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'Darien Lake' is a theme park resort located between Buffalo and Rochester in Darien, New York, United States, off the New York State Thruway (I-90). After being owned by Six Flags from 1999 to early 2007, the park is now owned by CNL Income Properties and operated by PARC Management.

Contents

History

Logos

Layout

Lakes

Rides/Attractions

Roller Coasters

Water Attractions

Flat Rides

Children's rides

Entertainment Venues

Past Entertainment Venues

Fright Fest

Fall Fair Days

Upcharge Attractions

Performing Arts Center

See also

External links

History

Darien Lake opened as a campground/picnic park in the 1960's without any rides. In the '70s, a pair of water slides called "Hydro Force" were added over the largest lake, aptly named "Darien Lake". In the late '70s and throughout the '80s, investor Paul Snyder invested numerous amusement rides into the park, calling it "Snyder's Darien Lake." During this time, he struck a deal with HUSS Maschinenfabrik to make Darien Lake the North American showcase for the German manufacturer's new rides, installing rides such as ''The Troika'', ''The Pirate'', ''The Ranger'', and ''Popcorn Popper'' (now the Rodeo Round-Up). Through this deal, the park's first Roller Coaster, ''The Viper'', was built by Huss and Arrow Dynamics and opened in 1982. In addition, a performing arts center called the "Lakeside Amphitheater" was added on the south side of the main lake, drawing major concerts including The Who. During this period, the park was also called 'Darien Lake Fun Country', still evidenced by some of the manhole covers in the park midway. The park's unique "Haymaker" ride, manufactured by Heintz-Fahtze, was relocated here from Elitch Gardens in Denver, Colorado.
In 1983, Snyder sold 50% of the park to Funtime Parks. The "Fun Country" theme, along with Snyder's name, was cut and the park operated as simply 'Darien Lake'. The Funtime era brought the park numerous improvements, including the Vekoma-built ''Giant Wheel'' ferris wheel in 1983, which was the showcase of the 1982 World's Fair in Knoxville, Tennessee—at the time, the largest ferris wheel in the world. Other improvements of the late 1980s include a Kids' Area called "Adventure Land for Kids" in 1987 and the ''Grizzly Run Rapids'' in 1989. The 1990s brought more improvements such as the addition of the ''Barracuda Bay'' waterpark and the wooden roller coaster ''The Predator'' in 1990. Around this time Paul Snyder sold his remaining share of Darien Lake to Funtime Parks. In 1993, a new Performing Arts Center was opened on the east side of the park, with the ability to hold nearly 4 times as many guests as the Lakeside Amphitheater. The Laser Light Fantasy show, the only show of its kind, was introduced at the Lakeside the same year, after being demoed the year before.
In 1995, Funtime Parks was purchased by growing park chain Premier Parks (now Six Flags). Throughout the Premier era, the park experienced the most additions. Upgrades included three new coasters: ''Nightmare at Phantom Cave'' in 1996 (Moved to The Great Escape in 1998), ''Mind Eraser'' in 1997, and ''Boomerang: Coast to Coaster'' in 1998, along with the ''Popeye's Seaport'' themed kids area (now Adventure Isle), and two major waterpark additions (''Hook's Lagoon'' and ''Crocodile Isle'').
In 1998, Premier Parks acquired Six Flags Theme Parks, reforming the company and renaming themselves Six Flags, Inc. In May, 1999, the park opened for the first time under the 'Six Flags' name after the numerous upgrades from the past few years. Millions of dollars were spent on adding Looney Tunes and DC Comics themed attractions. The most notable addition was '' (now ''Ride Of Steel''), the world's first Intamin Hypercoaster. A criticism of the Six Flags years at the park, though, were the lack of rides being added and poor customer service.
Due to financial struggles throughout the chain, Six Flags indicated interest in selling off Darien Lake and other smaller parks beginning in 2006. Six Flags also cut shows and operating hours at Darien Lake and other parks throughout the chain.
On April 6, 2007, Six Flags completed the sale of Darien Lake and 6 other formerly Six Flags-owned parks to PARC Management, but due to financial markets being closed for Good Friday, could not announce it until Monday, April 9, 2007. Since then, the park property has been owned by CNL Income Properties and leased/operated by PARC Management. This is expected to continue under a 50 year contract signed by the two companies.
Six Flags season passes and any promotions made prior to the sale (Dream Nite, etc.) will continue to be honored for 2007.
Six Flags Darien Lake was the second largest property size in the Six Flags chain, the only one with on-site campgrounds and Performing Arts Center, and one of two in the chain with an on-site hotel. Darien Lake Theme Park Resort continues that reputation in the PARC chain, being the largest park overall, and the only park with an on-site campgrounds, hotel, and performance center.
Because of the timing of the final sale with respect to park's opening, PARC is unable to make many major changes for the 2007 season. The addition of the Le Grande Cirque show and the removal of all DC Comics and Looney Tunes references will leave the biggest impact on guests, as will lower prices. PARC has stated that in the future they would like to "localize" the park by bringing in local vendors such as Rich Products of Buffalo and Kodak of Rochester.

Logos

Layout

Lakes

There are many natural and man-made lakes inside the park.

★ 'Darien Lake' is located on the north side of the theme park, behind the Predator. It separates the hotel from the rest of the park, as well as about 100 camper sites which are situated around the lake.

★ 'Fun Lake' is the lake situated in the center of the park, surrounded by the Giant Wheel, the Pirate, Skycoaster, Boomerang, and Darien Square. The Waterski show used to be held in this lake.

★ 'Willow's Lake' is located under the Mind Eraser.

★ 'Elk Lake' is behind Hook's Lagoon, now under the Big Kahuna.

★ 'Trout Pond' is situated under Ride of Steel.

★ 'Apple Lake' is located on the East end of the campgrounds.

Rides/Attractions

Roller Coasters

Ride Name	Opened	Status	Type	Manufacturer/Model	Height	Drop	Speed	Comments
''	1998	Operating	Shuttle roller coaster	Vekoma Boomerang	116 ft	116 ft	47 mph	"A High-Tech looping, hair-raising machine" As stated on GoDarienLake.com.
'Brain Teaser'	1981	Operating	Steel roller coaster	Zierer	10.8 ft	10.8 ft	16 mph	The park's only kiddie coaster. Formerly called "Ladybug" and "Nessie the Dreamy Dragon" when it became a part of "Adventure Land for Kids" in 1988. Now a part of the "Tiny Trio", three original kiddie rides located separate of the enclosed kiddie area, "Adventure Isle."
'The Mind Eraser'	1997	Operating	Inverted roller coaster	Vekoma Suspended Looping Coaster	109 ft	87 ft	55 mph	One of Two Vekoma SLCs in New York State but the only one in operation. The other is the former Serial Thriller from Six Flags AstroWorld in storage at The Great Escape & Splashwater Kingdom.
'Nightmare at Phantom Cave'	1996	Relocated: 1999	Enclosed roller coaster	Schwarzkopf Jet Star				Relocated to Darien Lake from Six Flags Kentucky Kingdom (Starchaser) in 1996. Relocated to The Great Escape in 1999 as Nightmare at Crack Axle Canyon. It is currently SBNO.
'The Predator'	1990	Operating	Wooden roller coaster	Summers-Dinn	95 ft	83 ft	50 mph	New York State's largest wooden roller coaster
'Ride of Steel'	1999	Operating	Hypercoaster	Intamin AG Megacoaster	208 ft	205 ft	73 mph	Intamin AG's first hypercoaster.
'The Viper'	1982	Operating	Steel Looping Coaster	Arrow Dynamics & HUSS Maschinenfabrik	121 ft	75 ft	50 mph	The park's first major roller coaster, also the first in the world with 5 inversions.
'Unknown (Formerly Batman The Escape)'	--	In Storage	Stand-up roller coaster	Intamin AG	90 ft	85 ft	mph	Formerly located at Six Flags Astroworld. Moved to The Darien Lake Theme Park Resort in the 2005/2006 off-season for storage. Future plans for this ride are unknown.

Water Attractions

'' 'Barracuda Bay' is the name of the central location of the water park, and encompasses multiple slides.

All water attractions are included with price of admission.''

Name	Type	Opened	Status	Comments
'Big Kahuna'	Water Slide	2006	Operating	ProSlide "Mammoth" Family sized tube slide relocated from Six Flags AstroWorld.
'Cascade Canyon'	Water Slide	1982	Removed: 2001	Mat Water Slide complex on the east side of '''Barracuda Bay'''. Removed to make room for 'Shipwreck Falls'
'Crocodile Isle'	Wave Pool	1997	Operating	Large family wave pool, located past 'Hook's Lagoon'.
''Cuda Falls '	Water Slide	1994	Operating	Four White Water West "tube slides" (two enclosed, two open). Replaced the old 'Rainbow Falls' slide complex on the north side of '''Barracuda Bay'''.
'Floodgate Falls'	Water Slide		Operating	Cascading ''Lazy River'' in Barracuda Bay.
'Grizzly Run'	Water Ride	1989	Operating	River Rafting Ride
'Hook's Lagoon'	Water Playground	1996	Operating	Five story tall water playground with slides, stands where ''Adventure Land for Kids'' used to be.
'Hydro Force'	Water Slide	1977	Removed: 1999	Darien Lake's first water slides and the first attraction based item in the original campgrounds. Originally located over Darien Lake, moved in 1990 to the back side of '''Barracuda Bay'''
'Pipeline Plunge'	Water Slide		Removed: 1999	Water slide located in '''Barracuda Bay'''.
'Rainbow Falls'	Water Slide		Removed: 1994	A set of 4 mat slides in '''Barracuda Bay''', replaced by ''Cuda Falls'.
'Riptide Run'	Water Slide		Removed: 1999	Water Slide located in '''Barracuda Bay'''.
'Shipwreck Falls'	Water Ride	2002	Operating	Soaking plunge ride. It generates a 20 ft wave. Located where 'Cascade Canyon' used to stand.
'Tadpole Island'	Water Playground	1991	Removed: 1995	Small kids water area. Located in 'Adventure Land for Kids', where 'Hook's Lagoon' now stands.
'Thunder Rapids'	Water Ride	1981	Operating	Log flume attraction. Renamed "Poland Springs Plunge" for a few years during Six Flags ownership.
'Tornado'	Water Slide	2005	Operating	ProSlide Tornado. Sends riders on tubes through a giant funnel. Located behind 'Crocodile Isle'
'Torpedo Rapids'	Water Slide		Removed: 1999	Water slide located in '''Barracuda Bay'''.

Flat Rides

''Many of the rides manufactured by HUSS Maschinenfabrik were installed as part of a deal with Huss to use Darien Lake as a North American showcase for Huss's new rides in the early 1980s.''

Name	Opened	Status	Type	Manufacturer	Comments
'Bear Valley Bumper Buggies'	[Between 1978 and 1981]	Operating	Bumper Cars	DUCE Ride Manufacturers
'Crazy Quilt'	1981	Removed: 1999	Calypso	Heinrich Mack GmbH & Co	'Lasso' moved to 'Crazy Quilt''s location to make way for the ''Looney Tunes Emporium''. Named "Sidewinder" in its later years.
'Giant Wheel'	1983	Operating	Ferris Wheel	Vekoma	The icon of the park until the mid-1990s. The second largest in North America at 165 feet tall, was the largest when installed. Purchased from the 1982 World's Fair in Knoxville.
'Grande Carousel'	1977	Operating	Carousel	International Amusement Devices
'Haymaker'	1985	Operating	Twister	Heintz Fahtze	The only one of its kind.[1] The term "Twister" is not related to a twist style ride or the 'Twister'.
'Lasso'	1980	Operating	Wave Swinger	Zierer	Basic Wave Swinger ride.
'Pirate'	[Between 1978 and 1981]	Operating	Pirate Ship	HUSS Maschinenfabrik	Installed as part of the HUSS showcase.
'Raging Seas'	1977	Operating	Seesturmbahn	Heinrich Mack GmbH & Co	Fomerly called "Sea Storm"
'Ranger'	1982	Operating	Ranger	HUSS Maschinenfabrik	An original Huss Ranger, the first of its kind in the North America. The only one now operating. Installed as part of the HUSS showcase deal in the 1980s.
'Rodeo Roundup'	1985	Operating	Swing Around	HUSS Maschinenfabrik	An original Huss Swing Around. Part of the Huss showcase. Formerly called "Corn Popper"
'Scrambler'	1977	Operating	Grasscutter Twist	Eli Bridge
'Silver Bullet'	1983	Operating	Enterprise	Heintz Fahtze	The only Enterprise by HF in operation. [2]
'Sleighride'	1977	Operating	Petersburger Schlittenfahrt	Heinrich Mack GmbH & Co	Foremerly named "Petersburg"
'Thrillbilly'	1979	Removed: 1984	Troika	Huss Maschinenfabrik	Located where the 'Predator' now stands.
'Tin Lizzies'	1977	Operating	Antique Car ride	Arrow Huss
'Twister'	2000	Operating	Top Spin	HUSS Maschinenfabrik	Painted to look like it is made of wood.
'UFO'	1979	Operating	UFO	HUSS Maschinenfabrik	Original Huss UFO, installed as part of the HUSS showcase.

Children's rides

'''Adventure Land for Kids' contained all kiddie rides from 1988 through 1995. In 1996, it was replaced by 'Adventure Island' (previously called 'Popeye's Seaport' and 'Looney Tunes Seaport') with all new rides, exclusively from Zamperla. The 'Tiny Trio' is a set of older junior rides from 'Adventure Land' located near the 'Mind Eraser'. The 'Seaport' was placed on an "island" near the 'Viper', forcing "Treasure Island Mini-Golf" to move to a new course under the 'Viper'.

Name	Opened	Status	Description	Comments
'Barrels of Fun'	1996	Operating	Zamperla "Sun & Moon" (Mini Ferris Wheel)	Formerly called 'Michigan J Frog's Ferris Wheel'
'BMX Motocross'	1988	Operating	Hampton Rides Motorcylces	Circular children's ride featuring BMX style bikes which "jump" over humps as they circle. Original ride of ''Adventure Land'', moved to ''Tiny Trio'' in 1996.
'Darien Lake Express'	1996	Operating	Zamperla "Rio Grande" (Train ride)	Formerly called 'Rabbit Transit'
'Dipsy Diver'	1996	Operating	Zamperla "Crazy Bus"	Formerly called 'Daffy's Divers'
'Dodgems'	1991	Operating	Junior Bumper Cars	Added to ''Adventure Land'' in 1991. Moved to the ''Tiny Trio'' in 1996.
'Earth Orbiter'		Removed: 1996	Zierer Panoramic Wheel	''Adventure Land'' ride.
'Funtime Junction'	1991	Removed: 1997	Chance Rides C.P. Huntington Train	Ridable miniature railway located around Elk Lake in ''Adventure Land for Kids''.
'Monty's Moon Walk'		Removed	Ball Pit	''Adventure Land'', Replaced by the 'SS Looney Tunes' in the ''Seaport''
'Monster Trucks'	1996	Operating	Zamperla "Convoy"	Formerly called 'Foghorn's Coastal Delivery'
'Raft Adventure'	1996	Operating	Zamperla "Mini Jet"	Formerly called 'Pepe's Rafts of Romance'
'Runaway Railway'	1996	Operating	Zamperla	Miniature train engines for very small children. Formerly called 'Elmer Fudd's Tiny Tooter Railroad'
'Twisty Tubs'	1996	Operating	Zamperla "Mini Tea Cup"	Teacup style ride themed as open aluminum spinach cans. Formerly called 'Bug's Carrot Cans'
'Weather Balloons'	1996	Operating	Zamperla "Samba Balloon"	A Samba Balloon Ride. Formerly called 'Seaport Weather Balloons'
'Whirlwind'	1996	Operating	Zamperla "Mini Swings"	A mini swing ride that was formerly named 'Taz Twister'.

Entertainment Venues

''All show venues here are included with price of admission.''

Name	Recent Shows	Comments
'Adventure Stage'	''Blake Daring's Storybook Adventure'' (2007- ), ''Bugs Bunny Goes Hollywood'' (2003-2006)	Features shows specifically for children, Located in Adventure Isle.
'The Galaxy Theatre'	''Le Grande Cirque'' (2007- ), ''Batman Thrill Spectacular'' (1999-2006),	Building originally housed ''Nightmare at Phantom Cave'', an indoor roller coaster. Called "Gotham City Theatre" while holding the ''Batman Thrill Spectacular''.
'Wegman's Grande Theatre'	''The Magic of Cliff Hopkins & Kelly'' (2007), ''Totally Pop'' (2006), ''America: State of Rhythm'' (2005), ''American Pop'' (2004),	Opened as the Jubilee Theatre in 1980, has also been named Tops Palace Theatre.
'The Lakeside Ampitheatre'	''LaserBlast!'' (1998- ), ''LaserLight Reality'' (1995-1998), ''LaserLight Fantasy'' (1992-1995)	'The Lakeside Ampitheatre' used to be the home of major concerts and other events until 1993, when the Performing Arts Center opened. LaserLight Fantasy, started in 1992, was originally shown on the midway between the 'Giant Wheel' and 'Barracuda Bay'.
'Rockville Park Midway Gazebo Stage'	''Keepin' the Beat'' (2007- ), ''Rockin' Country'' (2003-2006)	Outdoor stage in the midway. Sometimes holds special events such as karaoke.

Past Entertainment Venues

★ Big Top Circus (Located in 'Adventure Land')

★ Cinema 2000 (Located where the Scrambler is)

★ 50's Bandstand (Located where the Queue line for Predator is)

★ Fun Lake (''Splashmania'', a water ski show)

★ Bugs Bunny House (Was located in the center of Looney Tunes Seaport)

Fright Fest

''Fright Fest'' was an annual event held at the end of the operating season (Weekends in October, typically) from 1998 to 2006, which celebrated Halloween. Fright Fest added new areas to the park ('Bloodstone Hollow', a free haunted graveyard and town; and 'Brutal Planet', an upcharge haunted house.) and different shows than the regular season (''Dead Man's Party'' in 'The Grande Theater' and ''Laser Spooktacular'' at the 'Lakeside Ampitheatre'.)

Fall Fair Days

In 2007 the traditional Halloween event of years past was modified into a smaller subset of a new event called ''Old Time Family Fair Days''. ''OTFFD'' brings a county fair concept to the park - free admission and pay-by-ride, as well as some other things you'd find at a fair, including the Haunted House (formerly Brutal Planet), and a hay maze.

Upcharge Attractions

''These attractions are not included in the admission price. Cost varies from ride to ride.''

Name	Opened	Status	Comments
'Boat Docks'		Operating	Rent a paddle boat. Currently located on Fun Lake near the 'Giant Wheel'. Former locations include 'Willow Lake'.
'Boat Tag'	1996	Removed: 1999	Tank-like boats in a big tank in the middle of the Midway. Located were the Rockville Park Midway Gazebo Stage now stands.
'Mountain View Golf'	1996	Operating	Miniature Golf Course, located underneath areas of the Viper. Replaced 'Treasure Island Golf'.
'Sky Coaster'	1995	Operating	An intense tethered skydiving like attraction. Hoists riders to 180 feet over 'Fun Lake', and releases them in a swinging motion.
'Slingshot'	2002	Operating	First demoed in mid-2001 at the park with a mobile Reverse Bungee version, replaced in the off season with a permanent Funtime "Slingshot" model.
'Treasure Island Golf'		Removed: 1996	Fomerly located where Adventure Isle now resides. Replaced by 'Mountain View Golf'
'Turbobungy'	2002	Removed: 2007	Trampoline where riders are attached to bungy cords while jumping.
'Watkins Glen Road Rally'	1987	Operating	Go-Karts. Opened in 1987 as the 'Grand Prix Speedway'. Also named 'Superhero Speedway'.

Performing Arts Center

The 'Darien Lake Performing Arts Center' was opened in 1993 as a replacement for the 'Lakeside Amphitheater', where concerts had previously been held. The ''PAC'', as it is commonly referred to, is currently owned by Live Nation, not by the park itself. Major concerts are held here periodically throughout the summer, occasionally including a concert that takes place when the park is not open. Tickets for these events can be upgraded to Park Combo Passes, or just bought as standard concert tickets with no park admission. This venue was formerly owned by Clear Channel.

See also

★ List of contemporary amphitheatres

External links

★
Official site
Darien Lake Performing Arts Center