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Kings Island
vs
Six Flags New England

On a typical day Six Flags New England queues less: about 12 minutes a ride against 32 at Kings Island, a difference of roughly 20 minutes on every queue you join.

01 · On a typical day

What you would normally queue.

Averages across recent weeks, so one broken ride or one wet Tuesday cannot decide it. This is the comparison to plan a trip on; the live figures below are the one to act on today.

Kings Island and Six Flags New England compared on their typical recorded queue times
TypicallyKings IslandUnited StatesSix Flags New EnglandUnited States
Average wait per ride 32 min12 min (best of the two)
Rides with recorded waits 2438 (best of the two)
Longest typical queue Flight of Fear69 minQuantum Accelerator40 min
Shortest typical queue The Racer (Red)14 minHoudini - The Great Escape5 min
Average ride uptime Share of opening hours a ride is runningNot recorded80%

Averaged across every ride at each park with recorded waits. A ride that never opened is left out, so a park is not flattered by counting a shut ride as a queue of zero.

02 · Right now

Both parks, this minute.

Live queue times at both parks. These fill in as soon as the page loads, and keep updating while you are here.

Kings Island and Six Flags New England compared on live queue times
Right nowKings IslandUnited StatesSix Flags New EnglandUnited States
Average wait right now --
Rides open --
Opening hours today --
Longest queue --
Shortest queue --

These keep refreshing while this page is open. A closed park posts no waits, so its rows read as dashes rather than zeroes.

Verdict, on a typical day On a typical day Six Flags New England queues less: about 12 minutes a ride against 32 at Kings Island, a difference of roughly 20 minutes on every queue you join.

03 · Choosing

Which one is your day out.

Every line here is earned by one of the figures above - nothing is a generic sentence with a park name dropped into it.

Pick Kings Island if…

  • You will accept a longer queue - 32 minutes a ride here against 12 at Six Flags New England - for what Kings Island has that Six Flags New England does not
  • Flight of Fear is on your list - it is Kings Island's longest typical queue at about 69 minutes, so it is the one to do first
  • You want Kings Island's own character - the rides, theming and atmosphere described below

Pick Six Flags New England if…

  • You want shorter queues: Six Flags New England averages 12 minutes a ride against 32 at Kings Island
  • You want more to do: 38 rides here have recorded wait data against 24 at Kings Island
  • Quantum Accelerator is on your list - it is Six Flags New England's longest typical queue at about 40 minutes, so it is the one to do first
  • You want Six Flags New England's own character - the rides, theming and atmosphere described below

04 · The parks

What each one is.

Kings Island

Kings Island is a huge theme park in Mason, Ohio, just north of Cincinnati. It's one of the Cedar Fair (now Six Flags) parks and runs a strong coaster line-up: The Beast (the world's longest wooden coaster, opened 1979), Diamondback, Mystic Timbers, Orion (a giga coaster), Banshee (the world's longest inverted coaster), and Racer. A full water park operates on the same site during summer.

The Ohio summer school break and Halloween Haunt event drive Kings Island's busiest periods, with weekend queue times on Orion and The Beast often exceeding 90 minutes. Weekdays in May, September and October are dramatically quieter. Check live wait times on arrival, and use our crowd calendar to pick a midweek visit if you want to ride everything in a day.

Kings Island live queue times

Six Flags New England

Six Flags New England sits in Agawam, Massachusetts, near the Connecticut state line. The coaster line-up includes Superman: The Ride (consistently rated one of the world's best steel coasters), Wicked Cyclone (a Rocky Mountain Construction hybrid), Goliath inverted coaster, Flashback, Joker 4D Free Fly Coaster, and the classic Thunderbolt. A Hurricane Harbor water park is included with admission.

Massachusetts and Connecticut school holidays, Fright Fest and US summer weekends drive Six Flags New England's peak crowds. Weekdays in May, September and October stay dramatically calmer. Check live wait times for Superman and Wicked Cyclone on arrival, and use our crowd calendar to pick a midweek date - queue times on most rides drop into single digits on quieter days.

Six Flags New England live queue times

05 · Questions

Kings Island or Six Flags New England?

Which is better, Kings Island or Six Flags New England?

If you are judging on queues, Six Flags New England: it averages about 12 minutes a ride on a typical day against 32 at Kings Island, roughly 20 minutes back on every queue you join. Kings Island has 24 rides with recorded waits against 38 at Six Flags New England.

Which has shorter queues, Kings Island or Six Flags New England?

Six Flags New England, by about 20 minutes a ride. On a typical day Six Flags New England averages 12 minutes against 32 at Kings Island. Queues still move hour by hour, and a midweek day outside school holidays beats the gap at either park. See Kings Island best time to visit and Six Flags New England best time to visit to pick a quiet day.

Can I visit Kings Island and Six Flags New England in the same trip?

Yes - both parks are in United States, so a two-park trip is realistic over a long weekend. Split the days so you start at whichever opens earliest and drive to the other in the evening.

How many rides does each park have?

See the tables above for ride counts - or jump to Kings Island and Six Flags New England for the full ride lists.

Is Kings Island bigger than Six Flags New England?

By rides we track waits for, Six Flags New England is the bigger day out: 38 rides against 24. Acreage matters less than how many you can actually get on, which comes down to queues and opening hours - and on those Six Flags New England is the quicker park.

Then pick
the quiet day.

Both parks have a crowd calendar with six weeks of forecast and the best day left to go.

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