Losantiville Mining Co.

It appears that this photoshoot has been cancelled at the last minute according to an email from a (the?) producer at Six Flags Creative Services that was posted to Facebook. The event was scheduled to happen tomorrow, April 14th, but apparently an email was sent out at 6:02PM tonight saying that it was cancelled. The post didn't have any date for rescheduling so I don't know if the park is just not ready for it or what.

If that happens then I can't wait to hear about how Kings Island never gets any massive thrill coasters anymore I think the major hold up is from both the park and corporate at this point. John Reilly has big visions for more entertainment and better guest experience. Cedar Point hasn't released their entertainment lineup yet, but I wouldn't be surprised if they got to have 10-ish shows to add to their major festivals and events again. Something I really want to know is who made the decision to cut back on Kings Island's Independence Day celebration. It used to be a two-day event and now that Cedar Point is extending theirs to be a whole week, KI only gets one night of festivities. Over Texas and Great Adventure were really slacking on their entertainment in recent years, so those don't surprise me. It seems that even after the sale of 6 parks and the upcoming sale of LaRonde, Six Flags seems to be complacent with what Kings Island has. We don't know the rest of the park's entertainment lineup for the 2026 regular season but I really hope it involves some new shows that aren't just [stunt show] and [bubble show]. There could be another show that goes in the KIT after Brad Ross (Kings Dominion had a simple laser show in theirs last year). I think that only required associates to man the theater and to press the buttons, meaning they wouldn't need performers or costumes and the set could be simple. On a separate note: HiFi Honey will be returning to Kings Island for some performances in 2026. That said, it appears someone got their dates wrong when entering them into the website. If I had a nickel for every time someone put the wrong dates for a KI event/show on their website, I'd have two nickels; which isn't a lot but it's odd that it happened twice.

I think it's still missing two arms as well. It's entirely possible that the park is waiting to install two arms from Cedar Point's ride and are currently repainting them and some of their pods. As for the fence, I think it will be up until they get most of the ride assembled and begin testing it. If it's not opening with the park then it'd be nice if KI at least put up a sign on the fence saying that the ride will return.

I was curious about that as well. The constant movement of the drone camera didn't help me to see anything clearly, but I didn't immediately see any trim brakes when I paused the video. Also, they had the clearance envelope device propped up against the railing at the top of the second lift hill! I do hope that they will replant some of the trees and foliage that were taken out for the rebuild. For my fellow webcam watchers: most of the major coaster lifthill lights that we can see (on Orion, The Racer, and Diamondback) have been turned on! The park also appears to be testing some fountain shows as well. I'd love to see the fountain show concept we saw during Haunt come back for the regular season and expanded to include something for a set of hourly daytime shows. No lasers (for now), but the lights in the fountain and on the Eiffel Tower are clearly dancing for a show. I think I can even see someone working on programming the show from a laptop in front of the park sign at the bottom of the screen. Have the Swiss flags above the Starbucks dining room entrance always been lit up? Something else I noticed on the I-Street camera is that the medallions weren't installed with the colorful banners on the light towers. I wonder if they just weren't put up or if there will be some new ones coming this year. There are some special ones for the Food & Wine Festival and others for Haunt, but maybe we could see something around the 4th of July even though the park isn't having a multi-day event? The medallions on each light tower during the 50th anniversary were my favorite — especially since they had the ribbon shapes — and I'd love to see something similar come back.

I'm right there with you on jumping between wanting to see it all and also wanting to avoid spoilers. This is one of the first rides that I've been super invested in the development of, and I can't wait to be back in the park. Luckily, I have some big tasks to accomplish this week so my brain won't entirely be occupied by Phantom Theater. We're currently trying to figure out what time we need to leave the house to get to the park by 11 for the parking tolls to open, then for the park to be open at 12, and to get to Phantom Theater as quickly as possible (maybe with a quick restroom break somewhere in there). I made sure to mark myself as unavailable for work on Thursday night so I can hope to get to sleep earlier than my work schedule would normally allow. One of the people in my group isn't great with standing in incredibly long lines, so I'd like to try to save us from a 2 or 3+ hour wait. I think it would be nice if the park had return time tickets like they had with Orion in 2020 when they couldn't pack everyone into the queue.

Sadly it looks like we won't be getting the two wooden floral carts back this year either. They looked very nice on either side of International Street and I haven't seen them anywhere else in the park since they were removed. (Photo: Brad Perdue on KICentral)

I wonder if we will hear that variation on the theme music during the ride or in the queue line? I also saw some interesting shots in the video that I'm curious about. Something to keep in mind if you're looking for how this version is connected to the original through the Phantom Theater storylines and lore: the theater has been renovated in a manner for which some things are new and other things have been designed/redesigned to look old. The phantoms might enjoy the look of a more decrepit facade. These specters have been preparing for their grand reopening and, instead of wasting away as they were for so long, are now less gaunt and more lively. "Where were these ghost notes before?" Maybe that question will be answered, maybe not. It's a theme park ride so don't look too far into it. I loved how Drew Hunter (Sally's VP of Creative Design and the bald guy sitting in front of the concept art) was talking about what this revival of Phantom Theater might mean for other dark rides and ride concepts that could be brought back in a similar way. If all goes well, we could see a resurgence of parks installing new dark rides! Six Flags has expressed their intents for additions to replace various Boo Blasters and Justice League attractions via surveys, so maybe we can at least see some fresh concepts? I'm personally rooting for a Disaster Transport dark ride at Cedar Point I think if we get any new Phantom Theater merchandise it would be so easy to make a sticker set of the various posters from the original ride and maybe some from the new ride! Hopefully it wouldn't cost $20 for one set of stickers, but I think I'd pay $10 for a nice set of 6 original poster stickers. The plushies would also be very nice to have, though I don't know what the park would do for that besides making expensive Squishmallows. A small wood ride vehicle could be nice and might fit well with the coaster versions. Only one week until we're on the ride!! I'm so excited!

They seem to have done a really good job for what they accomplished in such a short time frame. The biggest issues I've found are the lack of clarification on if Six Flags add-ons that guests paid for will be honored and the fact that some items still advertise Six Flags passes, such as on the maps and some promotional materials. I'm really interested to see what the new logos for these parks will look like.

Six Flags did not hesitate to take the parks they just sold off of their website. Now they're all under "parks [dot] enchantedparks [dot] com" addresses! The most notable name changes are coming from Six Flags St. Louis (now Mid-America by Enchanted Parks) and Schlitterbahn Galveston (now Galveston Island Waterpark). Each website shows a "Now Under New Management" badge as well in case you didn't know about the sale. Schlitterbahn Galveston has a special 20th anniversary logo on their website, Valleyfair has their 50th anniversary logo, and Michigan's Adventure has a special 70th anniversary logo. Putting the old Six Flags-based URLs in the address bar directs you to a landing page similar to the Six Flags America website before it was deactivated. There is a link to the each park's new website and a link to other Six Flags park websites. https://www.enchantedparks.com/ https://worldsoffun.enchantedparks.com/ https://mid-americaparks.enchantedparks.com/ https://galvestonislandwaterpark.enchantedparks.com/ https://valleyfair.enchantedparks.com/ https://miadventure.enchantedparks.com/ https://greatescapeparks.enchantedparks.com/ https://worldsoffuncamping.enchantedparks.com/ https://greatescaperesort.enchantedparks.com/ The new chain has also released new pass options, including the Enchanted Hero Pass and the Enchanted Legend Pass. Both passes grant guests similar perks, with the main difference being the discount percentage, parking tier, and number of Fast Lane passes per season and type of Bring-A-Friend ticket deals. The new Legend pass also includes one free Combo Meal (though what that means is not specified) per season. From what I've seen there are no meal plans, drink plans, all-season Fast Lane (or other name of Priority Pass), or all-season photo pass. There is a parking page and cabana rental page though. Some parks also list "admission to Halloween Event" as a perk. I just hope they don't choose a name as bad as "Mid-America by Enchanted Parks" such as "Scary Halloween by Enchanted Parks". Each website lists the same passes and pass prices. I found it interesting that the Legend Pass is only $25 more than the Hero Pass, but when the only real multi-visit difference is the parking tier and the combo meal it isn't surprising. Personally, I think the price difference should be closer to $50. That way the parking benefit would be a little more exclusive. Limiting the Fast Lane to only 1-2 per season seems both good and bad. Good for the people who only visit twice a year, bad for the people who are used to their Prestige Pass and getting one Single-Use Fast Lane per visit. I haven't been able to find anything about if the Six Flags pass add-ons will work at these parks, but it's somewhat clear to me that the websites aren't finished yet. From what I remember hearing/reading, the issue is/was with getting the Six Flags and Enchanted Parks systems to work together. I'd love if my dining plan got me a free combo meal. How would that work? I don't know, maybe Guest Services could print out a QR code ticket for the one-time meal or something. What do you think about these new Enchanted Parks websites and passes?

It looks like they've also been adding some more weathering to the facade! I appreciate that they did more than just changing out the windows (as happened with the conversion to Boo Blasters). I'm not terribly upset by the lack of more structural changes considering whatever might've replaced the castle could've had the same goofy look with a different shape. I wonder what they're hiding in the entry portal besides the No-Legs Larry Drama Masks and the rest of the repainted facade? Maybe a new marquee or a special surprise? The staircase was counted as one of the "scenes" on the plans that we got from the city of Mason. The semi-permanent extended queue will be really helpful and looks so much better than what the park normally does. Even the Fast Lane line looks like it has a little bit of extended queue! That's probably not as good for the standby line, but hopefully the priority ratio is handled well.

I agree with most of your points except for these ones. The area between Diamondback and the log flume, in my opinion, has no chance of being cohesive unless they are in the same thematic area and/or there is some serious work done to make those two plazas feel like one. Kings Island started this process by including that area in Camp Snoopy, but it still feels disjointed. The Diamondback theme is fine — even though it doesn't fit into the "History of Cincinnati" theme as mentioned — but it does need more trees and foliage around it. Anything to make the splashdown look less constructed. The gravel is probably good for drainage and isn't really affected by any (presumed) chemicals in the water, but there's so much manicured grass around it that makes the basin look empty. This image from Kings Island History on Facebook shows a comparison between the area in 1972 and 2019. This photo from Robbie Zerhusen shows just how many trees were still in the area around the time of Diamondback's construction. Now that I'm thinking about it, most of my problems with the splashdown are with how manicured it is. Is a giant patch of neatly cut grass good theming for a historically themed area? (Side note: The theme of Rivertown as a "History of Cincinnati" based concept is not rigid, as shown by The Beast and more by Mystic Timbers. That being said, I would still love to see more nature incorporated into the area.) As for the big box, I'd much rather it be demolished and replaced with a new expansion of Rivertown than try to shove something into it. A small but natural-looking lake, an entertainment venue and/or dining location, and a new ride would all fit around that area with ease. The largest issues would come up with the parts of the building that are directly adjacent to Diamondback's track and supports.

As long as they remember to take the Cedar Point logo and decals off and do some extra painting I think it'd be cool. The one thing I couldn't stand about Cedar Point's monster was that it had the eyes and goofy sign. I like how KI's Monster looks more old-timey (at least with the sign). One thing I really hope we get and see installed are all of the lights from their ride. It looked like they still had the lights on the rotor and some of the ones on the arms, which would help give ours more visual life!

Nice upkeep of foliage, trees, tables, trash cans, and paint all help guests feel so much better in a park. What's sad here is that — just as Matt Ouimet said — not enough industry professionals seem to understand that fact. Some things can't be immediately helped, but change can happen over the course of a few years. Something Kings Island really needs is a renewed interest in trees and foliage. Little displays like the floral calendar, carousel horse, and season-marking Eiffel Tower display (behind the Grand Carousel sign) are really nice. On the other hand the Floral Clock has been broken for a while, the Eiffel Tower topiary often looks like a... well a... poorly kept topiary. The park could also place some non-foliage-based displays if they don't want to put strain on the gardening teams. If I had to choose three areas of Kings Island to plant more trees, it would be Camp Snoopy, specifically near Franklin's Flyers Rivertown, specifically near Diamondback's entrance and near the path at the area formerly known as Swan Lake Vortex's plot (this one is very specifically foliage that a new coaster would go around and/or that would compliment a new coaster) Action Zone is somewhere on this list, but I would tie any new trees and foliage there directly into a larger area redevelopment rather than somewhere as a quick fix. I'm sure there's a worry about obstructing some sightlines and getting trees too close to coaster tracks as well.

I'm still hoping that Wild One can be saved — even if it's as a complete rebuild like the Zippin Pippin had after Libertyland closed. This also has me wondering if Six Flags will clear the site of everything they can before the ownership transfers (move all of the the operable rides and sell the rest for scrap) or include some rides in the sale and let 35V and TPA Group deal with scrapping/reopening them.

I saw a tweet that claimed [almost] nobody from the Cincinnati area has been invited to the Media Day preview: is that true? I'm not going to put much stock into it, but I've also only seen a few content creators with the invitation boxes — none of whom live in the tri-state area. The first person I saw with one was Marcus LeShock, the newscaster from Chicago; then I saw Kerney-cation, who live in Cleveland; and then I saw Jonny Amusements, who lives in the Sevierville area near Dollywood. Would it be normal to send one of these packages to local news agencies? It's been so long since they've done this and I can't remember what happened with the Mystic Timbers packages.

There's actually been some speculation on this matter and a few people have reached that same conclusion. More specifically, that's one of the reasons why folks like the hosts of GreenTagged (on YouTube) think Marilyn Spiegel was ousted from her Chairman of the Board position. It's thought that JANA Partners published their letter calling for more change because they saw certain board members that were holding the company down and were acting as a roadblock for John Reilly and his ambitious plans for Six Flags. Even if this decision was somehow too sudden for a social media post, what's the reasoning behind not putting anything else out besides a comment to the local news? Better late than never applies here too.

I know he talked to the news and that it was published in the article, I just think parks should formally announce this kind of thing on their channels via either a blog post and/or a social media post. They don't have to do exactly what Silver Dollar City is doing for ThuNderaTion, but a short blog article from the park is all I'm asking for. It's obvious (to me at least) that Silver Dollar City is doing what every park should do for a standard ride retirement. Announce the retirement at least a few months before its last day of operations. Sell some ride-specific merchandise. These don't need to be new designs, just something for the fans. Make a blog article and social media post to announce the closure and thank the ride for its service to the park. Nothing big but something to remind guests that it's the last time they'll be able to ride it. If this was not a planned closure — which it sounds like that's the case — I still think they should make a post via their official channels.

Isn't there another Eyerly Monster model that has something slightly different? I thought the other one had more/less arms or cars. It might've had a different overall shape as well. I'd be curious to know if Battech manufactures parts for that other model or not. I doubt it will be replaced with anything anytime soon. Unless they get something from Six Flags America that pad will sit empty. We also still haven't seen anything official about the ride closure directly from Cedar Point.

Owen Varga on the KI Season Pass Holders group on Facebook shared his media package and here's what he said about the secret message: I think it's probably better viewed in person, but either way it's a nice little media package!

I believe so. Their online map (on the attraction page) has already changed to reflect the new green paint.

Ok another new KI dark ride idea has popped into my head and now I must share it with all of you. A space themed dark ride could fit in Area 72 if the haunt barn and maintenance building were relocated. There is enough space at the bottom of the hill next to Orion for those relocations if the park really wanted to make it happen. This would also give Area 72 the third ride that it needs to feel more complete. I would use the suspended dark ride system from Vekoma as the conveyor and have the scenes and theming done by Sally Dark Rides. That said, I don't entirely enjoy the idea of suspended dark rides, but I think it would give it a different look and feel compared to PT:ON and my Action Theater dark ride concept. This one could be another interactive dark ride with or without some screens to save on cost. I wouldn't entirely be upset if it were a slightly upgraded SDatHC or BBoBH cutout style dark ride either now that we'll have PT:ON as the "flagship" dark ride. The space theme could be either an alien-based storyline or something related to getting out beyond the park's Orion project storyline (or whatever is left of it).

Do you think Phantom Theater is testing yet? The park has about 10 days left to get it tested and commissioned, so I'd assume they will start soon if they haven't yet. I wonder how much of the testing is getting the vehicles and animatronics moving again and how much of it is getting people in the cars to test out the flashlights. It would be interesting to know if they get enough people to fill the ride to capacity and test it or if the first time it'll be at capacity will be on the 17th. The promotional photoshoot could be one of those times to get everything tested and working as well.

I was wondering if that survey I saw online yesterday was an April Fool's joke, but I guess not. Was it too challenging to find a real photo of these types of attractions? A photo of Iron Gwazi perhaps for the hybrid coaster would've been better than the AI slop they presented. What's even weirder is that some of these images have two Google Gemini logos in the bottom right corner, slightly overlaid on each other. Do you think any of these would be a retheme for the Sesame Street Forest of Fun? The new Italy Gardens concept looks like it could either be part of that or replace another part of the Italy area. Either of the two dark rides could replace DarKoaster. I think there are also two of a ride type and two concepts for the same plot(s).

The company's all-park map has also been updated to reflect the newly completed sale. Still no official word on how Dining Plans and All-Season Fast Lane will work at the parks that were sold, but Enchanted Parks CEO James Harhi did say that if EP can't get the technology working to make add-ons work at these parks then they will offer a full refund to the affected guests. I think that would only apply to anyone who bought a pass through those parks though, so anyone who did the Canadian dollar loophole wouldn't get any money back. Enchanted Parks also said that they would like to have their new website and app ready to release around Memorial Day or early summer. Something interesting I noticed was that the press release states that EPR "intends" to partner with Enchanted Parks. I feel like "intends to partner" is a very odd way of putting it, even if it doesn't mean anything. Hopefully the meal plan issues get worked out because I want to visit some of these parks this year but don't want to buy food/drinks that I've (technically) already paid for. That would be one more factor we'd need to account for in an already tight budget.

Fun Fact: It doesn't actually say what the Passholder Preview hours are on KI's website! Like, it's not shown anywhere! Not even on the event page (https://www.sixflags.com/kingsisland/events/season-passholder-preview). According to a correspondence between Jim Flugel and the KI Guest Services team the Passholder Preview will go from 12PM-9PM on Friday, April 17th, 2026. The hours are not listed on the calendar since the park will only be open to passholders, but hours are subject to change without notice either way. I haven't seen a post from the park about it either. I don't think they see a way to profit off of it and/or aren't putting 2 and 2 together as to how they could post about it. You'd think it would be a quick and easy post, but I guess someone didn't like the idea. I think it'll be used as a parts donor in its entirety. Since we got the news part of me has been wondering if KI is waiting on a component from that one to start reassembling ours. Allegedly the Preferred Parking lot is being expanded for 2026 as well. The post I saw had new fencing and such extending into the Bus & RV Lot and maybe over toward Banshee. The signs and paint would be easy to do, but it didn't look like a major project beyond that. I have to wonder if the Bus Lot will be moved into those parts of the Banshee Lot or if the new Bus lot will go elsewhere. The park should find something to do about all the people who park there and take spaces away from the busses and RVs that are supposed to be using it. Of course, this could also just be some new fencing for the Bus Lot. It's a little hard for me to tell exactly where the new fence is just from these photos. I wonder if they're going to move the parking attendant booth (that they just installed in 2024 or 2025) or if they're going to build a whole new one. Photos: Jim D Flugel on Facebook (in the Spoiler)