The park known as Six Flags St. Louis or Six Flags Over Mid-America for its entire half-century history has a new name: Mid America Adventure. Enchanted Parks announced the new branding early Thursday morning.
"We are excited about the changes and new opportunities that are ahead for us," Mid America Adventure park president Danny Snider said in a statement. "Earlier this year we became part of the Enchanted Parks family of theme parks. Now, with the rollout of our new name, we look forward to continuing our history and tradition of providing families with safe, clean fun visits to this park so that they can make lasting memories together."
"The rebrand to Mid America Adventure is the next step in our ongoing investment in this park and community,” Enchanted Parks CEO James Harhi said. "We are committed to providing our guests with quality experiences and will continue to build on our legacy as the Midwest’s gateway to thrills."
Season passes for the 2027 season are also now on sale.
Michael's original column:
Sign outside Six Flags St. Louis KMOX/Michael Calhoun
Six Flags St. Louis is teasing something for Thursday. "Now it's time to open a new chapter," a video posted to social media says, before ending on a date: 8/27/26.
Most visitors probably don't know that a chapter just closed. The park in Eureka is celebrating its 55th anniversary this season, and it is its first year ever with an owner that isn't Six Flags. Judging by some online comments and questions, that hasn't sunk in.
Six Flags Entertainment Corp. turned over the keys with just over a couple of weeks to go before the season started. Enchanted Parks took over. That timing explains why so little in terms of rides has changed, and why the former company gave Enchanted permission to keep calling it "Six Flags St. Louis" through the end of this season.
But, based on my experiences at this park and some of its Midwest competition this summer, Thursday's mysterious announcement has a bigger job ahead of the all-important Fright Fest: telling the public the park is truly 'under new management.'
The speculation around this week's teaser has been fierce.
Plenty of enthusiasts are crossing their fingers for a relocation of what was originally called ArieForce One, the fast, twisting Rocky Mountain Construction steel coaster stranded when a small park in Georgia closed. Others want R.M.C. to convert The Boss -- the park's punishing wooden coaster -- into a hybrid wood-and-steel machine, something Enchanted CEO James Harhi previously told KMOX was the number one request he got from park faithful.
Paul Drabek, the Heart of America representative of the American Coaster Enthusiasts and owner of the website Negative-G.com, told me not to hold my breath for either to be announced on Thursday.
"I know I would absolutely love it if next year something big came to the park, but I'm not expecting it," he said. "I think what you're going to see next year is we'll get a ride, maybe a flat ride, a spinning ride, something like that, and I think you'll start seeing stuff like expanded restaurants."
His own pitch: a combination food hall and performance venue, an air conditioned haven.
More likely is a reveal of the park's permanent name and logo. Harhi floated "Mid-America by Enchanted Parks" earlier this year with KMOX and the Post-Dispatch, and the website URL includes "Mid-America Parks." The only trademark application I can find at the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office is for "Enchanted Parks St. Louis."
I also checked with the city of Eureka and there are no new building permit applications for Six Flags' address, though the building commissioner said they at City Hall are very interested in what new management may be brainstorming.
One question: whether Enchanted's negotiations with Warner Bros. over a sublicense for the Looney Tunes and D.C. characters have gone anywhere. If they haven't, a lot of this park needs new names and new themes, not just the banner at the gate.
Signage may feel like nothing to enthusiasts hoping for new thrills. But new branding and a marketing push are how all those families who haven't been paying attention find out that something has changed. Of note: billboards promoting Holiday World are up across several parts of the metro area.
Here's why I'm optimistic: I visited four major parks this summer: Six Flags St. Louis several times, plus Great America near Chicago, Kings Island near Cincinnati, and Michigan's Adventure. The middle two are still owned by Six Flags Entertainment. The first and last are now 'by Enchanted Parks.'
Video is courtesy of Mid America Adventure
KMOX/Michael Calhoun
KMOX/Michael Calhoun
KMOX/Michael Calhoun
St. Louis' replica Batmobile reappeared outside its namesake ride after a two-decade absence, meticulously restored. Food prices were more reasonable with a season pass discount. Toasted Ravioli. Chicken strips each about the size of a whole breast. A few online reviewers note the park is cleaner and appears to be more landscaped.
A new entertainment director filled stages that had gone quiet, programming eight new shows this season. A Route 66 flashback musical brought the crowd inside the Palace Theater to its feet.
"They brought in a show director that was at Fiesta Texas, which, that park is well-known for fantastic shows," Drabek says.
The two Midwest Six Flags-owned parks were a different experience.
At Great America on a busy June Saturday, most rides ran a single train, which led to long waits. Stands and booths were boarded up. At Kings Island in July, more than half of the visit was spent fruitlessly standing in lines for rides that would eventually close because of mechanical trouble. On one or two rides, this is understandable and even to be expected. But not time after time (after time).
The visits did have highlights: Diamondback at Kings Island and the trolley show through Great America.
Michigan's Adventure, which is now run by Enchanted Parks, surprised me. What impressed me most was the operating crew and, again, the appearance. Even with almost nobody in else in the park on a beautiful August day, every ride was running two trains, and workers were hustling to keep things moving in a way I hadn't seen anywhere else.
Shivering Timbers is a wooden coaster with lots of weightless moments, and it ran so smoothly that my mind went straight to The Boss and what it could be simply with more new track like it has at the beginning. Thunderhawk left me grinning and running around to ride again, proving a relocated coaster can still be a thrill.
In St. Louis and Michigan, it appears Enchanted is focusing on the fundamentals. Cardinals fans know that's how to sustain success. Once there's a new name on the gate, St. Louisans will know something's changed at the managerial level and will want to check it out.
