Kings Island has changed so much over the years that I have visited. They have added new rides and removed old ones. My last visit to the park was by far and away the best visit that I have ever had to Kings Island. They have really improved their customer service to very high levels which is quite impressive since it isn't a family owned park but a huge corporate park. This is the first time that I have visited Kings Island and where it had the feel of a smaller family style park. The park was clean and ride operations were the best I have ever seen at Kings Island. The food was great and the atmosphere was so much fun. They were playing a variety of really good upbeat music everywhere in the park and the sound quality was outstanding. I know that may sounds silly to some but atmosphere in a park is a good thing and something that I definitely notice.
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| To the left after entrance |
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| To the right after entrance |
Kings Island is such a huge park. They have so many rides and attractions. They have tons of shows and eateries. They have one of the best entrances of any park I have ever been to (as seen below). As you walk into the park you see the iconic Eiffel Tower along with all of the beautiful fountains in the middle of the two midways split off to the side. There are trees lining these midways on the left along with souvenir, candy, coffee, and food shops on the right. The park is so big that it will take you a while just to see any attraction that you can actually ride.
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| Great Entrance |
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| Shops on the right lining the midway |
If you choose to take a left you will make your way over to what is known as 'Action Zone' where there are three roller coasters (Banshee, The Bat, and Invertigo) along with a few other rides. This is where the new Banshee inverted roller coaster is located. This ride is the reason I made the trip to Kings Island this year and it was totally worth it! It is quite an insane and intense roller coaster. It is the longest inverted coaster in the world at 4,124 feet and when you are riding it you know that is the case. It never lets up from beginning to end and just when you think the ride is over she (yes Banshee is a woman from the underworld...muhahahaha) turns you upside down slowly and puts you in a fast downward helix into the breaks! Phew! Mind-blown! It feels like every element you take puts you at over 100 feet in the air and the g-forces you experience are crazy. The ride delivers 7 heart-pounding inversions. I can't say enough good things about this ride here. The layout, the colors, the trains, the station, and the theming are all top notch. Kings Island pulled out all of the stops for this coaster and rightfully so with a $24 million price tag. It has really made Kings Island a destination park. Banshee ranks as my #17 roller coaster.
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| Awesome! |
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| Great looking Station |
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| High Elements |
The Bat is a newly named ride this year along with new paint colors. It is a suspended roller coaster and one of the best of its kind. It is fast and thrilling but doesn't go upside down. The only negative about the ride is the fact that it's over really quick. Invertigo is an inverted roller coaster that goes forwards and backwards. It is quite disorienting and very intense. You go upside down 6 times total. After you have already ridden these three intense coasters you can hit up delirium a spinning flat ride. Oh and don't forget to ride Drop Zone the parks 315 foot drop ride. Yeah this one is scary!
After you have had your fill of the Action Zone you can make your way up the Coney Island Mall area and hit up Adventure Express a really fast and fun mine train roller coaster. It may have the lamest ending to a coaster you'll ever see so be sure to check it out anyway. You can then hit Racer the parks original dual wooden coaster built in 1972. For a wooden coaster this one is very smooth. It has ample amounts of air time as well as lots of speed. It really is a great ride and a classic underrated ride in the park. From here you can continue up the midway and hang a left to ride Flight of Fear and Firehawk. Flight of Fear is an indoor steal launched looping coaster. It is pretty intense and fun and worth a few rides if the line isn't long. It has some jerky moments though but the launch is really fun into the darkness.
Firehawk is absolutely an insane roller coaster. It honestly may be the most intense coaster I've ever ridden and I'am not even joking. It's a flying coaster and you initially start out on your back as you go up the lift hill. Then once you are 100 feet off the ground the ride turns you over into the flying position. Yeah, talk about disorienting. From there you hit loop after loop (five total) into the brakes. The g-forces on this are very high and if you are sensitive to intense rides I suggest sitting this one out. I only rode this thing a couple times back in 2009 mostly due to it being such a slow loading ride with constant breakdowns. Also, the lines are always long at around an hour.
After riding those two coasters you can hit up Windseeker a 300 foot swing ride. I rode this thing on my past trip and I'll say if you are scared of heights you might not want to ride. While not intense it does offer a scary feeling of being suspended 300 feet in the air with nothing between you and the ground but a plastic two-person seat! Also along the Coney Island Mall you will find shops, games, food stands, spinning flat rides, and a great arcade where I managed to set the record on one of their basketball machines (pictured below). I had a blast in there for almost two hours only spending $20 and winning a few prizes for Bri.
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| Seek some Wind aka Windseeker |
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| That's right my score! |
Before you leave the Coney Island Mall area you will see the entrance to Vortex the steel looping coaster built in 1987. Do not let its pretty looks fool you as this ride is a little on the rough side. Some people still enjoy it though. I used to but now that I am getting older rough looping coasters just aren't my thing. It's 3800 feet long and turns you upside down six times along the way. I didn't get to ride it on my visit this year but I have ridden it many times in previous years.
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| Vortex - Nice to look at but not to ride |
Let's make the trip back to the front of the park and instead of taking a left this time we will take a right. If you take a right you will run into one of the biggest kids themed areas of any amusement park anywhere in the country. They have three roller coasters in this area one of which is wooden. They also have a lot of other great flat rides that kids would love. They have a log flume that looks fun as well. Do not, I repeat DO NOT leave this area without getting the blue ice cream! It is some of the best ice cream I have ever had at an amusement park. Shame on me for not taking a picture of the blue ice cream!
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| Kids Coaster with Diamondback towering in the background |
After leaving the kids area you will walk into an area where Diamondback is located. Head straight for it and ride it as many times as you can stand it. If they are running three trains on this the line will usually not be that long. Diamondback is a hyper coaster meaning it is over 200 feet high. You won't go upside down on this ride but you will go fast and get insane amounts of air time. It's over 5200 feet long with a 215 foot drop reaching speeds of 80 mph. It goes over many tall hills (air time) and finishes with a helix into the splashdown element. I have it ranked as #14 on my best coaster list. It is a really great ride.
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| 230 foot lift hill |
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| SPLASH! |
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| Isn't that pretty? |
After riding Diamondback you will pass a nice sit down restaurant (pictured below) themed to the Cincinnati Reds MLB baseball team. I didn't eat there but it does look nice. You will also pass the parks water raft ride making your way to the very back of the park. You will then continue up the path and see Backlot Stunt Coaster (stupid name). It is more of a family oriented coaster with a 40 mph launch into an upward helix. There are also other special effects with explosions, loud noises, and fire. It's a pretty fun ride but not worth a long wait if there is one.
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| Reds Hall of Fame Grill |
That is pretty much it. Or is it? I have actually saved the best for last. Sure you now have the new Banshee and the incredible Diamondback but I have left out one other incredible roller coaster at the park that is iconic. Tucked away in the very back corner of Kings Island lurks a ride that you can't see. It's in the woods. It's so long it takes two lift hills to finish. It holds a world record. It is hidden away beckoning you to take the challenge. Will you make it out alive? What is this ride? It's the Beast the longest wooden roller coaster in the world at 7,359 feet! The Beast is a fun, fast, and thrilling ride by day. By night, it's something that will haunt your dreams. There are tunnels, straightaways, and a closing helix that will make you think, "how is the train not ripping off the tracks!?" It was built in 1979 and to this day is still regarded as one of the world's best wooden roller coasters.
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| Beast Station |
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| 35th Anniversary |
By night the Beast turns into an out of control, in your face, insane, fly off the tracks ride that will make even the most seasoned thrill junkies wet their pants. Ok, ok, maybe I am exaggerating a little bit on that last comment (haha). I will say this though that I am not kidding about night rides on the Beast. They are some of the best night rides you will ever take on a roller coaster period. Trust me. It is pitch black in those woods so you can't see where you are going which adds to the thrill. This gives you the sensation of out of control speed making it feel as though you are going faster than you actually are. I could go on and on about the Beast but you have to get out there and experience this coaster for yourself, especially at night. The Beast delivers and lives up to its name.
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| ACE Coaster Landmark |
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| Do NOT Feed the Beast! |
There you have it. Kings Island is a wonderful park. My experience there this past May solidifies a #3 spot from me for this great amusement park. Kings Island has thrills, great rides, great roller coasters, a great kids area, great customer service, great operations, and a great atmosphere. I know some people think I am crazy when I say this but if I had to choose between Kings Island and or a park closer to me like Six Flags over Georgia, I would choose Kings Island. Maybe it is the coaster enthusiast in me but I know a gem of a park when I travel to one and Kings Island is a gem of a park.
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| Pretty |
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| Eiffel Tower at Dusk |
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| Classic Carousel |
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| Coaster T-Shirt |
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| Eiffel Tower at night |
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