Fodor's Expert Review Knott's Berry Farm

This lively amusement park is fun for all ages. Once a 160-acre boysenberry farm, it's now an entertainment complex with close to 40 rides, dozens of restaurants and shops, arcade games, live shows, and a brick-by-brick replica of Philadelphia's Independence Hall. Take a step back into the 1880s while walking through Knott's Old West Ghost Town. Ride on a horse-drawn stagecoach or board a steam engine to start your journey into the park; just keep your valuables close to you, as bandits might enter your train car and put on quite a show. Camp Snoopy has plenty of rides to keep small children occupied as they explore 15 kid-friendly attractions. There are awesome thrill rides in the Boardwalk area, including the zooming HangTime that pauses dramatically then drops nearly 15 stories, and the exhilarating steel moto-coaster Pony Express that goes from zero to 35 mph in less than three seconds.

Be sure to get a slice of boysenberry pie, as well as boysenberry soft-serve ice cream, jam, juice, you name it. There's even a Boysenberry Food Festival once a year. In the fall, part of the park is turned into Knott's Scary Farm, a popular activity for teens and adults. Buy adult tickets online for a discount. Buy a bundle for parking and food included with your ticket. FastLane wristbands give you quicker access to the most popular rides. Nearby Knott's Soak City is open during the summer for guests who want to float on the lazy river, go down waterslides, and swim in the wave pool.

Fun fact: In 1934, Cordelia Knott began serving chicken dinners on her wedding china to supplement her family's income. The dinners and her boysenberry pies proved more profitable than her husband Walter's berry farm, so the two moved first into the restaurant business and then into the entertainment business.