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Monday 12/15 was a great night to see the Christmas lights with snow completely covering the ground. The crowd however was very low but park management did a great job tonight. They kept the park opened for the advertised hours. Racer and Flight of Fear were operating all night. Racer was just operating the red side and the blue side still has snow on the tracks. Mystic Timbers, Soap Box and Sol Spin were closed. The train and Shake Rattle and Roll closed early and most of the outdoor entertainment was canceled. They also quietly closed down the duplicate restaurants earlier in the night (pizza, burgers). But there were rides open until Park close and restaurants open until at least 930.

Sometimes when I look at a photo of Monster like the one above, I appreciate how complex the ride is, especially considering the time from which it came. I realize its complexity is also kind of its downfall in some areas, but really its such a fascinating hunk of machinery for how old it is. I will be glad to hear all the little motors whirring in sync again next season!

It'd never fly today with the (good and justified) safety standards, but I'd have loved to see the painted ground return. Were the red fences in the background replaced for a reason or were they just a casualty of time? I've seen them in so many early KI pictures and think they look a whole lot better than the black bar fences currently found around the park.

I'd be happy if they put a pause on adding more mini-lands in favor of focusing on improving the original areas of the park. Area 72, Adventure Port, and Camp Snoopy are nice but I hope we see an Old Coney, an Oktoberfest, and a Rivertown expansion/refurbishment before the park carves them up even more. Some of my previous iterations for this area included a new flat ride in the Saltwater Circus plot, but I've been really set on a 2-level indoor restaurant or a small pond surrounded by a lot of nature (to make up for the lost Swan Lake). After some measuring, I've found that a 1 story building around 8,000+ square feet could fit there and could be larger depending on the footprint. It'd be half the size of the Grand Pavilion at Cedar Point (16,000+ square feet on the ground floor), but you'll be hard pressed to find a space for something of that size at Kings Island that could also fit into its surroundings. A flat ride might do well though.

The Schwarzkopf type monster is a trade-off. It is quicker loading because all gondolas load at the same time, but it does not have as high of a range of motion of their arms so it’s a bit less thrillIng ride

Noooo way! Until they are able to transport people in and out of the back portion of the park (whether it be by ferry, monorail, etc. or some sort of mainland parking), taking out parking spaces (that are absolutely full at multiple points of the summer/fall) is not the answer.

From aerial photos I've seen this year, it does look like the ground is painted again.

Sea Warrior at Indiana Beach is similar(ish) to Monster....fun ride, I think it's better than Monster honestly. All of the ride vehicles are loaded at once on the ground and are independently able to move up and down throughout the ride cycle.

Nearly sets record

Means nothing the WinterFest dates for 2026 are on the calendar. Ask those who bought Kings Dominion passes for 2025 after seeing the event advertised.

It should be noted there were 141 operating days in 1994 (1514 operating hours and no HalloWeekends) vs. 153 in 2025 (1546 operating hours). Cost of 1994 one day ticket was $25.95 vs. $50 in 2025. 1994 Season pass was $74.95 (excluding parking & park amenities) vs. 2025 silver pass which does include parking and some basic amenities.

I had a great time the two days we spent there last summer. Some uptime issues with Top Thrill 2 and Millie and it was so hot outside and a bit crowded, but we were able to get several rides on each. My youngest son who just found his love for coasters a couple years ago, was floored by his first Intamin experiences. It had been about three years since I had been up there, and I was reminded why I have driven that 4 plus hours so many times to experience such an amazing park!

As much as I think Cedar Point could add more attractions on the peninsula, I don't think they should replace any of the parking spaces until a satellite lot and shuttle service are built on the mainland. If Cedar Point wants to increase their attendance even more they should find ways to make the day-to-day experience better. Maybe continuing to improve the dining offerings and making it so the rides have less overall downtime would help while they wait for their next big addition. When it does come time for a new major addition, I think Cedar Point should look at the feasibility of creating a mini-land on Millennium Island with a wide and level path crossing from Frontier Trail over to Camp Snoopy. One of the big reasons (in my mind) of why Dinosaurs Alive! and Forbidden Frontier "failed" was because they were too out of the way and were each a closed-loop experience. Something like I have below would be an amazing way to cut through the center of the peninsula while opening up another 4-ish acres of space for new rides and a new midway. Paving a wide path across the island would also save those parking spaces that would help contribute to more attendance each year. This space is big enough for at least four new flat rides and a small coaster (depending on how feasible it is to get it around Millennium Force.

Has the park “maxed out” on their report potential? Is there a next “big leap” that they need to take? IMO, I think they need to “eat” at some of the onsite parking- primarily in the CP Shores Water park. Nearly 10 acres of land that could be purposed for another report, a waterpark expansion or even a dry park expansion. Not saying rip the whole thing out, but seeing all that space has me thinking.

Yikes... "Six Flags Slump" making the headline before the near-attendance record is tough.

One has to wonder how much coming this close played into them getting rid of the mid weekday closures early in the season for next year? One more open day this year and they would have set a record.

Well I think we know when Cedar Point's next coaster is coming based off that article. McClure said without the SF Mexico situation, it would've been 4 more years before another coaster. So I guess this puts their next coaster addition either in 2028 or 2029?

Calling out to all of the Monster lovers... WE HAVE PROGRESS!!! I spotted a notable change behind the fence this evening: the rotor (spinny middle thingy whatchamacallit) has been reinstalled in some manner! We didn't get to go over that way to peer over the fence, but this is an amazing change after nearly 8 months of nothing except a new fence and paint on the ride pad. I'd love to see it in the daylight if anyone can get a good photo in the park (without breaking rules or trespassing) or even on the webcam! I'm so excited to see this small bit of progress <3

I suspect they did that because Huron, Ohio is where the Sawmill Creek Resort (where this group met with Jason McClure) is located. At least they're doing something there since that resort's holiday festivities were cancelled for this year. I don't know how much giving away the gate (at least through the MVP sale) bumped the attendance numbers, but either way I think increased attendance is good either way. If there's nothing "big" coming next year — which it seems there isn't — I hope they can use some of their funds to add shade to the Cedar Point Shores and plant more trees throughout the rest of the park. Maybe they could even do some work to improve the parking lot! Best of luck to Cedar Point as they ride the wave of their newest coasters! I'm hopeful that they can keep up the attendance and maybe even set a new record soon enough.

Interesting that they set the story in Huron rather than Sandusky. Huron isn't far from Sandusky but it's not where the park is located.

One of my best seasons there!

When you give away the gate, did you have a good year?

I feel like this past season was the busiest I've ever seen it, so I can only say that definitely almost hit a record!