I grew up in Louisville and grew up loving roller coasters. My primary reference point for amusement parks is Kings Island as Kentucky Kingdom did not open until I was in my early teen years.* I liked two visits I made to Kentucky Kingdom prior to its water park opening. In its early years, it did not have many rides though. I went once in 1994 before leaving Louisville as a permanent residence after the water park opened and got the worst sunburn of my life.* The fledgling park had few fully grown trees at that time. This experience contributed to my hesitancy to return to Kentucky Kingdom when I made my way back to Louisville in 2017.
This was a mistake on my part.
An Excellent Amusement Park in My Hometown
Kentucky Kingdom is located at the Kentucky Fair and Exposition Center near the Muhammad Ali International Airport. This is something to understand going into a visit. It is not uncommon to see airplanes approaching a landing while on a ride. If the Fair and Expo Center is hosting other events non-Kentucky Kingdom parking lots may be full.** Given its setting, Kentucky Kingdom makes great use of its space.
I estimate that the focus of Kentucky Kingdom is 50% water park, 35% rides, 5 % shows, 5 % carnival games, and 5% food. I have yet to do much with the water park due to needing to watch my kids’ stuff.
Rides
I’ll start with roller coasters. Thunder Run is a Kentucky Kingdom original wooden roller coaster that has stuck around due to being a good coaster. In the 1990s, I thought it was a little bumpy. I don’t find that to be an issue now. I read that the trains on the coaster were replaced and some adjustments to the track were made over the decades. I am not sure if those changes or me being heavier than I was in high school are why I don’t feel beaten up by Thunder Run today, but in my estimation it is a great ride.
The Kentucky Flyer is the other wooden roller coaster at Kentucky Kingdom. I like it even better than I like Thunder Run. It rides a lot like the Red and Blue Racers at Kings Island despite not being as tall on its drops. The Kentucky Flyer leads to a lot of floating for its passengers. If amusement parks are supposed to amuse, this feature makes it a great ride even if it lacks an overarching sense of danger.
Kentucky Kingdom boasts 4 metal coasters: T3, Lightning Run, Storm Chaser, and Roller Skater. T3’s riders are suspended below the track. My kids are not yet up for coasters that go upside down so I can only say that three of these coasters look to have a good combination of fear and fun. Roller Skater is a ride for people of all ages. It is a small and fun coaster. There is also a ride called Eye of the Storm that is a sort of roller coaster focused on a lot of upside down time.
There are two non-water slide water rides. Mile High Falls offers a nice view of the University of Louisville’s football stadium and of Down Town Louisville before riders drop 90′ and generate a massive wave. It is really fun, but it is not a log flume of old that takes one on a long journey before the drop. Raging Rapids is a longer ride than Mile High Falls and simulates white water rafting. The fact that this ride exists demonstrates that Kentucky Kingdom has made good use of its space.
Kentucky Kingdom has a nice bumper car ride as well as an old time car ride. There are plenty of spinning rides ranging from the tame spinning shoes of the Flying Dutchman to more extreme spinning rides. I do not like to spin so the most I can say is that the rides are there. There are a number of other fair type rides such as a viking ship, a carousel, and a large Ferris wheel as well. The kids’ section is stocked with fun rides.
There is an amphitheater that currently is housing a show for stunt dogs run by a group that raises awareness and funds for pet adoption and spay and neuter programs. There is also a staging area being used for a group of the Harlem Globetrotters ensemble to demonstrate trick shots and dunks.
Cost and The Season Pass
We got a Gold Season Pass prior to the summer. It has worked out well. It includes free parking, free admission, access to a limited number of free tickets for friends, free drinks, and 20% off of food purchases. As one might expect, food is expensive at amusement parks, but the free drinks and discounted food help. Like most season passes, if you attend two-times, it pays for itself. I think people in the greater Louisville area would find this to be the best option, but individual admission is not terribly expensive.
Disability Awareness
I have been impressed both by Kentucky Kingdom’s approach to disabled guests and to their employment of disabled people. Guests with disabilities are given ride passes that allow for reaching rides via the exits. Elevators and other accommodations are present as well. Most of the workers one sees are in either their high school or college years. I have seen two different blind people from this age group working jobs at Kentucky Kingdom.
Cleanliness and Safety
The park is extremely clean. I have seen the wave pool’s life guards intervene when horseplay could endanger those in the wave pool.
Overall Impression
Sometimes theme parks can become gimmicky in an attempt to raise revenue. Kentucky Kingdom in 2022 seems to have the gimmick of not needing any gimmicks, and I like that. It is a fun and safe place to spend summer days. It also offers people various water options for staying cool. This simple approach of providing an affordable fun experience while being located in the middle of the Greater Louisville Area should be enough to keep locals coming back and to attract plenty of guests who live a bit further away. Highly Recommended
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*I will do a lengthier review of Hurricane Bay, Kentucky Kingdom’s water park, once I personally engage in some of its attractions. I can say that my children love it and that it does seem to have a good variety of attractions ranging from a wave pool, a kids’ wave pool, multiple water slides of varying degrees of height/thrill, and a lazy river ride.
**Holiday World is not far from Louisville, but my one trip there was in my preschool days when it was known as Santa Claus Land. All I remember from that is that my brother had more success against the Tic Tac Toe playing chicken than most adults. I think he did no worse than a draw, but that was also 40 years ago. I am sure Holiday World is more than a little different today than it was then.
*** Historic Freedom Hall is on the same general site as Kentucky Kingdom. Freedom Hall is an arena that hosted 6 NCAA Final Fours, it used to be home to the Louisville Cardinals, and it is currently the home of the Bellarmine Knights. It seats over 18,000 fans for basketball games and over 19,000 fans for concerts.
Kentucky Abides 