CGA cut 3 parade showings from last year (15 down to 12), cut about half the parade people, and bought no new beads so theyre literally only giving out last years leftovers. On my float ride they gave me TEN beads for the entire route. Last year there was loke a minimum of 30. The guy next to me got 6. Only thing that js the same js the fireworks which most parents take their kids home early cause most littles don't like the noise.
Grand Carnival is not a kings island only thing right, and Kings Dominions version was disappointing too. I was at Kings Dominion earlier this week and they had it too. The food was basically of remix of ingredients they already had on hand, latkes were just frozen hashbrowns that were repurposed, the schnitzel was a small chicken tender with a panko breading. Everything else i saw was the same thing, just rehashed food that is already found in the park but prepared a bit differently. The budget weenies are large and in charge at Cedar fair this year for sure.
We were there opening night. We saw/heard lots of parents with kids heading out right away after the parade complaining it was way too late for younger kids and needed to be earlier. Yes LOTS heading our right after the parade.
Personally I'm going to have to go with Bland Carnivale. Very disappointed there's no food tickets available for purchase this year, I thought the parade was more short ( however I did like the new floats ). And if there was any type of entertainment such as acrobats or something else of that nature, I didn't see any. I think it's time KI put this one to bed.
You need to do the Boardwalk Nights at Cedar Point. WAY more Amazing and very FUN and entertaining. Not as much food offerings but the rest of it is just amazing....
Anybody else notice the script for the opening ceremony still references tasting cards - one line “I have my tasting card!” I used to always buy the tasting card and it was fun to walk around have a card scanned and try small plates. But this year I tried 2 things - having to pull out my credit card and look at a price for every item was a major downer.
Cost cutting. Just a guess. Kings Island feels off this year. Too many ride closures seemingly more than average. 9 o'clock for the parade? I still think 7 is better. As an Uber Eats driver I can tell you that food delivery has dropped like a rock since the start of summer. Inflation is hitting so so hard with people now. No money for food at the park. The peak years for Kings Island these past 5 years were 2019 and 2022. It's off this year. It really is.
I think you are right, inflation has hit the average family hard, and have far less disposable income. I'm sure this inflation has affected the corporate world too.
I don’t think cost cutting is the reason for the parade being so late. I think it’s to accommodate having the characters in the various areas. Plus, let’s be honest… the floats look cool at night!
@@TowerTopics Another reason that I was thinking of for the parade being later is maybe the heat factors on the characters. I remember last year at 7 pm they were burning up.
I think the 9 PM parade is making everyone leave right after the parade and not stay for fireworks and drones. I noticed a huge exodus last time I was there at 9:30 right behind the parade.
"Look in the app?!" Good to hear the parade is still great! I remember 2019 secretely wishing we could not do the parade cause it was so tiring... but the one or two times I accepted the chance to swing out... I saw the parade and was like "dang it, this looks fantastic 😅"
Is Carnivale a particularly exhausting couple of weeks from a performers standpoint? I remember when you were in the show in 2019, which was different from the normal Bandstand show.
@@TowerTopics Can only speak on 2019 since 2021 & 2022 summers I was only there 3 days of the week and did not do the parade in 2022. But yes, 2019 was fun but exhausting for doing the 3 (iirc) regular shows starting at the hottest time of the day, then I think parade, then immediately going to the hot rhythm nights, which was a completely separate show we had to concurrently have memorized. Very fun, but probably the hardest I ever worked at the park. Other seasons before & after I've admittedly been spoiled in only doing 1 show the whole season, or getting out of the parade, or getting to ride on the float instead of dancing on the concrete. Great memories overall though~ thankful to have gone through it
This year is my first year attending Grand Carnivale in person, as a guest. I would say that this year compared to the event’s first year is a mixture of a Grand and Bland Carnivale. It’s unfortunate how they got rid of the tasting cards and how they never brought the pop-up live entertainment back that had international offerings, which I get why. They also got rid of the games related to Carnivale, which is unfortunate, but that doesn’t devastate me since I never got to play any games during that event. I do enjoy the ceremonies and the parade, but I am disgusted by the park because of the miscommunication that spread through a few articles where they say that the parade this year would be at 7, but in reality, it is at 9. The park really needs to be more communicative to people, because this clearly shows the downfall of public relations. I did try one of the foods at one of the international sections, which I actually bought the paella from Spain for $7, and it tasted really good, I’m not gonna lie. I did see a little more improvement with meet and greets of roaming Carnivale characters, and a couple of floats making a pit stop at the end of the night, which is kind of like what they did with all the floats last year, but at least guests aren’t hopping on them to jump on the trampoline. It’s unfortunate that they don’t have a lot of Mardi Gras features in the decor, like they did in 2019 and 2021. As for the parade, even though I had already talked about it, I wouldn’t say it was better than the Nickelodeon Celebration Parade that they had back in the day, and I’m sure that parade was fun, but regarding the parade for Carnivale, it depends on what you look at it, and I agree that it looks better at night.
Dang Ryan, you are kind of a negative Nancy in the beginning of this one. Thank you for your brutal honesty. There are far to many "Yes Men" out there. I appreciate Dons honesty in his reviews as well but Ryan you were on one in this one.
I really enjoy the Carnivale. It's been great. Parade should be at 9. Great choice. I agree they should have done the tasting passes. But I get it, you were in communications. Nobody will ever be as good as you. Can we not throw that bitterness into every video? The company puts lots of money into the App. The App has and has had the accurate information on Carnivale for a long time. I can understand why they want to train people to go to the App instead of using social media to ask the same questions over and over and over and over...
The app for most of the season has said “No Shows Today” regardless of the day. No one should be trusting the app for show times. They haven’t earned that. This is in addition to the fact that news outlets ran with the 7:00 time because it wasn’t competently communicated to them. If communication was good they wouldn’t have the same questions over and over. Plus, their landing page said things like “menu coming soon” while linking to the menu. There’s no trust in what is out there so people need to ask. This is a perfect example of incompetence laced with laziness. To ignore this would be schilling for the park. We don’t work for them. Plus, Don has been in the field. He knows what’s good and what’s not. No emotion involved. We are simply not willingly overlooking a gross lack of effectiveness. If you want info that’s 100% pro-park then I’d recommend checking out one of the few blogs they bother to write each year.
@@TowerTopicsit's not about being "100% positive" it's about not whineing about the same thing over and over. My wife - who lives to watch travel blogs - stopped watching because we get a lot of the negatives but very little info. Tell us ABOUT Carnivale! Not just generally compare to the past. Who's your intended audience? Season pass holders who hate KI? If someone says to me: hey I wanna go to KI, what's it like? I can't say "hey, watch Tower Topics"... There's no context. I'm not saying go full on Disney Food Blog or anything - but a picture of the menu or the parade or show. Just saying "well, it's not as good as 2019 but better than last year" limits your audience immediately. It's like you obsessing over the hush puppies - I get it - mention it... But let it go. The constant rants on communication - again - fine to mention the - but "if you can't do that maybe you should take tickets"? Come on... Even you can admit that comes off as bitter. I want to like the show because we are in KI all the time... It beats my wife making me watch the Pugh Two announce their separation... But it frustrates me that I get no actual information about what's actually going on or coming up. And FWIW - no idea what you are looking at... I've been checking my App for current and future items all year and the 6 and 9 times have been there for a long time. Sorry... I'll agree to disagree with you there.
CGA cut 3 parade showings from last year (15 down to 12), cut about half the parade people, and bought no new beads so theyre literally only giving out last years leftovers. On my float ride they gave me TEN beads for the entire route. Last year there was loke a minimum of 30. The guy next to me got 6.
Only thing that js the same js the fireworks which most parents take their kids home early cause most littles don't like the noise.
Grand Carnival is not a kings island only thing right, and Kings Dominions version was disappointing too. I was at Kings Dominion earlier this week and they had it too. The food was basically of remix of ingredients they already had on hand, latkes were just frozen hashbrowns that were repurposed, the schnitzel was a small chicken tender with a panko breading. Everything else i saw was the same thing, just rehashed food that is already found in the park but prepared a bit differently. The budget weenies are large and in charge at Cedar fair this year for sure.
We were there opening night. We saw/heard lots of parents with kids heading out right away after the parade complaining it was way too late for younger kids and needed to be earlier. Yes LOTS heading our right after the parade.
Personally I'm going to have to go with Bland Carnivale. Very disappointed there's no food tickets available for purchase this year, I thought the parade was more short ( however I did like the new floats ). And if there was any type of entertainment such as acrobats or something else of that nature, I didn't see any. I think it's time KI put this one to bed.
You need to do the Boardwalk Nights at Cedar Point. WAY more Amazing and very FUN and entertaining. Not as much food offerings but the rest of it is just amazing....
Anybody else notice the script for the opening ceremony still references tasting cards - one line “I have my tasting card!” I used to always buy the tasting card and it was fun to walk around have a card scanned and try small plates. But this year I tried 2 things - having to pull out my credit card and look at a price for every item was a major downer.
Cost cutting. Just a guess. Kings Island feels off this year. Too many ride closures seemingly more than average. 9 o'clock for the parade? I still think 7 is better. As an Uber Eats driver I can tell you that food delivery has dropped like a rock since the start of summer. Inflation is hitting so so hard with people now. No money for food at the park. The peak years for Kings Island these past 5 years were 2019 and 2022. It's off this year. It really is.
I think you are right, inflation has hit the average family hard, and have far less disposable income. I'm sure this inflation has affected the corporate world too.
@stormchaser419 I agree the parade is to late and it seems the rides are breaking down all the time this year.
I don’t think cost cutting is the reason for the parade being so late. I think it’s to accommodate having the characters in the various areas. Plus, let’s be honest… the floats look cool at night!
@@TowerTopics Another reason that I was thinking of for the parade being later is maybe the heat factors on the characters. I remember last year at 7 pm they were burning up.
I am blaming this (and other bad decisions) on the Six Flags/Cedar Fair merger!!! 😕🎉
The app? 😂😂 The app said the parade was at 9 am!!!
I think the 9 PM parade is making everyone leave right after the parade and not stay for fireworks and drones. I noticed a huge exodus last time I was there at 9:30 right behind the parade.
"Look in the app?!"
Good to hear the parade is still great!
I remember 2019 secretely wishing we could not do the parade cause it was so tiring... but the one or two times I accepted the chance to swing out... I saw the parade and was like "dang it, this looks fantastic 😅"
Is Carnivale a particularly exhausting couple of weeks from a performers standpoint? I remember when you were in the show in 2019, which was different from the normal Bandstand show.
@@TowerTopics Can only speak on 2019 since 2021 & 2022 summers I was only there 3 days of the week and did not do the parade in 2022.
But yes, 2019 was fun but exhausting for doing the 3 (iirc) regular shows starting at the hottest time of the day, then I think parade, then immediately going to the hot rhythm nights, which was a completely separate show we had to concurrently have memorized. Very fun, but probably the hardest I ever worked at the park.
Other seasons before & after I've admittedly been spoiled in only doing 1 show the whole season, or getting out of the parade, or getting to ride on the float instead of dancing on the concrete. Great memories overall though~ thankful to have gone through it
This year is my first year attending Grand Carnivale in person, as a guest. I would say that this year compared to the event’s first year is a mixture of a Grand and Bland Carnivale. It’s unfortunate how they got rid of the tasting cards and how they never brought the pop-up live entertainment back that had international offerings, which I get why. They also got rid of the games related to Carnivale, which is unfortunate, but that doesn’t devastate me since I never got to play any games during that event. I do enjoy the ceremonies and the parade, but I am disgusted by the park because of the miscommunication that spread through a few articles where they say that the parade this year would be at 7, but in reality, it is at 9. The park really needs to be more communicative to people, because this clearly shows the downfall of public relations. I did try one of the foods at one of the international sections, which I actually bought the paella from Spain for $7, and it tasted really good, I’m not gonna lie. I did see a little more improvement with meet and greets of roaming Carnivale characters, and a couple of floats making a pit stop at the end of the night, which is kind of like what they did with all the floats last year, but at least guests aren’t hopping on them to jump on the trampoline. It’s unfortunate that they don’t have a lot of Mardi Gras features in the decor, like they did in 2019 and 2021.
As for the parade, even though I had already talked about it, I wouldn’t say it was better than the Nickelodeon Celebration Parade that they had back in the day, and I’m sure that parade was fun, but regarding the parade for Carnivale, it depends on what you look at it, and I agree that it looks better at night.
Dang Ryan, you are kind of a negative Nancy in the beginning of this one. Thank you for your brutal honesty. There are far to many "Yes Men" out there. I appreciate Dons honesty in his reviews as well but Ryan you were on one in this one.
I (Ryan) enjoyed the event. I thought I made that clear. But yeah, of course there’s stuff that we all would like to see!
And the Six Flags/Cedar Fair merger once again leads to questionable decisions for KI... 😮🎉
This was something that was already in the works before the merger.
😢
I really enjoy the Carnivale. It's been great. Parade should be at 9. Great choice.
I agree they should have done the tasting passes.
But I get it, you were in communications. Nobody will ever be as good as you. Can we not throw that bitterness into every video?
The company puts lots of money into the App. The App has and has had the accurate information on Carnivale for a long time. I can understand why they want to train people to go to the App instead of using social media to ask the same questions over and over and over and over...
The app for most of the season has said “No Shows Today” regardless of the day. No one should be trusting the app for show times. They haven’t earned that. This is in addition to the fact that news outlets ran with the 7:00 time because it wasn’t competently communicated to them. If communication was good they wouldn’t have the same questions over and over. Plus, their landing page said things like “menu coming soon” while linking to the menu. There’s no trust in what is out there so people need to ask. This is a perfect example of incompetence laced with laziness. To ignore this would be schilling for the park. We don’t work for them. Plus, Don has been in the field. He knows what’s good and what’s not. No emotion involved. We are simply not willingly overlooking a gross lack of effectiveness. If you want info that’s 100% pro-park then I’d recommend checking out one of the few blogs they bother to write each year.
@@TowerTopicsit's not about being "100% positive" it's about not whineing about the same thing over and over.
My wife - who lives to watch travel blogs - stopped watching because we get a lot of the negatives but very little info.
Tell us ABOUT Carnivale! Not just generally compare to the past.
Who's your intended audience? Season pass holders who hate KI?
If someone says to me: hey I wanna go to KI, what's it like? I can't say "hey, watch Tower Topics"... There's no context.
I'm not saying go full on Disney Food Blog or anything - but a picture of the menu or the parade or show. Just saying "well, it's not as good as 2019 but better than last year" limits your audience immediately.
It's like you obsessing over the hush puppies - I get it - mention it... But let it go.
The constant rants on communication - again - fine to mention the - but "if you can't do that maybe you should take tickets"? Come on... Even you can admit that comes off as bitter.
I want to like the show because we are in KI all the time... It beats my wife making me watch the Pugh Two announce their separation... But it frustrates me that I get no actual information about what's actually going on or coming up.
And FWIW - no idea what you are looking at... I've been checking my App for current and future items all year and the 6 and 9 times have been there for a long time. Sorry... I'll agree to disagree with you there.
I enjoy the parade, but I’m not buying any special food or drinks. We just use our meal and drink plans. Too poor. Bidenflation.