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Park Queue TimesPQT

Adventureland
vs
Six Flags Darien Lake

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

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 Six Flags Darien Lake compared on their typical recorded queue times
TypicallyAdventurelandUnited StatesSix Flags Darien LakeUnited States
Average wait per ride 29 min13 min (best of the two)
Rides with recorded waits 6 (best of the two)2
Longest typical queue Phoenix36 minPredator17 min
Shortest typical queue Storm Chaser18 minRide of Steel9 min

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 Six Flags Darien Lake compared on live queue times
Right nowAdventurelandUnited StatesSix Flags Darien LakeUnited 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 Six Flags Darien Lake queues less: about 13 minutes a ride against 29 at Adventureland, a difference of roughly 16 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 13 at Six Flags Darien Lake - for what Adventureland has that Six Flags Darien Lake does not
  • You want more to do: 6 rides here have recorded wait data against 2 at Six Flags Darien Lake
  • 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 Six Flags Darien Lake if…

  • You want shorter queues: Six Flags Darien Lake averages 13 minutes a ride against 29 at Adventureland
  • Predator is on your list - it is Six Flags Darien Lake's longest typical queue at about 17 minutes, so it is the one to do first
  • You want Six Flags Darien Lake'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

Six Flags Darien Lake

Six Flags Darien Lake sits in Darien Center, New York, between Buffalo and Rochester. The coaster line-up includes Ride of Steel (a 208-foot hyper coaster from Intamin), Tantrum (a 98-foot Eurofighter), Motocoaster launched coaster, Predator wooden coaster, and the classic Viper stand-up. A Hurricane Harbor water park and a camping resort operate on the same property.

Western New York school holidays, US summer weekends and the Fright Fest event drive Darien Lake's peak crowds. Weekdays in May, September and early October stay dramatically quieter. Check live wait times for Ride of Steel and Tantrum on arrival, and use our crowd calendar to pick a midweek visit - many rides run near walk-on levels on quieter mornings.

Six Flags Darien Lake live queue times

05 · Questions

Adventureland or Six Flags Darien Lake?

Which is better, Adventureland or Six Flags Darien Lake?

If you are judging on queues, Six Flags Darien Lake: it averages about 13 minutes a ride on a typical day against 29 at Adventureland, roughly 16 minutes back on every queue you join. Adventureland has 6 rides with recorded waits against 2 at Six Flags Darien Lake.

Which has shorter queues, Adventureland or Six Flags Darien Lake?

Six Flags Darien Lake, by about 16 minutes a ride. On a typical day Six Flags Darien Lake averages 13 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 Six Flags Darien Lake best time to visit to pick a quiet day.

Can I visit Adventureland and Six Flags Darien Lake 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 Six Flags Darien Lake for the full ride lists.

Is Adventureland bigger than Six Flags Darien Lake?

By rides we track waits for, Adventureland is the bigger day out: 6 rides against 2. Acreage matters less than how many you can actually get on, which comes down to queues and opening hours - and on those Six Flags Darien Lake 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.