Things KI doesn’t do but should

[SonofBaconator]

On 2/11/2024 at 9:50 PM, OverlandTaxis30 said:

What do you mean? 
 

Lionel can always make models based off of any Crown locomotive since they’re all 4-4-0s

[OverlandTaxis30]

8 hours ago, SonofBaconator said:

Lionel can always make models based off of any Crown locomotive since they’re all 4-4-0s

Exactly! I know they can. All they need is for Kings Island to approach them to do it. But KI hasn’t and I wish they would.

[CoastersRZ]

The question is, is there really a market for this thing?  I know that model railroading can be an expensive hobby, and is often looked at as a dying hobby.  There are several people on Youtube who have built some amazing layouts.  There is even a former poster on these forums (not sure if he has posted in a while) that is working on a layout in his basement.

[Outdoor Man]

To the original post:

• comprehensive RFID bands for season pass- al la Disney. Could be a profit center with benefits. 
  • Loyalty Program, track guest trends
  • Store multi-factor enabled payment methods
  • Of course, season pass info- which would have an image of the pass holder for security on purchases
  • Give season pass guests the ability to leave their wallets home or in the car.
  • Line Queue management
  • - having spent time with people at Disney who work with MDE and Arm Bands- the amount of robust analytics gathered by these are a key reason that the Disney experience is repeated. Honestly, the amount of analytics would probably overwhelm them and, this isn't a knock, they probably wouldn't have the horses to disseminate the info.
• More investment in technology that encourages interaction with said technology... this gives = analytics.
• Data-based decisions may avoid things like $40M coaster installations that are largely identical to one your already have. I know, I know- Orion is a Giga..... it's basically an updated Diamondback layout.  Take a percentage of that investment and create an immersive experience inside the Tomb Raider bldg. Create an experiences worth repeating... and one that people will wait hours for.
• Make an experience out of a coaster: put a small body of water under a hill on Banshee.... have fog and strobes at night.
• Stop creating new "named" areas in the park and theme the areas already there. Adventure Port is very nice area and very Herschend'esque- but I'm not sure what the theme is. I assume it is Latin America... Meanwhile Oktoberfest continues to shrink. Rivertown, assumed to be 19th century Cincinnati'ish... Mystic Timbers... basically an abandoned saw mill from the 1980s. Pick a lane.

As a guest and Season Pass holder for the past 18 consecutive seasons it seems that large investment decisions are made based on what a committee thinks guests want and not what data/analytics would say. I could be wrong. But, from where I sit- instead of spending millions to go taller and faster- completely remake Camp Snoopy into the entire area... I'm sensing that CS and Planet Snoopy will be "two" areas... Kids are interactive... put more than just rides in there- imagine experiences that families will want to repeat and that older kids will want to revisit. 

[Tr0y]

56 minutes ago, Outdoor Man said:

 

• Data-based decisions may avoid things like $40M coaster installations that are largely identical to one your already have. I know, I know- Orion is a Giga..... it's basically an updated Diamondback layout.  Take a percentage of that investment and create an immersive experience inside the Tomb Raider bldg. Create an experiences worth repeating... and one that people will wait hours for.
• Make an experience out of a coaster: put a small body of water under a hill on Banshee.... have fog and strobes at night.
• Stop creating new "named" areas in the park and theme the areas already there. Adventure Port is very nice area and very Herschend'esque- but I'm not sure what the theme is. I assume it is Latin America... Meanwhile Oktoberfest continues to shrink. Rivertown, assumed to be 19th century Cincinnati'ish... Mystic Timbers... basically an abandoned saw mill from the 1980s. Pick a lane.

As a guest and Season Pass holder for the past 18 consecutive seasons it seems that large investment decisions are made based on what a committee thinks guests want and not what data/analytics would say. I could be wrong. But, from where I sit- instead of spending millions to go taller and faster- completely remake Camp Snoopy into the entire area... I'm sensing that CS and Planet Snoopy will be "two" areas... Kids are interactive... put more than just rides in there- imagine experiences that families will want to repeat and that older kids will want to revisit. 

In my opinion, going with what the guest wanted is what got us Orion to begin with. So many people begged for KI to get a "Giga coaster", and that's what we allegedly got. I would argue if guest got to make every pick, then CP would have likely never got Maverick and KI would have likely never got Mystic Timbers. And for a lot of folks those are considered world class rides with both being in the top 10 for the Golden Ticket Awards in their respective categories.

I agree with you on guest experience being paramount in the decision making. Unfortunately, CF's CEO is determined to turn CF into essentially the Walmart / Mcdonalds of amusement parks. Cheap prices, with locations around every corner. 

[CoastersRZ]

I think the trend is for Cedar Fair to try and pull in rides to a cohesive theme.  Look at what they are doing with Dorney Park and the Iron Menace area.  They are retheming their existing Flying scooter ride to fit in with the steel mill theme.  Even the new shops/food stands are getting rethemed.  And they pulled in the Haunt into the storyline/theme as well.  I definitely like the direction of this themed area that Cedar Fair is introducing to the parks.  Time will tell if it continues once, and if the Six Flags merger goes through.

[Outdoor Man]

2 hours ago, Tr0y said:

In my opinion, going with what the guest wanted is what got us Orion to begin with. So many people begged for KI to get a "Giga coaster", and that's what we allegedly got. I would argue if guest got to make every pick, then CP would have likely never got Maverick and KI would have likely never got Mystic Timbers. And for a lot of folks those are considered world class rides with both being in the top 10 for the Golden Ticket Awards in their respective categories.

I agree with you on guest experience being paramount in the decision making. Unfortunately, CF's CEO is determined to turn CF into essentially the Walmart / Mcdonalds of amusement parks. Cheap prices, with locations around every corner. 

I'll go back a few years more. If they had listened to the guest pre-2009, Diamondback would have been a giga. In the Paramount days (and before), Kings Island enjoyed flagship status. World firsts and innovation came here before the others. Since then, not only has it played 2nd fiddle to Cedar Point- but Orion was the 6th (and shortest) Giga+ in the chain to be built... and wasn't even intended for KI. That said, taller and faster doesn't immediately translate to better. Better is better.  Disney World's Seven Dwarfs Mine Train is 41 ft tall... it rarely has a wait less than 2 hours. Hagrids at Universal is 65 ft tall and I rarely see a wait less than 3 hours. VelociCoaster, half the size of a giga.... multi-hour wait every day. Difference: these roller coasters tell a story. The parks determine the story they want to tell and have a coaster built that tells it = guests will ride again and again.  Some will say Banshee is themed... sort of- the theming largely ends once you leave the station. The Bat isn't themed at all. Imagine how effective the shed "show" with Mystic Timbers would have been if it were placed at the tunnel, mid-course.  Then when, whatever was going to strike you, happened- a second launch propelled you back to the station.  But fortunately for Giga lovers in Cincinnati- word is someone higher up wasn't astute on structure height restrictions in Santa Clara, otherwise the roller coaster nka Orion would have been built there with just 11 years to live...

Paramount, to their credit, tried this with Tomb Raider. It was a game changer and got them national recognition. It was a unique story that another park wouldn't be able to replicate. 250-300ft tall roller coasters can be found at most parks. 

[Tr0y]

2 hours ago, Outdoor Man said:

I'll go back a few years more. If they had listened to the guest pre-2009, Diamondback would have been a giga. In the Paramount days (and before), Kings Island enjoyed flagship status. World firsts and innovation came here before the others. Since then, not only has it played 2nd fiddle to Cedar Point- but Orion was the 6th (and shortest) Giga+ in the chain to be built... and wasn't even intended for KI. That said, taller and faster doesn't immediately translate to better. Better is better.  Disney World's Seven Dwarfs Mine Train is 41 ft tall... it rarely has a wait less than 2 hours. Hagrids at Universal is 65 ft tall and I rarely see a wait less than 3 hours. VelociCoaster, half the size of a giga.... multi-hour wait every day. Difference: these roller coasters tell a story. The parks determine the story they want to tell and have a coaster built that tells it = guests will ride again and again.  Some will say Banshee is themed... sort of- the theming largely ends once you leave the station. The Bat isn't themed at all. Imagine how effective the shed "show" with Mystic Timbers would have been if it were placed at the tunnel, mid-course.  Then when, whatever was going to strike you, happened- a second launch propelled you back to the station.  But fortunately for Giga lovers in Cincinnati- word is someone higher up wasn't astute on structure height restrictions in Santa Clara, otherwise the roller coaster nka Orion would have been built there with just 11 years to live...

Paramount, to their credit, tried this with Tomb Raider. It was a game changer and got them national recognition. It was a unique story that another park wouldn't be able to replicate. 250-300ft tall roller coasters can be found at most parks. 

I agree that Kings Island has been somewhat second fiddle ever since CF acquired the park. As far as lines for those coasters being longer, it's hard to make the comparison when the parks that those coasters reside in have roughly 3-4 times the attendance.

If you look at the top 10 steel coasters for the Golden Ticket Awards, outside of Fury325. 2-10 is nothing but "maintenance nightmare's" aka expensive to maintain coasters that CF tries to avoid. It's a common theme, anything that providers a better experience whether it's a coaster, theming, or ambassadors making someone's day. It all costs money and the current leadership at CF would rather go cheap on those experiences so they can sell you a cheap season pass.