Knott's Berry Farm launches summer season as Magic Mountain targets youth

A roller coaster rising above a theme park

Knott's Berry Farm launches its summer season this Friday with the return of its interactive Ghost Town Alive! show. Meanwhile, Magic Mountain is attempting to captivate a younger demographic with new offerings.

Six Flags Magic Mountain has opened a revamped five-acre area aimed at younger visitors and families, transforming the former Bugs Bunny World and Whistlestop Park into the refreshed Looney Tunes Land. The initiative represents an effort to broaden the park's audience beyond its traditional base of thrill seekers.

The updated section features nine rides, including two kiddie coasters, along with upgraded landscaping, softer pavement, and enhanced thematic detail. The overhaul comes two years after the merger between Six Flags Entertainment Corp. and Cedar Fair Entertainment Co., which placed Magic Mountain and Knott’s Berry Farm under shared ownership. Following last summer’s improvements to the family-focused Hurricane Harbor water park, corporate creative producer Clayton Lawrence noted that enhancing Magic Mountain's appeal for multi-generational families was a primary post-merger objective.

Looney Tunes Land is divided into four mini-areas: Taz-Mania, Road Runner Ridge, Bugs Bunny Play Park, and Camp Duck Amok. The space includes specific visual accents, such as Taz’s footprints embedded in Taz-Mania’s gravel-colored pavement and rockwork-textured flooring in the Daffy Duck area.

To make room for the updates, Magic Mountain retired the vintage Magic Flyer—previously the park's oldest coaster, leaving Gold Rusher as its current eldest—and Tweety’s Escape, a steel birdcage swing ride. Remaining attractions were updated with new story elements. The former Whistlestop Train was converted into Taz’s Tasmanian Train Tours, a slow-moving ride following a storyline about Taz escaping a zoo, dodging traps such as an overgrown mice contraption, and featuring a mechanical Taz alongside a statue of the Tasmanian She-Devil.

Other rides include the Road Runner Express kiddie coaster and the Canyon Cruiser beginner's coaster, which references classic cartoons featuring Bugs Bunny, Daffy Duck, and Elmer Fudd. The children's theater was converted into the Bunny Bowl, decorated with giant carrots. A new statue of the Tasmanian Devil has also been installed.

Additional features are planned for the land, including an augmented reality game along an outback-style trail in Taz-Mania, as well as tunnels and climbing structures coming later this summer to the Bugs Bunny area. Next year, a new coaster overlooking Looney Tunes Land is scheduled to open for thrill seekers.

The area also introduces "Vacation Mayhem," a musical show running under 15 minutes that features Bugs Bunny, Daffy Duck, Porky Pig, and Sylvester. The performance includes songs such as reworked versions of “The Gold Diggers’ Song (We’re in the Money)” and “Hello Muddah, Hello Fadduh (A Letter From Camp),” alongside a segment where Bugs Bunny gambles in Las Vegas. Magic Mountain President Brian Oerding indicated that the live show represents a return to in-park theatrical entertainment, which had been absent for several years.

Magic Mountain recorded 3.3 million visitors in 2024, according to figures from the Themed Entertainment Association. Leadership views the family-friendly redesign as a model for park-wide aesthetic upgrades.

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**Additional Southern California Theme Park News**

* **Knott’s Berry Farm:** The park launches its summer season on Friday with the return of "Ghost Town Alive!" Now in its tenth year, the interactive theater experience set in the fictional town of Calico allows guests to participate in Wild West storylines alongside more than two dozen actors. The event runs on select days and includes a daily in-universe newspaper.

* **Legoland California:** The Carlsbad destination is hosting the "FIFA World Cup Experience 2026" from Thursday through July 19. Features include a 30-foot-long Lego replica of SoFi Stadium, brick versions of soccer stars, interactive accuracy challenges, and goal-scoring games against Lego minifigures.

* **Disneyland Resort:** Tickets for Disney California Adventure’s Oogie Boogie Bash go on sale June 16 for Magic Key passholders and June 18 for the general public, with the event beginning Aug. 18. Prices range from $139 to $199 depending on the date. This year introduces "Madame Leota’s Swinging Wake," featuring ghostly dancers and floats inspired by Haunted Mansion stretching room portraits, replacing the former "Frightfully Fun Parade."

* **Dodger Stadium Drone Show:** A hourlong "Harry Potter"-themed drone show takes place Saturday at 9 p.m., featuring more than 1,200 drones creating images of Hogwarts Castle, magical creatures, and the Sorting Hat. The event includes music, trivia, Butterbeer, and an appearance by actor Bonnie Wright (Ginny Weasley). Adult tickets start at $52.90.

* **Carousel of Progress History:** Following news of an upcoming overhaul to the Walt Disney World attraction—which originated at the 1964 World's Fair before operating at Disneyland from 1967 to 1975—theme park fans recalled the ride's technological optimism, its theme song "There's a Great Big Beautiful Tomorrow," and its prominent General Electric corporate sponsorship.

Reported for The Park · Los Angeles Times · June 9, 2026 · Read the full story on The Park