Plan Your Knott's Berry Farm Resort Vacation!

Let’s face it, Knott's Berry Farm is not the dominating force when we speak of Orange County vacation destinations. The Mouse House is the 800-pound gorilla when it comes to Southern California theme parks. However, as you look over the O.C. landscape from, say a freeway overpass (assuming you’re not the driver), the dominating physical features you’ll see are almost all found on Beach Boulevard, at Knott’s Berry Farm.

It is quite impressive to see for the first time the Supreme Scream tower (tallest structure in the county) and other of Knott’s thrill-oriented structures-- amusement sentries, keeping watch over the land of fun, and visible from miles away. You have to be right next to Disneyland to see Space Mountain and the beloved Matterhorn, the tallest attractions over in nearby Anaheim. They are squirts compared to what they’ve got here at KBF.

What this means is that Knott’s brings its own unique kind of fun to the party. It is not to be missed if you’ve not been there in recent years. If you understand that Knott’s is not Disney—stronger in some respects, admittedly weaker in most—you’ll really be glad you spent a day or two at the oldest theme park in the country. Yes, Knott's Berry Farm lays claim to being the first park, having its start in around 1934 by Walter Knott. By the way, Buena Park and Anaheim (home of the Mouse) are adjoining cities.

FYI, Knott's Is Included In The:

---

Attention Enthusiastic Roller Coaster, Snoopy or Ghost Town Fans:

If you have never been to KBF, it would be helpful for you to have a visual idea as to what we’re talking about. So you might consider taking 5-10 minutes to check out the many photographs provided on the Bear-yTales.com web site. Click on the link and a new window will open; once you’ve taken a quick look around you can come back here for more background information and a bunch of tips and advice.

Also, at this point you may want to jump into some great information on rides and attractions right away. If so, click here to skip to various good pages on the official Knott’s web site. Or, click below and we’ll fix you up with some really good independent sites on Knott’s Berry Farm and everything that goes with it.

If you’re itching to check out the other sites, go for it, and then you can come back here afterwards.

---

Let's Talk Knott's Berry Farm History

The history of Knott's Berry Farm is quite interesting and helpful in appreciating the differences with the Disneyland Resort. In 1920, Orange County was primarily an agricultural region. Some of the earliest towns started because they happened to be along the railroad right-of-way. Click here for a brief history of the founder, the berry and the park.

---

Determine Your Knott's Berry Farm Vacation Objective

Think about how Knott’s fits into your overall vacation objective. Admittedly, if you haven’t spent much time in O.C. you’re likely to make Disneyland a priority, as you should. If you have more than say two days in town, I’d suggest focusing on the Berry for at least a day. For more discussion on clarifying your vacation objective click here.

---

Getting to and From Knott's Berry Farm

Knott’s is conveniently located on Beach Boulevard, less than a mile south of the State Route 91 freeway. It is easy to gain access to local and regional transportation opportunities. The Orange County Transit Authority runs a public bus line along Beach Boulevard and La Palma Avenue. This makes it reasonable to stay at a nearby hotel and take a short bus trip to the park. Knott’s is not that far from Disneyland; maybe 5 miles. So many of our suggestions for transportation options are similar for both parks. You can access the Orange County Smart Traveler Information Line at 800/266-6883.

There are a few open parking lots at KBF; no mother-of-all-parking structures like over in Anaheim. You can park for free for up to 3 hours if you’re visiting the shops or restaurants. The main entrance to the park, including a drop-off area (and taxi pickup zone) and access to one of the main lots, is found by driving south along Beach Boulevard from the 91 freeway and just past La Palma Avenue. You’ll see the sign to the right. An attendant will steer you to parking, either for the park or for the hotel, which is just past the main entrance and main shopping area, to the right.

---

To Stay at the Resort or Knott to Stay at the Resort?

There are a number of good hotels in the immediate vicinity of Knott’s, including some that are within walking distance. Of course, the first option is the Knott's Berry Farm Resort Hotel, on the park grounds. Click here for more information on hotels inside and outside the resort.

---

Food, Glorious Food!

What could be better, after a busy afternoon of prospecting for gold, suffering a holdup by train robbers, being put on spin cycle, dropped from 245 feet and perhaps enduring the collapse of a silver mine, to chow down on Cordelia Knott’s fried chicken recipe? We've got a lot more information on eating at Knott's; click here!

---

Knott's Berry Farm Tips and Advice

We have a lot of tips, tidbits and advice based on our own experience, and from others (including an ex-employee). Click here for ideas to help you with your strategic planning.

---

Surf The Knott’s Berry Farm Official Web Site

It’s no surprise that Knott’s has a pretty good web site. It is less burdened by visual propaganda than the Disney site, which works a little too hard. Unless your vacation research is being done by a 6 year old, the visual distractions at Disney are wasted, and slow things down. Sometimes the Knott's site can bog down also. This link will highlight some of the best pages on the Knott's web site.

---

Favorite Independent Web Sites

We’ve done some digging to find a few independent Knott's Berry Farm web sites to enhance your vacation research. These writers are true fans of theme parks in general, and Knott's in particular. Their perspective can be very insightful.

---

Heading to the Halloween Haunt?

Most visitors come to Knott’s during the summer vacation season. If your plans bring you to town around Halloween you should consider an evening at Knott's Scary Farm. Why? Well, it's only the Grandaddy of the theme park fright fests, fine-tuned to perfection and improved every year. Click here for more information on Knott’s Scary Farm Halloween Haunt.

---

Walter Knott just might suggest that you Reward The Guru. (But not too much.)

I'm done looking at Knott's Berry Farm. Take me Home!