Cedar Point Roller Coasters ranked

Cedar Point has long prided itself with its tradition of building the world’s highest, fastest, steepest, and longest roller coasters. These pros have been building roller coasters at this park since 1892! Now, with 18 coasters, Cedar Point has the 2nd-most of any park, just behind California’s Magic Mountain. Let’s take a look at Cedar Point’s roller coasters, ranked from worst to best.

Cedar Point Roller Coasters

#18 – Wilderness Run & #17 – Woodstock Express

Wilderness Run and Woodstock Express are the two kid’s coasters, both found in the Camp Snoopy area near the Gemini coaster. Wilderness Run, built in 1979 as Jr. Gemini, is the first coaster Intamin ever made. By today’s standards, it’s sluggish, even for a kiddie coaster.

Woodstock Express from Vekoma in 1999 is a little zippier. Plus, I like the little bell on the front. I confess, I didn’t ride either during my visit, though I did scope them out while I was there.

#16 – Pipe Scream

Pipe Scream is a fun ride, but it barely ranks as a roller coaster. It’s more like a spinning flat ride. In fact, Wikipedia doesn’t list it under roller coasters, nor does the roller coaster database. But Cedar Point’s own website does – and it was in the lineup during a “coaster appreciation” part of the 150th-anniversary show. (It didn’t get much applause, however.)

Situated between the Gemini and Camp Snoopy, this skateboard-like ride spins riders on a platform while it rocks back and forth on an undulating track. It *is* pretty fun, especially if you ride it with fun people, but it’s low on the scale for a true coaster experience.

#15 – Corkscrew

This 1976 Arrow coaster was the first in the world to feature three inversions. It’s a simple layout – one vertical loop going out, then two corkscrews right over the midway on the way back.

It’s not a particularly fun ride. The Corkscrew is definitely your chiropractic session of the day. (Every park seems to have one of those.) But I doubt they’ll get rid of it anytime soon just because of how pretty it is, spiraling over the midway. It’s too much of an iconic image.

#14 – Cedar Creek Mine Ride

This 1969 Arrow mine train is less exciting than other ones I’ve ridden lately. Usually, the mine train format has more than one lift hill and a helix or two, which this has. But it all sits above ground with no dug-in portions or tunnels – not very mine-y. Especially when compared to the Carolina Goldrusher at Carowinds.

Overall, I found it pretty jolty and just a ho-hum ride. But I like a sign before the lift hill pointing out the directions to other Cedar Fair mine rides. Plus, it has a fantastically quick operating team.

#13 – Blue Streak

The oldest operating roller coaster at Cedar Point is the Blue Streak, a wooden coaster from 1964. Situated right along the road next to the Marina, it has great views of the bay and the city.

It’s definitely on the old side and feels rough, but not as bad as you might think, and gives a good ride. (I mainly remember all the bugs on the platform at night.)

#12 – Rougarou

Rougarou (meaning “werewolf” in French) is a B&M steel coaster, automatically putting it ahead in concept and experience. However, this one is kind of a headbanger. Built originally in 1996 as a stand-up coaster called Mantis, in 2015 it was converted to a floorless coaster design. I remember it being even more headbang-y before, but it will still give you a bit of a headache now. The brake run especially.

As for theming, you could say there is a vague French/Cajun thing going on around the base of the coaster, with lots of water for a swampy atmosphere.

#11 – Iron Dragon

I have a nostalgic love for these old-style suspended coasters. It’s not the kind where your feet hang. Instead, the entire car is suspended under the track. I always make it a point to ride these when I can because I feel sure they won’t be around much longer.

Most of the action comes in the more swingy second half and a nice swoop over the water on Iron Dragon. But overall, it’s a slow line, a slow load (the cars are kinda hard to get into), and a slower ride itself. Each car seats four people, so it’s better to ride in the front of each car but at the back of the train for more swinging action.

The theme around the ride platform is really nice, with an Asian-ish style and a golden dragon out front.

#10 – Wicked Twister

The Wicked Twister just closed this last weekend to make room for “future park improvements.” But I rode it this summer, so I’ll review it.

Wicked Twister was a simple enough ride – a large “U” shape with suspended cars that twist up each arm, billed as the fastest and tallest of its kind when it opened in 2002. I found it a lot of fun, largely because I walked right on the ride with no wait. Any wait longer than 15-20 minutes, and it wouldn’t have been quite so enjoyable. Still, I enjoyed the fast launch and passes through the station. I hope they replace it with something worthwhile!

#9 – Top Thrill Dragster

Honestly, the next ride they should close is the Top Thrill Dragster. It’s plagued with downtime – and is now closed for the 2021 season after a terrible accident where a piece of the coaster broke off and struck a guest in line. The coaster opened in 2003 as the tallest and fastest in the world at 420 feet tall and a top speed of 120 mph. But it was quickly usurped in 2005 by Kingda Ka at Six Flags Great Adventure in New Jersey, which tops out at 456 feet and 128 mph.

So being the almost-tallest in the world is an achievement, and the quick launch and the (also quick) view from the top are fun. But there’s not a lot of ride there. You launch, race to the top, then back down, and that’s all. It’d be nice if there were an actual roller coaster ride after the towering hill.

Top Thrill Dragster was closed for the three days I was in Cedar Point. Then I saw it operating (sporadically) on my fourth day when I was at the water park. I popped over to ride it, got in line, and it shut down again. When I came back later in the month it was running, so I got in line 30-40 minutes before opening and could pretty much walk one once it opened. And if you’re going to ride it, that’s what I’d recommend. It’s not really worth standing in a long line for, but it inevitably always has one, especially since it’s open so seldom.

#8 – GateKeeper

Another coaster I couldn’t ride until later in the summer is GateKeeper. This B&M wing coaster soars over the entrance to the park and through two “keyhole” towers and back. Opened in 2013, GateKeeper had (at opening) the highest inversion of any wing coaster and had the longest track, the fastest, the tallest, and the most inversions.

I honestly found it to be a bit slow and ponderous. It’s prettier to look at than it is to ride. You choose which side you want – I found the left side was nice for views over the water, but the right side has a more dramatic drop off the lift hill. And you always want to pick the outermost seat for the most dramatic torque.

#7 – Valravn

Back next to the Blue Streak, Valravn opened in 2016 as the tallest, fastest, and longest dive coaster in the world. It’s still tied for the tallest. I actually found that it feels like a too-short ride, but maybe it only pales within the riches of Cedar Point. It would feel more outstanding in any other park!

Valravn (pronounced “val-raven,” like the bird – not like something close to “Valvoline,” which is what my brain wants to do) is based on a Dutch myth meaning, “raven of the slain.” The theme is a dark and spooky castle. At least that’s what it feels like when you ride it at night. I like that the first dive nicely faces the open lake, and the rest of the ride is nice and big and swoopy. As a wider B&M coaster, always try to ride on the ends and in the front if you really want that face-down feeling at the top of each of two dives.

#6 – Gemini

The 1978 wooden Gemini racing coaster is almost as old as I am and is still so much fun! First of all, the broad loading platform is ’80s fabtastic, like early Epcot. And while it’s a fun ride in and of itself, it’s the racing aspect that makes it so enjoyable. So many racers don’t actually race anymore, but this one does! And there are a few points along the way where you can give high-fives to the opposing team and turns where you can see one or the other train pull ahead. It’s a LOT of fun and very social.

#5 – Magnum XL-200

On my only other trip to Cedar Point back in 2007, Magnum XL-200 was my favorite ride in the park, even over Millenium Force (which we got stuck on.) These days, it’s feeling pretty rough in a chunky sort of way. It’s like whole sections of track are off from each other, and you chunk from one to the next. Also, I find the brake run into the farthest pretzel roll to be awkward.

Even so, it’s still a great layout, and I love the tunnels. I’m fondest of these tall and fast out-and-back styles, like a classic coaster on steroids. And Magnum arrived in 1989 as the tallest, fastest, and steepest, billed as the first hypercoaster (over 200 feet) and giving rise to the “coaster wars” of the next several years. With Gemini, the Magnum cements the ’80s feeling of this section of the park.

#4 – Raptor

Raptor, the inverted B&M coaster from 1994, lies right next to the Main Midway. When it was built, this green monster was the tallest, fastest, longest inverted coaster and the first to feature a cobra roll in an inverted coaster.

This is a ride that proves how well Cedar Point operates all of its rides – fast, efficient, and with minimal interference from mid-ride brake runs. The Raptor is a fast, exciting ride that kicks your feet in the air and swoops you around just above the ground and through six fun inversions. It’s just fantastic.

#3 – Maverick

I LOVE the Maverick! It’s not the tallest or fastest anything, but it is a fantastically whippy coaster with two launches and fantastic theming. Maverick really excels at lateral movement, switching your butt from side to side as you careen through rock formations and over water. Not that there isn’t a good drop – the first one will send you 100 feet down at a beyond-vertical 95-degree angle. The trains are comfortable, and you don’t even need a locker for your stuff. My only complaint is that they could use more fans in the queue, though it is almost entirely covered, which is always nice.

#2 – Millennium Force

At any other park, the Millenium Force would be the headliner. Built in 2000, this steel out-and-back coaster was the first to break 300 feet tall and has a top speed of 93 mph. And it’s currently the 3rd longest coaster after The Beast at Kings Island and Fury 325 at Carowinds.

I rode Millennium Force first thing one day and at the very end of the night another day, and no matter what, there is always a long line to ride. However, watching the trains zip around you and into the load station is a really fun way to spend the time.

I will say from experience that #1, it hurts to ride Millennium Force in the rain. Going 93 mph will make those droplets really sting your face! And #2, riding at night when the crew is trying to ramp up the excitement and get everyone through at closing time is really fun.

#1 – Steel Vengeance

At any other amusement park, the above would be more than enough. Not for Cedar Point! Enter Steel Vengeance, a hybrid wood-and-steel hypercoaster over 200 feet tall and with 4 inversions. Built on the infrastructure of the old Mean Streak wooden coaster, it was retooled in with a new layout and smooth steel I-beams and reopened in 2018, setting 10 world records.

First of all, Steel Vengeance builds anticipation masterfully, with the coaster zipping in and out of view while you wait. Once on the ride, hang on to your shirt! The airtime is crazy! It keeps twisting out from under you and flipping you around. It’s as smooth as glass and fast as lightning. Doing an inversion on what’s basically a wooden coaster (aside from the neck-breaking Son of Beast) is an amazing feeling! Though here, it’s always a corkscrew, not loop-de-loops.

You can easily spend a few hours in line for Steel Vengeance. After a rainstorm, I lucked out once and beat the crowd to only wait 40 or so minutes on my first ride. Another morning, I waited in line for an hour before it opened at 10, then walked on with minimal extra wait time. (But it’s still an hour in line!)

My next post is about the rest of the rides in the park, but Cedar Point definitely does roller coasters the best. It’s one of the best roller coaster parks in the country, and not only do they have some of the best, but they also have an amazing workforce that even a pandemic can’t put down.