Myrtle Beach 8/21+22 (Family Kingdom and Hard Rock Park)

PANTSFREE · #1 08-24-2008, 12:33 PM

I traveled down to Myrtle Beach for a couple days to see the beach and the amusement parks. We arrived late Wednesday at our hotel across the street from the beach. We spent the first day hanging around the beach and the pool relaxing. Unfortunately the ocean was pretty rough so the lifeguards weren’t allowing any swimming. We were only a couple blocks down from Family Kingdom amusement park, so I was getting antsy all day looking down the street waiting for the park to open so I could finally get on Swamp Fox.

Finally it got to be 5 o clock and after getting some food at the Friendly’s next door to the park (literally only a few feet away from the log flume), we got in and purchased our all day ride bracelets. I was really surprised at how packed the place was. People were everywhere and it was an exciting, bustling atmosphere.

First up was Swamp Fox; we waited a couple trains to get on in the front seat. There was only one train operating, but the crew was running it pretty well. This ride was fantastic. There was a lot of floater air, very smooth from beginning to end. Swamp Fox is a really fun classic wooden coaster.

After one ride on Swamp Fox we made our way all over the park getting on all the flat rides and other big attractions. I ended up skipping the Sun Shot tower ride because it had a pretty long line and after watching it a couple times, it just seemed like a pretty uninteresting ride that wasn’t worth the time.

By the end of our stay we had been on Swamp Fox three times and just about everything else at least once. I was really pleasantly surprised by Family Kingdom, the employees were very friendly and the rides were operated very efficiently. At night the park really looked awesome with all the lights turned on, and the location right across from the beach was really great. All in all I have to suggest anyone heading down around Myrtle Beach to check it out. I had a great time.

After Family Kingdom we drove down to Broadway at the Beach to get some drinks at Margaritaville. Broadway at the Beach is massive, it was an impressive complex with great theming and a lot of neat places to check out. The Pavilion Nostalgia park was nice to see, I didn’t bother getting on any of the rides, though.

The next day we left early in the morning for Hard Rock Park, we arrived a bit after opening. The weather was a bit rainy all day which definitely helped keep the crowds away. There was hardly anyone in the park early on. The staff was very friendly and helpful all day, definitely helped make the day even more enjoyable.

We started out on Led Zeppelin, which was running two trains to start the day (later on only one). This is a very impressive looking ride, the first half especially. The pre-ride show was pretty neat and helped add a bit to the ride. We were able to walk right on the front row and had the whole train to ourselves. The lift is incredibly steep which caught me off guard. The first drop was a lot of fun and gave a bit of weightlessness. The first four inversions were very smooth and had nice pacing. The zero-g roll was pretty interesting, it was taken at such a slow pace I got a good bit of hang time at the top. Unfortunately after the second vertical loop things get kind of ugly on Led Zeppelin. I found the helix to be downright rough and uncomfortable, there was a whole lot of vibrating and bouncing around happening. You get a nice little pop of airtime going onto the mid-course break before a slow turn, a decent corkscrew, and one final turn onto the breaks. All in all I thought Led Zeppelin was a good ride. It starts out really strong, but unfortunately after those first few inversions it gets pretty bumpy and the layout gets kind of uninteresting. For a B&M I really felt it could have been a lot smoother. The on-board sound system was ok, but I prefer coasters to not have stuff like that. I’d rather just have the sound of the lift, the breaks, the wind flying by, and of course other riders yelling.

For a little while after we got off Led Zeppelin it was pouring (the rain was off and on pretty much all day), but it only took a couple minutes to pass. Next up was Maximum RPM, unfortunately the rain temporarily closed the ride, and so we had to head over to Nights in White Satin instead. There was no wait. The pre-ride walk through part was awesome, especially the spinning tunnel. The ride itself was… interesting. It was really just a bizarre ride. Not bad, or particularly great, just bizarre.

Maximum RPM had reopened, so we went over there. Once again there was no line. The Ferris wheel lift was pretty neat. The ride itself was pretty entertaining, especially the first half. But it is really short, I feel like if it was a bit longer, maybe had an additional helix or hill or two it would have been a much better ride. All in all it was a good time, though.

Next up we made our way over to Slippery When Wet. We didn’t have to wait at all for a ride facing backwards. This is a decent ride; I thought it was better then Super Saturator at Carowinds and Roller Soaker at HP. The theming and scenery around it is pretty neat and it gives a good smooth ride although the breaks are pretty harsh.

Next we went over to Shake Rattle and Roller Coaster… It’s an ok little kiddy coaster with no wait.

Next up was the fifth and final credit of the day, Eagles: Life in the Fast Lane. This was a fun little mine train ride that also had no wait. It gave a fun, smooth ride.

After this we got some food and got a couple more rides on all the coasters and other attractions. We even stopped to check out a couple shows, which were surprisingly good (I normally loathe theme park shows and avoid them at all costs). As the day went on it got a bit more crowded, but all the coasters always had no wait with one train operation. By around 5:30 we had gotten everything done (most things a couple times over) and felt ready to head out. All in all I thought Hard Rock Park was a fine place with a great staff. All they need is a few more rides and they’ll be set. I hope the park can continue to be successful for years to come and I’ll be sure to come back at some point in the future after they add some new attractions.

edit: I was trying to update my ride count and noticed that Maximum RPM is still listed as not being open. When will that get changed?

Racer · #2 08-24-2008, 01:34 PM

Sounds like you had a good time. I bet it was a little lonely without the Pavilion.

Gravey888 · #3 08-24-2008, 03:09 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by PANTSFREE

The next day we left early in the morning for Hard Rock Park, we arrived a bit after opening. The weather was a bit rainy all day which definitely helped keep the crowds away. There was hardly anyone in the park early on. The staff was very friendly and helpful all day, definitely helped make the day even more enjoyable.

I would say the same thing about the day that I went.. but it was bright and sunny.

**Leo C** · #4 08-24-2008, 05:04 PM

It's good to hear that Family Kingdom had a good crowd. With the HRC prices and the absence of the Pavilion I hope they are packed with patrons.

PANTSFREE · #5 08-24-2008, 06:44 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by CHILLERLC1

It's good to hear that Family Kingdom had a good crowd. With the HRC prices and the absence of the Pavilion I hope they are packed with patrons.

It was deffinitely a good crowd over there which is good to see, it was probably the highlight of the trip.

I forgot to mention how depressing it was to drive by the land pavilion used to stand on. Just a big empty field with nothing going on.

**Leo C** · #6 08-24-2008, 07:35 PM

That sounds Astroworld, Miracle Strip sad. Is anyone proving they've done right yet? Out to prove us wrong Cedar Fair?

Coaster_holic24 · #7 08-30-2008, 01:27 PM

Great report. I thought I was the only one that actually liked Family Kingdom. Swamp fox was my favorite woodie until I rode el toro. The drop tower there was actually really neat. The shoot up is more intense and fun than the actual drop tho.

Im still undecided about going to HRP, I keep getting mixed reports. I probably wont go til next season.

PANTSFREE · #8 08-30-2008, 02:13 PM

I totally forgot to mention probably the coolest thing at Hard Rock Park, the garage jam play structure thing.

I went in there after getting all the rides done not sure at all what it was, boy was I pleasantly surprised. I ended up spending a good 40 minutes in there. Basically there are hundreds of these little foam balls all over the place. On the bottom floor there are a bunch of dirrent types of cannons, the top floor a bunch of guns. Basically you grab a bunch of the balls (essentially becoming a moving target for those shooting the guns) and then take your turn shooting the guns and cannons. Its incredibly fun... I hope we see a lot more of these things in the future.

Carowinds 73-03 · #9 08-31-2008, 07:49 AM

Wonderfull report. I still love Family KIngdom & Swamp Fox as well. Glad you had a great time.

**Leo C** · #10 08-31-2008, 10:27 AM

Myrtle Beach will continued to be ignored by me as I was there in 1998. I therefore missed Hurricane, but I'm itching to get SFOG and Carowinds first. Unfortunately Family Kingdom would be suffering from my snuff and I really want to get that place.