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We just got back from spending 2 days at Dollywood and a couple more days in the area for Christmas and honestly it was one of the best park trips we've had in a long time, we really had a great time. Here are few notes from our trip. First off Lightning Rod. I know there's been a ton of talk about that thing here over the past couple of years but for the 2 days we were there it was running consistently with 2 trains both days. On the 22nd it closed at 7:30 along with everything else in the park because it was just under the 34 degree mark (VERY cold night). On the 23rd the park opened at 11 and an operator came out and said there was still frost on the track so it would be opening a bit late. We grabbed some cinnamon bread and headed up toward Firechaser/Wild Eagle and by the time we got halfway up the mountain it was cycling trains and probably opened around 11:45 or so. So anyways 2 days of consistent operations and man that thing is still an absolute beast of a ride. I got a few rides in 3 years ago before the refurb and honestly I don't know if it's slower now or whatever, but it's still a top 5 ride for me. I got 2 rides the 22nd and ended up getting 5 on the 23 in about 1.5 hours, two in standby with my kids and three through the single rider line. Such an awesome ride, so hopefully these operations carry over into next season. Shoutout to Dollywood for running Wild Eagle with a 50 In height requirement instead of 54 like every other B&M in the country. My youngest was able to ride this year and loved it. Thunderhead as running pretty well for it being in the 40s in December. It's wasn't the smoothest GCI I've ever been on but was good enough to knock out 4 rides in a row with no wait. Mystery Mine seemed more temperamental than Lightning Rod while we were there but that's still a really fun ride, and I love the view you get of it from the path to Wildwood Grove (which was new to me). Speaking of Wildwood Grove, I get the complaint about ripping out the trees up there as it does look a little out of place, but it looked great at night with the Christmas lights and the kids had a blast. Can't wait to see what the new coaster for 2023 will be. Is Dropline the best drop tower in the world? No it's not, I know it's not, but man the views on that thing are amazing and there was NEVER a line for it over 2 days which was weird. Thunderhead and Mystery Mine would both have 45 minutes to an hour long que at times and Dropline was still a complete walk on? When all the coasters closed at 7:30 the 22nd, you guessed it, Drop Line still an absolute walk on. So again it's not the best drop tower in the world but that view makes it one of my favorites. All of the Christmas decorations looked great and the fireworks show at the end of the night was a nice close to the day. We also watched the "Twas the Night Before Christmas Show" which was really cute and well done for a 45 minutes theme park stage musical. Wait times and crowd flow at this park are kind of weird. Lightning Rod would have a 2 hour line in the mornings then be down under 30 minutes at mid day. Thunderhead was all over the place all day, from 45 minutes to a complete walk on. Mystery Mine and Firechaser stayed pretty consistent around 45 minutes- 1 hour both days. One thing I really appreciate about Dollywood is that Tennessee Tornado and Wild Eagle were pretty much walk ons all the time. Maybe we got lucky but it's nice to always have a decent coaster available with a short wait. The park was closed on Christmas Eve and Christmas day but we headed over to Dreammore for breakfast at Song and Hearth and had a great meal. That resort is really nice and I'd love to stay there next trip. The breakfast was just a buffet, but a pretty decent one, and for $18.00 I'd go back in a heartbeat. We also grabbed a couple loaves of cinnamon bread at Dreammore with NO WAIT to take back to our cabin, which made for a nice treat on Christmas day. So again overall we had a great trip, the park is as beautiful as it ever was and I found the operations to be pretty good for the 2 days were were there. My only complaint is I wish they could find a way to have the cinnamon bread line move faster. If this park was like 3 hours closer I'd probably go twice a year, but we'll be back in 2023 for the new coaster.

The Dollywood and Silver Dollar City threads are always the biggest shitshows. Not sure why... maybe you people need a drink. Oh, wait...

God, don't give them any ideas. Chapek would just close half of it and cite it as a cost saving measure.

Ok we just returned from a Florida Christmas trip and having been to Universal many times I have to say that Velocicoaster is amazing! I thought nothing would ever replace SV at CP for my son as his #1 but he is reevaluating that at the moment. It really is the whole package of great coaster and awesome theming.

It’s true though - I’m a typical millennial who hates talking on the phone as much as the next guy, but if there was a phone number to call plainly stated for answers to questions I would not get on a message board to ask my question

Are you new here?

WOW what a smart arse response.

As some regular Theme Park Review readers might know, I live in Bonn, which is not only the former capital of Germany, but also very close to Phantasialand. The park has a solid reputation for building excellently themed roller coasters like the “Colorado Adventure” Vekoma mine train, the B&M inverter “Black Mamba” and most recently the Intamin multi launch coaster “Taron”, embedded in the genuine world of “Klugheim” that opened in 2016. Phantasialand is a family owned park, so it came quite as a surprise that they announced another world class rollercoaster to open in 2020: F.L.Y., located in the new themed area “Rookburgh” – a steam punk type of land. This flying coaster, build by Dutch manufacturer “Vekoma” features 0.75 miles of track, two LSM launches, a “dark ride” part, two inversions and the most innovative loading system I have ever seen on the flying coaster: to enable riders to board, the track is mounted against the station wall and the seats are rotated 90°. To put passengers into the “flying” position, the seats rotate back seamlessly after the ride has passed the short “dark ride” section. The whole setting of the attraction is amazing: steam emerges from the underground, there are tons of details and the sound design creates a perfect immersion. But it is at night, when “Rookburgh” really shines. A visit during the “Wintertraum” event is greatly recommended, as the park stays open late and there are little to no wait times – even at top attractions like F.L.Y., Taron and Black Mamba. The steam effects and the low winter sun make for some cool "god rays" The coaster interacts with the elaborate themeing. I really love that shot. Speaking of themeing … They use metal detectors and a clever locker system, so F.L.Y. flies literally over the guests heads. Tracks and trains and winter sun and blimps and Vekoma goodness This inversion makes the cars look like a petal. Pier 5 Just one of many "airtime" moments. And yes: that's ice on the top of the backbone. 30°F. A panoramic view of F.L.Y. and the whole "Rookburgh" area. Pretty, uh? To the left you can see the first straight LSM launch segment. For the real enthusiast, there is a capsule style hotel embedded into "Rookburgh": "Charles Lindbergh" gives guests some exclusive views of "F.L.Y." (as the trains literally travel around your rooms) and front of line access. I did mention the excellent themeing, didn't I? It's all about flight. They might not completely follow german mask policies, but at least those girls seem to have fun. They do way better (as most of the guest do) One of the infamous steam effects. This gauges turn red before those effects go off. Did I mention the themeing? I'm pretty sure, I did. And there is lot of it. When the sun sets the whole area becomes even more "magical". After sunset. That's some impressive view, isn't it? They even do a short "light show" when the lighting turns from "day mode" to "night mode". Another panoramic view of "Rookburgh". Track and lights and steam. This is the second launch stretch. It catapults you upward.

Gotta say I'm a little nervous about the changes to the big helix, but keeping my fingers crossed.

Yes, the update is that it's going to Cotaland, which is not MOA.

^

Excellent photos! Refreshing to see proper (well done) photos that are not coming from a phone. Makes me miss my camera gear that I sold a few years back! I can't wait to get back to Phantasialand to ride FLY! Looks so much fun (and I love that park!).

Our pizza of the week... Supreme Detroit Style! This one was layered with a mix of Munster, Provolone and whole-milk Mozzarella. A touch of Asiago. Sauce was San Marzano tomatoes, tomato paste, EVOO, fresh garlic, salt, oregano and a touch of sugar. Puree'd and allowed to sit overnight to meld together. Fresh made Italian sausage, peppers, onions, olives. Absolutely loaded up topping wise. Girlfriend said "top 3 of all time!" so I'd say it was a success! The way the mozzarella melts/caramelizes on the crust is just insane... Its SO GOOD! Now to debate what we do for next weekend! Probably back to the Neapolitan-Style crust, thinking maybe Buffalo Chicken and Cheesesteak (beef, onion, peppers).

Harvey Evans, 80. Actor, dancer, singer. One of the original "triple threats" of Broadway. He was in the original Broadway productions of "West Side Story," "Gypsy," "Follies", "Hello, Dolly!" .... what was called the Golden Age of Musicals. Harvey, with the late legendary Barbara Cook, during rehearsals for a concert of "Candide." (2004) In "Follies" with the original cast. (1971)

Gravity Group has the Beast project. The drop is going to be a bit steeper and the new pre cut track will be used. All around good news! "The world’s longest wooden roller coaster, The Beast at Kings Island, is receiving 2,000 feet of track refurbishment this winter. The Gravity Group, which installed 600 feet of its new engineered precut track on the park’s Racer roller coaster last winter, is breathing new life into the ride’s first drop and through the first tunnel and turn towards the second drop and 540-degree helix tunnel, while Kings Island’s carpenters are retracking approximately 1,090 feet of track in other sections along the 7,359-foot long course. The first drop will see a change from 45 degrees to 53 degrees. This change isn’t being made to add more speed or thrill element to The Beast, but to come in lower in the tunnel to provide the proper parabolic arcs due to reprofiling of the track in that area of the ride. This change, along with The Gravity Group’s vertical track design, will deliver a buttery-smooth transition through the tunnel and onto the second drop. The Beast helix crossover will see a redesign and installation of new bents. With the redesign, the forces through the structure will be more evenly distributed to the foundation, the rigidity of each bent more consistent and therefore resulting in a smoother ride experience. The original design of The Beast had the upper and lower track in the helix on top of each other. In order to simplify the geometry of the crossover, the lower bents will be upper bents until the tunnel." https://www.visitkingsisland.com/blog/2021/december/beast-of-a-project-this-winter-at-kings-island?fbclid=IwAR05SXIvqUyhFqpVCAx_sg_E1we7_g5PoOMpd7e6TdY2aZ6x72XHPx2kcqI

Here are some completed shots of Xcelerator. It looks good. I'd rather a brighter red though. The supports are a just a shade lighter than what was on there. The color change has grown on me. Usually, any color change is a no thanks, (Scream, Tatsu), but this I like.

Have you considered calling that number they listed right there to I dunno... ask them?

You cannot carry anything onto any of the rides, but most of them have storage areas in the loading area where you or the ride operators will store your items until you get off the ride. No need to get a locker unless you plan on storing a coat or change of clothing.

My two cents: The week before and after Christmas are insanely crowded. Orlando had a day of rainy weather so now there are people who planned to go to the park one day and had to push it to the next. I've been to BGT dozens of times over the last 20 years. Yes, there have been crappy days, but it is FAR from the worst run park in the world. Again, insane crowds this week are to be expected. That's why I avoid the parks this time of year.

It's because corporate hates our park so much they want to make sure we don't have another HITP event, even if it means canceling them chain-wide.

As a card-carrying member of the Pony Express fan club, I approve. I actually like that a lot.

^2.1 has been a rougher seat for as long as I can remember. The good news is a large stretch of track from the 90 degree bank into the valley and back up the hillside is being replaced this fall along with some touch ups in other areas. Hopefully someday the PTCs are replaced. Regarding the authorities, a dog has been left in a car TWICE by the same owner in the past week. The Gift House is low on merchandise due in part to very high in-park spending at rates never seen before coupled with combating supply chain issues that have plagued multiple industries this year.