Kings island

If you were reading my blog posts in previous Erasmus places competitions, you probably noticed that I am a big adrenaline junkie and I love to do anything that makes my heart rate increase for a few beats! Since I have quite a demanding job, indulging in adrenaline filled activities, is a great way of relaxing for me, and although all these things can be incredibly expensive, these activities are one of the two things I do not mind spending a lot of money on. The other thing is travel.

The things that I have already done, include skydiving (I have over five hundred solo jumps), aerobatic flying, bungee jumping, and, of course, roller coasters in amusement parks. Europe has a few good and pretty intense roller coasters, but European amusement parks are pretty small and they usually do not have more than five good roller coasters.

Well, United states of America are a different story. They have so many amusement parks that have more than enough roller coasters that you will not be bored when you spend a whole day at the park. Or even multiple days in a row. And, as you have probably already figured it out by now, I will dedicate this post to one of the American amusement parks, called Kings island.

Where is Kings island situated?

I consider myself incredibly lucky to live just a forty minute drive away from Kings island. The park is situated between Cincinnati and Dayton, Ohio, next to a town, called Kings Mills in the Mason county. Just a short drive away from Kings island, you will also find the Cincinnati premium outlets and Jungle Jim’s international market.

I am mentioning those two places because weather in the American midwest can be incredibly unpredictable, and if you visit Kings island and it starts raining out of the blue, you can escape to one of those two places for an hour or two, until the rain stops.

I will describe both places in one of my next entries, I would just like to mention them here, in case you will ever need a quick escape from the park. And do not worry, you can re - enter the park. You can read more about it in the paragraph ‘Returning to the park on the same day’.   

A view of some of the roller coasters at Kings island. Not bad for an amusement park in the middle of nowhere.

Opening times and best days to visit Kings island

To be honest, I expected all American amusement parks that I have been to, especially Kings island, to be much much more crowded. But again, I tried to go mostly on the days that were not predicted to be busy. Still if you go during the week in summer, you will literally be able to walk on most of the rides with no wait time at all.

There are a few web pages that predict the crowds in amusement parks, and so far, I found that web page to be extremely accurate and therefore useful: http://www.isitpacked.com/. You can then type a park you are interested in visiting, into a search bar, and start planning your trip to Kings island on a day with no crowds.

Those web pages are useful if you are interested in knowing the amount of the crowds on a specific day. But, from my own experience, you can predict the less crowded days even without these web pages. I have visited Kings island over forty times this year (I have a season pass and I do not have to pay to enter at all) and this is what I found out:

Do not, I repeat, do not visit Kings island on Saturdays during summer. I only made that mistake once and I got on two rides in six hours. But why are Saturdays in summer so crowded? Simply because kids are out of school, and parents prefer to take them there on a Saturday, because Monday is a work day, and most people do not like to stay up late a night before they have to work.

So, here is your answer - if you work during the week in Summer, visit Kings island on a Sunday, preferably when the weather forecast is not perfect. Most people obviously like to play it safe and stay at home if rain or cloudy weather is predicted, because why would you pay for a daily admission when the weather is bad and you are not guaranteed to get on all the rides because of that. I, however, do not care about the weather because I do have a season pass and unlimited free entries into the park.

Good days to visit Kings island during summer are also Mondays, Tuesdays and Wednesdays. In spring and fall, Kings island is only open on weekends, and again, the park will be much less crowded on Sundays than on Saturdays.

But regardless on the day of the week, if you get to the park right when it opens, you and a few other people will have the park for yourselves for about an hour. So, if you want to experience a few rides in the first or last rows of great roller coasters without having to wait in a special line during the day, go to the park early and thank me later.

If you decided to go to Kings island on a busy day, but you do not feel like buying a fast pass, you are in luck, because you might still be able to skip the line. Well, for a small price, of course. There are several wheels of fortune, situated throughout the park, and for five dollars, you get a spin, and the prizes are usually skip the line tickets for the most popular rides, or skip the line tickets that include riding in the front row. Feeling lucky?

Parking, admission and season passes

The admission price for Kings island depends on the day and whether you buy your ticket online or at the gate, but on average, it will cost you around sixty dollars.

If you are planning to visit Kings island more than twice during a single season, it is worth considering getting a gold pass, since it is cheaper than two daily tickets. The gold pass will cost you around one hundred dollars, and with it, you have a ten percent discount on everything in the park, including merchandise, food and drinks.

Also, with a golden pass, you will be able to enter the park thirty minutes prior to the usual opening time, and ride the selected rides before the rest of the visitors who do not have a season pass. The rides that allow you early ride time, are different from season to season. Last year, the rides were Diamondback, Banshee and Mystic timbers, which are basically the top three rides in the park.

The more expensive season pass option is the platinum pass, which offers the same benefits as the gold pass, in addition to free unlimited entries into any Cedar Fair park. So if you are planning to visit three or more different Cedar fair parks in one season, consider getting a platinum season pass. But beware - you can only buy gold and platinum passes before the start of the next season.

One of the greatest benefits of having a season pass (other than the unlimited free entries) is not having to pay for parking. If you do not have a season pass, the parking will cost you fifteen dollars if you buy it online in advance, twenty dollars on the day of visit, and thirty dollars for preferred parking.

If you are a season pass holder, you will be able to bring a selected number of friends to the park for free on certain dates throughout the season. Outside these dates, you can get discounted tickets for your friends. The downside of the 'bring a friend' days is of course the fact that the park is always terribly crowded on these dates. One of my friends brought his kids on the Bring a friend day, and they waited in line for over an hour for a kiddie ride.

In some amusement parks, it is a good idea to get preferred parking, but not at Kings island. Preferred parking basically means that you get to park closer to the entrance of the park, but since Kings island is not very big, you will not have to walk very far regardless on which side of the parking lot will you park your car.

My big problem is always remembering where I park the car. And not just at amusement parks. It happens just about every single time I go to the mall. It is almost like my car can teleport.

But luckily, Kings island has a different sign and number for each parking row, so you can remember where (at least approximately) your car is parked. Every row is usually represented by one of the rides in the park, so you have two ways of remembering it. For example, Mystic timbers (which is one of the rides in the park) 40.

What to bring and what not to bring with you to the park?

Unlike in Europe, you are not allowed to bring your own food and drinks to most American amusement parks. And food inside the parks is unreasonably expensive. If I look from the point of view of park owners, I understand the policy, because if everybody was allowed to bring their own food inside the park, nobody would buy the park food, and just imagine how much would the park profits plummet!

So, what a lot of people do, is bring food and cooler bags with you, leave them in the car and, when you are hungry enough to walk all the way back to the car, go eat something, and do not forget to get your hand stamped when you exit the park! And do not be surprised if you see people with picnic tables and chairs in the middle of the parking lot, leisurely eating lunch. The best way to save up some money, unless you want to spend ten dollars on a slice of pizza.

And do not even think of sneaking something forbidden inside the park - the staff will check all your bags and you will have to walk through an x - ray machine. I am always shocked to see how many people try to sneak food inside. That food gets thrown away on the spot, which is a big waste, but the rules are there for a reason. One time, an older employee was checking my fanny pack, and jokingly asked: ‘Do you have a gun in there?’ I said: ‘I think I forgot it at home.’ I thought that was pretty funny.

Water fountains are located throughout the park, so you can stay hydrated. But I personally do not like the water at Kings island water fountains. It tastes stale and it is too warm to drink. And I am not one of those people who will never drink water from a water fountain because they are full of germs, but I still hesitate to drink from them at Kings island. Funny enough, water at Cedar point’s water fountains tastes great and it is just cold enough to be refreshing.

Rides and special events  

The first ride you will notice once you enter Kings island, is the tall drop tower. Pretty exhailirating.

Kings island has a lot of great rides for adrenaline junkies like me. It also has a fairly big area for kids, called Snoopy land, and I will not describe that part in great details, because, well, why would I? I will only mention the rides that I tried there. I am a little ashamed to admit that some of them are actually a lot of fun! In this paragraph, I will describe my favorite rides at Kings island, and give you some advice to get the most out of each ride.

The first ride you will see when you are getting close to the Kings island entrance, is a roller coaster, called Invertigo, and it is one of these ‘boomerang’ roller coasters, where the ride does not make a full loop. The seating on this roller coaster is also one of my favorite features on this ride. Riders are seated in groups of four people, two of which are facing forward and two of them backwards.

So, if you are facing forward on the first drop, you will be facing backwards on the second drop. My advice if you are not a big fan of heights and looking almost straight down, is to face backwards on the first drop, since you will basically be looking up the sky.

And you will be entertained and distracted by the person that will be sitting opposite you’s face, because they will be the ones staring straight down first. Just keep in mind that you will be in his or her spot in just a few seconds, when the roller coaster reaches the second drop.

This is also one of the loudest roller coasters when you are standing in line close to the loading platform. They have special gates there because the roller coaster will pass the platform really close to future riders, and they do not want to risk anybody getting hurt.

Invertigo is a fun ride, but it can be a bit rough on the first loop. Another friendly advice - take out your earrings! Speaking from a personal experience - I have recently had done an industrial piercing on my right ear, and those take forever to heal. After that ride, I noticed that one of the piercing holes was bleeding. I should  probably have taken it out for the ride, but that might slow down the healing process.

This is one of the rides with longest lines in the whole park simply because only one train can run at a time. Other rides can run three or even four trains at once, which makes the lines much shorter.

Drop tower is another fun ride, situated right next to the Invertigo. Why do I love this ride? I have quite a few reasons for that. First of all, I love drop towers in general. Secondly, this is a gyro drop tower, meaning it will spin you around when you are going up, so you will get to have a 360 degree view of the whole park.

Also, it seats around 60 riders at a time, so the line moves extremely fast. Most drop towers in Europe only seat 16 riders at a time. This drop tower will make you wait almost fifteen seconds on the top, which only adds to the excitement before the anticipated drop. And last but not least, you will plummet towards the Earth with a speed of 65 miles per hour.   

Kings Island's drop tower at night.

Next to the drop tower, you will notice lockers. The roller coaster next to the lockers does not allow riders to bring any loose items on the ride - including fanny packs! I admit I do not want to pay for lockers, so I always zip the keys in my pocket.

Banshee is the roller coaster that makes paying a few dollars to store your loose items in a locker for a few minutes, feel like an investment. I have been on many roller coasters in my life, and this one is among my top five! It always has pretty short lines, it is intense, and the most important - the shoulder bar is extremely comfortable, which is very rare.

Banshee is quite an intense coaster by itself, but if you would like to make the experience even more intense, try to look at the ground all the time, especially when you are going through a loop. It will make your stomach feel really good. Or bad, if you do not like that feeling. An interesting Banshee experience is also if you keep your eyes closedthe entire time.   

An artistic shot of Banshee. See how big the loop is? It will definitely make you dizzy.

While riding Banshee, you will notice a bright orange roller coaster track in the distance. If you do not keep your eyes closed, that is. And even if it seems extremely far away, it is still a part of Kings island. I am talking about a gondola - style roller coaster, called The Bat.

While not the most intense ride, The Bat definitely is a different roller coaster experience. To get to The Bat, you will have to walk for about ten minutes, but the walk will be worth it. What makes The Bat intense, is that the gondola cars are swinging left and right in every turn. And trust me, this roller coaster has quite a few stomach - turning turns.

When walking back from The Bat, you will notice a water ride, called Thunder canyon. And this ride is the best way to cool down in the summer heat. You will get soaked, regardless on where you sit, so if you bring your phone on that ride, it better be waterproof!

What I find strange about this ride is that it only has one drop, but it still is great fun. And if you can, try to sit in the front row. When exiting the ride, you will walk over a bridge. If you do not want to get wet again, make sure you cross that bridge when none of the boats are coming downhill. Because if they are, the water surge will splash you again. And believe me, this looks  like a tidal wave!

When exiting the Thunder canyon, you will notice a strange orange ride, called Delirium. It basically swings left and right at high speeds, and the adrenaline rush on this ride is just great. The lines are never long because Delirium can accommodate sixty riders at a time. Try to keep your eyes closed for a more intense experience.  

Deliriom with its neighbor Banshee in the background.

Once you exit Delirium, you can start walking towards the far end of the park. When walking, you will notice a strange wooden roller coaster on your left. It is called The Racer, and it has two tracks, one with a blue train and one with a red train. And I think you already know why they call it The Racer.

Both trains get to the top of the hill at the same time, but one of them always finishes the race first. This roller coaster is a lot of fun, but it always hurts my back. In fact, most of the wooden roller coasters I have been on, are much rougher than regular, steel roller coasters.

If you keep walking towards the far end of the park after riding Racer, you will notice a big sign, pointing to your left, saying X - base. This area has two of the most interesting roller coasters in the whole park.

One of them is called Firehawk, and indeed it will make you fly like a hawk. You will literally be lying down, facing the ground! And please do not ride this roller coaster if you have a weak stomach, or if you had something to eat or drink right before riding. Every single time I ride this roller coaster, there is someone who vomits. What I love about this ride is that you constantly have the feeling that you will slip out of your harness, and it really is extremely intense, especially in the parts where the track comes really close to the ground.

The other roller coaster in the X - base is called Flight of fear, and it is an indoor coaster! What I like the most about this ride, it a powerful launch at the start, and the fact that you only wear a lap bar, not a shoulder bar, and the roller coaster will make a few loops towards the end of the ride! Definitely a heart attack material, if you do not know about it beforehand.

Windseeker is also a very interesting ride. It is actually a giant carousel that is about as tall as the Kings island drop tower. And if you think it is not very thrilling, let me tell you that this is one of those rides with minimal restraints, and you actually go sideways when the ride is in a full swing at the top.

Unfortunately, this ride is frequently closed because of high winds, but I still got to ride it quite a few times. If you have a chance, try to ride it at night or at sunset - it is breathtaking. To intensify the experience, either fix your eyes on an object, or look at the ground.

Vortex is one of the oldest roller roller coasters in the park, and it is also one of my favorites. It is situated right next to the Windseeker, and it is surprisingly gentle, keeping in mind the fact that it was forty years old this year! The line is always short, and try to sit either in the front or in the back of the train. The first drop is incredibly intense, and Vortex also has quite a few loops, so you will definitely leave this ride feeling a little dizzy.

After exiting the vortex, turn left and you will find the next great roller coaster, which might appear more like a ride for little kids at first, but it has a launch start and it makes my stomach hurt every time I go on it because of such an accelleration! The ride is called Backlot stunt coaster and, other than being a great ride, it also has amazing theming.

Basically, you become a stunt car driver, and the wild chase through the Los Angeles downtown will end in a real fire explosion! But that is not even the best part of the ride yet! After the explosion, you will ride through a completely dark tunnel, meaning you will have no idea that the huge, stomach - turning drop awaits you there! This ride only accommodates twelve riders at a time, but it is well worth the wait!

After the stunt car experience, you can prepare for riding the tallest, longest and, in my opinion the most painful wooden roller coaster in the world! Well, at least they were honest while choosing the name, because they named this roller coaster The Beast.

Trust me, it will hurt, and every time I ride it, I have the ‘OMG, I am going to die this time!’ feeling. But it is worth the pain. And if you lean forward a little during the drops, your back will not hurt as much.

The last part of the track hurts regardless on how and where in the train you are sitting - after a tall hill, the train will enter two dark tunnels, and basically go around in a circle, which is the reason why that part is so painful. But that is the last part of the track, so the pain is over.

Kings island used to have another wooden roller coaster, called Son of Beast, and it had a loop! Imagine the pain of a wooden roller coaster when it goes through a loop! Sadly, Son of a Beast was only operating for a few years, but they had to close it down because of so many injuries. I would probably still try to ride it though.

Diamondback is the tallest roller coaster in the park, and even though it has no loops, it is still a great ride. It reminds me of a ride in Port Aventura park in Spain, called Shambhala, but Diamondback is a little shorter. Try to sit either in the very first row, which will make the first drop seem even taller than it is, or in the last row, where you will start feeling the G forcesbefore the last part of the train even goes down the hill! And please do not go on this ride if you do not like heights!  

Diamondback is majestic during sunset. On the right side of the picture, you can see a part of its first drop, and on the left, there is a part of Vortex track.

Mystic timbers is my favorite wooden roller coaster I have ever ridden. It is new (they built it last year) and it does not hurt at all. But because it is new, it always has huge lines - the longest I ever waited to ride it, was two hours! But it was actually worth it because I got to sit in the back row and I almost passed out because it felt so good. Mystic timbers is a roller coaster with a lot of airtime.

Airtime is the feeling on a roller coaster that makes you feel like you are flying out of your seat, and on this one, that feeling will be present almost all the time. Before the train comes back to the station, it will pass through a dark tunnel, and you are in for a jump scare! I am not going to tell you what to expect, because that would ruin the point of the ride, but it scared the heck out of me the first time I saw it.

This is one of the two rides in the park (the other one being Banshee) where you are not allowed to have loose articles on you. No, not even a fanny pack, and you are not even allowed to tuck it under your shirt.

Dinosaurs alive is more of an exhibition than a ride and you have to pay extra to see it, but it is a pretty cool thing to do if you need a break from the bigger rides. You basically walk through a jungle, full of animatronic dinosaurs. Some of them are really scary, and you should also expect a few jumpscares. But the main purpose of this exhibition is not to scare you, but to educate you. Therefore, next to each moving dinosaur, you will see a sign with facts about that dinosaur.

Snoopy land is an area in the park, dedicated to kids, but most of the rides are suitable for adults as well. These are the ones that I tried:

Woodstock express is a fun wooden roller coaster, and I love it because this is one of a few wooden roller coasters that do not make my back hurt. Well, at least not too much. It only has two small drops, because, after all, this is a kids ride, but it will still give you that butterfly feeling in your stomach.

Kiddie coaster is another ride in Snoopy land, and if you are a parent and would like to introduce your kids to the magic world of roller coasters without scaring them too much, this is the perfect ride to do so. This roller coaster does not have any loops, all it does is go down a drop and in a few circles, but it still made me dizzy.

Surf Dog is basically a ride that simulates a boat, sailing through waves. It spins a lot, so if you suffer from motion sickness, please do not go on this ride. This ride is very thrilling if you do it before doing any bigger rides. If you do it after riding, for example, Diamondback, you will not feel anything.

Boo blasters on Boo hill is a fun game where you shoot at targets with a laser gun, and your goal is to collect more points than the two people, sitting next to you. The fun part about this ride is that someone in the group will always (and I am not sure whether this is intentional or not) get the laser gun that is not working as well as the other two. So the final results will look something like: Player one will have 50000 points, player two will have 45000 points, and player three will have 5000 points.

Kings island also has quite a few smaller rides, the kind you usually see at fairs, which are situated throughout the park. I have tried all of them, but none of them is worth mentioning because they are not thrilling enough. Kings island also has a few gaming areas and a place with arcade games, where you can win different things, including enormous stuffed animals.

One of the most ‘popular’ games that you will encounter several times during your day at Kings island, is the one where an employee will offer to guess your age or weight, and the prize is one of these stuffed animals. Why am I mentioning this? Because, and I am really sorry to say that, these employees get annoying after a while, because they literally shout at by-passers to give the game a try. No, thanks.

Eiffel tower is a replica of the real Eiffel tower in Paris, with one crucial difference. The Eiffel tower at Kings island is three times smaller than the one in Paris. But the views of the park from the top are amazing. Yes, you can get to the top, and no, there is no additional fee for that. Seriously, do do not skip going on top!

Then Kings island also has two rides, whose admission is not included in the price, but they are both worth paying for it. One of them is the slingshot ride, which will shoot up you in the air. Think of it as a reverse bungee jump of some sort.

The second ride that you have to pay for, is called Sky Flyer, and the feeling when riding it reminds me of skydiving. You will basically be laying down on a platform, strapped, then pulled up a tower and dropped down, so you will soar like an eagle for a minute or so. The feeling when you drop is really intense, I just loved it!

The good thing about rides at Kings island is that they do not close down even when it rains. Most European amusement parks, and Cedar point, will close down most rides when it rains. Well, riding a roller coaster when it rains can be a pretty painful experience, but at least you do not have to give up hope on riding the rides after it starts to rain.

And a bonus, like many other amusement parks, Kings island offers ride photos, which you can laugh at after you get off the ride. And, what a surprise, you can also buy them. A price for a single picture is different from ride to ride, but you can buy the so - called FunPix pass for 39.99 dollars, that will allow you to bring home as many ride photos on the day of your visit as you want. Well, not actual photos - you will get a code and you can later download them and print them at home.

Soak city water park

I admit it, I have not been to many water parks, so I cannot really compare Soak City to any other place, but I can say that this water park is pretty cool. It offers something for all age (and adrenaline level) groups. Again, I will only describe the rides that I have been on and I liked.

Tidal wave pool: I am sure you are familiar with this one. But the tidal wave pool at Soak city water park has a cool addition that is forbidden in all other tidal wave pools I have been to - you are allowed to have tubes in there. They will even provide them for you! Well, I understand why, because the waves will be really high, and you might want to be able to hold onto something.

The monsoon is the first ride I have done at Soak city. First, you have to walk up seven sets of (very slippery - so be careful) stairs. Yes, this ride is extremely tall for a water ride. Then, you and three or four more people will sit in a big tube, facing each other.

And then, a staff member will push you down a dark slide, then, a very steep drop will follow, and then you will enter a big funnel, which will cause the tube to go up and down the side of the funnel multiple times. Sounds scary! It is, especially the first time you are doing it!

Tropical plunge consists of three colourful slides. And what is so special about them? At the top, you will stand on a platform that will open under you, and you will basically fall into the slide. As you have probably figured out from that description, this ride is incredibly fast.

And be careful, you have to cross your arms and keep them on your shoulders to prevent hitting anything. Of course, the first thing you will want to do when you feel you are falling, is to grab onto something, but please resist that urge!

Tube slides are fun… and they have steep drops. You can choose from three different ones. One of them has a small drop at the end, one of them has a big drop at the end, and one of them is completely dark for a while, and then there is a lot of lights, so you will have a feeling you are on LSD. The downside of these tube slides is that you sometimes to have to wait for available tubes at the bottom, especially if the lines are long.

Carpet slides are another fun part of Soak city water park. The point of this slide is a race with your friends. You will lay down on a carpet - looking floatie. Face first, mind it! The employee at the top will say: ‘Ready, set, go!’ and the one who reaches the end of the slide first, wins.

A big tube slide is fun, and much more thrilling than it looks to non - riders. You and up to five other people will be seated into a giant inflatable tube and pushed down the slide, full of quite steep drops and sharp turns. I freaked out quite a few times during the ride, because it seemed like the tube will flip over, but that is apparently normal.

Giant drop slide is just what it sounds like - you will walk up quite a few steps just to plummet straight down the slide. Slides like these always make me dizzy because they are so fast, but they are great fun.

Surfing simulator is a fun way to try to learn how to surf without having to be afraid of being eaten by a shark. Because there are no sharks in swimming pools. I only tried the surfing simulator once, because one of my friends twisted my ankle on it during an unfortunate attempt to get off the surfboard, and I was afraid that the same thing will happen to me. I should also mention that my balance is not the best, and all I could think during my time on the surfboard, was: ‘I am going to fall... Okay, I am fine. Oh no, I am falling, what am I doing???’

And I would like to give you a very important advice - wear flip flops all the time, and if not, watch your step! For some reason, there is a lot of bees all around Soak City, and I was unlucky enough to step on one. Well, I was not wearing any shoes and I was not looking where I was going, and it really hurt for quite a few days afterwards. Well, lesson learned.

And another very important advice - wear sunblock. And do not forget to reapply it often, because it will wash off in the water.

If you do not feel like changing into your clothes, going back to the car and driving closer to the Kings island entrance from Soak city, you can just take the train from Soak city to Kings island. Well, the ride will only last a few minutes, but it will save you the hassle of looking for a parking spot closer to the Kings island entrance.

In summer, I have noticed several people wearing their swimsuits in Kings island, so I am guessing you are allowed to do so.

Special events and shows

Kings island offers, other than a ton of awesome rides, other forms of entertainment as well.the ones listed below are my favourites.

Majestic pit bulls is a fun show, hosted by a girl, who also appeared on America’s got talent. Well, I have to admit that I have never heard of her before, but the show was super cool. It included dogs, showing off different tricks, and the music that was played in the background, was really cool.

Well, if you like rock music, of course. There were several shows throughout the day, so you are able to pick a time that suits you the most. And you do not have to pay to see any of the shows.

The stunt show was somehow a special event, because it only happened a few selected days last summer. It included stunt performers, riding a motorcycle on a high wire, five people riding motorcycles inside a metal sphere AT THE SAME TIME, and a human cannonball.

Halloween Haunt is a special event that takes place on Weekends in October every year. They have haunted houses with funny names (and a lot of jump scares), such as Kill Mart (a K mart parody), Urgent scare (Urgent care with zombies in it) and the Slaughterhouse (The local slaughterhouse claims to have the best meat. When you walk through it, butchers with pig masks will be preparing human meat - this one is not for the faint hearted), a corn maze, scare zones (basically meaning actors will scare you when walking through the park if you are passing a scare zone) and a lot more.

The Halloween haunt means the park is open until one in the morning, and all the rides are running. The catch is that you have to walk through multiple scare zones to get from ride to ride, which can (and will) cause quite a few jump scares. If you do not want to be scared by actors, you can purchase the so - called No boo necklace that glows in the dark, so the actors will know not to scare you, but the necklace is meant more for little kids than it is for adults.

Winterfest takes place in winter (no kidding) and it is basically just a festival of lights with ice skating that you can do, and they rent ice skates as well, ice skating shows, and the only ride that is open during Winterfest, is Mystic timbers. Which is a great ride, but if you do not have a season pass, it is not worth paying the admission price just to look at the lights and go ice skating.

Returning to the park on the same day

Did you forget something in the car? Or did you decide to leave food and drinks there? Are you meeting a friend in the parking lot later in the day? Well, good news is that you can do all that without having to pay for the entrance fee twice.

Once you exit the park, do not forget to ask the staff member to stamp your hand, and once you wish to re - enter the park, simply show the stamp on your hand to the staff member and they will let you in without even checking your ticket.

The official rule states that you are allowed one exit and one re - entry, but I was able to do it multiple times in one day. After all, the staff can not really keep track of all the people that exit and then re - enter the park, since they are only putting a stamp on your hand and not actually scanning your ticket.

But there are two exceptions for the re - entry. You are not allowed to do it both during the Halloween haunt and the Winterfest. So if you are visiting the park during these two events, make sure you bring everything you might need with you.

Food and drinks inside the park

A friendly advice - bring your own food! Food and drinks inside the park are ridiculously expensive. Even my employers, that are incredibly rich, do not want to spend money on food at Kings island (or any other amusement park). Because, let’s be honest, ten dollars for a slice of (not even good) pizza? No, thank you.

There is a very good snack shop inside the park, but the prices are just unreasonable, and I am ashamed to admit that I once paid twelve dollars for a tiny slice of fudge. Yeah, do not underestimate my cravings for sweet things. Because I have my moments where I just have to eat something sweet, and I would pay unreasonable amounts of money for the thing I want. And of course I will always regret paying so much as soon as I satisfy the cravings.

When walking through Kings island, you will most likely notice a small food stand that sells Oreo churros. I love churros, and of course I had to try. They have a price list displayed, and it clearly says Oreo churros 3, 80 dollars. Pay attention to the plural form - churros. Of course, the fine print below the price list will tell you that tax is, of course, not included, which brings the total price all the way up to 4, 05 dollars. And how many churros do you get for that price?

Drum roll: One, and it is tiny! I was so disappointed that I almost said I do not want it anymore. But then I decided to try it anyway, since I thought you cannot get Oreo churros anywhere else. I later found out that they sell them in my local supermarket, and a pack of fifteen churros costs less than one churro at Kings island. Well, I learned my lesson. And guess what, the one I bought was not even good and it did not taste like Oreos at all, more like a burnt regular churro.

The only food (well, it is not even real food) that I would suggest you to try, is the Dippin’ dots ice cream with chocolate sauce. And even that will cost you from five to ten dollars, depending on the size. And if you decide to leave a tip, which you should, this will most likely be the most expensive ice cream you have ever tried.

If you have a season pass, you can get a season drinking and/or dining plan, which is a pretty good deal if you are planning to visit the park often during that season. Last year, I added a drinking plan to my season pass for the price of 39,99 dollars. It included a refillable bottle and a free first drink on a selected day, with each additional refill costing only fifty cents! There are several different dining plans available, so check their website to see if any of them suits you.

Kings island mobile app

I would strongly suggest you to take advantage on the Kings island’s mobile app. There is free wi - fi available throughout the park, so you will not have to use your data. The most useful feature of the app is definitely the waiting times - the app will display all the rides in the park along with a current length of the line, so you can get the most out of your visit to the park.

You can also see all the restaurants in the park inside the app and see the daily specials that they offer, check the height restrictions on all the rides and so on. However, the Kings island app has one big downside - it will drain your phone’s battery in the matter of a few hours. So when I am not using it, I make sure I exit the app and not let it run in the background.

A few words for the end…

If you love amusement parks, or you would just like to find out how American amusement parks are different from the ones in your country, then Kings island is a great place for you. It is not the biggest park, but it is still a decent size, and it has an amazing water park that you can visit in summer, and its admission is included in the price of your ticket.