Doing Things The Cedar Fair Way

[GADVwow]

http://www.sanduskyregister.com/articles/2008/05/04/front/748470.txt

This "fact," attributed to Dennis Speigel, but not a direct quote, is almost certainly a misstatement of what he said:

...This makes them more dependent on season pass holders -- which is why Speigel believes Kings Island saw attendance drop by about 2 million last year when Cedar Fair "pulled the season pass rug out from under them."

Kings Island did not see attendance drop by 2,000,000.  If it had, heads would be rolling everywhere, as that is more than half of the highest annual attendance ever achieved in that park.

And this:

...."In the past, parking could only come with season pass renewals, and now we offer it with our Platinum pass ($150 for one adult)," he said. "In past years, it was just the five Paramount parks people could visit with a Platinum pass, and now it's all 18 of the Cedar Fair parks."....

That's also either a misstatement of very sloppy quoting by the Register (I suspect it is the latter.)  You COULD buy parking without getting a season pass renewal.  And that whole statement, as quoted, is very, very misleading.

As for 40 percent season pass attendance, at Kings Island I suspect the figure is even higher.  The 40 percent is an average of the former Paramount Parks.  Note that every other former Paramount Park reduced the prices of season passes this year after the prices were initially announced...except Kings Island.  Obviously, Cedar Fair would still be happier if there were fewer season passholders and more day attenders at Kings Island.

Mr. Speigel also said:

..."The Cedar Point people misread the market," Speigel said. "Season pass holders spend less in the park because they know how to visit and know how to conserve, but they still spend money on drinks, snacks and food,"...

How many times have we read here about people, mostly season passholders, looking for ways to keep from buying, as one poster so aptly put it, the overpriced drinks, the overpriced snacks, and the overpriced food?  I'd also add the overpriced merchandise.  There is such a thing as raising the in park items so high that it not only drives down per caps but also drives down revisits.  I, for one, think Cedar Fair is there and past it...and the worst is yet to come.