BB1

Knotts proper they stated verbatim that gold APP does not apply for parking at Knotts Berry Farms.

Just got a 404 error after posting with quoted text in the post itself. I don't know if it was due to the text or how but just wanted to give you a heads up!

Does the All Park Passport add-on give me the same benefits as a Platinum Pass? At this point I'm half tempted to call Kings Island or Knotts to confirm this policy as if this is not true I am going to have to upgrade. I was told verbatim that I get the same benefits of a platinum pass when I purchase the 2024 Gold Pass and the all park passport addon. If this isn't true, then I'm going to have to re-evaluate my pass moving forward as the value of the Platinum pass includes that parking availability. Update: Just called the park, GP APP does not include the parking benefit as stated on the Kings Island website that your platinum pass originally had. Prestige passholders get free parking however. Very upsetting as I was planning to either fly or road trip out to Knotts

If at all possible a hat with snapback would be greatly appreciated. It doesn’t have to be a flat bill, but something like a trucker hat would be something I’m open to buying in the future. Also, even though I never wear t shirts outside of under hoodies/sweaters or working out, the KIC t shirt has held up pretty well over the years!

You’re the one everyone at work comes to for KI info and theme parks in general…..Doesn’t help when you wear your KI 50th jacket to work either.

It has a pretty small taproom, but the mead selection is amazing. The beer is typically solid, I enjoy their Pilsner but they have a lot of exotic beers like milkshake IPA’s that I’m not a major fan on. It’s a perk to have a brewery/meadery this side of the river and the location is close to work to stop off on Friday evenings too.

Honestly for this off season I’ve tried to do something different every weekend. We have Cincy Beerfest this weekend & the zoo lined up, but there’s also a few new breweries I have to hit up before the spring. (And a few I need to go back to like Fabled) Also I finally bought Planet Zoo and it is arguably my most played game besides Baldur’s Gate 3 for 2024.

Back car front seat, definitely need the leg room but it gives that extra kick doing down the first drop. In all honesty The Bat is the one coaster I hope the park gives more tlc for, it’s stuck in its own corner and it could definitely use some theming tlc.

As I sat in the office today looking out on the cincy skyline beyond the trees and hills of NKY, I started to reflect on the fact that KI is closed and I’m not due back to Orlando for at least two months…..which means I won’t scratch my coaster itch for a few more months now. We all have to deal with the off season blues one way or another, so what’s your favorite off season activity to keep yourself active? (Special thanks to Ryan & Don’s Tower Topics for making me think about this while listening to the podcast inbetween calls/meetings today. If you aren’t listening, start now because it’s actually pretty good!)

I’d go a step further, I would love to see a true craft brewery event at the park showcasing local breweries and driving attendance. Call it Hops and Drops or something along those lines. If nothing else a revitalization of the Biergarten to be modern or have it be sponsored/incorporated with Hoffbraühaus.

Riddlers is great for the inversions, however having ridden 4 stand ups total in my lifetime (Vortex, Riddler, Georgia Scorcher and Pipeline) Pipeline is way more enjoyable and ranks better for me being an upper middle of the pack coaster. That being said it’s still a great coaster I just enjoy Pipeline more.

Call me a critic, call me cynical but this just felt like a blog post from a theme-park enthusiast site rather than an actual park statement. The syntax felt rigid, the whole piece just felt unprofessionally written. It’s also interesting that the park is going with the “Kings Island Team” direction instead of giving an actual writer a spotlight. The content itself is interesting from a numbers perspective but other than that it feels like a step back from what we got when Don was producing content for the park.

You know, I saw those hats in the store for WF. If it weren’t for the fact that I was spending all my money on Knotts Berry Farms merch I would have bought the whole set….……Now that it’s 2024 now I’m obligated to get at least a beanie hat right?

With a big sign that says please do not enter. I loved getting pictures in the snow globe, the lack of access isn’t to thrilling.

So idk where you got your magnet but they were out of them on Friday & Saturday unfortunately. Absolutely enjoyed the parade viewing as it was a nice spot to view the parade and it’s an added perk to the overall value of the pass. I think if CF gave the pass holders, gold, silver and Prestige, merchandise options or at least a culture like Universal does would do wonders for the overall mindset of the passes. It’s the small things that Universal does that puts them above the rest of the competition out there, which to be frank even though it’s a large Florida chain park it feels like a small park when it comes to the pass benefits. I was pleasantly surprised when I learned that the park & the hotels ships your merchandise to your house for a small charge. I didn’t have enough space for the throw blanket and it actually arrived pretty quickly. (For context I bought it on Saturday night, shipped Sunday arrived today via FedEx). Having that service would be a Godsend for a park like CP/KI.

Honest typo, been a USOAP Premier pass holder for years and it still gives value. (Fun fact I’m back in FL and will be using this true pass perk this evening!)

I occasionally peruse the FB groups which occasionally leads to me losing brain cells. In all honesty I felt as if the food quality and diversity nosedived after Chef Major was promoted. I’m going to give the new head chef credit where it’s due, there have been several unique items that have came to the food Venues but also we lost tri tip to chicken tenders at Coney BBQ, which is almost more sacrilegious than RMC’ing a certain wooden coaster. Of course, I have to give credit as Chef Major is working with food for special event line ups, which I believe WF should fall under it. I honestly enjoyed the honey baked style ham, but the Mac and cheese had me wanting more than what I got. Even my sister, the biggest Mac and cheese enthusiast out there was unimpressed with the lineup we got. Keep it simple, make it something that is what people want not a Mexican take on Mac and cheese.

Fun fact, I use my pass perks more at Universal Orlando than I do at KI. Who could say no to getting that sweet express after 5 included with your AP, and an air conditioned pass holder lounge with chargers! I rarely look at my email, I rarely look at what’s going on with the pass perks. I am quite content in getting my discounted merchandise once every few months and getting my pass mandated meal and beverage within the allocated time parameters. (No kidding I time it out to the second every trip I take to the likes of CP or KI)

I’ll have you know you’re the reason why I spent a lot of money on Knotts goods tonight. In all honesty the online marketplace was sold out of the syrups so I was pleasantly surprised that I found the lineup at Sweet Spot. I hope KI/CF considers keeping it in the park for next year!

So I hope everyone bought their Vortex models this year, because I bought the last one last night. Thankfully I have a project for the end of the year, it’s a small box for such a large model. (Which will pair very well with my Velocicoaster model I have in the office too) Did anyone here actually paint their models or did you just leave them as wood? I’m planning on just keeping mine as is but would be open to it if I found some nice paint jobs.

I have a very strong feeling that CF did not go into this giving up their free will. It’s a merger, but from what it sounds it’s not something where the parks are going to be SIX’d out the gate. I’m definitely shocked by this, and I will be looking into this more later today.

It seems as if most of our qualms stem from Kings Island not having enough when it comes to value for Haunt. Whether it be due to administrative reasons, or corporate, making it a separately ticketed event would give the park more revenue for the event to be fleshed out more and could bring more revenue to pay for more scaractors. It would also in my opinion drastically decrease the families and increase adult/teen groups who come to get scared and not get photos taken with every character they see. This would be in line with parks like Knotts and Kings Dominion who have stepped up their game in years past. My proposal would be a similar model to what Universal has: One free night per haunt season, with the capacity to get discounted tickets for the remainder of the season. What do you think about separating park admission for something like this?

Some good points here, some things change, others didn’t. I would seriously look at what people were saying last year and what people were saying this year and use that as a bench mark. Some points fellow members discussed were used for Haunt this year whether or not that means people are reading this is up in the air but at least there was some form of progression while overall we saw some recession. ”if you don’t learn from the past you’re doomed to repeat it” or something like that

So maybe I’m not in the know but where did you get this information? Is there a bonafide source with reference we could see that these claims are true? I’m upset Don’s stone is removed as well but I’m not privy to all of the information out there nor am I about to start a rumor mill about a man’s abrupt career change. In my eyes Don is a private individual who had a private separation from Cedar Fair with professionalism and respect for parties involved. Which out of respect to Don I’m not delving into anything much more than that when it comes to the stone. That’s really it without stirring the pot any longer. He’s going to be missed, I’ve met the man twice at the park and he went above and beyond from what I’ve seen at the park. He has a legacy, he is practically a part of the KI legendarium. He’s the benchmark for PR professionalism and interactivity and the park won’t be the same without him. The fact he put up with a fanboy site about the park he worked at day in and day out is a testament to his dedication to the fans of the park.

Alright rounding out our #1 spots are Last of Us, Dueling Dragons & Yeti Campground Kills. I can't put any above any others as they all have open sets, they all have fantastic scares and they do not let up & they have arguably the best theming in the event. Starting with The Last Of Us, it felt like you were transported into the game and you were a character in the world itself. It had character, it had the scares, it was an amazing haunt that told the story and gave you the scares you crave. For anyone who grew up coming to Islands of Adventure in the 2000's, you might remember Merlin Wood and the Dueling Dragons. I was actually surprised to see that HHN was doing a Dueling Dragons themed haunt but I was excited to see what they had to offer. The last house to look at is Yeti Campground Kills, still on par with the other two haunts prior but it's still arguably one of my favorites. Wrapping up my report I wanted to highlight a few things of note The FEDRA food rations aka a ravioli can with fried enoki mushrooms were amazing. I had no complaints and I kept the can to use as a planter at home The pizza skulls are amazing, you can't tell me they aren't. Surfer Boy Tropical Dream Punch was pretty good, although I will probably keep to my Ghoul Juice as I love the flavor more. Death Eaters were amazing, I loved their set up and the experience was different the 2 times I went back to watch the opening show. Dead Coconut Club 23 felt like something straight out of a 50's sci fi flick. There were some amazing sets and it was a very nice reprieve after doing HHN or starting up the night. The scarezones were somewhat mid for me. I loved the Vamp area, as the woodstock vibe with vampires felt right for some reason for me. It had some amazing sets, amazing music (for once 70's music was used for ambience to make it more believable that the vampires took over a music festival) and the scares were pretty solid. Everything else besides the Jungle area somewhat fell flat but were still good zones nevertheless, The tribute store was amazing, I loved the Earl references and the comic book shop concept actually worked very well for what they did. 10/10 and I probably bought too much merchandise but at least I got that sweet sweet USOAP discount. Overall this year was a roaring success for me. I have minor complaints and one house fell flat in terms of scares but delivered on the theme, which I can't be too upset over. I will be coming back two more weekends in October so I'm excited to get back and return to the campground and Merlinwood once more. Thanks for reading my trip report! Feel free to comment any thoughts you had about HHN this year or ask me anything about the event that I didn't cover here!