(File Photo: Source for Photo: In this photo made on Saturday, Aug. 29, 2020, visitors ride the Wave Swinger in the “Lost Kennywood” section of Kennywood Park in West Mifflin, Pa. Visitors have been slow to return to U.S. theme parks that saw their seasons interrupted by the coronavirus crisis, causing some parks to reduce their operating days, slash ticket prices and close early for the year. (AP Photo/Keith Srakocic)

Noah Haswell, Beaver County Radio News

(Pittsburgh, PA) Idlewild and SoakZone, along with Kennywood and Sandcastle have announced opening dates for their 2025 seasons. Idewild kicks off its season on May 17th while both SoakZone and Sandcastle will both start operations on May 24th. Kennywood will begin its season on April 12th. The parks will also be under new ownership after a sale. Herschend, who owns parks like Dollywood, agreed to receive the parks from Parques Reunidos, who sold all its Palace Entertainment properties in the United States. Herschend will get twenty venues of entertainment in this deal located across ten of the fifty states. The sale and its terms have not been finalized at this time.