A Quick Trip to Kings Island

Last weekend I was able to visit Kings Island for the first time as a guest in a couple of years. I was able to attend media day for Mystic Timbers last spring, but I was looking forward to riding all of my other favorites at the park. This was also my two year old, AJ’s first real trip to Kings Island where he could actually get some rides in (he was with me at media day, which how many kids can say their first park trip was for a media event? Pretty cool). Thanks to Kings Island’s season Passholder bring-a-friend special, I was also able to bring my wife, parents, and brother for a steal!

We started off our day in the award winning Planet Snoopy, trying to beat the crowds that we thought would follow later in the day. Turns out the longest wait of the day (30 minutes) would be the first ride of the day on Woodstock Whirlybirds. I think it’s just the nature of this ride that makes it such low capacity, but hey, the kid enjoyed it and later in the day the line for it was twice as long. Score.

AJ is just barely under the 36 inch mark, so we did what we could in Planet Snoopy and rode the K.I. & Miami Valley Railroad. I did my research ahead of time and it turns out that Kings Island’s Monster ride has no height requirement! So we headed over that way. Forget all of those kiddie rides, this ended up being my son’s favorite ride of the day, because it made him “the most dizzy” (#prouddadmoment).

Tip: The K.I. & Miami Valley Railroad provides great views of Diamondback, Mystic Timbers and White Water canyon!

With my dad taking AJ back to Planet Snoopy for awhile, the rest of us took off for Mystic Timbers. I was very excited to get to ride this coaster again and see what the review would be now after the hype of media day.

It surpassed everything I remembered it being. It is, shall I dare say, as close to coaster-perfection as you can get. It has speed, tons of airtime, tight turns, and it never lets up. The pacing on this ride is what I think makes it so great. The transitions are fast but incredibly smooth. I was definitely out of my seat more than I was in it. It may win the title of “most fun coaster” in the park. I think I could spend all day on it.

However, my all-time favorite is still the coaster next door, The Beast. I know it has been said many times, but the trim brakes have really killed this ride’s true potential. The only reason it is still hanging on to my #1 spot is the double-helix finale. I don’t know what it is about this element, but it is my favorite of any coaster out there. It’s just a whirlwind of chaos as your are thundering through the wooden tunnel (twice).

Next we headed back past Mystic Timbers to Diamondback and we were happy to find it practically a walk-on. Diamondback is just a solid coaster, you can’t go wrong with it. A lot of floater air and riding in the back you can even get some ejector air. It’s hard to believe it will turn 10 years old next season!

Time for a late lunch, we head to my go-to eatery at the park, The Reds Hall of Fame Grille. Historically I have always had great food, a large portion, for a reasonable price here. It is a nice air-conditioned, sit down restaurant that provides a nice break from the pavement on a hot summer day. Unfortuneatly, I have to say I was disappointed to find out that it is now a counter order restaurant (still with seating). The oddest part is that there are two lines, one for food and one for drinks, and you can’t order drinks in the food line. So, after you order your food, you have to go get back in the other line and wait for drinks. I also need to mention one of my favorite parts of the Grille used to be the free refills, now there are none. Kind of bummed that changes were made, but the food was still excellent.

While we let the food settle, we went to catch a showing of Gravity, A Cirque Experience. This was an awesome show with some unbelievable talent. I’m glad I had a chance to see it before it closes this weekend. The Kings Island Theatre has had some high quality shows over the last few years and I’m looking forward to what they’ll bring in for next season.

AJ was getting pretty wiped out by this point in the afternoon, so I grabbed one last ride on Banshee before making the trip home. Still my favorite invert; there is so much power behind this coaster and you feel it throughout the whole ride. Contrary to some coaster enthusiasts, I like the vest restraints. To me they take head-banging completely out of the picture and provide a much more enjoyable ride.

Overall, a great day at the park and it was very cool to get to take my son on some of his first rides. We were lucky to have minimal wait times, even with the crowds seeming quite large for the day. I’m also excited to come back next year and ride the new Kings Mills Antique Autos! I think this is a wonderful addition to the park and will give families another attraction they can enjoy together.