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As a lover of all things Halloween and Haunt — and as someone who’s been going since I was about 8 — I’ve witnessed the vast range of KI’s Halloween events. I love love love Haunt! That being said, I think it could use some new ideas. Following is a project I’ve put together over the past month. I tried to keep the park full of nighttime activities with inspiration from KI Halloween offerings over the past 24 years. A brief explainer: Fright Zones (3) are areas of the park in which monsters simply roam. Scare Zones (6) are where the true nature of HAUNT can come alive. Here, monsters will actively prowl and scare anyone who crosses their paths. There are (7) Sinister Shows spread throughout the three Fright Zones, two of which are Opening and Closing shows. Lastly, there are (10) Haunted Mazes spread throughout the Scare Zones, split between five Outdoor Mazes and five Indoor Mazes. All of this should be visible on the map (though you may need to zoom in a little). Anything placed between quotation marks currently exists as a Halloween Haunt attraction at Kings Island. While some of these have counterparts at other legacy Cedar Fair parks, I tried not to copy those when creating this project. The base map is composed of screenshots from the Kings Island mobile app. Most of this was written before the awesome start to the 2024 Haunt season, so if you like something from 2024, put in a reply below! Fright Zones (1) “International Street FEAR” “Step right up to see the strange and mysterious creatures that stalk the shadows and lurk around every corner of International Street. Legend says that these doomed souls are condemned to haunt International Street for the rest of eternity.” Located on International Street. (2) “Pumpkin Eater” “The notorious Pumpkin Eater is on the prowl, hidden within the dark confines of the haunted town he once terrorized. Beware the demons who roam the winding serpentine road. They were townsfolk once, just like you.” Located on the path between the park entrance and Adventure Port. (3) Grimm Place Enter a world of dark myths and stories of old! Hear the fables from their authors and try to remind yourself that none of this is real, right? Located in Action Zone. Scare Zones As with up at Cedar Point, this revitalized Halloween Haunt could utilize gantry structures to alert guests when they are entering the Scare Zone area. (4) Port of Chaos A bustling port community once besieged by pirates in search of the fabled King's Gold. Ancient myths tell of wonders galore, but the locals know what creatures lurk beneath the waves. Dead men tell no tales, so BEWARE! Don’t let your eyes deceive you…these violent delights often have violent ends. Located in Adventure Port. (5) Coney Maul The historic Coney Mall has thrilled amusement seekers for more than fifty years, but recently the thrills have turned into frights! Take a stroll down the mall at your own risk! The creatures are only getting hungrier with each passing night. Located in the northern half of Coney Mall between The Racer and Manic Midway. (6) Expedition 72 When the advanced Expedition 72 returned from its trip to space, it brought back some special alien artifacts; however not all items were satisfied with remaining in their crates. Walk around the base and gaze at the artifacts that are still contained…and watch out for those that managed to escape. Located in Area 72 (7) Cemetery Drive Amongst the graves the mourners weep; Above the ground where the undead creep; As above, so below; Around here your fears will grow. Take a stroll through the old Ride Valley Cemetery and gaze upon the tombstones. The eerie feelings will refuse to subside when the undead come out at night! Located on the path between Rivertown, International Street, and Coney Mall. (8) Dread Quarter It's time for some proper Crescent City fun! Watch The Quarter come alive as the sweet sounds of jazz fill the air. Feel free to engage with the vibrant nightlife, they won’t bite you…yet! Located in the southern half of Coney Mall between Manic Midway, JukeBox Diner, and Hotel St. Michelle. Located between the Rivertown LaRosa’s Pizzeria and JukeBox Diner. (9) Ghost Town “The problem started years ago on the grounds of the newly developed Miami Valley Lumber Company. Men and women, 66 in total, entered the lumber company and were never to be seen again… at least not in the way they used to be. Stepping into Rivertown, outsiders find themselves immersed in a small abandoned lumber village that’s haunted by something mysterious. The forest is overrun by supernatural creatures that have riddled their confines with darkness and despair. Are these the lumber yard workers from days past? And, which of them are evil?” Located in Rivertown Haunted Mazes (1) Circles: Field Report The farmers just outside town have been reporting crop circles and missing animals to the local news, and now crowds are gathering in the fields to witness the next event! Rumor has it the aliens have something else in mind… Don’t get lost in the fields or else you might just end up like the unlucky travelers from the aliens last encounter. Information: Located in Area 72, between the Parade Tent and the Area 72 Beer Cart. Theme: Corn crop circles inhabited by victims of aliens. (2) Nightmare on the Docks The S.S. Pescador has returned to its port of call, but where is her crew? Trod warily through the docks and try to discover the clues of what those sailors were searching for on their forbidden voyage. Tales of Spanish sirenas have long haunted these waters, so heed this warning: there are things far more frightening than a drunken buccaneer! Information: Located under the covered patio at Enrique's. Guests enter by the pond, travel through the maze, then exit near Enrique’s exit opposite the VIP Lounge. Theme: Sirens and their victims seek a chance to lure guests to their deaths. (3) Terror Gardens History repeats itself inside the green walls of Tower Gardens. The frights of years ago understand that All You Fear Is Here! Keep moving! Things are not always as they seem. Screams will only further encourage these monsters. Information: Located within Tower Gardens. Enter through the Tower Gardens gate, move through scares of Haunts past, and exit near the Coney Bar-B-Que patio. Theme: Guests are visited by some of Halloween Haunt's favorite spooks. (4) Buried Blood The eerie Rubied Estate is a scary place to be at night. Watch your step as you venture through the house and discover the truth behind the feud that spilled blood on this hallowed ground. Information: Located on a platform built for this maze. Theme: Old family troubles come to light. Guests process through an old house and between the mausoleums and stones to encounter the ghoulish figures of this estate. (5) The Legend of Kenton’s Cove It's time to take a tour of the historic Kenton’s Cove! Water-logged residents welcome you through their former homes and shops, though this ghost town has gained a reputation for more than just stories. Try to make it to the end of the tour and don't lose your head! Information: Located in Rivertown. Line begins at the start of the White Water Canyon queue and continues past a parked train where guests cross the tracks. The maze continues behind the former TR:TR/The Crypt building and exits near the entrance of The Beast. Theme: Zombies and ghosts of Kenton’s Cove haunt their former village. (6) Deep Waters Come take a tour of the mine! The Sycamore Mining Company may have been shut down years ago, but that hasn't stopped them from digging deep into the mountainside. Can you find your way out before the subterranean water rises? Or will you be forced to join the crews forever? Information: Located in the former TR:TR/The Crypt building. Theme: Dangerous mine shafts containing watery death and destruction. (7) Runt of the Mill Sick of being known as the weakest man to ever work in the mill, Tipper Lee found his own way to climb the leadership ladder. Make sure to watch your step as you find your way into the saw barn, because Tipper will stop at nothing to stay at the top. Information: Located in the Slaughterhouse building, near The Beast. Guests move through an old saw barn full of dismembered lumbermen with actors dressed as the fictional Tipper Lee causing harm throughout. Theme: Torture and dismemberment within an old saw mill. (8) Hotel Rougarou: The Cajun Werewolf Locals have long told tales of werewolves prowling near the mystic Hotel Rougarou, but is there any truth within their words? See for yourself and step into a realm where the moon is full every night. They can hear your every move from the dark depths of the surrounding swamps. And whatever you do, do not go into Room 013. Information: Located in the Action Theater. Theme: Cryptid werewolves attack a hotel in the swamp. NOTE: A Rougarou is a werewolf-like cryptid that prowls the swamps of southern Louisiana. I would’ve used another spelling to avoid comparisons to the ride at Cedar Point, however I fear the other spellings would be hard for guests to pronounce. (9) Manic Midway The midways of this historic amusement park used to explode with fun, but everything changed when disasters repeatedly plagued the area. Weave your way between the forgotten thrills and dodge the midway games to survive! Tread carefully, not all screams are echoes from the past! Information: Located in the former Kill Mart building. Theme: Clowns and carnival barkers terrorize a park gone to hell. (10) Callisto’s Reach The Department of Alien Research has reopened after a former biological weapons experiment breached containment and destroyed the facility. Their first task at hand: to analyze a damaged space probe returned from the moon Callisto. When the press gains access to the compound, something is found hiding inside the lab. Will the creatures engage in a peaceful first contact? How far can Callisto’s reach extend? Information: Located in the Alien Abyss (formerly the Red Barn) building, behind Meteor Canteen. Theme: Research lab overrun by alien creatures. Sinister Shows (1) Opening Scaremonies The Undertaker summons his haunting gang of monsters and commands them to have a frightfully good time at 7:00 PM each night. Located on the International Street Bandstand, with effects around International Street. (2) Red Devil’s Regrets Sing and scream your heart out at this sick Halloween party! Join the DJ as he turns up the hits as you dance until you drop! Small-stage DJ show located in Action Zone, in front of Drop Tower. Drop Tower entrance and exit located at the side of the stage. (3) Creatures of the Moonlight Gravedigger Sam invites you to his mausoleum Halloween party where you’ll be lovin’ the nightlife as classic monsters are conjured up to make this the wildest shindig around! Featuring a live band and music from the 70s and 80s, all with a haunting spin! Located on the Festhaus Stage (4) Ravagers of the Black Death Death looms around every corner as the Black Death claims victims for its cursed count. Join the Ravagers while they drum their way through the plague! Located on the International Street Bandstand. (5) Dead Beat Brood Blood runs hot among this vampire brood! Expand your tastes as rock n' roll and chaos reign supreme in this all new after-life offering. Located in the International Showplace. (6) Swinging Wake Band This big brass band is set to play their way into the afterlife amidst the fog of the Dread Quarter! Located near JukeBox Diner. (7) Killer Countdown Time is ticking, so count every hour as if it were your last! The struggle between the living and the underworld rages on, culminating in a finale to die for! "Fire and lasers erupt with a rocking soundtrack as the finale of Kings Island’s Halloween Haunt materializes in front of guests." Located on International Street. Special Experiences (A) Meet + Creep (Kings Island Theater entrance) A monster Meet + Greet located in front of the Kings Island Theater. Similar to those found at Knott’s Scary Farm. (B) HAUNT Store (@ the Emporium) A continuation of the current Halloween Haunt merchandise store at the Emporium. (C) Fright Feast (@ the International Restaurant) A reintroduction of the FearFeast/Fright Feast (‘06-’10 ?) in the International Restaurant. Could include a special souvenir cup. (D) Scream Stop (@ KI Essentials) A continuation of the current Halloween Haunt merchandise store at KI Essentials. Poe’s Garden Take a stroll through the garden where Edgar Allen Poe's stories come to life! An interactive experience lies around every corner. A lantern activation area similar to the one found during the 2024 Haunt season, but smaller due to the added maze. This area would only be accessible through the north entrance of Tower Gardens. (E) Graveyard Eats Enjoy some graveyard-themed foods from this mausoleum! A variety of French Fries, Slider Minis, and Dirt Cakes await you to pay your respects! Limited seating available at this location. Located at the Paradise Island food stand. Temporary signage and decorations to be added. Oktoberfest Fright Delights The chefs have been hard at work cooking up a feast! Join us in the Festhaus for specialties like LaRosa's Pizza, hamburgers, bratwursts, killer brownies, and more! Located in the Festhaus food lines. The Night Trolley The "Night Trolley" completes a loop of International Street FEAR three times each night to release more monsters into the park. The trolley stops at the Main Entrance and in front of the International Street Bandstand. Finally, the map:

I'm bringing these up because I know they were brought up in past discussions. I can confirm that the eternal flame for Son of Beast in Banshee's queue was lit as of tonight. Also, there was no visible light coming from the casket in front of the Son of Beast grave.

Probably because the bulb is dead.

There's a better chance of the Menendez brothers being released from prison than there is of Son of Beast coming back.

Just like Son of Beast.

Permits for a renovation to the bathroom were filed. It will hopefully be nice those bathrooms really need some tcl they are so rough. Also looking at the blueprints on the Mason permitting site it appears that the Soak City subway will be turned into a blue ice cream stand.

And they present to us: "TIGER HAWK!!!"

Had 2 excellent food items today. The Mounds of Meatwich sandwich was excellent and the Apple Crisp Cheesecake was fantastic!! Keep it up Chef Perez and Team!!!

^ Yeah I live in Akron Ohio. Technically, Cedar Point is my home park because I'm an hour and a half from there. If I go to Kings Island that's three and a half hours. That doesn't count the slowdowns in Columbus on the way down either. But my dad used to take me and my siblings to Kings Island when I was growing up so the park will always have a special connection in my heart.

Seems like the Bengals coaster went to the wrong Kings park, lol

The Mounds of Meatwich looks good!

Too bad you don't run this on Instagram or I'd definitely give it a follow. I gave up Failbook some time ago because it was painfully toxic for me and my limited social media presence is far better for my mental health. But if you ever do make an accompanying account for this on Insta please let me know!

Just tried the “Spicy Smokehouse Mac and Cheese” at Wishbone. It’s described as having brisket bits, honey BBQ glaze, spicy cheese sauce, and cavatappi. The brisket is just the burnt ends from Coney BBQ, and the cheese sauce is just what they put on the Mac and Cheese at Coney. It’s incredibly lightly applied- not cheesy at all. No spice anywhere. The photo they have on display seems to show a red buffalo type sauce, but this didn’t come on mine. I guess I should just go to Coney and put burnt ends on my Mac, then I’d get a bigger portion and a hush puppy. However, the Monster Mash flatbread at IS Larosa’s is great! Depending on when you go, it might take a minute to get.

^I like Kings Island more, too, but I have the opposite problem- if there was an opposite side of Ohio from Sandusky, I'm pretty close to that point. I live 5 minutes from the Ohio River and about 40 minutes from the Indiana boarder. It's a good 4-5 hours to Sandusky for me depending on how driving through Dayton and Toledo go (I go north up I-75 and east on OH Route 2).

I love this picture from the Eiffel Tower. If you want to follow me on Facebook, I run a page called Cedar Fair photo fan page. That goes for anybody on here too.

And please, if there is anything left sacred in this World, NOTHING with "Hawk" in the name like they were so fond of in the past!

I am at the park today. I have already rode The Beast, Mystic Timbers and Diamondback. The rides are running great for early morning, so I think it's gonna be a very good day for rides. Especially once it gets dark later.

So the last year for me has been rough. I got diagnosed with a major digestive condition which required a lot of various treatments and patience to get better, and I had to leave my job thinking I may not be able to do Skyline again, but then got better and returned to another one after much struggle (finding a job was SUPER stressful), but I got through it and finally found grounds for some stability again. Got a gold pass that'll eventually have all the odds and ends (still waiting to get dining and a big maybe is all season FL as I plan to do CP next season but KI and CP are looking to be my only 'normal' CF parks next year). Anyways, I knew I was doing at least 1 trip to KI this October and I already had it in mind to do Fast Lane regardless of crowds. I have a really fun October lined up this year on top of that with a few band/concert gigs, probably doing Blink in a few weeks, and possibly other shenanigans. Last night was kind of the way to get the ball rolling. So I got there at about 6:05 as traffic on I-71 was sus, and I came straight from work at the Skyline in Ft Wright (just south of Covington). Got my pass processed, got the FL bracelet, and made a bee-line for Banshee as I wanted to knock it out given the 1 train situation. Well, I lucked out there as at the time, the FL line was absent and I got up the stairs right as they were about to load the next station full and nabbed a front seat ride. Made my way to Racer and Orion, meeting up with @pianoman for a few hours and eventually got to the Rivertown trio. It was quite crowded as well, very packed midways and fairly long lines. The one I knew of for sure was a fellow rider at Beast clocked it at 90 minutes for the main line with the 3 switchback sections opened. Some rides felt they were taking a bit long to load and unload as I did pick up on a lot of trainees through the visit. The FL lines weren't bad except for the fact all those users gravitated towards Beast. The FL line fluctuated to being as short as just down the station stairs, to as long as the curve the exit takes around the first set of switchbacks. The next longest FL line I saw was MT, DB and Orion being just down their respective stairs. Even FOF's FL line was really short. Drop Tower was the only non-coaster I did. I felt the coasters were running rather interestingly. This could be the fact that it can take me a few rides to get used to the forces again combined with me taking my first rides while the rides are a few months warmed up, but a lot of coasters felt they were running pretty hard and fast last night (in a good way). I got some good ejector air on Diamondback near the front and even a little bit further back. I also felt the trims were taken down a notch as the section after the 2 trims was really forceful as well that night. I'm bummed Banshee was in its state as it was running really good for the 1 ride I got, and MT was really wild. I got my usual Beast 1-1 ride out of the 3 rides I got on it and it was pure nostalgic bliss for me. I also felt the fog machines affected the weather a bit as the air felt more humid at the tops of the coaster lifts and felt cooler closer to the ground, especially for Drop Tower, Orion and Diamondback. Mystic Timbers felt more wild given, again, this was my first time riding it in nearly a year, it was running fairly fast, and the fog machines + night made it near impossible for me to anticipate things, in a good way though. Didn't do any mazes as it's not my thing, but the fog machines were set to 11, pretty thick in places. The scare-actors were fairly nice for what they are and I kinda liked the more chaotic choice in music, especially in Coney Mall. It also warms this amusement park history buff's heart to see people genuinely enjoying Racer again. I know we harp on the park for various things, especially this year, but I have to give kudos to the maintenance department for always doing stellar work making the woodies run so well year after year. I know its particularly hard with wooden coasters, but the re-track on Racer and Beast are holding up great and even though MT is entering its aging phase for GCI's, its one of the better GCI's I've ridden given its additional age factor from a ride quality standpoint. Also nice the shed stuff still works. Overall great night, something I needed given what I've been through lately, and hopefully a sign for a great October for me.

All I ask is that they give it a name better than thunder striker haha

I have been to Haunt twice so far. Last Saturday after the rains we went, and went through Slaughterhouse and Madam Fatale's. Both were fun, but limited scare actors due to the weather. We arrived around 10:30pm. Rode Orion, Diamondback, and Banshee twice. I went last night and did Pumpkin , Hooked, Cornered and Alien Abyss. All were fantastic, and had major upgrades from the previous years. Good amount of scare actors, and the kids had a blast. The fog was amazing, and had to the atmosphere of the evening. We will see what Sunday night brings when we go back.

Hopefully they won't disable it now that the secret is revealed.

The interactive lanterns purchased at KI do in fact, work at Cedar Point: IMG_4372.mov

Removing both Firehawk and Vortex back to back years is definitely on of my least favorite decisions ever made by the park. However, nothing tops the decision to remove both antique car rides and the flying eagles for the junkyard coaster. I just genuinely want to know what someone was thinking or how they even for a second thought it was a good idea to remove 3 park originals in favor of backlot when it could have gone into the plot occupied by Firehawk just two years later. Then if it wasn't enough they didn't bother relocating the flying eagles to the vacant flight commander pad but instead sent them away to Carowinds. I just don't understand how anyone thought that was a good idea???

A Firehawk train piece was in there this spring during the ACE event

It seems no one learned anything from the last incident. The "We know there are pictures and knowledge of the incident online, but there is nothing to see here; move along." attitude does nothing but tarnish your name and brand as a whole. If they are going to just pretend something didn't happen what else are they hiding? I don't want to feel that way about KI, I care deeply to see Kings Island and SIX be successful. I volunteer a lot of my own time to promote its success. I am just as dumbfounded by this action as you. Edited just to add: By not addressing this, you are slapping everyone in the maintenance department in the face. They work their butts off to keep us safe and give KI a good name in safety. Failing to support them when it matters most shows them they aren't truly valued.

I think you're gonna be hard-pressed to see Banshee operate with more than one train until a thorough investigation is complete. I'd even go so far as to speculate that Banshee won't regain a second (or third) train until 2025, or the very end of Haunt at the soonest. Gonna take a guess here that the PLC thought Valravn had one fewer train than it actually had. If it had one extra/a ghost train, I would expect that the PLC would have put an extra block between the train in the station and the train on the brakes and refused to advance the train on the brakes to the next available block. On an unrelated gripe: KI PR hasn't released any kind of statement about Banshee's collision, and I think that is the most aggravating and disheartening move possible in this scenario. People should not be learning about this incident from Reddit--you've got to get ahead of the story! Every single amusement park in the United States is operating in spite of a cultural narrative that they are unsafe and operated by dishonest people who cover up safety incidents to make a dollar. The minute you don't set the record straight and you let social media control the narrative, you lend credence to that idea--and if that idea grows too big, it WILL hurt the industry, and especially the park. The distance between Carowinds's communication on Fury 325's support crack and Kings Island's communication on the Banshee incidents is staggering. It almost feels like there's a Titanic-like hubris among KI's PR leader(s)...

Like Son of Beast, Don's not coming back.

Please no dive coaster. I don't want a one trick pony gimmick here. If they're going to somehow reuse the SOB station, an RMC hybrid or a Gravity Group/GCI woodie would be the best fit as that station was build specifically for a wooden structure.