Turning 50 Birthday Trip - Cedar Point (Part 1)
Good Morning My Lovelies and Gents,
We made it! We arrived at the Resort Saturday night. Yesterday we were there when Cedar Point opened and when it closed. We did go back to the hotel for a few hours in between. It was an AMAZING day. This morning we had some rain and it’s a little overcast, but it’s all good. We don’t have early entry passes so we can’t go just yet, but that’s okay. As I write this I am sitting on the patio overlooking the water and listening to the Seagulls. (I started this on Monday, but didn't finish until Friday) It’s so relaxing it’s not funny. If only I had some coffee. LOL. I’m also sitting next to the Starbucks, but the line was too long. I’ll wait it out. It’s not the weekend so we don’t NEED to be there when it opens. Although I’m going to give my big pitch for Hotel Breakers.
When we were planning and trip I was comparing prices. My thought was that I wasn’t planning on staying at the hotel that much so we could stay in town. I was encouraged to book the on-site Resort because it would enhance the experience and I would be certain to have a good bed. It has delivered. The beds are incredibly comfortable. There are restaurants on site. There is a beach and pools. And two private entrances to the Park. I don’t think that I could come to the Park again without staying here.
Okay so let’s talk about the drive here. Cousin Corey offered his car and driving services. It was delightful, but I’m telling you that I do the driving so much that I just didn’t know what to do with my hands for that long. Lol. Anyway, I drank iced tea most of the way. We did stop at Dunkin Donuts about halfway here and I got my first coffee and an egg sandwich. It was very difficult on my body though. My drive to Virginia was through rain the whole way. My body was still tight and stiff from that. Every time we stopped my body seemed for forget how to stand and walk. It was rough.
My life is never without drama and so within 5 minutes of checking in to the hotel I lost my phone. We were in our room and I couldn’t find it. We went back to the car and couldn’t find it. But, my karma is good and someone found it and handed it in to the front desk. Crisis averted.
For dinner on Saturday we tried the Japanese restaurant, but it was a bit of a wait. So we walked past the arcade and indoor pool to the TGIFridays. It was a short wait so we were able to grab pina coladas and sit outside while we waited.
As you can imagine, my options for dinner weren’t stellar, but I did get a beyond meat cheeseburger and side caesar salad. They were yummy.
We stayed out on the beach for a little while and it was glorious.
And then we crashed. It was a long day.
Sunday came soon enough. I was chugging my Starbucks at the entrance to the Park when the guy told me that I’m allowed to bring it in. BONUS. So we just moseyed around. I know every inch of Carowinds, but I have never been to Cedar point so we just took it all in. We got our tickets through the Hotel and it came with the Refresh package. We got our wristbands and got our first drink. There were bees all over that drink machine so the new rule became: Only get drinks at indoor locations. I have been thoroughly enjoying the Peaks Raspberry Iced Tea. I also immediately spilled it on me as I walked. I didn’t upgrade for the drink bottle and the cup they give you has no lid. I have gotten too spoiled with lids. LOL.
I love to ride coasters, but I love that Cedar Fair Parks are home to Snoopy. If and when I ever get my first tattoo it will be a Snoopy. Snoopy was everywhere and I was in heaven.
We walked past the glass blowing theatre and store. I have been so excited about that. It didn’t open for a couple of hours, but it was very much on the To-Do list. We even walked by some animals. My nephews love the donkeys at the Rescue Ranch that they go to and so I tried to take some pictures for them. I shan’t post them because I realized that I faced a challenge. Donkey Penises 2 - Jennie 0. DOH!
Our first ride of the day was the Millenium Force. It is the first Giga Coaster. I’m in! There are no cubbies so you do need to either have someone as a bag holder or rent a locker. Our wait wasn’t that bad. It was about 30 minutes. It got much longer after us.
I was very excited to make this ride my first. I mean I was REALLY excited.
My excitement was short-lived. I struggled to put my seatbelt on. I was mortified. I started to get panicky. The guy that came to click us all in had a hard time. Dang it! He got it in and it was tight, however, if there is any time where tight is good, roller coaster tight is good. I loved this ride. OMG I loved it so much. I wasn’t sure about riding it again though. I did not enjoy the seat belt. I mean I looked around and there were so many people who were bigger than me and they hooked right away. GAH! (Things got better later and we had a big a-ha moment, but that’s for another post)
We were monitoring the ride times on the app and decided to head towards the front of the park. We passed one coaster that had a 5-minute wait. So we were in. The Iron Dragon. I thought it was adorable. The bonus is that you can bring your bags on the ride and put them on the floor in front of you. This ride was delightful. It literally feels like a Chinese Dragon running around. It’s a great ride for the whole family.
And then we were hungry. I got the daily food pass. For $33 you can eat every 90 minutes. It includes an entree and a side, but no desserts. Not every venue accepts the plan though. Most of the venues accept it. I had looked to see what vegetarian options were available and the 50’s diner said that they had Beyond Meat burgers. However, I didn’t see it as an option and when I asked about it I was looked at like I had 3 extra heads. And so my very first meal at the park was…
French Fries. I mean, I kind of expected this a little. I didn’t eat them all though. That is the good thing about the meal plan. Honestly, if you get two meals then the plan pays for itself. Usually, I just get one meal and because they are pricey I have a hard time leaving food on the plate.
I love all of the roller coasters that I rode over the past few days, but honestly, I absolutely loved the Sky Ride. It’s a gondola that rides over the middle and front of the park. It was delightful. It felt like we were cheating because we weren’t walking, but we got to see the whole park from up above and it was fantastic.
The weather that day was in the 70’s, but the sun was hot and it felt like the 90’s. I was wearing a t-shirt and my LL Bean skort that has zipper pockets. I also had my backpack and that just made my back sweat. We found a ride that Corey loved from a previous trip and it reminds me of the Afterburn at Carowinds so I was in. It’s called Raptor. The line said 30 minutes. The majority of the line was in the shade, but not all, and I was starting to question if I put deodorant on. This is why I have a 30-minute max rule. You never know how long you are just going to be standing there in the sun. We did have water bottles so it wasn’t horrible. Raptor has an over-the-shoulder harness which is nice except that it squishes the boobs. But, my suggestion if you are on the curvy side, avoid the other rides with lap belts. Those cars are much smaller than the newer rides. The ride itself was Awesome. I loved it and it was another great Scream.
Ninety minutes had passed and I was hungry. There is an Italian joint right there, Hugo’s, so we went in. I figured that I was going to be eating a lot of pizza on this trip. I was absolutely delighted to find the specialty pizza was a vegetable deep dish. I mean not a lot of vegetables, but it was something different. This is when I found out that I could get the pizza and a side salad. I didn’t get it this time, but I knew for later.
This slice was huge and I gave half to Corey. It was dang tasty though. I needed to walk after this so we walked back towards the back of the park. The Glass Blowing store should be open and hopefully a demonstration. Jackpot! I literally could have sat there and watched all day.
I couldn’t decide what to get. Everything in the store was made on site. It was all gorgeous.
It was getting late and we really wanted to go back to the hotel for the pool. But, we needed to ride something else and Gemini, the wooden coaster that has two cars racing, only had a 5-minute wait. You had me at wooden coaster.
This ride was high on my favorite list. I decided to go back and get something at the glass store since we were going back to the hotel and there was a lessened chance that I would break it. So Corey left to rest and I hustled back. I picked a beautiful glass mug with blue swirls. And then I realized that it had been 90 minutes. I wasn’t starving, but I didn’t know how long we would be gone and there was one item that I REALLY wanted to try. The Farmhouse Kitchen offered a side of Citrus Brussels sprouts. Since it was just a side I asked Corey if he wanted me to get him some Chicken Tenders. And so I got a plate with chicken tenders and Brussels sprouts. They didn’t have a to-go container so I would be walking to the hotel with an open plate. Guess when it started to sprinkle. Some nice big plops. Honestly, I was ready to dump the chicken and just run with my sprouts, but I didn’t.
I made sure to get my re-entry pass and found a closer entrance to the hotel. I still had to wind through the halls, but at least I was not going to get wet. The sprouts were delicious and the sky cleared up. Corey went to the pool and I rested a little bit. And then I went to join him. I just wanted to sit and read. But, my brain could not focus the book. I did get a coffee because I was tired.
After the pool, we took a little walk and found another entrance to the Park that was even closer. It lets you in towards the front of the park. So after I showered and changed (put on a long-sleeved shirt because the wind was picking up) we went to that entrance. They had a sign that the Pavilion now serves breakfast. Hooray! This was my biggest complaint. The hotel has a Starbucks and a Perkins so it doesn’t offer a continental breakfast. We decided to start our day there the next day.
I really wanted to ride the Ferris wheel and there wasn’t much of a line so we got in line. It wasn’t long, but it took a while to load. It was worth the wait though. The sun was reflecting off of the clouds on the water and it was gorgeous. It was also INCREDIBLY windy. I was even nervous to take pictures because I was afraid that I would drop my phone.
We could see the line for the Gatekeeper and it was low so we ran to it. I had watched the POV video so many times. You don’t ride directly over the track. You are the wings. There are two seats to the left and two seats to the right. As you walk in they separate you to the two sides to make it even. They sent us to the left side. The ride itself was fabulous, but the view from the left is not the greatest. You are looking over a lot of pavement.
We decided to get one more meal. We went back to Hugos. I got the Caesar side salad and it was all that I needed.
The Park was closing after, but it was such pretty walk through the Park at night. I love the lights. I couldn’t stop taking pictures.
We were happy for the short walk back to the hotel. I was tired. I thought I had more steps than I did for the day, but I only had 21,000. I think I was holding those darn chicken tenders in my left hand and it didn’t catch those steps. LOL.
I was tired, but the second coffee and the adrenaline were kicking in. And I could feel a blister forming on the bottom of my baby toe. What an Amazing day.
Stay tuned for days 3 & 4…
I appreciate you.
Jennie
xoxo
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