Why is Kings Island Closed already on weekdays?

I'm a first time Platinum pass holder and wanted to head down to KI for the first time and noticed the park is closed weekdays opening Friday night for the weekend. At first I thought they had private or corporate stuff booked this week but next week is the same. Is the park really closed due to demand already? I know school has started, but its still very much summer and I thought KI was one of the top parks in the Country. What gives?

It's been that way for many, many years now. And you got it, school's in session and staffing is a problem.

And just think, after all that, KI is still one of the top parks in the country.

Knott's is open, have you tried there?

Or since its a CP Forum, have you tried Cedar Point?

Different parks have different operating schedules. That is all.

When schools start back up MOST parks go back to weekend only operation due to staffing. We are lucky that Point has so many workers who dorm or else it would be the same. Also, from a business standpoint, sometimes being open certain days or certain hours is just not profitable.

Aren't Michigan schools still on Summer Break? That helps CP, too

RCMAC said:

It's been that way for many, many years now. And you got it, school's in session and staffing is a problem.

And just think, after all that, KI is still one of the top parks in the country.

Ok, thanks. Just thought it was really curious since all the regional Six Flags parks I searched are open.

Oh, you're welcome. Back in the day I used to make a point of going to KI the week before Labor Day. It sure was dead empty, but they ran a limited number of rides and the staff was made of volunteers and many seniors looking to pick up a little pin money. Even the water park was open, which I did one day, and when I got to the top of a slide the attendant was someone's grandma dressed in a sweater.

I wondered how long that would last and sure enough, one year they finally closed. I had taken vacation and everything. So I went to Cedar Point, where nowadays you've got the big crowd of late-school Michigan folks.

Michigan's late start is the main reason Cedar Point is still open. Tons of Michigan people around the park the next couple of weeks.

Holiday World is also closed weekdays so its just not Kings Island. With all the kids back in school in your market, why stay open?

I was at Kings Island last Monday/Tuesday. Beast was down both days but the rest of the coasters were pretty much walk ons even with it down. I was talking to a man and his son from Minnesota today. They were heading to Kings Island on Wednesday. They had Platinum passes from Valleyfair and they were probably not got down until Friday now. Glad I was able to point that out to them..

The Michigan people are not the reason CP is still open. Their season has always been open daily til Labor Day and they can handle it. The reason for KI's (and HW's apparently) early closure is not because people with kids won't come, it's because there's no one to work. CP has contracted employees that aren't high school students. They live there. If they closed in August but for the weekends they'd lose everyone.

One of the Ohio representatives wants to introduce a bill to have all public schools statewide start after Labor Day like Michigan. I hope that actually goes somewhere I'm tired of the school district I work for going back earlier and earlier when the one my kids attend does not because it's a rural district and after asking for community input they decided they won't start school until after the county fair. If I hadn't dumped myself onto the sub list intentionally I would have been sitting in a hot non A/C classroom today instead of floating down Renegade River while my kids run wild through Soak City and my kids would have been spending their last week and a half of vacation sitting home on the computer watching crappy youtube videos and fighting with each other.

Painesville city schools started last week, Painesville township starts this week after the county fair. The two high schools are less than 3 miles apart.

I think staffing is certainly a factor, but I don't think it is the only factor. It may not even be the main factor. Consider that for the 2nd and 3rd weeks of August, Kings Island was only open until 8PM. I think that is because Kings Island attendance is heavily influenced by season pass families that either come in the morning and go to Planet Snoopy or head to Soak City. By evening, those folks are long gone.

Compare that to Cedar Point which was open until 11PM the 2nd week of August, and 10PM the 3rd week. Here the resorts are keeping people in the park until much later. In fact, Cedar Point had a 4 week period this year when they were open until 11PM or later every day. That didn't happen in 2015 and further points to the success of the Breakers renovation and resort status.

Paisley said:

One of the Ohio representatives wants to introduce a bill to have all public schools statewide start after Labor Day like Michigan. I hope that actually goes somewhere...

Be careful what you wish for. In Michigan the trend has been to add school days, and combined with not allowing school to start until after Labor Day, that means kids are either in school way into June, or are having their holiday breaks truncated.

There is nothing wrong with that. The weather is warmer in September than in early June. Studies have shown that most people (not all) either travel or prefer to travel later into August than in June. What's wrong with shorted holiday breaks? Most families stay home during those breaks anyway.

Do you have a source for that? Because according to USDOT, "The Thanksgiving and Christmas/New Year’s holiday periods are among the busiest long-distance travel periods of the year."

And anecdotally, in my community at least, that folks want to have a long holiday break to facilitate travel is the most commonly cited reason for pushing back against increased school days combined with the "only after Labor Day" law.

I mean I don't have kids so my opinion is somewhat moot.

But Thanksgiving doesn't need four days off IMO, I eat like 4 meals on Thursday, almost get Diabetes, then go blow a paycheck on something online later that weekend. No reason to have four days off for that IMO.

The Holiday Break, ok maybe for that, but I think after Christmas, go back to school maybe a day after just like we go to work after. Then you get New Years Day off like most, that's fair. When I was in school we used to get off from like the 20th or so all the way through New Years Day, which is crazy to me.

I'd rather use those and get out in April or extend another Holiday to get a 3 day weekend here and there.

Some people have the entire holiday period off, and spend that time traveling. And according to USDOT, it appears to be a significant number.

I mean I'm not discrediting it and saying it's not significant..

But I still feel like there's some extra fluff in there that could be trimmed or utilized on other holidays. I mean I remember February to April was always the worst part of school, in between there were practically zero days off in March and none until a bit into April.

I think part of it is also the holidays aren't that big of a deal to me. There's only a few holidays that personally matter to me, and those I need just that day and that's generally it.

My kids already go to school into June when they start at the end of August. The main Problems I feel starting after Labor Day would solve are that the non A/C buildings(which is every single elementary in the district I work for) are not as hot in June as they are in August. I was having health problems a few years back and was actually becoming physically ill from the heat. Also some level of uniformity in start time through the region would be nice. I wouldn't want federal level control but it's crazy that two districts that are right next to each other start and end almost two weeks apart. When I get out early I can't go anywhere because my kids are still in school. At the end of the summer we can't take the kids anywhere because I'm supposed to be back in class while they're still on vacation. That eats up a good at least 3 weeks of break right there that we can't travel as a family except that I chose to give up a position this year. Also in my area starting after Labor Day would mean starting after the county fair which would solve a lot of problems for students who show animals because even though the early starting districts won't hold the absences against them they are still missing an entire week of school which was never a problem before they pushed so many of the start dates back to mid August.