Wait times at Knott’s and SeaWorld

disneylover102

DIS Veteran
Joined
Dec 31, 2017
What are normal wait times for June (thinking of going June 2021) for Knott’s and SeaWorld? What should I do at park opening?

At Knott’s, I’m mainly interested in Hang Time, Xcelerator, Ghost Rider, the log ride, the rapids ride, Montezooma’s Revenge, Supreme Scream, and Silver Bullet. When I went in June 2016 on a dance tour, none of these had super long lines except Ghost Rider was REALLY long and Hang Time wasn’t there yet. Is that usually the case? So should I do Ghost Rider first?

At SeaWorld I’m mainly interested in Emperor (not open yet), Electric Eel, Tidal Twister, Manta, Journey to Atlantis, the Rapids ride, and the tower ride. When I went there on dance tour in June 2016, the wait times were usually 15-30 minutes. Is that different now that there’s more rides?

TIA
 
What are normal wait times for June (thinking of going June 2021) for Knott’s and SeaWorld? What should I do at park opening?

At Knott’s, I’m mainly interested in Hang Time, Xcelerator, Ghost Rider, the log ride, the rapids ride, Montezooma’s Revenge, Supreme Scream, and Silver Bullet. When I went in June 2016 on a dance tour, none of these had super long lines except Ghost Rider was REALLY long and Hang Time wasn’t there yet. Is that usually the case? So should I do Ghost Rider first?

At SeaWorld I’m mainly interested in Emperor (not open yet), Electric Eel, Tidal Twister, Manta, Journey to Atlantis, the Rapids ride, and the tower ride. When I went there on dance tour in June 2016, the wait times were usually 15-30 minutes. Is that different now that there’s more rides?

TIA

I am no expert, but visited Sea World June 2018 on a Saturday just after Electric Eel opened. It was "June gloom" overcast but not raining. I think the strategy is ride Eel first thing, but Emperor could change that. The rest of the park is probably similar to your last visit. Get there early, ride hard all morning, then hit the shows in the afternoon. I learned after a couple shows you want to line up early for those to get decent seating.

We pre-paid for front of the line pass because it was a birthday trip with just two of us, and we wanted to be sure to get everything done by mid-evening before driving up to Anaheim. But it turned out to not be a great value as everything except Eel was pretty much a walk-on until the peak of the day/afternoon, so we had some good laughs with locals and employees about our pass. It did come with extras and photos, so wasn't a total loss. But I may have spent the same amount of time saved in line just waiting to pick it up from guest services in the morning. And we did use it for two last rides on Manta in the afternoon which was the kid's favorite.
 
Knott's wait times can get pretty high for all the roller coasters. If you go in the off-season when it's cold outside, you can usually get on most of them pretty fast, but in summers they're packed. Ghost Rider is great if you get in before rope drop. But I've seen waits from 90 minutes upward in the middle of the day even on a slow day. The others are really hit or miss. I've seen Hangtime with only 20 minutes or up to 2 hours on a busy day. So, I would just check wait times frequently. I try to crank out all the roller coasters as early as possible (and water rides if it's warm out), but realistically, it's hard to get to all of them unless you want a long wait (anything over 30-45 minutes is too long to me). I still haven't been on every coaster at Knott's and we have had season passes for the last 2 years. Last time we went in January on a very slow day (it was the day Kobe died so a lot of locals stayed home) and even the older roller coasters like Montezuma's Revenge had a 45 minute wait.

I only go to Sea World during summer or winter peak times. Most of the time, waits during peak season are about 45 minutes to an hour. To me, that's a long time to wait and not really worth it, but then, I go to Sea World for the shows and animals. The roller coasters are just okay in my book.
 
Knott's wait times can get pretty high for all the roller coasters. If you go in the off-season when it's cold outside, you can usually get on most of them pretty fast, but in summers they're packed. Ghost Rider is great if you get in before rope drop. But I've seen waits from 90 minutes upward in the middle of the day even on a slow day. The others are really hit or miss. I've seen Hangtime with only 20 minutes or up to 2 hours on a busy day. So, I would just check wait times frequently. I try to crank out all the roller coasters as early as possible (and water rides if it's warm out), but realistically, it's hard to get to all of them unless you want a long wait (anything over 30-45 minutes is too long to me). I still haven't been on every coaster at Knott's and we have had season passes for the last 2 years. Last time we went in January on a very slow day (it was the day Kobe died so a lot of locals stayed home) and even the older roller coasters like Montezuma's Revenge had a 45 minute wait.

I only go to Sea World during summer or winter peak times. Most of the time, waits during peak season are about 45 minutes to an hour. To me, that's a long time to wait and not really worth it, but then, I go to Sea World for the shows and animals. The roller coasters are just okay in my book.

When you mentioned going on a slow day in January, but Montezuma's Revenge still had a 45 minutes wait, it reminded me of my last trip to KBF. I went in Oct 2018 and it was dead. First time back in 22 years. My sister literally had Montezuma's Revenge all to herself.

IMG_20181023_180155.jpg
 


We go to Knott's about once a month. You have a great list of must do attractions! I would recommend hitting Hang Time and Ghost Rider FIRST thing in the am while the lines are still kinda short. We usually rope-drop and go commando style until park close. Early morning is the best time to hit those popular rides. Avoid weekends if you can. Avoid school holidays. The summer is always a madhouse cuz the park is filled with locals.
One of my favorite things to do at KBF is talk to "Sad Eye Joe" in his jail cell. lol He's one of those classic Knott's details from back in the old days.

If you don't have it already, I also recommend getting the KBF app before you go.

Have fun! Knott's is such a charming and special park. :)
 

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