Why Knoebels is the best amusement park

The best amusement park you really need to know about is, of all places, located in Elysburg, Pennsylvania. Knoebels Amusement Resort has been around since 1926 and is now America’s largest free admission amusement park. It’s been a staple vacation for my family since about the day I was born (we even have the same campsite reserved every year) and after 90 years of operation it’s about time everyone visited!

Free, free, free (kinda)

First off, unlike most amusement parks, you don’t even need to pay to enter. If you’d like to simply walk around and enjoy the scenery or maybe grab some food, go for it. That’s just one of the reasons the park is so great, because if you camp like my family does sometimes you just want to take a walk or not cook your own dinner. There’s also free parking and free entertainment everywhere. Literally everywhere. You’ll never be bored.

But if like me and you’re there for rides, you can buy packs of tickets or a wristband for all the rides at a family friendly price. It’s nice to just flash your wrist and hop on ride after ride. I once rode the Cosmotron four times in a row hoping they would play One Direction.

So many awards

It’s tough to find something at Knoebels that hasn’t won some kind of award. It’s won Amusement Today’s “Golden Ticket Award” for Best Food every year from 1999-2012, and as I have probably tried just about everything there I can vouch for how well deserved it is. I personally will without fail order the chicken fries from the Roast Beef Stand at least twice. There are plenty of sit down restaurants, amazing pizza from Cesari’s Pizza (which was so good it was featured on Food Network), and your favorite amusement park treats like kettle corn, tons of ice cream, even “pickle on a stick” if you’re feeling it.

Their rides are not without acclaim either. They have two wooden coasters, Phoenix and Twister, and both are awesome. Phoenix is consistently in the top 10 best wooden coasters in the world which is probably because of the wicked awesome air time you get from the bunny hop hills. (Pro tip: sit at the very back for the best and fastest ride!)

Their Haunted House, which my 24-year-old brother still refuses to go on to this day, is a favorite among Darkride and Funhouse Enthusiasts and in the top dark rides for the Golden Ticket Awards.

It’s fun, it’s nostalgic, it has a jump scare that made my grandpa accidentally teach me a new curse word when I was five. It’s a good time and a great ride. You can hear the effects of the attraction and the screams of its riders from far away.

Rides, old and new

Their Giant Flume and Twister coaster are not only great thrill rides, but also have cameras to capture your attractive face at the most thrilling point of the ride. Once you’re a veteran like my family and friends, you’ll be able to time your poses perfectly and make some hilarious memories. I have probably a dozen of these pictures hanging around my camper.

And although Knoebels is sort of known for being nostalgic and kind of a classical amusement park, they’ve recently added new rides to make things exciting for repeat and new visitors. Their newest coaster Impulse has a 90 degree drop which has drawn crowds since the day it opened. And the trackless coaster Flying Turns, which they hail as the “world’s only wooden bobsled coaster” felt like it took forever to build, but is well worth the wait if you’re an adrenaline junkie looking for a new experience.

Memories

Most importantly, what you will get at Knoebels is memories. It is a part of my childhood as precious as any other and even in my “adult” years keeps me excited and coming back again and again. There’s nothing quite like being able to camp with my family in the same spot I camped as a child, to be able to re-experience rides I rode when I was hardly tall enough.

My brother will still force me to wake up early in the morning to go mini-golfing and will still get more holes-in-one than me. I still wake up to the sound of workers testing the Twister and sit by the fire at night listening to its last riders scream with joy. The pool is just as beautiful and clear, even though I’m far too big to go down the slide anymore.

Knoebels is a park that has something for everyone. And it seems more often than not that once you come once, you come again and again. It really is a magical place that makes you feel more like family, makes you feel like a kid again, and makes you feel at home. I’m excited to make even more memories (and soon, as my next trip is merely days away!), and maybe with my own children someday. So if you ever feel like just forgetting your troubles for a while and happen to be in PA, stop by Knoebels, grab a funnel cake and a spot on the Ferris Wheel and ride. Have some fun and make your own memories.