Coney Island is a very interesting park for several reasons. Well first of all, Coney Island isn't even really a theme park. It's actually 2 different theme parks just strung together. Coney Island pretty much consists of Luna Park and Deno's Wonder Wheel Park. I know there used to be Scream Zone for all the big thrill rides, but that's since merged with Luna Park. Though it really doesn't matter as I consider them all to be one park. The park of Coney Island. End of story. But yeah. Coney Island is a very...unique park. It's probably the park that aside from Disneyland, is probably the most famous park in the world. I mean, just how many movies has the Coney Island Cyclone starred in at this point? It's just so iconic. Nothing to say (besides all the stuff I'll say in my Coney Island Cyclone review down below) other than it's just flat out the most famous wooden coaster in the world. It's one of the ultra-rare out of state parks I can visit, admit to being from SoCal, without revealing that I'm a coaster enthusiast. Now Coney Island is a very different park than it was in the 1920s (obviously). But it went through a HUGE change in 2010. Coney Island was in trouble and rumors about it possibly closing were buzzing. Well actually, it can't completely close as the Coney Island Cyclone, the Parachute Jump, and Deno's Wonder Wheel are protected under the National Register of Historic Places. But the future for the rest of the park looked pretty damn grim. In came Zamperla, who bought the place and added a ton of new rides (which is why you see so many rides from Zamperla there). So yeah. There's all the historical stuff to Coney Island like the Coney Island Cyclone, Deno's Wonder Wheel, and the Parachute Jump. And then you have all the Zamperla rides. But in all seriousness, I thought that Zamperla owned Coney Island was GREAT!! Everything was clean, they got a bunch of fun new rides, and they all fit in with the old school atmosphere that is so important to Coney Island. I highly recommend it while you're visiting New York City.
Coney Island has a very intersting flat ride collection. Since the Zamperla takeover, they added a TON of Zamperla flat rides. And yeah, a lot of them are really good. So let's not waste any more time and dive right into the collection. First up, let's talk about the famous flat ride. Deno's Wonder Wheel. This is one of only two swinging car Ferris Wheels in the world (It's really sad that the only other one in the world is at Disney's California Adventure). But yeah, it's really freaking fun. Those swinging cars can cause some really funny freak outs. Onto their star non-famous flat ride, Slingshot. Yeah, you can ride it for free here. Which is great as I normally never ride these things, which makes these things a lot more special. Same goes for their Skyscraper. Just be warned that the capacity on these are HORRIBLE and you're going to be waiting a LONG TIME for both. Air Race. I'm not sure if this was home to the very first Zamperla Air Race, but these things spread like wildfire in the 2010s, which is fine with me because I LOVE this ride. It's just a ride full of never-ending corkscrews. Oh, you know you want in on the never-ending corkscrew action. It's that fun. So glad that these things are popped up like crazy. Moving on to the next flat ride, the Brooklyn Flyer. This ride is a Starflyer, and it's fun and it sucks at the same time. It sucks because it's only 100 ft tall, which is emberassing for a Star Flyer. But I still like it because it has a GREAT view of Coney Island, the Atlantic Ocean, and the breeze at the top is just lovely. They also have a Shock Drop, which is always fun. Next up is Saturn 6. This is a very odd flat ride. It's not the most intense flat ride out there, but I normally would recommend riding it for it's sheer uniqueness if it weren't for one itty bitty problem. The ride costs $6 and isn't included in the wristband. AGH!!!! I mean, it's a fun ride and I'm glad I rode it once, but I certainly won't be getting any re-rides for $6. Onto the next flat ride, Eclipse, the parks mini frisbee. Don't let it's small size fool you, this thing PACKS A PUNCH!!! Onto Zam, the parks kiddy drop tower. It's not a frog hopper, it's a legit, fun little ride. Moving onto Coney Island Sound. This is a bouncy bouncy style ride. And it's really fun. Not the most intense ride ever, but I honestly found it to be a good ride. It did have some airtime over those bumps. And finally,the last flat ride I want to talk about is a fun little ride called Surf's Up. This is a stand up version of the kiddy flat ride classic, Rockin Tug. The stand up element does make it more fun, however, I would not recommend a group of adults riding this ride as we actually broke the ride from all our weight. Not a fun moment for us. And that covers most of the flat rides at Coney Island. All we're missing is the Disk-O, some chairswings, some teacups, and one of those carnival cliff hanger rides.
So depressing that this is only one of two swinging car ferris wheels in the world.
I LOVE these rides. ESPECIALLY when they're free.
Dark Rides
Coney Island may be an old school classic park, but they do have a dark ride at the park. No, this not an amazing Disney quality dark ride. This is more on par with something like Zombie that would appear at your local fair. And yeah. Spookorama is pretty sh*tty. But in a weird sort of way, it's almost one of those rides that's so bad it's good. It's got some Zombie qualitys, but it's also got an outdoor section before you even see any theming, and the cars are sideways. Why? Nobody knows. It's just that kind of f*cked up ride. Give it a ride if you have a wristband and want to see something strange.
Nothing about this ride makes any sense.
Water Rides
There is only one water ride at Coney Island, and sadly, it's pretty crappy. It's just a puny little log flume called Wild Rivers. Don't look for anything special with this log ride. It's the same log flume that you see at every carnival and small little park. So don't worry about riding it. I mean, you'll have fun on it if it's a hot day and you're with the right friends. But don't go out of your way for this ride.
Coney Island, for the most part, has nothing to brag about with its food collection. It's quite easy to find hamburgers, pizza, cotton candy, carmel apples, the amusement park staples. However, Coney Island does have great food. And it's not hidden. It's one of the big famous highlights of the park. You know how I mentioned hamburgers and pizza, but left out hot dogs? Yeah, there's a reason. This is the birth place of Nathan's Hot Dogs. Yes, the Nathan's Hot Dogs. The famous hot dog chain. This is where the chain originated. And this place is much better than your typical Nathan's Hot Dogs. You need to eat the Bacon Hot Dogs here. My god, they are just FANTASTIC!!! They kick the Bacon Wrapped Hot Dog's ass by a LONG SHOT!! I mean, this thing is just DRAPED with bacon. And it is SO GOOD!!! It's because of this and just the general awesomeness of Nathan's Hot Dogs that landed Coney Island a spot on our Top 10 Theme Park Dining Options List. You need to eat here. You won't regret it.
So much better than your standard Nathans Hot Dogs.
Theming and Other Attractions
Here are the reviews of all the other stuff at Coney Island. Well, as for theming, there's really not much. This is an amusement park in the classical sense. Hell, this place f*cking IS THE CLASSICAL AMUSEMENT PARK!!! There's no theming here at all. Ok, but what about other stuff to do? Well, again, Coney Island is pretty much just rides for the most part. Zamperla has been adding a lot of new rides recently, but there's no shows, there's no special other attractions for you to go visit. I mean, there are arcades and carnival games. Those are fun and all. You can always head on over to the beach. It's right there. That's always fun. But as far as stuff actually in Coney Island, there's not too much. But I already listed the beach, and Manhattan is readily avaliable with public transportation. I don't think there's gonna be a boredom problem if you grow tired of rides at Coney Island.
In Conclusion
Coney Island is in some sense, the most classical amusement park in the world. It's place in Amusement Park History is sealed in stone along with Disneyland and Tivoli Gardens. So in that sense, it's kind of cool to be walking in the middle of Theme Park History. You'll recognize the place due to all the movies it's appeared in. But fame aside, Coney Island is just a really fun amusement park to be in. Now granted, it's kind of frustrating to visit since it's technically 2 different parks. But just get two wristbands. And it's just a really fun theme park to visit. It's got all the classic rides such as the Coney Island Cyclone and Deno's Wonder Wheel which are great and all. But the modern Zamperla rides that have been added in the last few years are fun too. This new Coney Island appears to be a very pleasent mix of old and new while still maintaining the classic charm that all the movies capture at Coney Island. I'd definetly recommend visiting the park while you're visiting New York City. It's easy to reach using public transportation and has a wide variety of rides to enjoy. Get out to Coney Island and soak in the charm and history it has to offer.
Enthusiast FAQs.
*Are there kiddy coaster restrictions? - No. Adults are allowed on all of the kiddy coasters at the park.
Tips
*Make sure you get wristbands for both parks.
*Ride in the back on the Coney Island Cyclone. >=)
*Get the Bacon Hot Dog from Nathan's Hot Dogs.
*Saturn 6 is fun and all, but I personally don't think it's worth $6
