King’s Dominion 2025?

While at KD today, I noticed green track with LSMs being installed while riding Reptilian. On the same note, Project 305 is closed with the KD app saying it is undergoing a transformation.

Could Cedar Fair be working with Intamin again on a new multi-launch coaster while refurbishing Project 305 in a package deal?

Or could Zamperla be taking on another takeover of a Intamin coaster and installing a multi launch coaster as a package?

I am quite intrigued by what I saw today…..

Let the speculation begin!

No idea about 305, but it's a badly held secret that Kings Dominion is installing a launched B & M wing coaster for 2025. I guess it's going to be green.

I guess the heat and humidity today could have affected me but the track truly did not seem wide enough for a B&M Launched Wing. I’ve been poking around the inter-webs and see “The poorly held secret”. My apologies posting before researching!

No reason to apologize; there is no dedicated thread to the new coaster at KD as of now, so maybe you just made it.

Since Volcano closed (we were lucky enough to ride it the year before it closed) there was speculation of what would replace it.

We are big Kings Dominion fans, so we follow that park and the nearby Busch Gardens Williamsburg (which is also getting a new coaster in 2025).

Probably headed that way next summer, so very much looking forward to it.

My partner and myself will be at BGW Sunday. We decided to do an impromptu weekend trip.

Be sure to do a trip report! :)

BGW and KD make for a wonderful trip.

You can see the track going up here.

I know it won’t happen, but I’d love to see a mountain constructed over some of the new coaster.

I have a placeholder stay booked at Williamsburg over the 4th next year. Maybe I'll keep it!

It’s been a long time since I’ve been to either park. KD was fun but it was miserably hot and at the end of the day ended up with a bruised jaw from Anaconda. Overall tho it was nice. I definitely will post a trip report.

LostKause:

I’d love to see a mountain constructed over some of the new coaster.

*Snake River Falls has entered the chat*

I have an issue with KD that is not its fault at all. It’s a fine park but…

Busch Gardens is an amazing park and only an hour away, and if I’m at KD I could be there instead, so that’s in the back of my mind while I’m there.

Right next to that thought is how much this park is modeled after Kings Island another fantastic park that I adore and personally feel is far superior to KD so being reminded of that park constantly also gnaws at my consciousness.

KI has superior coasters (except KD Racer is far superior to KI Racer). KI still has its train and didn’t hit their live entertainment this year. Paramount did a lot of damage to Kings Dominion that was never undone

BUT KD is such a nicer park to the eye with all of its trees and landscaping. KI is a rather barren ugly park IMO. KI is also brutal in the heat with a big lack of shade.

OhioStater:

*Snake River Falls has entered the chat*

I was a PaddleWheel Excursions captain many years ago. Every time I drove the boat past Snake River Falls, I imagined a mountain holding it up instead of beams. The tunnel in the air would look so nice with some rock work under it. All the water that falls from the top would look amazing if it were collected in a specific area and created a waterfall for the PaddleWheel riders to see. Rock work would give the train a nice tunnel to travel through. It seems like it was in the plan, but budget didn't allow, so they never revisited the idea.

And that's just what it would look like from the backside. It would also benefit from the front side of the ride, of course. The theming would look more complete. But Snake River Falls is pretty large, so I'm sure it would have been very expensive.

Action Zone is ugly, no doubt. Planet Snoopy could use some landscaping too, but they did greatly improve half of that this year with the Camp Snoopy additions and added theming. However KI International Street is in my opinion the best opening land not named Main Street USA or Port of Entry. It’s so charming and feels like a warm hug. The fountains elevate this land even above DHS’s Hollywood Blvd and DCA’s Buena Vista Street. The gardens behind the Eiffel Tower are marred by Stunt Coaster what’s left is still charming. Rivertown is a shaded lovely section and I think the Coney Mall is sufficiently charming and a great historical nod to Coney Island/Golden age theme park design.

KD has destroyed their Rivertown area, and their Mall section feels less cohesive. Obviously their area where they shine is the Adventure Zone especially when you compare it to KIs Action Zone. International Street is nice but I still prefer KIs over it.

Both parks water parks are in need of landscaping equally.

Lack of trees doesn’t mean it’s ugly, architecture and flower gardens can liven up an area too, they just don’t have the added benefit of cooling down an area.

I always find it amusing the comparisons between the parks and how some are so contrasting, as if either could be so vastly better than the other. I grew up at KD and have watched it grow and change since my first visit in 1978. Then I went to KI in 2000 and was fascinated by the similarities and really appreciated many of the differences. Can’t really decide which is the “better” park, and if there is such a thing I don’t really care.

In some cases I think KI's landscaping is a victim of their success. KI's I-street can get very busy and as a result, they widened the walkways and got rid of all the landscaping islands and encroachments, along with the mature trees. I miss the shade but not so much the nuts-to-butts crowd you'd have to fight through at times.

The one thing that bugs me the most is all the plain, grassy areas around the rear of the tower. A few shrubs or trees here and there would really improve the look.

It's a large park acreage-wise and it may be they only budget for so many plants to tend...

I love KI's layout. It's nearly perfect. I don't like the dead end with FoF and Orion, but that's a small problem.

KD also has that kind of dead end problem with Project 305. Both Orion and 305 are situated in weird places in the park, in my opinion. KD seems kind of lopsided. Most of the park is on the left side of International Street. All you have on the right side that is worth your time is Grizzly and the log flume.

But my biggest design problem with KD is getting to Grizzly. It's almost impossible to find. I had to ask how to get to it the few times I've been there. There is a Dinosaurs Alive gift shop in the way of the path to the coaster. I remember a one lane path with rails to get to and from the ride beside the gift shop. It might be that you have to go into the gift shop's entrance and out a backdoor to find the coaster. And there is no sign pointing to it. Blows my mind that a major coaster doesn't have a large path and signage pointing to how to get there. Grizzly could easily be missed if you didn't know it was there.

LostKause:

Grizzly could easily be missed if you didn't know it was there.

Missing Grizzly would have made my last trip to KD even better.

Touchdown:

However KI International Street is in my opinion the best opening land not named Main Street USA or Port of Entry. It’s so charming and feels like a warm hug. The fountains elevate this land even above DHS’s Hollywood Blvd and DCA’s Buena Vista Street.

That muffled pop you hear in the distance is the sound of Gonch’s head exploding.