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I see this as a good sign that management decided that Action Zone should be prioritized over The Vortex plot which I strongly believe was the correct decision. Action Zone is the ugliest area of the park with little shade and no discernable theme. There is no balance to the ride lineup in the area. Everything there —outside of Congo Falls— could be considered on the thrill side. The rides in Action Zone are quite old and won't be around forever so replacements will need to move in. The eleven-year-old Banshee is the most recent attraction. Action Zone is a ton of land with relatively few attractions, and only one marque attraction. I seriously doubt Skyflyer netted much if any money in its final years. The Vortex plot will be addressed after AZ at some point, but that area of Coney/Rivertown is in much better shape overall than AZ.

It's official first sign of spring. Some people say when you see robins, for us it's when woodstock's whirlybirds are bing placed on the tracks. (Clipped from the KI Webcam)

All I'm saying is something awesome better go in it's place. I will still stand firm on the fact that nothing they put there will compare to the thrill this thing gave IMO, but hopefully something of a worthy successor gets placed there.

The Kings Island mobile app has been updated to display the 2025 version of the explorable map. Features such as Bluegill Lagoon, Riverbank Slide Out, the Tadpool, and River Racers have all been added, however the latter does not have a marker displayed. Soak City's new entrance plaza is also reflected. The parade route (formerly marked by two parallel white lines) has been replaced by a dotted line. Viking Fury's entrance path has been fixed as well. The two buildings between Graeter's and the First Aid building have been removed from the map, but I haven't seen anything about demolition permits so I'd assume they just got removed from the map since guests can't enter them. Overall it seems that the mistakes found on the original version of this map have been fixed, which is very nice since it will let guests have a more accurate read on the layout of the park. One very interesting thing about the map as it currently stands is the fact that markers from all events are displayed, including Grand Carnivale, Halloween Haunt, Tricks and Treats, and Winterfest. Xtreme Skyflyer's markers are also still displayed, however the ride itself has been removed from the map.

A big change to Zambezi Zinger, paint and as you guessed it, a bar! https://www.worldsoffun.com/blog/2025/africa-section-getting-upgrades-for-2025-season?utm_source=park_instagram&utm_medium=social&utm_campaign=africa_enhancments_blog_2025&utm_id=25SSP&fbclid=IwZXh0bgNhZW0CMTAAAR34C6b_h89yYXYy7568CcyRmaWA6XrgIJ45IgNnVpack8Y_H2QsdYRIYPA_aem_vkXLLCpchLaN6uXNbOYtoQ

They are rebuilding a Coke station in Soak City and it says that it should be done by opening day for the waterpark. "Demo existing Coke building and build brand new structure to house three new Coke fountain machines and two ICEE machines along with a covered area for the sales associates. This needs to be an EXPEDITED permit as we're opening this with the waterpark on Memorial Day weekend." This is from the permit that was filed.

It's nice to see continued investment in the park! I wonder how many of these upgrades will be ready for the park's preview day on April 27th. The bar looks nice too

I saw them cycling a few mornings ago. Opening day is right around the corner.

Not as much as some, but definitely more than others. It's a good ride on a hot day. The breeze always feels excellent and I enjoy the views these rides give.

Right, it was kind just a random look at the site and boom it's down. I will say I don't think it's due to the I-Street gift shop construction as it was always out of the camera view anyway.

I wanted to just trip down memory lane... for the sake of those that may remember, and those that maybe haven't been around long enough to remember, when Xtreme Skyfler was added. This is all from my memory - so I'm doing the best to recall some details... Xtreme Skyflyer was actually constructed after the start of the 1995 operating season. Originally called "Drop Zone", most of its construction happened during the week while the park was in weekends-only operation. It's assembly was highly visible from the Interstate, and many rumors actually swirled among enthusiasts/guests that it was potentially early construction of a new coaster. (The arch looked like a large inversion.) You have to remember that at that time, skycoasters were a brand new idea and most people had not seen one before. Kennywood opened one the year prior (If I recall) to great success. (Kennywood's did not have a rounded "arch" - rather a squared structure - so that led to some of the confusion about the one at KI looking like coaster track/support from I-71.) After the Kennywood success, virtually every theme park in the country hopped on the bandwagon and contracted to add a Skycoaster. To increase capacity at larger parks, the attraction now used an "arch" to double the throughput by allowing two sides to operate simultaneously. There were dozens built over the next couple years at every major theme park. (Causing a back-log of orders and mid-season construction/openings for many.) KI's "Drop Zone" opened as a larger version in late June (If I recall properly) as a part of the recently coined "Adventure Village." That area of the park - prior to the addition of the Skycoaster - had been in a complete state of theming flux. 1993 saw the addition of the first "new ride" added under the Paramount Ownership - Top Gun. It was also the first new coaster added to that area of the park since 1984 (King Cobra.) In reality, the coaster was planned prior to the Paramount takeover and has always been rumored to have been intended to carry a "bird" theme (I believe other names related to "Thunder" were also being tossed around.) Top Gun was odd name choice mix considering it was placed in an animal/congo themed area. The first season of Top Gun's operation, to get to the ride's entrance, you actually walked along a path that wound around and behind the Safari Monorail Station. The entrance was completely obscured and hidden and confused guests. (Then once you got to the main entrance, you still had to navigate the massively long meandering queue through the woods.) There were originally elaborate props along the path... Air-Craft Carrier artifacts, a revolving radar/scope movie props and posters. Not to mention the song "Danger Zone" on repeat over the speakers hidden in the trees. During Top Gun's original season, I think the area was still called "Wild Animal Habitat." (From 1974-76, it was called "Lion Country Safari".) But Paramount's intent was to re-theme a multitude of rides to capitalize on movie branding. I could be wrong. By 1994, the name of the area had definitely changed from "Wild Animal Safari" to "Adventure Village" to better suit the onslaught of movie tie-ins planned for the park. Also, the park knew in '93 it would be the last year of the Safari Monorail. They explored options of turning it into a movie-theme ride called "Movierail" that took guests past sets/artifacts from Paramount licensed movies & properties. Ultimately, the idea got scrapped - as did the monorail system. Also, if memory serves me, 1993 was the season when they also radically reworked the entrance to that area of the park. Prior, as you entered Wild Animal Habitat, you crossed a fairly narrow wooden footbridge over a stream that flowed from under King Cobra's helix over to a pond adjacent to Cafe Kilimanjaro (now Chicken Shack.) There were originally, cages/netting on the cafe side that housed exotic birds during the warmer months. On the other side, the stream culminated in a small pond under the King Cobra helix. There was a jet spray in the pond that was set off each time a King Cobra train passed through. This bridge area became a terrible bottleneck when Top Gun opened - so they remodeled it all to expand the midway and alleviate congestion. By the start of 1994, the old Monorail Station and track was removed. The western portion of the land on which the station sat is where the Skycoaster would be built for the following season. (It also necessitated the removal of a small wooded area between the old station and the "Congo Coolers" frozen drink stand. ) In 1999, the park gutted "Adventure Village" and gave the area it's current "Action Zone" re-theme. It was at this time that the park re-named the Skycoaster from "Drop Zone", demolished the "Congo Coolers" drink stand, and built the Intamin Giant Drop in its place - giving it the name "Drop Zone." Finally, here's a rare look at the gutting of Adventure Village during the Action Zone re-theme. Pics (taken by yours truly) start with the final weekend of operation as "Adventure Village including "Drop Zone" and Congo Coolers drink stand, and then show the gut-job they did over winter 1999.

I thought only Tower Topics could promote their brand on KIC?

The first pieces of RiverRacers are constructed! I haven't been by there lately, so I can't provide exterior pictures. But, KI released another update on the ride and it's all coming together! https://www.visitkingsisland.com/blog/2025/january/soak-city-expansion-construction-updates Honestly, I kind of forgot about the interior lighting on the ride. What do you guys think about the water propulsion jets? They kind of seem different compared to other water coasters I've seen like Cheetah Chase, Wildebeest, and Krakatau. Here are pics from Cheetah Chase and Wilddebeest.