TripAdvisor(R), the world's largest travel community, today announced the top 10 amusement parks in the U.S., according to traveler popularity and TripAdvisor editors. What sets these tremendous parks apart is that they offer something for every kind of visitor, from wonderful family rides and shows, to great food and games, to thrilling rides and coasters.

  1. Chocolate Champion: Hershey Park, Hershey, Pennsylvania
     Celebrating its 100th anniversary, Hershey Park is about as sweet as it
     gets for amusement park connoisseurs. This gigantic park features more
     than 60 rides and attractions, live shows, games, a museum chronicling
     Hershey history and of course, gobs of chocolate. For roller-coaster
     fans, the "Storm Runner" (0-72 mph in 2 seconds flat),
     "Superdooperlooper" and "The Comet" are must rides. As one TripAdvisor
     member said, "What is so great about Hershey? There is something for
     everyone."

  2. Busch League of its Own: Busch Gardens, Tampa, Florida
     With an African continent themed park, Busch Gardens takes visitors
     into the jungle and on quite a ride. No garden variety amusement park,
     Busch offers a little bit of everything: rides, restaurants, live
     shows, games and an amazing 2,700-animal zoo. Thrill seekers will want
     to take a ride on "Gwazi," a gigantic wooden double roller coaster, the
     epic coaster "Kumba," or "SheiKra," the nation's first dive coaster.
     One TripAdvisor member said, "I have been going to Busch Gardens for 20
     years. It is always a great time, a clean and exciting park."

  3. Cedar Point Rules: Cedar Point Amusement Park, Sandusky, Ohio
     The self-proclaimed "roller coaster capital of the world," Cedar Point
     boasts a remarkable 17 roller coasters, including the brand new
     "Maverick" and the exhilarating "Millennium Force." The fun doesn't
     end at the coasters, Cedar Point also features a number of other thrill
     rides, carousels, games, water rides and even tranquil rides. According
     to a TripAdvisor traveler, "Cedar Point is by far one of the country's
     best amusement parks for people who love roller coasters."

  4. Pick Six: Six Flags Fiesta Texas, San Antonio, Texas
     With great shows, including musical acts, concerts and street
     performers, Six Flags Fiesta is fun-filled even before you get to the
     rides. But the rides are nothing to sneeze at either -- between the
     blood chilling "Scream" ride and the "Poltergeist" coaster, the Lone
     Star state's version of Six Flags is an amazing entertainment trip. One
     TripAdvisor traveler said, "The park was clean, the staff was friendly
     and courteous, and the rides were awesome."

  5. My Kingdom for a Horse (Ride): Family Kingdom Amusement Park, Myrtle
     Beach, South Carolina
     With an incredible oceanfront water park combined with its amusement
     park, Family Kingdom is well worth the trip. Visitors will want to
     take a ride on the "Swamp Fox" coaster or the thrilling "Slingshot Drop
     Zone" before cooling off on the lazy river, wild water flumes or speed
     slides. A TripAdvisor member commented, "What a blast this place is! We
     went up and down the water slides like we were 10-years-old!"

  6. Action in Jackson: Six Flags Great Adventure, Jackson, New Jersey
     With dozens of thrill rides, Six Flags Great Adventure is the Mecca for
     fans of pulse-pounding rides, including the outstanding superhero rides
     and the "Great American Scream Machine." Be sure to try out some of
     the parks excellent water rides, and Great Adventure also offers fun
     live entertainment with concerts, animal shows, parades and street
     performers. As One TripAdvisor traveler said, "We only rode roller
     coasters and we had a great time."

  7. King's Ransom: Paramount's Kings Island, Kings Island, Ohio
     One of the best in the Midwest, King's Island features excellent shows
     for families, but also top-notch rides, such as the "Firehawk," the
     face-to-face inverted roller-coaster "Face/Off," and "The Beast," the
     world's longest wooden roller coaster. One TripAdvisor traveler said,
     "One of the nicest parks I have ever visited. The landscaping was great
     and it was very clean."

  8. Smokey Mountain Magic: Ober Gatlinburg Ski Resort and Amusement Park,
     Gatlinburg, Tennessee
     An amazing scenic aerial tramway up to Ober Gatlinburg gets visitors
     started in style, Ober Gatlinburg Ski Resort and Amusement Park gives
     patrons everything but the kitchen sink: skiing, indoor skating,
     restaurants, an alpine slide, a pirate ship and fun house, go-karts,
     mini golf, a shooting range, water raft rides and a black bear habitat.
     One TripAdvisor traveler said, "I loved riding the new tram to Ober
     Gatlinburg. The view is fantastic."

  9. Brooklyn's Best: Coney Island Park, Brooklyn, New York
     This legendary amusement park still has plenty of thrills to go around.
     Featuring more than 20 classic rides, thrill-seekers will want to try
     "The Cyclone" coaster and "The Scream Machine" freefall ride. Visitors
     can also enjoy a walk on the beach, catch a Cyclones minor league
     baseball game or cool off at the Sunlite Pool, the world's largest re-
     circulating swimming pool. One TripAdvisor traveler said, "The Wonder
     Wheel is a must and just a one-minute walk from the Cyclone. These are
     two classic rides, and I am comfortable in knowing they will be there
     for years to come."

  10. Wind It Up: Paramount's Carowinds, Charlotte, North Carolina
     Highlighted by the outstanding water rides of Boomerang Bay, such as
     "The Great Barrier Reef" (25,000-square-foot wave pool), "Down Under
     Thunder" raft ride, and "Jackaroo Landing," a three-story water jungle
     gym, Carowinds also offers fantastic thrill rides, live shows and
     dining. As one TripAdvisor traveler said, "They have some first-rate
     coasters and every one of the standard theme park and carnival rides."

"These amusement parks feature much more than cotton candy and carousels," said Michele Perry, director of communications for TripAdvisor. "Travelers like thrills but not spills -- TripAdvisor reviews were littered with comments about the importance of amusement park cleanliness."

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SOURCE: TripAdvisor