Favorite Kings Island Map

[Nick_Plummer]

Have you ever just thought about Kings Island maps and remember that one map that just stuck in your head? Well I sure have. I know there is a wide age range on this website and some maps are more special than others. I have one map that I just absolutely loved, 2006's KI map. Growing up in the Paramount, Nickelodeon Universe days of Kings Island was a lot of fun. I know that the old Hannah Barbara and Nickelodeon days are behind us but it's always nice to remember getting off our favorite rides as kids and seeing our favorite TV characters in real life. 2006 was the first year I got a Gold Pass and even though I only went 3 or 4 times, it was my most memorable season next to the 2014 season. Here is a picture of the map.

Can't wait to see what maps and stories from KI you guys have!

[MDMC01]

Looking through some of the old Kings Island maps, I find I quite like the 1999 and 2004 maps.

[TheBEASTunchained]

I wont pick a favorite.....Because I really can't....

........But I like the 1972-1973 maps and I actually really like the 2014 map.

[BeastForever]

All-time fave...

2005 map

[ohiougrad95]

[Spectrum91]

^To anyone curious, that's 1972.

I enjoy the art of the poster maps in the 1980s, particularly 1982 and 1988. I wish the park would still sell poster maps every season, as I can't imagine they're incredibly expensive to produce and make great souvenirs.

[TheBEASTunchained]

^ I agree with that 100 percent.

I've been hoping the last few years that we could once again buy poster maps at Kings Island.

....And actually, Cedar Point indeed still sells poster maps every season.

[RollerColt]

I'm with BeastForever on this one. 2005 had it going on!

[kingsislandfan1972]

The 1979 map because it's the year of The Beast. I would also have to say the late 90s Paramounts Kings Islands maps are my favorite too.

[ki95]

My favorite map! (here's the link so don't have a heart attack: http://www.KICentral.com/forums/index.php/topic/30384-interactive-park-maps-are-now-at-kings-island/ )

[Dr Zhark]

I just noticed the Top Gun logo has a B&M Invert on it was used at Carowinds or Californias great America

[stashua123]

I dont have a picture of it but my favorite park map is the 2009 park map with Son of Beast and Diamondback. It also was more realisitc(the last map with the what I call "PKI" look to it) than the more cartoony style park maps now.

[Nick_Plummer]

Here's a picture of 2009's map with Diamondback and Son of Beast. I too wish they'd return to the PKI map feel.

[purdude86]

I like the look of that one. I don't mind the overall loo of the maps now just not a fan of the exaggerated hills on some of the coasters.

[DBInternational]

Definitely this one because it's from the year 2000 which was the first time I every visited the park. I used to have one of these in person but I lost it when I was little. Thankfully I still have my 2002 map which isn't much different.

[Magenta Lizard]

KingsIslandPR tweeted that the 2016 park map is completed (https://twitter.com/maglizrd/status/702177462264995840), so I was poking around the site to see if it's been uploaded (nope) but I did notice something funny on the 2015 one.

Anyone ever notice what Woodstock Whirlybirds' vehicles look like on the map? The smaller version actually on the main map, with the text, it is hard to tell, but there is an enlarged, faded version on the outside edge:

They look kind of like twin two-seater rockets.

Way cooler than the real thing

(From https://www.visitkingsisland.com/rides/Worlds-Best-Kids-Area/Woodstocks-Whirlybirds)

[bkroz]

^ The artist must've been using reference photos of Kings Dominion's similar ride, Snoopy's Rocket Express, which has vehicles that look exactly like the ones on our maps. Seems like a much cuter way to ride. 

 

Have you ever just thought about Kings Island maps and remember that one map that just stuck in your head? Well I sure have. I know there is a wide age range on this website and some maps are more special than others. I have one map that I just absolutely loved, 2006's KI map. Growing up in the Paramount, Nickelodeon Universe days of Kings Island was a lot of fun. I know that the old Hannah Barbara and Nickelodeon days are behind us but it's always nice to remember getting off our favorite rides as kids and seeing our favorite TV characters in real life. 2006 was the first year I got a Gold Pass and even though I only went 3 or 4 times, it was my most memorable season next to the 2014 season. Here is a picture of the map.

 

Can't wait to see what maps and stories from KI you guys have!

 

The "Paramount" style above that so many here seemed to enjoy (myself included) is by Citigraph. That's definitely my preferred look. Their website has some neat artifacts to look through as well as some interesting pricing information, which is something most of us probably don't consider. The way Paramount arranged the map, it highlighted major attractions with their logos, with the rest explained in the margins organized by land. The map was of Disney caliber, with gorgeous illustrations, differently colored paths for themed lands, easy to read, easy to navigate by, and collectible for sure.

 

I was never ever a fan of the exaggerated, comic "Cedar Fair" style we have now. First of all, it very minimally even hints to the fact that there are distinct themed lands (which, to be fair, there barely are anymore. Maybe the map was the last hold out since arches and signs are gone and themes blur together). I also think it's a problem that the labels on every attraction make it really difficult to use the map for, you know, navigation. It's kind of a mess. It feels like they're supposed to look amateurish to me - exaggerated and cartoony, but not in a very pleasant or agreeable way.

 

My biggest complaint when the map changed to Cedar Fair style (a change that I remember dreading) was that the maps had no trees. Zero. I mentioned it on Twitter and @KingsIslandPR wrote back that "It's a map of attractions, not individual trees." (Classy. The kind of interaction you'd expect from a Disney Park, right? For those of you who've been around for a while, I bring that interaction up often, because I won't soon forget it. Even small interactions matter.) My argument was that if you depict The Beast sitting in a sickly, artichoke-green field, you're not doing a very good job of depicting the attractions, either. Nature is PART of a park. Or it should be. Point it, the next season the map was changed and to this day is dotted with those delightful three-pronged bushes. It doesn't do any better of a job showing what the experience on The Beast or The Bat is like, but oh well. 

 

Maybe I'm just biased because I watched the gorgeous Citigraph map of Six Flags Worlds of Adventure become a visually repulsive Cedar Fair style map of Geauga Lake. darn fork-bushes. 

 

The Citigraph maps are works of art. I wouldn't care to have a large souvenir sized version of the current map hung up in my home.

[CoasterOhio]

Since this is about maps...

Does anyone have a 1991 Park map?

[bkroz]

I can only find Winterfest 1991. 

 

http://www.themeparkbrochures.net/1991/pki1991.html

 

And look at that new ride readying for a 1992 debut. 

[CoasterOhio]

1991 really seems like a missing year for Kings Island. I can only find one picture for the opening roller coaster Adventure Express.

[Magenta Lizard]

Very appropriate gallery for this thread:

http://m.daytondailynews.com/gallery/entertainment/kings-island-over-years/gCKHJ/

[bkroz]

Larger versions for those not on mobile: 

 

http://www.daytondailynews.com/gallery/entertainment/kings-island-over-years/gCKHJ/?photo_id=3308608#5091684

[Magenta Lizard]

Thanks for that, I was going to come fix it when I saw how tiny they showed up on the mobile site.

My favorite from that gallery was 1992, because Phantom Theater

http://media.cmgdigital.com/shared/lt/lt_cache/thumbnail/615/img/photos/2014/04/17/70/bc/1992.jpg

[MDMC01]

They have 1998 KI map on sale on Citigraph's site... really considering buying it as it's only 5 bucks! Also, thanks for posting the info on these types of maps, bkroz!

[Oldiesmann]

I too miss the more realistic map styles from the Paramount era. They're not entirely realistic, but they're far less exaggerated than the current ones are.

[bkroz]

They have 1998 KI map on sale on Citigraph's site... really considering buying it as it's only 5 bucks! Also, thanks for posting the info on these types of maps, bkroz!

 

You bet! Can't say whether or not they're even still in business. Some parks still do use their maps, but it's not as wide-spread as it once was. Certainly looks like they don't update their site. However, parks like Universal Studios Hollywood have their maps updated well, which leads me to believe Citigraph is still at it. 

[rlentless]

I definitely like the PKI feel of maps . . how each themed area has a defined color of the midway.  Amazing how the "Son of Beast" made the park look larger than current maps.

[jcgoble3]

My biggest complaint when the map changed to Cedar Fair style (a change that I remember dreading) was that the maps had no trees. Zero. I mentioned it on Twitter and @KingsIslandPR wrote back that "It's a map of attractions, not individual trees." (Classy. The kind of interaction you'd expect from a Disney Park, right? For those of you who've been around for a while, I bring that interaction up often, because I won't soon forget it. Even small interactions matter.) My argument was that if you depict The Beast sitting in a sickly, artichoke-green field, you're not doing a very good job of depicting the attractions, either. Nature is PART of a park. Or it should be. Point it, the next season the map was changed and to this day is dotted with those delightful three-pronged bushes. It doesn't do any better of a job showing what the experience on The Beast or The Bat is like, but oh well.

 

Then you don't want to see the newly released Carowinds 2016 park map:

 

https://www.carowinds.com/plan-a-visit/park-map

 

Not a single tree or three-pronged bush in sight.

[bkroz]

^ Okay, the mystery is thickening. Kings Dominion switched from illegible Cedar Fair style to that GPS style a few years ago. The GPS style they adopted (like Carowinds) had no trees or three-pronged bushes... until last year, when it added the three-pronged bushes to the GPS style.

 

Anyway, that's pretty scary. When Kings Dominion's switched from Cedar Fair style to GPS style, I figured it was just because the map for that particular park was so illegible in the former. But now that it's spread to Carowinds, I worry that they're going to switch to this GPS style across the chain. And it's no better than Cedar Fair style. If I could burn those three-pronged bushes, I would. Honestly, they just look stupid. Map might be better without them. Beast in a vacant lot is better than Beast in a prairie. 

 

Any way you slice it, neither the Cedar Fair style nor the "GPS" style are things I'd care to hang up in my home. Citigraph maps are. 

 

^^ Interesting thing is, at least for the first few years, the maps "inflated" Son of Beast (and even the trees around it). Take a look at the scale of it in the map below and its position in relation to Adventure Express. The rose bowl extends way up around Adventure Express with the loop directly to the left.

By the second map, the ride's been reduced to the scale of all the other park's coasters (including the trees around it shrinking back down to the size of all the other trees). Notice how its position and size shifted in relation to Adventure Express.

 

 

 

 

[Creed Bratton]

I really hope that the maps this year aren't those large sheet style. I want them to be pre-folded (sp?)!