Destination: Cedar Point (and Kings Island)!

So, since my last visit to Cedar Point (August 2014), I've been dying to get back. Plans finally started to take shape this past summer with a buddy of mine after really getting him more into coasters after a SFGadv visit.

After some discussion, we both decided on Platinum passes for this year (home park is Kings Dominion) as a way to make sure it definitely happens, and the hotels/gas expenses are graciously being covered by my folks as a graduation gift of sorts. My pass has the platinum dining plan, but his does not.

The goal of the trip is primarily as much time as we need/want at Cedar Point to really take the park in. I've been twice (so I know the general tips/tricks with early entry, etc), but my buddy has never been. Additionally, coming from the northern end of Virginia, and having platinum passes, Kings Island is a definite must.

I'm assuming we won't need or want as much time at KI as we will at Cedar Point, but I do want at least two nights for night rides on The Beast/Diamondback/Banshee. Everything else is really similar to Kings Dominion, so I don't think more than one day is needed.

Finally, being a graduation gift, I want to get the most out of an 8+ hour drive to the Midwest. Budget is definitely a big concern (about to be poor college students), but since we're already all the way out there, I'm seriously considering adding on one additional park. Kentucky Kingdom at this point seems like the best option for what we want (mostly just interested in riding top-tier coasters), but if somebody wants to veer us towards Kennywood or Holiday World, be my guest! We're probably not interested in water parks, though, even though Splashin Safari is ridiculous. The price point/price difference looks about the same for each.

As for dates, I initially wanted to do this trip earlier in the Summer before crowds became an issue, but graduation isn't until mid-June, we both have obligations until the first of July, and he is out of town the weekend if the 4th. That leaves us with the week starting the 10th or the 17th of July. Not-so-early summer anymore, but so be it.

The timeframe I'm looking at is a maximum of five nights in hotels for both budget and time reasons. The only benefit I see of doing the later week is that Cedar Point stays open until 11pm weekdays vs 10pm, but I'm unsure if this is worth doing the later dates at all. Here's a very, very tentative schedule I came up with--keep in mind, we're both 18y/o guys, so we have a decent amount of energy. Again, if you can recommend changes/a different "third" park, please let me know!

Day One--7/9 (Sat)--Depart late morning to motel near Kings Island, arrive around 7pm, enjoy night rides until 12am close

Day Two--7/10 (Sun)--Depart motel to Kentucky Kingdom around 8:30am, day at Kentucky Kingdom from 11am opening to late afternoon, return to motel, night rides at Kings Island until 10pm close

Day Three--7/11 (Mon)--Kings Island early entry until sometime midday when we feel like leaving to motel near Cedar Point. Cedar Point until 10pm close (or 11pm if 7/18) or crash at motel if we're too tired.

Day Four--7/12 (Tues)--Cedar Point platinum pass early entry until close

Day Five--7/13 (Weds)--Cedar Point early entry until close. Fast Lane plus possible for this day.

Day Six--7/14 (Thurs)--Cedar Point early entry until early afternoon departure home bound

Obviously that is subject to change and just a template if we decide on Kentucky Kingdom. So, some questions I have...

-Is Kentucky Kingdom the best option for the third park? It would be hard to pass up a new RMC 2 hours from Kings Island

-If it is, can we buy tickets at a Kroger the day of our visit for cheap? I've heard this is the best option here

-Are these plans realistic in terms of time/driving/energy? Is adding a third park too much for a short trip?

-Which week are we best off for the best day in the parks, starting the 9th or the 16th?

-Are there any more chances for Fast Lane discounts? I missed the cyber Monday sale which was $70 for FL+... could there be anything else like this in the future?

-Are the days of the week included the best days for this trip (Cedar Point midweek, Kings Island Saturday night for the 12am closing?

-I'm currently browsing different motel options at this point, so I'll post what I'm looking at when we decide final dates. I know there are some on here that refuse the $49 motel options (and I know some are awful, so I'd like some input), but these areas seem ridiculously cheap considering we have no need to stay on property at Cedar Point since we have platinum passes

-If anyone has stayed at a bottom-dollar motel by CP or KI, please chime in!

-Anything else is always appreciated!

I'll likely be continually posting updates on our planning and asking about motel options as I find them.

Budget is definitely a big concern (about to be poor college students),

Noted.

The timeframe I'm looking at is a maximum of five nights in hotels for both budget and time reasons. The only benefit I see of doing the later week is that Cedar Point stays open until 11pm weekdays vs 10pm, but I'm unsure if this is worth doing the later dates at all. Here's a very, very tentative schedule I came up with--keep in mind, we're both 18y/o guys, so we have a decent amount of energy. Again, if you can recommend changes/a different "third" park, please let me know!

#1 with all the bullets around it - Most hotels are going to have a minimum age of 21 to check in, especially in Sandusky. Can't stress this enough as being an important aspect. I'm not saying you won't be allowed to, but I would seriously, SERIOUSLY look into alternate lodging options like AirBnB for this reason.

Day One--7/9 (Sat)--Depart late morning to motel near Kings Island, arrive around 7pm, enjoy night rides until 12am close

Day Two--7/10 (Sun)--Depart motel to Kentucky Kingdom around 8:30am, day at Kentucky Kingdom from 11am opening to late afternoon, return to motel, night rides at Kings Island until 10pm close

Day Three--7/11 (Mon)--Kings Island early entry until sometime midday when we feel like leaving to motel near Cedar Point. Cedar Point until 10pm close (or 11pm if 7/18) or crash at motel if we're too tired.

Day Four--7/12 (Tues)--Cedar Point platinum pass early entry until close

Day Five--7/13 (Weds)--Cedar Point early entry until close. Fast Lane plus possible for this day.

Day Six--7/14 (Thurs)--Cedar Point early entry until early afternoon departure home bound

If you wait one week, you could save a few pennies (actually more than that) by replacing Kentucky Kingdom with a combo of Coney Island Cincinnati and Stricker's Grove (which is open for the 4-H Community Fair). Stricker's has all day ride bands for $14. Coney's rides band is $15.50 at the gate. Kentucky Kingdom one day admission is like twice that, plus much further away. I'm not saying it is a bad park, I'm just throwing that out to you. You can even use your Cedar Fair season pass to obtain admission discounts on the duck boats in Newport, KY across the Ohio River from Cinci if you want.

-Are these plans realistic in terms of time/driving/energy? Is adding a third park too much for a short trip?

I think so. For me it would be.

-Which week are we best off for the best day in the parks, starting the 9th or the 16th?

Both could be busy. I'd go for whatever would offer longer hours.

-Are there any more chances for Fast Lane discounts? I missed the cyber Monday sale which was $70 for FL+... could there be anything else like this in the future?

If you have a Platinum Pass, I think you still obtain a discount.

-Are the days of the week included the best days for this trip (Cedar Point midweek, Kings Island Saturday night for the 12am closing?

Well - Kings Island will be busy. You can't avoid that. The best you can do on that Saturday night is target stuff that is higher capacity but isn't not ridiculously popular. Dark ride, Adventure Express, Racer, Vortex: those sorts of rides.

#1 with all the bullets around it - Most hotels are going to have a minimum age of 21 to check in, especially in Sandusky. Can't stress this enough as being an important aspect. I'm not saying you won't be allowed to, but I would seriously, SERIOUSLY look into alternate lodging options like AirBnB for this reason.

Is that actually enforced though? I know a lot of chains are supposed to follow that policy, but on my trip down to KD and Carowinds last year my buddy and I had no issues and we're both between 18 and 21.

^^I didn't realize many hotels in Sandusky had that minimum age requirement. Thanks for letting me know. I'll definitely be looking into other options there and doing some more research/phone calls.

I'll keep an eye on Coney Island and Stricker's Grove for sure. The budget is primarily a concern with motels, but the most likely possibility is that the additional costs for adding an extra park or a Fast Lane at Cedar Point would be up to me to cover, which isn't as much of an issue. I've been working part time the last year or so partially so that I wouldn't blow my savings entirely if we wanted to spend a little more this trip on parks.

So with that said, I think I'd be okay paying the extra $50 or whatever the difference comes out to going to an admission-fee park like Kentucky Kingdom/Kennywood/whatever it may be.

Something I forgot to mention, where finding cheap motels isn't an issue (especially for the Kings Island leg of the trip), free breakfast is something we'd be looking for. It seems to be included in at least half of the options I've looked at and I'm fully prepared for it to be complete crap and just eat the cereal, but the dining plan only gives two meals/day and that's five days less of paying for breakfast.

#1 with all the bullets around it - Most hotels are going to have a minimum age of 21 to check in, especially in Sandusky. Can't stress this enough as being an important aspect. I'm not saying you won't be allowed to, but I would seriously, SERIOUSLY look into alternate lodging options like AirBnB for this reason.

 

Is that actually enforced though? I know a lot of chains are supposed to follow that policy, but on my trip down to KD and Carowinds last year my buddy and I had no issues and we're both between 18 and 21.

Depends, basically. Consider internal rules about minimum age to reserve a hotel room to be basically equivalent to laws in any civilized society. There's a lot of laws, but they aren't always enforced. What it comes down to is how much of a risk you're willing to take that the rules won't have to apply to you on any given occasion like this.

Something I forgot to mention, where finding cheap motels isn't an issue (especially for the Kings Island leg of the trip), free breakfast is something we'd be looking for. It seems to be included in at least half of the options I've looked at and I'm fully prepared for it to be complete crap and just eat the cereal, but the dining plan only gives two meals/day and that's five days less of paying for breakfast.

In all seriousness, have you guys looked at camping?

If you're looking for a hotel to stay at near kings island, I highly recommend staying at best western mason. It is one exit away for the park and it's beautiful.

Something I forgot to mention, where finding cheap motels isn't an issue (especially for the Kings Island leg of the trip), free breakfast is something we'd be looking for. It seems to be included in at least half of the options I've looked at and I'm fully prepared for it to be complete crap and just eat the cereal, but the dining plan only gives two meals/day and that's five days less of paying for breakfast.

 

In all seriousness, have you guys looked at camping?

No, actually, we haven't. I don't think we'd do this where a no-frills cheap motel is available, but now that you mention the laws in Sandusky, I'd at least be interested in looking into it near Cedar Point.

If you're looking for a hotel to stay at near kings island, I highly recommend staying at best western mason. It is one exit away for the park and it's beautiful.

I just looked at the website and it looks quite a bit nicer than most motels in that price range. It's definitely an option now.

If anyone has stayed at a bottom-dollar motel by CP or KI, please chime in!

I was to Kings Island for the first time during July 2014. I would suggest staying at the Microtel Inn, which is only a short drive up the street from Kings Island. I would not suggest staying at the Comfort Suites across the park if you're price conscious, as that's the mistake we've made the first night of our three day trip as it was about $140 for the three of us (My brother, our Dad, and myself). But, luckily I did a little research the second morning and found us a less expensive hotel which was only about $70 for the three of us. Kings Island is a great park and was worth the 7-8 hour trip for us as they had an amazing collection of coasters. But, my home park still has the best collection of rides! But, visiting Kings Island made a very nice two day vacation for recent high school graduates of the time as that was our first american amusement park. This past summer we made it to our second American park, that being Dorney Park in late June (2015). It was a nice park as well with a great collection of coasters and rides. So, a two day visit to Kings Island is definitely a great idea! This summer, I hope to make it down to Cedar Point for the first time in late June!

The Motel 6 Sandusky Milan or the Super 8 Sandusky Milan are both really good for the price. They're immediately off the Ohio Turnpike on the Cedar Point exit. There are cheaper hotels in the area but those are very affordable (and very clean).

If we go the cheap route we usually go with a national brand as we assume they have SOME standards they need to adhere to. We stayed at an awful independent budget hotel in Orlando once and we'll never make that mistake again.

^Booking in advance the Super 8 is cheaper at $199.80 taxes included with free breakfast for three nights. That's not bad at all. I couldn't find anything about minimum check in age requirements, though. Do you know if they're strict? We can always call and ask if necessary.

No idea, I'd call and ask.

If you're looking for a hotel to stay at near kings island, I highly recommend staying at best western mason. It is one exit away for the park and it's beautiful.

I just looked at the website and it looks quite a bit nicer than most motels in that price range. It's definitely an option now.

I stayed here for my trip bak in September, rooms are wonderful. Breakfast was amazing, the indoor pool was relaxing, and the service was fanastic. Next time I go it to KI, I'm staying there again.

No idea, I'd call and ask.

Thanks Bill! I'll call this weekend.

If you're looking for a hotel to stay at near kings island, I highly recommend staying at best western mason. It is one exit away for the park and it's beautiful.

I just looked at the website and it looks quite a bit nicer than most motels in that price range. It's definitely an option now.

 

I stayed here for my trip bak in September, rooms are wonderful. Breakfast was amazing, the indoor pool was relaxing, and the service was fanastic. Next time I go it to KI, I'm staying there again.

Sounds good to me. I don't know that we'll have any time to enjoy a pool, but a good breakfast is always a plus at a budget motel.

As for the third park, I'd like some input on what our best option would be. I don't know that Holiday World would fit into our schedule because it's three hours from KI so we'd probably have to stay near there overnight which takes away time from Kings Island. So that leaves Kentucky Kingdom or Kennywood, and they would both necessitate very different travel schedules.

Anyone have an opinion on one park or the other? It would be hard for me to pass up my first RMC and Lightning Run, but Kennywood seems like a great park too. I've read Boldikus' TR from last summer (reading this Boldikus?).

We loved Kennywood. It has a folksy feel to it and I wish we could have spent more time there. There is a slight chance I may make it back there this summer as my other half has a work thing in Pittsburg in June. We'll see. You might remember from my report we more or less stopped there on our day long drive out to CP, so we were only there for 5 hours or so, therefore I have no input regarding hotels. The area right around the park, as mentioned here, is a little dicey and I'm not sure I would have wanted to stay right there. So there's that. I can't compare the park to KK as I haven't been there but KW has some great flats (Bayern Kurve was a fave), and the 5 coasters we did (Phantom, Sky Rocket, Jack Rabbit, Thunderbolt, Racer) we all really liked - Phantom is a very special kind of coaster. Its got an old school intensity to it but the airtime is amazing and I'm not sure I can describe how amazing that 2nd drop is. I was also a big fan of Sky Rocket, even after we did Maverick the day after, and Jack Rabbit is one of my top woodies. Most of the ride just has a great classic woodie vibe (with practically no restraints), but the double drop is worth a stop at the park alone. One of those "must do that again/get right back on" rides. Tickets were $10 off if you buy them at the Giant Eagle supermarket around the corner from the park. That's all I got.

Oh and we all hated the Potato Patch fries. (Don't believe the hype!)

What I would consider doing

Day One--7/9 (Sat)- Drive from KD to Louisville (Hotel Louisville area)

Day Two--7/10 (Sun)- Kentucky Kingdom Open - 3:00pm, drive 2.5 hours to KI, KI until 10pm (Hotel Kings Island area)

Day Three--7/11 (Mon)-Kings Island 9:30am-10pm (Hotel Kings Island area)

Day Four--7/12 (Tues)--Wake up early drive 3.5 hours to Cedar Point, arrive at park at noon

Day Five--7/13 (Weds)--Cedar Point early entry until close. Fast Lane plus possible for this day.

Day Six--7/14 (Thurs)--Cedar Point early entry until early afternoon departure home bound

You shouldn't have a problem hitting all of Kings Islands attractions in 1.5 days.

The rides that have the longest lines midday will be typically be...

Firehawk - 1 hour

Flight of Fear - 1 hour

Invertigo - 45 min

Beast 45 min

Diamondback - 30 min

July - Early Ride Time will be Firehawk & Flight of Fear 9:30am-10:00am

^^Thanks for all that Boldikus! I'll think about the options more and we'll discuss it. Greatly appreciated.

^Maybe I'm just not really getting the point, but what would be the added benefit to doing that schedule?

With yours, we'd get...

4 hours at Kentucky Kingdom

A full day plus 4 hours at night at Kings Island

2 days (minus one vital morning) plus a half day at Cedar Point

Whereas with the schedule I proposed, we'd get...

~6 hours (11-5) at Kentucky Kingdom

A 4 hour night (8-12), a 2.5 hour night (7:30-10), plus a half day at Kings Island

Potentially 2 hours plus 2.5 full days at Cedar Point

If we decide on Kentucky Kingdom (or Kennywood for that matter), I'd rather enjoy the park than make it more of a credit stop (not saying that's what you proposed). It looks like we'd get more daytime (instead of nighttime) in exchange for one less morning at Cedar Point on your schedule.

Yours is a perfectly viable plan, but I don't think I made clear enough that I'm hoping for two nights at Kings Island mostly just to ride the big three in the dark. There isn't a whole lot else at Kings Island that seriously interests me as I've ridden about 1/3 of the rides' clones elsewhere (including Firehawk and Flight of Fear with Batwing and its clone at KD). I'd also regret losing three hours in the morning at Cedar Point.

Maybe I missed something else though that makes it more worthwhile? Thanks for the suggestions anyway.

Has anyone ever stayed at the Travelodge Lake Erie/Sandusky?

It's a few minutes closer than the Super 8 coasterbill recommended and has free wifi, breakfast, etc. It's even cheaper at $170 for three nights and the minimum check-in age is 18.

Near Kings Island it's looking like the Best Western is quite a bit more on these specific days than the other budget options, so I'm probably looking at the Super 8 right by the park.

After some more research I think we're going to do the earlier week because for some strange reason all the hotel rates jump by about 35% the week after. It's really strange how much one week makes a difference, but I guess that's the business of it.

Boldikus, are the Kennywood discounted tickets the same price as the online discounted tickets? They're listed at $44 at the gate, $32 (plus fees) online. Your report mentioned $30 each which would be awesome and we'd probably lean more towards Kennywood at that price (btw I've read through that entire TR like three times now. Looks like such a good time).

Kennywood would also really help split up the drive to Kings Island (drive to KW in the morning, stay at a motel an hour or two down the road at night so we're only a few hours from KI in the morning).

The drive from KI to CP is not that bad at all. When i did it back in September, left the hotel at around 10am, cried while i went past KI, and then got to CP around 1:30pm, and stayed until about 6 or 7, right before park close, and we did everything we wanted in that time span. The 10 hour drive home after was the worst part

Bookmarking this thread for future reference

If it's any help, when I was 18 my friends and I took a similar road trip to Cedar Point, and were not allowed to check into any area hotels since we weren't 21. We opted to camp at a nice RV park with showers and activities which was a lot cheaper, but further away from the Point.

Last year I was trying to save money on my trips and camped at the State Park on the other side of Lake Erie - $21 bucks a night with an electrical hookup and hot showers can't go wrong! Plus, after the long days at the park, you sleep like a baby whether or not you're on a mattress. Definitely something to look into.

If it's any help, when I was 18 my friends and I took a similar road trip to Cedar Point, and were not allowed to check into any area hotels since we weren't 21. We opted to camp at a nice RV park with showers and activities which was a lot cheaper, but further away from the Point.

 

Last year I was trying to save money on my trips and camped at the State Park on the other side of Lake Erie - $21 bucks a night with an electrical hookup and hot showers can't go wrong! Plus, after the long days at the park, you sleep like a baby whether or not you're on a mattress. Definitely something to look into.

It's very strange because the motel I called, the Travelodge Lake Erie/Sandusky, told me over the phone the minimum age to check in is 18. It is only Priceline that lists any age, and it's 21 for every hotel. Maybe that's just a Priceline policy to limit liability?

I think what we'll do is decide on final dates/schedule and one or two motel options by each location. I'll call each motel again before I book to be sure, and we'll keep the campsite option as a last minute backup option if all goes terribly wrong.

As for the schedule, I think we're deciding between the one I initially proposed for Kentucky Kingdom and this...

7/10--Leave home around 8 am, Kennywood 1pm to 9/10pm, stay in motel another hour two down the road close to KI.

7/11--Depart motel early enough to arrive to KI in the morning, Kings Island until 10pm close

7/12--Kings Island early entry until mid-afternoon, depart to motel near Cedar Point (or campground if necessary)

7/13--Cedar Point 9am-10pm close

7/14--Cedar Point 9am-10pm close with possible Fast Lane

7/15--Cedar Point 9am to early afternoon departure home

Thanks for all the input guys, keep it coming!

^Good call, I'm sure if they confirmed it over the phone then you are good to go. My trip was over a decade ago so things could have definitely changed since then!

So I was once below the age of 21 making trips to Cedar Point have an adult book for you in some way and the age shouldn't be a problem. It never was for us and i would even Travel for snowboarding and stay in hotels on my own at 16/17. That was a decade ago though.

Cedar point I have stayed in quite a few of the cheaper places. this is the one is what we likely the most and stayed several times when we were going cheap. https://www.choicehotels.com/ohio/sandusky/econo-lodge-hotels/oh128?source=gglocaloz

So I was once below the age of 21 making trips to Cedar Point have an adult book for you in some way and the age shouldn't be a problem. It never was for us and i would even Travel for snowboarding and stay in hotels on my own at 16/17. That was a decade ago though.

 

Cedar point I have stayed in quite a few of the cheaper places. this is the one is what we likely the most and stayed several times when we were going cheap. https://www.choicehotels.com/ohio/sandusky/econo-lodge-hotels/oh128?source=gglocaloz

Yes, having someone over the age of 21 book a hotel room for you is a great idea. I was thinking about having my Dad do that for my brother and I when we were going to Kings Island for the first time back in 2014 but, then he decided to come along with us. The reason why most hotels in Ohio won't allow people under the age of 21 book a hotel room (from what a hotel staff member had told us) is because prior to this rule/law there were way too many vandalized rooms occurring all too often and the hotels couldn't track the people down who vandalized the room because they didn't use or own a credit card. So, now as far as I'm aware of, all hotels in the US can only take credit as a form of payment because there is a name and an address attached to the card unlike cash. But, I suppose you could use debit but, I think most hotels will only accept credit as a form a payment due to the liabilities and issues I had mentioned above. It's a shame some people will vandalize a room for no real reason, as there is no reason for the act of vandalism.