CoastersRZ

I would agree with that. I think the Antique car addition this year is a wonderful addition that be enjoyed by all, young, old, grandparents, kids, etc.

And as stated in the conference call, they will still make large additions like coasters, they are just going to space them out more, and leverage their current collection of rides more and fill in between with more economical attractions/special events. I think most on here would agree that Cedar Fair has done a great job in updating Kings Island`s infrastructure over the last decade plus of their ownership.

I am ready for it. But I likely will not make it down to Universal for several more years. With a two year old, and another on the way in June, my trips in the near term are going to be local parks. Coney, KI, maybe some Holiday World and Kentucky Kingdom for the foreseeable future. I am still trying to get down to Carowinds to ride Fury 325 (and Copperhead Strike looks amazing too). This ride does look amazing. I wonder how the theming will stack up to the Forbidden Journey ride. I know that I was blown away when I rode that back in 2010. It looks like a really cool concept.

I think they stopped using the Rivertown side (known as the Ohio Overland Auto Livery) around 1999 or so. It was one of the first years that I had a season pass (which was in 1998).

It is looking quite nice. I can`t wait to take my son on it this year! He loves cars (Hotwheels are all over our house), so he will surely love this ride.

We have podcast number four recorded already. I am in the process of editing it now. Look for it soon. We also have part of another podcast recorded, just need to finish recording that one. I do like the idea of an in park trip report/walk through. It might take some coordination and work to pull off, but would be a nice podcast.

I would not say that they neglect certain parks, they just do not put large capital projects in all of their parks. Some of the smaller parks like MiA do not need to receive large capital projects to see a return on the investment. Yes, they would likely benefit from having a park in Texas, but I do not see any in that market that they would be interested in purchasing.

Yes, you are talking huge outlays of capital. There are not too many markets that are not already served by a major theme park in this country either. Hard Rock Park was the last ground up theme park built in this country, and look how that turned out.

Well, they purchased Castaway Bay before it was Castaway Bay. And it is immediately adjacent to their property. If they bought Kalahari, they would probably buy the entire chain (including the one in the Wisconsin Dells, the one in Pocono, PA, and the one that is coming soon in Round Rock Texas). Other than the one in Sandusky, there is not a lot of overlap with their current markets, and it could provide another source of year round revenue. I personally do not see them making a move with Kalahari, but it is interesting to ponder.

I think that this topic is different enough from the other threads on gigas that this can stay for now. Don’t be so harsh on new members. I am sure that Number5IsAlive is now aware of the search feature.

I know that they made reference to experiential events that draw people for repeat visits, which is what Ghost Town Alive does at Knott`s as the story line is always changing.

And Maverick was near walk on the entire time of the morning ERT (at least it was after we hit up Steel Vengeance).

Repeat visits among pass holders ultimately means that they hope to entice the pass holders to drop extra money in the park, and increase per capita spending. If they are just getting a pass holder to visit an extra two visits without spending any additional money, that would push per capita spending down.

But don`t they spread out the realization of their season pass sales (advanced purchases as they call them). And didnt`t they say that advanced purchases were up 25% compared to this time last year? Although you could be right. With the access at the end of 2018 with a pass purchased, it could have pushed people into purchasing their passes earlier than they had in the past. So the 25% increase could just be because of people that opted to buy earlier, instead of waiting until February, March or April.

I believe Carowinds still has one... And I wouldn`t look for Nighthawk to go anywhere just yet. Rumor has it that Carowinds is removing their white water rafting ride. Nighthawk takes up a lot of space in the middle of the park. Before it was built, the area had remained relatively vacant after the Smurf`s left Smurf Island (back when Carowinds had an island with a river boat that went around it, similar to the riverboats at the Disney parks.

That is a gross generalization (referring to "no one rides them"). While we may eventually see some of the Arrow coasters disappear, I doubt we see all of them disappear. Many of the parks have a lot of Arrow coasters (Kings Island has three of them, and Cedar Point has five of them (Iron Dragon, Corkscrew, Magnum XL-200, Cedar Creek Mine Ride and Gemini)).

On the earnings conference call, they noted that season pass represented more than 50% of their attendance. They also touched on the loyalty rewards program. It will be tested at select parks in 2019, before a broader roll out in 2020. This program is encouraged to increase visits by season pass holders. $140-150 million capital investment anticipated moving forward. $140 million allocated for the 2019 capital budget.

https://ir.cedarfair.com/news/news-details/2019/Cedar-Fair-Reports-Full-Year-and-Fourth-Quarter-2018-Results/default.aspx Record full year net revenues and record attendance in 2018. Operating income was down 2% when compared to 2017 due to higher operating costs related to increased wages due to minimum wages increases.

Very cool seeing all that old memorabilia! If you visit Coney, there is a cool museum set up just behind the Swing A Round. It has tons of cool stuff in there. It is actually right next door to the rides office.

I knew Kings Dominion had a Clown band that was back. I was unaware that Carowinds also had one. I know for a few seasons, Kings Island had the Kings Island Five, I think they were called. But they didn`t have the crazy shananigans that the Clown Band had that made them so much fun.

I doubt we see a change to the park maps. Cedar Fair park maps have looked that way for years. I personally don`t find anything wrong with the style of the park maps.

Phantom Theater was a great ride. But I still remember riding the Smurf`s Enchanted Voyage when I was really young. I remember being super mad that Kings Island decided to remove the ride and replace it with a "dumb" haunted house. Funny that now I would love to have that "dumb" haunted house back.

There is a reason that a park like Michigan`s Adventure hasn`t seen any flashy big new B&M coasters installed. It is because with relatively little investment, people (especially the locals), keep coming to this park and spending money there. Why spend $5 million to make $10 million, when you can spend $100,000 to make $10 million? I know those are generalized numbers, but that is the philosophy that Cedar Fair has used with Michigan`s Adventure. The former scenario makes $2 for every $1 invested, while the latter makes $10 for every $1 invested. If I was investing money, I would certainly want the one that nets me $10 for every dollar I invest.

I am still holding out hope that Kings Island will bring back the Clown Band one of these years. I have fond memories of that from when I was younger, and the roving street entertainment is part of what makes the park feel magical.

Sorry for not getting commenting on this topic sooner. I thought I would offer some insights into my history in amusement parks. I am starting my 18th season as a seasonal employee at Coney Island. The last nine seasons I have been one of the rides managers at Coney Island. I do all the scheduling for the entire department for the entire season. There are days that I miss being a front line employee running rides all day long, but being a manager presents its own challenges. I love working at Coney, and it has enhanced my appreciation for amusement parks. Little did I know I would end up working at Coney so long. I really do not look at it as a job. I look forward to going into work every day. Currently, I can`t wait for the season to start, and for us to hire our new crew of ride operators to put smiles on kids and families faces and to help create memories worth repeating (I am stealing that slogan from another park). I have also worked at Kings Island during Haunt in rides at Skyflyer many years ago. That was a fun experience and provided a unique contrast to Coney Island. My professional job, for when I am not working at Coney on the weekends, is as an architect. I have been privileged to work on some pretty cool projects, including some amusement park projects. http://tra-design.net/portfolio-type/entertainment/ Pretty neat job, if I do say so myself. I hope that helps give you some insight, even if it is a bit late.