Holiday World vs. Kings Island

[FOFreak]

Holiday World or Kings Island? Don't assume your home park is better!

[The Interpreter]

Huh? What does Six Flags Great Adventure have to do with this?

Besides, your voting button ONLY works for Kings Island....(not that I'd vote for HW between those two choices any way...)

EDIT: I see you have now fixed your former one-choice only election!

[Guest rcfreak339]

Well I'm split on this...very hard question. Both Kings Island are great but both parks do have their cons.

Holiday World:

Pros-

-Three of the best wooden coasters on the planet!

-Amazing Prices!

-Amazing water park!

-Very clean.

Cons-

-Not enough good thrill rides

-Lacks shows

-Park closes way to early.

Kings Island:

Pros-

-Great roller coasters and a lot of them!

-Fun thrill rides.

-Lots of awsome shows!

-Park stays open till a good time.

-Very Clean

Cons-

-Way to expensive!

-Water park is not as good as Holiday Worlds.

-No free parking.

[CoastersNSich]

Don't know about here, but I know of some sites where "versus" threads, ESPECIALLY regarding coasters and parks, get shut down quickly.

That aside, I'd look at the pros, cons

KI Pros

Many coasters, rides, attractions, live shows, and water park to warrant a whole day's stay, or even into two days

Operation of multiple trains on coasters all the time

Great kids area

Being in the Cincinnati area, makes for lots of other things to do in the area - very accessible

Season passes and ticket deals can make KI reasonably affordable

KI Cons

Parking, soft drinks, other costs can add up

No "signature steel coaster"... in 2008. A more subjective statement...

HW Pros

Excellent woodies and great water park.

They don't go for the wallet as often as most parks do - free parking, free soda, even free sunscreen

Food is reasonably priced, good pizza

Family owned, they take pride and ownership in the operation, like sweeping and running rides.

HW Cons

Fairly secluded, not much else to do in the area

Only steel coaster is a kiddie coaster

Based on location, variety, and infrastructure, Kings Island wins. But a definite nod to HW for value and hospitality.

[Jasper]

I would have to say Kings Island. For one because i have never been to Holiday World but HW does offer the beverage and parking policy which is a big plus compared to KI's high prices. But how can you argue with KI's selection of great thrill rides and world class coasters not to mention its golden ticket ward winning kids area. So i give the edge in this argument to KI. Plus the addition of the new coaster it makes the favor go to KI that much more.

[BavarianBeatle]

I went to Holiday World for the first time last week and had a great time. Both parks are wonderful in their own way!! I would say that its impossible to actually compare the two because they are different types of parks, geared to different types of visitors. KI is for thrill seekers while HW is more family oriented. It's like comparing the old (pre six flags) Geauga Lake to Cedar Point. I used to live around Cleveland, and which of the two I went to on any particular day depended on what I was in the mood for. And I loved them both.

But, I will go on record, and say that The Voyage is better than any of KI's woodies, IMHO............. And my 8 and 9 year old kept their hands in the air for the entire ride,,,But they did that on MF at CP too....

Bottom line, it's a tie in my opinion, neither park is any better or worse, but they are different.

[FOFreak]

But, I will go on record, and say that The Voyage is better than any of KI's woodies, IMHO............. And my 8 and 9 year old kept their hands in the air for the entire ride,,,But they did that on MF at CP too....

Lets see about that! New Topic

[FireBeast]

But, I will go on record, and say that The Voyage is better than any of KI's woodies

I second that.

[The Interpreter]

Voyage is definitely a world class woodie, and better than anything wood at Kings Island...but then so is Raven, which I actually much prefer to Voyage.

[gnarkiller]

I like KI better because Holiday World doesn't have a good steel coaster. They only have howler and thats a kiddie coaster.

[LongLiveTheSmurfRide]

I like HW's 3 woodies better than all of KI's coasters combined.

But that said, I went to HW twice last year and both times the park was pretty dead so just about everything was a walk-on. Sounds like heaven, right? Well, I'll tell you, when you've ridden all of their flats a couple times, and all 3 coasters multiple times in the first 4 hours; there's really not a whole lot left to do there (this was when the water park was closed, mind you). After getting beat up (in a good way) by their coasters and riding everything else, I was wishing there was more variety.

So I go with KI just because of the pure quantity of rides over HW. There is a lot more to do and see at KI to keep you involved all day. At HW it's like: ride Raven, Legend, Voyage, repeat...with some flats thrown in (their freaky glowy-eyed bumper cars destroy KI's for speed and power). They're growing at HW though, so the more they do, the more variety they'll get.

[dakota2112]

Holiday World gets extra points for that massive kiddie playground that they have. My son absolutely loved that. And I'll admit, I did too

But I think KI still takes the cake overall imho (by a close margin).

[faeriewench]

KI, only because I have little to no memory of Holiday World (I was a kid...)

But I love Dollywood and SeaWorld Orlando better than KI =P

[A_Titanic_Mess]

So hard to compare the two parks. Holiday World is a great park, with some of the best woodies in the world. Also, I think a better value than KI. Holiday World lacks the stage/theater entertainment that KI has, and of course hardly any parks kids area can hold a candle to KI. I love Holiday World though and would almost always pick to visit there over KI.

[dare-to-fly]

They are so hard to compare, being as they are so different.

Given the options, HW. And here's to hoping for more coasters soon, keeping with the non-trimmed variety, which is the real reason I'm picking them--they let their coasters move.

[BavarianBeatle]

Voyage is definitely a world class woodie, and better than anything wood at Kings Island...but then so is Raven, which I actually much prefer to Voyage.

I loved The Raven as well. The day we were there the lines were short for it all day. I was thinking, "These people don't appreciate what they have....." But with that said, those Golden Ticket awards on Raven's sign were definitely given for a reason.

[XGatorHead 8904]

I just went to HW yesterday (PTR to come soon), so this is good timing! Overall, I'd have to pick KI just for the total selection and variety of rides and entertainment. HW does have many positives such as the drinks (I drank sooo much free lemonade & Gatorade yesterday), great waterpark, cleanliness, friendliness, and their woodies... I rode Voyage for the first time ever last night and OMG! that thing is great! I always keep my hands up all the way on coasters (except for the lift hills) but there came a point on Voyage where I HAD to hold on, and I finally learned the true meaning of the phrase "catch my breath" when the ride ended. I didn't know anything about the layout so I was in for some treats such as teriffic airtime, quick turns and SPEED. But more on that in my PTR when I get around to posting that.

[dare-to-fly]

I just went to HW yesterday (PTR to come soon), so this is good timing! Overall, I'd have to pick KI just for the total selection and variety of rides and entertainment. HW does have many positives such as the drinks (I drank sooo much free lemonade & Gatorade yesterday), great waterpark, cleanliness, friendliness, and their woodies... I rode Voyage for the first time ever last night and OMG! that thing is great! I always keep my hands up all the way on coasters (except for the lift hills) but there came a point on Voyage where I HAD to hold on, and I finally learned the true meaning of the phrase "catch my breath" when the ride ended. I didn't know anything about the layout so I was in for some treats such as teriffic airtime, quick turns and SPEED. But more on that in my PTR when I get around to posting that.

After you learn the layout of the ride, you'll be able to ride with your hands up if that's what you choose. I'm not saying it will be easy, but you can.

[BavarianBeatle]

My 8 and 9 year olds kept their hands up the first time we ever rode it. My 8 year old is fearless and my 9 year old is NOT going to be outdone by his younger brother, no matter how scared he is.....

[XGatorHead 8904]

^Wow... I've been shown up by 8 and 9 year olds! I must be getting old!

My 3 year old was a trooper and waited in line with us for Raven (which was a walk-on) and Voyage (35 minute wait). When I got off Raven and my wife handed her off to me, she asked me "Was that fun, Daddy?", the same question we ask her when she gets off a new ride (except for her name in place of "Daddy" of course). We're bringing her up right, HW was her 4th park (KI, MK and Epcot are the others, Disney Studios will be her 5th next month) and she loves every ride she's ever been on. She's at 38", only 10 more to go!

[Cormaster]

Kings Island by far! I do not like Holiday world! You ride Raven and Voyage and you look around and wonder "What else is there to do?" The Water park is nice, but other than the Water Park and 2 coasters thats about it. When I went, the Raven was their only real coaster, and the park was packed!

BTW I'm confused as to how people can rate the Raven or Voyage over the Best wooden coaster in the world that lies in Rivertown at Kings Island.

[The Interpreter]

Uh, you forget Legend? Then you can have a Pepsi!

And yes, Beast is the "Best wooden coaster in the world that lies in Rivertown at Kings Island" Of course! No other wooden coaster in the world lies in Rivertown at Kings Island!

Terpy, who just HAD to

[Mikewhy]

Kings Island has much more atmosphere than HW and more steel coasters and thrill rides. And nothing beats International Street for a park entrance.

The non-smoking policy at Kings Island is not enforced (or rarely so) and on certain crowded days, it is very smoky on the midways. I am always disappointed by that. Holiday World enforces its non-smoking policy very well and rarely does anyone smoke outside the designated areas.

I find that more people cut me in line at Kings Island than Holiday World.

The food is priced better at HW, and the wood coasters are much better.

I do love both parks though...

[troymello]

If I only had one day to live, and had a choice to spend it at HW or KI, I would certainly go with KI. (Though, I would give HW heavy consideration.)

Some of my opinion will repeat a few others:

HW Pros: The Voyage (for me, it is the first woody that I have ever liked equal to The Beast), friendly staff, clean park, and free parking. The free drinks are worth a million bucks on a hot day. With fair skin, the free sunscreen gets a lot of brownie points, too. The water park is THE best that I've been to. The fact that is is family owned is nice because it creates at atmosphere that I can feel. Obviously, it's a stronger feeling when I bump into Will or Pat, but even when I don't, I still get the feeling. It almost feels as if you are walking through someone's hobby that they are very, very, proud of.

HW Cons: Though food choices and places to eat have been expanded, they need way more. The food lines have been very long every time I've been there. The front gate needs a complete overhaul to handle the larger crowds that visit now... it's pretty congested as is. I'm sure more rides will come in the future, but the number of ride choices is still a little small. Now, a visit to the water park will fill up a day, but if staying in the "dry" park the whole day, it is easy to ride everything in a short amount of time. (Of course, as the park grows, it may loose that family atmosphere... I suppose that would be a trade-off that I would accept, but I sort of hate to see that.)

KI Pros: Rides, rides, rides!... enough to easily fill up a day. The International Street atmosphere is fantastic! Better theming. Better coaster choices - at KI, I can be launched, be inverted, be suspended, go backwards, and go upside down.

KI Cons: Though admission may be less expensive, at the end of the day, I think KI will cost more money. I'm only 1.5 hrs from HW... it takes me 2.5 to get to KI... no that bad, though.

I enjoy HW very, very much. But in the end, for me, it's all about the rides. The Voyage is a real winner, but KI offers a much better compilation. KI would be my pick.

[raptor]

I've never been to Holiday World. I didn't think it looked worth the price of admission. Being that I could care less about water parks and with the amount of rides they have, I feel like I'm paying a lot for the water park with my park admission, that's why I'm in favor of separate charges for waterparks. It's become a practice for medium size parks to build a big water park and all of a sudden they are justified in charging big amusement park price. They have 2 coasters that look really nice but after that it doesn't look to me like they have all that much to draw there.

[thatbandguy8807]

i have been to both parks. and i thought it was awesome and cool that hw had free sodas. i never heard of such a thing at a theme park. but for me, the over all feel didnt really seem like a theme park. it felt like it was a little fair connected to an awesome water park. the one show that i did see there was the diving show. that was kind of neat. but as far as ride wise, there wasnt really much that i wanted or could do. wooden coasters kill my back and since i have a back problem, i stay away from them. steel coasters dont hurt anywhere near as bad. (except for Vortex sometimes). but i would have to say hands down, Kings Island for my vote. however, i absolutely LOVED holiday world's water park. so awesome. they both have their pros and cons.

[marlfox_21]

Well considering the fact that I have never been to Holiday World, I must vote for Kings Island. I wanted to go to Holiday World this year, but the opportunity never presented itself. I have been very busy for the last few months. In fact, I think that I went most of the summer, until the last couple of weeks without even being able to check up on KICentral. But I think that I am going to visit Kings Island for Haunt. I plan to have an awesome October. Kings Island's Haunt, Universal's Halloween Horror Nights, Wild Adventures Phobia, Busch Gardens Howl-O-Scream, Disney's Not So Scary Halloween/HallowWishes, SeaWorld's Halloween Spooktacular, S.F.C.C. Zoo's Boo at the Zoo, are on my to do list. This October is gonna be so much fun, it's scary!

[Guest rcfreak339]

But, I will go on record, and say that The Voyage is better than any of KI's woodies

I second that.

The Beast stomps The Voyage!

[FOFreak]

But, I will go on record, and say that The Voyage is better than any of KI's woodies

I second that.

The Beast stomps The Voyage!

Really, in my opinion Voyage is a tad better then Beast because the overtrimming on Beast kills the airtime, and I love airtime.

BTW, that FOFreak guy really neads to learn who to speel write!

[TheKlockster]

Between the two I like Holiday World more. If I was like Paul Drabek, and lived in Santa Claus Indiana, I don't know which I would like better - but I think I would still prefer Holiday World.

I love the atmosphere there. I don't know exactly what it is, but it seems friendly and fun. And the park has some amazing rides and water park attractions. The food is good and reasonably priced; the drinks are free; and the staff is (in most cases) really friendly. I think I could have fun there without riding a single thing.