Jump to content

AWESOME Beverage Deal for Passholders at KI!


BoddaH1994
 Share

Recommended Posts

Just a couple thoughts on the topics...

When I was still working at the park, granted it has been several years ago now, the COG for soft drinks was pennies. I am sure this has increased over the years, but I am guessing it is still pretty low. I am sure KI before offering the wristband deal has already worked the numbers to include a certain percentage of guests who will use the wristband to get a drink for their family or friends. I am not debating whether this is wrong or right, I am saying that KI would have this number already built-in to their margin on the wristband deal. Frankly they probably make so much margin on drinks not purchased under the wristband deal that they have room to take the hit from the all-you-can-drink program.

On Don H.'s comment about wristbands for seasonpass holders only...we have already heard on this board that associates are not asking to see season passes when supplying drinks to folks with wristbands, so I think KI would be foolish to make an issue out of someone getting extra drinks for friends or family when their own associates are not following the policy. Even if the associates did ask to see the pass, it does not stop the passholder from going to another location and getting a drink for a friend. Also, who is and how is this program policed? The associates serving the drinks should never be put in the position of policing this program, and having to confront a guest who is violating the policy. KI knows there is really no way to police this program, and I am sure they don't ever intend to do as such.

Now when I was a manager at the park, I remember that the food cost of a souvenir cup worked out to be roughly 5 cents. (Not joking about that before anyone brings up a nickel comment.)

That sounds about right! I seem to recall the costs for a small soft drink coming in somewhere around $.03 when I was still there back in 2001. That included the liquid, ice, and cup.

I have not been to the park yet this year, but I heard earlier this year that CF was going to install digital menu boards at food locations, and that the retail price of food and drinks was to be adjusted regurlarly based upon the hourly alpha. Can anyone confirm if this is or is not happening? I for one would not be too happy if I paid say $3.00 for a drink at noon , but then had to pay $3.50 for the same drink at 7pm because the net had dropped. I kind of understand the concept behind it, but not sure how this would be executed without high guest complaints.

  • Like 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

That sounds about right! I seem to recall the costs for a small soft drink coming in somewhere around $.03 when I was still there back in 2001. That included the liquid, ice, and cup.

I have not been to the park yet this year, but I heard earlier this year that CF was going to install digital menu boards at food locations, and that the retail price of food and drinks was to be adjusted regurlarly based upon the hourly alpha. Can anyone confirm if this is or is not happening? I for one would not be too happy if I paid say $3.00 for a drink at noon , but then had to pay $3.50 for the same drink at 7pm because the net had dropped. I kind of understand the concept behind it, but not sure how this would be executed without high guest complaints.

I'll hate it if they put those in, but unfortunately there's not a whole lot we can do about it. You can't just get tens of thousands of people to boycott Kings Island. And there's an even smaller chance of people not buying drinks on a hot summer day. It's all a case of Elastic/Inelastic demand.

Mental note: Thank my economics teacher.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Just a couple thoughts on the topics...

When I was still working at the park, granted it has been several years ago now, the COG for soft drinks was pennies. I am sure this has increased over the years, but I am guessing it is still pretty low. I am sure KI before offering the wristband deal has already worked the numbers to include a certain percentage of guests who will use the wristband to get a drink for their family or friends. I am not debating whether this is wrong or right, I am saying that KI would have this number already built-in to their margin on the wristband deal. Frankly they probably make so much margin on drinks not purchased under the wristband deal that they have room to take the hit from the all-you-can-drink program.

On Don H.'s comment about wristbands for seasonpass holders only...we have already heard on this board that associates are not asking to see season passes when supplying drinks to folks with wristbands, so I think KI would be foolish to make an issue out of someone getting extra drinks for friends or family when their own associates are not following the policy. Even if the associates did ask to see the pass, it does not stop the passholder from going to another location and getting a drink for a friend. Also, who is and how is this program policed? The associates serving the drinks should never be put in the position of policing this program, and having to confront a guest who is violating the policy. KI knows there is really no way to police this program, and I am sure they don't ever intend to do as such.

Now when I was a manager at the park, I remember that the food cost of a souvenir cup worked out to be roughly 5 cents. (Not joking about that before anyone brings up a nickel comment.)

That sounds about right! I seem to recall the costs for a small soft drink coming in somewhere around $.03 when I was still there back in 2001. That included the liquid, ice, and cup.

I have not been to the park yet this year, but I heard earlier this year that CF was going to install digital menu boards at food locations, and that the retail price of food and drinks was to be adjusted regurlarly based upon the hourly alpha. Can anyone confirm if this is or is not happening? I for one would not be too happy if I paid say $3.00 for a drink at noon , but then had to pay $3.50 for the same drink at 7pm because the net had dropped. I kind of understand the concept behind it, but not sure how this would be executed without high guest complaints.

Festhaus has digital boards, but I don't know of any price changes.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Just a couple thoughts on the topics...

When I was still working at the park, granted it has been several years ago now, the COG for soft drinks was pennies. I am sure this has increased over the years, but I am guessing it is still pretty low. I am sure KI before offering the wristband deal has already worked the numbers to include a certain percentage of guests who will use the wristband to get a drink for their family or friends. I am not debating whether this is wrong or right, I am saying that KI would have this number already built-in to their margin on the wristband deal. Frankly they probably make so much margin on drinks not purchased under the wristband deal that they have room to take the hit from the all-you-can-drink program.

On Don H.'s comment about wristbands for seasonpass holders only...we have already heard on this board that associates are not asking to see season passes when supplying drinks to folks with wristbands, so I think KI would be foolish to make an issue out of someone getting extra drinks for friends or family when their own associates are not following the policy. Even if the associates did ask to see the pass, it does not stop the passholder from going to another location and getting a drink for a friend. Also, who is and how is this program policed? The associates serving the drinks should never be put in the position of policing this program, and having to confront a guest who is violating the policy. KI knows there is really no way to police this program, and I am sure they don't ever intend to do as such.

Now when I was a manager at the park, I remember that the food cost of a souvenir cup worked out to be roughly 5 cents. (Not joking about that before anyone brings up a nickel comment.)

That sounds about right! I seem to recall the costs for a small soft drink coming in somewhere around $.03 when I was still there back in 2001. That included the liquid, ice, and cup.

I have not been to the park yet this year, but I heard earlier this year that CF was going to install digital menu boards at food locations, and that the retail price of food and drinks was to be adjusted regurlarly based upon the hourly alpha. Can anyone confirm if this is or is not happening? I for one would not be too happy if I paid say $3.00 for a drink at noon , but then had to pay $3.50 for the same drink at 7pm because the net had dropped. I kind of understand the concept behind it, but not sure how this would be executed without high guest complaints.

Festhaus has digital boards, but I don't know of any price changes.

^^^ Same with Jukebox diner. Everytime I've been in there this year, the prices have seemed to be the same.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

The day after this deal was announced I visited the park and asked a food associate in Festhaus about it, expecting her to know nothing of it. But to my surprise, she knew all about it. And I'm about 95% sure she told me it was just for season pass holders. I wasn't attempting to buy a wrist band, I just wanted to confirm the info about it posted on here. For once, an associate actually knew what was going on. I was impressed, especially because it was such a new thing. If I ever get a wrist band, I'm delieberately not going to show my pass unless it is asked of me, just to see if people without passes are truly slipping through the cracks. I'm also very interested to see if they scan your pass and your picture comes up when you buy a wrist band. Because, if not, the system could obviously also be exploited in that way too. Now, it's still early folks. Some problems may need to be aired out, and I'm sure they will be if you just give it another couple of weeks. I'm not sure if I'm ever going to use this. In fact, I rarely drink soda at the park unless I'm drinking it with a meal. If I ever eat two meals there a day, which, again, is rare, then I might consider it. Otherwise I have to drink water because Coke just doesn't do much for me when I'm really thirsty. However, when I have a hamburger and some fries, I must have a Coke. The same thing goes for pizza. This is truly an unbeatable deal though if you drink Coke all day long.

Now here's something that hasn't been discussed. It's something that can't really be exploited by guests but rather employees. I'm not suggesting it would happen, but the cup situations have been policed by the following procedure in the past: An associate's money at the end of the day was counted along with the number of cups they had sold. The cups were dilligently kept track of. If an associate had sold 100 cups at four dollars per cup, then they would have been expected to have 400 dollars at the end of the day. But now that no cash transaction needs to take place in order for a cup to be sold, a system that was once in place to keep employees from giving away free drinks is now pretty much broken. By the way, the fact that I'm a former employee has nothing to do with the fact that I know this information. It was divulged to me one day about three years ago by an employee at Tower Drinks or whatever it is/was called. I asked for a cup of water and she said she had no small cups and thus could not give me free water because of what she described to me as I've just described about their system. (Although she probably would've gladly given me water if I would've forked over about $3.50.) A couple weeks later, I was given some free water in a 20 oz. cup by an associate in Festhaus. However, I was pretty sure that he was new. So a rare free water in a big cup occured. But my only point I guess is that a system that they so actively had faith in is now gone because of this new deal. That reason maybe above all others is why I am kind of surprised they are doing this.

So I've commented, I've concerned, and now I will question: what size are these drinks that they will give to you for "free" if you pay a one-time fee of $6.99 plus tax? Can you get either a medium or a large or will they just give you a particular size? And I've read over all the posts on this topic to see if there are any hints about the sizes, but I couldn't find that information.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

i have a question... although some say that non pass holders can in fact buy a drink wristband, i do not wish to encourage that. I want to know if it is just 1 wristband per season pass, or you just have to be a season pass holder to take advantage of this deal? Im going to Cedar Point (which also has this deal, i just checked pointbuzz forums) and would like to know if i can buy them for friends with my pass, or if they just simply cannot buy one unless they have a platinum pass...

Link to comment
Share on other sites

i have a question... although some say that non pass holders can in fact buy a drink wristband, i do not wish to encourage that. I want to know if it is just 1 wristband per season pass, or you just have to be a season pass holder to take advantage of this deal? Im going to Cedar Point (which also has this deal, i just checked pointbuzz forums) and would like to know if i can buy them for friends with my pass, or if they just simply cannot buy one unless they have a platinum pass...

What you can do...

What you should do...

What you may be permitted to do...

What you may be able to do....

They're all different things.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

well then what am i permitted to do? i would just like to know if it is ok for me to buy more drink wristbands for people in my group using my platinum pass, that is all. If i cant, i wont try it, but i didnt see anything about whether buying a wristband for a non-pass member being a pass member yourself was against the rules or not.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I would contact Cedar Point before assuming they have a similar deal. It was only mentioned on Point Buzz by one person. There's no mention of it anywhere on cedarpoint.com, and I was at the park yesterday, and I saw no evidence or signs of a deal like this there.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

One would assume it's one wristband per season pass. However, both times I've bought wristbands this year, my pass wasn't checked. Very inconsistent but that's what you get when there's at least 4 or more different places you can get the wristbands.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Looks like the price for the Unlimited Drink wristbands has been increased. It now says $8.99 on the website.

Ugh. I knew this would eventually be too good to be true. Now your talking close to $10 with tax... still a deal, but now it's not necessarily something I will buy every time. Before, it payed for itself with two drinks. Now you gotta figure unless your planning on getting 3 or more drinks in a day, not including water, its not really worth it. But hey, $10 is better then no deal at all.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

If the price increase is true, then well just refill our souvenir cup. Another Gold Pass perk being adjusted to the parks favor to the point it should not be considered a Gold Pass perk.

Although if they charged the general admissions guests $8.99 for a wristbands and kept the Gold Pass wristbands to $6.99, that would be a real perk.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

If the price increase is true, then well just refill our souvenir cup. Another Gold Pass perk being adjusted to the parks favor to the point it should not be considered a Gold Pass perk.

Although if they charged the general admissions guests $8.99 for a wristbands and kept the Gold Pass wristbands to $6.99, that would be a real perk.

Don't let me hear that you are sharing the beverage in that souvenir cup.

That cup was sold to one person and one person only.

Remember, Don and the Pop Police will be watching!

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Well I mostly drink water but yeah I take a few drinks from that souvenir cup and am not worried about cheating the system from those sips either. Especially after being told someone did not run wristbands to a particular stand a couple weeks ago so we had to pay full price all day, the supervisor only made suggestions on how I could pay more for their problem. So since they don’t play nice to remedy their shortcomings, I won’t feel guilty for a few sips in a shared souvenir cup.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Guest kwindshawne
Well I mostly drink water but yeah I take a few drinks from that souvenir cup and am not worried about cheating the system from those sips either. Especially after being told someone did not run wristbands to a particular stand a couple weeks ago so we had to pay full price all day, the supervisor only made suggestions on how I could pay more for their problem. So since they don’t play nice to remedy their shortcomings, I won’t feel guilty for a few sips in a shared souvenir cup.

Wow...for real? That was crappy-they should have sent someone to get them.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

And last I checked, this same deal is available to every patron at Holiday World, and the price has not increased...it's still an additional charge per person of $0.00.

Well you do pay for your drinks with your ticket so its not free like they say.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

And last I checked, this same deal is available to every patron at Holiday World, and the price has not increased...it's still an additional charge per person of $0.00.

Well you do pay for your drinks with your ticket so its not free like they say.

Exactly. Having free drinks, free parking and free sun screen from a park that charges $39.95 for admission when they really should be charging no more than $25 is the least they can do.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

And last I checked, this same deal is available to every patron at Holiday World, and the price has not increased...it's still an additional charge per person of $0.00.

Well you do pay for your drinks with your ticket so its not free like they say.

Exactly. Having free drinks, free parking and free sun screen from a park that charges $39.95 for admission when they really should be charging no more than $25 is the least they can do.

The least they can do?

So should we be determining what parks should be charging and what is the least they can do now? So what should the price for WDW be? Or Universal? Or Even Kings Island? Seems that with KI's pricing integrity that you can get in for mere nickels (depending on what park of the area you're in). I tell ya Boddah, maybe you're having a bad evening but this is the second cranky post that I've read from you this morning. We could actually say "that's great that "X" park does that - but "Kings Island" is doing what it feels is necessary.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

And need I point out Indiana Beach is setting attendance records this year, Holiday World is reportedly setting attendance records this year, Kennywood is setting attendance records this year, and for the first time in recent memory, I see Kings Island offering STEEPLY discounted tickets at Kroger in July and August, and even the United States Postal Service is now giving out discount coupons for Kings Island in some areas. I also hear Mr. Kinzel saying that other former Paramount Parks are doing well...and then listen to him list every single former Paramount Park except one. Which one? Kings Island, where else?

Holiday World is far from my favorite park, but it is difficult to impossible NOT to point out the difference in price between the free Pepsi all day deal at Holiday World and Kings Island's "AWESOME" (Ryan's words and capitalization, not mine) deal for all you can drink Coke...

Gee, what does parking cost at Holiday World? A hamburger? Fries? Pizza? And what do comparable items cost at Kings Island compared to the smaller parks? And where are many people spending their nickels?

As for Ryan's admission pricing argument, what does the typical guest actually pay to get into Holiday World? And what does the typical guest actually pay to get into Kings Island? With all the discount deals, groups, season passes (which are MUCH more expensive at Holiday World than at most parks, by the way), etc., I suspect the real gate price is not all that different between the two parks, except for the parking fee at Kings Island. I strongly suspect the average adult guest at both parks gets in for somewhat less than $30.

With all the intense and expert marketing and events the park has done this summer, you would think Kings Island's attendance would be drastically up. You would think Mr. Kinzel would be trumpeting this fact during every conference call. Instead, Kings Island is rarely mentioned. Perhaps this is one of the major reasons the 2009 investment is being made. It had best pay off in increased attendance and spending, and more so than Maverick did at Cedar Point...or lenders and investors are going to start asking Mr. Kinzel some very difficult questions...if he is even still there to interrogate.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

And need I point out Indiana Beach is setting attendance records this year, Holiday World is reportedly setting attendance records this year, Kennywood is setting attendance records this year, and for the first time in recent memory, I see Kings Island offering STEEPLY discounted tickets at Kroger in July and August, and even the United States Postal Service is now giving out discount coupons for Kings Island in some areas. I also hear Mr. Kinzel saying that other former Paramount Parks are doing well...and then listen to him list every single former Paramount Park except one. Which one? Kings Island, where else?

Holiday World is far from my favorite park, but it is difficult to impossible NOT to point out the difference in price between the free Pepsi all day deal at Holiday World and Kings Island's "AWESOME" (Ryan's words and capitalization, not mine) deal for all you can drink Coke...

Gee, what does parking cost at Holiday World? A hamburger? Fries? Pizza? And what do comparable items cost at Kings Island compared to the smaller parks? And where are many people spending their nickels?

As for Ryan's admission pricing argument, what does the typical guest actually pay to get into Holiday World? And what does the typical guest actually pay to get into Kings Island? With all the discount deals, groups, season passes (which are MUCH more expensive at Holiday World than at most parks, by the way), etc., I suspect the real gate price is not all that different between the two parks, except for the parking fee at Kings Island. I strongly suspect the average adult guest at both parks gets in for somewhat less than $30.

With all the intense and expert marketing and events the park has done this summer, you would think Kings Island's attendance would be drastically up. You would think Mr. Kinzel would be trumpeting this fact during every conference call. Instead, Kings Island is rarely mentioned. Perhaps this is one of the major reasons the 2009 investment is being made. It had best pay off in increased attendance and spending, and more so than Maverick did at Cedar Point...or lenders and investors are going to start asking Mr. Kinzel some very difficult questions...if he is even still there to interrogate.

Have a Coke and a Smile?

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Kudos to all of you for keeping me very entertained on a hot day in July. This thread is hilarious and frustrating all at the same time.

I would like to say that when at the park this past Monday, July 28, I did not purchase a wristband because I don't like to drink soda when it's so hot. Our family has Gold Passes, the couple that went with us does not have them. We had been at the park for about 30 mins or so when our friend walks over to us and shows us her wristband that she bought for unlimited drinks. I made a statement to her that I thought you had to have a pass to purchase them. I'm trying to call her now and find out where she bought it at because I didn't ask Monday, but the cashier told her about the deal and she bought one. WITHOUT BEING A PASSHOLDER.

Later in the afternoon she said that she was going to get a drink. I gave her $8 to get me a bottled water and buy my daughter a small Sprite. When she came back I got $4 and change back. I asked what happened and she said that the cashier didn't charge her for either of the 20oz drinks because she had a wristband. He gave her two drinks becuase of one wristband. Is it stealing from the park when you TRY to pay for a drink and they don't charge you? I walked back to the stand to try and pay but didn't want to wait in the line so I didn't. This was at the drink/popcorn stand across from Dodgem at the corner of BLST.

My thoughts are this. If you wanna get upset becuase people take advantage of the wristbands, then let's get some consistancy in the system and find a way to enforce the rules. Rules are only good if you use and enforce them. If you wanna get upset becuase the park assumes that you will be smart enough to get the fact that one wristband should work for one person, well you just need to go back to Kindergarden and learn about honesty again. Finally, I don't see why they wouldn't just change the policy to offer everyone who visits the wristbands. It would eliminate the need to "card" anyone and in the end I think they would make more money. Actually it would seem that this is already being offered to everyone as I yet have to hear of anyone being asked to produce a season pass to buy one. Have a great day!

Link to comment
Share on other sites

The least they can do?

So should we be determining what parks should be charging and what is the least they can do now? So what should the price for WDW be? Or Universal? Or Even Kings Island? Seems that with KI's pricing integrity that you can get in for mere nickels (depending on what park of the area you're in). I tell ya Boddah, maybe you're having a bad evening but this is the second cranky post that I've read from you this morning. We could actually say "that's great that "X" park does that - but "Kings Island" is doing what it feels is necessary.

Epic LOL. I'm always cranky. Had you bothered to come to the event last year, you'd know that. :rolleyes:

And need I point out Indiana Beach is setting attendance records this year, Holiday World is reportedly setting attendance records this year, Kennywood is setting attendance records this year, and for the first time in recent memory, I see Kings Island offering STEEPLY discounted tickets at Kroger in July and August, and even the United States Postal Service is now giving out discount coupons for Kings Island in some areas. I also hear Mr. Kinzel saying that other former Paramount Parks are doing well...and then listen to him list every single former Paramount Park except one. Which one? Kings Island, where else?

Holiday World is far from my favorite park, but it is difficult to impossible NOT to point out the difference in price between the free Pepsi all day deal at Holiday World and Kings Island's "AWESOME" (Ryan's words and capitalization, not mine) deal for all you can drink Coke...

Gee, what does parking cost at Holiday World? A hamburger? Fries? Pizza? And what do comparable items cost at Kings Island compared to the smaller parks? And where are many people spending their nickels?

The fact of the matter is, neither you nor I know what attendance is like at Kings Island this year. I can tell you that the park has seemed busier than usual these past few months.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Join the conversation

You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.
Note: Your post will require moderator approval before it will be visible.

Guest
Reply to this topic...

×   Pasted as rich text.   Paste as plain text instead

  Only 75 emoji are allowed.

×   Your link has been automatically embedded.   Display as a link instead

×   Your previous content has been restored.   Clear editor

×   You cannot paste images directly. Upload or insert images from URL.

 Share

  • Recently Browsing   0 members

    • No registered users viewing this page.
×
×
  • Create New...