Kings Island Opening Day - 4/18/2026
Emma and I arrived at Kings Island this morning around 10:20 for Opening Day of the 2026 season.
We began our day with rides on Bat, Banshee and Orion. As we left Orion it began to rain. We thought about what we could do
to get in from the rain. Maybe eat lunch or find an indoor ride. Since we were right next to Flight of Fear we decided to get
in line despite the posted one hour wait time. The exhilarating, disorienting and slightly rough ride didn't disappoint.
Afterwards we rushed through the rain to the Miami River Brewhouse restaurant in Rivertown. We had to strategize how to get a
table as there were so many people trying to get inside and seek shelter from the rain. Emma had the Pub Burger while I had Three
Little Pigs.
The rain had lightened up and we were able to get rides on Mystic Timbers and The Beast. Over this past offseason, the park and
The Gravity Group completed a major reconstruction project of the drop off of the second chain lift hill into the helix. Although I
was excited for this project, I didn't notice that the ride experience changed at all. Separately, I noticed two noticeable potholes
midway through the helix. The Beast is still the best wooden coaster in the state.
A ride on Diamondback was next and then we headed to the park's new attraction for 2026, Phantom Theater: Opening Nightmare.
This turned out to be a good decision as a second band of rain bore down on the park. Our wait for this family dark ride was about
an hour and a half.
Just before boarding our ride vehicle, we were each given a souvenir keychain to commemorate the open day of the new ride.
This is a revival of the popular haunted attraction that operated at Kings Island from 1992 to 2002. The ride was reinvented by
Sally Corporation with excellent design, scenes and characters. The ride includes a new interactive experience where guests use
flashlights to capture mischievous musical spirits known as "ghost notes". This new experience is an upgrade from the previous Boo
Blasters on Boo Hill and includes many throwback references to the old Phantom Theatre of the 1990s.
The rain was continuing and the temperature had dropped eleven degrees. It was time we got our final ride on Banshee and a bite
to eat at Grain & Grill on International Street. Emma and I shared pork tenderloin and roasted potatoes. Around 6:30 we headed
to the car and our journey home.
In spite of the rain we had an excellent day at the park as we navigated the indoor and outdoor attractions as the band of rain moved
over the park. This was a good start to another season of roller coaster adventures.
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