Amusement Park News

Big changes are on the way for Kings Dominion in Doswell, Virginia. Among them: the Richmond area park is closing the Berserker ride, which was removed prior to the park's 2025 season opening on March 29th.

The Berserker was a looping pirate ship pendulum ride that increased in speed and height with each swing back and forth until reaching the peak of its 360-degree spin. There the ride paused, allowing riders to be suspended upside down for a thrilling moment before the pendulum finished its full loop.



Although the ride remained popular, the removal of this attraction is not enormously surprising, as many Cedar Fair parks began to remove their pendulum attractions starting back in 2017, when the H.M.B. Endeavor was shuttered at California's Great America, followed by the closing of the Looping Starship at Valleyfair in 2019, and most recently, the closure of Carowinds' Southern Star in 2022. Six Flags acquisition of the Cedar Fair parks likely has accelerated this removal, as Six Flags parks closed their versions of this ride ten to fifteen years earlier than the Cedar Fair parks had begun to do so.

Made by Intamin, these attractions have now essentially disappeared from the Americas and Western Europe. Currently, there are only two operating in Japan at Nagashima Spa Land and Yomiuriland, and one at Sunway Lagoon in Malaysia.

The closing of the Berserker comes on the heels of the park's previous announcement that the Anaconda will also be removed before the start of the season. Anaconda, located in the Jungle X-Pedition section of the park, was a big ride for Kings Dominion, taking riders along a 2,700-foot track, passing through vertical loops, an underwater tunnel, and a variety of fast-moving twists and turns, accelerating up to 50 miles per hour. It was the first looping coaster anywhere with an underwater tunnel and it was frequently photographed by park guests.


Given the recent merger between Cedar Fair parks such as Kings Dominion with Six Flags Entertainment, fan feelings online have run high about the closing of Anaconda.

But despite the news of these closures, there is a big new bright spot coming to the park this year. The 3,086-foot Rapterra coaster is coming in time to celebrate the park's 50th anniversary. The winged coaster has moved through its testing phase and completed its first full test run back in November.

According to Kings Dominion regional public relations manager Geoff Zindren, “We understand that saying goodbye to classic rides can be difficult, and we appreciate our guests' passion for Kings Dominion…We're confident that the addition of Rapterra and our upcoming 50th anniversary celebration underscores our commitment to elevating the park experience and making every visit truly memorable...” he says.



Rapterra's installation was elaborate, with over 12 miles of cable used for installing it before testing even began. The testing phase reviewed every element of the ride's components including electrical parts, with plenty of double and triple checking before launching the coaster, including opening and closing restraints and gates during each cycle of testing.

The park's operations director, Brian Rath, says it is important to run the ride multiple times, over and over in order to “make sure that all of the different components that are part of it — the electrical, the mechanical — are working the way they are supposed to…consistently.”

While the ride itself is being thoroughly tested, the queue line is being constructed, landscaping put into place, a themed station created, and a retail exit shop put in place.

While Rapterra is exciting news, there have recently been a few other clouds on the Kings Dominion's horizon. The park's Winterfest holiday event is not on the schedule this year: last year's seasonal event was its last. Kings Dominion has said that it's new focus is on offering bigger options for entertainment during the park's regular season.



For the park's 50th celebration this year,  there will be enhanced summer events running from May 31 to August 3rd, currently described by the park as the “Golden Summerbration…high-energy performances and interactive adventures.” And within that timeframe, the park's popular 4th of July celebration will return, with fireworks and music.

The park has also confirmed that the popular Halloween Haunt and Oktoberfest events will return this year, and the park calendar shows that it will close for the season after November 2nd.



Whether related to an earlier closing season or not, there have also been a number of employees laid off, many of which were full time staff members. Cuts came for each department and took place this January without warning. The park issued a statement that these cutbacks were required as the staff numbers had grown larger than the park's needs. However, these sudden cuts could also indicate that Kings Dominion is receiving less staffing consideration than other popular parks within the new Six Flags Entertainment corporate structure.



2025 season passes for the park start at $95 with the Silver Pass, offering unlimited season visits. For $110, the Gold Pass also allows unlimited Halloween Haunt visits. A “super charged” park passport allows guests to enjoy visits to all Six Flags parks. Season pass holders are invited to attend a pre-opening day event March 28th. A 2025 any-day admission daily ticket is $40.