We received complimentary admission to Palace Playland to facilitate this review.
All opinions expressed are my own.
We took a day trip up to Old Orchard Beach, Maine last weekend to visit Palace Playland - New England's only beachfront amusement park!
Palace Playland is a fairly small, but very fun, amusement park - and it truly is right at the beach! We have a five year old who loves amusement parks but obviously isn't big enough for every ride at every park. Palace Playland was perfect for her. There were very few rides that she was not tall enough to ride but the majority she could ride either alone or with an adult - even the roller coaster! If you're looking for a fun day trip with young kids, consider Palace Playland!
We went to the park on a sunny, hot, summer weekend day and were very surprised to find that it was not at all crowded - a huge plus when visiting an amusement park with a young child! No crowd, no lines, no wait, instant fun!
The park opens on weekdays at noon and weekends at 11:00 AM - and there is no official closing time! I'm actually guessing that on a hot summer day, it crowds up at night when beachgoers have had enough sun, but we arrived at about 11:30 AM and the park was practically empty... although the adjacent Old Orchard Beach and surrounding streets were full to the brim!
There is no parking at Palace Playland but there is plenty of pay parking locally in public lots or on the street. Just head toward the beach and pick the closest lot or spot you find and you'll be good to go - just walk toward the ferris wheel!
You can walk right into the park without a ticket but you'll need to pay if you plan to ride. You'll see below that you can purchase tickets in the form of day passes or per ride. If you have a child that's taller than 42", you'll want to skip the Kiddie Pass because they are able to ride most rides - not just the kiddie rides - as long as they have a paid adult with them.
There are rides that spin...
Rides that drive...
Rides that fly...
Rides that bounce...
There are also some big-kid rides, but only a few that are for big-kids only, like this one.
Even my littler kid could ride on the roller coaster - with a grown-up! I think she rode it six times!
And what's an amusement park without a log ride?! This is the perfect ride to end a hot day at Old Orchard Beach... just don't expect to be dry at the end!
I was quite impressed with Palace Playland. It was incredibly clean - both in the ride areas and in the bathrooms. The staff members were very polite and kind. It was small enough to not be overwhelming and large enough to keep my five year old entertained for several hours.
There is food at the park, such as snack stands, but you're also right in the middle of a beach town with tons of little shops, restaurants, and food stands within walking distance. As I mentioned earlier, admission into the park is free - you just pay to ride - so you can leave and grab a bite to eat and then come back at your leisure.
Oh! There's also an arcade at Palace Playland. I almost forgot to mention it because we didn't use it, but it's there if that's your thing!
All in all, it was a great day for us at Palace Playland. We weren't familiar with the park before this trip but will definitely return again soon.
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