2019 GTA Winners – The Golden Ticket Awards | Presented by Amusement Today

The 2019 Golden Ticket Awards were hosted at Rocky Mountain Construction, Silverwood Theme Park (Idaho)

2019 Print Issue

CATEGORY	WINNER
Best Amusement Park	Europa-Park, Rust, Germany
Best Water Park	Schlitterbahn Waterpark Resort, New Braunfels, Texas
Best Family Park of 2019	Dutch Wonderland, Lancaster, Pa.
Best Wildlife/Marine Life Park	SeaWorld Orlando, Orlando, Fla.
Best Water Park Ride	Wildebeest at Splashin’ Safari, Santa Claus, Ind.
Best Wooden Coaster	Phoenix at Knoebels Amusement Resort, Elysburg, Pa.
Best Steel Coaster	Fury 325, Carowinds, Charlotte, N.C.
Best Kids’ Area	Dollywood, Pigeon Forge, Tenn.
Best Guest Experience	Dollywood, Pigeon Forge, Tenn.
Breakout Family Entertainment Center of 2019	C.J. Barrymore’s, Clinton, Mich.
BestHalloween Event of 2018	Halloween Horror Nights at Universal Orlando, Orlando, Fla.
Most Beautiful Park	Busch Gardens Williamsburg, Williamsburg, Va.
Best Christmas Event of 2018	Smoky Mountain Christmas at Dollywood, Pigeon Forge, Tenn.
Best Food of 2019	Knoebels Amusement Resort, Elysburg, Pa.
Best New Show of 2019	Reuben’s Swashbuckling Adventure at Silver Dollar City, Branson, Mo.
Best Water Ride	Valhalla at Blackpool Pleasure Beach, Blackpool, Lancashire, England
Best Dark Ride	Pirates of the Caribbean: Battle for the Sunken Treasure at Shanghai Disneyland, China
Best New Attraction Installation of 2019	Hagrid’s Magical Creatures Motorbike Adventure at Universal’s Islands of Adventure, Orlando, Fla.
Best New Roller Coaster of 2019	The Steel Curtain at Kennywood, West Mifflin, Pa.
Best New Family Attraction of 2019	Millennium Falcon: Smugglers Run at Disneyland, Anaheim, Calif.
Best New Water Park Ride of 2019	Cutback Water Coaster at Water Country USA, Williamsburg, Va.
Best Innovation of 2019	Canada’s Wonderland, Vaughan, Ontario

Personally chosen by Gary Slade, publisher and editor-in-chief of Amusement Today, this year’s Publisher’s Pick Awards were presented in the following categories:

Park of the Year – Morey’s Piers, Wildwood, N.J., for celebrating 50 years of innovation and creative success and for taking the lead in bringing big rides to vacationing families along the Jersey Shore;
Renaissance Award – Kings Island, Kings Mills, Ohio, for respecting its roots and being committed to guest experience as evidenced in the installation of the Kings Mills Antique Autos and makeover of historical park attractions and aspects; and
Turnstile Award – Silverwood Theme Park, Athol, Idaho, for its imagination through the magic of storytelling and charm, which has resulted in bringing people through the gates and providing a lifetime of memories.

2019’s Top 50 Steel Roller Coasters

Rank	Name	Park	Location	Supplier	Year
1	Fury 325	Carowinds	Charlotte, N.C.	B&M	2015
2	Millennium Force	Cedar Point	Sandusky, Ohio	Intamin	2000
3	Steel Vengeance	Cedar Point	Sandusky, Ohio	Rocky Mountain	2018
4	Superman: The Ride	Six Flags New England	Agawam, Mass.	Intamin	2000
5	Expedition GeForce	Holiday Park	Hassloch, Germany	Intamin	2001
6	Twisted Colossus	Six Flags Magic Mountain	Valencia, Calif.	Rocky Mountain	2015
7	Iron Rattler	Six Flags Fiesta Texas	San Antonio,Texas	Rocky Mountain	2013
8	Apollo’s Chariot	Busch Gardens Williamsburg	Williamsburg, Va.	B&M	1999
9	Leviathan	Canada’s Wonderland	Vaughan, Ontario, Canada	B&M	2012
10	Nitro	Six Flags Great Adventure	Jackson, N.J.	B&M	2001
11	Intimidator 305	Kings Dominion	Doswell, Va.	Intamin	2010
12	Phantom’s Revenge	Kennywood	West Mifflin, Pa.	Arrow/Morgan	2001
13	Maverick	Cedar Point	Sandusky, Ohio	Intamin	2007
14	Diamondback	Kings Island	Mason, Ohio	B&M	2009
15	Mako	SeaWorld Orlando	Orlando, Fla.	B&M	2016
16	Nemesis	Alton Towers	Staffordshire, England	B&M	1994
17	Taron	Phantasialand	Brühl, Germany	Intamin	2016
18	Magnum XL-200	Cedar Point	Sandusky, Ohio	Arrow	1989
19	Helix	Liseberg	Gothenburg, Sweden	Mack	2014
20	Steel Dragon 2000	Nagashima Spa Land	Nagashima, Japan	Morgan	2000
21	Top Thrill Dragster	Cedar Point	Sandusky, Ohio	Intamin	2003
22	Time Traveler	Silver Dollar City	Branson, Mo.	Mack	2018
23 tie	Blue Fire	Europa-Park	Rust, Germany	Mack	2009
23 tie	X2	Six Flags Magic Mountain	Valencia, Calif.	Arrow	2002
25	Mind Bender	Six Flags Over Georgia	Austell, Ga.	Schwarzkopf	1978
26	New Texas Giant	Six Flags Over Texas	Arlington, Texas	Rocky Mountain	2011
27	Skyrush	Hershey, Pennsylvania	Hershey, Pa.	Intamin	2012
28	Intimidator	Carowinds	Charlotte, N.C.	B&M	2010
29	Behemoth	Canada’s Wonderland	Vaughan, Ontario, Canada	B&M	2008
30 tie	Goliath	Six Flags Over Georgia	Austell, Ga.	B&M	2006
30 tie	Montu	Busch Gardens Tampa	Tampa, Fla.	B&M	1996
32	Alpengeist	Busch Gardens Williamsburg	Williamsburg, Va.	B&M	1997
33	Banshee	Kings Island	Mason, Ohio	B&M	2014
34	Yukon Striker	Canada’s Wonderland	Vaughan, Ontario, Canada	B&M	2019
35	TRON Lightcycle Power Run	Shaghai Disneyland	Shanghai, China.	Vekoma	2016
36	Cheetah Hunt	Busch Gardens Tampa	Tampa, Fla.	Intamin	2011
37	Twisted Timbers	Kings Dominion	Doswell, Va.	Rocky Mountain	2019
38	Verbolten	Busch Gardens Williamsburg	Williamsburg, Va.	Zierer	2012
39	Wicked Cyclone	Six Flags New England	Agawam, Mass.	Rocky Mountain	2015
40	Kumba	Busch Gardens Tampa	Tampa, Fla.	B&M	1993
41	Cannibal	Lagoon	Salt Lake City, Utah	In-house/ART Eng.	2015
42	Steel Curtain	Kennywood	West Mifflin, Pa.	S&S	2019
43	Black Mamba	Phantasialand	Brϋhl, Germany	B&M	2006
44	Whizzer	Six Flags Great America	Gurnee, Ill.	Schwarzkopf	1976
45	Full Throttle	Six Flags Magic Mountain	Valencia, Calif.	Premier	2013
46	Raging Bull	Six Flags Great America	Gurnee, Ill.	B&M	1999
47 tie	Lisebergbanan	Liseberg	Gothenburg, Sweden	Schwarzkopf	1987
47 tie	Superman Ride of Steel	Six Flags America	Largo, Maryland	Intamin	2000
49 tie	Goliath	Six Flags Magic Mountain	Valencia, Calif.	B&M	2000
49 tie	Tatsu	Six Flags Magic Mountain	Valencia, Calif.	B&M	2006

2019’s Top 50 Wooden Roller Coasters

Rank	Name	Park	Location	Supplier
1	Phoenix	Knoebels	Elysburg, Pa.	Dinn-PTC/Schmeck
2	Voyage	Holiday World	Santa Claus, Ind.	The Gravity Group
3	El Toro	Six Flags Great Adventure	Jackson, N.J.	Intamin
4	BoulderDash	Lake Compounce	Bristol, Conn.	Custom Coasters
5	Beast	Kings Island	Mason, Ohio	KECO
6	GhostRider	Knott’s Berry Farm	Buena Park, Calif.	Custom Coasters
7	Lightning Rod	Dollywood	Pigeon Forge, Tenn.	Rocky Mountain
8	Outlaw Run	Silver Dollar City	Branson, Mo.	Rocky Mountain
9	Ravine Flyer 2	Waldameer	Erie, Pa.	The Gravity Group
10	Mystic Timbers	Kings Island	Mason, Ohio	Great Coasters Int.
11	Thunderhead	Dollywood	Pigeon Forge, Tenn.	Great Coasters Int.
12	Gold Striker	California’s Great America	Santa Clara, Calif.	Great Coasters Int.
13	Balder	Liseberg	Gothenburg, Sweden	Intamin
14	Lightning Racer	Hersheypark	Hershey, Pa.	Great Coasters Int.
15	Shivering Timbers	Michigan’s Adventure	Muskegon, Mich.	Custom Coasters
16	Wildfire	Kolmården	Norrköping, Sweden	Rocky Mountain
17	Giant Dipper	Santa Cruz Beach Boardwalk	Santa Cruz, Calif.	Prior & Church/Looff
18	Thunderbolt	Kennywood	West Mifflin, Pa.	Vettel/Miller
19	Comet	The Great Escape	Lake George, N.Y.	PTC/Schmeck
20	Jack Rabbit	Kennywood	West Mifflin, Pa.	Miller
21	Raven	Holiday World	Santa Claus, Ind.	Custom Coasters
22	White Lightning	Fun Spot	Orlando, Fla.	Great Coasters Int.
23	Wodan	Europa-Park	Rust, Germany	Great Coasters Int.
24	Renegade	Valleyfair	Shakopee, Minn.	Great Coasters Int.
25	Troy	Toverland	Sevenum, the Netherlands	Great Coasters Int.
26	Legend	Holiday World	Santa Claus, Ind.	Custom Coasters
27	Goliath	Six Flags Great America	Gurnee, Ill.	Rocky Mountain
28	Cyclone	Luna Park/Coney Island	Brooklyn, N.Y.	Kennan/Baker
29	Prowler	Worlds of Fun	Kansas City, Mo.	Great Coasters Int.
30	Colossos	Heide Park	Soltau, Germany	Intamin
31	Boardwalk Bullet	Kemah Boardwalk	Kemah, Texas	The Gravity Group
32	Playland Wooden Coaster	PNE Playland	Vancouver, B.C., Canada	Phare
33	Flying Turns	Knoebels	Elysburg, Pa.	Fetterman
34	Rampage	Alabama Adventure	Bessemer, Ala.	Custom Coasters
35	Cú Chulainn	Tayto Park	Ashbourne, Ireland	The Gravity Group
36	Boss	Six Flags St. Louis	Eureka, Mo.	Custom Coasters
37	T Express	Everland	Yonjin-si, South Korea	Intamin
38	Blue Streak	Cedar Point	Sandusky, Ohio	PTC/Hoover
39	American Thunder	Six Flags Six Flags St. Louis	Eureka, Mo.	Great Coasters Int.
40	Blue Streak	Conneaut Lake Park	Conneaut Lake, Pa.	Vettel /NAD
41	InvadR	Busch Gardens Williamsburg	Williamsburg, Va.	Great Coasters Int.
42	Screamin’ Eagle	Six Flags St. Louis	Eureka, Mo.	PTC/Allen
43	Hades 360	Mount Olympus	Wisconsin Dells, Wis.	The Gravity Group
44	Megafobia	Oakwood	Pembrokeshire, Wales	Custom Coasters
45 tie	Rutschebanan	Tivoli Gardens	Copenhagen, Denmark	L.A. Thompson S. R. Co.
45 tie	Twister	Knoebels	Elysburg, Pa.	Fetterman
47	El Toro	Freizeitpark Plohn	Lengenfeld, Germany	Great Coasters Int.
48	Twister	Gröna Lund	Stockholm, Sweden	The Gravity Group
49	Switchback	ZDTs	Seguin, Texas	The Gravity Group
50	Grizzly	Kings Dominion	Doswell, Va.	Taft