Everyone wants to bring home a souvenir of their visit to a park, and Great Adventure has offered a plethora of merchandise locations over the years featuring a wide variety of gifts and trinkets.
	Great Adventure was home to the "World's Largest Drive Thru Safari Outside of Africa" for almost forty years when in the 2013 season it was decided to make the Safari an attraction within the theme park and eliminate the drive thru element. To make this happen a fleet of trucks was purchased and a loading area was built in the park's western area. Guests would now tour the Safari in open air trucks with a guide, enhancing the experience and ensuring better safety for the animals and guests. The loading station was built on the site of two of Great Adventure's original and most unique architecturally impressive structures - the Super Teepee and the Conestoga Wagon.  The Super Teepee had been removed prior to the 2008 season after being destroyed by a winter storm.  This left the Frontier Adventures section of the park without a major merchandise location for years.  When the Safari Off Road Adventure was added, a brand new shop was built at the exit for this exciting new attraction which featured an array of souvenirs inspired by the Safari experience. Wilds' Trading Post served as a continuation of the safari ride's fictitious back story which included a family (the Wilds) operated wildlife preserve offering exciting journeys to far off lands on six continents to observe over 1200 animals on over 350 acres.  Once their daring treks were complete, Wilds' Trading Post was the perfect place for explorers to take home a souvenir of their adventure.
	The new shop was erected just across from the Fort's entrance to the Skyride and Runaway Train rides.  All original construction, the new shop was open-air on one side allowing guests to easily cycle pass the shop.  The all-wood structure was constructed with huge stained beams that matched the architectural style of the Safari Off Road Adventures' loading station and Camp Aventura structures.   Animal and safari themed shirts, mugs, and other souvenirs were featured in the trading post.  The merchandise lineup was very similar to the type of items once available at the Wild Safari Drive-Thru's Hospitality Center and Exploration Station located at the exit to the original safari experience.
	Over time as the theme elements of the Safari Off Road Adventure became less prominent and the Wilds' back story was less emphasized, the name of the store was changed to Safari Outpost. The "Wilds Family" story element faded into the past, with most guests happy to think of the attraction as the same Safari they knew and loved before it became part of the theme park.  To this day, the Safari Off Road Adventure is one of the true unique theme park experiences which makes Six Flags Great Adventure such a fun place to visit and many guests take home a trinket or two from the trading post to remember their animal encounter.
Original Spotlight:  February 19, 2020.  GAH Reference#:  SHOP-2013-001