Happy Hauntings Report

As a Season Pass holder for the last two years, I can easily say I've been to Dutch Wonderland at least 30 times in those two years. This evening was without a doubt...the most crowded I have ever seen the park! The lines for rides at Happy Hauntings was insane!

We got up to the area around 5:00pm and noticed from the parking lot that attendance was high, so we decided to go grab some food and let some of the toddler audience dwindle out of the park. The nearby Fuddrucker's is now closed, which I didn't know until pulling into the parking lot. It wasn't on our radar, but I'll just add that the Texas Roadhouse next door was mobbed with a huge crowd waiting outside. We ventured over to Red Robin across the street which displayed a "00 Minutes Wait Time". We were handed a pager and told a 10 minute wait when we walked inside. Luckily, we didn't wait more than two minutes and to top that off - the food was ready in record time.

So, we headed back over to DW at 6 and while parking was still crowded we managed to find a pretty good random spot on the field in front of the Kingdom Coaster. Inside the park, walkways were manageable but every ride had a huge line waiting to get on. The people waiting for the train filled the queue and made a long line down past the loading platform. The line for the Turtle Whirl was all the way back past the swings! Huge waits at the Turnpike, Monorail, even VR Voyager had a ship full of people waiting in line.

The Trick or Treat Trail this year has moved to the path along the back of the park. The line starts near the Bumper Cars. There was a long line to get into the Trail, but it did move quickly. The Trail benefits from it's new location as it's very scenic and less twisty turney than over at Duke's Lagoon. Another nice touch that Dutch Wonderland does is giving each adult a ticket good for one trick or treat of their choosing. If you are like me and trying to hold out for the biggest piece of candy, may I suggest you cash your ticket in for the Reese's Pumpkin which on this night was being handed out the the Disco Shack. If you were at Happy Hauntings last year, you may have seen the Disco Shack from the train, this year you can actually go into the Shack and get your groove on if you desire. As a Dutch Wonderland historian, it was nice to be able to go inside the former Hobo Shack again, even if there is nothing in it besides some lights.

Our game plan was to ride the crowds out, hoping attendance would drop later in the evening and we could get a few rides in. We caught the 7:30 performance of the Halloween show, "Molly's Wacky Witch's Brew" at the Celebration Theatre. Afterwards, still plenty of crowds. A huge wait at the train. We went back to the Kingdom Coaster - excited to grab a ride in the dark - and the line filled the queue on the ground behind the station. In fact, I have never even seen the queue set up the way they had it to accommodate large crowds. We've done every ride in that park at least 50 times, and the kids and I just decided to leave and call it a night. They had a bag full of tricks or treats, so they were happy.

Don't take any of this as complaining. I'm glad to see Dutch Wonderland doing such a great business. If anything, I was shocked to see the crowds that were there. I spent last week in Walt Disney World and didn't see lines for rides like I saw tonight at little ol' DW! I suspect a Sunday night would be a bit less crowded. If you plan on going, I would get there at 3:00 when they open and do as many rides as you can before the park fills up! There's plenty of Not-So-Scary fun to be had all over Dutch Wonderland, even with a crowd it's still a fun place to be!

Merlin's Restaurant Opens

As we've already mentioned several times, Dutch Wonderland enters the business of full-service restaurants with the debut of Merlin's Restaurant - located inside DW's iconic Wonderland Castle. The new dining facility replaces half of the Castle Gift Shop as well as a portion of the former Castle Cafe. Merlin's offers a slightly more relaxed dining experience than the hustle and bustle of the Mill Stream Eatery. You enter the restaurant through an entrance located next to the Royal Family Photos booth in the front of the park. During construction, it looked as if you would be able to visit the restaurant without admission to the park, but that is not the case.

 Merlin himself now resides at DW. On this particular day, he was pretty much stationed right inside the main entrance all day greeting guests to the park. Merlin will also be part of the park's new reservations only Character Breakfast experience which will be held at Merlin's Restaurant beginning in July.

 A nice overview of the menu, posted outside the restaurant's doors.

 This insane sandwich seems out of place on the menu at a park geared towards 2 to 10 year olds.

 During construction it did not appear that the venue would seat many people, but the actual size of the restaurant should accommodate large crowds with a minimal wait time.

 The layout is comprised of tables and chairs and booths which could easily hold 6 people.

On to the menu...the offerings are an attempt to step up a notch from the normal amusement park food. Their signature dish is the Dragon Fire and Ice. It's a goblet of creamy Mac n' Cheese served with buffalo chicken bites and crumbled blue cheese on top. (They were out of the blue cheese on my visit.) The mac n' cheese was really good and the buffalo bites were tasty as well. They mixed nice together, and I'm sure the blue cheese would have added the Ice to the Fire & Ice. It's kind of a small portion for $10.99, it comes with two sides - I had fries and a garden salad.

 There are had been some preopening hype that Merlin's was to offer Gluten Free menu options...here's the option: A plate of chicken tenders and star shaped tater tots. I believe this was the exact same offering at the Castle Cafe. It's also the most kid friendly choice on the menu, but does not come in a kid meal size - so you'll be paying $9.99 which is a bit high for a child's meal.

A nice touch at the new restaurant is the use of Souvenir cups. Not only do they sell them, but they also honor the 99 cents refill policy of the park. So drinks don't need to set you back three bucks a person.

Overall review: The room has nice atmosphere. It does feel like you are eating in a whimsical medieval castle. Bright colors and interesting lighting fixtures help to sell that story. The menu offers some unique dishes but too unique for kids. In a park geared toward children, ordering off a simple kids menu of staples like pizza, chicken tenders, hot dog, hamburger ect. ect. would make things alot easier for a parent who has had a long day in the park. The upcoming character breakfast should add a nice touch to the park's lineup of experiences.

Merlin's Opens, Bikes For Dad

Progress at Merlin's as of 5/12/12

This was the scene just a few weeks ago at the future home of Dutch Wonderland's first full service restaurant, Merlin's. Now, according to the DW website, Merlin is scheduled to host his first guests this Saturday - May 26th. I assume a table at Merlin's will require a little more than just walking up and grabbing a table. The space appears to be somewhat small but more importantly, Dutch Wonderland has a very dedicated Season Pass crowd that is probably anxious to try out this new experience. Given that character meals at Walt Disney World are hugely popular, one can only assume that the same magic (demand) will be felt on a smaller scale at the Kingdom For Kids. Anyone who is lucky enough to snag a table on opening day will also be entered into a drawing for a Free Character Breakfast in the near future.

Also just announced for Father's Day, the OCC Sunoco Chopper motorcycle will be on display at the park. The custom-built bike is the first to resemble a vintage board-track racer and reflects the key elements of Sunoco’s history. I know nothing about cars, yet alone motorcycles, so that last sentence meant nothing to me but the bike will be near the Fun Slide Sunday, June 14 from 10 a.m.-3 p.m.

Be A Royal Chef

If you happen to be at the park on a day when there are not birthday parties scheduled, you might get the chance to try on of these neat looking Duke The Dragon Cookies. When the Birthday Party Room in not in use, the area is sometime used to as a space to decorate cookies. Kids can take one of these larger than average cookies and cover it with frosting, sprinkles and a variety of other goodies. The project will set you back $5 a cookie, but it is a one of the more unique experiences beyond the castle walls. In addition to the cookie and decorating supplies, kids will also receive a chef hat and apron which I'm sure makes the whole event a picture perfect afternoon. The attraction is also equipped to sell you souvenir soda bottles and refills.

Have A Drink

Here's the lowdown on Souvenir Refillable Cups at Dutch Wonderland for the 2012 season: New cups are in and available at the same prices - $6.99 for the large and $2.99 for the toddler cup. The new designs are green and purple, respectively and feature the DW gang along with their new friend, Merlin, who will be heading up his own restaurant in a few weeks. The cups are available at several locations throughout the park, however on opening day the Mill Stream Eatery did not stock the new cups and still had plenty of supply of last year's yellow topped toddler cups and purple large cups. So if you want to seek out the new design, I suggest heading over to the Dole Whip Junction which had a large collection of both cups. (That's where I snapped this photo too!)

Another nice addition to the park this year is Vending Machines with Credit Card capability. You can swipe your credit card and purchase beverages, you can even buy multiple drinks on a single swipe. I noticed the machines behind the Potato Patch, across from the Turtle Whirl as well as one of the machines near the Off-Road Rally and One Room School House. Soda prices are $3.25, some of the juices and sports drinks were priced higher.