La Ronde Montreal

Day 4 of our summer vacation.

Today we went to La Ronde, Montreal's amusement park. We were planning to go to a water park called Super Aqua Club (and who wouldn't be excited about a place called Super Aqua Club?), but weather forecast said high of 79, so we opted for an amusement park.

La Ronde is like a regular amusement park, except that it has a weird name, has a view of downtown Montreal, and is filled with people who speak French. We thought it would be less crowded on a weekday when the temp was 79, but every ride had a 45-minute wait--caused in large part by the Flash Pass system, which allows wealthy people to cut to the front of lines.

You know, I don't mind first-class airplane tickets, because if someone wants to pay more for a bigger seat, that doesn't impact me. But the Flash Pass system is zero-sum: it effectively makes every line 1/3 longer for those who don't pay the premium. I don't like it.

Thank goodness someone from Six Flags will read this blog entry and realize that the Flash Pass system has been a giant mistake, despite the extra millions it pulls in, because a guy who visits Six Flags theme parks once a year at best doesn't like it.

Bottom line: La Ronde gets a mixed review.