5 things to know about Kings Island as it opens this week

1. The park will be letting guests in 30 minutes before opening

The park has confirmed the schedule for its season-opening date. Parking booths will open at 9 a.m. Saturday, with the front gates opening 30 minutes later. Lining up at the park’s entrance, guests may wait there until the park’s official opening at 10 a.m.

2. Camp Snoopy, with a new ride, opens later this season

Possibly the biggest piece of news to come out of Kings Island recently was the announcement of Camp Snoopy, an expansion of the parks award-winning Planet Snoopy area. Taking up an existing portion of Planet Snoopy, several existing rides have been updated to fit the new area’s camping theme. There will also be a new children’s play area and dining location.

The largest addition coming to the area is Snoopy’s Soap Box Racers, a family rollercoaster created by Vekoma. The ride will take guests forward and backward in cars themed for various Peanuts characters. While the park has been making progress on the new area, its attractions will not be ready by Saturday. The park has not confirmed an opening date for Camp Snoopy yet, simply saying “late spring.”

3. Season pass offers are changed

For a number of years, Kings Island has offered a season pass for guests who want to return throughout the whole season. For this year, however, Kings Island parent company Cedar Fair decided to make some changes. While the traditional “Gold Pass” option is still available to guests for $145, the park now has a “Silver Pass” option. For $110, guests will be able to use the pass any operating day before Labor Day. This means that those with the silver pass will not have access to the park’s popular “Halloween Haunt” or “Winterfest” events.

For those who want even more from their season are able to get a “Prestige Pass.” This pass has all the same perks as the gold pass, but guests also have access to a special VIP area and preferred parking. Prestige passes can be purchased for $350.

As with previous years, guests are able to purchase add-ons for their season passes such as a dining plan and line-skipping “Fast Lanes.” However, guests are now able to add on the “All Park Passport.” This gives guests unlimited visits to all other Cedar Fair parks, like Cedar Point and Canada’s Wonderland. This is similar to the “Platinum Pass” that Cedar Fair had offered in years past.

4. Kings Island is celebrating ride anniversaries with opening day trading cards

This year, Kings Island will be celebrating the anniversaries of several important attractions in the park. The park’s legendary wooden coaster, The Beast will be celebrating its 45th anniversary. The ride opened in 1979 and was the longest roller coaster in the world until The Ultimate opened in the UK in 1991 (the title has changed numerous times since then.) The Beast currently remains the longest wooden roller coaster in the world at more than 7,361 feet. That’s nearly two miles long.

The park is also celebrating the 25th birthday of the inverted coaster Invertigo, the 15th anniversary of Diamondback and Banshee’s 10th birthday. To celebrate these anniversaries, the park will be giving the first 750 riders of each coaster a special trading card pack. According to the park’s blog “These trading cards will include current rides, former rides and key moments in Kings Island history that occurred anywhere from 5 to 55 years ago. While many cards will be similar, there are a couple unique cards in each coaster’s giveaway packs, such as special coaster anniversary cards, so plan your rides carefully.” There will also be extra card packs available to purchase at the park’s gift shops.

5. Season pass holders get a special treat before opening

As previously mentioned, the Bolliger & Mabillard inverted coaster Banshee will be celebrating its 10th anniversary in 2024. The rides is over 4,124 feet long and is the longest inverted roller coaster in the world. The ride sits on what was previously the land occupied by the park’s troubled Son of Beast roller coaster. That ride was closed in 2009 and was torn down in 2012, making way for Banshee to open 2 years later.

The ride is themed to the screeching spirit of the same name, and guests can even hear her howl as they come down the lift hill. Kings Island is no stranger to ghost stories and paranormal activity, even appearing on an episode of Ghost Hunters in 2012. So while it has never been confirmed by the park, it is possible the theme was chosen to celebrate the haunted history of the park.

Regardless of whether its haunted or not, Banshee has given guests plenty reason to scream over during its first 10 years. To celebrate this, the park is allowing season pass holders to ride the attraction 30 minutes before the park opens, starting at 9:30 a.m.

How to go

What: Kings Island opening day

When: 10 a.m. to 9 p.m. Saturday, April 20

Where: Kings Island: 6300 Kings Island Drive, Mason

More info: visitkingsisland.com