PKI should consider...

[pyrocoasterkid]

I would give the link to the Sandusky Register page, but you have to be a member to login and read the article, so I found the article elsewhere.

Anyway, while most parks, PKI included, are jacking up prices everywhere, CP is dropping them, even on food. Some of the prices have been cut in half! Read the article for specifics:

CP drops prices everywhere

But wow, what an ingenious plan. This is along side of their cheaper admissions. I think PKI should consider lowering their prices too, because some of it is just getting out of hand. I'm almost jealous looking at the prices and the cuts of the food at CP! What do you all think?

[flightoffear1996]

I just heard this from my mom that PKI is planning to raise prices even more this season.

[jzarley]

The related benefit of CF's price drops (and, which never occurred to me until I made reservations) is the corresponding price breaks in CP's package deals.

The late August package (which I always do) has dropped from about $360 for the basic room at the Breakers to just $313! So, for just over $300 (TOTAL), you get:

--Two nights (double occupancy) at the Hotel Breakers;

--Two Twilight (after 4p) admissions to the park;

--Two full-day admissions to the park;

--50% off admission at Soak City (basically, it's a "buy one-get one free" dealie...);

--10% off at selected restaurants;

--$30 in Cedar Point "Munch Money"

So, I actually upgraded to the nicer room (in the tower with a balcony) for just $427. It's an absolutely fantastic deal for what you get. (The package at the Sandcastle is in the same low-to-mid $300 range too...I just prefer the Breakers.)

If you've never gone to CP and stayed at one of the onsite resorts, I HIGHLY recommend it. You don't even feel like you're in Ohio anymore!

[WooferBearATL]

It's actually a relatively simple concept that anyone at the park should understand. High prices for parking and at the gate discourage guest from coming to the park.

If you discourage guest from walking through the gate, you are not able to generate sales within the park.

Once a guest comes into the park, you don't want them to leave the park. You can't generate more sales if they look at the price of a soft drink and they think "I could buy a case of "X" Beverage for that.

It's something the park learned the hard way with Winterfest.

I believe that these extreme increases in price too shall pass.

[jzarley]

Yes, but that's the classic quandry of yield management...the challenge of balancing price and traffic to maximize revenue.

When I was in the hotel business it was a constant battle between rate and occupancy. It was difficult sometimes to teach managers that running 100% occupancy wasn't necessarily the best thing for the business...sometimes it was better for the bottom line to run 85% with a higher rate, than a full house at a lower rate.

Cedar Fair is a good example of this...they've had two years in a row of declining or flat attendance, yet their revenue has increased both years because of increased per capita spending. However, I imagine they've been studying those curves very carefully and realized that they were very close to moving in the opposite direction. So, it made sense to lower prices to try to "buy back" some attendance.

Paramount on the other hand has had two straight years of growing attendance (chain-wide, anyway), and probably think they're leaving some money on the table and that they can increase revenue by raising prices, even if that means taking a hit on attendance. (Also, any revenue growth right now will look good to any potential buyers...)

Six Flags...well, I think those guys are just so desperate for generating cash flow to service the debt right now that they need to give price increases a shot. (After all, giving away the gate in previous several seasons didn't seem to work too well...)

Just my $0.02 anyway...

[Captain Picard]

I agree when and if the attendance drops the price will too. This will be when they need a new attraction also.

If high price makes a short line I will be happy to pay. I buy A express pass when I go to HHN and it is worth the high price.

[The New England Snapper]

once again the POINT does something BIGGER and BETTER than us!

[Gordon Bombay]

THe point has also been estimated to have had attendance drops in recent years while KI has had attendance raises in the recent years. It will be interesting to see if this strategy works out for CP and keep in mind Paramount parks are being sold and want to make their bottom line look better so theyre trying to generate more money.

[The New England Snapper]

THe point has also been estimated to have had attendance drops in recent years while KI has had attendance raises in the recent years. It will be interesting to see if this strategy works out for CP and keep in mind Paramount parks are being sold and want to make their bottom line look better so theyre trying to generate more money.

just to let you know PKI took a HUGE blow in attendance this last year! So did Cedar Point but before you say something like "In recent years our Attendance has gone up and Cedar Points has decreased"! Make sure you know all your facts! Bc PKI's Attendace was almost down by 1 mill last year!

[Gordon Bombay]

^But still up unitll alst year was stilla t a steady increase while Cedar Point over the past few years has had a steady decrease, if you read what I said I wasnt just basing it off last year and didnt we beat CP in attendance last year still?

[jzarley]

Make sure you know all your facts! Bc PKI's Attendace was almost down by 1 mill last year!

How did you come up with that number? The only published reports of attendance (and, yes, I mean AB's "mystery" numbers) listed PKI's 2005 attendance at 3.3 million, down from slightly over 3.5 mil in 2004, for a drop of a little more than 5%. A million person decrease would have been more like a 28% drop in attendance.

The chain as a whole reported a substantial increase in attendance (thanks to Wonderland) for 2005.

[crazypkikid2005]

haha a 1 million attendance decrease.....the park probably wouldnt have even opened after a drop like that. 1 million, thats so funny

[WooferBearATL]

A 1 Million Visitor decrease would be devestating for any park. I don't think that anyone could substantiate that any park that is open today has taken that kind of hit.

I think that Vegas has always taken the right attitude towards marketing. Offer your hotel rooms at any price (even if its $5 per night) to get guest in. You have to have the guests in to generate revenue.

[The Interpreter]

From 25 cent cotton candy back then at Cedar Point to $8.99 for cotton candy at Great Adventure in New Jersey in 2008. Yes, $8.99. Well, it is a tub that can be refilled free all day on the day sold, but still......(and yes, ONLY on the day sold, it comes with a wrist band the selling clerk attaches to you when you buy it....)

With the economy the way it is, food pricing in the regional seasonal parks is getting ridiculous. Sodas at Great Adventure (they would want me to say the name of the company providing them, but I won't) are $3.59 for medium and $3.99 for large. And don't EVEN ask what a souvenir bottle costs (suffice it to say it is much more than $10). Refills free on the day of purchase ONLY (again that wristband thing), and then 99 cents each the rest of the season (but only with THIS season's bottle).

Sigh.

[WooferBearATL]

From 25 cent cotton candy back then at Cedar Point to $8.99 for cotton candy at Great Adventure in New Jersey in 2008. Yes, $8.99. Well, it is a tub that can be refilled free all day on the day sold, but still......(and yes, ONLY on the day sold, it comes with a wrist band the selling clerk attaches to you when you buy it....)

With the economy the way it is, food pricing in the regional seasonal parks is getting ridiculous. Sodas at Great Adventure (they would want me to say the name of the company providing them, but I won't) are $3.59 for medium and $3.99 for large. And don't EVEN ask what a souvenir bottle costs (suffice it to say it is much more than $10). Refills free on the day of purchase ONLY (again that wristband thing), and then 99 cents each the rest of the season (but only with THIS season's bottle).

Sigh.

Souvenir is still a good deal for season pass holders.

[The Interpreter]

Until...they want to ride a coaster at Six Flags....no loose articles on the rides nor can they be left in the station. The ONLY exception is flip-flop shoes. For ANYTHING else, you must rent a locker for $1 for two hours. And security stands at every ride to search guests for possible profi...er, loose articles upon entry to the queue. A souvenir bottle is a loose article...a bottle of soda purchased from the machine in the queue line is a loose article....I am told there are many upset and irritated patrons at Ye Olde Six Flags parks this season, due to this profi...er safety policy.