Sometimes, the most memorable moments on vacation occur when you least expect them to. It doesn’t matter how much you plan, look into reviews, or are convinced you’re going to have an amazing time at one spot more than another. When it all boils down, memories are made in the moment, and you never really know what will make those memories until you experience them first hand.
For me, in a trip that was jam-packed with amusement parks and wild adventures, that moment happened at Fun Spot USA. What was meant to be a one or two hour pit stop before heading off to dinner, ended up being a highlight of my trip, bringing everyone in our group closer together while providing hilarious pictures and exciting stories to tell for years to come.
Fun Spot USA is a refreshing break from overpriced and overcrowded neighboring theme parks, providing each guest with space, amazing rides, and a truly unforgettable experience. If you want to test out some truly unique attractions, this is your place!
When you arrive, the first thing you’ll notice is the 300-foot SkyCoaster. Part skydiving, part hang gliding, it’s the tallest SkyCoaster in the world and Fun Spot USA’s main attraction. With white beams that raise slightly above 30 stories, it’s a truly intimidating sight to see, especially for guests like myself who are afraid of heights. Any other day, I would have walked right by the SkyCoaster, perhaps only stopping briefly to watch brave souls trek their way up to the top before free falling down much too quickly. But for this trip, I made an agreement with myself to say ‘yes’ to all opportunities and I was ready to keep my word.
The SkyCoaster process begins in an outdoor-shaded area where guests line up to put on their own harnesses, fastening everything in place. It can be a little nerve-wrenching at first putting on your own safety gear, but any fear you may have should dissipate when trained attendants come by and throughly examine your work to ensure everything’s correctly in place. Once we had the thumbs up, my friends and I posed for pictures, partly in disbelief of what we were about to do, and partly because we thought it was so awesome what we were about to do! Before letting the nerves set in any further, we made our way across a bridge to the loading area where we prepared for our climb to the top!
Guests can go either alone, with a partner, or in groups of three, but my group personally found that groups of three work well if you’re nervous. There’s nothing for guests to hold onto during the assent except each other, so having larger groups definitely adds an extra feeling of security knowing there’s more hands to hold onto!
The attraction begins with the attendants dropping the floor you’re standing on, causing you to fall forward and into the correct position. They don’t typically warn you of this happening which can take you by surprise, but it allows the crew to ensure that the harnesses are working without risking guests’ safety. It definitely made my heart stop momentarily, but with the first ‘phew’ out of the way, it was reassuring knowing our well-being was a priority and we were safely ready to begin making our way to the top!
Want to back out? Too late. The climb takes guests thirty stories high in just 70 seconds, and with nothing to hold onto except each other, it can definitely make you wonder what you just got yourself into. Once you’ve reached the top, an attendant counts down over the loud speaker “3…2…..1” before you’re meant to pull your own cord and release the free fall. It took my group a little bit of effort before we realized that we had to release the fall instead of someone down below,but once we understood, my friend pulled the cord and the drop began before we even realized what just happened.
The fall is the most incredible experience, and that’s saying something given I’m terribly scared of heights. Not once did my stomach go out during the fall (unlike on roller coasters) and the decent is more of a glide than anything else. It’s extremely smooth, and quickly turned into screaming fun. I liked it so much, that I ended up riding it twice, and the second time around decided to be the one to pull the cord to release the fall!
Think no one will believe you? The SkyCoaster takes you so high up, it’s hard to capture the rise and fall on a normal cell phone camera, but a bonus to riding, is that employees on hand videotape your experience which you can take home. It was such an amazing souvenir to have, and I definitely looked forward to going home and showing all of my friends and family what I took on.
In addition to the World’s tallest SkyCoaster, Fun Spot USA is also home to four go-kart tracks with two that are muti-level! Almost everyone in our group decided to try this out, and wow, was it fun! This was my first time driving a go-kart and I absolutely loved the experience. One of the tracks that I tested out (pictured), you start off going up a spiral incline, before going over a four-story decline complete with a super thrilling turn. There was about 10 of us racing, and while you were able to pass other go-kart drivers (as long as you didn’t hit vehicles), no one passed me and I was able to come in first place which made it all the more exciting. When you have a day or annual pass, I’m sure it would be so much fun to test out all four of the go-kart tracks in addition to the 10 family/thrill rides and 8 attractions made for kids!
With unlimited day passes starting at $26.95, and annual passes with no black-out dates available for $89.95, Fun Spot USA is an amazing theme park with huge thrills and endless hours of potential fun.
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