Part Water Park And Part Amusement Park, Six Flags Great Escape Is The Ultimate Summer Day Trip In New York
By Christy Articola|Published June 22, 2022
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Christy Articola
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Christy Articola has lived in Colorado since 2013 and considers herself a Centennial State enthusiast and expert through and through. She's based in Denver metro, but over the past decade, she has traveled to every corner, river, village, park, town, and city in the state and continues to explore it deeper and further whenever she can. Christy simply can't get enough of Colorado, and loves sharing all her adventures with you through Only In Your State! She graduated with a degree in journalism from Fordham University and is thrilled to be working as a full time travel writer for this and other sites - she finally found her perfect niche - and is so grateful for that.
If you grew up anywhere within two hours or so of Six Flags Great Escape in Queensbury, New York, then you know that heading there for a summer day was pretty much the most exciting thing in the whole wide world. This is still the case for kids and for people of all ages as this park, which has been open since 1954, gets better and better every year. Thanks to the fact that this amusement park also has a water park attached to it, there’s something for everyone here. Going to Six Flags Great Escape is the ultimate summer day trip. Read on to learn more about this park.
Great Escape is easy to find and easy to get to. It's on Route 9 in Queensbury, just a little south of Lake George, and it's just off I-87.
It's only an hour north of Albany, so it's easily accessible from the Capital Region. It's on the southern edge of Adirondack Park, so it's also close for anyone camping up north.
Businessman Charles Wood bought the land this amusement park is on for $75,000 and together, with his wife, opened Storytown USA in 1954. At first, it was only for small children.
However, over time, this amusement park expanded to have rides for older kids and adults, too. The park's first roller coaster, the Steamin' Demon shown here, opened in 1984, just after the park changed its name to The Great Escape.
The crown jewel of this park is The Comet. This wooden roller coaster was built in 1953 and was moved to Great Escape in 1994. Roller coaster enthusiasts consider it to be one of the best wooden roller coasters in the world.
In 1996, Charles Wood sold the park to the company that would later purchase Six Flags; that's how this formerly privately owned park became a Six Flags.
There's a gigantic wave pool for cooling off on a hot day.
You’ll have a fantastic summer day at Six Flags Great Escape. Whether you spend your whole day in the amusement park or your whole day in the water park, or a little time in both areas, you’re sure to have a day to remember. After you go this summer, you might as well make it an annual tradition!
