family

On Taking Unconventional Dates…

This post contains affiliate links. We may earn compensation when you click on the links at no additional cost to you.

Kia Ride and Drive

Parenting three kids with such a broad range of ages creates unique situations and some pretty awesome perks. One of which is that our older two make perfect babysitters. Long gone are the days where we have to line up a babysitter if Pete and I want to spend some time together, not that we take advantage of this nearly as often as we should, but it’s nice to know that option is there.

Last Sunday we actually did take a quick getaway. We drove up together to Six Flags Magic Mountain for the Kia Ride & Drive Event. 

These events are pretty awesome and so convenient. What they do is offer park visitors a chance to experience the full line up of vehicles and take them for quick test drives. You also have a knowledgeable Kia representative there to answer all of your questions and show you all of the awesome features.

20160529_082710

Knowing that I am one of the biggest Kia Sedona fans out there, Kia sent over a Sedona for us to drive up in and sponsored this post. Pete and I set off from our home in San Diego and about two and a half hours later we were up at Magic Mountain.

20160529_085808

Driving the Kia Sedona made for an easy drive up… and I still love all of the features that are in the Sedona. For instance the Navigation that shows the speed limit, adaptive cruise control, and the backup camera with a 365 degree view. The kids LOVE that the middle seats recline… and I joked that I was going to nap in one of those seats on the way back from our little date. That didn’t end up happening, but aside from more dates with Pete, a nap would also be really great!

Six Flags

When we arrived at Six Flags, we easily saw the Kia area and there were a lot of friendly Kia people waiting to share their enthusiasm with everyone.  

six flags kia

After we filled out a little bit of paperwork, and had our drivers licenses scanned, we were shown to the area to take a breathalyzer. This was a first for both of us and although I might appear long winded (ha!), I learned I’m not really, when it took two attempts to blow enough air into the devise to get our results. Pete and I joked that this was a first for both of us, and a very unique way to have a date! We obviously got the all clear and were ready to test drive some cars!  I am so glad that Kia does this. They take safety seriously in all aspects and this just solidified that again for us, plus it gave us a good laugh and that’s always a good thing!

test drive kia cars

We enjoyed a cold bottle of water and then our car was waiting for us.

new 2017 kia sportage review

We chose two cars we haven’t driven of Kia’s before. The all new 2017 Sportage, and the Kia K900. Guess who chose which one. 

2017 Kia Sprotage

If you guessed that I would want to drive the new Sportage and Pete the K900, you are right!

kia 2017 sportage

The Sportage was much bigger inside than I thought it would be.  It is probably not the best choice for someone with three kids, two of which are teens, but if that were not the case I would totally drive this car…especially with all the bells and whistles you can purchase it with. It drove awesome too. I’m vertically challenged (okay, I’m short) and  I could see out of it really well, and the power that it had was remarkable. I really enjoyed it.

2017 kia sportage updates

Pete was documenting it for our videos… and he was impressed at how much trunk space it had. 

kia k900 review

Then it was time for the K900. We are luxury car owners and Pete is an aficionado in all things luxury sedans so this was at the top of his list to drive. I wondered what he would think… and he gave it two thumbs up. Not literally because he doesn’t do the thumbs up thing, Maddie does that, but figuratively he gave it that. He really liked it. He said there was nothing lacking from it that he has in his car and that there were only added bonuses. We aren’t looking to replace his car right now, but he said it would definitely be on his list if we were. I sat in the back seat and I thought it was very nice back there. Each seat even has it’s own control system for climate and the seats even reclined back there. It felt really big and roomy too.

luxury k900 kia review

20160529_114127

I tested out the front seat too. It was really nice. We could totally see ourselves going on a weekend getaway sans kids and driving the K900 to make it even more special. I almost forgot to mention the sound system! It might have been the best one I’ve ever heard!

Bugs Bunny Bucks

After our test drives were over, we were given $10 Bugs Bunny Bucks to use in the park. We unfortunately didn’t have time to make this a whole day date, but it sure was a nice morning together. 

This was just the icing on the cake.  The best part of the Kia Ride & Drive events are how easy they make test driving the cars. They had the full fleet for you to experience. I saw how impressed people where that had never been in a Kia before. If you haven’t been in a Kia recently, prepare to be impressed! 

Here is a video of our Kia Ride & Drive:

There will be more Ride and Drive events happening at other Six Flags so be sure to take advantage of them when they come to your area.

Have you driven a Kia lately?

Heather Reese
the authorHeather Reese
Heather Delaney Reese is the storyteller and photographer behind the lifestyle and family travel blog, It's a Lovely Life®! For the past decade, she has vacationed over 150 days a year with her family. She is a vegan, and loves being by the water, spending time with her children, husband, 2 Shih Tzus and Cat.

45 Comments

  • I’ve never driven a Kia, but it looks like a great family car. It seems like there is something for everyone. Plus, it looks very comfy, which is a must for family car rides.

  • I rented a KIA Sedona to drive cross country a few years ago. We loved it! It was roomy enough for five of us to stretch out and all of our luggage, plus it was pretty gas efficient.

  • I loved my Kia but unfortunately a component in the motor went bad earlier this year and I had to get rid of it. It was a sad moment seeing it go but it did have 172k+ miles on it so we had a good ride together.

  • What fun to have a car for the day perfect for a little getaway!! Never been to a Six Flags before, would love to go!!

  • We are the extremely happy owners of a 2012 Kia Sorento. Our car has been a dream and we plan to upgrade to a new 2017 soon.

  • I love that you all snuck away to Six Flags! We all need that time away just for fun! Looks like KIA is a great company we are looking for a new car now we will have to check this out.

  • You’re just south of me! I’ve lots of family in San Diego. I haven’t driven a Kia but the people I know that have one love it. I too love when a navigation system tells us the speed limit.

  • You know, I wouldn’t mind a date day like that, myself 🙂 Ha! It seems like y’all not only got some QT, but got to have some fun and learn a lot. Thanks for sharing with us.

  • We own two Kias and love them. They are affordable and very reliable cars.

  • I have never driven a Kia before. That looks like such a great vehicle though. I need something with more space for my family. This would probably be a great option for us too.

  • Now that is a sleek ride! My husband isn’t too fond of vans, but I bet he would reconsider if he saw this Kia!

  • Looks like a lot of great cars! We are Six Flags members so I’ll have to see if there is one coming to ours soon

  • I think a Ride and Drive event sounds right up my alley- I haven’t been on a ‘fun’ date in too long- driving all new Kia’s and hitting the amusement rides- what better way to enjoy an afternoon? I recently rented a Sedona and LOVED it for my road trip!

  • I am so excited to take a KIA out for a test drive. I would love to go to Six Flags Magic Mountain for an event like this.

  • Oh my goodness, I’m totally keeping an eye out on our local Six Flags to see if they’ll be doing this any time soon! My aunt has a Kia and loves it! I would love to do some test drives at one of the parks! What a fun way to spend the day.

  • As a fellow mom with young kids, I will take any date I can! This looked fun to test drive Kia cars and think about what you would like in your next car.

  • The KIA Sedona sounds really a great car. I would love to own one! What a test drive!!!

  • Dates are important in maintaining a marriage! It’s nice to know that you two make time for some alone time and with such an awesome ride as well. What a fun destination for a date!

  • What a nice ride, you too look so happy. I love travelling with my hubby too, it is very relaxing and romantic too!

  • I love this new KIA car, I hope I can buy mine someday and tour my wife around our country.

  • My brother drives a Kia. It is not his, though. It is a company car. I have never heard him complain about it so I guess it is a great vehicle. We are not yet ready to purchase a new vehicle, but we will be adding the Kia in our list to consider if and when we are ready to purchase.

  • Wow, I love the KIA Sedona, you look great together! Sounds like you two have so much fun, what a great date!

  • I test drove several Kia’s when trying to decide which car to get recently. I loved them all and I especially love the low gas mileage. It looks like your unconventional date was a hit.

  • This is such an amazing ride. Love the looks of it. Very comfortable ride indeed!

  • I’m surprised about all the trunk space myself – I always thought that the Kia Sedona was a small car 🙂

  • The Kia Sedona is indeed a great car. And I love what you did in your blogpost to weave in the story of how it made your out-of-the-ordinary date special.

  • Looks to be a very sharp vehicle! You did a wonderful job with this post!! Thank you for the great post!

  • We have 3 kids ages 9, 5, and 3. We love our van, but it is several years old. Sometimes we drive my parents new cars and it feels like we are in a time machine!

  • the car looks beautiful will give it a test drive when i visit the brand! i love white colour too!

  • Sounds like an absolutely great day for 2! The Kia Sedona is definitely on our list when we decide to replace our sedan! 🙂

  • The sportage is one I am looking at right now. We are thinking of trading in our car to get one of these since our kids are all grown up now.

Comments are closed.