California's Great America is a large family theme park in Santa Clara, California. It originally opened in 1976 as Marriot's Great America and has been through several owners and incarnations since. Over the years it has been known as Great America, Paramount's Great America and finally, in 2008, California's Great America. The park sprawls across 364 acres, and features a total of 55 rides including 8 roller coasters and 3 water rides.
The park is currently owned by Cedar Fair Entertainment Co., which has made licensing deals with Nickelodeon and Paramount allowing the company to use Nickelodeon and Paramount characters in their theme. California's Great America advertises that it boasts the most thrill rides of any other theme park in North California. The oldest of the rides at Great America is the Demon, a roller coaster custom built for the park's opening in 1976. On the opposite end of the time line, the Firefall opened in August, 2008, and features fire, fog and water effects along with the motion.
California's Great America includes eight roller coasters of varying styles. They include an inverted coaster, Northern California's only stand-up roller coaster, and Grizzly, the wooden roller coaster that has the dubious distinction of being named worst wooden coaster in the world from 2006 through 2008 according to one roller coaster poll. In addition to the coasters, the thrill rides at California's Great America include Drop Zone, a freefall ride, and Rip-Roaring Rapids, a water thrill ride.
Great America also features an array of family fun rides in addition to the thrill rides. Those include the Carousel Columbia, the tallest double-decker carousel in the world, and the Boomerang Bay Beach Club, a water play area that features thirteen water slides and a children's splash area. Boomerang Bay Beach Club is part of Boomerang Bay, one of several areas at California's Great America that are designed specifically for kids and tweens. The other areas include Kidzville and Nickelodeon Central. Kidzville features 18 rides and attractions for parents and children, including a miniature roller coaster and mini bumper car ride. Nickelodeon Central includes themed rides based on Nickelodeon television shows, including the Thornberry's Treetop Lookout and Spongebob's Boatmobile.
In addition to the rides and attractions, California's Great America offers special events, promotions and concerts throughout the spring, summer and autumn. Families can book a breakfast with favorite Nickelodeon characters, enjoy fireworks every weekend in August and walk through haunted houses and other eerie attractions during October.
The park is open Memorial Day through Halloween, though the days and hours vary. General admission is over $50 for adults, but one admission covers all rides and attractions. Great America also offers Season Passes with varying levels of perks, including preferred parking and admission to other Cedar Fair parks. For more information about schedules and admission prices, check the park's web site or call California's Great America at 408-988-1776 x8848.
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