Ready to get spooky on opening day at Kings Island? A favorite attraction from the past is making its return this year, joining some of the most epic roller coasters in the nation that are among the fastest in the world.
The Mason, Ohio, amusement park will open its gates for the season Saturday, April 18, and Phantom Theater: Opening Nightmare will make its debut on opening day. The ride is a nod to the original Phantom Theater that operated at Kings Island from 1992–2002, according to a press release from the theme park.
And the Enquirer recently got a sneak peek inside the new attraction.
So when is opening day? And what will the new Phantom Theater bring to the park? Here’s what to know.
When does Kings Island open?
Kings Island will open for the 2026 season on Saturday, April 18.
Immediately after opening day, the park will be open on Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays through May 10. Kings Island will begin its 7-day-a-week operations on Thursday, May 14.
What is Phantom Theater: Opening Nightmare?
Phantom Theater: Opening Nightmare combines the haunted theater elements of the original attraction with interactive elements of Boo Blasters, which the new Phantom Theater is replacing.
It’s always a dark and stormy night at the Phantom Theater, where a long-awaited performance by Maestro, the theater’s resident organist, is set to begin. During the storm, a lightning strike unleashes the ghost notes – mischievous musical spirits that wreak havoc across the theater – from Maestro’s mighty pipe organ.
With the help of head usher No Legs Larry, guests take on the role of a member of his team and ride in “enchanted opera boxes,” utilizing special spellbound flashlights to capture and return the ghost notes to the organ so the performance can begin on time.
Along the way, the enchanted opera boxes travel through fully built dimensional scenes, including backstage areas, haunted hallways, dressing rooms and a fiery boiler room as they meet other performers who are ready to take the stage. From animatronic forms of Houdelini and The Great Garbonzo to Hilda Bovine and Lionel Burymore, the Phantom Theater’s crew is back along with new characters like Arpeggio, Maestro’s furry feline friend.
The Maestro and head usher No Legs Larry return from the original attraction with more detailed and expressive animatronics in the 2026 version.
The Enquirer’s Jeff Suess calls the new Phantom Theater “a significant upgrade from the original. The basic premise is the same but with more of an emphasis on story and theming.”
Kings Island retracks The Beast for 2026. Here’s what changed
Kings Island and The Gravity Group worked together to revamp the top of the second lift hill on The Beast, the park’s iconic wooden roller coaster, according to a Facebook post from Kings Island. The second lift takes riders to the top of a gently sloping hill that sends trains speeding into a 540-degree helix near the end of the ride.
The park states that the amount of wood used to construct the new portion of track on The Beast was equivalent to the amount used to build Woodstock Express.
When does Soak City Water Park open?
Soak City Water Park opens to battle the heat of summer on Saturday, May 23, with two of its newest attractions returning.
Opened in 2025, RiverRacers is the only side-by-side dual racing water coaster in Ohio. Also, Splash River Junction, an area that includes seven water slides designed just for kids, will once again be ready for families.
Season passes to Kings Island also admit you to other Six Flags parks
This year, certain season passes to Kings Island will not only get you into that park all year long, it will also grant you admission to other Six Flags parks in the region.
In February, Six Flags, the corporate parent of Kings Island, announced a regional park access pass that’s included with the gold and prestige passes to Kings Island. A gold pass will admit you into all Six Flags Midwest parks, and the Prestige Pass will get you into all Six Flags parks nationwide.
The Midwest regional pass includes:
A silver pass, good for Kings Island and Soak City, is currently $105 online. A gold pass is $145, and a prestige pass is $275.
This article originally appeared on Cincinnati Enquirer: Kings Island opens April 18. Get a sneak peek inside Phantom Theater
Reporting by Chad Murphy, Cincinnati Enquirer / Cincinnati Enquirer
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
