raptor6

The Holiday Inn Express & Suites next to the Thirsty Pony was a new build about 4-5 years ago. I was there in 2017 for Coastermania and it was great! It was right next to my favorite restaurant in Sandusky is it is the closest non-resort hotel to Cedar Point. I was able to use my hotel points to make the stay free. The Quality Inn was torn down a few years ago. It now appears to be opened as the Cedar Stables Inn & Suites. The website calls the Stables as "a Unique Boutique Experience" and it has prices to match. It is much more expensive then the old Quality Inn. The Holiday Inn Express & Suites, Cedar Stables Inn & Suites, and Econo Lodge North all appear to have the same owner as the Thirsty Pony. The group is called Cedar Corner Hotel & Entertainment Complex. https://cedarcorner.com/

I am fully supporting another Giga in my home state! The layout look great. Kings Island is already a great park and Orion only helps to improve the park. It should be a big hit with the public and will make me visit next summer.

I love the Brew & BBQ event! The Platinum Pass 12oz glass was for the Brew Kettle from Strongsville, OH. They make the Cedar Point exclusive beers and you could try any of their beers with the 12oz coupon. It is really a good value and the food was much better than the typical park food. We arrived near the event opening time and spent several hours trying different beers. We also learned that doing the Coastermania lunch and Brew & BBQ festival on the same day is a bad idea as it is just to much too eat, drink, and ride in one day.

^I guess that i missed that part... But the positioning of T2:3D and Woody Woodpecker Kids Zone actually works (at least per the park map). I thought that I was onto something...

My guess for the replacement of T2:3D is that it will be part of the future Nintendo Land. It appears that the current Woody Woodpecker Kid Zone and T2:3D could be combined together for a giant patch of land for Mario, Link, and Donkey Kong.

35 on the 100 Best Roller Coasters in the World list (Rank: #1,084 of 12,764 users (top 9%)) 23 on the 100 Great Roller Coasters for Real Enthusiasts list (Rank: #16 of 51 users (top 31%))

I have not tried the Food Truck Festival, but the wife and I went to the BBQ and Brew Festival while at Coastermania last year and it was incredible! cpfoodblog.com/2016-cedar-point-brew-bbq/ cpfoodblog.com/review-2016-cedar-point-brew-bbq-food/

^^Concrete evidence of a hybrid! But it could still be an aquatrax...

Sounds like a place to find some brews. Do they have good food? I agree with Thirsty Pony, food is great, beer is great, can't beat it. Whenever I visit CP, I always make sure I stop at Thirsty Pony and Famous Dave's. The Thirsty Bam Burger "Our signature burger ground with a touch of horseradish and fresh garlic, seasoned with salt, pepper & steak sauce, topped with swiss & mozzarella cheeses on ciabatta bread" $10.50 This is my main menu item. A truly great burger.

My go-to credit card is the Chase Sapphire Preferred. I highly recommened the card as it gives me 2x point on all travel and dining and 1x point on everything else. The points can transfer to a whole bunch of different airline and hotel partners including IHG, Marriott, Hyatt, Ritz-Carlton, United Airlines, British Airways, Korean Air, Singapore Airlines, Southwest Airlines, Air France KLM at a full 1:1 value. I like how it doesn't tie me into just one airline or hotel chain for redeeming my points. My sign-up bonus was 50,000 points plus 5,000 more after my authorized user (wife) made one purchase on her card. There is a $95 annual fee that is waved the first year, but I feel that my value far exceeds that rate. I just entered the credit card points game to help pay for some of these trips that we have planned, like getting pretty much free airfare round trip to Hawaii. I feel that it is a really good starter card for those folks just entering the game like me and a good card to keep due to the transfer partner options. And always pay the bill in full every month! That is, by far, the number one rule! Send me a PM if you want a referral link for the card.

And don't even bother with the hotel (Quality Inn, I believe) at the Thirsty Pony either as that's about as bad, only they charge you even more because you are at the causeway entrance. TP is a decent place to grab some beers and pub food, but the hotel and indoor "water park" is a POS. Count me in as another one that has stopped trying to be frugal when it comes to staying in hotels. While Comfort Inn's and Holiday Inn's can be subjective depending on management, like Prozach said, spend the damned money and go for a Hampton or something nicer. I believe that some of the Thirsty Pony Quality Inn building was torn down (I believe that tower was removed) in the off season and was replaced by a brand new Holiday Inn Express, which looks really nice from the outside. Google maps shows that both hotels exist and are connected to the Thirsty Pony, but it does not appear to have been updated since the new hotel opened. Maybe they wanted one cheap hotel and one nice hotel to expand their market base?

The super 8 near Kings Island? Ew. we made that mistake once too. If you can still change your reservation, I stayed at the Baymont across the highway from Kings Island. It was cheap and actually a decent hotel. I agree 100% regarding the Baymont Inn recommendation. The wife and I stayed there for Coaster Stock 2015 for $90 per night and were quite pleased with the property. TPR member thrillrider stayed at the Super 8 for the event and had an awful experience and even encountered a bed bug! They are nasty as a huge pain to eliminate! Here is his trip report: themeparkreview.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=2&t=70330&hilit=Coasterstock+2015+at+Kings+Island%21

Since Cedar Point is located on the water and has a marina, I propose using the name that the UK rejected for it's new polar research ship: Boaty McBoatface.

Let's where I actually visited this year: Cedar Point x4 Kings Island x2 Michigan's Adventure x1 Kennywood x1 Six Flags New England x1 Lake Compounce x1 Six Flags Great America x2 Not too bad at all! EDIT: I went to Las Vegas for the first time in Mid-December. I had a BOGO coupon for the Big Apple Coaster (Manhattan Express) at the New York, New York Hotel & Casino. I rode in the front seat since I heard many horror stories about the roughness. The ride was nothing special and would be pretty decent if it didn't have those awful OTSRs and basically stop at the mid-course brake run.

Lightning Rod is my first choice. Widefire is a close second. The quadruple down looks insane and is also my most anticipated ride element of 2016.