DonHelbig

This offer ends Sept. 1, they’ll shout and flood your inbox with. Only for the offer to be extended until Sept. 5.

Transparency, clarity, responding to guest questions… that’s become foreign territory.

Friend of mine renewed this morning for 2026. They had 2025 with the all park passport and dining. Went to get a meal today at CP and were told their dining plan wasn’t valid until next year. They used their pass for two meals yesterday at CP.

I’m looking forward to experiencing the new Summer Wine’d Down Festival at Holiday World. And yes, they have Tasting Passes! https://themeparksbydon.com/holiday-world-announces-menu-for-summer-wined-down-festival/

Queue area for a new Haunt maze.

Queue area for the new Haunt maze.

It’s a great deal they’re offering but giving away the gate like this is basically telling people you’re the Walmart of the industry—not something premium or worth paying more for.

Inexperience behind the wheel with timing misses on several fronts.

Outside of using it for a Haunt maze, there were no plans to do anything big with the SOB station when the decision was made to demolish the ride.

I bought a couple items off the Italy menu. It is a miss not having the tasting cards.

If? They’re going to do it. The product is set up to sell online.

You get into the park with a Gold Pass for Haunt. You just have to open your wallet if you want to experiences the mazes.

As a fan of seasonal events, I’m looking forward to experiencing Summer Wine’d Down Fest at Holiday World. And yes, you can get a Tasting Pass. https://themeparksbydon.com/summer-wined-down-food-fest-debuts-at-holiday-world-aug-4/

WinterFest presented by Tower Topics.

People who came to the park together were suddenly all single riders entering the line at the same time. That played a big part in the elimination of the Single Rider lines.

Together, Wildebeest, Mammoth, and Cheetah Chase don’t just push the limits of what’s technically possible—they redefine what water coasters can be. https://holidayworld.com/2025/07/11/holiday-world-reigns-supreme-as-the-water-coaster-capital-of-the-world/

The season pass program nearly got destroyed in 2007. It took a couple years to get it back on track.

Nobody from the park has ever said anything to us about the Tower Topics podcast, except they enjoy it and learned things they didn’t know. As for retiring the Tower Topics X, it simply wasn’t proving enough value for the podcast. We have chosen to put all of the channel’s social media efforts into the Tower Topics Facebook Group. That has been providing us with far more value. We did have good engagement with the content we published on X, better than many of the posts the park makes on X. It just wasn’t proving enough value for us. A lot of what we’d post on X can still be found on my personal X. Ryan and I are not going to be shills for the park. We’re going to keep doing the podcast the same way. Genuine and authentic with honest and frank discussion about Kings Island.

We’re nearing mid-July, and let’s be honest—this has been really rough season at Kings Island and for the company. From staffing shakeups to cutbacks, to things like no ice, no cups, and restaurants closed—it’s all added up. Guests have noticed. I’ve noticed. But here’s the part we don’t say enough: there are still a lot of hard-working associates out there showing up every day, doing their best with what they’ve got. And they deserve credit—a lot of it. The message about what’s wrong? It’s been heard. Loud and clear. The park knows. It’s on them to fix it. As we head down the homestretch for daily operation, let’s shift the focus and talk more about the good things happening during our visits.

Fans of Dolly Parton and Dollywood will be able to enjoy the sounds of the Smoky Mountains anytime, anywhere, with the launch of “Dollywood Radio.” https://themeparksbydon.com/dollywood-iheartmedia-launch-new-dollywood-radio-station/

Are Snickers bars on the dining plan?

Kings Dominion didn’t have a choice today. The water main break forced them to close.

The Kings Island Theater will be dark after July 6 for the rest of the summer. A live Tower Topics show would fill the theater. But it would never happen.

Siren’s Curse opens June 28 at Cedar Point. https://sanduskyregister.com/news/599026/why-sirens-curse-will-be-a-cant-miss-ride/