I will be taking my first PKI trip in about a week. I was hoping to find someone that knows alot about the park, kinda like how I know alot about SFWoA. I'd like to know...
1-What rides to hit and when
2-Where to sit on each ride
3-Best places to eat
4-Any other tips, or must-do's that I should know about. I'm not planning on going into the waterpark or anything like that.
Thank you so much for you're help. I'd like to hit every coaster atleast once...and the major flat rides like Drop Zone and Tomb Raider the Ride.
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Paramount Action Zone, which is directly to the left of the main gate, gets busy first thing in the morning. Hit Face/Off first due to the line. You may think its just another Vekoma boomerang but the inverted boomers are the best things Vekoma has ever created.
Drop Zone's line will be long too as well as Son of Beast. Depending on what ride you want to start off with, you might want to come back later in the day when the crowd begins to disperse from Action Zone to try the rest of the rides.
Warning about Sonny - the trains are not the greatest. Be forewarned that you might come off the ride bruised. But Sonny is a ride that you have to experience at least once. The first drop and the loop are great and the first giant helix is a little intense.
Definitely hit Racer backwards when you ride it - best seat is the very back. The visuals are great.
As far as the other coasters, any seat is good but I think some people have preferences, especially for the Beast.
As for the Beast - DO NOT MISS THIS RIDE! Unfortunately you would not have had the pleasure of riding Papa prior to the new braking system so you won't be able to make any comparisons. Despite some of the brakes grabbing a little hard, I still say the Beast is running the best that I can remember. DO NOT RIDE THIS FIRST THING IN THE MORNING!! Let Papa warm up a bit before you get on. It DOES make a difference.
Tomb Raider is quite a good ride (IMO) and shouldn't be missed. If there is a long line, don't let it fool you since the ride does hold 75 people per trip.
For a junior coaster, Rugrats Runaway Reptar is pretty decent. Don't dismiss this as "some kiddie coaster". The dispatch can be a little slow but it is a fun ride. Also, Wild Thornberries is a decent log flume.
If you need a break, don't miss out on taking the view from the top of the Eiffel Tower. You can stay up there for as long as you like. I love the Eiffel!!
As for food, PKI has your standard burger and fries locations but you can also try some Cincinnati chili at Skyline, either in Coney Mall or on a footlong in Rivertown. Wings Diner in Rivertown has famous Montgomery Inn ribs and chicken, and I think La Rosa's is rather decent pizza (compared to SFWoA's). If you decide on La Rosa's either get it at the Festhaus (dine in air conditioning) or in Rivertown.
You might not be into shows but "Graveyard Shift" at the Paramount Theater is quite good.
You can see what else is at PKI by checking out my new website - PKI Connection.
X Factor
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SFWoA: An Unofficial Guide
http://sfohio.tripod.com
Thanks for the information, that helps alot. I am really looking forward to this trip. My friend who I am going with is getting free tickets because her brother works there so that makes it all the better! :-)
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OK, I don't want to confuse you but if you're really interested in Tomb Raider, I'd hit that first thing. Everyone heads there and it gets very long lines ( 2 hours) very quickly.
If you're an ACE member, take advantage of the walk-back where you can request Tomb Raider. Then you can get this done before anyone even gets started. If not, head right there when the park opens.
Here's how we did the park last Sat. First to Tomb Raider on a walk-back, then a quick Beast ride. We then headed back towards Action Zone (other people at TR) stopping at Flight of Fear on the way. FoF can get long lines later in the day and may not even be open first thing. Then we went to Face/Off and SoB. After that your free to hit the other rides. Most of the other coasters have short lines or load quick. Reptar can be the exception to this. It depends on how many families with kids are at the park.
Don't let Racer's line fool you. Sometimes the line looks long but the queue gets backed up because the front seat line is right at the start of the station. It moves very well.
And of course you have to ride Beast at night. Here's a trick we did. About 45 minutes before closing we got in line for Beast for a night ride. We were on and off by 10 minutes before closing then headed to Tomb Raider for a final ride. At PKI, as long as you are in a queue 1 minute before closing, you can ride. So, we ended up as the last Tomb Raider ride on Saturday.
For food, we like the chicken at the diner near Vortex. It's a little pricey but very tasty.
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Only two things are infinite, the universe and human stupidity, and I'm not sure about the former." - Albert Einstein
Favorite Wood: Viper(SFGAm), Legend (HW)
Favorite Steel: MF (CP), Mamba (WoF)
Well this is what my plan is so far...but it may be changed...
1-Drop Zone
2-Face Off
3-Top Gun(Front)
4-SoB(Front)
5-Adventure Express
6-Racer(Backwards Back)
7-FoF(Front)
8-Vortex(Back)
9-Tomb Raider
10-Beast(Back in the day...front at night)
11-RRR
12-Scooby Doo's Ghoster Coaster
13-Beastie
This may be changed due to what happens in the day...ride closures...etc. I am going to be there for 2 days so I am hoping to hit everything the first day and then the second day just ride my favorites over and over and just do what I feel like doing. I am of course going for a night ride on Beast and I have pretty much figured out where I wanna sit on most of the rides. Thanks for you're help guys! :-D
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"Tea & Cake Or Death?-Eddie Izzard"~My No Limits Designs...http://coastergames.net/author.php?author=BKF%20Master
Cool! I’m taking my first "real" (as opposed to when I went last October when hardly anything was open – I did get Beast, Beastie, FoF, and both sides of Racer though) PKI trip August 1-3 and thought about posting something similar to this, but decided it would be better as an addendum to this post.
Call me crazy, but my plan for Thursday (unless someone can convince me otherwise) is exactly opposite what everyone else says. Upon entering, I’m going to go right.. yes, towards Hanna-Barbera Land and Nick Central (I’ve heard Scooby’s and Reptar’s waits can get horrendous) then up through Rivertown, back down through Coney Mall, then to Action Zone (should be afternoon by this time, and hopefully the morning crowds will be gone ;) ), and just riding the rides as I come to them. I am also saving a generous amount of time to ride Papa Beast at night (at least an hour). Friday and Saturday I have no set plan. Anything else I should know?
Off-topic – since I am making a side trip to LeSourdsville Lake, I just wanna know how the Eagle is at night. And will 4 hours (6-10) on a Saturday be enough time to do everything?
PS - Just thought of something.. since I will have my 55-inch tall little brother with me I will attempt to ride Taxi Jam and Little Dipper. Just wanted to know what the height requirements on these two were.
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(Former Signature replaced due to bad joke with accident) The Beast at night-Two peas in a pod?
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B&M, the next pki sensation!
Personally, I prefer the very front seat of Vortex. You have about 5 feet of leg room and can stick your legs out in front of you. Plus the airtime is great in the front going up the hills... But no matter what, if you are over 6'0', get the front seat in a car (7.1 if you want the back) cause there is not as much room in the backs of the cars. And don't EVER let Vortex's line fool you. If it is just outside the queu gates, by the height stand, it is a 20-25 minute wait, tops.
Of all the rides that you want, Drop Zone, Tomb Raider, FOF, Scooby's Goaster Coaster, and Face/Off will have the longest lines. So ride them in off peak hours (peak hours are 1pm - 6pm )
Food: the best of Cincinnati: Skyline and Montgomery Inn. Granted, neither is as good as actually going to the restaraunts, but they're still good. And ribs at 18$ a rack isn't that bad, especially when they are consistantly rated the best ribs in the country.
Jammin: As for height requirements: the highest height for which PKI has a limit is 54'. Taxi Jam might even be 48', I'm not too sure. But at 55' plus shoes, I don't think you'll be able to get on it. BTW good plan about doing Hanna Barbera land first, Scooby's line gets up to an hour even on light days due to very low capacity. Reptar's line is ok most of the time, but it moves slowly.
B & M: what day are you going? Some things are better on some days of the week than others, so it all depends. Also, as it gets closer, I could give you better information on ride closures so you won't waste any time.
As for other rides that are neat, Whitewater Canyon is a terrific ride, although it can get VERY crowded on hot days, and it opens at 12, so I'd suggest this for nighttime. The scooters (eagles) are a ton of fun, you won't be able to get off if you know how to snap the cables. Also, the first thing that I'd recomend is to go to the top of the Eiffel Tower to orient yourself. Besides, it really is a terrific view, especially early in the morning.
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Ohio - Coaster capital of the world
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If you like Wicked Twister in the back, does that mean you like to get screwed in the rear?
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