Six Flags Qiddiya | Saudi Arabia | Theme Park

[spicy]

This is the first "normal" vlog i've seen of the park and it's basically my worst fears realised:

- Atrocious levels of queue jumping including staff encouragement
- Queue times horribly inaccurate (massively underestimated and only viewable at ride entrance)
- Abysmal ops and availability

The world's best rides at the world's worst theme park.

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Yeah if that's a typical day at this park I am going to wait a bit longer to visit while they iron out these issues.

At one point on his first night at the park literally every single thing was closed?!

The operations also sound horrific and with guests fighting in the queuelines over queue jumping the security are going to have to get a grip on queue jumpers asap.

 

[JoshC.]

Haven't watched the vlog, but it would be naïve to think that a park that's been open to the public for less than a month, in a country that hasn't really had a proper theme park anywhere near this scale before, would not be experiencing some teething problems with operations.

Not saying that having mass ride closures or lots of queue jumping is acceptable, but things this happening right now isn't that big a surprise for me. It's how it's addressed moving forward that is the bigger question right now.

 

[Bowser]

Haven't watched the vlog, but it would be naïve to think that a park that's been open to the public for less than a month, in a country that hasn't really had a proper theme park anywhere near this scale before, would not be experiencing some teething problems with operations.

Not saying that having mass ride closures or lots of queue jumping is acceptable, but things this happening right now isn't that big a surprise for me. It's how it's addressed moving forward that is the bigger question right now.

Oh certainly and that's the reason i haven't booked a trip yet. But it's disappointing to see how they've have dozens if not hundreds of vloggers there for a week and managed to have virtually everything running smoothly but as soon as they've left it's like they sent all the trained staff away.

 

[Hixee]

The question nagging in my mind, and what's making me anxious about booking flights for early April (been holding off until mid-week this week to score some other airmiles), is... how long will it take to get better? Am I better just postponing to around this time next year, or suck up the (potential) cost of three days admission and/or fastpasses/horrible queues to just get it done now.

 

[ZeroG]

It was half term this week in Saudi TBF. I'm going the week after next and hoping it'll be at least slightly better. But who knows

 

[ScottLann]

The question nagging in my mind, and what's making me anxious about booking flights for early April (been holding off until mid-week this week to score some other airmiles), is... how long will it take to get better? Am I better just postponing to around this time next year, or suck up the (potential) cost of three days admission and/or fastpasses/horrible queues to just get it done now.

I've already booked for early April and I'm definitely a little worried on how operations are going to be! I think 3 months is a decent time to get a lot of issues sorted however, and looking at the school holidays over there, April should be a quieter time to go compared to now (also with the addition of the current cooler weather, the busiest months for tourism are from November-February).

Even if I'm expecting lower crowds then, I'm still not going to take any risks and will purchase a Fast Pass for at least one of my days there...I just hope that can include Falcon's Flight?

 

[rollercoaster.jpg]

From the vlog, it seems like standard park strategies apply:

— arrive early to rope drop because crowds pick-up later in the day

— everyone heads to Falcon Flight first, so unless you're one of the first people in the park AND it's open on time, save it for later and knock out the rest of the park with minimal waits. Prioritize low capacity attractions like the Maurer spike coaster.

— the app is useless and the queue times are inaccurate
— there's lots of queue jumping causing fights to break out between guests.

So, all in all, it sounds like they've recreated a completely authentic Six Flags experience!

 

[Trax]

Regarding the queue jumping, I'd like to point towards Shanghai Disneyland.
When it opened, queue jumping was apparently a huge issue and even parents letting their kids pee in the queues were a common sight.
AFAIK, the park respondes by placing security in most major queue lines which seems to have helped.
I didn't encounter more queue jumping during my visit in 2024 than in any other park.
Maybe this would be a solution for the park.

 

[Blocnog]

I've already booked for early April and I'm definitely a little worried on how operations are going to be! I think 3 months is a decent time to get a lot of issues sorted however, and looking at the school holidays over there, April should be a quieter time to go compared to now (also with the addition of the current cooler weather, the busiest months for tourism are from November-February).

Even if I'm expecting lower crowds then, I'm still not going to take any risks and will purchase a Fast Pass for at least one of my days there...I just hope that can include Falcon's Flight?

Fast pass definitely includes Falcons (according to their website), whether they change that is another question entirely. Has anyone gone with a fast pass and managed to get on in any kind of reasonable time frame? Spoke to a few people who have gone out and apparently the main queue won't move if there's anyone in fast pass, causing even more chaos...

I think Saudi school holidays ended on Saturday, so be interesting to see if things improve this week...

 

[ScottLann]

As far as I'm aware, fast passes are still unavailable on the website (this seems to be more than just a glitch now). From what someone else said on the last page, fast passes are only available at the park but don't include Falcon's Flight. Really hope this is just a temporary issue

 

[JamesA]

What's the general consensus on the best way to get to the park from Riyadh?

I've seen some people say Uber is best, while others insist the bus from Jeddah Road station is the way to go.

Apparently Uber driving in Riyadh can be pretty horrendous, and I’ve also read that there can be long queues for the bus at Jeddah.

I’m going to the park this Friday and Saturday Cost isn’t an issue, I just want to get there and back safely with minimal faff.

 

[Bowser]

As far as I'm aware, fast passes are still unavailable on the website (this seems to be more than just a glitch now). From what someone else said on the last page, fast passes are only available at the park but don't include Falcon's Flight. Really hope this is just a temporary issue

They're still all showing as SOLD OUT so i think we'll only know for sure when the next batch of dates are released.

I wonder if there's a Third Party seller who has hoovered them all up?

 

[JoshC.]

What's the general consensus on the best way to get to the park from Riyadh?

I've seen some people say Uber is best, while others insist the bus from Jeddah Road station is the way to go.

Apparently Uber driving in Riyadh can be pretty horrendous, and I’ve also read that there can be long queues for the bus at Jeddah.

I’m going to the park this Friday and Saturday Cost isn’t an issue, I just want to get there and back safely with minimal faff.

Not an answer, but more an add on question:

What's the deal with getting back from the park to Riyadh? I heard during previews you could only enter even the car park / drop off areas with a ticket, meaning that whilst Ubers/Careems could drop you off, they couldn't pick you up. Is that the case now? And if so, when's the last bus back to Jeddah Road?

 

[uwurawrus]

What's the general consensus on the best way to get to the park from Riyadh?

I've seen some people say Uber is best, while others insist the bus from Jeddah Road station is the way to go.

Apparently Uber driving in Riyadh can be pretty horrendous, and I’ve also read that there can be long queues for the bus at Jeddah.

I’m going to the park this Friday and Saturday Cost isn’t an issue, I just want to get there and back safely with minimal faff.

I did both. Uber and the bus. Here's my take.

First day I went I got an uber. Driver got lost multiple times, Arrived at the park and ride, waited in an hour queue to get on the bus to the park. Got there at 5.

I got on the first bus from Jeddah Road at 3pm. There was barely anyone there. At the Qiddiya waiting room at the station, they have free bottled water, a vending machine with cheap snacks and drinks. Got on the first bus. There were about 5 people on it. Got to the park and ride, was transferred straight onto a bus to the park.

I know what I'd rather do.

Just a note the website says the last bus to Jeddah Road is pretty early on but on Wednesday I got last train of the day on Falcons and then made it onto a bus to Jeddah Road. The Jeddah Road metro station buses are out the park exit and to the left. I think they have to run them; they're not able to keep people in Qiddiya overnight as they close the road into it, so they by obligation I suppose have to run shuttles out.

I will note as well that out of fear I got to Jeddah Road at 2pm; a whopping hour before the first bus was due to leave! It took about 30 minutes for people to start arriving, where I met up with another british enthusiast. We then found the waiting room.

 

[Blocnog]

I did both. Uber and the bus. Here's my take.

First day I went I got an uber. Driver got lost multiple times, Arrived at the park and ride, waited in an hour queue to get on the bus to the park. Got there at 5.

I got on the first bus from Jeddah Road at 3pm. There was barely anyone there. At the Qiddiya waiting room at the station, they have free bottled water, a vending machine with cheap snacks and drinks. Got on the first bus. There were about 5 people on it. Got to the park and ride, was transferred straight onto a bus to the park.

I know what I'd rather do.

Just a note the website says the last bus to Jeddah Road is pretty early on but on Wednesday I got last train of the day on Falcons and then made it onto a bus to Jeddah Road. The Jeddah Road metro station buses are out the park exit and to the left. I think they have to run them; they're not able to keep people in Qiddiya overnight as they close the road into it, so they by obligation I suppose have to run shuttles out.

that's very good to know! assuming ubers are very easy to get to and from the station?

 

[uwurawrus]

that's very good to know! assuming ubers are very easy to get to and from the station?

Yeah, but I wouldn't bother getting to the station with uber. The metro is very clean, very modern, and trains run very frequently.

The station you have to transfer at to get onto the Orange Line to Jeddah Road Metro Station is also insanely beautiful and near a lovely local market. I'd 100% leave some time to explore the area nearby as it really was a highlight of my trip to Saudi Arabia.

From the station it cost me 31 SAR; or about £6.15 to get from Jeddah Road Metro Station to my airbnb in central Riyadh at about 2am by Uber. I didn't wait very long. About 3 minutes? Riyadh is a nighttime city.

 

[Blocnog]

I did both. Uber and the bus. Here's my take.

First day I went I got an uber. Driver got lost multiple times, Arrived at the park and ride, waited in an hour queue to get on the bus to the park. Got there at 5.

I got on the first bus from Jeddah Road at 3pm. There was barely anyone there. At the Qiddiya waiting room at the station, they have free bottled water, a vending machine with cheap snacks and drinks. Got on the first bus. There were about 5 people on it. Got to the park and ride, was transferred straight onto a bus to the park.

I know what I'd rather do.

Just a note the website says the last bus to Jeddah Road is pretty early on but on Wednesday I got last train of the day on Falcons and then made it onto a bus to Jeddah Road. The Jeddah Road metro station buses are out the park exit and to the left. I think they have to run them; they're not able to keep people in Qiddiya overnight as they close the road into it, so they by obligation I suppose have to run shuttles out.

I will note as well that out of fear I got to Jeddah Road at 2pm; a whopping hour before the first bus was due to leave! It took about 30 minutes for people to start arriving, where I met up with another british enthusiast. We then found the waiting room.

where abouts is the waiting room in the station?

 

[uwurawrus]

where abouts is the waiting room in the station?

From within the station, there's plenty of signage leading to Qiddiya City. Follow the arrows. When you exit the station, there's no clear signage, but if you turn left and keep walking for a few seconds, you'll come across another sign for Qiddiya City... up the ramp there's a door that leads into the Qiddiya waiting room.

 

[Blocnog]

From within the station, there's plenty of signage leading to Qiddiya City. Follow the arrows. When you exit the station, there's no clear signage, but if you turn left and keep walking for a few seconds, you'll come across another sign for Qiddiya City... up the ramp there's a door that leads into the Qiddiya waiting room

Ah that's super helpful thanks. I was originally going to drive but heard too many horror stories to risk it

 

[Boodangy]

Am I gathering from this thread correctly that at this park you can't park directly outside the park itself or be taken directly to a gate, instead you always have to take a shuttle bus at one point entering/exiting the park? Interesting. I wonder why that is?