MY FAMILY CAME TO HOLIDAY WORLD YESTERDAY; FIFTEEN OF US. I JUST WANTED TO LET YOU KNOW THAT WE WERE EXTREMELY HAPPY WITH EVERYTHING; THE CLEANLINESS, THE RIDES AND THE ATTENTION TO FAMILY.

WE SAW THE HOLIDAZZLES AND STORYTIME WITH SANTA, AND WE WERE IMPRESSED WITH THE FAMILY VALUES THAT WERE TAUGHT DURING THIS TIME.

THE FREE DRINKS WERE GREAT. 

WE ENJOYED THE SMALLNESS OF THE PARK AND THEY LAYOUT WAS GREAT.  EVERYTHING WAS EASY TO GET TO. 

FOR MYSELF, (THE COORDINATOR OF THE TRIP) I WAS ESPECIALLY HAPPY TO TAKE THIRTY MINUTES OF MY BUSY DAY TO SEE THE SING PRAISE SHOW.  THE GROUP WAS NOT JUST PERFORMERS BUT YOU COULD TELL THEY REALLY LOVED THE LORD.  I WAS SO GLAD TO SEE THAT GOD WAS REPRESENTED IN A FAMILY THEMED PARK.

WE WILL BE BACK AND WILL HIGHLY RECOMMEND HOLIDAY WORLD TO ANYONE WE MEET. 

GINA B. 

I just wanted to let you know how wonderful your park is. My family goes to Holiday World at least once every summer. Any time we have family down from other states we always take them to Holiday World. Your park is the cleanest and has such polite workers. We have always enjoyed our trips there.

We recently went to a theme park this summer in Wisconsin and it makes us appreciate the theme park we have here at home. We have been to ones in Kentucky, Wisconsin and Minnesota and not a one of them has a home atmosphere like Holiday World.

We have also noticed that Holiday World puts safety first for all riders. If one of the rides is broken no one gets to ride it until its fixed. Some of the other parks do not care much for safety.

Just wanted to let you know what a great job I feel that the owners and workers of Holiday World are doing. Please keep up the good work. We will be back again next summer along with our family that’s coming down from Minnesota.
 
Have a Wonderful Summer,

Jeremiah, Tammy, Austin and Jaris H.

P.S. My kids are only 10 and 12 and they compare other parks to Holiday World too and notice the big differences. Great Job!!!
 

We just came back from our 2nd trip to your park. This time we brought guests (another family and their children) and camped at Lake Rudolph.  This allowed us to take advantage of the 2nd day pass for $20.00.

We all had a blast and loved the rides, hospitality, and inexpensive food. I also noticed that every employee at the park was genuinely friendly and doing their best at their job. That alone makes me want to come back again next year.

The only downside was lack of rides for my six year old.  He was a 1/4 inch shy of the mark to ride some of the thrill rides in Holiday World so he got left out.  I don't know what the solution is (if any) but that was the only "bad" experience in the park.  He did, though, get to do quite a bit in Splashin' Safari. 

Anyway, again, great job overall and we'll definitely be back and most likely bring more people with us!

Warren B.
 

I know many people normally e-mail places when there is a problem or if they are dissatisfied. However, I wanted to make sure you were notified of all the positive things I saw in your park recently. My wife and I and some friends visited your park this past weekend. I have not been to the park for many years but was incredibly impressed with your park and your staff. 

I noticed attendants picking up trash and removing the garbage from the garbage cans even where people were waiting to get on rides. I also noticed how alert the lifeguards were watching all areas of the water park. In addition, as the roller coaster left the station at the Voyage, the attendant watched closely to make sure each person that passed by had a secure seatbelt. Finally, every attendant we met was very friendly and smiled which I believe helps guests have a great time!  

I recently lost my job this year and it was very nice to get away for the day to such a low stress destination to just have fun with my wife and friends. We are hoping to come back again before you close this season if our budget allows.

I think you and your staff should be commended on operating such a clean, friendly, and family-oriented environment to the public and continuing to add rides that rank among some of the top rides in the area.  Awesome job by the way on the Pilgrim's Plunge!
  
We have already told our family and will be telling many friends about our experience.  

Keep up the great work!

Michael
Kentucky

We brought our 2 and 5 year old daughters to your park for the first time yesterday and we all had a great time, despite the oddly chilly weather.

The dive show was fantastic, the park has many fun kids rides, the food is reasonably priced (I was literally shocked to get 3 ice creams for $5 and dinner for 4 people was only $13.), the free drinks are very nice, and the playground in Holidog's area is amazing.

We will certainly be coming back again next year!

Thanks!

Lisa
Louisville, Kentucky

My fiancé and I have both fallen victim to our ever struggling economy. While I have a job locked in health care, my fiancé has fallen on hard times at his place of employment. Often times he's sent home after only working 2 hours a day. He's the "bread winner" of our house, so our financial support is seventy percent based on him. Our paydays are now stressful and extremely negative as we struggle to figure out who gets what bill that month. Our house payment continues to rise with the taxes, and at times, we find ourselves struggling to even cope with having that happen.

Needless to say, our 3 year old daughter never gets to enjoy the perks of having 2 working parents. While she has everything she needs, I know deep down there are things she also wants as well. What little 3 year old girl wouldn't want? She would watch Disney World commercials on TV and ask when she could visit. She would point out amusement parks in magazines and ask about them, etc.

Remembering who we were supporting first, we started a small fund to take our daughter to a theme park. We deemed her old enough to understand what goes on and also old enough to ride the rides. Finally, our goal, however small to others was much larger to us, was met.

We had heard so much praise from friends and family about how affordable and how much fun Holiday World was. I can remember riding the sea horses and bumper boats when I was just a tot myself. We figured it would be the best place to go being only 2 hours away.

July 12-14 we stayed in an RV at Lake Rudolph. The 12th and the 13th we ventured to Holiday World. Before even entering the park my daughter saw the giant Holiday World tower as we drove past and became excited. I remember her eyes lighting up as she said, “Mommy! I think we're here!"

When we entered the park, she continued the excitement. After getting her picture taken with the statue of Santa at the very beginning of the day, she looked at my fiancé and me and said with a smile, "Mommy, this is the best place I've ever been!" She hadn't even been more than one hundred feet inside the place.

To our surprise, we were thrilled to see how family-oriented this place really is. And I'm not just saying that to be cliché, this is an honest opinion. I have never seen prices as low as Holiday World had. We had only a small amount of money to use for games and food, but that money nearly doubled when we saw the prices. I couldn't believe my daughter could have a meal for under $4.

The Pepsi Oasis' were amazing. I could not believe that we were walking in and out of places only to get free drinks. I could not believe that there was a theme park that honored this and I was so taken away by this simple act! Not only that; but the free tanning lotion. This park met our needs in every aspect we needed. When we were famished, we found ourselves in an air conditioned building or stopping for a free drink. When we were tired of walking, at every turn was a place to sit. This park was just so comfortable and accommodated everything we could have eventually complained about.

The rides were just as great as I remember. This was the first time my daughter had ever rode any amusement rides and needless to say she hasn't stopped talking about them. At perfect height, she could ride things such as the Turkey Whirl (which she tells us was her favorite), Scarecrow Scrambler, Frightful Falls, the Raging Rapid ride, etc. When they first started, her face was priceless. She wasn't sure whether she should be terrified or be having a good time. After she realized what goes on, the giggles were burned into our memories forever. She had such a great time. As the Turkey Whirl spun, my fiancé stood beside the ride staying with the stroller. I rode the ride with my daughter and as we went around I could hear her laughing hysterically and calling out for her daddy. It nearly melted my heart to see how much joy she had.

Walking into the HoliDazzle show, our daughter had just awoken from a nap after the Splashin’ Safari. From the moment "Sparkle" walked out our daughter’s eyes were fixated. She smiled, danced, laughed, sang, and just had a great time. We couldn't leave without her getting to say hi to her new favorite fictional character.

I felt like I needed to just extend my gratitude to the staff at Holiday World for making our first family adventure such a positive one at such negative times for us. I also just want to personally thank Pat Koch for keeping this park in amazing condition and remembering who it's for; the families. Holiday World made our vacation possible and I can guarantee I couldn't have said that about any other theme park. We couldn't have afforded to venture to another one.

I've never been to a theme park where I've walked in and seen the owner walking around asking people if they're doing ok, etc. Pat Koch, to me, is an amazing person, inspiring even. I've never been so taken back by someone in my life, and her amazing kindness at her park nearly had me in tears as we left and I saw her standing there smiling to everyone and giving a kind wave to a group of small children. I was in awe to the fact that she is so hands on. It takes a special someone to do the kind of simple, yet meaningful things she does.

Call me hormonal, but as I write this, I'm also tearing up. It's just so great to see someone so selfless and putting the needs of others as her priority. I hope she inspires others to follow in her footsteps and I praise her for everything she has accomplished and will accomplish. I know she's inspired me and I look forward to returning to the park next year.

I just never thought one of the most selfless acts I'd ever see was through an owner of an amusement park.

From our family, a million thanks.

Amanda, Josh and Payton B.
Brownstown, Indiana
 

I just wanted to say that my family came yesterday to Holiday World for the first time ever and I can’t say enough good things about your place!!! 

It was SO clean and more importantly, the staff/workers were SO friendly and courteous, which means so much to me, especially since many places have teenagers who display poor customer service. 

I will recommend you to everyone I know and we live in Louisville, Kentucky!
 
Amy H.
 

We just returned from visiting your park, and I felt obligated to let you know what a wonderful time we had there. I’m assuming most people write to complain, so I wanted to be sure to let you know what an awesome job everyone is doing at Holiday World. There wasn’t one person there that wasn’t polite, knowledgeable, or helpful.

My husband and I had never heard of Holiday World until just 3 months ago from a friend of a friend, and once I looked at your website, I was encouraged that this would be the perfect first family trip to bring our 3-½ year old daughter on. I was not disappointed. From the free parking, to the price of admission, to the free drinks and sunscreen, to the economical food choices, to the clean park, to the amazing people, rides and water park, we were extremely impressed and cannot stop talking about it.

We live in St. Louis, and are accustomed to Six Flags, and were blown away by what a difference there was between the two parks. I can honestly tell you that we will not be going back to Six Flags ever again.
 
On top of everything else (I could go on and on about The Voyage and Pilgrims Plunge), I was pleased and most impressed that you all are so concerned about allergies. My daughter has a peanut allergy, and so of course, I am constantly concerned with where we go and what we eat. Here, I didn’t have to worry. Everyone I came in contact with was knowledgeable about where we could go and what we could and couldn’t eat. AMAZING!
 
So, thank you. Thank you for a wonderful first family vacation and here’s to many more at Holiday World!
 
Yours,
 
Alison H.
 
 

I just wanted to tell you how much my family and I enjoyed our recent visit to Holiday World!

It has been longer than twenty years since my last visit; I was pleasantly surprised to find that the park had grown in size, but had not lost the small, family-friendly atmosphere that I remembered.

The park's cleanliness and maintenance, friendly and helpful staff, and affordably priced food and gift shop items were a welcome change from the many vacation parks I've visited.

I was also pleased to hear gospel music coming from one of the show theaters - how refreshing.

I still can't believe you have free stuff!!! Free soda, free parking, free sunscreen, free wristbands, and free ponchos which, unfortunately, we found useful as it poured the day we were there. I know this must be tough to keep up when everyone else is making cutbacks and raising prices.

My family and I will visit again, and it won't take twenty years.

Thank you for providing a great opportunity for affordable, family-friendly entertainment.

Heather H.
Louisville, Kentucky

I just got off the phone with your group sales representative and she was spectacularly nice! I just wanted to let you know.  This is one of the reasons that we choose to drive to Holiday World every year for our team trip instead of Six Flags.  

Thanks again for your hospitality.

Christi K.

I just wanted to commend you & your entire staff on such a fine amusement park. We recently organized a 1-day trip to your park with 40 other family members (7-6-09). It was an EXTREMELY enjoyable day for everyone.
 
The staff we encountered was very helpful & courteous, which I'm sure can be a challenge at times.

My wife & I enjoyed the 'family atmosphere' that was present.  We felt safe allowing our children (8, 10, and 12) to wander the water park & enjoy it with their young cousins. 

The price was very reasonable, including the cost for food.  How do you do it?

I just wanted to say "THANK YOU." We will be back.

Sincerely,

Barry B. & Family
Carbondale, Illinois

We visited Holiday World yesterday for the first time. Leading up to it I had heard so many great things about the park, and yesterday did not disappoint me one bit.

I was so impressed with the cleanliness of the park, the helpful and courteous employees, the great selection of rides, the free drinks and parking and affordably priced food.

I have NO complaints about our experience there and despite the fact that the gate fee may be slightly higher than some of the deals that Kings Island offers, the well priced food, free parking and especially drinks made up for the difference by far.

I had heard the park is Christian owned and operated and if this is true, it makes sense and was very well reflected. What a great example of how a Christian business should be run. I will definitely return for years to come with my family.

Thanks again,

Steve O.
 

This may seem long, but it might just have some good meaning to it.

I am fifteen years old and I visited your park all the way from Western New York. I'm a coaster enthusiast and I have been on quite a few coasters and I've been to quite a few amusement parks such as Cedar Point, Kings Island, and dozens of others.

I heard from some good friends of mine that I would like your park. I looked into it and thought to myself, "Hmm, four coasters? I don't know if over ten hours of driving will do me that good." My friends continuously begged me to see you guys. The Voyage looked like a great coaster so I thought I should give it a shot.

At this time, my favorite park would be Cedar Point, followed by Universal and Kings Island. My favorite coasters were like many others, Magnum XL-200, Diamondback, Top Thrill Dragster, etc.  

Anyway, it was a long trip down but we made our way there and parked near the entrance.

My first thoughts coming into your Christmas section was "Wow, this place is so clean!"

When the park opened I rode The Legend and didn't think too much of it but either way, it's a very good wooden coaster. I knew that I wanted to hit up Voyage next.

I headed into the beautifully landscaped Thanksgiving area and walked onto the coaster. I have been on so many coasters, that this seemed like cake to me.
 
After the second drop on this coaster, I was yelling at the top of my lungs with joy. There is so much airtime! I was flying out of my seat on every hill and every turn. The turns are so intense and the whole coaster is relentless with so much speed. After one ride, it was obviously clear that it was the best coaster I have ever ridden! Let me tell you, in order to build a coaster like that, each and every dimension of track and every stat must be absolutely perfect. You guys pulled it off perfectly! It’s an amazing ride-worth the drive itself.

For the rest of the park, I loved it. Your prices at your food stands are cheaper than my local restaurants. The pizza was delicious (I'm also a pizza enthusiast). The free soft drinks were a novel idea. If I wasn't on a ride, I was carrying a drink with me all the time.

The employees were extremely kind. They were always smiling and would take my loose articles for me on rides. They looked like they enjoyed their jobs and had a good time at the park. This is so rare! Every other employee at other parks looks so miserable and wish they could be anywhere else than the park they work at. Your employees are well trained and they were very friendly with me.

As I said before, the park is the cleanest I've ever seen. I never saw one speck of litter lying around anywhere.

Also, your flat rides run on nice long cycles. Other flat rides I have ridden only cycle for about under 45 seconds.

On the topic of rides again, Voyage broke down twice, but was back up and running within 10 minutes. Great job with your maintenance!

I was only in your park for an hour when I realized I was in the best park I have ever been to. You guys should be the ones with the Golden Ticket Award for best-park.

I so strongly appreciate your service dedicated to your guests' enjoyment, I will return again and again annually. Thank you for providing me with 1st class service and amazing rides all within an unbeatable price.

Holiday World, keep up the awesome work!

-Cameron S.
 

I just wanted to say thank you for a fantastic experience at Holiday World. My grandmother used to take me every year (starting in 1987 as a seven year old; (I still have the fold out picture of me with Santa). I restarted the annual tradition last year.

I absolutely love your roller coasters (I rode each of them four times to commemorate my recent fourth wedding anniversary) as well as the overall atmosphere of the park. And the free Pepsis sure doesn't hurt either!

I most definitely am looking forward to my trip next year and I hope this time my wife can come with me to see the park even if she can't ride most of the rides (she has a pacemaker).

And to Pat Koch and Santa, thanks so much again for signing/personalizing my Holiday World picture book last year!

Estil R.

Owensboro, Kentucky

I visited Holiday World and Splashin' Safari with my 10 year old son on Tuesday, July 6, 2009. We had an excellent time.

We usually go to Kings Island every year for an amusement park vacation but decided to try something new. Holiday World is our new favorite amusement park.

Most all of your employees were so nice and polite.

I appreciated the unlimited soft drinks and your very reasonable food prices. Nothing there was a shock to my wallet as most amusement parks are.

I also wanted to mention a certain employee. I did not get her name, but she sat next to me in Kima Bay. It was her day off and she told me that she worked in Guest Relations and has been at Holiday World for three years (she is a school secretary and treasurer during the school year). This lady was so very nice. She asked me what we thought of the park. I told her how pleased I was with our decison to come. She stated that she has a season pass and even on her days off she wants to come to work and enjoy Holiday World. Even though she was not "on the clock" she answered my questions and it was easy to tell that she truly enjoys working there.

I again want to thank you for providing such a good time for me and my son. We absolutely loved Splashin' Safari.

You have a beautiful park. 

This was truly an affordable vacation and we plan on returning soon!

Matt F.
Indianapolis, Indiana 
 

Yesterday was my first visit to your park and I just had to let you know what a pleasure it was.  I was a chaperone for a group of youth from First Baptist Church.
 
This is by far the cleanest park and (as the brochure states) the friendliest staff of any park I have ever been to.
 
I loved the praise and worship show along with the diving show.
 
The roller coasters are awesome and the new Pilgrims Plunge was fantastic as well.
 
The food was fair priced and the free drinks are a huge plus.
 
I have already sent your link to friends and family in Kentucky, Ohio, and Tennessee.
 
I will be bringing my family back very soon.
 
Thanks,

Jeff S.

Just wanted to let you know what a great time we had when we were there on June 5, 2009! After visiting both Six Flags in Chicago and Disney World, I have to say that you are my family's new favorite!!

The park was clean and well laid out.

The food prices were incredible - what a great surprise!

The free drinks were really free... and easily available. We were pleasantly surprised to find that we didn't have to wait in special lines or travel to the other end of the park to get a drink.

Your employees were friendly and it seemed like they really enjoyed going to work!!

My sister and her family are planning a visit next month.

We can't wait to come back. 

Keep up the good work!!

Sincerely,

Linda G.

I just had to let you know how much fun my family and I had on our visit to your park.  We came a couple weeks ago and you were right, the lines aren't very long in June.  That made it more fun. 
 
The park is so clean and the free drinks really helped us out on budget (we had 5 of our 8 kids with us). 

We appreciated the kennel so we could have our dogs with us, although they didn't like that much.  But that is a nice touch for families with dogs. 
 
And most of all your staff are the friendliest people I've seen. Not just a few of them, ALL of the staff we came in contact with were sooo nice!!  That is the biggest plus! It made it most enjoyable. They all told us to have fun and asked how we were doing. They looked like they enjoyed being there, not like it was a chore (like at some other parks). 

And your lifeguards at the wave pool were so intense!  They kept their eyes on the water at all times. 
 
I just want to applaud you on making a great place to visit.  I'm glad we chose your park and we'll be back!!!
 
Thanks,
 
Jeannie B. and Family
Louisville, Kentucky
 

Just wanted to say thank you.

I visited Holiday World with my daughter, her husband and my 2 grandchildren on Monday, June 29, through Wednesday, July 1,2009. We had a blast.

I am so impressed in the cleanliness, the friendliness of the employees and all the amenities that you provide.  Like the free drinks all the time you are there, the measuring station, and the sunscreen booth.

We also liked the variety of rides, the games to play, and the eating places to choose from. My grandchildren are only 2 and 5 but you had enough things for them to do also, like Reindeer Ranch and Holidog FunTown
.
We had a great time and hope to do it again.

Thank you again for providing such a fantastic amusement park and atomsphere.

Sincerely,

Bonita K.
Indianapolis, Indiana