Holiday World (HW) Discussion Thread

samhimburg · July 24, 2015

It starts around 1:13 for anyone who has trouble hearing it. Sound libraries offer stock choral singing so you can add in big choral sounds to your blockbuster movie score on the cheap. Naturally this singing has no real words to it, it's just random syllables - "Oh, bo, da-doo" etc, it's supposed to sound vaguely like Latin or something. For there to be a hidden message involved HW would have had to dish out the money to hire a real chorus, at least three or four singers, to record it, which seems unlikely.

I think what Paula is implying here is that there's an unintended hidden message in there.

I'm stumped. Maybe they're saying "AR......EM.......CEE.'

kyleparks77 · July 25, 2015

After giving it another listen, here's what I hear.... "haw" .... "haw"...."hee haw".

That settles it. Donkey rides! TPR approved!

ZeroGravity55 · July 25, 2015

For there to be a hidden message involved HW would have had to dish out the money to hire a real chorus, at least three or four singers, to record it, which seems unlikely.

Listen to our Thunderbird Theme, concentrating on the chanting. I was obsessed that the random chant was sending a message (it wasn't)

thrillseeker4552 · July 25, 2015

After giving it another listen, here's what I hear.... "haw" .... "haw"...."hee haw".

That settles it. Donkey rides! TPR approved!

JeromyL · July 25, 2015

LOL now paula has me listening to it over and over again LOL....

ZeroGravity55 · July 25, 2015

^ I have a feeling she is thoroughly enjoying the fact that you're listening to it over and over again. It's been a year since she's gotten to torture us enthusiasts lol

kyleparks77 · July 25, 2015

She's sending us on a wild goose chase for nothing. There's SOMETHING she's trying to keep us distracted from; I just know it...

Edit: Or maybe Paula is just twisted and likes watching us suffer.

JeromyL · July 25, 2015

Nahh. Paula loves us nerds

Midgetman82 · July 26, 2015

Are they saying "Lift... off... lift-off... lift-off...?"

ZeroGravity55 · July 26, 2015

I've seen a couple of posts on FB suggesting that the park ran out of parking space today (I should say that people on FB tend to make things sound worse than they really are). I wouldn't be surprised if HW set an attendance record today, although the park would never tell anyone if they did. They might have to look into expanding The Legend lot, which could set them back in their efforts to get the lot paved with asphalt. I believe they have some wooded area left which they can remove and add more parking. Not sure how much more they can add though.

kyleparks77 · July 26, 2015

Another example of HW's emmense popularity this summer is that the Louisville.com Twitter account is tweeting pictures from HW today. By comparison, they haven't tweeted anything about KK. With this, it's understandable that the parking areas have filled up.

mike541x · July 28, 2015

Just got back from first ever visit from Holiday World. All I can say is Wow! I was going to the park with high expectations and HW exceeded all of them! I'll do a full TR once I'm home tomorrow or Wednesday, but a few highlights I want to point out:

-Thunderbird was my first wingrider and all I have to say is that the park is a winner with this new ride as it's a major hit with everyone

-One, if not, the best operations I've seen at any park by far. Other parks need to learn from Holiday World.

-Perfect collection of flats. Love how they had some classics there

-Great food

-Friendliest employees I've encountered at any amusement park

Holiday World is just amazing. And like I said I'll get into more detail and do a trip report once I'm home and upload some pictures.

HolidayWorldFTW · July 28, 2015

It's really amazed me how much this park has transformed in just one season. I wonder if they realize there at HW just how amazing of a job they did on the Thunderbird project, and what exactly this means for the park. I said this a month or so but I'll say it again, this is another HUGE historical and pivotal point in the parks history. They have had a few, but Thunderbird I think is going to be even more impactful. When KK billboards are LITERALLY advertising "we have fun rids again", you know that they won't be hurting HWs business anytime soon, if ever now.

Also Paula, I LOVE the Thunderbird Theme Song, and have listened to it prolly a MILLION times in the past year. Now you have me on another listening spree looking for that clue! Arggg your so sneaky and good at what you do! Btw, any chance we could see some video from whatever group that is that does the Thunderbird routine with flags and drums? It would not surprise me ONE BIT if the clue in the song doesn't relate to their project for next year, or in the future. Paula, and HW, are just REALLY REALLY REALLY good and detailed like that. When I seen them practicing the Thunderbird routine when leaving the media day, I knew there had to be something else about that song. Also, when will we able able to get an MP3 of it? I've been wanting it FOREVER! Lol

HolidayWorldFTW · July 28, 2015

Wait wait wait... Just listened AGAIN with the speaker right up against my ear, are they saying Santa Claus? Like San-TA. CLAUSE... CLAUSE..... SAN-TA? Like in the chanting manner they are singing?

kyleparks77 · July 28, 2015

IWhen KK billboards are LITERALLY advertising "we have fun rids again", you know that they won't be hurting HWs business anytime soon, if ever now.

While I do question that marketing technique of KK, the addition of Storm Chaser (RMC hybrid) next year will definitely be a draw at KK. I've previously had no desire to go there, despite living in Louisville, but Storm Chaser has definitely peaked my interest (the first drop being a barrel roll, I mean c'mon). Will this hurt HW at all? Probably not. Just keep in mind that KK is basically a brand new park and just now getting its wheels turning, so don't count it completely out.

Vonni · July 28, 2015

There are many reasons to be excited about Storm Chaser. One being that it gives HW that much more incentive to wow us with amazing additions. Not that they really needed much incentive anyway lol

Woodie Warrior · July 28, 2015

Holiday World has no reason to feel the need to compete with KK. Will Storm Chaser be awesome? I'm sure it will. But KK does not market their new additions very well. Storm Chaser's announcement trailer was done terribly. Not only the animations, but the editing of the video was terrible. While enthusiasts may think SC looks incredible, I'm almost sure the GP would all rather ride Thunderbird. HW marketed the ride amazingly and it seems like everybody in the area's talking about it.

I could be totally wrong, but I feel like the whole announcement of SC was a big blunder. No build up, crappy teaser, and no real big talk about it outside of coaster forums. And I'm sure the GP will love it once they ride it, but I just don't feel like SC is what KK needs right now. They're going to have to add something comparable to Thunderbird. Tall, fast, multiple inversions, etc. LR at KK is amazing and airtime-filled, and SC looks to be more of the same, which is awesome for enthusiasts and for the park, but it's not adding anything that the park doesn't have.

ZeroGravity55 · July 28, 2015

One reason why HW will always hold the advantage over KK is that HW has what a lot of parks don't have, a ton of effective marketing tools. I know the general consensus among us enthusiasts is that the Golden Ticket Awards are not a true representation of what the actual truth is when comes to what rides are better, ext. The only problem with that is while we don't put any stock into them, the gp does, because they don't know any better and why should they? The Golden Ticket Awards sort of sounds important and if the parks who win them make them important, the people who visit those parks will believe they're true. HW has won 44 Golden Ticket Awards, which is the most by any park. HW is able to say that they have the best rides, they have the cleanest park, and they have friendliest staff. They can then validate all of that by showing they have the hardware to back it up. Their biggest marketing tool is all the "freebies" that they offer. The word "free'', is the most effective word in marketing in my opinion. When you combine those two marketing tools together, you then create the sensation that people are really getting a tremendous value. People look at it and go not only do they have world class rides that have been voted the best in the world, look at all the "freebies" they offer. It really is a great value and that's why it's so effective. I'm not sure HW could have got to where they are today without both of theses marketing tools. The only way one would be effective is if they had the other to offer with it. You need the world class rides to bring the people in, and the freebies, cleanliness, and friendliness keep them coming back.

Now I get to a lot of my personal opinion on why KK will never actually compete with HW. When Ed Hart and his company presented his original proposal to revitalize KK in 2012, he put a report in his proposal showing the attendance numbers from the rival parks (which were HW and KI) and how he thought he would be able to compete with both parks. Here's what they said about HW:

Holiday World poses a different type of competitive challenge. Unlike Kings Island or Kentucky Kingdom, Holiday World has no immediate market of its own.Louisville is the closest major metropolitan area to Holiday World, so Holiday World spends a substantial part of its media budget in Louisville. For all intents and purposes, Louisville has become Holiday World’s primary market, even though it is located 75 miles away. As Six Flags Kentucky Kingdom went downhill, Holiday World took the opportunity to heighten its marketing efforts in Louisville and the results were very fruitful .However, in terms of its steel ride assortment, Holiday World does have some distinct disadvantages in comparison with Kentucky Kingdom. Although Holiday World does have three wooden roller coasters, it has no corkscrew or looping coasters that invert passengers, giving them that inimitable upside-down experience,and its only steel coaster is a small family ride. Apart from its wooden coasters, Holiday World has only one other major attraction: the world’s tallest spill ride. Holiday World does have a decent selection of carnival-type family rides, but although well kept, they are quite old. Inessence, Holiday World has built its reputation primarily as a large water park, rather than as a theme park. This approach limits its marketing radius, but that radius does include Louisville. Although Holiday World has spent a considerable amount on capital improvements, its annual attendance has not grown beyond 1 million visitors. As noted before, the selection of steel rides at Holiday World does not quite rise to the level of a bonafide theme park and this limits its marketing radius. Until Holiday World adds more thrill rides to its mix of attractions, making visitors want to travel longer distances, KKRC believes that Holiday World’s attendance will continue to stall, if not decline. This vulnerability in Holiday World’s business and marketing plan provides a great opportunity for Kentucky Kingdom, especially as KKRC will regularly add new rides.

http://www.scribd.com/doc/110767374/KKRC-ResponseOct2012w On page 21

Now I understand that was written in a way to show why they thought they could compete with HW and I do think they were right on a lot of accounts. I do however think that this shows they might have underestimated HW's ability to add a major attractions (such as TB). I think TB can be viewed as a wake up call to not only KK, but the rest of the industry that HW's business model is legit and that they're bringing in enough money to add attractions like TB. Now was the KK group right that HW needed a major thrill attraction like TB to continue to grow their attendance? Yes. What they didn't realize was that HW knew this as well and they were just buying their time to not only make sure they got the right coaster, but to make sure they made the improvements inside the park so that the park can handle more guests when they add the coaster. This is where Wildebeest and Mammoth come in, plus the expanded SS entrance plaza. Those who are patient and do things the right way usually reek the benefits from doing so and think HW is finding that out this year. So I guess what I'm getting at is that now that HW has shown the ability to had a major attraction like TB and are now reeking the benefit from it, they're going to have the ability to continue to add these types of attractions. Given the current situation KK is in with state board, how will they be able to compete with two parks around them that are adding 20 million dollar attractions? While they might have more bad ass rides in LR and SC, do they have the ability to market them in such a way that can compete with how KI markets Diamondback or Banshee or how HW markets Thunderbird or The Voyage (remember The Voyage has the hardware and accolades)? If they don't have the budget to do a decent announcement for a ride like SC, how are they going to have the budget to market it against the rides of HW or KI? That's a big reason why I don't they will be able to compete with HW in the long run, but what do I know lol.

I do know that all of this competition is good for us enthusiasts in the area, though. KK is getting a RMC. What's next for KI? A giga? Then that begs the question, what's next for HW? They can go in a lot of directions. The future is bright!

AirMBTB · July 28, 2015

Another big bonus for Holiday World is outstanding service. They have built loyalty over the years; people know they will be treated well when they go to Holiday World. The operations, cleanliness, friendliness and value are 2nd to none. Having top rated world-class rides is a bonus!

Whodey · July 28, 2015

Zero gravity,

That was a great post.

neil009 · July 28, 2015

If they don't have the budget to do a decent announcement for a ride like SC, how are they going to have the budget to market it against the rides of HW or KI? That's a big reason why I don't they will be able to compete with HW in the long run, but what do I know lol.

It's important not to underestimate location. KK is still just getting started so their marketing budget may be limited, but they're IN the city, while HW is still over an hour away. This gives them a distinct advantage in the Louisville area, which as was pointed out is HW's primary market.

But this isn't an either/or scenario, both parks are going to do fine. You guys in the Midwest are just used to everything being so far away from each other, in the Northeast we're used to having plenty of parks within an hour and a half of each other that are all able to remain profitable. Or maybe all the HW fanboys/girls just can't stand the thought of KK actually being able to compete with their beloved HW, as if that's some kind of knock on HW, which is just strange.

ZeroGravity55 · July 28, 2015

It's important not to underestimate location. KK is still just getting started so their marketing budget may be limited, but they're IN the city, while HW is still over an hour away. This gives them a distinct advantage in the Louisville area, which as was pointed out is HW's primary market.

Actually, If I recall correctly, Will Koch did a interview at one time and stated that Indianapolis is the park's primary market. The beauty of HW's location is that they have no central market. They can pick choose where they want to market their park at.

Or maybe all the HW fanboys/girls just can't stand the thought of KK actually being able to compete with their beloved HW, as if that's some kind of knock on HW, which is just strange.

Where HW wants to go and where KK is trying to go are two completely different things. Are both going to be successful? We shall see. I hope KK is successful, I just hope they aren't hindered by the state fair board down the road. All I know is that right now, KI, KK, and HW are building world class attractions that are within a reasonable driving distance of my location and I hope all three parks keep building them for a long time.

sirspud · July 29, 2015

I made HW a central part of my travel plans for this summer, which was a big thing as I can only afford to travel once every couple years. I choose to go there because of their much heralded selection of wooden coasters, whose accolades I was aware of to some extent though not fully. But Holiday World did have something besides the coasters going for it, and I've read about the fine customer service and guest treatment at this park for years, and that is important to me. I have gone to parks with a lot of good rides and didn't have that great of an experience, but I felt assured that HW's attention to all aspects of the guest experience guaranteed I was going to have a good time.

Truth be told, I didn't enjoy the coasters as much as I was hoping, through it's not the coaster's fault as much as that my body, while not very old, doesn't allow me to enjoy intense coasters as much as I used to, and I have low nausea tolerance to boot. Even though I didn't enjoy my riding experience as much as I was hoping, I had a very good experience at Holiday World. The park was very pleasant, I was able to deal with terrible humidity through the free drinks, and the water rides were a major, major plus. It was quite a contrast from my experience later in the week at Carowinds, where Fury absolutely blew me away but I still had a lousy time dealing with absolutely no shade throughout a southern park (seriously do not care about the guest experience at all here), obnoxious park guests, and outside of an all star crew at Fury, pretty much the laziest and most unprofessional staff I've ever seen operating a theme park.

I'll gladly go out of my way for a park like HW, Knoebel's, or Kennywood where the experience comes full circle, while I don't ever feel like great rides guarantees a great experience.

DILinator · July 29, 2015

It was quite a contrast from my experience later in the week at Carowinds, where Fury absolutely blew me away but I still had a lousy time dealing with absolutely no shade throughout a southern park (seriously do not care about the guest experience at all here), obnoxious park guests, and outside of an all star crew at Fury, pretty much the laziest and most unprofessional staff I've ever seen operating a theme park.

I had the exact same experience, and feelings after my first visit to Carowinds earlier this year! I mean, Cedar Point doesn't have much in the way of shade either, but at least the ride ops tend to actually be pretty focused on their job, and performing it at a quality level.

Holiday World is truly a special park, and a place that I have immensely enjoyed both times I have gone!

I don't know how old you are, but I am geting closer to 40 myself, and have noticed that when it's really hot out, and there's not adequate shade, I start to lose my ability to handle the coasters that used to give me no trouble. At Holiday World this year, I spent most of my time riding The Voyage (which is my #1 Wooden Coaster) at nighttime, when it was cooler, so its intensity didn't bother me as much. So, I guess what I'm getting at is that I wonder if it's the heat that is the biggest problem for you as well. I got so sick at Carowinds due to the intense heat, and lack of shade outside, that I ended up sitting and doing nothing for over an hour. Thankfully, they at least have Harmony Hall there, which did give me a bit of a reprieve from the heat and sun, and allowed me to recharge enough to finish the park out. Just a thought, since it sounds like we may be in a similar boat...

mike541x · July 29, 2015

Well now that I'm home an settled in, I can finally get to doing a TR.

Holiday World was a park that's been on my bucket list for a while now. The first time I found out about the park was from a Discovery Channel special from the 90's called Wild Rides which featured The Raven. Even though we've passed through Indiana before with my parents, it didn't once cross my mind stopping by. This year I finally had the chance, and with the addition to Thunderbird, it was a must!

I went to the park on Monday, arriving at around 9:30 and by this time, the place was already getting filled with guests. The crowds weren't too bad for the most part, especially when Splashin' Safari opened up. After getting into the park, I took the time to check out the gift shops in the Christmas section of the park. Major props to HW for having nice cool A/C in their stores and other buildings where as other parks have their stores and restaurants open, letting the A/C out. The lady at counter (Cami was her name I believe) was very nice and welcoming. We were talking and were having conversations about the east coast since she was from there as well. The hospitality of this park was great!

10 O'clock hits and rest of the park is open. First thing I head for...you guessed it, Thunderbird. And everyone else had the exact plan, as a majority of them headed towards the Thanksgiving area. I have never ever seen so many people run towards a roller coaster before! Finally I get to the line as it was actually starting outside of the queue and a ride attendant was letting people. Walking through the queue, I was extremely impressed with the themeing they did. The flickering lamps when the train launched was a very neat effect. Finally I get to another ride attendant at the end o the queue before it splits and he directs me to the left side of the train. Finally I get to the last ride attendant who directed me to the last row, which was the seat I was hoping to get, so I lucked out. Another prop for HW, outstanding operations! It was great seeing how quickly these ride ops got the trains in and out of the stations, especially after dealing with my home park's (Kings Dominion) horrible operations this year. As for the ride itself, amazing! The launch itself took me by a huge surprise as it was much forceful than I anticipated. The loop and Zero-G roll had some great G-forces to them. It wasn't old school B&M forceful, but still strong enough to notice. The inline twist was one of my favorite parts of the ride. I was able to get 7 rides through out the day once again, thanks to the great operations. Front and back seats on both sides. Holiday World also did a fantastic job with the plaza as well, nicely themed, and it was honestly my favorite part of the park. Thunderbird really paid off as it's very popular with everyone, and I mean everyone. Every time we hit the brakes, I heard nothing but "wows" and other compliments from everyone on the train. And for the record this ride is definitely one of my favorite B&M's.

After getting a ride on Tbird, I hit up the next ride, Voyage. I've heard mixed reviews about this ride, some say it's great, and others say it's rough and not worth re-riding, but a new credit is still a new credit to me. The queue was full (not including the downstairs), but just like Thunderbird's crew, these guys were on point and got trains out as fast as they could, probably waited less than 30 minutes. Just like every other wood coaster I sat in the last car front row. Honestly, I found this ride a lot of fun, IMO. It is a bit rough if you're on a wheel seat, but other than that I thought it was tolerable. Definitely not as rough than Hurler and Gwazi, so it was ok in my book. The ride is a lot better at night as well, especially if Thunderbird is dispatched at the right time as the lights on the train give it a nice effect. The triple down in the pitch black was also great and felt so out of control! Great ride overall.

After getting visiting the Thanksgiving area, I headed towards the Halloween section. It wasn't until this moment I actually took the time and observed the park itself. I couldn't help but notice how clean the park was and how the employees were very interactive and friendly they were to guests. One things for sure, all of them seemed to love their jobs. A nice change from, once again, Kings Dominion. I'm not trying to sound harsh towards my home park, but when you visit two parks and notice a better overall vibe, it's pretty hard not to point out. This year, KD's employees just work slow and look like they don't want to be there. Anyways I made my way over towards the Legend. I found this the roughest out of the three woodies there, but still a lot of fun! The layout was great and I loved how the ride interacted with the surrounding waterslides. I also loved how the bell on top of the station rang every time a train was dispatched. Small, but very cool effect. Next up was my second most anticipated ride in the park, the Raven. Just as I thought, it was easily my second favorite ride in the park, after Thunderbird of course. It was also the smoothest out of all of the woodies there. I can easily see why this was voted best wooded coaster at one point. The ride made great use of the surrounding terrain, and it hauls ass! The last drop was a huge surprise, as it provided great airtime in the last row. Great ride! After getting credits, I decided to check out some other rides. Since it was hot I took a spin on Raging Rapids and Frightful Falls. Decent water rides, nothing to special but it cooled me off so I was satisfied. I also took some rides on Revolution and HollowSwings, two flat rides I hadn't ridden in years, so it was great getting on these rides. I pretty much spent the entire day their, 9:30-8:30 and was able to get multiple rides on the coasters till I left. Unfortunately I didn't get to visit Splashin' Safari, which I'm kind of regretting right now, since their water park looked fantastic!

Some final thoughts before I get to the pictures:

-The park layout was nice, I thought. After having to use the map a few times, I quickly adapted to the layout and everything was easy to get to and find.

-I did find this strange as I've never seen this at any other park. In the morning both Raven and Legend were running two trains, but some point during the day, they switched to one train operations, making the lines a bit longer. But once again, fantastic operations made the wait more bearable. I'm going to guess it was maintenance related as I saw Legend's train being worked on. Raven's was just parked in the maintenance shed.

-Great value compared to other parks. $42 for admission, $5.99 for a Souvenir cup as opposed to chain parks where you're spending close to $10 or more. Cheaper food options as well!

-Free parking, sunscreen, sodas, and wi-fi (not that I really needed it). Enough said!

Ride count:

Thunderbird-7 (4 on the right side and 3 on the left)

Voyage-4

Legend-3

Raven-3

To sum up, Holiday World is a fantastic park that I believe everyone has to visit at some point. They have everything you could possibly want in an amusement park. Value, hospitality and rides.

Most of these are Thunderbird pictures since it was the highlight for me, and it was the easiest coaster to photograph. Enjoy