From Dixie Land to Fun Junction to Fun Spot. With all the land this park has it could rival a major theme park. All they need now is the money to buy and build new rides.
You're absolutely correct about why they charge for parking: It's to prevent people from loitering or using the park as a free hangout spot. The $5 credit is a good idea because it incentivizes people to spend more than they otherwise would. Charging for parking still doesn't stop people from dropping off their youth, though.
I agree. They really need to work on park beautification and overall infrastructure. That parking lot needs to be paved, and lots of that pavement in the park needs to be torn up and replaced with planters and such. It just looks kinda run down as it is. Plus it needs like an actual restaurant.
Fun Spot bought the park in Spring of 2017. Since that time, they have put in bumper cars the carousel swing around a Kitty toaster a paratrooper a brand new multi-layered million-plus dollar go-kart track froghopper ferris wheel remove some old goofy-looking kiddie ride and put in Riptide. So it's not like they're not making Improvement it just takes time. We were supposed to get a new roller coaster and it lay around in the backyard for two months before Kissimmee stole it.
This place reminds me a lot of Adventure Park USA in Maryland. They are like almost amusement parks but closer to being family fun centers. All they need to do is add a big flat ride or two and maybe one other major attraction like another coaster or a western themed flume or dark ride in the themed building. Then this one would be as good or better than the orlando locations
Your correct about the new swings and carousel being from Coney. I used to work at the park years ago, and those are spot on the models they had (even including the sign for the swings!) Glad to see some of my old friends have a new home after last year's closure...
Fun fact: the big track has two areas to drift, one when going down the helix bit, and the second bit is a downhill by the beginning of the track where if you full throttle by the bottom of it and turn hard, you drift.
Other than Fun Spot Atlanta and Six Flags Over Georgia making some neat investments. I'd be interested in seeing Zoo Atlanta possibly considering investing in 2 or 3 new coasters. I know the Atlanta Cyclorama and Civil War museum moved to Atlanta History Center near Buckhead. Not sure if the old Cyclorama building got renovated and repurposed for something different. I'm sure Zoo Atlanta getting 2 or 3 new coasters and maybe a flat ride or 2 could and would be doable. Coaster ideas: Gravity Group family wood coaster and a Mack Rides spinning coaster. Flat ride idea or 2: Ferris wheel and another family-friendly attraction. I'd anticipate Zoo Atlanta keeping the giant pandas and other popular animal exhibits. Another animal exhibit I could see at some point down the line... Zoo getting star groundhog General Beauregard Lee if his time at Daucet Trails isn't exactly long-term.
I think Zoo Atlanta could build a very small kiddie coaster in the existing kids area, but because it’s in the Grant Park neighborhood they wouldn’t be able to build anything bigger, because of noise. They would never get the zoning approval, as there are houses literally across the street. The old Cyclorama building is now used as an event space, and the surrounding area is a new elephant exhibit.
I literally live right down the road on 85 near this park and NEVER go. I went when it was Dixie Land in my childhood though. I have many fun Dixie Land memories from my childhood. It will always be Dixie Land to me. Now they're building a GIGANTIC roller coaster, holy shit.
I remember when it used to be called Dixieland Fun Park back in the mid 90’s. I was like 4 or 5 when I went. I remember the bumper boats and the arcade mainly. First place I can remember playing the Original Star Wars arcade game
@@IntheLoopPodcastwow,I found it and they seem to not care about it anymore....... Also centre Alabama has a new waterpark. You might be interested. Thanks you both exploring these places.
The ride ops are awful at this park. Fun Spot wants to just make money on this park. They need to have ride ops. This is going to be a year where Ride Ops could be bad across the country.
Free parking at the Kissimmee park is debatable. Yes there ARE places where you can park for free but they're too small for the crowds that end up at Funspot and Old Town overall. Then you have the big lot which charges ten bucks to park. The only true free parking is at the Orlando park.
They charge $5 for parking because you can enter the park for free if you don't want to ride anything and too many people just coming in and bumming around so they put up the $5 for parking.
Management told me it took them 20 years to build the parks in Florida don't expect a miracle overnight. Samson cos 1.5 million. Total of 97 Acres. All of the wooded area on the far side of the parking lot up to the creek that goes by belongs to Fun Spot as well.
Originally the place was a flea market and that's why you're in the middle of the parking lot. The strange-looking Western mining town was put in I've been told for filming but nobody said what they were actually filming. History on this place is very hard to come by I've been trying.
Show the zip lines. Homemade yes. The long one was in use up until last year when something on it throat but because it was made by the previous owners getting a part to fix it is very difficult. All of those other lines were a last-ditch effort by the previous owners to improve the car they were supposed to be called Air Races, and there were to be four of them that went up to the other side of the Tower. Not sure that that ever happened.
Clearly used to be some kind of ride. Used to be antique cars but the antique car track ran under the present location of the Samson go kart track so they had to take out the antique cars when you get to the big blue round you will see some of the cars stored there.
@@judgeknot3753 Bungee was off that big tower that the swing is now on, had four tiers coming off. They also had one of those gigantic superman swings for one or two people.
