Dorney Park
Dorney Park is a 200-acre amusement and water park located in Allentown, Pennsylvania. Operating continuously since 1884, it stands as one of the oldest operational amusement parks in the United States and offers an integrated dual-gate experience where admission to Wildwater Kingdom is included with standard park entry. The park is renowned for its diverse collection of thrill rides, preserved historic wooden structures, and modern steel coaster engineering.
Dorney Park operates an 8-coaster roster spanning modern custom inversions, classic airtime, and century-old wooden heritage. My son and I enjoyed the rides here. Hydra The Revenge had an unexpected element as soon as the train left the loading platform.
My wife is a carousel enthusians. During our Ohio and Pennsylvania rollercoaster blitz we tried to ride the carousel if there was one available. The Antique Carousel did not disappoint. Would go again!
Iron Menace
It is a custom steel Dive Coaster that opened at Dorney Park in May 2024. Anchoring the park's "Steel Yard" themed area. The attraction is styled after a turn-of-the-century abandoned Lehigh Valley blast furnace and steel mill. It represents the first B&M Dive Coaster constructed in the northeastern United States.
Steel Force
This ride is a 200-foot out-and-back steel hypercoaster that opened at Dorney Park in May 1997. Renowned for its massive profile running along the eastern boundary of the park, it held the title of the tallest and fastest roller coaster on the U.S. East Coast upon debut. The ride is recognized for its high capacity, prolonged negative-G floater airtime, and smooth tubular-steel tracking across an expansive layout.
Talon: The Grip of Fear
Is a custom steel inverted roller coaster that opened at Dorney Park in May 2001. Standing prominently near the front entrance of the park, it was designed specifically to maximize high-intensity inversions and tight pacing across a compact, sloped terrain footprint. It remains one of the smoothest inverted coasters in the country, utilizing sound-dampening gravel-filled track box spines to minimize noise near the park boundaries.
Hydra the Revenge
This is a custom steel floorless roller coaster that opened at Dorney Park in May 2005. Named as a thematic successor to Hercules, the notoriously rough wooden coaster that previously occupied the site. Hydra incorporates the natural hillside and ravine topography of the park. It holds a distinct place in coaster engineering history as the first coaster in the world designed with a pre-lift inversion.
Possessed
This is an inverted impulse shuttle roller coaster engineered by Intamin that opened at Dorney Park in May 2008. Originally debuting in 2000 as Superman: Ultimate Escape (later Voodoo) at Geauga Lake in Ohio, the attraction was relocated to Dorney Park and situated near the entrance to Wildwater Kingdom. It utilizes an advanced linear induction motor (LIM) launch propulsion system to catapult riders back and forth across a U-shaped dual-spike track layout.
Thunderhawk
This historic wooden roller coaster designed by Herbert Schmeck and built by the Philadelphia Toboggan Company (PTC). Opening on March 30, 1924, it originally operated as the The Coaster before being reconfigured and renamed Thunderhawk in 1989. It stands as one of the oldest operating roller coasters in the world, celebrating over a century of continuous service with classic out-and-back and figure-eight wooden coaster elements.
Wild Mouse
This compact steel roller coaster manufactured by Maurer Rides (model: Wilde Maus Classic) that opened at Dorney Park in May 2000. Located along the main midway near the entrance to Planet Snoopy, it provides a classic wild mouse ride experience characterized by unbanked hairpin turns and abrupt dips that produce sharp lateral forces rather than high vertical speeds or inversions.
Woodstock Express
This compact junior steel roller coaster manufactured by Zamperla (model: Family Gravity Coaster 80STD) that opened at Dorney Park in 2000. Located in the Planet Snoopy themed children's area, it serves as the entry-level "starter" coaster for younger guests, designed to bridge the gap between flat kiddie rides and larger family coasters like Wild Mouse and Thunderhawk.
Antique Carousel
This is a classic, historic merry-go-round positioned near the front entrance midway of Dorney Park. Built in 1921 by the prestigious Dentzel Carousel Company of Philadelphia, it stands as the park's second-oldest operating ride (surpassed only by The Whip, which debuted in 1920) and serves as an architectural and historical centerpiece of the park.
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