Not All Amusement Parks Are Created Equal...

Every year for as long as I can remember I've spent a week at an amusement park during the summer. In my humble opinion, this qualifies me as an amusement park connoisseur of sorts, and with this I've decided to give you my completely honest ranking of each park I've visited.

As a quick disclaimer, I'm not actually an amusement park connoisseur and you should take these opinions with a grain of salt. These are just places I've been and my own personal recollections of them.

1. Hershey Park

   Starting off strong, Hershey Park simply can't be topped. If you're looking for the perfect combination of fantastic rides and camping experience, look no further. While yes, the lines are atrocious (when are they not) this is one of the only times I'm willing to excuse that from the rating of the park itself. The rides following the lines are so worth the wait that it can almost be completely overlooked. As soon as you step onto Fahrenheit, the pain of standing in the heat for hours is almost excused. In case that alone wasn't enough, the campgrounds are unmatched as well. At no point are you shoulder to shoulder with your neighbor and there's plenty to do before you even enter the amusement park. 9/10

2. Busch Gardens

   I'm going to start this rating with the fact that I'm a little bit of a liar. This is the only amusement park I haven't actually camped at; however, the campgrounds would have to be truly horrendous to offset the quality of the park. The themes and rides together make a phenomenal trip overall. This is the only other amusement park where I may actually excuse a bit of the lines as well. The themes and things to look at are continued into the lines for the rides and there was clearly a lot of thought that went into the creation of the park. 8.5/10

3. Knoebels

   This is a bit of an odd ball thrown in the mix, as it's a significantly smaller park than the others on this list. As you may notice though, it earned a much-deserved ranking in the third spot. Since it is a smaller amusement park, the rides are not as extravagant as others on the list, however I'd argue that's part of the charm. It mixes the best parts of fairs and amusement parks into one, creating an interesting location unlike many I've seen. The lines are short and worthwhile, with campgrounds that are the cherry on top. They have a lot of space that provide a comfortable stay for the entirety of the trip. Overall, 7.5/10

4. Cedar Point

   Out of all the locations on my list, I probably have the least to say about Cedar Point. That's not necessarily a bad thing, as the rides are good with worthwhile wait times, and the campground is satisfactory too. It's overall a pleasant place to visit and I would actually recommend making the trip. I would argue it's worth staying multiple days (same goes for the top three) just to get the full experience. 7/10

5. Kings Dominion

   I know with this being so far down on the list looks like it would be a bad amusement park. That simply isn't the case. This is exactly what I'd think if I were to picture a perfectly mediocre park. It's not bad by any means, it's just simply nothing to write home about. Everything can be ridden and experienced in a little under a day and for that reason I 100% wouldn't recommend staying any longer than that. The campgrounds are actually pretty nice, but if you're looking to go camping, I'd do just that. Don't attach it to a trip to this amusement park as well. They have some worthwhile attractions at a completely reasonable price but again, for me, this is a middle of the road amusement park. 5/10

6. Dollywood

   I love Dolly Parton.

   And that's where my love for this park ends. Rides? Mediocre at BEST. Lines? Bad. Campgrounds? Even worse. The lines for each ride might seem to indicate the experience of a never-before-seen ride coming your way, but nope. Nothing outlandish or different, simply some standard roller coasters that could be found in any amusement park. The campgrounds could be good if you want to bunk with a couple strangers about 2 inches to your right.

   I'm being a bit dramatic and I'm sure there are worse amusement parks out there, but for as big as this one is, it's disappointing to say the least. 3/10

Everyone's preferences in amusement parks are different and if you happen to disagree with my rankings, you'd be wrong, but that's completely understandable. At the end of the day, it's just a silly list of my personal favorites and if you check any out I'd love to hear your thoughts!