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Phantom Fright Nights 2018 Starts Sept. 28th!

Kennywood’s extremely popular Phantom Fright Nights event returns this weekend for its 17th year! The event runs from 6:00 pm to Midnight September 28th through October 28th on Friday and Saturday nights plus Sunday, October 7th and Sunday, October 28th. Phantom Fright Nights was voted 5th best Theme Park Halloween Event in the country in the 2017 USA Today 10Best Readers’ Choice Travel Awards! For current pricing and tickets, see the PFN page at Kennywood.com.

Feeling hungry? Sign up for the Phantom Fright Nights Pre-Scare Dinner buffet! Offered on October 13, 20, 27, and 28, a ticket will get you an all-you-can-eat buffet, PFN admission, and a pass to skip the line at your favorite haunt!

Finally, don’t forget the little ones! Happy Hauntings is the perfect event for kids 10 and under who aren’t quite ready for the scares of Phantom Fright Nights. Kids can enjoy Kiddieland, Thomas Town, and a few other attractions such as the Merry-Go-Round in addition to hay rides, pumpkin decorating, and more fun activities! Happy Hauntings takes place on Saturdays and Sundays October 6th through the 28th from Noon to 4:00 pm. For current pricing and tickets, see the Happy Hauntings page at Kennywood.com.

2018 Construction Updates

If you visit Kennywood this season, you’ll see that construction is the big story and will likely continue to be for roughly the next year. Thomas Town, announced back in February, is currently under construction with a planned mid-summer opening. There is also some mystery construction occurring at the former Log Jammer site as well as in the nearby lagoon where what appear to be possible coaster footers have appeared! We’ll keep tabs on that project in the upcoming months and post any developments here!

For now, let’s take a look at Thomas Town construction which seems to be speeding along!

Thomas Town will occupy land surrounding the existing train station, including what was once the Raging Rapids queue area. Here the elevation difference between Thomas Town and the new Rapids queue is evident, where a retaining wall and a fence will separate the two.
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Next, we’ll move on to the former Log Jammer site to see what interesting things are occurring over there!

While the park is very tight-lipped on what's going on at the old Log Jammer site, a lot of the work speaks for itself. Here's some rebar, undoubtedly to form concrete around.
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Finally, let’s take a look at a few other updates around the park.

The Thunderbolt celebrates its 50th birthday this year, and among other festivities, a celebratory garden is in the works here.
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Tons of exciting changes are coming at Kennywood! What are your thoughts on everything going on at the park this year? Join us on our Forums or Discord Chat and let us know!
Many thanks to Nick Paradise for allowing us to visit and provide you with these updates!

2017 Off-Season Updates

Thanks to Kennywood Public Relations director Nick Paradise, we were once again able to visit the park last week to see what’s new and improved for the 2017 season!

The most noticeable project upon entering the park are changes occurring at Kennywood’s newest coaster, Sky Rocket. Painters are hard at work giving the ride a fresh coat of paint, so it will be shining like new on Opening Day! In addition, a dedicated VIP line has been added at Sky Rocket, eliminating the need for VIP Coaster Tour pass holders to make the long walk up the exit ramp. The VIP line merges into the regular line just before it enters the station. Another change is a new room which was built to add on to the operator area of Sky Rocket’s station. What will this room be used for? Well, we have a pretty good idea and there are rumors floating around, but the park has not yet officially announced anything so we’ll keep quiet on that for right now! Be sure to check out the Photo Album below for pictures of all of the changes at Sky Rocket!

Here are some additional changes we learned about at ACE Western Pennsylvania‘s CoasterBash event held last month and during our visit to the park:

  • The 4D Theater will no longer be showing Ice Age 4D. The theater will now feature The Lego Movie 4D!
  • Racer will be celebrating its 90th birthday and has received some TLC! The park may hold a special birthday event for the coaster.
  • All season passes now follow the calendar year and automatically include half-price Phantom Fright Nights admission and free Holiday Lights admission on select dates.
  • Season pass processing is being held on April 22nd and 23rd. The first 100 guests will receive lanyards and a $15 buddy ticket! We highly recommend getting your season pass processed on these dates if you plan to visit the park on Opening Day!
  • For the first time in many years, Kennywood will open in April… but just for season pass holders! The park will be holding a season pass holder preview weekend on April 29th and 30th with extra entertainment, meet & greets, photo ops, giveaways, and more! If you plan to attend, you must RSVP by clicking here!
  • Phantom’s Revenge is receiving a completely new PLC (computer brain that runs the coaster) and control panels! To follow this project, check out Irvine Ondrey Engineering’s page on Facebook! We had the privilege of meeting Brian Ondrey, a Kennywood fan his self, and briefly discuss the project with him. He’s a great guy and Phantom is in good hands!
  • The facade of Musik Express has received the LED lighting treatment this year!
  • The current plan for 2017 Holiday Lights is to be open from the day after Thanksgiving through December 30th!
  • Events:
    • Kenny’s Comicon – June 18th
    • Brews in the Park – September 23rd
    • Pittsburgh Pierogi Festival – September 24th
    • Much more… click here for the list!
  • Food changes:
    • Pedro’s (nachos and tacos) has moved from next to Pirate and is now located in the former Pizza Pavilion location in Lost Kennywood. Pedro’s will have an expanded menu this year and is said to be more “Chipotle-like”.
    • Auntie Anne’s Pretzels is a new addition and will  find its home in Pedro’s former location behind the Pirate
    • Small Fry (located in Lost Kennywood near Swing Shot) will now be an entirely gluten-free stand, including gluten-free chicken tenders.
    • Snack-A-Saurus (located in Kiddieland) will have a brand new menu including vegetarian/vegan and organic items. They will also serve coffee, something we’ve been hearing from fans for a while they wish the park had! There will also be tea and other hot drink options available.
    • Kennywood will now offer an all-season dining pass for existing season pass holders for $79.99! The dining pass will be loaded onto your existing season pass card, so there won’t be a need to carry an additional card around at the park. The pass will get you lunch and dinner plus one popcorn or cotton candy per visit (summer season only). For more details, check out page 4 of this document.

To view our 2017 off-season photo album, click here!

Thanks for reading! Don’t forget to keep an eye on the countdown timer to Opening Day in this post!

Opening Day Countdown & Season Pass Holder Preview Weekend

For the first time ever, Kennywood will open its gates a week early exclusively for 2017 season pass holders! On April 29th and 30th, the park will be open from 11:00 am to 7:00 pm. While details are still limited, we expect a selection of rides to be open as well as some “special entertainment” those two days.

If you plan to attend, we highly suggest getting your 2017 season pass processed ahead of time at the season pass processing days, being held April 15th, 22nd, and 23rd from 10:00 am to 3:00 pm at the front gates.

As per tradition, here is your Opening Day countdown clock for 2017!

Opening Day – May 6th, 10:30 am
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New Season Dining Pass & Black Friday Deals Live

Kennywood has added a new All-Season Dining Pass option for the 2017 season. If you’re a season passholder and find yourself eating at the park often, this is just the solution for you! The pass allows two combo meals per day (at participating locations in the park) at least four hours apart from one another. You can also enjoy one popcorn or cotton candy per visit. Drinks are not included. Price for the pass is currently listed at $69.99 (a $10 discount off of the normal price). Pick up your Dining Pass here!

We also wanted to note that Kennywood has their Black Friday deals for 2017 live! Prices are below:

  • Bronze season pass (2017 summer season only, no buddy days): $49.99
  • Platinum season pass (includes 2016 Holiday Lights and much more): $129.99
  • Ride & Slide season pass (includes 2016 Holiday Lights, 2017 Sandcastle, and more): $114.99
  • Senior Evening season pass (ages 55+ entry after 5:00 pm): $29.99
  • Funday ticket: $29.99
  • Senior Funday ticket (good for ages 55+ any day of the 2017 summer season): $9.99

Get all of the details about each pass option and make your purchases at the official Kennywood web site!

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