Reservation system testing underway

[jimlaheyscar]

Currently can only do 1 day per pass.

Mod edit: removed link

[tuxedoman52]

Got mine. Did we figure out if we absolutely have to show up at our reservation time? For example, I have 12:30 but can't be there until 5...

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[JimParker85]

I'm from out of town, the one day only really sucks. I booked for 7/8, hoping we can get 7/9 once we get to the park on 7/8 or maybe they'll change it before then. 

[FUN&ONLY!]

10 minutes ago, tuxedoman52 said:

Got mine. Did we figure out if we absolutely have to show up at our reservation time? For example, I have 12:30 but can't be there until 5...

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You can show up any time after your reservation and stay for as long as you want.

[tuxedoman52]

Thanks. I like that system a lot better.

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[malem]

I removed the link to the registration page, as they haven't gone live yet. They appear to be testing the system.

Those who attempt to place an order before it goes live risk having their reservation cancelled and not getting into their park on their preferred day.

[JimParker85]

Well that ruined my day, but good to know I'm likely screwed now instead of showing up after a 6 hour drive and finding out the reservation was bogus. darn, I was so excited. 

[robintodd]

7 minutes ago, malem said:

I removed the link to the registration page, as they haven't gone live yet. They appear to be testing the system.

Those who attempt to place an order before it goes live risk having their reservation cancelled and not getting into their park on their preferred day.

Well, I can tell them it worked.  It even showed up on my app.  Hopefully they will reset or honor it.

[WoodCoasterManiac]

does this confirm that they are opening at 10:30am? all the time slots said 10:30 start.

[robintodd]

Just now, JimParker85 said:

Well that ruined my day, but good to know I'm likely screwed now instead of showing up after a 6 hour drive and finding out the reservation was bogus. darn, I was so excited. 

I know right.  Wonder if they need any testing done on cancelling a reservation

[Waltny]

11 minutes ago, malem said:

I removed the link to the registration page, as they haven't gone live yet. They appear to be testing the system.

Those who attempt to place an order before it goes live risk having their reservation cancelled and not getting into their park on their preferred day.

Didnt the park share that link yesterday on the info they sent out and then remove it? 

[malem]

 

10 minutes ago, JimParker85 said:

Well that ruined my day, but good to know I'm likely screwed now instead of showing up after a 6 hour drive and finding out the reservation was bogus. darn, I was so excited. 

 

10 minutes ago, robintodd said:

Well, I can tell them it worked.  It even showed up on my app.  Hopefully they will reset or honor it.

You might want to contact the park to be safe, to be sure that the reservation you placed early is either honored or reset before things go live.

[FUN&ONLY!]

I just reserved and now I am seeing this... 

[PatchesC]

1 hour ago, jimlaheyscar said:

Currently can only do 1 day per pass.

Mod edit: removed link

Ouch, hopeful just for testing 

[FUN&ONLY!]

1 hour ago, malem said:

I removed the link to the registration page, as they haven't gone live yet. They appear to be testing the system.

Those who attempt to place an order before it goes live risk having their reservation cancelled and not getting into their park on their preferred day.

Did the park say when it will actually go live? Also, you are no longer able to reserve tickets at all. The website is not available.

[malem]

The test reservation page they had online earlier was taken offline. A link to that page was not officially communicated by the park; people evidently found it by guessing the URL while they had it online for a test.

KI has not announced a date or time for reservations going live. When it happens, or when we learn of an official date, we'll do our best to get it communicated on KIC right away.

When reservations are live, the link to the registration page should be displayed prominently in the mobile app, on the KI website, and in the KI online store.

[flightoffear1996]

Just curious as life happens sometimes more than once. Can you cancel a reservation?  Say I reserve a time 4 weeks from now but something comes up last minute. I wouldn't want my reservation to go to waste if some else who could go wanted it. 

[MoreFogPlease]

5 minutes ago, flightoffear1996 said:

Just curious as life happens sometimes more than once. Can you cancel a reservation?  Say I reserve a time 4 weeks from now but something comes up last minute. I wouldn't want my reservation to go to waste if some else who could go wanted it. 

It seems that you can. From the FAQ on the KI website:

Once the inventory is available to the general public, if a reservation is cancelled, that space will be added to the inventory available online. And periodically, we may be able to adjust total inventory or inventory by time slot. You will be able to check the reservation portal when it opens for information and updates of available inventory.

[pkiknex25]

I had made a reservation this morning, then reached out to KI customer service later after it went down. Here's their reply:

"Thank you for contacting Kings Island. Your reservation will be canceled because that was a system test for the reservation system. You will need to place your reservation again when Kings Island announces the opening of the reservation system. Thank you for checking with us about your reservation. If you have any additional questions please call 513-754-5700."

[Pagoda Gift Shop]

Well, in case anyone thought that anything related to the development of the Kings Island app has changed as a result of COVID-19, the answer is clearly "no".  Having functionality be exposed to public access before it is ready seems pretty unprofessional, and this is not the first time it has happened.

[WoodCoasterManiac]

honestly most companies have to test it in a real live environment. its not like they accidentally leaked the link, someone internal probably accidentally posted it somewhere. it wasnt an easy to guess page, and honestly its not like customers info is leaked or anything. no need to be critical of a live test.

[LovinMeSomeBanshee]

I guess the concept of test servers and UAT is unknown to Kings Island IT staff.

[King Ding Dong]

I have never had any issues with the app.

 

 

[robintodd]

I ended up getting an email later in the evening notifying me that it was a test system and my reservation would not be valid automatically and to watch for when the reservation site goes live.

Nice that they sent out that email to remove doubt.  

[PatchesC]

17 hours ago, King Ding Dong said:

I have never had any issues with the app.

 

 

I'm guess Bat is the ride favorite lol

[robintodd]

17 hours ago, LovinMeSomeBanshee said:

I guess the concept of test servers and UAT is unknown to Kings Island IT staff.

I've been a programmer for over 25 years and I can tell you that test servers are tricky.  Even when you duplicate the environment exactly there are still differences between test and live.  Live has so many more variables that are not controllable (human users for example).  They could have put the word "test" on the icons for the reservations (or a small text block explaining it was test) and simply removed that when they did go live.  It would have cleared up confusion.  In addition the link was never publicly released so they probably underestimated the number of people who would try and find a link.  (I did make a reservation, but found it on a thread on this site).

I probably would have done the same as them (and have in the past) but with clarification on the actual site the it was a "test" environment.  Wouldn't have been a bad idea to keep it up (adding the "test" message) and make it public to get an idea of the demand.  Also it would have helped people understand the registration process.

Just my thoughts. 

[PatchesC]

39 minutes ago, robintodd said:

I've been a programmer for over 25 years and I can tell you that test servers are tricky.  Even when you duplicate the environment exactly there are still differences between test and live.  Live has so many more variables that are not controllable (human users for example).  They could have put the word "test" on the icons for the reservations (or a small text block explaining it was test) and simply removed that when they did go live.  It would have cleared up confusion.  In addition the link was never publicly released so they probably underestimated the number of people who would try and find a link.  (I did make a reservation, but found it on a thread on this site).

I probably would have done the same as them (and have in the past) but with clarification on the actual site the it was a "test" environment.  Wouldn't have been a bad idea to keep it up (adding the "test" message) and make it public to get an idea of the demand.  Also it would have helped people understand the registration process.

Just my thoughts. 

CP is currently using the "test" text for mobile order menu item testing on the App, it seems a logical choice. 

[FUN&ONLY!]

@chibul brought up a great point in another thread a few days ago. I think, like Worlds of Fun, our reservation system will go online 11 days before opening, so Monday seems like very likely. Does anyone know what time of day Worlds of Fun’s system went online though?

[chibul]

2 hours ago, FUN&ONLY! said:

@chibul brought up a great point in another thread a few days ago. I think, like Worlds of Fun, our reservation system will go online 11 days before opening, so Monday seems like very likely. Does anyone know what time of day Worlds of Fun’s system went online though?

I believe around 10-11am. I was traveling at the time, saw it when I was settling into my hotel (around 4pm) and the post had been up for "5 hours" according to Facebook.

[IceePirate]

I can't see the park doing it much later than Monday, the first day or two would be booked up sure, but once you start getting into weekdays, things may be less populous.