After 100 years, America’s top amusement park still doesn’t charge admission

The Fourth of July isn’t just America’s 250th birthday.

It’s also the 100th anniversary of Knoebels Amusement Resort, the nation’s largest free-admission amusement park and one of a few parks in the hands of a single family.

Fourth-generation co-owner-operator and president Brian Knoebel remembers growing up in the Elysburg, Pennsylvania, park as a kid in the 1970s.

“It really wasn’t all that busy,” he recalled. “I had a little red tractor or a big wheel, just like everybody else did, and I’d pull my little cousin around on a little wagon in the back. We’d play kickball in the middle of the park. In a 45-minute game of kickball, we would only have to stop twice to allow families to walk by.”

A lot has changed since then, but here’s what’s stayed the same.

Yesteryear

“Knoebels is in a grove, in a valley where two creeks come together, where we got our start,” Brian said.

According to the park’s website, his ancestors acquired the tree-canopied farmland in 1828 and welcomed visitors to a swimming hole there in 1890.

In 1926, Brian’s great-grandfather, Henry Knoebel, opened a pool that would mark the official start of the park. Crystal Pool was billed as “one of the largest and most sanitary pools in Central Pennsylvania,” according to an old ad on the website.

Knoebels still has a Crystal Pool, among more than 100 rides and attractions that have been added over the years.

Brian remembers a specific turning point in 1985. “We opened Phoenix and my dad flattened my kickball. Was just too many people, we got too busy,” he said. “We started buying more rides, more games. We started to need more food stands. That meant more garbage cans. That meant more restrooms. Then I started to pay attention to the placement of the rides, because now we needed to spread the crowd out.”

Even as the park grew, the grove of trees remained.

“(Dad) would instill those old-school principles in my generation of: ‘We have to have a canopy of trees for our guests. Nobody wants to go to a park that’s a concrete jungle. They want shade and they want park benches and they want carousel music in the background,’” Brian said. “And it’s just continued. It just blossomed.”

Today, tomorrow

Today, guests can still relax under trees and listen to Knoebels’ century-old Grand Carousel.

“I challenge any park our size to have as many park benches as we do,” Brian said. “(Some) parks take the benches away. Not us. We’re building more. We encourage you to sit, people watch. It’s OK if you want to bring food from home.”

There is no gate and no fees to enter or to park. Entertainment and attractions like the Bald Eagle Habitat, Kozmo’s Play Area and Mining Museum are free to enjoy.

The park sells food and offers pay-as-you go rides and experiences. Ticket books start at $5 online for approximately two rides. Ride All Day tickets, covering most rides, start at $54.

Brian knows parks make money when they charge for entry. But, he said: “It just truly goes to our core and it’s who we are. We found our niche. We’re that step back in time.”

Guests recognize how special that is. Knoebels was named America’s best amusement and water park for 2026 in Tripadvisor’s Travelers’ Choice Awards, which is based on reviews. The park also came in second on USA TODAY 10Best’s list of top 10 theme parks, which is based on readers’ votes.

“Who would have thought that this little tract of land purchased for agricultural purposes would be getting so much national attention?” Brian said.

As the park celebrates 100, he didn’t offer any predictions for the next century.

“We are a timeless hometown amusement resort,” he said. “Let’s keep going. Why, why stop now?”