They changed how they do it and now require you to book a one hour reservation. They will steal your money if someone can not attend the day of. How it went: we were there for the full hour, we got to a ride it a total of two times. And wait in line for the other 50 mins. They sell too many tickets, it is completely packed to where there is no walking room, they say face masks are required, but not one employee was wearing a mask and about 85% of the customers did not have masks on. This new system they set up is terrible and highly suggest you and your family do not waste your time on it. It was not enjoyable in the least.

Most beautiful carousel I’ve ever seen! We were there and got to see the bonus Halloween decorations. Outstanding!!! 🙌🏼

We had our wedding reception at the Shadowland Ballroom and rented the carousel for one hour during the event. It was FANTASTIC! The staff is great to work with and were excellent communicators leading up to the event. We had 150 guests (all older than 21) and the carousel was a hit. We did our rental from 8:00-9:00pm, so right after we finished dinner at 6:45, we did the first dance, mother / son, father / daughter dances, and went straight out to the carousel to do our professional photos before opening it up to guests. I liked that timeline because guests could get a drink or two in them first before enjoying the ride. Photos on the carousel did take longer than I expected, so the full hour was pretty necessary. If you’re debating whether or not to book the carousel for your event, I recommend you go ahead and do so. It’s super fun! And as a bonus they give you 60 free ride tokens at the end. We’re including them in our thank you cards! Ben Pancoast was our photographer and did an INCREDIBLE job!! Bridesmaids dresses on Rent the Runway, hair and makeup Hanna Wagner Design out of Grand Rapids.

Beautiful carousel at the heart of a renewed recreational area. The carousel is inside. There are lots of kid friendly things to do, and lots of rockets to sit and watch from. Not sure how much it is to ride, but watching is free.

Absolutely loved visiting here! We stopped in St. Joseph for a couple of hours on a road trip along the Lake Michigan coast and the carousel was adorable. It was thoroughly decorated for Halloween, the staff and volunteers were the nicest people, and the atmosphere was fun and festive. Just my husband and I went - no kids - and we loved it!

Great place for kids, it is a beautiful carousel.

Great family friendly place. The carousel was wonderful, and the train setups, child scale cars, and Lego tables made it very fun for us.

Attended a reading event through the Berrien County Parent Coalition and my children got a free carousel ride for wearing costumes! I was visibly nervous (not a fan of carousels) so a worker generously offered to stand by my youngest child to ensure her safety while I took photos. They had a great time and loved the experience!

Fun, energetic and beautiful. I love the gorgeous horses and other carousel animals. It was fun to pick out your favorite as it went around and try to get that one to ride. A lot of free fun to be had as well.

I tried to get my son to go on the Merry go round with me. I 💚 loved it.

Love being a big kid myself. Had to ride the carousel. Cost was $10 for 3 tokens/rides!

This was the throw back to the amusement park that used to be here. It was $8 per person to access the carousel area for 1 hr. Expensive. Then there are little things to do around the carousel for extra $$. There was a $5 photo booth. .25 cent toy train playset you could watch. $3 cotton candy. Like the old amusement park everything cost $$. Fun to go once but not if large family. Also the kids museum is separate..same building but not accessible.

We have enjoyed the carousel many times over the years. I completely understand the need to change operations, yet had a very disappointing experience today. We used the QR code outside to book/pay for a ticket for my daughter. My parents and I escorted her in and were informed that everyone entering the building had to pay the $8. When I shared that chaperones needing a ticket was no where posted on the signage outside, one of the clerks was very snotty and said I should have seen it on the website. Well, excuse me, for trying to make the most of our family day and not read every detail. As I was attempting to buy an additional ticket, so one of the adults in my party could go in with my daughter, the clerk continued to argue and kept ranting about me not checking their rules. At that point, I told them they had collected an $8 donation and we left. Thankfully, my daughter was understanding (in fact, at seven, she realized how ridiculous this grown man was acting to our family as paying customers). The other clerk and volunteer were very kind, yet I wish I would have caught the other clerk’s name. All he needed to do was stop arguing and we would have gladly gone in with another ticket purchase. For what it’s worth, the new system doesn’t make much sense… the doors for fresh air are all closed up. Seems like some temporary gates across the doorways would allow for more passengers and less airborne hazard.

What a magical day we had! My son's first carousel ride. We reserved a ticket in advance for the one hour slot. We rode every ride for the entire hour and my son was so excited and overjoyed. The staff is amazing, kind, knowledgeable, friendly, caring, and fun! The carousel is in such impeccable shape. Do this, and then head to the beach for a dip - you won't regret it!

My 2 and 3 year old love coming here to ride the carousel. They also like watching the train set, they change the theme depending on the time of year. Lots of fun.

Amazing! Place is chock full of history. Super-friendly employees (all volunteers I believe) - you can tell they just love to watch the kids having fun. Reasonable price for the carousel rides, which last a long time. I loved the band organs (two of them!) - everything seemed to be in good repair. Make sure to check out the amazing animated diorama of the original amusement park in the gift shop. My kids had a great time, and it even made me feel like a kid again! So happy the volunteers are keeping this historic ride alive! It really is like stepping into another world.

Was my first time here. My girlfriends and I had a blast shopping, walking and eating. Beautiful water and friendly people. We even rode the Carousel! Can't wait to go back!

The carousel is a bit pricey, but it's a lovely ride. We enjoyed seeing all the unique animals on it and there were lots of good places for adults who aren't riding to sit. They sell some concessions, but it's all circus food - popcorn, cotton candy, etc. There's a Zoltar machine and a terrifying box containing "laughing sal" (pictured)

We love the Silver Beach Carousel and have for years. We have a house in St. Joe, and it's a family tradition to take the kids to the Carousel. We always bring friends who visit to the Carousel, too. It's a magical throwback to a bygone era and whisks you off into a blissful feeling of childish joy. My son's favorite animal to ride is the dinosaur, but there are many cool and unique animals besides horses, such as a panda, a flamingo, a tiger, and more. The Carousel has been painstakingly and beautifully preserved and is attended to by friendly members of the community. This is a favorite spot of ours. Absolutely a must do for anyone visiting the area with kiddos.

Loved it! Brought back lots of memories for my wife, who visited the original amusement park as a child. Restoration is beautiful and a fun ride. Nice little gift shop also. If you drive down the hill to the Carousel, parking is $5. You can park for free at the top but you'll have to take the stairs down and back.

Wonderful experience, especially for the little ones. Everyone who works there is very kind with a smile on their faces! The old carousel is a blast from the past and definitely worth checking out!

Very rude elderly volunteers. We have been here many times before and have never had an issue until today. We had an enjoyable experience next door at Discovery Zone and the staff there were fantastic! But the way we were treated by the staff at the carousel was enough not to come back. They are working with mostly children and their parents and should have a better attitude towards the public if they are going to volunteer in that setting.

A must visit!!! One of the absolute coolest carousels in the country, maybe the world! A ride is affordable and a lot of fun. The carousel is very well maintained, structurally sound, authentic and quite festive. The line is never too long and there are plenty of fun things to look at and interact with while waiting. Often times, they will also have bean bag toss (cornhole) and side walk chalk right outside the surrounding glass doors. The carousel is also attached to the Curious Kid's Museum Discovery Zone, which is great for kids ~age 2-6. Bathrooms are VERY nice and clean.

It is a beautiful carousel right in the middle of a beautiful area. My kids absolutely loved it. They had different hats for the kids to wear during the ride and huluhoops for them to play with while they wait. They also have a gift shop, some tables set up with chess and checkers, and they have a bean bag toss game.

This is a must see at Silver Beach if it is open on your visit. The carousel has been by painstakingly restored and is magnificent. The toke s for the carousel are sold in the gift shop which was experiencing some issues with their POS when we were there but the cashiers were very apologetic.

This is super fun and and amazing place to visit

This is a really fun place to bring your family to unwind and have a good time on a classic ride.