KD and Carowinds adding Oktoberfest to Fall lineup

[BoddaH1994]

Looks like a cool addition!

Carowinds: https://www.carowinds.com/events/oktoberfest?utm_source=park_facebook&utm_medium=social&utm_campaign=oktoberfest_fall_announcement&utm_id=25FSP&fbclid=IwZXh0bgNhZW0CMTEAAR1X7sVk5mB-Y7KBmHy-oHUSNVH3CLKvPEImvzmYo0bUtnZJ5ehPqFYJmFE_aem_B8wKJHRaQxYzs9SE3_g_Qg

KD: https://www.kingsdominion.com/events/oktoberfest?fbclid=IwZXh0bgNhZW0CMTEAAR2W9DFFcBUWh5XDwxwB3EqTCTQbZXF3kH_iuSfPKyArubioDKL97eecB20_aem_CJb_OWFtoQyI5IGWdVv_GA

[beastfan11]

It’s a shame an event like this wouldn’t do well in Cincinnati. 

[johnjniehaus]

Looks like a fun event! Unfortunately our Octoberfest section is nothing more than the festhaus and Viking Fury. I love adventure port but it came at the cost of reducing Octoberfest to merely a spur off of International Street. 

I'd get behind an Octoberfest event at KI but I'm not sure how to gauge how many people it would actually draw to the park...

[brenthodge]

8 hours ago, beastfan11 said:

It’s a shame an event like this wouldn’t do well in Cincinnati. 

why wouldn't it do well in Cincinnati?

 

[BB1]

20 minutes ago, brenthodge said:

why wouldn't it do well in Cincinnati?

 

Sarcasm, Cincinnati has the largest Oktoberfest every year and has a ton of smaller Oktoberfests in the tri state.

[Orion-XL200]

To be fair, it'd do well in Cincinnati....the implementation of it at KI would not do well....cough Wine & Food Festival cough cough.

[disco2000]

Maybe like everything else, ours will be announced weeks later 

[brenthodge]

3 hours ago, BB1 said:

Sarcasm, Cincinnati has the largest Oktoberfest every year and has a ton of smaller Oktoberfests in the tri state.

lol. Ok. That’s why I was wondering. 

[SonofBaconator]

I always wondered if KI never did an Oktoberfest celebration out of fear that it wouldn’t perform to the standards of the one downtown. Personally, I wouldn’t mind if German food options are offered during that time for park guests. 

[rlentless]

I think an Octoberfest could be done utilizing the Festhaus and plaza area out front.  Also, it would be a little disjointed but the Tower Gardens could hold activities/food/drinks (bier) too.

[BB1]

The fact that KI has an actual Oktoberfest section and isn't getting an Oktoberfest is honestly depressing on so many levels. The problem with Kings Island's implementation of the food events is that the selection was just bland for the wine festival. Oktoberfest, if done as a limited seasonal run from the end of September to the early part of October would do fairly well in my eyes in terms of a park event. I will pay dollar for dollar for a Hoffbrauhaus beer at the park, or even have local craft breweries showcase their Oktoberfest beers as several are kicking off their rotations now. Kings Island has what should be the easiest slam dunk opportunity to create a very unique event that showcases local flair and celebrates the Cincinnati Oktoberfest tradition, as there's dozens of events in the area and I know every single one was packed every year. If Kings Island made a legit event, working with local bands and German communities, this could go over extremely well. 

[BeeastFarmer]

Plus, they should have hardware from Grand Carnivale that they could re use!

[goettablitz]

I suspect that an octoberfest event at ki would have too much competition from all the other local octoberfests.

[Hawaiian Coasters 325]

The park hasn't announced their full lineup for fall yet. All they have is Tricks and Treats and Haunt, but they don't have the full lineup of entertainment and stuff for those events, just pics. I would expect if KI is getting an Oktoberfest event that they would announce it at the same time as the lineup for Haunt/Ts&Ts gets announced. I wouldn't jump to conclusions yet as KI tends to be a little behind when it comes to announcing entertainment/event lineups ie they don't usually announce the summer show lineup until like a week before opening day. 

[Orion-XL200]

I would rather if they do it, they actually do it right than just throwing it together. Wine & Food Festival was essentially botched as was Grand Carnival. Take more time to plan and do it right instead of last minute.

[Hawaiian Coasters 325]

Looks like KI isn't getting Oktoberfest this year. This is really disappointing on many different levels. Is it because there are tons of other Oktoberfest events around the Cincy area that upper management feels it wouldn't work at KI? Idk this feels like a huge missed opportunity. 

[SonofBaconator]

35 minutes ago, Hawaiian Coasters 325 said:

Looks like KI isn't getting Oktoberfest this year. This is really disappointing on many different levels. Is it because there are tons of other Oktoberfest events around the Cincy area that upper management feels it wouldn't work at KI? Idk this feels like a huge missed opportunity. 

I mean the park has been around for over 50 years and to my knowledge they’ve never had anything. Their compromise was theming an entire section to Oktoberfest-which has unfortunately lost its luster and footprint over the years. I feel like it’s not necessarily a missed opportunity, but rather something that they might not look into given their proximity to the 2nd largest Oktoberfest celebration in the world.

[SmartCat7162]

So KD has had two new events this season and brought back all of the events from last year as far as I know. I wonder why we are seeing such a large investment in the park versus other parks of similar size or of a similar market.

[Orion-XL200]

On 8/27/2024 at 11:33 AM, Hawaiian Coasters 325 said:

Looks like KI isn't getting Oktoberfest this year. This is really disappointing on many different levels. Is it because there are tons of other Oktoberfest events around the Cincy area that upper management feels it wouldn't work at KI? Idk this feels like a huge missed opportunity. 

Still don't think KI could actually pull it off based on the implementation of Wine and Food Festival.