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I honestly don't understand this idea people have here that Kings Island is really concerned about making sure no coaster is taller than the Eiffel Tower. I honestly think that had absolutely 0 to do with how tall Orion is. If it had been in the budget, they probably would have gone ahead and made it a little taller. Don't get me wrong, I understand the logic I just think it's wrong. Yeah the Eiffel Tower is an important landmark there, but I HIGHLY doubt they feel it's important that they limit themselves on what kinds of attractions they should build based on this thing they built in 1972. If they came to the conclusion, for example, that building a TTD clone at KI would bring tons of people to the park for some reason, I don't think the height of the Eiffel Tower would come into play in that decision at all really. However I agree that they probably won't be building anything taller than Orion anytime soon. I'm having a hard time even thinking what the point would be. If you're looking for really tall coasters with big drops, they kind of have that covered already. Personally I think they'll be looking for a different kind of experience for the next few coaster additions.

Of course they did. If a plumber shows up at a park they will write a 6 page blog about how's it's for a new water coaster.

One of the photos your are probably referring to was mine. I didn't post it as a social distancing observation. I posted it to discuss the 2021 season, as in the ride was officially running and we were in line. Now, it seems from your posts that you are not comfortable going to Kings Island at this point. Guess what? That is totally fine. No one is forcing anyone to go. Was the social distancing as good as it should have been? No. Did I feel uncomfortable at any point during the day? No. Here's why. I've gotten vaccinated. (I AM NOT STARTING A VACCINATION DEBATE. SIMPLY STATING A FACT). I did this to get back to normal. Saturday was one of the most "back to normal" experiences that I have had in the past year. Bottom line, if you feel comfortable in maskless crowds, enjoy the park. If not, then either wear a mask or don't go. As for me, I plan to enjoy the heck out of KI this summer.

DeWine is ending all restrictions. All of them. So, no. On both accounts.

Congratulations to her! Things like this are why KI is so ingrained into my psyche...childhood memories and the escape it offers. I am sure she will cherish these photos in the years to come!

i mean they think everything is a story or a new ride lol just saying..

Social distancing in the lines was pretty non existent. The park was putting reminders out, so they were doing their part.

https://kicentral.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/05/Episode-16-Jeffrey-Siebert.mp3 Host Robbie Zerhusen (CoastersRZ) is joined by Brad Perdue (IndyGuy4KI) on this episode of the KICentral Podcast. On this episode, we have special guest, Jeffrey Siebert. He was manager of communications and guest experience from 1999 to 2005 at Kings Island and is currently Park President of Six Flags Fiesta Texas. We discuss his time at the park, and where he went after leaving Kings Island. Enjoy! Robbie

My thoughts are that restricting FL might have little effect on queue times. CF sells season and daily passes at the lowest possible price to maximize sales that maximize revenue. When purchasing passes, people typically do not think about queue times. CF sells FL at the highest possible price to maximize sales that maximize revenue. A minority purchase daily FL as a one-off splurge. A smaller minority purchase season FL. Restricting FL could result in CF increasing the price of passes to compensate for lost FL revenue. However, increasing the price of passes could counterintuitively reduce revenue due to reduced sales. Alternatively, CF could reduce the price of passes, and increase sales and maintain revenue. (See bullet item 1). The net result could be that queue times remain about the same, because even though there are fewer FL, significantly more people attend CF parks, because more passes are sold at a lower price. My daughter and I have season FL, but we choose not to abuse that privilege. Opening Saturday, we rode four coasters together.

DeWine will be ending all Ohio COVID-19 restrictions (mask mandate, capacity limits, etc.) three weeks from today on June 2nd. https://news.wosu.org/coronavirus/2021-05-12/gov-dewine-to-give-statewide-address-on-covid-19-vaccination-effort I predict Kings Island/Cedar Fair will probably keep indoor mask rules in place until the CDC says it’s safe to lift them.

The lighting is pretty much just upgraded throughout the entire ride, especially in the final tunnel, and all the animatronics are working perfectly. I don’t necessarily think brand new effects were added, but Kings Island did a great job of repairing the old ones that hadn’t worked properly in a while. One noticeable change is that the tunnel right before the first lift hill now had blue LED’s that give it a completely different look than it had before.

He's an absolute legend. An asset to the industry, and to enthusiasts. Terrific Podcast.

To me, coasters are a form of art that, as previously stated, is subjective, like music, movies, paintings and sculptures. It's an art form that involves the sense of touch and our nervous systems are all wired differently. Enthusiasts need to heed that when learning of others' perspective when giving opinions and need to know the difference between opinions and facts. It's a lovely community when that comes together. Unfortunately, the more obnoxious ones such as the Intamin fanboys ruin conversations. As I've said on another thread, I've yet to meet a huge fan of Intamin who wasn't obnoxious and they always use the same talking points. It's a weird cycle.

Coasters are subjective. People rave about Maverick, for me it's just OK. Many hate Magnum XL-200, but I love it. The problem with enthusiasts comes into play when people state their opinion about a ride as a fact. Coasters have facts: TTD is 420' tall, launches you from 0-120 in 4 seconds and often is down are facts. Just like Orion is 287' tall, goes 91 mph and has demonstrated reliability. Stats are stats, but someone may favor TTD to Orion and another may like Apple Zapple better than both of them.

Why do you think that B&M rightfully warrants the bad rap? I think B&M are fun rides, that are very repeatable. Parks love them because they have good capacity and normally good uptime.

My goodness those food lines. I wonder what percentage of people waiting in line for food have a meal plan.

The book was mentioned in the Cincinnati Enquirer: https://www.cincinnati.com/story/entertainment/2021/05/10/kings-island-2021-season-opening-may-15-what-you-need-know/4998018001/

Physically where do these extra people go? I get they might spend more money (except food, they are already at cap with hour waits), but then you run into a space issue. Can't just drop another 5 registers in most of their gift shops and have twice as many people shopping. Space isn't there. So, they are just mindless walking the midway doing nothing. Just not seeing how virtual queues really help except in one off/rare situations. Orion opening weekend or two, great idea. All rides in the park? No way.

Can you please describe these effects for those of us who can't make it to the park in the immediate future?

I believe that it was stated they were for a water line replacement project. That road used to be Columbia Road prior to the park being built, so there likely are some utilities that still remain along that road, such as the water lines.

Went with Diamondback myself. Even though I think right now Orion and Mystic Timbers are my two favorite rides in the park, Diamondback was my favorite for years. Some great points made about that coaster here, and I think it deserves the nod. EDIT: hahah poor Firehawk. I hadn't noticed that it had 0 votes until just now. It's not surprising, it's just funny.

If the park's open I' sure we'll get a Haunt in some form. They might not have indoor houses if that is felt it isn't safe enough yet, but I thin outdoor decor and scare actors, and possibly outdoor mazes will be ok. So we might just see a smaller event than past years. More of a KI at night with decorations and roaming actors.

Can anyone confirm that the Tomb Raider loading drumbeat is now played in the station for Adventure Express?

I still find it humorous that people think this is land clearing.

...Did you want to follow that up with actual reasoning, or...? I'm just not sure how you expect people to engage with what you have to say here.

Got my second covid-19 vaccine dose Saturday morning. Aside from a few side effects Sunday (very sore arm, low fever, headache, and a little nausea) I am fine now. Excited to be fully vaccinated.

Only problem I see is people waiting that long for Banshee lmao

A pic that was floating around online

Face coverings are not required outdoors unless it is not possible to maintain 6’ of social distancing.

Our two year old got her first credit Saturday. She rode with her hands up.

Greg Scheid did consider putting in a wing coaster at the park, but at a different time than Thunderbird...I’d recommend checking out the book Kings Island: A Ride Through Time!

I know the former Kings Island Inn had a shuttle, but they ran it themselves. Did the original camp ground have a shuttle? If so, who operated it?

Not everything needs to be chocolate. I find both Orion and Banshee to be intense. Not in the out of your seat causing bruises on your thighs as your body slams into the restraint like with Voyage, Steel Vengeance and even Maverick. As I have gotten older, I have learned to appreciate the smoother yet intense rides. Don`t get me wrong, I love the above mentioned rides, just I think they are almost too intense. I have nearly grayed out on both Banshee and Orion before.