Orion Kings Island Stats: Height, Drop & Opening Date

Standing in line for Orion, the first thing that hits you is the scale. Kings Island’s giga coaster climbs 287 feet into the Ohio sky — and from the crest of that lift hill, you can see the entire park spread out below before the train tips over the edge and falls 300 feet in under two seconds.

Orion opened on July 2, 2020, as the seventh giga coaster in the world and the single largest investment in Kings Island’s history at roughly $31 million. Built by Swiss manufacturer Bolliger & Mabillard and themed around a sci-fi escape to the Orion constellation, it instantly became the defining landmark of the park’s skyline. Below is every stat riders search for — height, drop, speed, opening date, and the height requirement — in one place.

Quick Answer

Orion is a 287-foot-tall Bolliger & Mabillard giga coaster with a 300-foot first drop at 85 degrees, a top speed of 91 mph, and a 54-inch height requirement. It opened at Kings Island on July 2, 2020, becoming the seventh giga coaster in the world. Its giga classification comes from the 300-foot drop measurement, not the 287-foot structure height.

Orion Stats at a Glance

Park: Kings Island, Mason, Ohio, in the Area 72 section. Manufacturer: Bolliger & Mabillard (B&M), Switzerland. Model: B&M Hyper Coaster, marketed as a giga coaster. Opened: July 2, 2020. Cost: approximately $31 million — the largest single investment in Kings Island’s history at the time.

Lift hill height: 287 feet. First drop: 300 feet at 85 degrees. Top speed: 91 mph. Track length: 5,321 feet. Ride duration: approximately 3 minutes. Total hills: 8. Inversions: 0. Train configuration: 3 trains, 8 cars each, 4 riders across — 32 riders per train. Height requirement: 54 inches. Hourly capacity: approximately 1,650 riders.

How Tall Is Orion? Height vs. Drop, Explained

Orion’s structure — the physical lift hill riders climb — stands 287 feet tall. That is the number to use when someone asks how tall Orion is as a structure. But the coaster’s defining stat is different: its first drop measures 300 feet, 13 feet more than the lift itself.

The discrepancy is intentional. The drop track descends into an excavated valley below the surrounding grade, so the train falls further than the lift climbed. That extra distance is also why Orion qualifies as a giga coaster even though its tower height alone would fall just short of the 300-foot giga threshold.

When Did Orion Open?

Orion opened to the public on July 2, 2020. The coaster had originally been slated for a spring 2020 debut, but Kings Island’s entire season was pushed back by several months due to COVID-19 closures affecting parks nationwide, delaying Orion’s opening alongside the rest of the park’s.

When it finally opened, Orion became the seventh giga coaster built anywhere in the world and the third built by B&M specifically, joining the manufacturer’s short list of coasters with drops of 300 feet or more.

The 287-Foot Chain Lift Climb

From the moment the train engages the lift chain, the ascent is steady and deliberate. B&M chain lifts are designed to build anticipation rather than rush it — the climb takes roughly 30 to 40 seconds, long enough to take in sweeping views of the park, the surrounding Mason, Ohio landscape, and on clear days, the Cincinnati skyline to the south.

The chain is a continuous loop of interlocked metal links running in a trough beneath the track; a catch dog on the train’s undercarriage grabs the chain and is pulled upward until the train reaches the crest. At 287 feet, you’re at the highest vantage point in the park, with views of the Eiffel Tower replica, The Beast winding through the trees, and the full footprint of Kings Island below. Then the front of the train tips past the crest, and everything changes.

Chain Lift, Not Cable: Getting the Record Straight

Some sources describe Orion as using a cable lift. That’s incorrect — Orion uses a traditional chain lift, standard across B&M’s entire coaster lineup. Cable lifts, which replace the metal chain with a lighter wire rope, are primarily found on Intamin coasters such as Millennium Force at Cedar Point and Intimidator 305 at Kings Dominion.

The practical differences are real: cable systems run faster and handle steeper inclines, while chain lifts provide the smooth, controlled ascent B&M builds into its large-scale designs. There’s no engineering reason to use a cable system at this angle and height on Orion — the chain does the job as intended, and the slower, deliberate pace is part of the ride experience.

Orion’s Drop Height: 300 Feet at 85 Degrees

Orion’s first drop measures 300 feet — 13 feet more than the 287-foot lift hill — because the valley at the bottom is excavated below the surrounding terrain. The train doesn’t fall to ground level; it plunges into a low point carved into the earth, and those extra feet are what push Orion into giga coaster territory.

The drop angle is 85 degrees, five degrees short of vertical. At that pitch, riders in the front row get significant ejector airtime over the crest before the train rockets through the valley at 91 mph. The overbanked turn that immediately follows hits with substantial positive g-forces, a sharp contrast to the weightlessness of the plunge itself.

Is Orion a Giga Coaster?

Yes. A giga coaster is defined by a drop between 300 and 399 feet, and Orion qualifies because its first drop is exactly 300 feet — even though its lift hill stands only 287 feet. It’s the drop measurement, not the structure height, that places a coaster in the giga class.

When Orion opened in July 2020, it was the seventh giga coaster in the world, joining Millennium Force (Cedar Point, 2000), Intimidator 305 (Kings Dominion, 2010), Leviathan (Canada’s Wonderland, 2012), and Fury 325 (Carowinds, 2015). Among B&M-built giga coasters specifically, Orion is the third. B&M internally classifies it under their Hyper Coaster model designation, but Kings Island markets it as a giga coaster, and by the widely accepted industry definition — a 300-foot-plus drop — it qualifies.

The Rest of the Layout

After the first drop, Orion delivers seven more hills across 5,321 feet of track. The design prioritizes sustained speed and airtime over complexity — there are zero inversions. Standout moments include a pair of sweeping overbanked turns, a high-speed run along the rear perimeter of the park, and a sequence of camelback hills that produce consistent out-of-seat float.

Total ride time is approximately three minutes. Trains seat 32 riders each across eight cars with four-across open seating, and Kings Island can run up to three trains simultaneously. At full throughput, Orion cycles approximately 1,650 riders per hour — strong capacity for a coaster of this scale.

Orion’s Height Requirement

Riders must be at least 54 inches (4.5 feet) tall to ride Orion, per the ride’s official height policy. That’s a common threshold for the largest B&M hypercoasters and gigas, matching the requirement on many of the tallest, fastest coasters in North America.

Height and other rider requirements can change, so confirm current policies on the official Kings Island Orion page before your visit, especially if you’re planning around a younger or shorter rider in your group.

Area 72: The Setting Around the Climb

Orion anchors Area 72, Kings Island’s sci-fi-themed section built around the ride’s launch. The queue and station lean into the coaster’s Orion-constellation theming — retro-futuristic signage and a sense that riders are boarding a mission rather than just a coaster — before the lift hill takes over and the scale of the ride speaks for itself.

Orion Kings Island stats and specs FAQs

What are Orion’s stats at Kings Island?

Orion has a 287-foot lift hill, a 300-foot first drop at 85 degrees, a top speed of 91 mph, 5,321 feet of track, 8 hills, 0 inversions, a roughly 3-minute ride time, and a 54-inch height requirement.

When did Orion open?

Orion opened at Kings Island on July 2, 2020, after the park’s season was delayed by COVID-19. It became the seventh giga coaster in the world at the time of its debut.

How tall is Orion?

Orion’s lift hill and overall structure stand 287 feet tall. Its first drop, however, measures 300 feet because the track descends into an excavated valley below the surrounding ground level.

How tall is the Orion at Kings Island compared to other giga coasters?

At 287 feet of structure height and a 300-foot drop, Orion is on the shorter end of the giga coaster class, which spans 300-399-foot drops. Fury 325 at Carowinds, for comparison, has a 325-foot drop.

Is Orion a giga coaster?

Yes. Giga coasters are defined by a drop of 300 to 399 feet, and Orion’s first drop measures exactly 300 feet, qualifying it despite a 287-foot lift hill height.

What is Orion’s drop height?

Orion’s first drop is 300 feet, taken at an 85-degree angle, reaching a top speed of 91 mph at the bottom of the valley.

What is the height requirement for Orion?

Riders must be at least 54 inches tall to ride Orion, per Kings Island’s official ride policy.

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