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When KI renovated international Street, i belive that they designed it so we could handle parades. So it did not get the beautiful landscape islands (and all of the trees) that Kings Dominion has. When KD has parades, they do not go down international Street. They just go around the Eiffel Tower. But that park has a longer walkway between Candy Apple Grove and international Street then Kings Island does between Coney Island and international Street. When they renovated international Street, I was hoping it would end up landscaped as beautiful as Kings Dominion, but it did not. On a sidenote. Has anyone ever seen all of the water jets functioning on the new fountain? On all of my visits since the renovation, there are always a couple jets that are not functioning correctly….

I don't think the park needs to stay true to the ride theme (it's already so loose as it exists right now), they need to bring back some variation of the Rivertown Mining Co. building and give it some good and powerful fans. Copy the structure concept over from Beast's queue if it needs a reference. Diamondback can keep its snake name, but KI should make the queue look more "Rivertown" themed when viewing it from the pathway.

And keep places open as long as the sign says. On Saturday, Tower Drinks said open until 8:30 and by 7pm it had been closed and wrapped up like it was never open...

So, I rode Phantom Theater its second weekend, and it's taken me a bit to process exactly what I think. The ride storyline? Wonderful. It reimagines the original concept of the ride (which, not to be a hater, but I think it wasn't anything to write home about) into something that has a story and a progression and is engaging. The new "guns?" Fantastic. It's such an elevation of the shooter dark ride concept to have you aim at projections instead of specific targets. They can put a target anywhere, make them move, make them disappear when shot--it's an objective improvement over the 20 year-old standard we had from 2003 to 2025. It makes the whole experience much more dynamic. The animatronics? Incredibly well-done. I LOVE the queue. The way the cars have been reconfigured to move in close groups of 1-2 cars (with plenty of space between groups) instead of consistently placing them with one empty space between? SO smart. It allows scenes to reset between groups, which was something the shooter dark rides in that building severely lacked. Giving the scenes the chance to refresh makes the experience feel a lot more intentional, rather than seeing (for example) Boocifer finish his line for the car ahead, reset, and then repeat himself, which was basically always my experience on Boo Blasters and it reminds you that you're on a dark ride instead of on an adventure. However. I feel like Kings Island, across every owner since at least 1991, has consistently bitten off more than it could chew (or, to be plain, upkeep) when it comes to theming. I fear Phantom Theater: Opening Nightmare may become one of the more egregious examples of this, perhaps even by the end of the season. Adventure Express, the original Phantom Theater, Flight of Fear, Tomb Raider: The Ride, Scooby Doo and the Haunted Castle, Queen City Stunt Coaster, Boo Blasters on Boo Hill, and Mystic Timbers have all opened with theming that none of the owners across those eras could or would put the upkeep budget or staffing into consistently. Boo Blasters infamously had a fog wall effect that lasted maybe a month or two after opening, disappeared, and never came back. The best that's happened (almost all within the last 5 or so years, mind you) is that some of those rides got their theming repaired and refurbished as a capital investment, meaning they became advertised additions instead of, y'know, part of the maintenance budget so the park could consistently offer top-form attractions. Without knowing details, Phantom Theater seems like the most high-tech ride to hit the park since at least 2002, possibly ever. And like, elsewhere in the park... Adventure Express's final lift is basically back where it was pre-refurb. None of Mystic Timbers' lights sway, the Coke machine doesn't move, and more. It's just the tape deck, the lights that may or may not flicker, and the projectors that may or may not properly align audio and video and train location to show you whichever monster. QCSC probably won't use the helicopter at all. Even on my Phantom ride, cracks were showing. One scene, a screen didn't play as our car passed. Another scene, the appearance/disappearance of notes was out of sync with our car. They disappeared as we passed. Neither of those ruined the experience, by any means--I'm not disillusioned with the ride because that happened. I had a great time. But I'd be lying if I said that from an upkeep standpoint, that didn't feel the slightest bit ominous. It was weekend two. I'm supposed to believe that the management who can't keep Adventure Express's final lift fully lit will keep several projectors properly calibrated with the lights from dozens of flashlights and timed with the car groups for 12 hours a day, 7 days a week, for 6 months straight this year? I'm having a very hard time believing opening day 2027 Phantom Theater will feel like the same ride as 2026 Phantom Theater, in an unfortunate way. And it's annoying, because this is a darn good ride that millions of people should be able to experience as it was meant to be experienced. I would really, really like to be wrong. It does make me wonder what the strategy is with new rides. Like, does the ride have to serve a certain ROI the first year to be considered a success, and then it just has to be enough of a semblance of itself to not actively drag down the average guest's day while not demanding too much money? Tangentially related, I've got a hunch we'll see PT replace more of the Boo Blasters chainwide. Much like with Justice League: Battle for Metropolis, I wonder if the cost of developing the ride will be offset by copying and pasting it elsewhere. It certainly wasn't a cheaply-developed ride, and I wouldn't be mad to see it show up at some of the other parks.

More water features and a new soundtrack.

The Snake Pit Saloon sign is absolutely one of the coolest in the park.

If they want to stay true to Diamondback's theme, the would need to remove the "Ohio greenery" look and add lots of bare dirt with plantings from the Sonoran desert.... prickly pear cactus, saguaro cactus, chaparral, mesquite trees, cholla cactus, and Palo Verde trees.

Some sloppers claim that it makes art more accessible to disabled people. It doesnt. Disabled artists hate AI slop and just keep on creating art.

I didnt know they have one! This is so cool! Id love to work in there! I did do some graphic design projects at trade school.

Finally got to ride! I love the queue, it kept me pretty entertained for quite some time. The portraits in the hallway are excellent. And the loading area.. Far exceeded my expectations! Its so cool! I was struggling with learning the blaster basically the whole ride. Between that and how many scenes there are, it took some time for my brain to process it all and my love of the ride increased as a result while using the bathroom after getting off the ride. I am really pleased about the castle redesign and the designs of the vehicles and blasters and that they brought the most iconic song from PT: E into the ride. Projecting notes on a lot of the scenes instead of having screens everywhere was a brilliant move. Larry running around the way he is towards the end of the ride is such a clever reference to Scooby Doo/Boo Blasters. The scene that references was one of my favorite things about Scooby Doo/Boo Blasters. I was honestly really shocked at how different the scenes are compared to Boo Blasters to be honest. Overall, it is a fantastic addition to Kings Island and I need to ride it more to fully appreciate and process everything that is there on ride. Way better than Villain Con Minion Blast and Fast & The Furious Supercharged.

I really wish they could just move one associate from one of the five alcohol stands in Rivertown over to the Coke Freestyle. The bar by Diamondback already needs to go back to being a food stand, so maybe that one? I think they should put a new grill location there since they removed the hot dog from Jukebox Diner and the Brewhouse. Speaking of Rivertown, is there anything y'all think the park could do to improve the ambiance of the area that won't cost a million dollars? My vote would be a queue building for Diamondback and more trees/natural foliage. I feel like there has to be something they could do beyond that, though. I'd love to see more river-related theming as well.

^^Can he also please increase the staffing budget for the drink stands and the smaller food stands like Meteor Canteen, Pig Pen's Mess Hall, and Wishbone Grill so they can be open more often?! Drink stands specifically. It is hard to have increased guest throughput when the Tower Drinks and 2 out of the 3 Rivertown drink stands are almost always closed bc that backs up the lines at the ones that are open.

The worst part is that cleaning like this is a simple training issue that can be solved with a bucket, a rag, and a command to wipe the trash from the table/counter into the bucket. Sweeping is a little harder since you can't carry around a broom/dustpan as easily. It would be best if the park hired more dedicated custodial staff (dedicated as in specific, not dedicated as in better). That might actually be coming sooner than you think as (from what I've heard) Six Flags just increased their capex budget specifically for maintenance and park services. John Reilly really wants to improve the guest experience beyond what it has been for the last few years — I hope we can see some good benefits from that at Kings Island.

Now that's an article I'd like to read, Don. Would love to see one of top 10 dirty and top 10 clean

Cool. Let it go and move on. K thx.

Dollywood’s Splash Country opens its 26th season with Neon Nights, new food offerings, upgraded amenities and one of the cleanest water park experiences in the Smoky Mountains. Full Story: https://themeparksbydon.com/dollywood-splash-country-neon-nights-2026/

^That will be changing soon....

I, personally, wouldn't do that. I'll post it here; I know park employees have a working familiarity of the posts that show up on this site. I'll post pictures here and give someone who works "back stage" a chance to address. I don't have an ax to grind with KI, SF, etc... just want them to do better! And, while I'm at it- REPLACE THE BURNT OUT BULBS LINING THE BUILDINGS ON I-STREET

@Outdoor Man, Skyline could know if you posted the photo on their social pages.

I agree. Guests are gross. People do things at the park that they would NEVER do anywhere else. That said, there's no discipline in keeping areas clean by employees either. I mean, does Skyline know one of their locations has a serving area that looks like this? I agree with Don; Kings Island was a near-benchmark of cleanliness for YEARS; one season changed that perception.

Behind and on the counter is on the employees 100%. Tables, floors etc are still on the employees, but as @Hawaiian Coasters 325said, patrons should do their part and clean up after themselves. You can say what you want about the under 18 children, but this entitlement rears it's ugly head up to the boomers. And it's not isolated to KI, look at hotel room check outs, restaurants and shopping carts. It's all pure laziness. In 2020 and 2021, I would had much more empathy for things like this . But those years are way behind and the company wants to lean staff and make the parks "comfortably (very) crowded."

Via Marcus Leshock in Facebook: BREAKING: “Multiple bomb threats” reported at Six Flags Magic Mountain in Valencia, California this morning. The California Highway Patrol and the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department are investigating a threat that indicated a bomb was allegedly placed at a specific location within the park, according to CBS News. Magic Mountain was scheduled to open at 10:30am local time, but it’s unclear if that will happen. Magic Mountain released a statement: “We are aware of the police activity near the park and are currently monitoring the situation in coordination with local authorities.” In their own post, the CHP said: “Magic Mountain Amusement Park entrance will be shut down as CHP works with LASO after receiving multiple bomb threats at the park.” At this time, it isn’t clear if the threat is credible.

That's not acceptable and the fact employees in uniform were around just yapping and not doing anything about it makes it worse! Those employees need to be disciplined! When I worked there ride ops weren't allowed to leave at the end of the night until the entire perimeter of our ride area was clear of any trash or debris. And the area supervisors would hold cleaning audits after park close and if they found just one little candy wrapper, your ride crew failed! Cleanliness was one of the major cornerstones when I worked there and I hope it still is! I think the park needs to have this brought to their attention as I know upper management does not tolerate stuff like this. I know someone last year posted a massive rant on a facebook group of Festhaus being filthy and not long after they brought people over to clean it. We know the park reads the facebook groups. Also I think guests need to take a part in this too. When you're done eating, clean up after yourselves and throw your trash away!

RCDB now lists Invertigo as SBNO since July of last year.

If I were to do a piece on the 10 dirtiest parks in the amusement and theme park industry, Kings Island makes the list. It’s sad because for decades it was among the top 10 cleanest parks.