Leaderboard

^ Just bring a mask and you'll be ok. You'll get stares. For sure you'll get stares. Like hostile glares from multiple people. I live around here and I've taken to masking again since the rise of the Delta variant (just when indoors or when there's too many people around in an outdoor area, you know, like the CDC says). Hoo boy the distrust in the eyes of people, the wariness, like they are concerned I'm going to jump them with a knife or something. It's absolutely unreal. That attitude is the cause of why this variant has taken hold in this area. So that's what's happening. I want you to be aware of what you're walking into, but with eyes open you'll be ok. Just take care of yourself, act real friendly and be super polite, and they'll leave you alone. God, this is how I have to talk about my neighbours now. This place has become so hateful in the last decade or so.... Trust me, it hasn't always been like this. People used to be nice here.

If I may chime in for a sec. . . I made my first trip to the park last month. I was pretty impress. Now, the food sucked but the atmosphere, the ride selection and the overall feel of the park was very welcoming to me. I consider myself a person that gets to a lot of parks and have been doing so for some time. I can see how someone who has been going to the park for 10 years could say the park has changed but honestly, what hasn't changed in 10 years? My philosophy is if the good outweighs the bad then i'm good! With growth comes growing pains and I hate to be that person but things could have gotten a lot worst in the last 10 years especially for a family owned park. . .

^ I was making a joke but feel free to take all my posts seriously. It'll make for some hilarious misconceptions.

When you are there make sure to go through Marvel Cave, it's free and the entrance is in the big gift shop that you walk through at the start of the park. It is the whole reason the park exists and is really a cool cave.

Sucks doesn't it. Not living right in your neck of the woods but having been there a number of times through my growing up years I have seen the change. The area was always religious and conservative but we were there right after the 2016 election and people had put up all sorts of billboards rejoicing that HC had lost the election and the vitriol in these completely unnecessary "ads" was unbelievable. That's when I knew things had really taken a vicious turn. BUT nobody should be deterred from visiting, SDC is a really great park and the employees will go out of their way to be helpful.

Extreme Disk-O. Basically Intamin's Ultra Surf model, but from Zamperla.

I'm 100% sure management was not like "hmmm...let's not open Legend today. Or the next day." There is no way it was due to staffing, they would have taken the people from the ice cream stand at that point and train them. Rides need maintenance. Earlier this year Thunderbird was down for a few weeks, but you know what? At midnight and into the early mornings they were tirelessly getting it back open as soon as humanly possible. They were doing MAJOR structural work and digging up all around the ride. I don't know what the issue with Legend is, but I can assure you it's not like they want the ride to be closed. Things happen, unfortunately it just happened while you were there. It may be going downhill over the years in your eyes, but major rides being down on purpose is not something Holiday World would allow to happen. I can see them maybe staggering rides if there was a staffing issue, or closing some smaller attractions or ones that require a LOT of staff to run, but cheetah chase is a brand new ride and there's no way they wouldn't just not open it due to staffing. (Unless you're Darien Lake). Sorry you had an unfortunate visit.

Jeffrey Siebert just posted an updated pic of Poltergeist with it's new paint job almost finished! LOVING the new colors, and can't wait to see what train wrap they chose to go with.

I haven't done it, but it looks really cool. I've just done the cave tour hundreds of times so I don't want to pay the upcharge. It sells out quickly, so when you first get there go immediately to the cave desk in the Hospitality House (you'll literally walk through it between the turnstiles and the square). Trailblazer Pass is generally worth it if the weather is good. Current forecast is for thunderstorms on Sunday but clear on Monday. If that holds, then get TB pass. Around here, though, weather can be quite variable, and I've seen storms get pushed back a day as they develop more slowly than the models would predict. So there's a decent chance that it might rain on Monday instead. Don't pre-purchase, wait and see what the weather does and buy day of if it's sunny.

Walt Disney World has put out fresh new details about EPCOT's new Harmonious nighttime spectacular! ‘Harmonious’ Will Tell a Story of Global Connection When it Debuts October 1 at EPCOT as Part of ‘The World’s Most Magical Celebration’ https://disneyparks.disney.go.com/blog/2021/07/harmonious-will-tell-a-story-of-global-connection-when-it-debuts-october-1-at-epcot-as-part-of-the-worlds-most-magical-celebration/ We’re just a little more than two months from the next major milestone in the transformation of EPCOT, the debut of “Harmonious,” the new nighttime spectacular that is one of the largest ever created for a Disney park and unlike anything that’s been seen before. “Harmonious” illuminates our shared humanity, bringing to life the vision of EPCOT through a celebration of our world and its promise. Over the years, cultures from around the world have provided inspiration for Disney films and music. In “Harmonious,” a global community of musical artists has come together and reinterpreted those familiar stories and songs in their own voice, honoring their respective cultures. Collectively, they contribute to a unique experience that could only happen at EPCOT, a place where the impossible becomes possible through the power of human imagination and the magic of Disney. The show moves through three distinct chapters, inviting us to gather on the shores of World Showcase Lagoon, celebrate the countries and cultures of the world, and ultimately unite to create a bright tomorrow. “Harmonious” begins with a sunrise, and as the world awakens around us, we set out on a journey that takes us across the globe. It’s a dazzling and diverse feast for the eyes and ears, from the South Pacific home of “Moana” and a Middle-Eastern interpretation of “Aladdin” to “The Jungle Book” in India, China’s legend of “Mulan,” the European nations that inspired “Brave” and “The Hunchback of Notre Dame,” and so much more. Here’s a first look at how this stunning spectacle is coming together, as teams from Disney Live Entertainment and Walt Disney Imagineering continue working to get “Harmonious” ready for opening night. “Harmonious” will make its grand debut on October 1 as part of the launch of “The World’s Most Magical Celebration,” marking the 50th anniversary of Walt Disney World Resort. Be sure to check Disney Parks Blog regularly for updates on “Harmonious” and the celebration as the big day draws nearer!

^

Sounds like you had a great time at Coasterstock. Sorry you weren't able to make it to the book signing. I hope you're able to still purchase Kings Island: A Ride Through Time. It will answer all your questions about the park, and I think you'll really enjoy it!

They're much better these days; it's one of the few things at that park that's actually improved. Still no Knoebels fliers, but definitely respectable enough the last couple times I've been. They started running them at a decent speed the same year they repainted them with the warbird paint job a few years back (which I think is already gone).

Oh, I know. That's the plan. I'm not thrilled about the numbers but I'm definitely not letting it keep me from going. I've wanted to get to SDC for years, I'm not missing the chance now. I'm healthy and not in any high risk groups, I'm vaccinated, I'll have a mask...I'll be fine, sure. It's just...disappointing and frustrating, the whole attitude like you said. We should be done with this crap by now, but...I don't need to derail the topic any further. Also, a week from yesterday, not sure why I typed a day. Flying out for 7 parks in 7 days this weekend.

We had an absolutely AMAZING first day at Disneyland Resort spending most of our day in Avengers Campus! I put together a report on Instagram Stories. Let me know if you can or cannot get this link to work for you: https://www.instagram.com/stories/highlights/17877795437397215/

We've made so many trips to Holiday World since I was 3 years old and have enjoyed ourselves. We was there last Thursday and it was hot, humid and busy but we expected longer waits than normal. Yes, Legend, Cheetah Chase and the original wave pool was closed that but it was ok. I'd rather you close the ride and make it safe. It just means next summer we'll finally get to ride Cheetah Chase (the other 2 water coasters are insane). We did get to experience Wildebeest (my favorite ride in the whole park) as it was around the 1 million mark so that was extremely cool. The food was sooo good and tasty. Best onion rings we have ever had (and they were thick breaded and huge). My hubby even said the Asian food at Santa's Merry Marketplace was better than Panda Express. The ice cream you sell at Sugarplum Scoope is tasty. The only regret was that we forgot to buy peanut butter fudge. Everything we rode was truly enjoyable when we were there. I couldn't ride Voyage only because I was afraid it would make my right shoulder sore (my orthopedic told me no more rides on Beast at KI or anything similar). Raven was my 1st coaster back in the day and I believe it felt smoother than ever before. The only problematic thing was we left early due to the humidity. It really drained us after being out in it for 8 hours and I drank water and Gatorade to stay hydrated. Either way, Holiday World has been a consistent #1 park for us. We live in Ohio and I've told many friends and family here about the park so hopefully they get to enjoy it as well. Thanks for all you do!

That photo was taken at Parc Safari in Hemmingford, Quebec. That ride operated there under the name Les Toucans Volants (The Flying Toucans) at least in its latter years. It had at one time been at Belmont Park in Montreal.

I feel like there’s probably a way to do it, but for the house to be a decent length, I’d imagine they’d have to build a little more of it outside of the building. The ride path was significantly shorter than DarKastle’s and the structure is still in use for the animal experience and the queue, which Williamsburg has the luxury of using DarKastle in full. There’s a lot less real estate facility that could be used which is why I’m not positive it’ll end up becoming a house… Though that’s not to say it couldn’t become a themed bar.

Even if I didn't had that special experience, Millennium Force is and will ever be the one coaster I'll be always thinking of if I try to rank, compare or define any coaster I am riding. It is just pure pleasure to me. We had four nights at Cedar Point in July 2017 and ended every day with binge riding Millennium Force. It's just such a wholesome feeling the darker it gets. I haven't had a comparable coaster experience yet. I rode better coasters. I rode more intense coasters. I rode faster coasters. I rode higher coasters. I rode steeper coasters. But no one gave me this complete, heart soothing enduring experience you have from entering the station to leaving it after a couple of laps while using the magic gate.

God, this is me in a nutshell.

Steel Vengeance is insane. RMC pulled out so many stops for that thing. It really is New Texas Giant but on unnecessarily copious amounts of crack. Got a once-in-a-lifetime front row Millennium Force ride on Saturday night. Some idiot kids kept on delaying the ride by messing with the gate, so a normal dusk ride became a pitch black, post-park-closing ride. Lake Erie transforms into the abyss. During the first overbank, we saw lightning in the distance, so me and my buddy ended up getting the last front row ride of the night. On a regular ride, Millennium Force has mystical healing properties for the heart and soul. During a night ride like that, it transcends that and brings you to another plane of existence where worries don’t exist. Just euphoria, ecstasy, and Lake Erie air blasting you in the face at 100mph in the dark. I haven’t had the energy to update my dumb coaster enthusiast bs ranking spreadsheet since then but there is absolutely no way that any other ride could provide that experience. MF #1, GOATed. What else can I say? I love going fast.

I'm going with my kids this Saturday, the second time for most of us (after HWN), and I can't wait to experience it with my youngest for his first time ever! Whatever's open, will be open, and I'm sure it'll be a great time there for the whole family regardless!

Y'all go ahead and impress the SFMM management with the width and breadth of your vast knowledge. I'm sure they'll be shocked and amazed and get on changing that sign that they've had for about 45 years now right away.

I hope that for 2022, SFA is getting treatment for their concerning case of shaky leg syndrome. That's really all we can ask for.

Great video! I've officially conquered all the Floorless coasters in the country and Superman still reigns supreme in my opinion. The interaction with the cliff, glossy smooth ride, and unique layout puts it above the rest for me. I believe it is also the tallest and fastest one.

Take a ride on Superman at Six Flags Fiesta Texas! VIDEO:

We’ve reached peak enthusiast when there’s a page of discussion on arguing semantics about revolutions loop. In other news: track is here for “insert super hero name here” coaster

^ every complaint you had about staffing/open places, and supply at said places are due to the Pandemic, and interruption of Supply Lines. you may not have intended it (tho it sounds like you knew how you were coming across "I was afraid I'd receive a response like this"). . but yeah, not a great 1st impression as a welcome here at TPR. Cut them some slack, and maybe don't go to any parks until 2022 when things are back to relatively normal if you're not able to cut them some slack - I mean, really, check out the Cedar Point thread. . it's been kind of a horror show this year at that park. So either go and know what you're getting into (so don't' complain), or wait for things to normalize. just my input.

as others have said, this is happening all over the Country, due to a Pandemic that has interrupted supply chain and the ability to hire/keep employees you should have expected this - and not for the idiotic reason you state "the slow degradation in the quality of service and value" - but rather because there has been a goddamn pandemic. Kudos to Holiday World for opening up what they could. . it's a shame that folks have lost a sense of decency and empathy. From San Francisco area. . but absolutely applies here: https://www.sfgate.com/food/article/SF-Bay-Area-restaurants-customers-rude-Yelp-review-16333535.php?IPID=SFGate-HP-CP-Spotlight

Just to clear things up, we offer three 4-hour tours per day with a maximum of eight Guests per tour, and Guests may not ride the same ride back-to-back without waiting at least 15 minutes. We also offer one EarlyBird Tour per day. We don't believe premium or skip-the-line products should interfere with everyone else's experience.

Hi Hoosier Dude, I believe we've seen your updated review on Google. I apologize that we didn't update our response until just a few minutes ago (Google doesn't put those in our "new reviews" section). I just want to express that our team puts our hearts and souls into what we do. When a ride goes down, we will spend what it takes to get it back up and operating safely as quickly as possible. Right now, we're at the mercy of a mess of a global supply chain--both with food and ride parts, but our team is going above and beyond in so many invisible ways to get rides back and food in restaurants this year. I'm proud to be a part of that team. That said, the days of your visit were particularly unlucky days for our maintenance team. We'd like to find a way to make your experience better, but we need to be able to converse with you in an appropriate forum--would you mind sending us an email at comments@holidayworld.com?

Wow, what a rambling series of disconnected thoughts. Paragraph upon paragraph describing Google Earth images. This is not "research." There is nothing firsthand in the entire article. The author read some articles and used some mapping programs and wrote about an Internet search. Nowhere in this entire piece is there any original reporting or any actual journalism. It's sensationalism. Moving on.

Heyo! I work there, so let me see if I can answer some of these for you. My biggest advice, is if you're coming during the summer months, PLEAsE DRINK WATER!!! Hydrate before you come to the park. Hydrate while you are at the park. Hydrate Hydrate Hydrate! Drink water drink water! It sounds obvious, but you'd be amazed at the amount of times we have to call safety to get help for someone who has heat exhaustion or passes out due to dehydration. I literally saw it happen in person yesterday. Also, if you're coming for summer, do make sure to check out your sweet summer nights show. Its definitely worth the wait, starts at 9:40 in Wildwood Grove. Most, if not all your coasters will have bins. I think they all do. A lot of our flat rides will have them as well. Please note, Daredevil Falls does NOT have bins. You must carry your items on that one. so if you got a phone you don't want getting wet, I'd recommend leaving it with a friend in the que line. I'm not sure about smoky mountain rampage. Might be the same there as Daredevil falls. Front Porch Cafe is ALWAYs packed. same goes for Aunt Granny's. If you're coming during a weekday during the summer, expect lines. They will be long. Weekends tend to be less packed as far as I can tell, but my work time with dollywood is short, and I'm sure that will change. You may want to check out TIll and Harvest over in wildwood grove as well. Also, the cinnamon bread, you can get that at the Grist mill yes, but a lot of people don't realize you can get that at the bakery right as you enter the park too. The upstairs level to the Grist Mill is CLOsED, so don't try to go up there to get it, you'll be sorely disappointed. As far as what order to get to things, I don't really have an answer for you on that. Refer to the guys above me. They may know better about that than I will.... single rider lines are good, but not all rides have them. I do suggest the timesaver, particularly if you're coming on weekdays during the summer. This past Tuesday and Wednesday have been the busiest days we've had since I started working here. It does save you a lot of time, particularly if you get to the park after the morning rush at the gates. Get there early, and make sure you have the dollywood app on your phone. It does come in handy, and we update wait times on the rides about every 15 minutes. Please note, if you want to ride Daredevil falls, That ride closes at 8. The website may say differently, but Daredevil falls is a special case in that the ride itself has no lights, which means it closes when the sun sets. Rides in general close, starting at 9 across the park from Country Fair towards Wildwood grove. All the rides over in Timber Canyon up to Wilderness pass will close at 9:30. As for Lightning Rod. Well. It's at least opening every day. It is still having issues with it's launch every now and then, but it hasn't closed for an entire day during the time I've worked here yet. Typically if it does, it's down for an hour or so, then they get it fired back up. Keep the dollywood app on your phone, and you'll know when it goes down and gets back up and running. I've had a chance to ride it multiple times with the Ibox track, and the air time is still very much there. In fact I got a night ride, last ride of the night, ride on it a couple weeks ago. That was an experience. lol. Let me know if you have any other questions.

I agree with many, that CGA has improved since CF took over. I work there, and I'm always enthusiastic, and I have fun with what I'm doing. I don't know why people always say it's the worst park ever. For the most part, the GP loves Great America. Now just because some of the rides aren't good (*cough* Vortex *cough* Grizzly) doesn't mean that the park sucks. If you look at Firefall, you can see that CF really put effort into making it look nice. It's got great foliage, and the fountains look magnificent. Bottom line, you can't go to CGA expecting super awesome rides, or else you'll be really disappointed. However, if you go for the overall park experience, you will be impressed with what Cedar Fair has done.

Methos, no concept art, but I have this photo... Zamperla Disko'O "Coaster"