Cedar Fair Announces the Reopening of Cedar Point, Kings Island, World of Fun and Schlitterbahn Parks

© Cedar Fair

We've been anxiously waiting to hear from Cedar Fair on the reopening of some of their parks, and today was our day.  The company announced opening plans for Cedar Point, Kings Island, Worlds of Fun and the two Schlitterbahn water parks in Texas.

The parks will open with reduced hours, limited capacity and increased hygiene practices along with a focus on the use of technology to streamline visits.

Cedar Fair CEO Richard Zimmerman said, “We want our guests and associates to feel confident knowing that our parks are taking extensive measures to welcome them back to an environment where safety is the highest priority. People will experience our new health and hygiene protocols before they enter the properties for either work or play; these enhancements will be observed throughout the entire day and at departure. We are thrilled that our guests will again be able to enjoy a best day experience at Cedar Point, Kings Island, the Schlitterbahn parks and Worlds of Fun, as well as great shopping and dining again at Knott’s Berry Farm. We look forward to more openings as restrictions are lifted around the country.”

Cedar Fair has created the above video to give visitors an idea of what to expect before they arrive at the parks that are reopening.  This video is specific to Worlds of Fun, but each park will have their own.  I'm not going to go through all the pandemic related changes covered in the video, as they are nothing new to what Cedar Fair has previously announced that they will be doing.  Much like Six Flags' initial video, it is well put together and should help visitors know what to expect ahead of time.

Schlitterbahn New Braunfels and Schlitterbahn Galveston will both open on June 13th, and stay open for at least two weeks only for season pass holders.  They anticipate that reservations for non-season pass holders will start in late June.  Once daily ticket sales begin, guests will select their date to make sure it is available, then be able to purchase tickets online.  The park has extensive frequently asked questions located within the safety section of their website.

© Worlds of Fun

Worlds of Fun will open on June 22nd, and has created a nice Welcome Back guide that you can download at this link.  As the chain's first full amusement park to open, they have a very detailed safety section online that details what to do before visiting, when you arrive and when you are in the park.

The park will initially only be open for season pass holders until early July, when single day visitors can make a reservation to attend.  The park has not yet determined when Oceans of Fun, its water park, will open for the year.  Additionally, the park's calendar of daily hours of operation is not available at this time.

Kings Island will open starting on July 2nd and stay open each day only for season pass holders through July 11th.  Since their opening date is further out, the park hasn't uploaded their full safety mini-site just yet.  The park's daily ticket visitor availability will start on July 12th, and as with all the parks reservations are required.  Their update does not specifically mention Orion, the park's new giga coaster, however we know it has been testing and will assume it will open with the park.  That will be a huge draw for visitors, indeed.  An opening date for Soak City water park has not been determined yet.

© Cedar Point

Cedar Point will open on July 9th and July 10th for season pass holders only, starting on July 11th guests of Cedar Point Resorts along with season pass holders will be able to enter the park.  No specific date for day ticket visitors has been announced yet that I can tell.  They previously announced that those looking for a summer getaway without the park can stay at Hotel Breakers and the RV portion of Lighthouse Point from June 12th through June 27th.

Since Cedar Point is a large resort, they're calling describing their reopening as a "phased" one, so there will be more detailed announced in the future, no doubt.  That will includes details on all their resort openings, Soak City, etc.  The park had already pushed back their 150th anniversary celebration to next year, but there is no doubt that the park will fill their reduced capacity as soon as they open.

Finally, while Knott's Berry Farm isn't open, they have recently opened more stores and restaurants in their California Marketplace area.  Details on what is open and when are available on their website.