Castle Park

Reviews 3

TR

Tracy Inman

As of Friday 3-27-15 the condition and service at this establishment was horrible! I think 1 oclock is pretty late to open the miniature golf area but having said that, we returned at 1 only to be told that itll be about another 20 or 30 minutes as an employee was walking the courses. Not sure why? So, we went in to play some games with our 8 year old son. Token machines didnt work so we waiting in line to get tokens at the counter. EVERY machine we put tokens in ate the token with no game play so again, had to locate an employee to get our tokens returned. Only half of the arcade was open for business as the rest was closed off and under construction. Finally made it onto the golf course #3 (#1 & #2 were closed!?!?) 90 degree weather and not one water feature was on and holes were tough to get golf ball into as the indoor/outdoor carpet was in very poor shape around the holes so not sure what the employee walk through accomplished. We finished the course and I asked to speak with a manager. A late teenage boy arrived to clarify that he was a supervisor not a manager. I explained my concerns and he tried to tell me that yes, the water pump is broken and basically that was all he could say. I then asked to speak with a manager....again... and a girl arrived to explain the same thing and let me know the entire course was under remodel construction. I really wish we wouldve been made aware of this BEFORE we took the course either verbally or some type of sign posting their current conditions. She would have given us our $ back but "unfortunately, we didnt complain within the first hour that we arrived" Yes, this is REALLY what she said. It seems as though she wanted us to abruptly stop our game, walk back through the course interrupting the golfers that followed us, and complain within that first hour in order to receive any type of compensation. I found this very odd and she of course replied with what all young managers reply with these days... "that just our policy maam". This is my favorite line. Dying of thirst from the heat we went in to get some Icees and we were given crazy 2 foot long plastic zig zag cups that were difficult to fill. We asked for a normal cup but all they were "allowed" to give out for the Icee machine was these ridiculous cups. Again, I was perplexed. Decided to use the restrooms on our way out and you guessed it, filthy. The manager did give us 3 Deluxe passes for a return visit but really that is a waste as we wont be returning. It was a waste of time & money and I wouldnt make that mistake twice. It used to be a great place for family fun in Riverside where there isnt much to do but not anymore. Think twice about spending your money here.

DA

Daron Anderson

Castle Park has always been one of those "Oh, we should go there sometime," places on the freeway that the thought occurs, but never happens. Until today, thanks to a friend and a Groupon deal. What can I say? The reviews are polarized, and I agree with them on both sides. We found that letting it be fun for what it is made it fun. I think if we judge a park by "The Disney Standard," it will never compare. All opinions of Disney aside, if you look at Disneyland in comparison to any amusement park, nobody has the money and the attention to detail that they have, and no park will have the cohesive perfection that Disney has. Magic Mountain, Knotts, and other parks dont have the same direction. I even said to my wife, "Could you imagine if Disney had this place? There would be none of this - (referring to fallen ficus leaves) Disney picks up a sneeze before it hits the ground. So letting Castle Park be what it is, sure the comments about closed rides and run down attractions are true. I was baffled by the water area shutting down at 6pm, and the rides at 7, leaving only the arcade and mini-golf until 9. Why? I see the potential there, and it seems backwards to close everything. I also think the direction needs to be more clear - are they going for amusement park or permanent county fair? The in between is confusing. Sure, the closed attractions and restaurants were frustrating too, but we found the way to make the best of it. I think a focus group and a direction in management could help this place as the potential is there. A complete overhaul of the park could be grand, but it would include a price hike which would anger more people - but what if it made it better? It would be fun to see what it could be, and if the park could maintain a new level while keeping the price away from the $100 mark. (Side eyes at Disneyland and LegoLand...). With Castle Park, just have fun there and look past the downsides, or hokey-ness that you may find. If you go with the Anaheim mentality, its never going to be the House of Mouse, and youll be sad all day. Instead, be goofy, go on some cheezy rides, and call it a day. At the end of the day we had four friends and 6 kids that had a great time just being kids, and they could have cared less as to what park we were at. We collectively spent maybe $300 for all ten of us. (Admission, food, drinks, parking, etc.) Had we gone to Anaheim, the tab would have been $900 admission, $40 parking, $300 food and drinks... the list goes on. I love Disneyland for what it is as well, but it would have been a much larger tab. Just have fun. Thats all it takes.

WO

Woody Tolley

As of 6-5-15 this place could use repair... A lot of it! The rides that were open were not bad many were not open at all. Even the min golf had courses closed. The arcade was by far the most disappointment I and my kids have experienced in a long time at an amusement establishment though I am not sure I would say much is established and I was not amused. Finding an arcade game that was working was harder then finding one that was broken. In the $8 we attempted to spend in the arcade $1.25 was lost to the machines. One of the games was clearly labeled " 1Token" but when my some put one in it displayed 1 of 3 coins on the screen. Another game that appeared to be working was so fuzzy when it started that I could not play. While trying to make the best out of a bad situation for the kids they played a spin wheel game that produced 40 tickets as a prize, my kid hit that twice ( taking him to Vegas when hes older for sure lol) then he got 15 from another machine. Upon putting them in the counting machine it gave him 79 credit. Im not an expert in common core but even with the new teaching Im pretty sure 40+40+15=79 is wrong. A little later when I tried to turn in my tickets all the ports but one was broken. After dumping two more token into machines who thought they were the deposit slot at the bank I gave up on getting any kind of arcade style reaction from the machinery and went to the counter. I told the kid he needed to refund my remaining token and he took the token from me. After allowing my kids to get their little toys with what tickets they had he went to talk to someone else, when I asked about my quarter he said " no refunds". I said then you need to fix all the games so we can use the money and he said " theres a sign right there that says no refunds". I told him the get a manager. He started to tell me again but I told him to get a manager. He left for a while and came back and have me a refund. I never got to talk to a manager, probably a good thing. I didnt have time to complain since we had to meet friends at the aerosports trampoline park ( a great place to take the kids). I know its only a quarter but its the principal. Most the staff was nice but overall I would say dont be fooled by the appearance of lots of rides and games, most dont work. Fyi, eat before or after the wait and prices for the food is a whole other novel.

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