Making the Most of Cedar Point with Small Children #Sponsored 

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During the summer season, many families are looking for fun-filled ways to enjoy the beautiful weather together. One favorite? Heading to an amusement park, of course! 

When I was a kid, some of my favorite memories involved heading to Cedar Point in beautiful Sandusky, Ohio with my parents or grandparents to enjoy a day full of thrills. I remember it felt like the drive from the Akron area took forever, but it was always worth the wait. In reality, Cedar Point is only about an hour and 20 minutes away. To a kid, though, that feels like an eternity when there are visions of coasters and thrill rides dancing in their head!

I was a taller kid, so even at a young age, I could ride almost everything in the park. I remember my favorites were The Witches Wheel, the Gemini, which I once rode 26 times in a row, and of course, The Corkscrew. The Corkscrew was my first ever coaster, and I can still remember my terror as I boarded the coaster, even many years later! 

Of course MY kids are much, much smaller than I was at their age. Sophie and Xander are 5 and 6, but they’re….well….incredibly vertically challenged at just 40″ and 42″. Sadly, this means they can’t ride a good number of the rides at Cedar Point just yet. 

That’s why we made our first official family visit of the season all about the kiddos. While the Valravn, Top Thrill Dragster, and other top thrill rides were definitely out of the question for the littles, Cedar Point still have plenty to offer even their smallest guests! 

When we arrived at the park, the kids were absolutely thrilled to be greeted by a fierce looking dinosaur. This was a taste of things to come, since Cedar Point has an awesome attraction for all of your dino-obsessed kids out there!

Long before coasters, dinosaurs ruled Cedar Point…and now they’re back! Come face-to-face with animatronic dinosaurs at Dinosaurs Alive at Cedar Point! See more than 50 moving and practically breathing life-sized dinosaurs, including several you can control.

​Plus, find out what it’s like to be a paleontologist at our dig site! From ferocious Tyrannosaurus Rex to the towering Ruyangosaurus, step back in time to the beginning of the “Age of the Dinosaurs” at Dinosaurs Alive – the most immersive and comprehensive Mesozoic experience designed to thrill guests of all ages. 

Before we started hitting any rides, we made sure we got cold drinks on hand. Cedar Point has literally HUNDREDS of options when it comes to soft drinks. They even have special bottles you can purchase that offer either FREE REFILLS all season long, or free refills on the day of purchase and $1.00 refills the rest of the season. 

Yep. We took full advantage of this, and bought 2 Souvenir Bottles. Our drinks were free all day, and when we head back later on, our refills will only be a buck. Talk about a great value! 

Once we had icy, cold drinks in hand, we headed down the Midway to Planet Snoopy. This special section of the park is designed specifically for the littlest riders of all. Sophie and Xander were both tall enough for the rides in this section, and they had an absolute blast going on adventures with their favorite Peanuts character, Snoopy! 

Here are Xander and Sophie in the Helicopters. Xander was actually pretty scared on this ride. It was his first, and since it was “flying”, he got a little spooked. This fear was short-lived, though, and they both ended up having a wonderful ride. 

Next up, the kids hopped onto Snoopy’s Space Race for an inter-galactic adventure. These spaceships are really cool. They each seat 2 people, but the front seat has special controls that allow the rider to move the ship up and down. Sophie and Xander both had a blast on this ride. In fact, it was Xander’s favorite, since he loves all things space-related! 

After heading back from the outer-reaches of space, naturally, our next stop was Snoopy’s Deep Sea Divers! From one extreme to the next, right? Dan rode this with the kids, and they all had HUGE smiles as this submarine gave them a fabulous view of Planet Snoopy! 

The kids loved all of the attractions Planet Snoopy had to offer. They rode cars and motorcycles, Woodstock’s Whirlybirds, and more. 

But one ride was the definite winner when it comes to the thrill factor….

The Kite Eating Tree. 

This is a very miniature version of the Power Tower. Kids are seated in a row, and they go up, up, up……and then they go DOWN….with tons of bouncing back and forth in between. 

I was actually kind of surprised that Xander didn’t pass out or cry. Maybe my bashful boy is starting to become braver, after all! 

Since Xander did so well on the Kite Eating Tree, we decided to test our luck on the Giant Wheel, which was located nearby on the Midway. 

The Giant Wheel is just that…..GIANT! 

We loaded into our cart, and began to rise to the top of the ferris wheel. I have to admit something kind of embarrassing….

I love rollercoaster and thrill rides. LOVE them…..

But the Giant Wheel scared me. I know, wimpy, right?! 

Being at the tippy-top of this enormous structure for several minutes had me panicking a little. Dan and the kids were totally fine, though. 

Despite the dizzying heights, we did get to enjoy one heck of a view of both the park and of Lake Erie on the other side. 

Once we were off the Giant Wheel and I kissed the ground for a few minutes, we headed off to see what rides we could go on. Like I said, my kiddos are short, so a lot of the rides are off-limits to them for now. 

Many rides, like the Matterhorn and the Troika, allowed us to take Sophie on while Xander had to wait it out. (2 inches makes a HUGE difference!) Xander didn’t seem to mind the fact that he was too small for these rides, though, since there were tons that he could get on. 

Dan took both kids on the Super Himalaya, which allows kids to ride with a responsible adult or teen. This was SUCH a thrill for Xander, and Sophie enjoyed it, too! They zipped and whirled around the track while holding onto their Daddy for dear life. Once they got off, though, they were all smiles and giggles. 

Next, I had a treat for Sophie. She was so sad that she couldn’t go on any of the “big people coasters”. She’s simply too small. 

However, there is one super-thrilling ride she could go on, and it’s kind of similar to a coaster. In fact, it’s more terrifying than some of the coasters I’ve been on in my life.

Meet the Pipe Scream. I will let the video below speak for itself. This is one wild ride! 

After Sophie regained her composure after the absolutely crazy ride on the Pipe Scream, we decided to tone things down a notch and visit Camp Snoopy, another section of the park dedicated to the kiddos. 

The first thing the kids wanted to do at Camp Snoopy was bounce around in the biggest, Snoopy-est bounce house EVER! Seriously, this thing is enormous! Check it out! 

Next, we found a pretty tame coaster that both of the kids could ride. It’s called Wilderness Run, but back when I was a kid, it was the Gemini Junior. This coaster is a rather short one, so they allow kids to have 2 rides on it. At least they did when we were there. 

Sophie and Xander were actually tall enough to ride this coaster together without Dan and I accompanying them. You might not think this is a huge deal, but for little kids who have had to take a parent with them all day long, they were beyond thrilled to get to ride a real rollercoaster all by themselves! 

There was much more to see and do, but unfortunately, we ran out of time. We had a date on the Cedar Point Beach that we had to get to in time.
(Check out my post about Cedar Point’s 4th of July celebration, Light Up the Point for more info about this fun-tastic family event!) That’s okay, though. There will be plenty more opportunities to explore Cedar Point this summer, and finally hit all of those coasters that Cedar Point is so famous for. After all, this IS America’s Roller Coast!
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To learn more about Cedar Point and their many amazing family-friendly rides and attractions, please visit their website.

You can also connect with Cedar Point on Facebook and on twitter to stay on top of their latest news, and promotions!

See you at the park!