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As much as I really want the castle to go in favor of a brand new exterior design, I would totally not be shocked if they just make some minor modifications to the castle structure and just dress it up to make it more like a gothic/medieval theater. I mean Music Hall in downtown Cincinnati sorta looks like a castle on the outside.

I think with a bit of remodeling, some new paint, and a new marquee(see below), it would look great. Something inspired by the original, but in line with the new art direction.

So IAAPA is officially over. I have scoured literally every social media platform possible to find more/better footage of the BTS videos and concept art shown in the presentation, but if anyone took any they haven’t shown it yet (If anyone on this forum took it please share) but here’s all the new info/my predictions I have after the event. -Rather than being an abandoned theater that the guests just happen to stumble into, I interpret the vibe now as more as a theater for phantoms and wandering spirits (think the original retirement home idea for the haunted mansion at Disneyland) -The original soundtrack is rescored and will be present in this version. I interpret this as being Maestro’s new composition he discusses “Terror Toccata in D Minor” (unless of course he’s taking credit for bach’s work) -The animatronics on display went through 3 different spiels, and I believe this is the setup we’ll see in the queue. However, I think the particular Maestro animatronic they used will be located at the finale to the ride as opposed to the queue, as this figure has full legs and a “bowing” movement. The Larry animatronic could be in the queue to show off how to use the flashlight, or at the very beginning if they changed from the concept art for the opening scene they showed off. At this point, I think Maestro on the organ is a scene they’ll save for the physical ride (I think in the first room where the graveyard is now), but I really love the dynamic between Larry, Maestro, and the guests they showed off, so I’m fine with that. But I think there will be more that they say in the actual queue, I’d say more of a 15-40 minute loop. - We saw new bts videos showing off the Boiler Men, Arpeggio, the vulture from The Beastie, and Willard being wrapped up (by the ghost notes I assume) into the mummy. -They showed off the flashlight technology, which I’m very curious to see how it works. I wonder if the scoring system will be off of points or how many ghost notes you capture. -The park promises more updates throughout the Winter, which at this point I sorta hope they don’t show off too much more of the ride. Overall very impressed with the event, we got more than I expected. Thank you sally dark ride and Kings Island.

I'm hoping the purple castle goes away, I mean I loved it for when it was Scooby-Doo and fit the theming perfectly, and it sort of worked for Boo Blasters (with some minor adjustments) but as time went on it just became an eyesore. I would like to see a new entrance thats just not another re-skin of Scooby-Doo.

More info on the New Year’s Eve Dinner Party at International Restaurant: Tickets will be going on sale wednesday December 10th. Price is $130 without passholder discount. (Park admission not included.) https://www.sixflags.com/kingsisland/events/new-years-eve-celebration

It's seemingly never been there. See these pictures for reference. https://KICentral.com/parkhistory/past-attractions/scooby-doo-and-the-haunted-castle/

2 more group events have been added to the 2026 calendar, bringing the total 2026 event count to 4 so far. Music in the Park — April 24, May 1, May 8, & May 15, 2026 Physics, Science, and Math Days — April 24 & May 1, 8, 14, 15, & 22, 2026 Performance in the Park — Any Public Operating Day During the 2026 Season STEM Days — May 8 & 15, 2026 Unless something changes — which there is a chance that it might — we now know that the season will start by Friday, April 24th, 2026. I'm still holding out for the official release of the 2026 operating calendar and the Festival Events schedule, but as I said before, this is more than we knew about by this time last year.

I think if they put up a marquee I'd rather see one like the original had, but there's a chance they could make this kind look good too. My other hope would be that they keep the pieces on top of the gates. Those add a little flair to the structure. What program did you use to make these?

Not me. Less apps on my phone the better. Open one app, pick the SIX park I am visiting, and get all the info I need. Simplify it.

At least we know how Tony operates, and can trust the info that is posted.

I think if they can change these three elements (the mouth, the "BH" medallions, and the tops of the towers) it will help a lot. It would definitely help everyone feel like PT:ON is not just a re-skin of SDatHC and BBoBH. Changing the colors of the castle should be on the list of changes as well. They should definitely try to find a way to add a marquee and change the castle turrets to be less castle-y.

I did see that Daredevil Falls is getting new boats. Perhaps more of a refurb is in store? silver2005, who's favorite flume is Daredevil Falls.

Who’s got a few extra of these? Asking for a friend…

Here's the ride vehicle reveal at IAAPA. Hopefully it isn't as shaky as the other B&Ms that have come out recently, but I have my doubts. I'm going to try and be optimistic though, so maybe they changed something in their manufacturing to get rid of the rattle/shake.

I’m really loving how active the socials have been about this new dark ride. It appears that the park and the marketing teams realize how special this is and they are really pushing it which makes me happy. You can tell there are lots of passionate people bringing this project to life and they want to show us all the work and time going into this addition!

I visited Dollywood on a special trip last week: here's how it went! There will be some comparisons to Kings Island and Six Flags parks in general, so be warned if you wanted to read an uninterrupted review of Dollywood. Between the time our tickets were purchased and the lead-up to our trip, the weather forecast went from 60 degrees and sunny to a dreary cold 30 degrees. Some of the plans we made went right out the window as we packed our coats and layers as we rapidly made new plans to do as much as we could with the things that might be open. We arrived at Dollywood, paid the $25 general parking fee and made our way over to Section C (Cotton Candy). I really liked that they gave the pneumonic for each parking lot section and that everyone working the parking lot knew them. Even in the snow flurries we were able to see the lines in the parking lot and knew that the tram shelters were where we wanted to be around. The tram was phenomenal, even in the cold! It made me realize what we're missing out on at the Six Flags parks. The driver and wrangler (the guy at the back of the tram) were both charming in their speech and made light of the cold weather on our way to and from the front gate. Their covered tram shelters and butterfly standing points were a nice touch. The wrangler asked a few questions to the few of us riding and let us know that "First Visit" and "Special Occasion/Birthday" buttons would be available at the ticket windows. We ended up having to visit the ticket window and the guest services window before finally finding someone with the buttons at the turnstile. I made sure to pick up the free "First Visit" and "Special Occasion" ones since they were free souvenirs to celebrate my first time at Dollywood. I was also very pleased to learn that they offered paper map booklets throughout the park and accepted cash at almost every register. As always my first stop was at the restrooms. The front gate facilities were nice, clean, and warm with hot water, paper towels, and multiple stalls in addition to the urinals. Kings Island should really take some notes on this matter (having only one stall available in the Men's room on I-Street is abysmal). We took some photos with the butterflies and made our way over to the Dolly Parton Experience, Dollywood's museum and exhibit area of the park. The big museum reminded me a lot of the Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum (where I saw another Dolly Parton exhibit) and was really well thought out and super cool to see. The dedicated outfit and wig exhibit building was a much smaller, but still well-made museum. Our time in that area came to a close after climbing aboard Dolly's Tour Bus and checking out all of the items within. There were Hosts (Dollywood's title for Employees/Associates) stationed outside each door waiting to let us in. I can almost guarantee that not only would those positions not exist in a Six Flags park, they would be the first staff to be cut on a cold day with such low attendance. Our entertainment journey for the day began in the Pines Theater with a nice show themed to "The Night Before Christmas". This show ran for about 40 minutes and had a custom storyline. I'd compare it closest to Tinker's Toy Factory in terms of the basic song + story design and rate it just a bit above Tinker's in my overall show rankings. There was a moment during the show when someone spilled their drink — another guest later told us that this isn't uncommon with those cups — and a host immediately came and cleaned the spill. On our way out I also noticed a full concessions stand that was closed for the day. The Pines Theater is a nice indoor venue like the Kings Island Theater, though I think I prefer the KIT overall. The second show we saw was "Christmas in the Smokies" in the Celebrity Theater. Getting up to the theater was a little treacherous with the snow making the asphalt paths a little slick, but we made it in alright. Since it was a very low-crowd day we were told that we could sit up front in the dedicated Time Saver (Fast Lane/Fast Pass) seats. We ended up sitting pretty much center stage in the second row! The show itself was 50 minutes of song and dance with plenty of seamless costume and set changes throughout. It was full-on song and dance with story elements sprinkled in, but managed to confuse us a little when they started telling the story of the Nativity. I understood the lead into it more than the rest of my group and still managed to miss the part where they went back to the main storyline. The set was a beautiful mix of painted flats with exaggerated 3-D pieces that included a fold-out log cabin, all backed by a digital panel screen. The Celebrity Theater itself is a marvel and looked to be at least double the size of the Kings Island Theater and/or 1.5x the size of the International Showplace. Overall, both shows were a step above what Kings Island currently offers. With showtimes well over 30 minutes and casts at least 10-15 performers strong, I was thoroughly pleased with what I saw. Christmas in the Smokies also included a live band in the orchestra pit! I truly wish that Six Flags would focus even a little more on entertainment in their parks so that Kings Island guests could experience such magnificent delights. If you can't add new rides every year, why not give some attention to live entertainment? Maybe I'll go see about adding the Christmas in the Smokies soundtrack to my playlists. Since I have to get going, I will continue with the rest of my visit in a second post. Stay tuned!

When the Coke Station in Rivertown was actually open...

Guest at WinterFest last year: "Why don't they make the water warmer so Soak City can be open all year long?"

So now we have unified map styles, new websites, a potential look into new apps via the Carowinds app, and more unified pass systems throughout the merged Six Flags company. I'm still looking for the following changes and if they will ever happen: The Six Flags social media accounts to advertise both Legacy Cedar Fair and Legacy Six Flags parks and events. They currently have mostly Holiday in the Park advertising instead of equal HitP and Winterfest advertising. Updated mobile apps across the chain. I'm greatly hoping for individual park apps instead of one giant Six Flags app. Expanded FunPix and FunTV across the chain. Even just having them in all of the top core parks would be more than nothing. New branding that utilizes the corporate logo over the Legacy Six Flags logo. Having that change might help move the needle of people's feelings about Six Flags. This change would also be a visual marker on the fact that this is not your parent's Six Flags.