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Park Queue TimesPQT

Adventureland
vs
Lake Compounce

On a typical day Lake Compounce queues less: about 16 minutes a ride against 29 at Adventureland, a difference of roughly 13 minutes on every queue you join.

See both right now

01 · On a typical day

What you would normally queue.

Averages across recent weeks, so one broken ride or one wet Tuesday cannot decide it. This is the comparison to plan a trip on; the live figures below are the one to act on today.

Adventureland and Lake Compounce compared on their typical recorded queue times
TypicallyAdventurelandUnited StatesLake CompounceUnited States
Average wait per ride 29 min16 min (best of the two)
Rides with recorded waits 625 (best of the two)
Longest typical queue Phoenix36 minBoulder Dash37 min
Shortest typical queue Storm Chaser18 minRainbow Riders5 min
Average ride uptime Share of opening hours a ride is runningNot recorded67%

Averaged across every ride at each park with recorded waits. A ride that never opened is left out, so a park is not flattered by counting a shut ride as a queue of zero.

02 · Right now

Both parks, this minute.

Live queue times at both parks. These fill in as soon as the page loads, and keep updating while you are here.

Adventureland and Lake Compounce compared on live queue times
Right nowAdventurelandUnited StatesLake CompounceUnited States
Average wait right now --
Rides open --
Opening hours today --
Longest queue --
Shortest queue --

These keep refreshing while this page is open. A closed park posts no waits, so its rows read as dashes rather than zeroes.

Verdict, on a typical day On a typical day Lake Compounce queues less: about 16 minutes a ride against 29 at Adventureland, a difference of roughly 13 minutes on every queue you join.

03 · Choosing

Which one is your day out.

Every line here is earned by one of the figures above - nothing is a generic sentence with a park name dropped into it.

Pick Adventureland if…

  • You will accept a longer queue - 29 minutes a ride here against 16 at Lake Compounce - for what Adventureland has that Lake Compounce does not
  • Phoenix is on your list - it is Adventureland's longest typical queue at about 36 minutes, so it is the one to do first
  • You want Adventureland's own character - the rides, theming and atmosphere described below

Pick Lake Compounce if…

  • You want shorter queues: Lake Compounce averages 16 minutes a ride against 29 at Adventureland
  • You want more to do: 25 rides here have recorded wait data against 6 at Adventureland
  • Boulder Dash is on your list - it is Lake Compounce's longest typical queue at about 37 minutes, so it is the one to do first
  • You want Lake Compounce's own character - the rides, theming and atmosphere described below

04 · The parks

What each one is.

Adventureland

Adventureland in Altoona, just outside Des Moines, has been open since 1974 and is Iowa's largest amusement park. Monster is the steel coaster with the beyond-vertical drop, Outlaw and Tornado are the wooden coasters, and Phoenix, Storm Chaser and Draken Falls add more variety, with a large section of family rides. In the autumn it runs Halloween haunts on select dates.

Summer weekends and the weeks around the Fourth of July are the busiest. Weekdays early and late in the season are usually much quieter. Check the live queue times before you go and use the crowd calendar to find a good day.

Adventureland live queue times

Lake Compounce

Lake Compounce in Bristol, Connecticut, opened in 1846 and is the oldest continuously operating amusement park in North America. Boulder Dash is the standout, a wooden coaster that runs along the side of the mountain, alongside the 1927 Wildcat, the triple-launch Phobia Phear and Thunder N Lightning. The park also has the Crocodile Cove water park, and in the autumn it adds Halloween haunts on select dates.

Summer weekends and the July holiday week are the busiest. Weekdays in June and the autumn weekends before the haunts open are quieter. Check the live queue times before you go and use the crowd calendar to choose a day.

Lake Compounce live queue times

05 · Questions

Adventureland or Lake Compounce?

Which is better, Adventureland or Lake Compounce?

If you are judging on queues, Lake Compounce: it averages about 16 minutes a ride on a typical day against 29 at Adventureland, roughly 13 minutes back on every queue you join. Adventureland has 6 rides with recorded waits against 25 at Lake Compounce.

Which has shorter queues, Adventureland or Lake Compounce?

Lake Compounce, by about 13 minutes a ride. On a typical day Lake Compounce averages 16 minutes against 29 at Adventureland. Queues still move hour by hour, and a midweek day outside school holidays beats the gap at either park. See Adventureland best time to visit and Lake Compounce best time to visit to pick a quiet day.

Can I visit Adventureland and Lake Compounce in the same trip?

Yes - both parks are in United States, so a two-park trip is realistic over a long weekend. Split the days so you start at whichever opens earliest and drive to the other in the evening.

How many rides does each park have?

See the tables above for ride counts - or jump to Adventureland and Lake Compounce for the full ride lists.

Is Adventureland bigger than Lake Compounce?

By rides we track waits for, Lake Compounce is the bigger day out: 25 rides against 6. Acreage matters less than how many you can actually get on, which comes down to queues and opening hours - and on those Lake Compounce is the quicker park.

Then pick
the quiet day.

Both parks have a crowd calendar with six weeks of forecast and the best day left to go.