King's Dominion Amusement Park

[Kirby]

We're planning a trip to DC in a couple of weeks. After a couple of days touring we're going to spend a couple of days moseying home. I thought we might could stop at King's Dominion. I've heard of it but that's about it.

So, what can you tell me about the place? Worth a stop? Any tips? Or might there be a better place to stop between here and Texas.

 

[Tigger&Belle]

I was just there a few days ago. What types of rides do you like? Do you have kids? If so, how old are they?

 

[Kirby]

I don't ride coasters. I'm more of a stand and watch person.

My DH will just about ride anything.

My DD is 15 and we are taking her friend who is also 15. They both will ride coasters but not necessarily always the same kind. That's where my husband will step in.

I'd also like some hotel recommendations in that area. We'll be driving straight from Manassas to the park.

And what is the atmosphere like? Some of the reviews on tripadvisor are not too complimentary. It is sort of mixed, some talking about what a great park it is while others talk about the gangs of kids roving around.

We'll only be able to spend one day there, a Monday.

 

[Christine]

We go to King's Dominion every year because it is only about an hour from our home. It is situated in an area of Virginia that kind of has "nothing" around it. It's sort of in a small town. There used to be a problem with roving gangs of kids (this was many years ago) but I haven't experienced that in recent years. But, you will get a lot of "local" teens there because the locals get good discounts and it's easy to get there. This gives it a different flavor then, say Busch Gardens, which is situated smack dab in a resort town.

However, the park is chock FULL of really good rides. The food is typical theme park food but not as varied as Busch Gardens or Disney. It is also not lushly landscaped and there are areas of the park where you are out in the blazing sun and it is hot.

Otherwise it is a good one-day amusement park.

 

[Tigger&Belle]

It's a good park for the big rides. You don't have little kids, which is good because I don't know how the kiddy rides are. My 6yo is big enough for all but several of the biggest rides and makes me go on everything he can go on.

Try to go when they open and hit Volcano first. It's a GREAT coaster, probably my favorite, but it's a very short ride and the line builds quickly, even when the lines are not bad at other rides. There's the new Italian Job coaster, which is tame, with a fast launch that almost made me black out. I can do the big coasters and almost passed out on that one Go figure. Anyway, the line wasn't too bad, but the lines weren't too bad for most of the rides that day.

As long as you are there at opening and hit Volcano first and then work your way around the park you should be ok.

The food is very mediocre and expensive. The last time we packed a picnic lunch and went back to the car and ate it at the picnic tables. That was a lot better, but since you're traveling you might not want to do that. Also, we ate a "good" (relatively speaking) breakfast at Burger King across the street before going into the park so we weren't hungry early.

There is a water area that I did with my 6yo, but it isn't too wonderful. My 12 and 15yo's didn't do it. Unless it's real hot you might want to skip it.

You can get discount tickets by buying online at least a few days in advance. Not sure how else to get discount tickets besides through local rec departments and AAA.

You can look at nearby hotels via the Kings Dominion website. I think you can click under plan a trip. I haven't stayed at any hotels so don't know about them.

The atmosphere was ok the 2 times we were there. You will see groups of camp kids. It didn't seem nearly as bad as the local (Maryland) Six Flags, but it's been awhile since I've been there.

I think it's a fun park. We got season passes for this year even though it's a 2 hour drive. We've never gotten passes before and it's not a normal thing, but thought it would be a fun thing for this summer. It's cleaner than what I thought it would be.

 

[Kirby]

So, I guess, as far as crowds go it's hit or miss. I know that here at Six Flags, you get the day care's till about 2:00 and then the park clears out a little. And, like here, June is probably a better month.

I looked into Busch Gardens. How much farther a drive is it? And which would you recommend? I noticed that it is about $20 more per person than KD.

 

[Christine]

So, I guess, as far as crowds go it's hit or miss. I know that here at Six Flags, you get the day care's till about 2:00 and then the park clears out a little. And, like here, June is probably a better month.

I looked into Busch Gardens. How much farther a drive is it? And which would you recommend? I noticed that it is about $20 more per person than KD.

Busch Gardens is another hour past KD. Busch Gardens is a much prettier park than KD and has a more 'resort' feel than KD. It also has some great coasters (Apollo's Chariot and Alpengeist are phenomenal). But for sheer quantity of rides, KD probably has more. Kids tend to like KD more than BG, while adults are the exact opposite.

 

[LukenDC]

I have been to King's Dominion several times, but have not been in about five years. The rides are good, especially the rollercoasters. The park is attractive.

My main complaint with the park is that it has a large water park in the center of it and the park allows guests to wear their bathing suits throughout the park. I got tired of seeing women in skimpy tops being groped by scuzzy boyfriends with lewd tattoos. It detracts from the wholesomeness of the park.

 

[Christine]

My main complaint with the park is that it has a large water park in the center of it and the park allows guests to wear their bathing suits throughout the park. I got tired of seeing women in skimpy tops being groped by scuzzy boyfriends with lewd tattoos. It detracts from the wholesomeness of the park.

Oh, how true. I forgot about the whole "swimsuit" issue.

Yes, you will see many of the teens parading around in their bikini tops throughout the park. I believe other parks have a dress code that doesn't allow this but because of the water park, KD does.

 

[saucymb]

I looked into Busch Gardens. How much farther a drive is it? And which would you recommend? I noticed that it is about $20 more per person than KD.

I would choose Busch Gardens over Kings Dominion every time...much cleaner, more "themed", plenty for everyone to do. It's a very nice park.

 

[Skatermom23]

I would suggest going to BG if you can. I live about 40 minutes from KD but still drive to BG. My kids love the coasters at both places but I feel that there is more for me to look at at BG. (I am the non rider!) Plus the food options are nicer at BG and the general atmosphere is just better. This is the first summer in awhile that we didn't get season passes to KD. Feel free to ask questions.

 

[Tigger&Belle]

I was not impressed with Busch Gardens. Even though the theming was nice and there were a few good rides, I was bored quickly and it was very hot walking around with the hills (even though more trees did help with the heat, so that's probably a wash). BG is a prettier park, but the rides just aren't there. However, if you can take an extra day and go to Water County, too, that would win hands down in my book. A day at BG and a day at WC would be a lot of fun.

We did see some women wearing skimpy suits around KD--I think my 15yo DS appreciated it...

 

[Kirby]

With all the driving we are doing we'll probably do one or the other and end up spending two nights wherever we end up. KD sound a lot more like our Six Flags here, we just don't have a water park within the park, though Fiesta Texas does have a water park. I'll have to do a little more research....

Thank you for the advice!

 

[boo's mom]

I work at Kings Dominion! I work in Kidsville so if you have small children, there are plenty of rides that they can do. If you have children 54 inches or taller, they will not be able to ride any of the kids rides (except play in the playground-which is where I work-) but they can ride everything else in the park....I hate the swimsuit issue too. I see it everyday *insert puke smiley here* We have to tell the guys to put shirts on but theres not much we can do about the women there is a different variety of rides there for people of all ages, from antique cars to inverted roller coasters. Busch Gardens is cleaner but don't tell kings dominion I said that...hehe I definitely reccommend coming on a Monday and I also recommend that you hit Volcano, Tomb Raider, and Italian Job first thing in the morning....The crowd at open runs right past my rides and that is where everyone goes first thing in the morning. If you decided to come to Kings Dominion, stop by the playground (Kidz Construction Company) in Kidsville and ask for Heather

 

[Tigger&Belle]

Heather, we'll look for you next time! I promised my 6yo that I'd let him play at the playground next time. We ran out of time this last week, but I know he'd enjoy it.

I assume that Wednesdays would be a good day, too, since they give the Gold passholders the front of the line passes from several of the rides on Wednesdays. How exactly does that work? I know it's picked up at the Season Passholder window and it's limited to the first however many guests, but I don't know anything more about it. Do less camps go on Monday?

 

[nordkin]

Kings Dominion is Ok, but we much prefer Busch Gardens. If you are going to Kings Dominion, I would advise going further south for a hotel for safety reasons. The Best Western at Kings Dominion is horrible in my opinion. There a quite a few just south of Richmond, in Chester (RT 10) exit. It is about 45 miles from Kings Dominion. It is a much safer area at night and many more places to select from for meals. Hotels at this exit are Holiday Inn, Hampton Inn, Homewood Suites, Courtyard by Marriott, and the Comfort Inn. I stay in this area for business several times a year and would recommend it.

 

[Christine]

I agree with nordkin--I would not stay overnight at King's Dominion. I'm not really *up* on the safety of the area but it just looks like a dump to me outside the park. There is really nothing around there and it's kind of depressing.

Honestly, since you are on your way home to Texas, I would be more inclined to stop at Busch Gardens. First off, King's Dominion is much a stopping point between Manassas, VA and Texas! Kings Dominion is barely an hour from the Manassas. To me, KD is a place you might want to do a back-and-forth day trip FROM Manassas. It is not a 'destination'. Busch Gardens is a destination. It is a tourist area. If you go there and then leave the park at night, there will be other things to do for dining out and even more to do if you'd like to stay a second day.

I'm not trying to denigrate KD in anyway because it is a fun, clean park and has great rides--your teens will really like it. I just can't see using it as a stopping point and staying over night there.

 

[tar heel]

What interstate will you be traveling on after KD? If you will be on I-85 or I-77, you might consider getting season passes for just a few dollars more and hit Carowinds, too. It's heavy on coasters and also has a great kids area. It's a good place to spend a few hours and I would feel fine about the hotels at that exit and nearby.

Just a thought.

 

[boo's mom]

Heather, we'll look for you next time! I promised my 6yo that I'd let him play at the playground next time. We ran out of time this last week, but I know he'd enjoy it.

I assume that Wednesdays would be a good day, too, since they give the Gold passholders the front of the line passes from several of the rides on Wednesdays. How exactly does that work? I know it's picked up at the Season Passholder window and it's limited to the first however many guests, but I don't know anything more about it. Do less camps go on Monday?

I see more camps coming in on Thursdays and Fridays. Wednesdays are pretty good days to come to the park. The crowds start to pick up on Thursdays and Fridays with Saturdays being the worst. Sundays the crowd starts to die down again. As far as the gold passholders, I can't offer any information at this time but I'll check on it tomorrow when I get to work and post in here. I think its time for me to go to sleep now. Just finished a 9 hour shift today *passes out*

 

[pixiemomma]

My only advice is, don't eat at the truck stop across the street. Worst.meal.ever.