Podcast: Countdown!

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Wednesday was the official “one-month-till-Opening-Day” mark on all of our calendars.

And so the #PodSquad counts down our 10 most anticipated sights, sounds – and even smells (Rentz!) of the new season:

 

 

Here’s the Thunderbird photo from 2015 that Eric mentioned: Williams, Lauren, Lori and Leah’s first ride:

Koch Family's First Thunderbird Ride

When we moved into the Holidays segment, we learned Lauren has a favorite crayon color – Razzmatazz!

Lauren's favorite crayon color

Next, a surprise appearance by a new cotton candy flavor:

Dole Whip Cotton Candy

You heard that right – Dole Whip Cotton Candy! It will be available at Santa’s Snacks this season (and if you’re a Platinum Season Pass Holder, you’ll be able to buy this treat for just 99 cents as your May perk).

For Cherish an Antique Day, we learned dozens of the Firecracker cars’ original lights will be up for auction during HoliWood Nights (auction proceeds will be donated to the wonderful Give Kids the World organization:

Firecracker cars' original lights

And finally … two tweets from The Coaster Crew:

 

Thanks so much for listening to episode 030 – we’ll be back again in two weeks!

Turkey talk

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As we prepare the park to reopen (five weeks from tomorrow!), you never know what you’ll see:

Did you check out our new Pick Your Price ticket deals yet? Visit on select days and save up to $20 on General Admissions Tickets!

The Hard Hat Chronicles return

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Coaster Cats on Voyage

March came in like a lion and is going out like an incredibly busy lamb.

(Baa-a-a-d pun alert) … but VP James isn’t a bit sheepish in his update for this latest Hard Hat Chronicles:

Here’s another look at the Alamo restaurant‘s new look:

Alamo re-do

And our Coaster Cats, who are happy working in their office without a roof:

Coaster Technicians on Voyage | Hard Hat Chronicles

Recognize this coaster?

Coaster Technicians on Voyage | Hard Hat Chronicles

Opening Day is April 29 – and we’ll be ready! Check out our new Pick Your Price online ticket deals and start planning your visit!

Podcast: The one with the PYP

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‘Twas a blessing to celebrate Saint Patrick’s day with the #PodSquad, who did their best to share a bit o’ blarney for today’s podcast episode.

Happy Saint Patrick's Day!

We hope you enjoy listening:

We’re excited about progress on the restoration of our classic Calypo ride.

Firecracker’s lights are being installed this week:

Firecracker cars with lights

Watch for updates about Firecracker plus Voyage track work next week, when we release a new Hard Hat Chronicles video on YouTube (you can subscribe to our YouTube channel to be among the first to see it).

Pick Your Price | Online E-Tickets at Holiday World & Splashin' SafariWe chatted a bit about our new Pick Your Price online tickets – watch for them on Monday.

In a nutshell: Pick Your Price (PYP) gives you ticket pricing options as you plan your visit to Holiday World & Splashin’ Safari. Simply click here and select the day and price that suits you best. Please note, PYP tickets are available online-only.

Next, Lauren updates us on plans for this year’s HoliWood Nights. If you’ve been meaning to join one of our partner clubs, now is the time. Check out the list of clubs and see the flyer, including this year’s theme: Jurclassic Park on our HoliWood Nights page.

We moved into holidays and discovered National Awkward Moments Day is celebrated more than one day a year by the #PodSquad.

Lauren’s awkward moment was perhaps the most intricate tale – from her days on the Holiday World stage.

Lauren's "country arms"

You’ve been warned.

Lauren even had a pose she had to take while she told the story.

These are her “country arms.” Her awkward moment was during a country show.

I wish I could provide you with a GIF of Lauren while she was telling her story – she was doing a little country dance jig thing throughout.

Way to go with the green top, Lauren. May the roads rise to meet you …

For Eric’s awkward moment, we revisited the story of his Skype interview when he was applying for his current position. If you missed the original pantsless-Eric story, it was told on Episode 006, nearly a year ago. He’ll never live that down. Ever.

And speaking of applying for a job, we have several full-time openings you might want to check out over on our Jobs page. Seasonal positions, too – we’re still hiring for this season.

My awkward moment involved this:

bucket list

’nuff said.

We mentioned this sweepstakes. Be sure to enter daily!

Oh, and the “Park Madness” over at Coaster101.com will be interesting to watch!

And then the conversation turned to Pi.

And pie.

And Eric’s promise.

Rentz's strawberry pie

It was delicious!

And finally, we share some great tableaux from The Coaster Crew:

Two in one day!

And that Bad Album Covers Day from the ’60s game? Get a load of these:

Bad Album Covers from the '60s album1 album2 album3 album4

 

We open in just six weeks – see you soon!

“Good News” Sweepstakes

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Congratulation to Nena N. from Frankfort, Kentucky, our latest sweepstakes winner. Thanks to all who entered!
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There’s a trending topic on Twitter today: #GoodNewsIn5Words

So we joined the fun:

What’s your #GoodNewsIn5Words? Enter our Good News Sweepstakes and your #GoodNewsIn5Words could be: I won Holiday World’s sweepstakes!

What’s the prize? Four one-day tickets to Holiday World & Splashin’ Safari, plus two nights in a Rudolph’s Christmas Cabin at Lake Rudolph Campground & RV Resort!

Before you enter, please read through these instructions and rules:

  • You must be at least 18 years old to enter and you must not have won tickets from Holiday World in the past six months.
  • Employees of Holiday World & Splashin’ Safari, Lake Rudolph Campground & RV Resort, Sun Communities, and Sun RV Resort (and the immediate family members of employees) are not eligible to enter.
  • By entering, you agree to be added to our e-newsletter list (you may unsubscribe at any time by following the directions in your email).
  • Use the widget, below, to enter daily. There are lots of options, so you can earn extra entries by posting here on our HoliBlog, tweeting about this sweepstakes, following us on Pinterest, and visiting us on our Facebook pages. If you win, please note you must be at least 21 to phone in your Rudolph’s Christmas Cabin reservation at Lake Rudolph. Here are the dates the cabin will be available for reservation: May 1-25 and May 29-June 8, 2017.
  • For the “post a comment on the blog” entry option, simply tell us your Good News in 5 Words. (Our comments are moderated, so as long as the content is HoliFriendly, it will appear soon.)
  • Did you know you can subscribe to our HoliBlog so that you receive all of our posts (including contests) by email? If you’re using a desktop computer or tablet, look for the “Subscribe to Blog” sidebar at the top-right corner of this page. On a smartphone? Just scroll down a tiny bit more to find it.

Ready to enter? Simply enter our sweepstakes here from a mobile device; or if you’re on a desktop, enter by using the widget, below. And not just today – enter daily through Wednesday, March 29, 2017, at 2:30pm CDT, when we’ll choose one winner at random.

   a Rafflecopter giveaway

Here’s some more good news: We just launched our new Pick Your Price online ticket discounts – take a look and save!

Also, Opening Day is getting closer by the day – we hope you’ll join us on April 29 and see all the changes we’ve made for 2017!

Podcast: Food Fight!

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It’s hard to miss the irony behind this episode’s topic being Food … and yet there was nothing to sample.

Not a crumb.

Rentz kept twitching, thinking the door was about to burst open, with Justin bounding in with goodies.

You know, like this:

Justin with Giant Sub Sandwich for Cabanas

That’s Justin with a Giant Sub Sandwich, which will be on the menu for Cabana service this season.

Nonetheless, we survived. And we hope you enjoy this ‘cast:


For Wildlife Day, we talked about critters. All kinds of critters.

You know, like Santa’s special buddies:

Deer Jumping Gate

Actually, we didn’t even talk about the above occurrence (doesn’t the deer on the right look like a kangaroo?), but since Matt couldn’t produce a photo of his surprise childhood pet, we had to make do. Those deer jumped the fence to avoid bag check, apparently.

In our #HoWoPo Feedback segment, we talked about this hilarious video @CoasterDean shared with us on Twitter:

And Leah paused from her MBA studies to help out a fellow oboist (that’s how it’s spelled – I looked it up).

Here’s our text exchange:

Leah's Oboe Advice
Is the Toothfairy Maze for real? Michael Bondy has proof:

Eek! I looked it up on YouTube, and sure enough there are videos of the maze. I sent a video link to Matt and his response was: Welcome inside my head as a child.   And here’s that tweet with the inimitable (and always adorable) William Shatner:

The Coaster Crew never fails:

Don’t miss the look on Kitty Claws’s face! And Mardi Gras was properly ushered in with beads, horns, cake and party hats:

For 33 Degrees of Separation, we thought you might like to see a photo of Mr. & Mrs. Crosby taken during a secret trip in November 2014, when they were still just dreaming about heading into the ultimate Upside Down:

Michael & Lauren in Thunderbird seats