DonHelbig

Kansas City Chiefs tight end and pop-culture favorite Travis Kelce is adding “theme park investor” to his resume. http://sanduskyregister.com/go/682896025f90d

As far as sucking the soul right out of it and throwing it all away, a full-time Six Flags employee told me this morning we keep knocking it out of the park with our episodes. That being said, I appreciate your interest in Tower Topics and your thoughts on the direction of the podcast. We’re a little over two years and 300 episodes into this with Tower Topics, and the podcast is continually evolving with the format. There are more tweaks to come that should continue to make the episodes better.

Former Cedar Fair CEO Matt Ouimet shares candid insights on leadership, boards, and tough lessons from Cedar Fair — plus his thoughts on Six Flags. A must-read for theme park fans and anyone interested in corporate leadership. http://sanduskyregister.com/go/67e5e1d4bbcff

I’ll share my thoughts straight up. If they burst a few Orbit bubbles, that’s just how it goes.

Not happening.

To go over the front entrance means supports in and right outside the full-time employee parking lot and next to the HR and administration buildings. That’s not happening.

Selling off parks is on the table no matter who the next CEO is.

The survey is doing what they wanted it to do: create a diversion to get people talking about something else besides maze up-charges, rides closed (see KD), parks that could be sold, etc.

My family and I loved exploring the new fall Candy Corn Country area at Dollywood. It’s bright, whimsical, and full of Dollywood charm. Check out why it’s the sweetest spot at this year’s Harvest Festival. https://themeparksbydon.com/dollywood-candy-corn-country-harvest-festival-2025/

If Marilyn Spiegel gets named the next CEO, those wouldn’t be the only parks where it might be the last year of Haunt as they know it.

https://investors.sixflags.com/news/press-releases/press-release-details/2025/CORRECTING-and-REPLACING-Six-Flags-Announces-Corporate-Governance-Changes/default.aspx

Worth noting: Marilyn Spiegel has experience with REITS and land lease agreements from her casino and hospitality background.

I wouldn’t mind seeing those colors on the Monster cars.

This is how it looks for brands when your social media person isn’t far removed from their last group project being for extra credit.

They’d have to have people on the marketing side that would know the fountain show would be of more interest to audiences across all communication channels than pushing products like season pass, dining plans, drink plans, and maze access passes. It would inspire more people to plan a visit if the focus of their content was on experiences like the fountain show over products. It’s easier to get people to buy the products when they’re interested in checking out the experiences the park has to offer. They’ll post something soon on the fountain show because they’ll see people are talking about it on KIC and Tower Topics. But the event will be halfway over by then.

Today marks the anniversary of Kings Island’s 2019 announcement that Vortex would be retired, and I’ve published a piece on TPBD reflecting on the ride’s legacy. https://themeparksbydon.com/remember-the-grip-Vortex-kings-island/

When it comes to theme park storytelling, Dollywood is a master. From rides like FireChaser Express and Big Bear Mountain to their latest announcement, NightFlight Expedition, they immerse guests in a narrative long before the ride even starts. Now… imagine if Kings Island embraced that same approach.

Here’s a link to a piece I published on TPBD. https://themeparksbydon.com/spain-in-texas-six-flags-tormenta-rampaging-run/

Dollywood’s Harvest Festival is favored by many seasoned, well-traveled park-goers over Kings Island’s Halloween Haunt and other Six Flags’ Halloween events, thanks to its family-friendly, festive autumn atmosphere, focus on live music and artisanal crafts, and its impressive display of enormous, real pumpkins.

Supply and no demand.

Thanks! They’d need to have not only the money to build something of this magnitude, but they’d need to have the people in place on the creative side that can do the storytelling at the level Dollywood does to captivate guests. NightFlight Expedition isn’t just a ride—it tells a story.

Here’s a piece I wrote for Theme Parks By Don on Dollywood’s new 50M attraction opening in 2026. It won’t win a Pulitzer, but I think it captures the spirit of the thing. https://themeparksbydon.com/dollywood-nightflight-expedition-2026/

And the winner is …

The Crypt building is too small by comparison. I did a construction tour today and what Dollywood is building is massive.

Indiana Beach does not release attendance figures. Six Flags does not release individual park attendance, though by park are found through third-party reports like the Themed Entertainment Association. However, those attendance figures, often reported in news stories, are not accurate. They’re estimates, off by as much as 500,000 ether way.