KI Beast's KI Trip 07/16/23

[KIBeast]

Well, for this old man on his birthday, he wanted to spend it with his son doing what I've been doing since I was the ripe old age of 1...attending Kings Island. Yeppers, my mom brought me at the age of one in a stroller. This year would be different. I was excited to see the new Adventure Port (more on that later). We started off arriving earlier than I thought and actually witnessed the national anthem being played before the gates opened (not something I've experienced maybe once or twice). Upon lining up for the gate, my son noticed on their electronic signs that The Beast would be closed for the day...bummer since I wanted to ride to see how it was since the work they have put into it. After entering the gate, the 1st thing we did was to process our Fastlane passes. When I presented the email to scan, the lady asked me if I wanted to use them for today. I was a bit confused because when I went to buy tickets, I chose July 16th as the day I would attend. I was asked if I wanted to add FL on, which I did. For some reason, it chose the 24th of July instead of the 16th. Weird considering there's no place to choose the date you wish to use your FL. I had the same experience last year when I went to Kings Dominion and Carowinds. Both of those parks just switched it to that day, no additional charge. However, that was not to be the case with Kings Island. They changed it with an additional $25/each FL. 

We went to Mystic Timbers 1st, his choice. As a matter of fact, he chose where we went all day, even though it was my birthday. I told him that I didn't really care what we rode and when, as I was there more for making memories than worrying about all that. We got 3-4 rides in when while on the lift hill of Orion, I saw Beast testing. I wasn't holding my hopes up, but I said I'll remain hopeful something changes. We continued making our way through to Adventure Port. Being a fan of Der Spinnin' Keggers, I wanted to try out the Cargo Loco. A nice fun ride, but I really wish we could've gotten our barrel spinning. We did ride it a 2nd time later and got some spinning out of that one. We also noticed the Tequila barrel one spun really well, so if you haven't gone yet, try to catch a ride on that one. We rode Adventure Express next and I must say, the added effects were a very nice touch. Also, the entrance looked better than ever. We had to catch a ride on Sol Spin later in the day as it was not open early on. 

I won't go into what we rode all day and in which order because quite frankly, I don't remember. Not because I just turned 52, but due to the fact that we managed 35 rides. It was a good feat considering the park was quite crowded. We only a meal at the park once, which he decided on LaRosa's in Rivertown, even though I wanted to try something new. Still a good pizza though. Later, we did in fact enjoy the legendary blue ice cream that neither of us had ever tried. Very good choice and great tasting on a hot summer day. 

At the point that we exited Adventure Express, we decided to redeem our drink bottle/wrist bands that I had also purchased. I went to a place in Coney Mall and was told I had to get the souvenir bottle, which I knew was not the case. Instead of arguing, we got a drink and headed towards the front of the park. I really did not want to carry around a souvenir bottle because I didn't want to have to rent a locker. So, we went in Festhaus and decided to explain what had occurred just minutes ago. I had checked my email on the way over and I read in the description that I had my choice of either/or. The associate grabbed a supervisor. He said he could fix the issue, but would have to take our souvenir bottles. I told him it was fine as I'm not trying to get anything over on them. We did get our wristbands, got a drink and headed out.

It was early afternoon when we exited The Racer (possibly) and my son saw people exiting The Beast. We literally ran (for a short distance) towards Rivertown. I honestly can't remember the last time I attended KI and couldn't ride The Beast. I must say, after all these years, it's still right at the top of my list. The most impressive change was the banking out of the 1st tunnel.  We made this one our last ride of the night and we were literally announced as the last train before the fireworks began. 

Speaking of The Racer, our 1st ride on it was the red side, which was fantastic. It was so great that I don't think it's been that good since the early years that I rode it. We rode once on the blue side and what a difference in between the two. The blue side needs some serious TLC. Seemed like the difference between night and day.

After we left, we went to the Comfort Inn Suites at Mason. It was not a place I had stayed at before and I will NEVER stay at again. I usually like to stay at the Super 8 Mason. The check in at Comfort Inn was fine, the room was clean, the beds seemed comfy and the cleanliness was also good. I took a shower 30 minutes after checking in and my son soon after. As we were watching tv, I heard someone trying to enter our room. Mind you, I understand that someone may be confused and accidentally tried to enter the wrong room. I'm one to always move the latch over for safety sake. A few minutes later, they tried it again. I yelled HEY at them through the door. Next, I turned off the TV as I thought I heard someone talking in a low tone, but thought it might be that. Nope, it was not. I looked out the peep hole and couldn't see anyone, but still heard them talking, but could not make out what was being said. Now it's making us uncomfortable. I whispered over to my son that I was going to call the front desk. The lady picked up and I told her someone was trying to enter our room several times and it was making us uncomfortable. She said, "I'll tell them." She never came. It did go quiet in the hallway, so I thought they must have gone away. I heard some people in the next room. There was an adjoining room door, which I had already checked to make sure it was locked. Next thing I know, they tried to enter our room through that door. That was the last straw. We discussed that there was no way either of us were going to be able to sleep at that hotel, so we packed up and headed home. I was extremely angry because it's also a 2 1/2 hour drive back home and we left at 12:10am. I went by the front desk to turn in my room keys and to no surprise, no one was there. It has taken 3 days, lots of calls including their corporate office, but I will receive a full refund. I have travelled quite a few times and not once have I felt unsafe staying at a hotel. I had even read reviews and they all seemed positive. However, if you pull up Google Maps and read reviews, there's a lot of complaints about this hotel. Why it's different than checking it out on computer is a mystery to me. 

We did have an excellent time at KI outside of the couple of issues, but both were fixed (albeit one at my expense).