California’s Buena Park is home to the 57-acre (23 hectare) Knott’s Berry Farm, which is owned and run by Cedar Fair. It has an annual average of almost 4 million visitors and was the twelfth-most visited theme park in North America in 2015. The amusement park has 40 rides, including water slides, dark rides, family rides, and roller coasters. The park got its start as a roadside fruit shop along California’s State Route 39 in the 1920s under Walter Knott’s management. A restaurant, many stores, and other attractions, including a recreated ghost town, had been built on the property by the 1940s to amuse an increasing number of visitors. Over the following two decades, the location continued to be transformed into a contemporary amusement park, and in 1968, a fee for entry was introduced. Only two years after the Knott’s food business was purchased by ConAgra, Inc. in 1995, the park was sold to Cedar Fair for $300 million in 1997.

The park is separated into five themed sections: Indian Trails, Ghost Town, Fiesta Village, The Boardwalk, and Camp Snoopy. With a number of “Wild West”-themed rides, including the dark gravity coaster of the Calico Mine Ride, the narrow gauge 10-minute Calico Railroad ride taking guests through the park, the wooden roller coaster GhostRider, the upcharged Screamin’ Swing, the inverted roller coaster Silver Bullet, the traditional flume Timber Mountain Log Ride with a 42-foot drop, and more, Ghost Town was created to preserve and replicate the original Ghost Town of the Knott family berry farm. The swinging pirate ship gondola Dragon Swing, the spinning sombrero Teacup Hat Dance, the steel roller coaster Jaguar, the 360-degree pendulum of La Revolucion, the traditional Merry Go Round, the swift Montezooma’s Revenge, and the orbiting Waveswinger can all be found in Fiesta Village, an area themed to Mexican pop culture. The Boardwalk area, which is reminiscent of California’s pier amusement parks, is home to the steel wild mouse coaster Coast Rider, the vintage carnival ride Pacific Scrambler, the rotating, somersaulting Rip Tide, the panoramic gyro tower Sky Cabin, the turbo drop of Supreme Scream, the flying scooters of Surfside Gliders, the iconic Wheeler Dealer Bumper Cars, the rotating, undulating Wipeout, and the breakneck roller coaster.

 The family and kids’ section of the park, Camp Snoopy, is based on the Charles M. Schulz comic strip Peanuts. Snoopy, the park’s mascot since 1983, is prominently featured in this area and has a number of rides, including Balloon Race, Camp Bus, Charlie Brown’s Speedway, Grand Sierra Scenic Railroad, High Sierra Ferris Wheel, Huff and Puff, Joe Cool’s Gr8 Sk8, Log Peeler, Lucy’s Tugboat, Red Baron, Rocky Road Trucking Company, Sierra Sidewinder, Timberline Twister, and Woodstock’s Airmail. Indian Trails, a Native American-themed section including the Butterfield Stagecoach attraction, is situated between Camp Snoopy and Ghost Town.  When buying tickets in advance, you can avoid disappointment in the event of a packed, sold-out day and save time at the gate. A Go Los Angeles Card will also save you money on admission.