cdubbs727

Gemini's still a good ride, and it's a great intermediate ride for kids who aren't ready for the big stuff yet. It's a signature CP coaster, and it anchors an entire midway. I think it'll stay around for a bit. Cedar Creek Mine Train is the one I wouldn't mind seeing them lose; even as an intermediate coaster, it's one that I've seen kids roll their eyes at.

My guess is many protocols will still be in place, particularly masks and social distancing. The vaccine will likely only just be getting mass distribution by spring and summer, so I wouldn't expect a return to anything resembling normalcy until fall at the earliest. Masks and social distancing have been proven to reduce the spread of the virus (we live in Michigan and recently were able to decrease our daily case load from 8,000 a day in November to about 1,000 a day this month just by mask protocols and shutting down again -- we're now slowly reopening, so we'll see what happens). Personally, I thought these were two areas where KI did a great job last year; wearing masks never felt like too much of an issue (we just quickly learned to wear lightweight cloth ones) and I think the park was set up really well for social distancing. We felt safe and, correct me if I'm wrong, but I don't believe there has been a mass outbreak connected to a theme park. What I think you might see a pullback on are some of the other measures. For instance, now that the virus has been shown not to live on surfaces for a long time, I wonder if you'll see less of the shutting down for cleaning. Since KI stopped the reservation system in mid summer, my guess is you won't see that again, and hopefully they'll be back to normal operating hours (the biggest letdown for us last year was having to get everything done to be out of the park by closing time, which was like 7 or 8; I can't remember which). You may even see Soak City open back up. My guess is temperature checks will still remain, but I remember that was a quick nonissue last year. The park really handled it all well. My hope is that we'll see a park that runs like normal (normal hours, a standard calendar) but with the safety protocols of masks and social distancing. It's not "back to normal," but I think it will be a big step in the right direction.

Oh, those are definitely two good ones. I would recommend just tearing down both, although I wouldn't object to putting a good, new dark ride in either one. But keeping them up is just a waste of good spaces. Festhaus, 100%. It should be one of their prime locations -- that should be where some of their biggest and most spectacular shows play (it used to be, at least). Now the shows (at least, pre-COVID, when shows were a bigger staple) in there feel like afterthoughts. And the food is really disappointing. Panda Express just isn't something I want in a theme park, but that's just me. While I love the LaRosa's Pizza in other locations, I've noticed that the Festhaus' pizza is consistently lower quality than there. Here's what I'd love for Festhaus: Clear out the arcade games and all that crap. Get a good bar in there, not just the beer cart. Install some more serving areas and make it a Taste of KI-type thing, where every eatery in the park has at least one selection -- maybe a BBQ pork sandwich, a burrito bowl, a burger, LaRosa's, Skyline, etc. Maybe have the Brewhouse staff operate the bar. I'm sure there are contracts and logistics that might complicate that, but it needs some variety. Or, just make it the park's high-end eating establishment (particularly if they aren't going to bring back International Restaurant). And get a great show in there, not just some country filler or something with lame songs. I remember the days when Festhaus was home to an ice skating show, and it was packed. Do that. Or make the stage space smaller and book local acts from across the area to come. Or get a KI house band established. Right now, it just feels like a catch all.

I'm sure there are things that can be criticized, but I don't know if they are specific to KI only. You could talk about some staff (I've always found that while ride, shop and maintenance crews are always very friendly at KI, their food services staff often is kind of lacking), but that's probably a situation wherever you have lower-paid, young, hourly employees. At least with CP, you could criticize how they have so many rides but you can only ride like a handful of them in a given day because of lines. Or you could poke fun at how all their new rides have so much downtime. Or that it's a park that satisfies thrill-seekers and bores the heck out of little kids. KI is really well balanced and well operated. You could, though, poke a little fun at KI's proclivity to hype up a bold new attraction -- and then it's a family ride. They do that quite a bit (but the joke doesn't really work well when their "family rides" are top-notch -- and Mystic Timbers is a solid coaster, whether or not it can be ridden by the whole family).

I think Orion gets the edge from me, but it's a slight one. I just think more thought went into the queue. Both rides have good theming outside the queues, with the news truck at Orion and pickup at Mystic Timbers. The queue theming at Orion is fun and well-thought out, and I'll give it extra points for all the KI history within it. Mystic Timber's queue just has grainy videos, and it doesn't do as well at establishing a story for the ride. True, Mystic Timbers has "the shed," but that's a neutral for me -- I like the attempt, but it's more of a head-scratcher than anything else. And I think the Area 72 really feeds into Orion's story and feeling; RiverTown is the same whether you have Mystic Timbers there or not. But still, it's a toss up. And to be honest, I like Mystic Timbers better than Orion as a ride. So, they equal out.

WWC is a fun ride as is, and I think those who said its theming fine are right. It's a short ride, and a fast one. And the nature of it is that people are constantly on the look out for the next wave or waterfall. I feel like additional theming wouldn't really add much to the experience. I would, however, love Kings Island do create a themed log flume ride somewhere in the park. The Peanuts one is good, but I'd love something along the size of the Keelboats to return, maybe venturing through the Tomb Raider/Crypt building. I like the thinking of adding a themed water ride; I just think doing it to White Water Canyon is inessential.

That's interesting, and maybe it just comes down to proximity. Kings Island was always the park we came down to for multiple days (mainly because we lived four hours away), but I've only made one multi-day trip to Cedar Point in my life. A lot of that might be because I've never had much interest to visit the waterpark. I think the crowds definitely tend to make it a two-day park these days; when we did go for a two-day trip, my wife and I did Fast Lane for the first day and then spent the second doing flat rides and less popular rides. Cramming all the coasters into one day, even as a teenager, was exhausting.

We live in the Detroit area, so Cedar Point would technically be my home park. But over the years, Kings Island is the one I vastly prefer. I haven't been to Cedar Point in about eight years, but we hit Kings Island every year. A lot of it just comes down to experience. When I was a kid, we loved Kings Island because it felt huge. The kids' area was fantastic (I'll always have a soft spot for Hanna Barbara Land) and the different themes just made the park feel so much larger than life. I loved catching our first glimpse of the Eiffel Tower on the freeway and that feelin of walking through the gates onto International Street. Everything about it felt like an experience, from the music that played as you entered to the live entertainment to the food. When I hit my teenage years, I went through the period where nothing beat Cedar Point. At that age, it was all about the thrill rides and I still don't think you can top Cedar Point in that aspect. I haven't had the pleasure of riding GateKeeper, Valrayvn or Steel Vengeance, but even with Millennium Force, TTD, Raptor, Magnum and Maverick, it's a great lineup. Cedar Point was always the park I loved in my teens because it was just one straight day of non-stop roller coaster riding. As I've gotten older, I just have come to love Kings Island more. It's just a more beautiful park; nothing against Cedar Point's peninsula, but Kings Island is just a much better-looking park. You can't beat International Street as a way to experience a park (well, I guess Disney's Main Street). I'm so happy that they haven't tried to add rides to IS, aside from the Eiffel Tower (and yes, Boo Blasters on a technicality). It's just a perfect way to enter and experience the park. There's a more relaxing feel to Kings Island, where Cedar Point just feels like a constant rush, pushing you from one attraction to another. Kings Island doesn't have as many record-breaking coasters, but I love the variety of them. Banshee is a bigger, better Raptor. Orion and Diamondback can't really hold candles to Millennium Force, but they're both fun in their unique ways. I'll take The Bat over Iron Dragon any day, and Adventure Express is both a better mine train coaster and entry-level ride for kids than Cedar Creek Mine Ride. And sure, TTD is a great rush. But Cedar Point is missing The Beast, which is such a unique and special ride. Food at Kings Island is better; every trip I feel like I'm trying to make sure I hit a favorite, whether it's the Coney Mall BBQ, La Rosa's, Skyline or the Brewhouse. Cedar Point has nothing comparable (again, I haven't been there in a few years). Theming, Kings Island is so much better in most areas, although I think KI's Rivertown is a bit too small and has lost its charm as larger rides have gone in there. Cedar Point's Frontierland has a tiny edge there. But Cedar Point doesn't have an International Street. It doesn't have a Coney Mall (technically, I guess much of CP's midway is similar to Coney Mall, but that's just the way the park formed; it doesn't feel like a deliberate theme). It doesn't have a small pocket like Oktoberfest or even a giant non-coaster landmark like the Eiffel Tower. And there's no large place to eat and take in a show, like Festhaus (there are a few small dinner-and-show places at Cedar Point, but KI has always beat it in terms of live entertainment). As I get older, that variety really means so much more. Yeah, Cedar Point has the beach, and they're finally capitalizing on it (which is why their WindSeeker has the edge over KI's). But Kings Island just has more, and feels more like an escape, rather than the carnival on steroids Cedar Point often feels like. Also, I can't overstate how much better the kiddie experience is at Kings Island. It's the perfect park for future coaster junkies. My kids love Boo Blasters and all the kid rides, but Kings Island also offers enough legit coasters in its kids' areas, from Woodstock Express to Flying Ace Aerial Chase. It's the perfect way to prepare them for what comes next. And it's a kids' area I actually enjoy visiting; there have been days where I've spent hours just in Planet Snoopy with my 4yo daughter, and it's been the best day I've had there. I couldn't have that at CP.

Definitely demolish The Crypt building or put something in there. I'm sure it serves a Haunt purpose, but I'm also sure you can stick a haunted house somewhere else; the building's an eyesore. I 100% agree that AZ needs some TLC (don't go chasing Congo Falls?). I understand its theming from the Paramount days --- it was their idea to capture some sort of backlot, stunt-driven feeling. But it just feels shoddy and thrown together. I like the Oktoberfest area, but I wouldn't have a problem if they decided to turn that and AZ into one big zone with a theme of adventure or horror. Between Adventure Express, The Bat, and Banshee, you have that already covered and could probably find some coherent way to theme them all a bit consistently, and maybe change Delirium and Drop Zone a bit to fit in. Add some better facades in the area and then pull out Invertigo, Congo Falls and Timberwolf to put in a few fun flats, dark rides or a coaster. KI's other areas have such a nice feel to them, but AZ just feels really thrown together. Also, I'm beating a dead horse from other threads. But re-open the International Restaurant section, either as a nice sit-down restaurant or a lounge/bar for adults. It's wasting the best view in the park.

Cedar Fair doesn't like transport rides. They're usually a disaster.

Changing the name of Woodstock Express back to The Beastie would be wonderful (I still call it The Beastie, and my kids call it that too; they haven't even tried to correct me). It just plays into the heritage so much more -- I'd also love to see it re-painted yellow (not sure why a Woodstock Roller Coaster is blue anyway) and maybe even add back in its tunnel. But the return of the name and the old signage would be enough. Bring back dining throughout the day in the International Restaurant. The park needs some sort of sit-down, nice eating experience and you can't beat that view. Maybe it's a traditional service restaurant during the day and then a nice bar/lounge in the evening for worn out adults :-). Would be nice to take in the fireworks from there with a nice, cold drink. I really like the way the park leaned into International Street's heritage in the 2019 season and would love to see something like that done in areas throughout the park; just little reminders of its history. Maybe little plaques with pictures of the park throughout the years. Create some sort of exhibit (maybe in Tower Gardens) that includes signage, photos and other memorabilia from old rides and other attractions. Given Coney Mall an overhaul to bring it back to looking like an old theme park. Find some sort of coherent them for Action Zone; if they have big money to spend (which, after this summer, they very well may not), pull out Invertigo and Congo Falls and put some new attraction in there to go with that new theme. At the end of it all, announce whatever is coming in 2023. But make it a game throughout the season, similar to the way they had clues for the last few rides. But don't treat it like a secret. Make it hard, make it a game, and have some way to reward the people who guess it.

Yeah, it was very Indy-ish without being Indy. Even the color scheme on the logo is reminiscent of the Indiana Jones logo (actually kind of surprised -- and happy -- that Paramount never decided to just dress AE up in Tomb Raider garb instead of spending a lot of money on the TR ride, which was such a great ride for such a short amount of time).

Went to KI earlier this week, Monday and Tuesday. Orion was actually the first ride we were able to hit. I have to admit that on my first ride, I had fun with it, but felt slightly underwhelmed. That first drop is great, but I didn't feel like I had experienced anything I couldn't experience on Millennium Force. It was fun, but the lack of airtime (we were sitting in the middle) just made me miss Diamondback -- I love how on DB, you spend half the ride out of your seat. Rode it again late on Tuesday and we were placed in the very front car, and it was a completely different experience. That first drop was amazing. But I think, with expectations out of the way, I was just able to enjoy Orion for what it is. The speed is incredible, and I love that you are constantly turning, constantly changing course. The airtime was better in that front car, and I was amazed at how propulsive the whole thing felt. I probably still prefer MF, but I might end up putting Orion slightly ahead of DB (although Beast and Banshee are my two KI favorites). I think Orion is going to age like GateKeeper seems to have aged at CP. I haven't ridden GateKeeper (I haven't been to CP in about six years), but I remember many friends telling me how underwhelmed they felt when it opened. Now, however, it's acknowledged as a fun, can't-miss experience at the park. I think Orion is going to be the same. It might not be the most terrifying or daunting coaster in the world, but it's a heck of a lot of fun.

Longer than on Monday, but not bad. 45 minutes for FOF. Half hour for Orion. Walk-ons for Banshee, Beast and Backlot. (That's about it; we had a group of kids, so we were in Planet Snoopy for much of the day). I do think some in my group waited 30 minutes for Mystic Timbers; Diamondback looked like about an hour wait.

So, just got back yesterday. It was a good trip. Got two rides on Orion -- one of them front row, which was fantastic. Wish the park had been open later, as we felt we were cramming everything in that we could and it still wasn't enough time. But this was obviously a weird year, and I'm thankful they were open at all. Crowds were very light on Monday (we got cleared out by a rainstorm right around 6:30), but pretty busy on Tuesday, at least compared to the first day. Still, I think my longest wait was FoF at about 45 minutes, although the app was showing an hour for Diamondback (the one ride I didn't get to). I was extremely impressed by how seriously Kings Island was taking masks and social distancing, but also how it didn't really detract from having a good time. We were moved so quickly through the temperature check. Hand-sanitizer was available everywhere. The staff would politely but firmly ask people to pull their masks up if they were being worn incorrectly, and I thought the social distancing in queues and on rides was appropriate. What amazed me is that I know the staff likely had to train on this really quickly, but they had it down pat. The Beast was the one that impressed me the most -- they were able to dismiss rows, wipe down the train, and then let a new group on so quickly. I never felt like we waited too long for anything because of the cleaning procedures; in fact, if the lines looked long at all, it was mostly due to people spreading out in line. The one exception was FoF. We felt pretty crowded in that queue, although there were periodic announcements to remember to social distance and properly wear masks. As others have said, the park guests' adherence to it was the biggest concern. But for the most part, especially on the first day, I'd say 85-90% of the people had masks on and were spreading out. If masks were off, it was usually when people were on a bench far from anyone else and seemed to be taking a break in the heat. If you shot someone a look because their mask was down, they often caught the look and pulled it up. I think most people were also observing the social distancing in the lines. If people were breaking the rule, it was often younger people who probably think they're immune to it, but I think park officials caught the majority of them. I rode White Water Canyon with my 8-year-old son and we were told we were allowed to take our masks off on the ride; I was really grateful for the ride operator who reminded my son to pull his mask back on as soon as we got off the ride. Really, Kings Island did a fantastic job in the midst of an awful situation. I imagine they might be losing money just by being open, so I really wanted to take the time to acknowledge how good they did. I felt safer there than I did going into most stores or restaurants by my home.

Thanks everyone. Our tickets are for Monday and Tuesday. Feel a bit better now that the consensus seems to be that KI is doing what it can and it sounds like the park is largely empty on weekdays. A bit worried about rain, but what are you gonna do, right?

Honestly, hearing that your wife (sorry if I mis-characterized) is a health care worker and felt safe there bolsters my confidence, as does the reports I'm hearing of very light crowds on weekdays.

Curious if the no reservations is effective immediately or if it will be effective in August. We have reservations for next Monday and Tuesday, and it would suck to get there for our reservations and then find they've hit capacity, although I guess they have a way of figuring out how many tickets were already pre-sold. On the other hand, we're going next week, which is the final week of closing at 7 p.m., so maybe people will sit it out until they can stay a bit later the next week.

We bit the bullet and bought tickets for a July 27-28 trip to Kings Island (coming down from Michigan for an annual trip). I'm going to be honest that I was on the fence about it, but was outvoted by my wife and kids. I was heartened by the videos for social distancing, mask requirements and the other procedures they put in place. That said, I've seen too many photos of people at other parks ignoring the rules and read too much about surges in case loads to feel completely comfortable. So, for those of you who have been to KI since its reopening, what is your opinion about how their safety measures are working? Are people wearing masks? Are they social distancing in lines and at restaurants? How is the case load in southern Ohio? And how have the crowds been (part of our hope has been that travel might be lower this summer, and that we might have low crowds on that Monday and Tuesday). I'd prefer answers from people who are taking this seriously and share my concerns. I don't really have patience to hear from anyone saying this is overblown and all the procedures are pointless.

I think this article highlights why the changes were necessary. No, Splash Mountain (which I haven't ridden in about 30 years) isn't offensive. But, as Matt (the article's author points out), it papers over the offensive roots of the movie. Zip-a-dee-do-dah takes its roots from a racist song. Song of the South presents a rosy picture of slave life (the podcast "You Must Remember This" did a fantastic series on it). The Uncle Remus stories, which gave birth to the characters of Brer Rabbit, Brer Bear and Brer Fox, are controversial because many believe the (white) author was appropriating slave culture. It seems fitting to retheme it to the film featuring Disney's first black princess...and also, probably financially a good move since more kids have likely seen The Princess and the Frog than Song of the South. https://screencrush.com/why-splash-mountain-should-be-changed/

This one makes a return iffy for me. I'm perfectly happy to wear a mask and comply with social distancing; I wouldn't have even considered a trip to Kings Island if they weren't requiring those. But we're driving planning to drive down from Detroit area, a four-hour drive. I still don't know whether you can reserve two days in a row (non-passholder) and, on top of that, the hours are cut from 11-7. My guess is maybe that gives them extra time to clean, which is all well and good. But man, reserving a hotel room and shelling out the money for four people to do two days in the park just seems like it might not be worth it when you're losing a third of what you normally have.

That first picture (that I see, at least) of the Bavarian Beetle just boggles my mind, because you can see the park's boundaries so clearly and it's so different from what exists today. Just green, right outside the park. No larger parking lot. No developments (no weird movie theater/church), no campground or Great Wolf Lodge. No Action Zone. Just rides along the perimeter and it stops. I said it in the other thread that these were referenced in, but these have such a weird mix of discovery and nostalgia for me. Some of them were taken 10 years before I ever came to Kings Island, and it looks like a completely different park. And then there are other things that I remember from when I was a kid that I haven't thought about in years. There are some great pictures on this site, and I've been coming to KIC for well over a decade. I think this gallery is the best collection of photos I've seen from Kings Island.

I almost wonder if the best bet would be to start at CP, as in my experience the lines there are longer. But you can benefit by going through the back entrance by Magnum and hitting a lot of the coasters back there before the park even opens (give yourself an edge by staying at a CP hotel the night before and getting in an hour before the GP). I know when I was younger, it was possible to knock out most of the rides at CP before lunch, but they'd added quite a bit since then. In my experience, KI tends to have longer lines in the morning than in the evening (although using FLP, that doesn't really matter, I guess). On a weeknight, particularly late July or early August, KI often has next to no wait times on most their coasters, even without FLP. I think it's doable. But like @King Ding Dong said, traffic is going to be your biggest headache. Going through Dayton area is never fun, and I'm always surprised how much construction there is. But I've seen videos of people who do all the Disney World parks in one day; no reason knocking out all the coasters at KI and CP shouldn't be possible.

This had the rare impact of both showing me a park I'd never seen (I didn't start going to Kings Island until about '82) and then hitting me right in the feels with nostalgia (that Beastie sign! The Fightertown USA theming on Top Gun!). These are fantastic. Also, I have no idea who this guy is who posted them. But seeing the Detroit T-shirts and then AWANA T-shirts for a certain church made me realize that I think we grew up in similar areas (metro Detroit).

My son (8) rode this last year. He's fascinated by roller coasters but still not ready for the bigger ones (his cousin convinced him to try Mystic Timbers and...he was not ready, lol). Adventure Express is such a perfect first coaster. He loves it. The thing that terrifies most kids -- the big drop -- is not there, but it's still fun enough and gives him enough twists and turns that he has a great time with it. He doesn't care about missing lava or lights because, well, he never experienced them (he'd love them if they were added back in, though). When people talk about wanting to get rid of AE or Backlot Stunt Coaster, I realize they likely don't have young kids; those are fantastic introductory coasters. Now, as we consider taking a trip in late July, he's already talking about moving up to The Bat and The Racer.