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Very few people outside enthusiast community know that Superman exists, let alone travel all the way to California to ride it. There's no "outshining" when it can't shine that far. They just happened to overhaul TTD at the right time and that's why it's still standing, in my opinion, Ka may have received the same treatment if TT2 hadn't fallen flat on its face in a puddle of mud. And probably most importantly, Falcon's Flight is opening soon so TT2 (if it ever reopens) will have been king for just about a couple months. It's called a business, they'll do what they can to make money, Cedar Point is the profit child and so they'll pump investment in it. Having more, possibly better coasters doesn't make a better all around park. Cedar Point's landscaping, atmosphere and theming for attractions is far inferior to KI. I get it's frustrating that The Vortex plot has been sitting untouched, but we just received the Camp Snoopy overhaul and a new coaster with it. Just because our small niche isn't the demographic Camp Snoopy is targeted at doesn't make that investment a failure and a waste of time. Excuse the rant, conspiracy theories just tend to annoy me.

As a matter of fact, that's why the Guest Services brought me a special surprise after I got my 500th ride last June....it did in fact consist of Adventure Express sticker, Adventure Express t-shirt (official) plus my first ever airbrushed Adventure Express t-shirt with 500 rides on it....and yes, temporary commemorative ride sign (certificate with Sycamore Gem Mine (Tunnel #1) that I got.....then in October 1 hour before Sunday Night Halloween Haunt started, the Guest Services had a special late surprise for me....Yes, my second new commemorative ride sign (wood plaque with new Adventure Express logo in red & gold colors to match the ride) for my 500th ride (June 24th, 2024) with Adventure Express...so definitely better late than never. I have a picture of my new commemorative ride sign.......there it is right there.

Wait until Passholder preview day to announce the paint isn't dry LOL https://www.kingsdominion.com/blog/2025/welcoming-pantherian-to-the-jungle

I got bored and did a cost breakdown comparing 1 day at Epic Universe to 1 day at Kings Island to a Kings Island Gold Pass and thought I'd share it here. I looked it up and here's the math for a Saturday 6/14 visit for anyone who's curious: 1 Single Day Epic Universe Ticket $179.00 1 Single Day Epic Universe Express Pass $239.00 Tax (calculated at checkout) $27.24 TOTAL COST: $446.23 That's nearly $500 for one person, not including travel, hotel, parking, food & beverage, or any other expenses. Everything was about $50-100 higher than the listed "Starting from" price. Not gonna lie, I expected it to be expensive, but it makes me happier about that being the same price for a Kings Island All Park Gold Pass with some of the bells and whistles on it. That cost breakdown for the same day at Kings Island is currently: 1 2025 Single Day Admission to Kings Island $55.00 (online price) 1 all day Fast Lane wristband $135.00 1 2025 Premium All Day Dining $45.99 1 2025 Single Day Parking $30.00 Processing Fee $8.99 Tax (calculated at checkout) $3.10 TOTAL COST: $278.08 And lastly for those wondering what you can get for $14 more than the price of admission to Epic Universe with an Express Pass, a new Gold Pass with the All Park Passport, Gold All Season Dining—All Park, and Drink Plan Plus Paper Cup is only $460.63 at checkout! That's for access to all Six Flags parks with food and beverage included for a good number of them. I'm not going to say they are even close to comparable experiences, but this just reinforced for me how good of a deal this is.

Are you going to BGW? Pantheon is a much superior ride to Pantheria. But the best ride at BGW is Verbolten.

Stunt coaster trains are on the track! Also, is it me or did the front of the arcade buildings get painted? Not sure if I remember that color from years past.

I've seen people propose on top of the Eiffel Tower as the view is very nice especially during dusk. I also think during the fireworks anywhere, but especially on I Street is great too!

In addition to going to the preview on Monday (*so* excited ) my partner and I bought single day AP tickets when they first went on sale months ago for 6/20. I saw on the news this morning that Universal Express just went on sale for Epic so thought I’d look at adding Express to our trip on 6/20–the cost for that date (and pretty much all of June/July) is $240 *EACH* and does NOT include Dragon Racer’s Rally Mine-Cart Madness™ Harry Potter and the Battle at the Ministry I’m still debating (hate the idea of 4 hour+ lines for everything) but have to say I’m a little sticker-shocked by almost $500 for two people in addition to what I already spent on the single day tickets (which, I can’t even remember how much they were since it was months ago that I bought them) EDIT Update: yeah, I went ahead and bought the Express for 6/20. I rationalized it because my partner’s and my birthdays are a week apart and our Epic visit falls between them, it’s kind of like a birthday present…we want to have time to spend some time at the rooftop bar at Helios Grand, etc., etc. (You know—the normal rationalizations when you’re attempting to justify an extravagant purchase )

^being a privately owned company has it's advantages.

The Beast is my favorite coaster, but I rode AE more than any other last year. The lava effect was working early on, but not later in the season. in '18, it was working consistently on my visits throughout the year.

Anyone remember how Adventure Express used to have the fog, special lights along the course, and sound effects? I remember riding Adventure Express as a kid and having those features really made Adventure Express really fun! I love how they kept the theme going in the last tunnel. It's not a let down to me at all. As a kid when you're riding it, you're scared. When you're an adult, I can see where some people feel that last tunnel is a let down. It still doesn't bother me any.

If I remember correctly, it was built to be heavily themed and be as much Indiana Jones like as possible. There used to be mist all along the low track and parts where arrows came up and down in the tunnels as well as a number of skeletons along the ride. There was a track closed sign as well at one of the tunnels. When Paramount owned KI, they played the Raiders March, aka the Indiana Jones theme through the overhead speakers along with commentary. I have always liked AE as a coaster. Great starter coaster for growing kids. My 6 year old son rides it and just rode Stunt Coaster for the first time a few weeks ago. A park has to have in betweens for the transition from kids rides to bigger ones. I figure The Bat will be his next one. He likes steel coasters best.