AmyUD06

Thanks! I know I would have appreciated at sign at Flying Turns at Knoebels that explained that the heaviest group needs to sit in the front in 2017 haha. As to your other point, you have a PM.

Like @tndanksaid, no discount for Platinum Pass on FL at Kings Island; that's only at Cedar Point. The bring-a-friend tickets are limited to 6 per visit.

Welcome back to the wonderful world of parks and coasters! My last coaster was last Sunday, the Spinning Coaster (this is its actual name) at Trimpers in Ocean City, MD - a boring SBF Visa figure 8.

I'm guessing you meant for the phone flying out, not BGT actually having decent operations for once haha.

It's already $250 on weekends for FL+. It's priced fine, and works fine on every other ride except for SV (and to a much lesser extent, MF). When I go to the park I've just learned to accept it for what it is; SV is going to take a while and there's no way around it. I'd still much rather wait 45 minutes than 2+ hours. Honestly the massive proliferation of ADA passes is a bigger impediment to efficient lines than oversold FL, if you ask me.

This is normal in my experience. It all has to do with where the merge is. Back before the in-queue lockers, the FL wait would be substantially shorter.

I fail to see how buying a SBNO coaster from a closed park equates to forcibly buying an operating coaster from an operating park, but you do you. But thank you for confirming the sterotype of a WoF (or VF, SFStL, Dorney, Darien Lake, etc. etc.) local enthusiast - no matter what you get, its never enough. Would you rather go another 13 years without a coaster?

Not gonna lie, you can count me in with those who didn't know they had a Tilt-a-Whirl before your post. It's kinda like KI's Flyers - hidden in the kiddie area.

This. The area opened up by moving Matterhorn and Scrambler is so minuscule, and Corkscrew's footprint is so narrow, I don't see much of anything fitting in the area. Now had they also moved the Super Himalaya (which they might as well trash it since they run it slow and forwards only) and Power Tower, you might have a theory there, @jarmor, but as it stands no way. Since we're spouting off crazy theories for the future literally the day after they just announced their 2023 plans, I personally foresee the rapids ride going for their next major coaster. It's a huge plot of land in an area that doesn't have any other rides except an up-charge.

Good news all around I guess, but I really think them calling Monte the "oldest shuttle loop coaster still in its original location" is a bit disingenuous, since from everything we've seen the only parts they're definitely reusing is the station. If the launch mechanism, signature element, and trains are different, is it really the same coaster?

Um, you know that Scrambler and Matterhorn weren't exactly in the "back half" of the park to begin with? They were right at the north end of the Skyride, which I would certainly classify as "middle" of the park if not the "front half" if you're dividing the park in two. You're also completely forgetting about Lake Erie Eagles, Wave Swinger, Skyhawk, and Pipe Scream (and add in Slingshot and Prof. Dilberts Frontier Fling if you want to count up-charges).

I'm not holding my breath. I've yet to meet a Zamperla seat/restraint that was anything but uncomfortable, and that includes their newer stuff like the NebulaZ.

I always recommend it, especially if you've only got one day, unless you go to the park all the time.

Nope, no dedicated single rider lines. Crowds on a Wednesday should be very manageable. All depends on the weather.

Kings Dominion is offering a refillable metal tumbler instead of the plastic cups. Quite an upgrade if you ask me; still not enough to convince me to upgrade from the standard paper cup program....but the "Paper Cup Plus" program for only $10 more is looking kinda nice; it lets you get ICEEs, coffee, and hot chocolate in addition to fountain sodas.

Nice ninja edit there to make me look silly. Before your changes, you said specifically "rebuild the original" with nothing else.

And how would you propose doing that, given that the original coaster is now operating in another park (in a third-world country to boot, so you know maintenance hasn't been done), has recently had a major incident, and is by a long-defunct manufacturer? Seriously people, think before you speak.

Where did you get the spinning trains theory from?

I dig the area re-theme and the new restaurant/bar. Wild Mouse coaster is meh, of course for me, but a good addition for families. I can't wait to see how bad the lines get. My biggest takeaway: No more early entry for Gold Pass holders! Whoohoo!

By "every park" you mean four, sorry, five of them?

I like it, especially the spiral lift hill.

Theoretically they can change the price at any time, but it probably won't this close to the date. Note that you are physically incapable of buying it "in the park." You'd need to use your mobile phone to do it there. It's honestly easier just to buy it in advance. Even if the crowds are small, you'll appreciate one or two train waits for almost everything. And you only want Fast Lane Plus. Don't bother with the regular FL. With FL+, here's how I'd go: -Woodstock Express first; it's not on FL -Bat second; it's also not on FL. -Flight of Fear 3rd; it is on FL, but the merge is kinda back from the station some ways and it always seems to have horrible capacity even though it shouldn't. -After that, do whatever you want LOL. It won't matter with FL+. Wanna go spend some time in the water park? Cool. Wanna go back to your hotel and take a nap for a few hours? Fine and dandy. With FL+, you will have more than enough time to do everything you want several times. Yeah, if this is your "last big adventure" for a while, I would go all out.

It might be busy, might not be depending on the forecast. Will you have Early Entry with a Platinum Pass? Guessing not. No FL+? You should have FL+. It will turn any wait into a station wait on everything except Flight of Fear, possibly Orion, and possibly Beast at night. Read back through the last few pages, plenty of tips for first timers have been given, but I'll give a quick rundown of how I would hit the park without Early Entry. 1. Flying Ace Aerial Chase (it's horrible and you'll be glad you didn't wait, plus its never fun to stand in a long line with kids) - Back Row 2. Woodstock Express (see above about waiting in line with kids) - Back Row 3. Diamondback - some people swear by Row 11, but I prefer Row 2 or the very back. 4. Mystic Timbers - Back Row 5. Beast - Front Row or Row 17. 6. Backlot Stunt Coaster - Back Row 7. Flight of Fear - Front Row or Row 2 8. Orion - Front Row (some people swear by the back but gigas are all about the speed for me) 9. Racer - Front or Row 2 or 5 (if not the front you want a non-wheel seat) 10. Racer (whatever side you didn't do first) - Same 11. Adventure Express - Front or Row 2 12. Banshee - Front or Back Rows 13. Bat - Front for visuals, Back for forces. At this point you've hit all the coasters and have time for rerides on your favorites. I find KI's flat package somewhat lacking, but you'll probably want to hit the Log Flume (Race for Your Life, Charlie Brown) at this time (don't let the fact that its in the kids section fool you, it's good). Many people will suggest the Phantom Theater Encore show but if you've never been to KI you might not be very impressed; personally I'd spend more time on rides. Note that they shut Beast down from approximately 9:25 to 10:35 for the fireworks show. If you're trying to get out of the park before 11:00 PM, you want to be in the station for Beast no later than 9:15 to try to time it for a night ride. If you don't care, take a nice long bathroom break and then get in line at like 9:45. You want your last ride of the night to be Beast, preferably in the front row. For food, Tom + Chee has awesome various grilled cheese sandwiches and so-so mac & cheese. Everything at Miami River Brewhouse is good. Let me know if you have any more specific questions. EDIT: If you will have Fast Lane plus, the ride order will be a bit different, so let me know if you will.

You know that every CF website has Places to Stay in the top menu, right? It's just their design theme. I'm not discounting that yes, some people cross shop parks that are long distances away. I'm one of them - I do several 1500 mile + road trips a year. But I'm also an enthusiast with a dedicated interest in the hobby. Every single one of my friends refuses to go on trips with me for parks longer than 4 hours, and there's only one that will do more than 2. The general public is not taking long trips more than once or twice a year, and in those cases it's to see something new. No one is thinking about driving 4 hours to VF and then says "nah, you know what, let's just go to our local park since VF haven't added a coaster in 10+ years." School trips are going whatever park gives them the better price point, that's a simple fact. If you want to think that VF and Adventureland are competing, fine, you're entitled to your opinion. You also need to say then that Dorney Park and SF Great Escape are competing (or for a more extreme example, Busch Gardens Williamsburg and SF Fiesta Texas). They're not competing any more than any other park in the country is for tourism dollars. And again, it's not CF's standard procedure to make major investment at parks that are doing just fine financially regardless of competition. Think of Dorney Park again. This park is located in what might be the amusement park mecca of the US - Within a 2-3 hour drive, you have the following: Hershey, Knoebels, Dutch Wonderland, Sesame Place, SF Great Adventure, Casino Pier, Keansburg Amusement Park, Clementon Park, Playland's Castaway Cove, Morey's, Coney Island, and even American Dream. All are without a doubt "competition" for Dorney Park. Yes, while many of those places are shitholes, and some rarely see major improvement projects, Hershey and SFGAdv get new, major rides every few years. Dorney Park hasn't gotten a coaster in 10, and it was a hand-me-down - their last original coaster investment was 14 years ago (and I'm not saying they need one now). But yet, Dorney Park continues to exist, and make money for CF. Similarly, SF America is located within an hour or so of both Kings Dominion and Busch Gardens Williamsburg, and you see how frequently they get major investment Why? Because it doesn't always matter what competitors do if the park is meeting the goals of the operators. Clearly, VF is doing this, or they would be getting more investment (or shut down).

@Hilltopper39I think the problem is that the "tickets as low as $40" thing only applies on select days and every other day is more expensive. At SFGAdv, weekends are $75 (even buying online) and weekdays are $55. Paying $75 to go to a park where not everything is open is not most people's idea of fun. And the pass cost now seems low to you and me, but to someone who was used to spending $60 a year for a base level membership, that's a 100% increase in cost with zero improvements to show for it.