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Wilderness Resort Seeks Kings Island As Partner


Dan
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The Great Lakes Companies Inc., a nationwide resort company, is looking to partner with Paramount's Kings Island by bringing a rustic, wilderness-theme log resort hotel to the amusement park in Mason in Warren County.

The company wants to build the hotel on the site of an existing campground along Ohio 741 and relocate the campground nearby.

The resort would include a large stone fireplace, vaulted ceiling, wilderness artifacts, indoor waterpark and an arcade, as well as an outdoor pool.

Planning for the resort is in the preliminary stages, but company representatives talked Tuesday with Warren County about a deal to supply water for the new resort.

Source: Dayton Daily News

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The article said they wanted to build the property along SR. 741........NOT Kings Island Drive. Reading that, the Kings Island campground isn't going anywhere. Unless the article printed an error or something. Regardless, what a great idea and something that I think will be a hit around here!

- Todd

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The Great Lakes Company wants to build a 300-room hotel with a 90,000 foot indoor water park (almost 3X Great Bear at CP) and have a conference center to fit up to 1200 people.

http://www.enquirer.com/editions/2004/03/2.../biz_pki24.html

In my humble opinion, PKI would benefit and financially profit from a small hotel that can accomadate around 100 people and has a 30,000 foot indoor water park.

But 300 rooms.............NO GOOD! The hotel market on I-71 Exits 19 and 25 is already too saturated. With 300 rooms to maintain (electricity, heat, labor, etc.) the hotel would probably do okay in the summer and lose money the rest of the year as most of its rooms would be empty.

And 90,000 feet of water park with CDBB and The Beach so close...NO GOOD. We live in Ohio, not Florida. I don't think there's enough demand for a third large water park in Mason.

Hey, that's just my opinion. What is yours?

Have a great day!

Italian Chef

:chef:

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If the Great Bear Lodge can be supported year-round in Sandusky, there is no reason that a larger one will not be supported near PKI where there are more year-round travelers. A indoor water park opened recently in my home town of Erie, PA (Splash Lagoon) and the park was put in an area with at least 15 hotels w/n a 7 mile radius. The park also has 3 hotels that are connected. Splash Lagoon has been such a huge hit that they are already putting in addition- after only one year. Erie does not even come close to the amount of people that travel through the area like the area around PKI on a year-round basis. The actual slow season will be the summer when the option of being outside vs. inside comes up. But for those days where a family will be arriving to the area a day or night before they go to PKI, they will enjoy the indoor waterpark. This is a HUGE addition for PKI and the surrounding area, every business will benefit.

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This is a great move on PKI's part. Why? Indoor waterparks are the newest fad and they're bringing in cash off the hook. Like Browntggr said, these kinds of hotels are doing great business and already some hotels are putting in upgrades. So isn't it smart to build a bigger hotel at PKI? Plus, this will finally bring "out-of-towners" to PKI which would work with their hollywood theme and would enable them to build much bigger and better rides. So even if this hotel isn't owned by PKI, it will still bring a lot of success to the park.

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If the deal goes thorugh, I hope that PKI leases and doesn't sell its land. And I also hope that PKI will be a partner with the hotel, sharing its characters, theming, specials, etc.

I still think that 300 rooms are too many.

Have a great day!

Italian Chef

:chef:

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I still think that 300 rooms are too many.

Quite the contrary!

Usually, hotels have ~100 rooms a floor, so this will most likely be a 3 story hotel. I would have expected ~500 rooms, to be honest.

We're talking about a park hotel. Just imagine what kind of promotions could be ran, and how much benifit to both the consumer, and to the park this could do.

For example, take the following scenario.

A family of 4 visits the park. They are from out of town, and want to spend 2 days at the park. The don't have passes, and are going to need a place to stay. So, PKI says "For X.XX amount of dollars, you can have a room for 2 days, 2 nights. On top of that, heres discounted admission to the park!"

Imagine just how much revenue this could (and will) bring in. After a long day at the park, perhaps the family retires to the hotel, but the kids are restless! How about a huge waterpark, all indoors, in the luxary of a hotel? Brilliant! Now, the parents can relax after the day at the park, and the children can enjoy the waterpark!

Now, as for the waterpark aspect...

PKI is always looking for improvement, and for the guest to have a great time (darn, i've watched too many training videos :P). Because we're talking about a major theme park, why not a hotel with benifits? Discounted adminssion to the park, and a waterpark for the examples listed above. Also, think of families who simply are passing by Cincinnati. They come up I-71, and notice a hotel with a waterpark! The kids are in the back yelling and screaming at each other, and the parents are ready to get off the road. Theres a Holiday Inn, and a PKI Hotel / Waterpark. Although the PKI one is going to be a bit more expensive, which do you think they would choose? Certinely, the PKI. And even for a family without children, a hotel with all the commodities you would come to expect from a 4 or 5 * hotel.

Personally, I think this is a great idea. Although something I would never utilise, never the less, probably something that would make quite a bit of money.

Now.. as for employee 'dorms'.... we'll save that one for a later date.

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It would be ok if it was going to be like that IMO it doesn't look like it would.

All they are after is the land and will be no part of PKI. If they do this I hope they do a lease and not sell. I think some are thinking Castaway Bay and Great Bear Lodge is the same place.

Does anyone know if Great Bear Lodge has promotions for Cedar Point?

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It would be ok if it was going to be like that IMO it doesn't look like it would.

All they are after is the land and will be no part of PKI.

They will be in a partnership w/ PKI. I cannot imagine PKI "giving up" or even sell any part of their land. The only way the partnership would work is if the Hotel would rent the land from PKI. Now the rent is what needs to be settled. Will the monthly rent be enough of PKI to move the campground so there is no income loss, and will the rent be low enough for the hotel to be viable? There would have to be some sort of package deal between PKI and the hotel to encourage guests to visit both parks, unlike CP and the Great Bear Lodge which currently have no package deals together, but the GBL is about 10 driving miles from CP.

The lodge really does not need PKI, and PKI does not need the lodge, but if they worked together I cannot see how this would be a waste of time/money. Each offers something that the other does not have.

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It looks like PKI is not the only one getting out of camp.

The Paramount's Carowinds Campground has been closed indefinitely. Sources told Amusement Today that officials want to concentrate improvement efforts solely on the theme park itself.

Paramount's Carowinds Campground

Please note: As of November 30, 2003 the campground has closed for an undetermined amount of time.

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  • 5 weeks later...

No one talks about the Great Lakes Companies Inc.'s Great Wolf Lodge Family Resort anymore...at least not on this site. I wonder of the deal will really go through or get called off after the feasibility study. Indeed I wonder.

Have a great weekend!

Italian Chef

:chef:

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