American Dream Mall's Expensive Parks - Are They Worth It?

The American Dream Mall in East Rutherford, New Jersey is home to two record-breaking parks: the Nickelodeon Universe Theme Park and DreamWorks Water Park. Located just a few miles from New York City, both of these parks charge premium ticket prices. In this video I'll be giving my review of both Nickelodeon Universe and DreamWorks Water Park and evaluating whether these parks give you ample bang for your buck.

TIMESTAMPS
0:00 - Introduction
2:12 - Nickelodeon Universe Theme Park Review
9:40 - DreamWorks Water Park Review
10:55 - Park Pricing and Value
12:10 - The Ideal American Dream Itinerary
13:25 - Final Thoughts

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CONTACT

A Special Thanks to These Creators:
@AmusementInsider
@CanobieCoaster

[braxtonradcliffe]

I feel like just adding some fake grass or trees around the main coaster would make it so much better

[AdventuresWithAlex]

I lucked out and got to ride all 5 coasters on my recent visit on June 15, 2023. They were so fun! Sandy’s had an insane rattle in the back row that felt like a car crash lmao shell raiser is the much better ride in my opinion

[Mononoke]

He may not be pregnant but he always delivers 💀

[carminecdinoproductions]

I’d love to see the American Dream Nickelodeon Universe theme park get reworked and reimagined and expanded to be like the Mall of America’s Nickelodeon Universe theme park with lots more rides and attractions for families and thrill-seekers with a ton of rides for the family!

[IAmMiami]

I went to Nick Uni back in September '22 and all the coasters were open though TMNT went down at least twice and the drop tower didn't rotate either. My hotel had a discount code that was significant, 30% maybe. Yes, TMNT was unexpectedly rough for an indoor ride.
It was a fun couple of hours before boarding a cruise ship but I really have no reason to go back.

[uncannyramsay]

Last year during their spring break days (I think?) they were selling tickets for the amusement park for $35 per person. I went on a Wednesday with another person and I pretty much went on almost everything in under 2 hours. The park was completely dead minus the ride ops and group of kids that came in before I left.

[danthecoasterman]

I had an extremely lucky day there. Not only was everything open, but Sandy’s never went down. We got over 50 rides on Sandy’s alone. I agree with the ambience- pales in comparison to MN

[mitchellries]

I'd say they're worth it. For me, I could spend a full day at the DreamWorks Waterpark and then get a twilight ticket for Nickelodeon Universe because I could only do a few select rides at that park, and a few hours is all I would need to do that. If you have kids, though, they'll easily be able to spend the entire day there.

[ct]

Riding a roller coaster in doors feels really bizarre. But it's kind of awesome. I've only been to one park with a roof. The dome in Vegas.

[jerseyharlot]

Shellraiser is rough because it sat in the parking lot uncovered for 2 years before they finally put it together.

[JewishSingers]

When I was there in late 2022 all 5 roller coasters were open.

[HowToBeABusinessAnalyst]

Sandy's is definitely fantastic if you are ever back there. Shellraiser was running when I was there but I avoided it because one of the track sections looked very shaky. The pricing is certainly an issue though. I went with my wife and young kids and paid something in the low to middle $300s total. It's just far easier to find great discounts on outdoor parks. I think I paid $24.95 for each of us at Lake Compounce and maybe $24.95 or $29.95 for each of us at Six Flags New England. We just went to Great Adventure for my birthday this past Saturday and tickets were $43/each through FunEx- although they are crazy with their $48(after tax) standard parking fee. That's around $120 less in 4 ticket prices than I paid for the 4 of us to go to Nickelodeon Universe. Great video!

[huddyr]

Sandy's Bucking Bronco is DEFINITELY the best ride at Nickelodeon and same happened to me with the headache on TMNT Shellraiser! Got 2 rides and ended up with a migraine, made me dislike the coaster. Granted I had just finished up a week-long coaster trip which included two days at Hersheypark, Knoebels, Kennywood, Great Adventure, Dorney Park, Coney island & Several of the Jersey boardwalk parks (Wildwood, Castaway Cove, Casino Pier) So maybe my brain and body were just done😂 But I absolutely loved SBB, great little launch coaster. Plan on taking my nieces this winter

[huddyr]

Also, I went on August 1st or 2nd 2023... Everything was open (Shellraiser, Sandy's Bronco, Shredder, Slimestreak, Half-pipe) all the good/noteworthy coasters were all open and I really loved Sandy's Bronco and the spinning half pipe....both were amazing imo, love this place

[EspiIsHere]

When I was there in the beginning of Jan 2023 4/5 were open until later in the evening when Shredder finally opened up. Maybe due to staffing issues but I’m glad it did when it did cause I was dreading coming again just for the missing credit

[UniqueU]

They charge that much to keep certain groups out.I know people don't want to say it but they price a certain part of the population out on purpose.Not to mention how expensive parking is.

[KatIoannou]

I really enjoyed your video. Thank you for sharing your thoughts and experience.

[enricoreal]

Been to the waterpark last week. It’s not worth it unless you buy the fast pass which is an additional $50/pp otherwise you’ll be waiting in line for 30 min for each slide. With the fast pass you don’t have to wait at all. I went on a Saturday

[amandaschaad]

I found the back a LOT smother than the front on shellraiser. I also got on every single coaster and most of the flats during 1 visit.

[oranjvr]

The water park slide that goes around was awesome