Waking up at my mom's house with Nate, we would leave at 7am to get Daisy from her grandmother. Kings Island is roughly 4 hours away from Cleveland with the stop to get Daisy, and we made it by 11am.
We got our photo taken when we got there, and after a quick sunscreen and restroom break, we went to check out Kings Island's newest attraction, Phantom Theater.
Kings Island is my home away from home, when it comes to amusement parks. It is cozy, and I usually make it down to visit during opening day. However, my trip for my Grandparent's 50th anniversary trip was the same day and family takes priority here. It all worked out though, as Daisy, Nate, and I made it a fun day trip to Kings Island, with a surprise stop on the way home.
Phantom Theater used to be a ride called Boo Blasters on Boo Hill, which used to be Scooby Doo, which used to be...Phantom Theater. Its a complicated story, but in short, its a new and improved Phantom Theater.
I got to speak with Sally Dark Rides at the 2025 IAAPA Expo, and what they told me made me excited. Seeing the demo animatronics was also a really cool experience. Stepping into the queue for Phantom Theater Nate and I got to see the same animatronics as shown off at the Expo. Daisy, who is a theater major, was thrilled to see the theming. We didn't wait long to ride, and without spoilers, it was a fun ride.
After PT, we rode SSBR, which was a walk on, and waited 15 minutes for Beast. After lunch, we took a break and waited for FoF, and Daisy and I rode Orion while Nate took a break.
I got to speak with Sally Dark Rides at the 2025 IAAPA Expo, and what they told me made me excited. Seeing the demo animatronics was also a really cool experience. Stepping into the queue for Phantom Theater Nate and I got to see the same animatronics as shown off at the Expo. Daisy, who is a theater major, was thrilled to see the theming. We didn't wait long to ride, and without spoilers, it was a fun ride.
After PT, we rode SSBR, which was a walk on, and waited 15 minutes for Beast. After lunch, we took a break and waited for FoF, and Daisy and I rode Orion while Nate took a break.
We wanted to see Luke, and knowing he usually works at the Eiffel Tower, we went over to go up. Sadly, we didn't get to see Luke there, but we got a nice view.
Daisy wanted to ride Racer, especially since it was a walkon. Nate wanted a lap on Backlot, so we went and rode that afterwards.
Daisy wanted to ride Racer, especially since it was a walkon. Nate wanted a lap on Backlot, so we went and rode that afterwards.
After Backlot, Nate had to tap out for the day. Daisy and I went over to ride Invertigo, especially since it had been down since July 2025. We waited about 30 minutes, but we finally got our Luke cameo. Before leaving, Nate, Daisy, and I went to see if Bat was really a 1 hour wait, and...it was a walkon. We got front row, and it was a great way to end the day.
After leaving Kings Island, Nate convinced me to make a visit to Buc-ee's, which was only a 30 mile detour. This sounds crazy, but Nate had never been to a Buc-ee's being from San Francisco. We got there and it was not very busy, and both Nate and Daisy were in awe at the scale that Buc-ee's is.
For dinner, Nate and I had the brisket sandwich, while Daisy had the chicken and fries. We got gas for a whoping $4.09/gal, and made the trip back home.
After leaving Kings Island, Nate convinced me to make a visit to Buc-ee's, which was only a 30 mile detour. This sounds crazy, but Nate had never been to a Buc-ee's being from San Francisco. We got there and it was not very busy, and both Nate and Daisy were in awe at the scale that Buc-ee's is.
For dinner, Nate and I had the brisket sandwich, while Daisy had the chicken and fries. We got gas for a whoping $4.09/gal, and made the trip back home.
This was a well-earned Kings Island trip. Nate and I had been stressed from work, and they hadn't seen Daisy since March, and this trip worked out nicely. We rode just about everything we wanted to, minus Diamondback, and the weather was really nice. I finally got my park days with Nate and Daisy, and we were all very happy with our tour around Ohio.