SOUTH WHITEHALL TWP., Pa. — Dorney Park & Wildwater Kingdom employees have been busy preparing for opening day of its 140th season.
They've been sprucing up the park and adding new features, including a main midway stage behind the Antique Carousel; deluxe cabanas; and two new bars.
And from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Sunday, May 7, season-pass holders will get a look at the changes. The public's turn comes Friday, May 12.
- Dorney Park & Wildwater Kingdom is opening to the public on Friday, May 12, with a preview day for season pass-holders on May 7
- New features for the 2023 season include a main midway stage behind the Antique Carousel, deluxe cabanas and two new bars
- This year will be the first with the park’s new chaperone policy, which states that all visitors 15 and under must be accompanied by a chaperone after 4 p.m.
Wildwater Kingdom will open May 27.
Daily admission to the park this season starts at $70, or $39.99 online, or $36.99 after 4 p.m. daily for ages 2 and older. Free Pre-K passes for ages 3-5 also are available by registering online.
This year will be the first with the park’s new chaperone policy, which states that all visitors 15 and under must be accompanied by a chaperone after 4 p.m.
Dorney Public Relations and Communications Manager Ryan Eldredge said in a previous interview that the new policy will likely not impact visitors who are not being disruptive.
New features
Eldredge said the park is working on the guest experience at the top half of the park near the entrance. That includes a new sign at the entrance of the park for photo opportunities.
The park also will add a main midway stage, called the Carousel Main Stage, behind the Antique Carousel. It's scheduled to arrive in May.
The park used to only have a stage there during the Grand Carnivale, but Eldredge said park officials decided it should be a permanent feature.
“The environment here is so much better when there’s live entertainment,” Eldredge said.
The stage will hold different kinds of live entertainment all season long, including three Peanuts shows and a Retrospect light show.
The park also added new deluxe cabanas for visitors to rent in the Wildwater Kingdom. The cabanas are 10-by-20-feet, semi-private covered areas with cushioned outdoor seating.
Up to 12 people can rent the deluxe cabanas. They will include a family style meal delivered directly to cabana that serves up to 12 people, a mini fridge with unlimited bottled water, a 40-inch television with cable programming and a welcome tote bag with a bottle of sunscreen and a souvenir towel per checked-in guest.
The park is also renovating two of its three Chickie’s & Pete’s locations — implementing a buzzer system for picking up food rather than the current system of servers taking guests’ orders.
This is not a place where you want to sit in the restaurant. Guests want to get back out there and experience the park.Ryan Eldredge, Public Relations and Communications for Dorney Park
Eldredge said the new system will make service faster in the restaurants.
“This is not a place where you want to sit in the restaurant,” Eldredge said. “Guests want to get back out there and experience the park.”
Other new features include additional outdoor seating throughout the park, two new bars in the Wildwater Kingdom called Schooner's and Surfside, and a new stage for live music called the Coastal Currents, also in the Wildwater Kingdom.
Preparing for opening day
In the weeks leading up to opening day, the park has been bustling with activity, even without any visitors present.
Painters have been putting new coats of paint on the rides, gardeners have planted flowers around the signs, carpenters have built the new features and builders have renovated the buildings.
Ride operators have been inspecting, repairing and testing all the rides in the park. Eldredge said the operators have to run all the rides a minimum of 50 times before they can be deemed safe.
The operators use different techniques, such as placing sandbags and dummies onto the rides to simulate riders.
Eldredge said the inspection process for the park’s rides takes six to eight weeks and starts in early spring. Before then, the machines are winterized to get through the colder months.
What’s coming up in 2024
Eldredge said the park will announce in August what's coming up for the park’s 2024 season. He said he hopes that announcement will include more details about the park’s new steel roller coaster.
The park has not released any details about the new ride. Eldredge said the park still is in the process of getting the trademark for the name of the roller coaster.
