Six Flags Great Adventure

History

Warner LeRoy era (1974–1977)

In 1972, entrepreneurial businessman Warner LeRoy developed concept plans for the Great Adventure entertainment complex, proposing seven parks be built within the complex: an amusement park, a safari park, a stage show and performance venue, a floral park, a sports complex, a shopping district, and a campground with a beach/water park and stables. His proposal also included plans for hotels, which were connected to the parks and could be reached by boats, buses, a sky ride and/or a monorail. LeRoy wanted his parks to flow naturally through the forest and lakes, capitalizing on the back-to-nature movement of the era. He chose a property in Ocean County, New Jersey which was then owned by the Switlik family, in an area centrally located between the New York City and Philadelphia metropolitan areas. The property on County Route 537 had easy access to the newly constructed Interstate 195, which connected Central New Jersey to the New Jersey Turnpike (Interstate 95) and would eventually (in 1981) connect to the Garden State Parkway.

Since the park's opening, it has been served by its own in-house emergency services, consisting of the Fire Department (Ocean County Station 58) and Emergency Medical Service (Ocean County Squad 80). LeRoy collaborated with Hardwicke Industries, who had previously built safari parks in Canada and Europe. Together, they set out to open the seven parks in stages over a five-year period. After a 4,500-guest invitation-only soft opening on June 30, 1974, the Great Adventure entertainment complex opened to the general public on July 1, 1974. The total cost to build the park had been about $10 million. At the time of the opening, only the Enchanted Forest area and Safari Park were operational, with elements from five of the other planned parks being used to create the Enchanted Forest.

The Enchanted Forest was designed and built to look bigger-than-life. The Big Balloon was a tethered hot-air balloon that loomed over the park's entrance and was the biggest of its kind in the world. The Log Flume was the longest log ride constructed in the world at that time and was accompanied by a giant "Conestoga Wagon", an over-sized log cabin restaurant called "Best of the West" and a huge Western Fortress, in the park's Rootin' Tootin' Rip Roarin' section. The Giant Wheel (now Big Wheel), then the tallest Ferris wheel in the world, and the Freedom Fountain, then the largest spraying fountain in the world, were located at the opposite end of the park. One of the few smaller-than-real-life attractions was an outdoor walk-through attraction called the Garden of Marvels. It used working G-scale (o-g scale) LGB trains and boats among models of American landmarks and 1/25-scale recreations of European castles.

Penn Central / Bally's / Westray Capital era (1977–1992)

In 1977, construction began on a steel looping shuttle coaster called Lightnin' Loops, which was removed in 1992. In late 1977, however, the park was purchased by Six Flags, a regional theme park company then owned by Penn Central, which had large stakes in the Philadelphia and New York City regions. Six Flags added rides found in bigger theme parks such as the wooden coaster Rolling Thunder in 1979, The Buccaneer (a swinging ship from Intamin), Roaring Rapids (now Congo Rapids, an Intamin river rapids ride), Parachuter's Perch (now Parachute Training Center: Edwards AFB Jump Tower, an Intamin parachute ride) and Freefall (later Stuntman's Freefall, an Intamin first-generation freefall), all before the park's tenth anniversary.

1980 saw very few changes. In 1981, the park added a water ride called Roaring Rapids (now Congo River Rapids), in 1983 a freefall ride, and in 1984 a roller coaster called the Sarajevo Bobsleds. Also in 1984 the park closed and removed Lil' Thunder, a kiddie coaster, keeping the total coaster count to four.

Eight teenagers, including four students and one graduate of Franklin K. Lane High School, lost their lives in a fire at the Haunted Castle on May 11, 1984, sparking controversy over the safety of such attractions. After the incident, new fire safety laws were passed for amusement park fun houses and dark rides.

1986 saw the addition of a second looping coaster and the park's fifth roller coaster, Ultra Twister, a design known for its spiral inline twists. The ride was built next to Rolling Thunder, partially taking away the area's western theme. Another water ride called Splashwater Falls (which became Movietown Water Effect in 1992 and has since been removed) was added in which riders rode in a large boat that was pulled uphill and then down a steep waterfall, soaking riders. The new addition was made after attendance at the park had lowered following the Haunted Castle fire, and the park realized new additions were needed to keep the park alive.

Attendance dropped even further when an accident occurred on the Lightnin' Loops roller coaster in 1987. A teenage girl was thrown from the train because she was seated on the wrong side of the shoulder restraint. After the accident, new safety features were added not only to Great Adventure's roller coasters but also to roller coasters around the world. Once again, Great Adventure set both a bad and later a good example for the amusement park world. However, the accident caused the park's attendance to drop. Attendance was so low, in fact, that in 1987 rumors began to spread that the park would close in a few years. At the end of the season, the park was slated to get a new multiple looping coaster, but by the end of the year it was decided that Six Flags Great America would get the coaster instead, since Great Adventure was not seen as a good investment. At the end of 1988, the park was about to lose its license to sell food, and attendance was so low park management realized a big new addition was necessary.

Time Warner era (1990–1997)

In 1990, Time Warner acquired a 19.5% stake in Six Flags, then by the end of 1991 acquired an additional 30.5%, giving them 50% ownership of the corporation, with the remainder divided equally by silent partners, The Blackstone Group and Wertheim Schroder. Time Warner used the opportunity to advertise and promote their movies through the Six Flags parks. Time Warner purchased the remaining 50% in 1993, then in 1995 sold 51% of the corporation to Boston Ventures. Time Warner, however, continued to manage the parks through 1997.

In 1992, the eastern area or Fun Fair area of the park was re-themed as Action Town and then as Movietown in 1993. A Batman stunt show was added and the announcement that a new inverted looping roller coaster called Batman The Ride would be added. Lightnin' Loops opened for the first half of the season but was disassembled at the end of July to begin construction of Batman. That coaster was sold to Premier Parks, which at the time was a different company than Six Flags (but would eventually buy Six Flags). Premier Parks put one of the Lightnin' Loops tracks in Frontier City located in Oklahoma City and it still operates today. Premier Parks put the other Lightnin' Loops track in their park in Largo, Maryland (near Washington, DC), then called Adventure World. That track was renamed the Python, which would be removed in 1999. At the end of 1992, the roller coaster Shockwave was removed as part of the "Ride Rotation Program" of Six Flags. Shockwave would be sent to Six Flags Astroworld and would reopen there in 1993 as Batman The Escape. So by the end of 1992, the park was down to just three coasters.

Batman, designed by Bolliger & Mabillard, opened in the spring of 1993 bringing the coaster count back up to four. In 1994, a motion simulator theatre ride was added. Initially, it was an airplane flying themed attraction but has since been changed to a Halloween theme in the fall over the years. A dinosaur theme and a three-dimensional dinosaur theme was also used for this attraction. For several years, it operated as SpongeBob the ride and then as Fly Me To The Moon. For the 2010 season, the attraction did not run and that building remained vacant for future use.

1995 saw the addition of Viper, a steel spiral looping roller coaster similar to Ultra Twister and in Ultra Twister's old spot, bringing the coaster count to five again. 1996 saw the addition of an indoor themed junior roller coaster called Skull Mountain. In 1997, a multiple looping dual track shuttle coaster called Batman & Robin: The Chiller was built but only opened for a day and encountered more technical difficulties. This coaster ended up not opening again until the spring of 1998. This coaster ran rather rough and was referred to as a "headbanger" as was Viper and to a lesser extent The Scream Machine. The Mine Train and Rolling Thunder were also rough rides by then. Also, many flat rides were removed over the years and the park was showing signs of wear and tear, as well as obsolete attractions.

Premier era (1998–2005)

Premier Parks purchased Six Flags from Time Warner and Boston Ventures on April 1, 1998. The following year, the new management team added a dozen flat rides to the park and declared a "war on lines". The Adventure River complex was retired but the flume ride and the Congo Rapids remained. A kiddie water play area also remained as part of a new kiddie ride area called Looney Tunes Seaport. A junior roller coaster called Blackbeard's Lost Treasure Train (now known as Harley Quinn Crazy Train) as well as a kiddie roller coaster called Road Runner Railway were also added, but the star attraction was a floorless steel multiple looping roller coaster called Medusa.

No changes were made at the park in 2000, but across the property on a separate parking lot, a water park named Hurricane Harbor New Jersey was built and opened at the end of May. This was also separately gated and charges a separate admission from Great Adventure. The park consists of a dozen waterslides, a kiddie water play area, and a wavepool.

In 2001, the park added another state of the art roller coaster called Nitro. Viper would not operate at all throughout the 2001 season due to increased complaints of roughness and frequent technical issues. While Viper sat dormant that year, the Robin side of Batman & Robin: The Chiller had its trains updated with lap bars, making it a smoother ride. The Batman side would receive this upgrade a year later in 2002. In 2003, Superman: Ultimate Flight was added. Exact models of this are found at Six Flags Over Georgia and Six Flags Great America. In 2004, new harnesses were added to the Runaway Mine Train and the up-charge attraction erUPtion was added to the Boardwalk.

In 2005, the park added the world's tallest coaster called Kingda Ka and also dismantled Viper. With the addition of Kingda Ka, the season pass holders entrance to the park was closed because Kingda Ka's footprint went right over it. A new children's play area called Balin's Jungleland was also added. In 2006, a wooden twister coaster called El Toro was added in the spot formerly occupied by Viper, along with a new themed area, and another kiddie ride area to replace Bugs Bunny Land which was retired at the end of 2004.

Shapiro era (2006–2010)

At the end of 2005, a proxy battle resulted in two major stockholders assuming control of the Six Flags Board. The Premier Group was ousted in December and the new board appointed Mark Shapiro as CEO. In 2007, the park added Wiggles World and removed Batman & Robin: The Chiller. The rolls were replaced with banked hills to enhance ride performance. However, the ride closed forever on June 28 due to technical problems with the ride. Disassembling occurred that September. In addition, the path leading to Chiller was blocked off and several rides including Freefall, Splashwater Falls/Movietown Water Effect, and a couple other flat rides were removed.

In 2008, in the area occupied by the Movietown Water Effect, a new junior indoor Wild Mouse rollercoaster was added called The Dark Knight. Motion Simulator Ride ended the SpongeBob theming in favor of Fly Me To The Moon. Also Glow in the Park Parade was added to the entertainment lineup.

Medusa was refurbished over the off-season and returned in 2009 as "Bizarro", a new incarnation of the same ride. The whole coaster, station, and surrounding theme elements were all changed and repainted to go with the new theme of the ride. Bizarro comic strips were put up along the queue line, and special effects and audio were added to the actual ride. The refurbishment brought crowds back to a ride that was beginning to lose its original charm and popularity.

Weber/Anderson era (2010–2019)

The theme park's parent Six Flags emerged from a 2008–2010 bankruptcy with Al Weber Jr. as an interim CEO and subsequently by Jim Reid-Anderson in August 2010. The company parent also moved its corporate headquarters from New York City back to Texas, where the company started.

For the 2010 season, the Motion Simulator ride Fly Me To The Moon did not reopen and was not replaced with anything and remained vacant. In April 2010, rumors also began that the Great American Scream Machine would be removed at the end of the season. By mid-June, rumors were that the coaster would be removed on July 1. That date came and went but on July 5, 2010, via Facebook, Six Flags confirmed the rumored removal of the Great American Scream Machine on July 18, 2010. The ride closed late on that date and was demolished immediately after to make room for "a major new attraction in 2011." On September 16, 2010, the park announced that the Green Lantern, a standup roller coaster formerly known as Chang at the recently closed Six Flags Kentucky Kingdom, would debut in the Boardwalk section for the 2011 season. Green Lantern's lift hill and first drop run parallel to the lift hill of Superman Ultimate Flight, which involved the demolition of a rarely used section of the preferred parking area.

In late 2010, Six Flags began the process of removing licensed theming from attractions. They terminated several licenses including their license with The Wiggles. Wiggles' World was renamed and rethemed to Safari Kids in time for the 2011 season. Also in 2011, eruption was removed. Construction for the new Funtime Slingshot replacing eruption started mid-June 2011 and was recently finished a few weeks after.

In 2012, Great Adventure introduced SkyScreamer, a 242-foot-tall (74 m) Funtime StarFlyer, that soars riders in a 98-foot (30 m) circle at speeds over 43 miles per hour (69 km/h), that opened in the spring of 2012, along with bumper cars, flying elephants, and a musical themed scrambler that opened in the newly transformed area Adventure Alley (formerly Fantasy Forest area around the Big Wheel). Furthermore, in 2012, Six Flags Great Adventure removed two of its four Johnny Rockets food stands, one located in Plaza Del Carnival and the other in the Boardwalk. Both were replaced with a new food stand named Totally Kickin' Chicken.

On August 30, 2012, Six Flags combined its 125-acre (51 ha) Great Adventure Park with its 350-acre (140 ha) Wild Safari animal park to form the 510-acre (210 ha) Six Flags Great Adventure & Safari park, the second-largest theme park in the world, after Disney's Animal Kingdom.

2020–present

On August 29, 2019, Six Flags announced a new coaster, the Jersey Devil Coaster, to be built by Rocky Mountain Construction. Six Flags suspended all operations across all their properties due to the COVID-19 pandemic in March 2020. In mid-May, the park announced that they would reopen the Safari Off Road Adventure as a drive-thru, which reopened on May 30, 2020. Following an announcement by Governor Phil Murphy on June 23, 2020, giving permission for amusement parks to reopen, Six Flags Great Adventure announced a day later that it would reopen on July 3, 2020. However, the Jersey Devil Coaster was delayed until the 2021 season because its construction was halted due to the pandemic.

In July 2021, the park re-themed the old Road Runner Railway kiddie roller coaster to Lil' Devil Coaster, a ride themed to the Jersey Devil, like the nearby Jersey Devil Coaster. In 2022, the park announced that Bizarro would be re-themed to Medusa, the ride's original theme. The park announced in 2023 that it would build a new roller coaster, The Flash: Vertical Velocity, which was scheduled to open in 2024, but was later delayed to 2025. The park announced that it would open a luxury glamping resort within its Safari Park named Savannah Sunset Resort and Spa, in which it opened in mid-2024. The addition of Savannah Sunset Resort and Spa caused the park to change the name of the entire complex to Six Flags Great Adventure Resort.

In November 2024, the park's new parent company Six Flags—formed via a July 2024 merger between Cedar Fair and Six Flags—announced in November 2024 that the park would receive an unnamed multi-launched roller coaster. With a code name of "Project Purple," construction on the roller coaster began in 2026 and is expected to open in 2027. Amidst the announcement, Kingda Ka permanently closed in November 2024 and was demolished in February 2025. The coaster was officially announced as Bakunawa on July 28, 2026.

Concerts

Numerous artists have performed concerts at the park, including Bon Jovi, The Ramones, The Beach Boys, Heart, Kansas, Cheap Trick, Joan Jett, and Alice Cooper.

On September 29, 2012, Great Adventure hosted the FestEvil, a festival hosting contemporary metal and hardcore acts; Falling In Reverse and We Came As Romans coheadlined. It was Great Adventure's first and last metal show. At the end of the show, Falling In Reverse frontman Ronnie Radke threw three microphone stands into the crowd, injuring two attendees. Radke was arrested after the show, and a spokesperson for Great Adventure announced that the park would no longer host shows with metal bands.

Attractions

Main Street

Main Street serves as the entry gate for Six Flags Great Adventure. It was originally entitled Liberty Court and was built when the entrance to the park was moved from near what is now the Boardwalk area to a more central location. Main Street is themed as an Early-American town, somewhere around the 18th century. Later additions to Main Street have formed it into more of a turn-of-the-century town. In the front is Main Street Fountain, which serves as a central hub for the park.

Dream Street

Dream Street serves as the midway for the park and was originally part of the entrance. Dream Street is designed to make its visitors feel like children, and the section's bright colors and fanciful design give it a magical feel. The Yum Yum Cafe, (Previously "The Great Character Cafe"), which is designed to look like a giant ice cream sundae, is in this area along with the colorful Carousel and Enchanted Teacups. Originally, this section was split into two sections; Dream Street, the east side featuring the Carousel, and Strawberry Fair, the west side featuring the Giant Wheel and Fantasy Fling (now known as Swashbuckler). During Time Warner's acquisition of the park, these two sections of the park were combined into one. In 2012, the east side stayed as Fantasy Forest and the west side was re-themed and transformed to Adventure Alley. In 2025, Fantasy Forest was renamed Dream Street.

Adventure Alley

Adventure Alley, made up of what used to be the right half of Fantasy Forest, opened in 2012 along with SkyScreamer, a FunTime StarFlyer. The area has a retro theme and features several classic family rides. It was built in a formerly barren area in response to complaints about there being a lack of family rides in the park. SkyScreamer, and The Scrambler (relocated from the shuttered American Adventures in Georgia), both opened in May, while Fender Benders, a bumper cars attraction, opened in early July. The area was sponsored by the Broadway show Jersey Boys and as such, features songs from the musical as its soundtrack.

The Pine Barrens

The Pine Barrens opened in the park in 2021. It was called Adventure Seaport from 2011 to 2020. It is made up of a small section of the park formerly part of Movietown. Originally, The Pine Barrens also included Looney Tunes Seaport before it was removed in 2020.

Jr. Thrillseekers

Jr. Thrillseekers was known as Wiggles World from 2007 to 2010. Most of the rides were re-themed from Looney Tunes Seaport, while the section itself replaced an aging part of Looney Tunes Seaport and the outdated Riptide flume ride. The area was renamed and re-themed Safari Kids for 2011 when the parks rights to use the Wiggles brand expired. It was renamed to Jr. Thrillseekers in 2022.

Movietown

This section makes up what used to be the "Fun Fair" and "Action Town" sections of the park. It is themed as a Hollywood back lot, complete with Hollywood style buildings, and movie-themed ride, shops, stalls, and other attractions. All of the attractions include DC Comics (Batman: The Ride). Over the years, many of the movie props have been removed, and all the flat rides in this section of the park have been moved or dismantled. This left the section with very few rides: the addition of The Dark Knight Coaster meant the removal of the Movietown Water Effect, a themed Splashdown ride. Batman and Robin: The Chiller and Stuntman's Freefall (an Intamin free-fall ride) had already been removed, and the "Axis Chemical" themed amphitheater, while still standing, no longer hosts stunt shows. Nitro was included in Movietown until the 2011 season when it became part of Adventure Seaport (The Pine Barrens). For a time this section of the park was essentially a dead-end, forcing patrons to turn back after the Showcase Theater.

The park reopened a pathway between this ride and the Justice League attraction, and now patrons can loop through Movietown and re-emerge near the fountain and the park's main entrance.

Lakefront

Lakefront, as its name suggests, is found right on the lake in the back of the property. The rides and structures in Lakefront all have a nautical theme.

Frontier Adventures

Previously known as "Best of the West" and "Rootin' Tootin' Rip Roarin'", Frontier Adventures is the park's western-themed section. It is home to the Fort and the Best of the West restaurant, as well as some of the park's rides.

It stands on the former location of the Super Teepee and the Conestoga Wagon.

Bugs Bunny National Park

Bugs Bunny National Park opened in 2006 along with El Toro. It has a series of camp-themed rides, all in a rustic area on the lake.

Plaza del Carnaval

This area was originally part of Frontier Adventures, and was also called "Hernando's Hideaway" for the opening of Rolling Thunder. This section of the park has heavy Spanish and Latin American influences, including music, lights, and various structures including the station for El Toro. The whole area is very festive and is filled with vibrant colors, stucco buildings, and Spanish tile roofs.

Shoreline Pier at the Boardwalk

The area is themed around a New Jersey oceanside pier featuring amusement rides and games. It was formerly known as simply The Boardwalk before receiving its retheme and renovation in 2026.

Resort complex

Hurricane Harbor New Jersey

Six Flags Hurricane Harbor New Jersey is a water park located within the Six Flags Great Adventure Resort complex. A separately-gated water park, it was a $40 million expansion to Six Flags Great Adventure.

Wild Safari Adventure

Six Flags Wild Safari Adventure is a safari park located within the Six Flags Great Adventure Resort complex.

Savannah Sunset Resort and Spa

Savannah Sunset Resort and Spa is a glamping resort located adjacent to Six Flags Wild Safari Adventure. It features 20 glamping suites.

Awards

Many of Six Flags Great Adventure's most thrilling roller coasters have placed in Amusement Today's annual Golden Ticket Awards. Below is a table with coasters at Great Adventure and their highest ranking in the Golden Ticket Awards.

In 2012, Six Flags Great Adventure, along with the Garden State Film Festival, was awarded the Tourism Achievement Award. Both were presented the award for their contributions to improving the economy of the bi-county area through the use of tourism.

Attendance

Although Six Flags does not release attendance figures, the Themed Entertainment Association (TEA) and other theme park industry analyst companies estimate attendance numbers for the park.