back and maybe recapturing some of that old childhood magic, but too any changes in the park keep making me consider otherwise.
I worked at six flags st Louis a year before the pandemic and it was brutal. Rare days it would be packed and the rest id barely see 100. Pay was shit, they’d force me to stay over hours, management was all teens or early 20 somethings
I went to this park a ton through the 90’s and early 2000’s. It used to be packed. We went for the first time in several years this past weekend and I was amazed walking through the extremely long queue for the Boss and remembering how that line was packed with people for a very long time. We were able to walk right up and get on without a wait. I’m not complaining of course. It was nice being able to get right on every ride, but walking those extremely long queues, was part annoying/part depressing, thinking how they used to actually need them like that.
I grew up going to this park, I still miss the Scooby Doo ride.
You can't increase prices if the quality doesn't increase beyond the idea decreasing too much crowd. For some theme park goers, the idea of big crowds also is a psychological boost to show that the park is popular and where they should be.
Ride safety is THE most important aspect of these places! It doesn’t matter what the theme or the name of the ride is, if there’s ANY word of a ride being unsafe or maintenance concerns, it’s gonna be ghost town advertised by news stations
ride safety isnt really an issue (assuming they're following proper protocol issued by the ride's manufacturer which i assume they are). you're safer on the rides than you are on your drive to the park, dare i say it may just be one of the safest places to be in the park.
It could become like Action Park in the 80's and 90's. It is considered one of the most dangerous theme parks in the US.
@@GavHern The problem are human mistakes, with less staff and less training, accidents that really shouldn't happen will start popping up :/
@@MaluuhLive the ride kinda operates itself for the most part… the main problem is in maintenance, which has been hit by the staffing issues. to my knowledge, el toro at great adventure is the only ride that has been impacted by this, but that needed some major care to begin with
the apparent lack of ride safety is why I don't find thrill rides thrilling, but genuinely terrifying. and why I don't go on rides that are made to be moved, like at the fair. no thanks I'll ride the batman themed tild a whirl.
Went to Six Flags over Texas as a kid in the early 2000s. Easily my favorite theme park experience to this date. Going to theme and amusement parks nowadays just don’t compare to that golden age of Six Flags
Agreed 👍🏾
Glad I learned this. I stopped going to six flags because I couldn’t even get into the park because the lot was literally overflowing into the streets. I hope it stays like this so I can actually get on more than 2 rides a trip without getting frustrated with the waits
honestly as a 6 flags mm employee its been pretty hard on us. going from working 6 days a week 8-12 hr shifts. to only being open to 4 days… its been difficult for people trying to pay bills. they expect us to be ok working 2-3 days and expect our 100% for $16.50 an hour. but then expect us to be happy go lucky when we have 0 staffing to work the holiday season. then over work us. the company is losing employees. guests. and money.
New ride op is ot and it's been stressful trying to give guests a good experience but I want to operate multiple rides and have more rides that I can suggest to guests reliablly
Question. Did Six Flags used to close later? I see they close at 5 or 6 pm on some days and the latest they close is at 9 pm which is ridiculous! I want to experience all the rides in one day but so little time!
@@onmas909 yeahh honestly the only time we will be open later than 5 in the near future is holiday seasons/holidays….special events or weekends. the park should only be open friday-monday tho when its off season starting a couple weeks back
...that's what happens when wage minimums get hiked up in the service industries...corporate tells managers to hire a lot of people and have them all come in for just a few hours to where it looks good for PR, but gives no real living wage to the people who counted on a wage increase as a comeup..there is absolutely no company loyalty, the employees tend to do drugs in the bathrooms and breakooms, food is spitefully removed from slop buckets and served to customers they have issue with (like law enforcement during the "defund" bullshit) and it reflects in the attitudes of customers, who think nothing now of obliterating the lobbies of service establishments over a lack of ketchup....
I was at one McDonald's in a very small city that had 50 employees and a whole lot of problems and the hours and wage wouldn't cover my rent on a tiny shit apartment...
...most corporations need to get a 7 minute beatdown against a barbed wire fence, figuratively speaking....
Sheeid I flip Pattie’s for 13.50 out here in Missouri
This makes me cry - I worked at 6F Dallas in 1996 and they had all kinds of shows, mascots walking the grounds, pop-up contests and fun stuff everywhere. Those of us stuck in the caricature booths were so jealous - but this? Oh man …
you had it good
Kids didn’t have phones and went to amusement parks for fun, now it’s not that impressive anymore
@@Labyrinth6000 yes, because phones are so much more exciting than riding roller coasters....
There isn't one in Dallas.
@@backlogbuddies We called it ‘Dallas’ cuz the whole area was a blur to our guests 😁, even tho it’s in Arlington. Fiesta and Astro called us Dallas internally, too.
This is so crazy, I used to go to Six Flags Magic Mountain in L.A. and it was awesome when I was a kid (late 80s and early 90s) and I loved it. I worked at that same park later on in my early 20’s as a roller coaster mechanic and I loved that job. The amount of back systems that are in place for safety (at least at Magic Mountain) was incredible, lots of extra safety systems in place.
I grew up going to Six Flags in Eureka MO. In the '70's and '80's it was kind of a big deal. They had a nice amphitheater where I saw Jerry Lee Lewis, Merle Haggard and Blue Oyster Cult. The year they opened The Screamin' Eagle, a rollercoaster with a drop of significant depth, we waited in line for 90 minutes to ride that thing. Good times.
hard to beat Screaming Eagle
We have a water park in Phoenix formally called wet n' wild. That is until six flags took over. My family and I had season passes every year. Then comes six flags. It became quite clear that it was all about the money with no regard to the guests. For instance, there used to be a bunch of provided tubes for each ride, then all of the sudden there was almost none. They wanted you to rent their tubes. The last time we went we were there for more than 4 hours and got on 3 slides when we used to get on multiple slides per hour. Needless to say, we quit being season pass owners. The new six flags model is all about the money, and by doing so, they are screwing themselves out of it.
Same ive been going for years with my friends, its taken a major shit lately
“wet n wild” describes my ex
Wet n' wild was never good, though. It was dirty, there were always rides broken or down and it was so hot with little to no shade what so ever. It was one of the most popular and big parks around. Just got from bad to worse really.
@@aperry3869 That's all very true. It always had issues, but it was still worth the money (just barely) until six flags came along.
Wow it feels weird to see someone mention wet n wild. I literally grew up walking distance from it.
It was never great but it did have a nice family friendly vibe. Never too packed and season passes were worth it you could just kill a ton of time starting the day running Kilimanjaro and then chill in the lazy river or some shit.
Once six flags took over the first year was awesome for season passes. After that it was absolute garbage, not even worth the money to go anymore because it's packed and they still want to nickel and dime you to death. They tried to be all fancy and new but that's not what made wet n wild fun. I used to go to the mini train park right next door a lot for funsies too.
Last time I went to one of these parks it just felt… depressing. It felt empty. Felt cheap while being way too expensive.
Leftism!
I just went to SixFlags in San Antonio fright fest. It was bad ass! It was expensive but me and the kids had a blast.
The less people the better honestly no long lines
@@IceInVeins916 that's a fact 💯
I can't help but think that a large part of the hit was because we experienced a MISERABLE summer here in Texas from June through September.
👏🏾👏🏾👏🏾👏🏾👏🏾👏🏾👏🏾👏🏾
110 degree average
I remember going to Astroworld as a kid and my family complaining about the same points you just named. Six flags went to shit because their parks weren’t clean, terrible service, terrible food, and outrageous prices. Just a horrible experience all around. Especially compared to when I went to Knotts berry farm and Disney.
I wholeheartedly agree with your point about high quality rides not being enough to carry an experience. I visited Great America for the first time this summer and while their coaster lineup is elite; the abhorrent wait times, dirty atmosphere, and rude staff made it one of my least favorite days I've ever had at any park. 2 hours to ride Raging Bull with the flash pass on a Tuesday in June was where I hit my limit.
2hrs for raging bull with the flash pass should be illegal
@@GivzzProductions it felt like a total rip-off.
Elite? You must be sniffing that raging bull pack
Yeah, i'm super sorry to hear that. I guess i was lucky when I went, because the flash pass entrance was the exit for the ride, because it was less busy. The default flash pass pretty much acted like a platinum, so I could ride 5 cycles in a row and that was amazing! I don't think the staff were exceptional, but they were alright. In all, I think it depends on when you go. Sorry to hear about that.
2 hours WITH FLASH PASS dear god
I just recently cancelled my Diamond Platinum Membership (with Dining) after 5 years. This past summer was the nail in the coffin for me - half the coasters closed, rude/awful employees, terrible food, and overall a very unenjoyable experience. I’d rather just spend the extra $$ and go to Universal Orlando or to Cedar Fair parks.
I did the same at Great Adventure. Cancelled two Diamond Elite Plus and 4 Platinum (with Meal and Drink) after 5 years. They took almost every dining option away during the Summer with only basically nasty chicken tenders and dry pizza. Upcharge for fries. I won't go back unless Salim is out and Spanos hired back. Took my hard earned money and put it to 2023 Hershey Park King Size passes.
@Maddox2021 - Comedy and More Alternate Wow. Why are you so angry? I can fix the post. Did someone hurt your feelings today?😆 Your hair isn't blue and you have a nose ring do you???😆😆😆 Don't worry. The store will be getting more Soy Milk in soon.
@Maddox2021 - Comedy and More Alternate and unless you're the Perfect Human, get off your high horse. I don't mind correction or criticism, it's how it's presented. I'll see myself OUT.
I definitely agree that the food is terrible now. Immediately after I ate it I had stomach problems which also could be my problem but it never happened before.
Same. Cancelled Diamond Platinum Membership that we've had for years. They got rid of my favorite event Holiday in the Park at Great America (Gurnee/Chicago area). That was literally the only time of year I spent in the park. I still have an entire year of free "make-up" months to use in 2023 though.
I loved six flags as a kid! My dad would always take my sister and I whenever we visited my Grandma in the summer. It’s tragic to know the parks are in trouble.
Worth noting that this year, many parks in the system heavily released their Full-Time staff and supervisors. People with sometimes decades of experience in the parks. Even if somehow the parks rebound spontaneously? The service and staffing will be years behind recovering in experience and quality.
Just hilarious to hear the CEO blame gas prices and inclement weather. As of the other theme parks exist in an alternate dimension with teleportation and an absence of weather. When leaders can’t admit they’re wrong, people suffer.
God man this breaks my heart. Six flags was my life as a kid. Even planned on going this summer with my fiancé. But I literally had no idea any of this was happening until I saw this on my recommended. Man I would really hate to see this place go.
U ain't missing much. I remember back when we had a raise from 7.25 to 9. They threatened to take it back. Because some rides got sloppy with cleaning. This was back in 2017. At least the area i worked at which was Texas giant.
@@Hero5slayer it honestly isn’t even that fun anymore I am an enthusiast and live near Great America a park with the best lineup but it really isn’t that good to me
100 to 200 inner city kids with no adult supervision running around causing havoc makes me glad the shit hole is closing... And I'm being generous on the 100 to 200 numbers I'm sure it was alot more... I seen the bullshit first hand... 💯
@ACE Venture honestly the amount of times I had to call lost and found for was ridiculous. Like who tf leaves a 4 year old at the entrance of a ride for 2 hrs!
@NoContextVidoes it's the one in Arlington I worked at
Like I understand Six Flag’s CEO and wanting to reduce wait times. I myself have constantly complained about multiple hour waits or even 45 minute waits on every ride. With that being said, the problem is, I’M ALWAYS ALREADY INSIDE THE PARK WHEN I’M COMPLAINING. Like not once did I ever want to go to an amusement park and decide not to because of long lines. Usually weather, felling sick, unforeseen events, lack of money are why I wouldn’t be able to go. If a person or family wants to go to an amusement park, unless it’s one of those options above, they’re gonna go regardless. The whole line problem is faced when the tickets are purchased and they’re already inside the park. At that point as a business you won, you got the customer inside your park and with long lines they’ll probably want to look at stores in hopes of the time reducing in like an hour. Nowadays, I expect all rides to take like at least 20 minutes to get on (Besides opening, closing, or events like parades happening) and I feel many of us have come to accept it. Maybe one visit you’re lucky and find your favorite ride with a 10 minute wait but no one expects that same wait each time they go. The long wait in line is just tradition at this point so to try to have that as a selling point isn’t believable because the CEO doesn’t control how many people decide to come into the park on a day. If multiple people see quick wait times, they’ll come more possibly and more people will come until either the CEO ups the price even more, alienating whatever minimal customers are left or the same cycle of multiple hour long lines occur and that turns people away along with the expensive ticket price. Overall, just a stupid idea from a stubborn idiot who is just further proof that people with money aren’t always the brightest.
Seems like SF has been declining for years now. I’ll never forget they they did to AstroWorld. It’s heartbreaking, a lot of my childhood, especially late teen years, was spent at SF busy they can’t seem to get out of their own way.
I'm surprised you never mentioned how he was "sick and tired of Six Flags being a cheap daycare for teenagers."
@Master General girl what
@@angelzuniga3339 ignore them, conservatives do this on any video
@Master General fucking bigot chud. Your grandchildren will be brown and trans.
@@DDub04 FJB
@@DDub04Bring politics in stuff that was never political
"Rides bring people in and beautification gets them to come back."
Definitely true. It's one of the reasons Six Flags Ohio failed. They added 6 new coasters in 2 years, but spent no effort on improving the in park experience. That's why total guests increased the first year or two, but then took a nose dive. All the out of towners came, saw how badly run it was, and did not come back.
And we all know how that worked out for Geauga Lake.
@@scottnelson9 They NEVER came back.
As a long time resident of the San Antonio area, I used to love Fiesta Texas as a kid. It was never Cedar Point (which I frequented as a child, living in SE Michigan) but it was fun, relatively clean, and had decent rides. My girlfriend and I spent a day there a few years ago, and it was pretty much exactly the same as it was when I was a kid. And that’s not a good thing. Everything was older, more worn looking, and they hadn’t added very much since then. Maybe 1 or 2 rides that were shut down on our visit. The few rides that were actually open were the same rides that have been at the park for decades. It doesn’t look like they’ve put any money into the park in 20+ years. Attendance was way down when we went, likely because it doesn’t offer anything different than it ever has. It’s sad, but that’s I guess how the parks are gonna be.
Yeah. I’m a genxer in west texas. Last time I went was around 95. Now have four kids. Took the 8 and 6 year old this year around may. It looked the SAME!!🤣 It was kind of comforting for me at first seeing ‘looney toons’ drawings. Felt like a time warp. Then I noticed the dilapidated, worn atmosphere, and the general cliental socio economic status and it hit me this wasnt just due to the pandemic.
The things that ticked me off about Six Flags is 1) In 2022 the Season Passes no longer let you go to any park and you had to pick only one. Luckily there was a Black Friday sale that gave you an upgrade to go to all parks. That wasn't available again in 2023, 2) The price of the Dining Plan went from $109 to $149 and dropped the Snack and dropped the free drinks. I still got a Season Pass, but we won't be going but a couple of times next year.
Will a couple of times even save you money? I've been to Universal/Islands a couple of times and Disney once. All when I was 40+. I didn't pay any time. My buddy worked for Universal. I won't go back to Disney. It's def. for children. Not to mention, the political BS.
I know people do need food but you would vomit all of it up anyways in six flags
this is insane because I've never even heard of Cedar Fair and they're destroying Six Flags
That's because other than the initial park, Cedar Point, none of them have Cedar in the name. Cedar Park grew by acquiring other amusement parks, including the Paramount parks. They own parks like Knott's Berry Farm, King's Dominion, California's Great America, King's Island, etc.
@@xungnham1388 oh yeah Knott's is WAY better than Six Flags lmao
Never heard of Cedar Point? They have Millenium Force, which was the tallest and fastest rollercoaster in the world at the time it was built.
@@xungnham1388 They also own smaller regional parks, like Valleyfair in the Twin Cities.
@@xungnham1388 knotts berry farm sucks D: thats the only one ive heard of/ been too
My wife and I went to SFOT by ourselves last week because our 11 year old didn’t want to go. He said the lines suck and the rides aren’t very good anymore. We experienced a dirty park, rude staff and long lines. We definitely aren’t going back. Ever.
Oh boy that’s sad :(
@Maddox2021 - Comedy and More Alternate I didn’t even go to places like that growing up because I couldn’t afford it. They don’t have to go anywhere
tmw an 11yo doesn't want to go to an amusement park. Yup, the end times are coming for that park.
Awww that's so sad how far the OG has fallen. I've only been there once way back in 1997 and it was an amazing experience for me personally (I was 15). Breaks my heart to hear there.
We got to SFOT when it’s hot. That alone makes the experience miserable lol.
Excellent video!
When six flags shut down in Houston, I was sad. I had visit one time before it shut down.
I’m gonna have to rewatch this again.
Very informative! Great stuff
So I participated in a Cedar Fair focus group for one of their lesser parks that they never invest in, ValleyFair.
What these theme parks all want to hear that their guests really don't want a brand new $20 Million roller coaster, but want to go to their parks to see cheap entertainment shows, play their rigged carnival games, and eat their overpriced food. So they kept asking questions like "what food offerings would prompt you to visit more", "what games do you want to come play" "What shows would you come to see". Meanwhile everyone in the focus group is literally answering "we want a big new roller coaster" to every question.
Focus groups are only useful if you're open to answers you don't want to hear.
The Six Flags company is literally Six Flags New Orleans right now, abandoned
Honestly yeah. Disaster strikes and now the future of the parks is in a state of limbo.
@maddox121 As a Kentucky girl who grew up in Louisville, went to KK more times than I could count, and LOVED that park with all my heart, I was SO glad to see Sucks Flags go!! They gutted the quality of the park, and did us really dirty when they left. Good riddance. Thankfully, Kentucky Kingdom is now open again, under new management and thriving!
This makes me so sad. I grew up getting season passes to Six Flags Over Texas every summer and always having an amazing time. Since leaving the DFW area over 10 years ago I always talk about wanting to to back since I haven’t been since leaving the area. I had no idea how much conditions had deteriorated. Truly depressing.
Dallas-Fort Worth
@@jasoncutshaw8401 Yes
The fear of death just amplifies the thrill
@@jasoncutshaw8401 yes that’s what DFW stands for…
I'm from Travis Tx so yeah lol
As a Georgia native and someone who loved six flags as a kid and my first roller coaster ride I ever took was at six flags over Georgia this is sad to see.
My Dad worked at E Systems in Greenville and bought me a season pass and gave me 25 dollars a day every summer when I came to visit. He would pick me up each evening and always have the sitter drop me off at the front gate about 10am every day. I had the best time at Six Flags over Texas for 3 summers. I never got tired of it. That was in the mid 70s and I still remember it well.
It is nothing like the experience I had growing up. Back then (1995-2005ish) it was a shock to see a ride closed. The food was good to decent, the rides worked, the live shows were operating routinely, and it was literally an overall experience. Took my sons back in 2019 before the Covid crash and the live shows was minimum to none, half of the good rides were closed and the train that goes around the park was not functioning. The only thing that made the experience ok was the kid world, in which my boys enjoyed. It sad to see SFOG go downhill like this. 🤦🏿♂️
Agreed, their parks are old, dirty, and dilapidated. It's obvious that they haven't put anything into maintenance or upkeep since the late 90's.
@F.u.c.k You DA DA DA DA DA DA-DA, DA DA DA DA DA DA-DA......
Same here. That’s the park we went to every year with passes. It sucks now
I just finished my final days working at Six Flags MM, and god do they treat us like trash. I worked in food and beverage. I hated being in those buildings, they were disgusting. The food is all frozen(obviously), but prepping it after it being defrosted is one of the grossest things I’ve ever done. My leads and supervisors are all 19-20 year olds who just like to order everyone around even tho leads make $0.25 more than regular team members. Also they never do anything to make the working conditions safer or cleaner. There were 3 rats living in the break area, nothing ever happened despite constant complains, and I can’t tell you how many times a day I almost slipped and cracked my head open. HR begged me to stay after I handed in my two weeks, they personally called my building, to come down to them to beg me to stay, obviously I told them no. Don’t go to six flags it’s a waste of money. And their employees are treated like trash
I quit on the first day because of an extreme lack of communication in F&B
Rats? Eww! You need to report that to the health department!
That's so sad! They need a complete overhaul.
Disgusting.
That’s depressing and gross.
As a former employee of Six Flags, it was awful. In ONE SEASON, I was almost hospitalized 3 times, assaulted by my Lead for wearing transition lenses, and forced to work from 8 am to 3am, only to be yelled at by a supervisor for working past my hours because my replacement didn't bother to call in. It was my 1st real job after high school and I wasn't aware of my worker's rights. Not something taught to Special Ed students as we're not expected to be able to work on our own.
On July 4th, our POS was down parkwide, our soda dispensers broke down, and half our rides broke down. But we were still expected to up-sell those over priced Sports Bottles, sell food and drink, and keep the rides that worked going.
All we got for the death threats, screaming, complains, and working double shifts, our compensation were half melted Slurpees at 3 am and an expectation to be back at 8:30 am for another day of abuse.
I wouldn't go even if someone payed for everything. The only good thing about Six Flags was "Ride Night", the only time employees were allowed to play games because we could cheat in front of guests to "steal" prizes. I got a Supergirl guitar in Ring Toss because they didn't stock prizes for the game. It's hanging in my dad's tournament hall.
Happy I left when I did because they changed how to clock in the season I was suppose to go back for my 3rd season.
Even when I went to SF over texas as a kid, the park felt dirty, run down, and dated. And its been 10+ years since I've been, so I imagine it's much worse. I always enjoyed going there, so its sad to see it falling like this, but it's definitely not a surprise with how poorly its been maintained.
Beautification really does need to be their focus for a little while. I've never been to Disney, but what I know from all the things I've heard about their parks is the atmosphere, cleanliness, etc.
So much of the park looks old and faded from sitting in the sun and not being kept up. So many things made out of wood that are dried up and ugly looking, such as the fences that are everywhere, buildings, and even a few rides. Everything looks filthy and dry. Like look at 4:53 and how dull and old it looks... They really go for the rustic old western look in a lot of places, but it comes off as dull and dated instead of charming.
I went in October and it was horrible. Half the rides were closed, there were like 2 employees and while i didnt have wait times i missed the park being full and lively. I like low ride waits but not at the cost of making the place feel dead
This past October? Never been there. I mostly stick to Hershey and Dorney
Do they still blast the Vengaboys song all day long with a mostly empty park?
This is what happens when your view of the business is based upon a spreadsheet and earnings report. You need to understand the wants and desires of your customers and deliver that at a reasonable price…a truly dying concept these days.
As someone who used to work there (four years to be exact across two departments at Six Flags New England), the primary issue about Six Flags are the following:
1.) They max out their occupancy as much as possible, creating a gross, sweaty and nasty miserable experience which ruins any "bargan" price they think they have.
2.) They do nothing but cut costs and raise prices, they're always looking for cheaper ingredients, materials, labor and giving the guest less and less for the same or higher price, on top of NEVER upgrading any of the equipment, on top of reducing maintenance leaving the parks dirty and worn down
Note: I'm ok with older equipment, but like anything it needs to be maintained which they don't do, so little to no maintenance and never replaced
3.) Employees are treated like shit.
Example One: we couldn't clock in while getting make up done for acting or until we were at our kitchen location despite needing to walk across the park which often takes fifteen to thirty minutes depending on how busy it was, and before we left our kitchen or acting station we also had to clock out, meaning a half hour to an hour of your time could be spent at the park while not being paid, though while you were still on the premises you were expected to help guests, even if you're on break and you work the entire time helping a guest it still counts as your break!
Example Two: They refused to take care of the Employee Parking lot which was made of dirt and due to poor maintenance, it was not uncommon for employee's cars to get damaged getting in and out due to potholes, rocks, broken glass, etc and no way to report or be compensated for said damage
Note: there was a lawsuit against them not too long ago about the stolen time and our compensation was $23.00 when they inevitably lost the suit, I worked there every weekend during fall and all week during the summer for four years, so even when giving them the benefit of the doubt, at the very least they stole
(40 days * 2 for walking in and out) = 80 * .25(15 minutes quarter of an hour spent walking through the park before and after clocking in to get in and out) = 20 hours for summer
(16 days * 2) = 32 * .25 = 8 hours, so 28 hours a year, four years = 112
112 UNPAID HOURS, not even including when we'd be forced to stay late after clocking out or get threatened of being fired, which (minimum wage was 9.00/hour at that time) results in $1008.00 being stolen from high school me. So yeah, its more cost effective for them to be douchebags unfortunately. Hopefully they changed this by now, but I doubt it.
My advice to anyone thinking of working at SFNE, unless they fixed the issues I listed above, don't work there. They'll treat you like shit, rob you of time you should be on break or paid for, work you like a dog, and right you up when they don't call you in but wanted you in and then you have to prove they're wrong and it takes three weeks robbing you of working for the season to save up for college or a laptop.
Damn that’s crazy I go to the one in Mass all the time. Sorry to hear
But .. but... Disney is also overcrowded, sweaty affair for like 5 times as much per ticket.
It's strange that I've seen almost identical issues at my job...but I don't work at a theme park.
But the more I hear about similar things from peers from _various_ backgrounds, the more I honestly think this is a corporate and generational issue, not the job itself
@@13Kr4zYAzN13 I think that with regards to amusement parks...... What happened was this - at the inception, apparently, they were targeted for middle class. To put it bluntly white middle class families. Since then that middle class evaporated. It looks like either tickets are way too affordable or there are some discount programs for financially challenged families of which I do not know. I believe I paid in excess or $100 per person to visit Disney World on a week day in August 2018. It was jam-packed and lines were atrocious. With August Florida heat it was something opposite of fun. We left in the middle of the day to re-enter closer to firework time and then dashed for the space mountain. Still spent about 30 minutes in the line. There is something wrong with this business. Too many people. I find $100/day ticket price to be outrageous. So I do not know how much it should cost to keep the crowds low. I certainly would not pay that price.
As for 6 Flags. In Chicago I had a very reasonably priced season pass and also would visit on weekday. No crowds. It did look a bit run down, but most of the rides worked and we did not have to wait in line for more than 15 minutes.
Frankly I consider 6 Flags to be a much better deal - you get straight to business, the rides and that is. In Disney World there is all this "atmosphere" that you have to "soak in". And I am not sure that kids these days even connect to all this Cinderella & Mickey Mouse thing and much of the old themed stuff.
I worked at SFNE too, I can back this up - don't forget that they make us work 12 hours shifts and only give us 1 day off basically _ever._ Screw this company. Smh.
Lived like 40 minutes from Magic Mountain in CA. Rides could be jank af at times but awesome memories. I worked for Blockbuster when they...went to live on a farm for old retail chains...and I'd hate to lose another pillar of childhood.
These particular situations can get real dangerous real quick.
Six Flags: Would you like it if we offered the exact same experience but doubled the cost?
Regular customers: ...No?
My bf and I love Six Flags so much, being our first date 7 years ago (high school sweethearts). We had the Diamond Elite membership 2018-2019 and let me tell you, the discounts on merchandise and food had me buying things I didn't need. That was peak of the potential for Six Flags. The park was FULL. I still have like 15 SF hoodies in my closet. For our anniversary this year, I purchased the 2023 Diamond Pass and Platinum Season FastPass for ourselves ($1k in total). This is not only a huge price jump from pre-pandemic times, but the perks themselves fall short. They even put a ONE-time use per visit of the FastPass for certain rides!
This CEO's plan will destroy SF. I just hope it falls apart after 2023 so our passes don't go out in vain :(((
That was exactly my experience! I loved taking my wife and kids and then all of a sudden they gutted the whole system. Rewards suck now.
You paid $1000??? For 1 season pass???
@@patrapper7367 Some people have more money than sense.
What a waste of your money
Key example is killing the meal plans.
About 20 years ago, I worked at a cedar fair park. I took a trip to the nearby six flags, and I couldn't fathom how they were even in business. The only ride open was one of the carousels, with no signs of maintenance making an effort. The park was utterly filthy. Things that we would have gotten fired for at our park seemed to be the norm at six flags. The really sad part was that the park was a local park that was fairly well maintained prior to six flags purchasing them. Now it's abandoned.
went to six flags over texas arlington a few months ago and it was god awful. We paid for fast passes and in my recollection it was sooo pricey, like $200 each but that may be an over exaggeration. However what i do remember is the fact that the fast pass does not allow you to use it on every ride… just 5 of them. 3 of them were shut down. Employees for the other 2 weren’t aware of how it worked. Awful experience got to ride 2 rides and nothing else. Hated every moment. Felt bad my bf spent so much money and we had no prior knowledge because the people helping at the gate left out the fact the fast pass only applied to certain rides.
Raising the price without improving the product only worked before the internet existed. Now people can see photos, videos, and reviews detailing why the new price isn't worth it and make the choice to stay away *before* spending their money.
It's evident this CEO never played Roller Coaster Tycoon as a child 😂
@Maddox2021 - Comedy and More Alternate It was an obvious joke, but just so you know demoing steel does give you money rather than just costing money. Scrappers pay bank for metal.
IRK? I commented something similar.
Cheers!
I believe I have the experience after playing countless hours of RCT 🤣
I worked at Great Adventure, '99-'07. As the 2000s progressed it got a little dicey as large groups of, um, "undesirables," would make a presence in the park. One year, I watched some rapper I never heard of get a beat down by some other rivals' boys. That same year, a New York spanish station had some big concert planned and tickets were sold. The day of, the show producers couldn't, or wouldn't, pay for the theater rental so the concert was cancelled which resulted in a little riot. I worked in cash control that year and was given a bag with over $70,000 to take to the front gate for refunds.
Got free tickets to Six Flags Great America in ‘06. We were put off by the high parking fee. But worse was the astronomical prices for water and subpar food like tepid, cardboard like “pizza.”
I cannot imagine what the price and quality of their food is now. And $40 to park?! Forget about it!
The kids were not impressed. The kids NEVER asked about Six Flags. It just never came up. When an amusement park can’t impress kids, they’re done.
I think the biggest issue with Six Flags is that at the end of the day, it's an amusement park heavily geared towards rollercoaster fans and adrenaline junkies. This is a niche product that is in a genre that NEEDS constant attendance. Worse is that it essentially locks away a major demographic these products need, families, children, and people who aren't adrenaline junkies/rollercoaster fans. That means Six Flags locked out a major chunk of revenue and essentially can't charge as much as, say, Universal, Disney, Knotts, etc. So yeah, since the parks decided to remain focused on it's niche, it needed to do a lot more than just have rollercoasters to keep people coming back on a regular basis.
I was just thinking this. My family went to Six Flags a lot when i was a kid because my mom got free (or discounted, i don't remember) tickets from her job. I was the youngest and Soft(TM) so i largely prefered the baby rides and the calmer rides. I started to enjoy the coasters more as i got older, but i never became an enthusiast so i've never had the desire to return to (and pay for) the park as an adult.
When i think of walking around my local six flags, i just remember the big flat concrete walkway. Having stone or brick walkways would do wonders for the atmosphere, especially if they added more green spaces.
Six Flags isn’t meant to be like Disney or Universal, it’s meant to be all about the rollercoasters and if Six Flags drifts away from that aspect of their parks, it’s gonna die! First Toys R Us, now Six Flags!
@@wanderer34 I know it's not, but you ignored that I stated that because it's geared heavily towards a very niche crowd, it's never gonna be that successful unless they drastically change it to be more appealing to families (meaning far less thrill rides and more family oriented attractions that everyone can enjoy). You're not gonna get anywhere close to the numbers Disney and Universal has, ESPECIALLY if you raise the prices on something that is not an experience, but what is essentially cheap thrills. The owners of Six Flags are ignoring this and in turn are gonna lead Six Flags to shut down because they're just not gonna be able to get the amount of guests needed to make it even slightly successful.
Sad.. I’ve lived in Arlington my whole life and it’s sad watching a place I spent so much time as a child/teen just completely go to trash. Back in the 90s six flags was everything! Clean up the parks, keep up with the maintenance, and fix the horrible food!!
Yeah, put some shade and refreshment entertainment stands in between the long walks to the rides.
I went to that location last year and it seemed like it was in the same condition it’s always been. 🤷🏻♂️ My issue though is the long waits for the rides. We even bought a speed pass and it still was a long wait, not to mention the inconvenience of having to schedule your rides from the speed pass. The problem is DFW metro is growing fast, but the park remains the same size. And there are no real competitors.
I agree I specifically go for the turkey leg an this year I bought my son and I passed we went twice and the turkey leg tasted like Gelatin 🤮
I live in Dallas, you can’t fix 6 flags . It’s disgusting 🤢
@@lastname-Nm Man aint that the truth. I remember when the Wild Waves up here in WA did just that, it was Enchanted Village on one side and Wild Waves on another. PERFECT park. THEN came the buyout of Six Flags. DOWNHILL from there. Will be sad if the entire park closes... It is definitely not the same, the upkeep and cleanliness is definitely something that should alone be addressed..
It’s completely surreal to see a vid about a park that I drive by nearly everyday. As a local, I can say someone should let the new ceo that the best superficial improvement they could make is to spruce up the ‘behind the scenes,’ employees only areas many of which are unfortunately in full view of everyone driving on interstate-30. From that viewpoint, the park presents as a rust-buckety, trailer park-ish mess, true story. This area is where they would get the most bang for their buck in aesthetic improvements, it’s the ultimate version of curb appeal. First impressions mean everything, write that down.
Loved six flags so much! Used to go from school a couple of times. Went to magic mountain last year and it was the worst experience i've ever had on a theme park. Covid had to do with it but i spent over 2 hours trying to get my flash pass bracelet and i was only able to ride like 5 rides during the whole day 😭
I remember seeing Six Flags over Texas decline in real-time. Every time I go there it just looks worse and worse. It makes me really sad, especially when I hear my mom talk about when the park was new and she used to go with her family.
I haven't been to SFOT since '04. Even back then you could see the beginnings of wear, tear and neglect. I can only imagine what it's like now.
I went a week ago. It’s really really sad. Ride lines were non existent, yes, but everything else was kinda just upsetting.
Not to mention how BAD the roller coasters looked at night. It’s just run down. Prioritizing a bunch of useless things.
I lived in Arlington in 1994 and went to SFOT a few times and enjoyed it. I would hate to see it now, based on this and others’ comments. 🎢☹️
Yeah I remember they came out with the new Harley Quinn ride six Flags Arlington, and like not even a year later they shut it down permanently. Got to ride it once and it was sick
Guest experience is really what’s killing them as a company. I was a season ticket holder for years but had an experience so bad I don’t feel safe going back.
Back in 2018 me and my son went to six flags America and they were having issues checking visitors into the park. We stood outside of the gates for an hour and a half, once we finally got inside they had to shut down the water park. Everyone in the park rushed for the drink stands all at once. My son who was only 3 ended up passing out, I started crying and panicking and no employees helped at all, I had the push him in his stroller all the way across the park to the first aid center.
Tf you talking about?
What does this have to do with six flags lol
Don't even get me going about the lack of care from the staff for injured people at the park!
Bunch of boomers in here most definitely
Let’s just be honest. Six Flags is ghetto now because of the demographics of its guests.
Haven't been to SF over Georgia since 2019 but i remember how it looked. Paint has gotten old plant life under maintained. They could use a remodel and pretty the place up. Maybe in the process make it a bit more themed, not disney level, but you shouldn't be able to see the parking lot from the park. Went to busch gardens this summer and just having that immersion ups the experience of being there even when some of the rides were closed and lines long
I used to go to Six Flags Magic Mountain about twice a year from the mid 80's to late 90's. The atmosphere was great, place was clean. I returned with my kids in 2014 and the place seemed like at been taken over by carnies.
Ive always loved six flags, its so sad to see this happen. Why can’t rich people just let poor people have things? Six flags is a great amusement park, and there isnt anything wrong with being marketed towards people who can’t afford disneyland, I’ve been a loyal attendee of six flags since I was 6 lol, but I can’t afford to go anymore and I used to try to go a couple times a year. I went to six flags for my 8th grade field trip, for many birthdays and friends birthdays, and many other celebrations. I love roller coasters, so really, if six flags isnt the affordable option with an exhilarating experience anymore, I’ll go somewhere else. It seems like everyone else will too.
The world unfortunately has to get more expensive with inflation
You should ridd gocarts, I think it's the perfect budget family activity. Alot of local places are really cheap, like bochertown, MO.
@@surkey5055 how u gonna compare go karts to a whole amusement park? Stop
@@mikosue8694 hey I'm just tryna be nice.
@@MrPandito inflation is being manufactured by the rich
The prices outpaced the experience, park size, shows and features, rides and amenities by a huge margin starting back in mid 90s. Someone else said it right when they said the number of side shows and park costume characters, took a HUGE dive, then they made a big booboo by wholesaling season passes at a super cheap price causing the lines to be ridiculous. The food prices where as much as the park tickers lol. I personally haven't been to a Six Flags in over 20 years and I live right up the road from them in San Antonio lol
I worked as an entertainment technician at Six Flags Over Texas for the 2009 park season. Had a lot of good times doing it. But I will say it was pretty obvious to the staff that a shit storm was on the rise to the employees.
This CEO looks like the kinda guy that’s never ridden a roller coaster in his life and couldn’t tell the difference between Batman: The Ride and The Joker.
About a month ago I went to Six Flags and immediately went on a rollercoaster which broke down mid-ride. Naturally, this was an unsettling experience. When I spoke to a manager about my concerns, they were very condescending and unempathetic. They literally said "I can't account for your feelings". I left feeling 3 inches tall. This place is nowhere near where it used to be and I can definitely see it's going down hill.
Sounds like a toxic work environment. Employees are barely being payed if at all, I assume. They're the kinds to say "I'm sorry you feel that way." That phrase is almost always an indicator of a toxic relationship.
Ok, explain to me how thats "unsettling"
Since there's far more unsettling things than a ride breaking down temporarily
The issue is that they are tired of hearing it. Every F'n person at the park believes their opinion is unique and important and needs to be heard and you can bet it's neither unique and certainly not important at the time. The employee working on the ride isn't at fault, they can't do a damn F'n thing for you at the time. Their only concern is getting people off safely and getting the ride back up and running for all the other people still waiting. Your self important complaint is irrelevant to all their other current duties at the time and only serves to slow progress down. If you have a complaint, take it to the offices where there are legit people there to take down your complaint.
actually if i remember correctly, supervisors are encouraged to offer a courtesy pass to anyone on a ride when it breaks down, but that depends on how bad the incident was. So technically some customer concerns of that type are their concern. not that I'd expect them to actually care about and adhere to that tho
@@hughjanus7589 No, it's not the concern of anyone currently working at the ride whose duty is to get the ride functional again. They don't have time to listen to everyone complain, that's what the office is for.
We visited a Six Flags on Labor Day weekend and half of the rides, shops, restaurants, and attractions weren’t even open. Most of the employees looked miserable. It was a massive waste of money and time to go. In the past we’ve stayed nearby and visited half the park one day and the rest the next. We didn’t even stay the full day this time. We ran out of things to do and we’re hungry.
Funny enough, 9 mins in shows the Mr freeze ride at six flags over Texas, last time I rode that the lines were terrible, and when the train went back into the tunnel to go back into the station I could smell a very sugary scent (which I immediately recognized because I have an old car) which is the smell of coolant burning a little too much. Unsurprisingly the ride was closed within the next 10 minutes for overheating maintenance.
I wish this video would have mentioned more about food quality as part of the experience impact. This is another big reason why people love Disney.
Disney’s biggest victory is their name brand. They have brain washed buyers who still haven’t learned. Disney has declined heavily since 2015. The better experiences right now with high caliber staff, food, and rides are parks like Dollywood and Universal Orlando in my opinion.
lol Seriously? The food was about as good a what you get a Country Buffet or Golden Corral. ...Actually that's kind of offensive to Country Buffet and Golden Corral. It's far worse. It's more like the stuff at any buffet that's been under the heat lamps all day drying out but 10x the price. And why people especially adult love Disney is beyond me. It's one of the worst companies out there yet its fans turn a blind eye to how horrible the are.
@Maddox2021 - Comedy and More Alternate Iger is the one who turned Disney into the corporate demon it is today.
Food quality was garbage at Cedar Point the time I went. Even the Cinnabon was stale. The chicken strips were subpar, but still edible I guess. Big money for garbge. These parks need to focus more on easier stuff to manage like hot dogs. Hot dogs are extremely easy and the best park food you can have. Put hot dog stands at every friggin intersection and ride location in the park and watch the money flow. Most people just want good tasting nourishment and hot dogs provide that. Cheap to buy, cheap to cook and maintain freshness and good profits and most everyone likes a good hot dog. Easy to carry and eat while walking. Forgot all the pizza and chicken and fish and all that other nonsense that is 10x the effort to cook and maintain.
this is the truth, 9 times outta 10 me and the boys are hitting up the McDonald’s or dennys by magic mountain, but I’ll go to knotts all the time just for the food
I remember Six Flags Astroworld fondly, the only thing that remains standing is the bridge that goes over the 610 loop. Especially since in junior high the entire school used to go once a year. Given it closed in 2005, the only thing that really comes to mind in those last few years is the lack of maintenance and the impression that it became a giant glorified weekend daycare rather than an amusement park.
Lots of gang activity too. It just wasn't a safe place. Astroworld was the absolute best six flags park too!! Probably because it wasn't originally a 6 flags park it was originally family owned and they nailed all the fun themed stuff. I was born in the 80s and grew up in the 90s so Astroworld was everything back then! Man, I miss that place. 6 flags has screwed up so much.
Astroworld in Houston, TX was awesome back in the 80s and 90s when I was a kid. Fun place. Sad when it closed. Many fun times there. Wish it was still there and going.
@@kaylinklimple2167 the new Astroworld just has a bunch kids dying from walking on one another
Lot of good memories at Six Flags. Feels like a world that doesn't really exist anymore. The theme parks of the future will all be in the virtual space. RIP humanity (unless you escape to the rural space and start kicking ass).
We grew up having season passes to 6 flags over texas as kids. It was the highlight of our summers to go ride the rides multiple times a week there and at hurricane harbor. It’s been massively disappointing to watch their demise. Many of the rides I was excited to ride again are now consistently broken. And do not appear to ever have repairmen working on them. All of the times I went in the last year, the Joker ride has been broken and closed, among several others. The food/drinks are very expensive. And the park grounds don’t seem to be very well maintained. With a noticeable lack of employees working the park. It’s lost all of its appeal to me. Coming from someone that loves roller coasters, it’s been sad to watch their downfall
Just goes to show that the CEO position is becoming more and more useless. Totally out of touch individuals ruining entire companies
This guy is such an idiot at such a high level of incompetence that if I was that board of directors I would make sure he could never become a ceo of any other company ever again in his life because that's how dangerously stupid he is.
On the contrary it shows how important it is
@@TonyTheTender Nah,shows how much less importance they should be allowed to have when one idiot just obliterates an entire business.
Would you be down for co-opting amusement parks?
@@ffwast well, you either lead by executive or committee, and the history of business is that committees suck at developing comprehensive strategies in actionable time frames - and we won’t even get into lack of performance ownership. You need someone with solid experience and have their personal compensation be high stakes for the decisions they make to ensure focus and accountability. It’s not like in the past few hundred years alternative approaches weren’t tried.
That’s why Hershey park was always magical when I was younger. I lived an hour away and went all the time with my parents and sister. The rides were a main attraction but looking back on it the best part was the amazing park itself, so so many different things to do. As a 21 year old I would 100% still go with friends, it’s a great place.
I’m from Philly currently in Atlanta and I agree…I miss the whole Lancaster area too
That's because Hershey personifies the phrase "Jack of all trades, master of none." but it also has the advantage of being privately owned and using its brand.
Cedar Point
I agrée! We went to Hershey Park for the first time this last summer. It was a fantastic introduction to roller coasters for my 11 year old daughter. Clean, good food and very well maintained.
Was there last week and i have no complaints
The amount of detail in the video is mind blowing. Well done
The price increase is absolutely insane when there have been no improvements to the parks. You use to be able to pay 60-70$ and get a season pass which gave you access to all parks for the year. Now if you want a season pass with access to all the parks, you have to pay 250$ for the highest tier diamond pass.
Living 30 minutes away from Six Flags Over Texas, it was a STAPLE for my childhood. Birthdays, holidays, basically any excuse my parents could make so we could go. You used to be able to bring coke cans to the park for discounts on tickets, and there were times when I would just stand in the glass making shop for hours just watching them make the little glass figures while my sister would stand in line for rides I didn't like.
I haven't gone back in years because of the prices. We drove by a few days ago and I watched as one of the roller coasters went by only carrying 3 or 4 people. It's pretty depressing to see something from my childhood just slowly die like this.
Sad times
I was there, too.
Me and my family went to Six flags over texas a few years back while vacationing in Texas: it was a good time that was cut short. But got on the big rides which was nice
We went about a month ago. Half the rides were closed, but it was nice to get on all the open coasters really fast. They also found my wallet under one of the coasters and called me the next day to let me know. Nice employees, but sad to see them not get the what they deserve, i.e. better rides, etc.
Cedar Fair by far is just better at managing their parks and just overall bringing a better guest experience to their parks. Plus, all their huge parks: Cedar Point, Kings Island, Carowinds, Canada's Wonderland, and Knotts' Berry Farm are all profit makers for them, and those parks do exceptionally well. Heck, Knotts' Berry Farm does over 6 million guests annually and Canada's Wonderland is the 2nd most visited at around 3.96 million (2019 figures). So clearly, Cedar Fair is smarter with their business strategies and money, and they are conservative when they need to be. So it's no wonder why their stock price is higher, they're able to gain more income from less parks, and that their attendance numbers are just going up way more.
Totally agree. They struggled in 2021, but have bounced back tremendously this year. They did this even while the revenue from Canada’s Wonderland was being slashed due the current weakness of the Canadian dollar vs the US dollar.
Agreed. Even with that security problem Knott's had, that park has been looking up and up.
@@AttractionIdeas I don't want Six Flags to go away completely, but looking at the bigger picture, I can't really see myself wanting to visit a Six Flags park. Like why visit Six Flags Magic Mountain and Six Flags Discovery Kingdom, over like California's Great America or Knotts' Berry Farm, despite Magic Mountain having great rides.
@@TonyKimtheamusementparkfan Knott's during the off season. That park has horrible capacity when busy.
@WhenTheChipsAreDown Honestly without Dragster Magic Mountain has the better lineup. No other cedar fair can even start to touch their lineup
The main 6 Flags park I went to growing up (Great Escape) wasn’t always run by 6 Flags - it was bought by them when I was like 7 years old in 2001. So maybe it will go back to how it was when I was a little kid.
Was cool seeing some of the great America pics which have not been too in forever. Grew up going to in the 90’s every summer. It’s now closing
My parents actually met while working at Six Flags Over Texas, so I owe my very existence in part to that park. We went there all the time as kids, and it was always magical to me, especially given how important it is to our family history. Seeing it now almost makes me want to cry with how far it's fallen. I love that park, and I really hope that they can pull through and become something amazing again.
The video is actually recording six flags over texas
@@santiagofuentes6424 I noticed that, and it made me feel really nostalgic!
@@dragongirl2319 it was nice seeing six flags again I used to go there every weekend during summer
Trust me you would of been born regardless of six flags lol
@@Babyduzzitwhy you say that
In 10 years when six flags has gone out of business people will watch this series as a retrospective
You tripping they will not go outta business they just said they investing in the parks and getting new coasters so y'all tripping
@@mobetterent.gamerzunited2529 They most likely won’t go out of business, but don’t be surprised if they start selling off some of their properties. This is far from the first time Six Flags has dug themselves into a financial hole.
I went to Six Flags ATL the day before they switched to a weekend only schedule. It was great because there were fewer people, but it was also bad because the place looked abandoned
We took our kids to Six Flags over Texas last year. I was disappointed in the low number of rides actually open. There wasn't that much attendence to be such a beautiful day. It was the same park we took them to about 8 years ago and it looks like night and day in comparison to people. I really think it's the higher prices.
I concur 100% . Last visit to SF Magic Mountain, the park was full of mean muggers with the long shorts and high socks, jumping lines and daring you to say something. Dirty bathrooms and long waits. Oh, and the stabbing in the parking lot was the icing on the cake.
@patrickholland4708
Can NO ONE SAY ANYTHING with some idiot saying you were being racist?!?! So WHAT he said mean muggers? So WHAT? In your definition, all mean muggers are black people so therefore we can’t talk about them and point out that there are dangerous people at that park because they are probably black? So yeah, let’s just ignore very important facts because someone MIGHT BE BLACK?
@@SweetCandyDragonWith the long shorts and high socks, he was describing the ese's, not necessarily bloods & crips
This is SF Over Texas as well.
@@SweetCandyDragon He didn't mention skin color. You seem to think black people are thugs. Now who is the racist? 😉
I had similar experience at 6 Flags in Dallas a year ago, even my credit card info got stolen at the parking payment booth. I didn't risk going to the bathroom though, so giving them benefit of the doubt on that one.