Timchat2

I appreciated that the Eiffel Tower tree and International Street were lit up with blue and gold for the finale of the New Year's Eve fireworks to usher in the 50th anniversary celebration. It was a nice touch!

It was still a fun time, although you lost a lot of the up-close character interaction that comes with the stops. That said, I don't think the show stop for WinterFest Wonderland Parade is as strong at the stop for Spectacle of Color at Grand Carnivale. That stop seems to immediately pull in and energize guests in a way I've seen few park parades accomplish anywhere. The flow of music and dance just clicks with the audience. The stop for WinterFest Wonderland Parade is still fun and playful but it doesn't seem like guests click with it as readily. Admittedly the idea of a high-energy Christmas parade is fairly new to regional theme parks so I can understand if guests will take some time to get onboard.

Does Kings Dominion leave their floats out after the last show stop since it surrounds the Eiffel Tower? We haven't been this year to see what happens.

The Jack Frost floats at Carowinds and Kings Dominion seem to have been generating "snow" for their entire runs this season, so it would nice for Kings Island's float to finally join the party. It's a great effect!

If the heavy rain had started up again during the parade that might have actually happened.

There weren't any show stops. The parade ran the entire route and non-float-riding characters did their usual peeling off by the Bandstand after what would have been the last show stop. Otherwise, it appeared to be the same number of performers and the choreography was unchanged.

I appreciate all the little refreshes throughout many of the shows this season. Last night we noticed that Charlie Brown's Christmas Spectacular appears to have a new lighting design that brings some extra life to the show, like during the "sleigh ride" with Sally and Linus. Also, it looks like the stage deck of the Kings Island Theater has been redone. I remember looking fairly worn in previous years. All of this things add up ( like the new Mistletones set as well as the new signage and lighting to draw attention to Sounds of the Nativity) and it is great to see the park putting some extra thought and care into such an important part of what makes WinterFest so special. As others have said, this year's event feels as bright and alive as ever!

A huge THANK YOU to the park for performing a modified version of the WinterFest Wonderland Parade tonight despite the iffy weather. It was such a pleasant surprise!

Another nice improvement is the new set for The Mistletones. The show has always been pleasant and fun but now it feels more like a proper show set (and possibly acts as something of a windbreaker for the performers). Hopefully they can get the little "On Air" sign light to work. That would be a cute touch.

The new Four Drummers Drumming is pretty great! The entire show has a lot of energy and seems to really get the crowd involved. Major props to all involved!

I've been hoping that the newer show "Home for the Holidays" from Knott's Merry Farm will replace Charlie Brown's Christmas Spectacular (which itself is a modified version of a Knott's show) at the Kings Island Theater. While I enjoy the energy of individual dance segments Christmas Spectacular has a slightly awkward pace. If Tinker's Toy Factory can't happen in there for whatever reason it would be nice for the Kings Island Theater to have a proper large-scale holiday production in the vein of Christmas in the Smokies and I think Home for the Holidays could potentially be that kind of show.

I've noticed that too. Some guests seem to treat the vocalists as a TV running in the background, which is a shame since Sounds of the Nativity has perhaps the strongest performers in the park.

Carowinds does seem to be a test to extend the WinterFest season. I'm still not sure why they are deciding to be so conservative with Kings Island's schedule when all of the other parks are starting their WinterFests before Thanksgiving and/or extending to after New Year's Day. Presumably Kings Island is still one of the most-visited parks in the chain so you'd think they would have some confidence in adding dates sooner than later.

Carowinds started their WinterFest on November 13 (the larger show productions start this weekend) with a preview weekend on November 6-7, so apparently Charlotte is as ready for an early holiday season as Canada. Also, Carowinds can pull off the switchover from Haunt AND still have the park operate each weekend. Why isn't Kings Island doing the same? Wouldn't they want the additional operating days generating revenue if they have the staffing? Carowinds, Kings Dominion and Canada's Wonderland seem to think it is worth the effort to get things rolling.

Is there something about the labor market in Cincinnati that keeps Kings Island from having the staff to do the switchover that other parks are able to pull off before Thanksgiving?

Especially if Kings Island is considered one of "the Big Four" within Cedar Fair (Cedar Point, Knott's, Canada's Wonderland and Kings Island). Hopefully the WinterFest Wonderland Parade is a vote of confidence.

Any theories as to why Kings Island's WinterFest has the shortest operating calendar of the parks? Here are the dates for the five WinterFest events this year: Carowinds -- Nov. 13 - Jan. 9 (3-11PM many nights) Kings Dominion -- Nov. 20 - Jan. 9 Canada’s Wonderland -- Nov. 13 - Dec. 31 California’s Great America -- Nov. 26 - Jan. 9 Kings Island -- Nov. 26 - Dec. 31 All of these parks have Halloween events but at least three of the WinterFest events (Carowinds, Kings Dominion and Canada's Wonderland) open before Thanksgiving, so I don't know if the switchover time is entirely the reason. WinterFest is probably my favorite time of year at Kings Island and I am VERY excited and grateful to have the event again in 2021, particularly with Worlds of Fun losing its WinterFest this year. I just hope the short operating calendar isn't a sign that WinterFest at Kings Island isn't a strong performer in the eyes of Cedar Fair.