The Kōmbo Family Coaster at the Indianapolis Zoo is a highly unique family coaster by Zierer opened in 2001. At 24 feet in height and 21 mph on 656 feet of track Kombo’s stats from the zoo’s website won’t wow anyone, but it’s spectacular attention to theme and a few neat quirks make it a unique and fun offering in a surprising place. The day I went was a “school” day and so the park was pretty empty meaning I got one of the first “zen” rides (only rider on the train) I can remember in a long time.

This review is based off the fact I was in Indianapolis for work and staying at the J.W. Marriott Hotel, just 0.5 miles from the Indianapolis Zoo and its Kombo Family Coaster. I didn’t have much time so I stopped on my way into town and with parking, zoo ticket and ride ticket it made my final cost $48.75 (anything for a credit). I spent about an hour total there, but could have probably gotten to the coaster and back in about 30 minutes including time for buying a ticket and pictures. The other 30 minutes I enjoyed looking at some of the amazing animals at the zoo. The ride is in the back corner of the park relative to the entrance, so expect a bit of a walk, but the zoo is beautiful.

With regard to quirks there are several. First this ride was donated to the Indianapolis Zoo by the Jones Family. That’s such a cool gift to the community, I wish more people donated roller coasters to their favorite locations. It is also odd numerically in that it has a 47″ height requirement. I’m used to 36″ or 48″, but 47″ is an uncommon one for me. It also has an “odd” train literally in that there are 13 rows for 26 riders total. This train is long and massive with a reported hourly capacity of 1400 riders/hour which is crazy for a kiddie coaster. It’s name is also unique with the “ō” giving “Kōmbo” instead of “Kombo” called a “macron” giving it a long sound. I’ll refer to it both ways here as people searching for info will probably use more of the English spelling. The term “kōmbo” is most often correlated to the historical Kōmbo Kingdom in Gambia, but can also mean a water well or be an African greeting.

The ride itself is a pretty basic kiddie coaster. It has a wheel drive lift and goes through some twists and turns. No crazy forces here, just fun. You also get to run the course twice which is great. The course itself is great with trees, grasses and small hills helping camouflage some of the track. For $4 it’s not a bad deal at all for a ride. The precautions sign in front of the ride calls it “mildly turbulent featuring moderate speeds, sudden turns and drops.” and mildly turbulent featuring moderate speeds seems like an accurate description. The trains themselves are setup like jeeps and are very comfortable. They look great too and I love how the back of the seats look like gas cans. If you want to check out an old POV of the ride, the one from Theme Park Review is great.

The rest of the zoo is really quite nice. It is obvious the Indianapolis Zoo has had a tremendous amount of money put into it to modernize the facility. There are several unique things that are not to be missed at the zoo. One of the first is the huge dolphin building that offers both a presentation as well as an excellent underwater viewing area. The zoo also has a huge garden area with a butterfly conservatory. Up until 2006 the adjacent White River Gardens were actually a separate entity, but they’re now merged into the zoo, so you’re getting two for the price of one. There are also huge modern public congregation areas with views of the animals that serve food and beverages, including alcohol. This makes the zoo a great hang spot for more than just kids.

If you’re just here for the rides, there are 3 other rides at the park, however one of them is currently closed due to construction. There’s of course a train, because I think it’s got to be a rule that every zoo has a train or so it seems. There’s also a carousel, another common staple at zoos, but this one is called the “Endangered Species Carousel” and themed as such. The final ride is the Skyline transporter ride. It is currently closed for what appears to be construction near some of its supports, but not actual construction on the ride itself. This ride soars over a whole section of the park hanging from elevated track from gondolas. It looks great and I’m sad I didn’t get a chance to experience it and it runs right near Kombo with their loading stations essentially being neighbors. I’m sure you get some great coaster and animal views from up there.

Kōmbo is an incredible kiddie coaster, maybe one of the best out there for theme. There are no thrills to be had here like laterals or airtime, but what you do have is a beautiful coaster in a beautiful place. Indianapolis is a bit of a coaster desert in that you’ll need to go somewhere a couple hours away like Six Flags Great America, Kentucky Kingdom, Holiday World or Indiana Beach to find a true thrill coaster. Therefore, this will probably be the first coaster for a lot of kids in Indianapolis and they will probably have some high expectations after riding Kombo.

There is really not much of anything the Indianapolis Zoo could have done better here, given the constraints of a kiddie coaster what they did with the location and theming is about as perfect an experience as you can expect. One final note, Kōmbo is generally open mid-March through October, so plan your trip accordingly.