2015 Dining Plan options announced

^when I had a Platinum Pass ('13-'14) I got more than my moneys worth just from admission to CP/SC and parking alone. The only other perk I really used was challenge park discounts

The best things about having the platinum pass are free parking, and admission to any park. It's encouraged me to visit not only the Ohio parks but KD, Carowinds, Valleyfair, Michigan's Adventure, and Knotts. Not every year, but usually at least one different park a season. I've already had 2 days at Carowinds this year and that was before the Ohio parks were even open.
It would be good for the folks here that visit nowhere but CP to try some others, and several of the parks I listed can be reached in a day's drive or less.

I got the dining plan and I agree KI has the better options, but I get there more often than CP lately anyway, so it's fine.

Well, I just purchased my family platinum passes with dining! I figure the pain will wear off after this weekend, we are going Saturday, Sunday, and Monday.

So how bad is the line for passes when the park first opens this Saturday?

Historically it has been a very long line. But I think they made many improvements in the season pass process, both in capacity and technology over the last couple years, so it might not be bad at all anymore..

Walking past Chick-fil-A, I noticed it is now part of the dinning plan, though the dinning plan option is not working yet.

I just walked by there. Must have missed that. I'm curious if Subway and Chickie's and Pete's will follow since they are available at some of the other parks. I know I'm trying out Red Garter tonight.

Chick Fil A was closed when we walked past it His afternoon. I had to leave the park early today though, so I'm not sure if it opened up at a certain time, or what.

To follow up on Pete's observation on the addition of Chick Fil A to the dining plan, I also saw that both Panda Express and Subway also have the all season dining plan stickers but are not active yet. Didn't notice if Chickie's and Pete's was included. It was closed when we just walked by.

Subway was active today and I also saw that Midway Market is also back on the All-Season Dining Plan. I think its available for an extra $5 with the all day and All-Season Dining Plan. With these latest additions, the dining plan is an exceptional value.

I am so glad I read this topic, stupid me thought that dining plan was the same as last year and we were not going to get it because we plan on visiting both CP and KI. Well now that has changed! I love that the platinum passes can now be purchased with the dining plan for all the parks, this is so perfect for us to not have to worry about paying for food while we are there. I looked at the pricing difference and it's really not that bad and knowing that we are going to CP for 2-3 days this month and KI for 1-2 days this month it will pay off real quick.

I do have a question about what was discussed earlier in this thread, about the adult beverage idea. I did not know that it was against park rules to be intoxicated while in the park. I know common sense prevails, but last year we were at KI the day after our wedding and my husband was only 3 weeks into recovery from alcoholism, not a pretty thing to play around with. It was the end of the night and we were in line for Banshee and this woman behind us could not even stand up. She kept bumping into us and stumbling and then went right in front of us. When we got to the stairs she stumbled again and spilled her cup on us, which of course was beer. My husband was visibly upset. When we got to the loading platform I told the operator we did not want to be in front of her or in the same row, I could just see her puking all over us. The operator looked at me like I was nuts. i know i cannot shield my husband from all the drinking, it's a part of life and a money maker, but did we really have to put up with this type of behavior? Just wondering in the future what we could have done differently.We never did get on the coaster, it shut down just as we were getting ready to board due to a storm coming in.

I was able to successfully use the all season plan at both Subway and Panda Express today. Subway gave me a 6 in. Sub with choice of chips or 2 cookies and Panda Express allowed two entrees, rice (or noodles) and choice of crab rangoon, egg roll or spring roll. Allowed you to upgrade your entree to the fried shrimp for an extra $2. Surprisingly the employees at both locations were well versed on what you could get with and how to redeem the food plan in comparison to the employees at other well advertised locations. Was unaware of the addition of Midway Market. Glad to hear they are allowing you to do additional things for an up charge.

At Midway Market, on Saturday, they just looked at your pass and wrote your name on a piece of paper. Today, they wrote the number for your pass down, they did not scan anyones passes, or give receipts. It was really unorganized in there on Saturday, you could have just walked in, and sat down, nobody was really paying attention.

Perch sandwich was being offered today.

For the season long plan? That would be excellent!

I believe so.

I was at the park yesterday. Last Sunday, they brought Midway Market back to the season dining plan, and it was fully covered. Yesterday, they informed us it'd be an extra $8 if we wanted to redeem. I'm not complaining, as it was never officially advertised any other way, and I could understand an extra fee for an unlimited buffet that includes soft drinks.

Then I heard that Subway was added at CP, but now it's a $2 upcharge. CP Food Blog (which is not affiliated with Cedar Fair parks) is reporting the same information. Can anyone that has redeemed with Subway confirm if there is a $2 upcharge right now? That one is hard to understand, as it's not much food, and the combo price is similar to other offerings in the park. Finally, at Panda Express (which is advertised as any 2-entree plate and an add-on), my friend was told that if he wanted the shrimp, it'd be an extra $2.

Anyway, if upcharge items are going to be a new trend with the dining pass throughout Cedar Point (or Cedar Fair parks), I'm not sure I agree with it, or the way it's being implemented. Part of the allure of the dining pass to me was being able to grab designated pre-paid meals in the park by simply scanning your pass. I don't want the complexity of some items being available, but for various extra charges. If they're going to do this, they need to advertise this concept when purchasing the dining plans, and they need to clearly outline the extra charges in advance. I've already noticed some people becoming upset at these "surprise" extra charges with the dining plans, and that's never good for a business.

You're not being forced to eat at the upcharge locations. The park is already taking somewhat of a hit on the dining plans, depending on how much you use it. The upcharge locations are just to add more options, but allow the park to still make some money off those locations.

I talked to a manager at Panda express on Sunday or Monday (can't remember) when I was there. He said Cedar Point pays them $5 for your meal. That means it would take 13 visits at 2 meals per visit for Cedar point to break even. It takes about 6 visits or 12 meals for anyone that purchases the platinum meal plan to break even. Honestly, I am not sure if this is a good deal for Cedar Point or better for us. I would imagine Cedar Point will profit from this, but some people will be way over 13 visits by the end of the season.

^^First off, please source where the park is taking a hit on dining plans. Considering the park experimented with dining plans at 3 parks last season and chose to roll them out to all the parks in the chain, I'd suspect they (and Six Flags) saw measurably positive results. I suspect the dining plans are leading to more park visits by passholders (and keeping them in the park longer), which is spurring sales of beverages, merchandise, Fast Lane, and other upcharge attractions. The quarterly results have shown steady growth in these areas and no signs of taking hits.

Lastly, I never argued that the park was forcing me to eat at upcharge locations. I claimed that extra charges were adding to complexity, and they were being poorly marketed / communicated with dining plan customers, which is leading to some confusion / upset.

I see a fair amount of folks have had to deal with clueless Foods employees...well...I didn't work in Foods when I was at CP, but I did at another park. I received literally NO training. I showed up on my first day and they just tossed me straight into a food stand. Whenever someone ordered a meal, I would have to turn around and crane my neck to read the menu board so I could see what came with the meal. The cash register had around 30 buttons on it, and for each transaction I would have to stare down at it for several long moments until I located the right key. I am sure people thought I was a total moron. No one tells you ANYTHING about the job beforehand...you just have to pick up on things as you go along...which is frustrating for employee and customers alike.