ebajane

Sounds like it has been rough day at KI! My husband and kids were at the park from noon until 6:00 today. He says it was insanely crowded. We're a little spoiled since our schedule often allows us to come at less busy times, but still...It took about 30 minutes just to get into the parking lot this morning, and the entire parking lot was full when they left. They only rode 4 rides (all kids/family rides) plus Howl-O-Fest. The line for The Beastie (uhh...Woodstock Express) was all the way to the bumper cars. He left without buying a 2011 Gold pass for our youngest (new pass because it's his first year that's not free) because the line was out into the parking lot when they arrived and when they left...the line to BUY the pass, not just process it. I REALLY wish we could get a new pass online!!! Some friends said that last Saturday, they walked onto lots of rides, including The Beast. Guess this was just an unlucky weekend. This is why a season pass is the ONLY way to go...no spending big bucks for just one day and risking big crowds, bad weather, or lots of downtime.

For those of you who have been doing this longer than I have, maybe you can answer some questions for me... 1) How long is the $69.99 Gold Pass renewal price likely to last? I think I remember there being a deal like that in the spring of 2010, but I'm not sure. (We want to renew, but money is very tight right now.) 2) Is there any chance of the price going any lower over the summer or in the spring, or is this likely as low as it will get? 3) If someone buys a new Gold Pass with the free 2010 ticket, can they use it on the day of purchase? 4) Does anyone know the price of a Gold Pass for kids? They don't have any information about it online right now. Thanks for the help!

Agreed. It must have just been an error. It was definitely listed as 40" on the website that day, and also wherever the person at the park who answers the phones looked for her info. (I thought she said she was getting a park map to look at.) But when we got to the park that same day, there was no change in the height requirement of the ride according to the signage. It is still 46" to ride alone, but no minimum height with a responsible person. My son had a great trip as always, including a ride on the Monster. The information has since been corrected on the website. Case closed. Thanks for your input everyone!

Thanks! I called the park, and it seemed like I knew a lot more than the person I talked to on the phone. (She was very nice though.) She couldn't even find anything other than the 46" to ride alone height. Eventually, she did find something that said 40 inches, so it looks like it has changed. So I guess we just have to feed the little guy his veggies and hope he makes 40 inches soon!

Oh don't worry, we would never give the ride ops a hard time about it, it's not their decision! That's why I want to confirm for sure what's going on before we get to the park so we can hopefully get the tears out of the way before we get there and not have to go up to the ride at all if he can't ride it.

Okay, my husband and I are pretty much freaking out right now. Our son's FAVORITE ride in the whole park is the Monster. We have Gold passes and have been to KI at least 12 times this summer, and the Monster is all our little guy talks about. He has had a 36 inch wristband all year, and we're doubtful that he'll hit 40 inches this season, although he is getting close. He has always been able to ride the Monster with a parent. Today I was browsing the KI website, and it appears that they may have changed the height requirement for the Monster to 40 inches. Can someone confirm for me whether this is really the policy now, and why the mid-season change? I do NOT look forward to explaining to my toddler that he cannot ride his favorite ride anymore, even though he has ridden it 30 times already, as recently as a few weeks ago on our last visit! Someone please say it isn't so!

Can anyone tell me how crowded the park typically is on Memorial Day Monday? (Or how crowded it is today if you are there?)

Just a word of warning...Although most people barely get a sprinkle on RFYLCB, people (myself included) have been getting soaked occasionally this year. I heard that some adjustments have been made to the ride, and I think it also has to do with how the weight is distributed in the boat. For example, two large adults in the back of the boat with the front empty = SOAKED. If soggy shoes would totally ruin your day, you might not want to take the chance.

I'd take out Top Gun (even though it's my favorite coaster, it's WAY too short) and replace with CPs Raptor.

As the one who started the topic, I want to thank everyone for their honest responses. I also want to emphasize that I do NOT mean to criticize smokers. I have my personal opinions about smoking, but, as I said, it is none of my business whether someone smokes or not. My problem is only when they do it in line next to me and there is no way (other than leaving the ride line) for people to get away from it. It's rude and inconsiderate. Sure, I'd LOVE a non-smoking park, but I am NOT suggesting that PKI make their park non-smoking. I am suggesting that they use stronger enforcement policies to decrease the number of people smoking in line. Here are my reasons for mentioning ejection from the park (or at least ejection from a ride line) as a consequence: 1) People can read the rules. If they want to come to the park, then they must follow the rules to stay in the park. It's perfectly fair to expect that. 2) The rules that typically get people thrown out of the park are rules that involve endangering someone. If you are smoking in close proximity to another person, you are endangering that person. It has been suggested that I should just ask people to stop smoking myself. Unfortunately, in this day and age, I'm just not comfortable doing that to a complete stranger. If a person is smoking in line, he ot she obviously doesn't care about following the rules anyway. Besides, I shouldn't HAVE to tell the person. That's the park's job. If I do see a staff person near me in such a situation, I will tell the staff person so that he or she can handle it. I totally understand that it would be nearly impossible to stop every person who smokes in line. There are only so many staff members to go around. I just hope that PKI uses all available resources to cut down on the problem.

Any trip reports out there for Sunday 5/25? To me, it seemed like a good day. The light rain in the evening helped clear out some of the crowd. I thought The Beast was rough, but my husband disagreed. He thought SOB was rough, but I disagreed. Can anyone settle that for us? Top Gun was awesome (though short) as usual. I had never seen the gate open so that you could re-ride without walking all the way out before. I liked that! Vortex was great too. None of the lines were too long except the new rides. Scooby Doo looked long but was very fast-moving. I like the new food options this season. Subway was sloooooow, but with all the other food available, at least the line wasn't long. After hubby grudgingly waited with me to see Sponge Bob 3D, we both really enjoyed it. It would be nice if they could show it on both sides of the theater to speed things up. Also, almost the entire front row of the theater was left empty. I'm not sure if it was broken or if they just couldn't get the people in fast enough. But it was a cute show! Overall, a good day!

Sorry to those who have read this post elsewhere... About the smoking issue... I visited PKI yesterday, and there was someone near me smoking in line for almost every ride. I never saw anyone get caught. Is this rule ever enforced? I sure wish it would be! I am quite allergic to cigarette smoke, and it really detracts from the fun (and makes the line seem a lot longer) when I'm constantly puffing on my inhaler to keep away the effects of the smoke. Personally, I think that people caught smoking in line shouldn't just be asked to put out their cigarette. I think it should be grounds for ejection from the park. They can read the rules just like I can. If they want to smoke on their own time, it's none of my business. But when they smoke right next to me in a confined ride line, it becomes my problem. I will think twice about bringing my future kids to PKI because of the smoking. Another similar issue is the T-shirts with offensive language. I saw some that I, as an adult, thought were chucklers. If I had had young children with my, however, I would not have been happy. (And the worst ones I saw were in line for Scooby Doo!) I know the rules mention that offensive language/dress may not be permitted. It's up to PKI to decide what is acceptable in their park. I think PKI is a good place, and I usually enjoy most of my visits. But as my personal suggestion... If they want to create a family atmosphere, at least in HB land, I would recommend enforcing these rules a little more. Does anyone agree/disagree with this?