First time visitors are in for a treat at Knott's Berry Farm where the emphasis is on family friendly fun from the rides to the shows to the food. Knott's Berry Farm advertises its role as America's first theme park and takes that role seriously. You'll need more than a day to completely experience the theme park and the adjoining water park. Non-local visitors planning an overnight stay can take advantage of ticket offers through the Knott's Berry Farm Resort Hotel.
Planning Your Trip
The theme park recommends planning your visit for Sunday, Tuesday, Wednesday or Thursday. Attendance is lower on those days. Holidays attached to three-day weekends such as Memorial Day and Labor Day are low attendance days, making Knott's Berry Farm a great destination for a three-day weekend trip. In the attendance figures for 2010, it showed that May, June and September had the lowest attendance offering you an opportunity for a great summer getaway and a few months were you can avoid the crowds. Despite the temperate weather of the location, rides will close during high winds, lightning and rain.
The park is open every day except Christmas. Admission fees vary based on the ticket type. Visitors can print their tickets from home or purchase single day admissions at the park. Southern California residents and AAA members receive a slight discount. Be sure to visit the theme park's website for details on hours of operation, seasonal ticket prices, group rates, offers, attractions and shows.
Knott's Berry Farm Attractions
The legendary park is home to numerous attractions, many of which date back to Walter Knott's original ideas. The aggressive thrill roller coasters include the Silver Bullet, a suspended roller coaster and Ghost Rider, the tallest and longest wooden roller coaster in the country.
- The Boomerang
- The GhostRider
- Montezooma's Revenge
- Silver Bullet
- Xcelerator
For an exciting, but less overwhelming ride, the park offers a selection of fun roller coasters including the Sierra Sidewinder, which twists and spins during the ride, and the kid-friendly Timberline Twister located in Camp Snoopy.
- The Jaguar
- Pony Express
- Sierra Sidewinder
- Timberline Twister
Other thrilling rides include Knott's Berry Farm's water rides like the Bigfoot Rapids, the Perilous Plunge and an old-fashioned Timber Mountain Log Ride.
Other Rides
Beyond the roller coasters, Knott's Berry Farm features thrill rides such as:
- La Revolucion - High rise spinning ride that twirls visitors 120 degrees in both directions
- Rip Tide - Not for the faint of stomach, the Rip Tide flips riders over in 59 feet in the air
- Screamin' Swing - The scream swing takes a popular park activity to the extreme, eight riders swing 70 feet into the air and back
- Supreme Scream - The sudden drop begins at 254 feet in the air, plunging at 50 miles per hour
- WindSeeker - The highest flying ride carries visitors 300 feet into the air, swinging them in rotation
Camp Snoopy
Camp Snoopy is the Knott's Berry Farm tribute to the Peanuts gang including Linus, Lucy, Charlie Brown and the ever-loving Snoopy. The kid friendly area of the park is full of family friendly rides.
- Balloon Race - A balloon ride that's popular with the little ones
- Camp Bus - Take a spin around Camp Snoopy in a bus
- Charlie Brown's Speedway - Scaled down stock cars give kids of all ages a "fun" ride around the speedway
- Grand Sierra Scenic Railroad - The miniaturized railroad brings out the miniature engineers in the family
- Huff and Puff - Kids can pump their mining car around
- Joe Cool's GR8 SK8 - Indulge the family's imagination with a ride on a giant skateboard
Other Camp Snoopy rides include Snoopy Bounce, Red Baron, Rocky Road Truckin' Company and Lucy's Tugboat.
Family Friendly Amusements
For an adventure the entire family will enjoy, Knott's Berry Farm provides delightfully familiar rides from bumper cars to Ferris wheels to a mine ride and railroad. Other special features that no family should miss are:
- Butterfield Stagecoach - The rowdy ride takes visitors through Ghost Town in the back of a Stagecoach.
- Merry Go Round - The world's oldest Dentzel Carousel is a treasure of wooden, hand-carved animals including lions, giraffes, pigs, cats and much more.
Lodging and Contact Information
The Knott's Berry Farm Resort Hotel became the official park hotel in 2004, providing convenient and affordable lodging on-site. Guests can even reserve a Snoopy room, which includes a nighttime visit from the famous dog himself! Packages are available that include lodging, breakfast, and admission to Knott's Berry Farm theme park, as well as packages with admission to Soak City Water Park.
For more information about Knott's Berry Farm theme park, interested individuals call (714) 220-5200, or write to the park at:
Knott's Berry Farm
8039 Beach Boulevard
Buena Park, CA 90620
Knott's Berry Farm History
"America's First Theme Park" is the slogan of Knott's Berry Farm in Southern California. However, it is more than just a slogan; it also contains a long history. The original farm dates back to 1920, when Walter Knott and his wife harvested their first crop of berries on a property 22 miles south of Los Angeles. It was bad year for berry prices, so Walter Knott opened a roadside stand to sell the berries and the rest became the history. The roadside berry stand expanded through the years, adding a coffee shop and small store for homemade jellies and jams. In 1934, the Knotts opened a small diner serving fried chicken and boysenberry pie for dessert. The location halfway between Los Angeles and the beach made it an ideal stopping point.
The diner grew in popularity and over the years, the family would add attractions like rock gardens, replicas of George Washington's fireplace, a miniature volcano, plant nursery, rare music boxes, and a gift shop. By 1941, the Knott's Berry Farm operation had grown to over 120 acres and employed over four hundred people. Between 1940 and 1942, Walter Knott moved an abandoned Ghost Town, board by board, to the area developing the Old West Ghost Town that would become a centerpiece for the park.
Competition Disney
In 1955, Disneyland opened in Anaheim, California challenging Knott's Berry Farm for its audience. The competition encouraged the Knott family to add more attractions including a cable-car ride, a mine where children could pan for gold, the Calico Mine Ride and a replica of Philadelphia's Independence Hall. Finally, in 1968, the 200-acre park area was enclosed by a fence to prevent vandalism and looting. The addition of paying admission changed expectations. Visitors wanted to be entertained as they were at Disneyland. The family launched an expansion that would transform Knott's Berry Farm from the collection of American memorabilia, historical artifacts, family friendly attractions and home cooking to a multi-million dollar amusement park.
The 21st Century Knott's Berry Farm
In 1995, the Knotts' family sold the food specialty business (including their signature jams and jellies) to ConAgra. In 1997, the amusement park operations were sold to Cedar Fair Entertainment Company. The Walt Disney Company made an offer on the park, but the Knott family refused in order to keep Walter Knott's legacy intact. This legacy is worth the visit to one the nation's most popular theme parks!
