$3.00 20oz are back

I mean entertainment in general, but true, they are the smart ones in the end when they get all that money. $$$

I here what you are saying CW, but I can't really fault CP when other places I go to, like Jacob's Field, actually charge more. Playing devil's advocate, a case can be made that you are getting a deal at CP.

A deal? That is like saying you are fortunate you got herpes from a hooker instead of AIDS.

I guess since Six Flags charges for their Qbot service then Cedar Fair should charge for Fastlane. Attendance at Cedar Point continues to drop. I understand the Per Cap continues to increase but sooner or later that bubble is going to burst.

Then what?

What are you smoking, Pete? The beer is cheaper compared to sports venues, so will you buy one at the bargain price for me tonight?

I'm all for the company bringing in the bucks. I've got a lot of money invested in it. However, as Wahoo as alluded to, perception is reality, and the perception is that you're getting bent over for something that costs a nickel. I don't much care for that feeling.

Soda is a commodity item, and off the top of my head, the only such item available for purchase at the park. I can't buy elephant ears and coaster rides anywhere else, so I don't feel ripped off for those. There's nothing to compare to. Soda is a different story.

Well, herpes IS a better deal than AIDS!

But in either case I am going to ask for a refund.

Chief, that is funny and sick all at the same time.

As for pop prices, economics 101, competition drives prices DOWN. Cedar Point has a monopoly on the pop market in the park and with no competition there is no reason for them to drop prices. The only thing that will cause them to drop will be demand. If the demand does take a hit because of prices, they will come down, but if people continue to buy pop (both fountain and bottled) there is no reason to lower the prices.
I don't see the demand really going down. The GP expects mark-ups and doesn't notice the fluctuations from year to year. Since they don't notice these kinds of things, they are less likely to take a stand against it. The enthusiasts do notice, but are such a small minority that any kind of boycott would have very minimal effect on CP's bottom line.

I think the GP does notice the prices and I suspect Cedar Point hears about it. They heard about it last year or they wouldn't have lowered them. Maybe a lot of people aren't speaking up but it is the people that feel ripped off but don't say anything that you should worry about. They're the ones who may not come back for a second trip during the summer.

I'd like to think the folks at CP are more forward thinking than to wait around to hear complaints before they make the right decision. Maybe I'm wrong.

I don't think the GP speaks up as much with their mouths as they do their wallet (although PCS is up this year). I wonder how much of the increase is due to price increases or if people are actually buying more "stuff" this year than they did last year.

Well they do let you leave a cooler in the shelter areas, which last time I was at the Mouse House there wasn't anything like that available (but then again I wasn't looking for it either). That's something. Not to sound cynical or anything but I wouldn't be suprised if the only thing keeping the shelters there is CP uses them as maint. buildings in the off season. I'm sure the carpenters wouldn't mind not having a thousand extra picnic tables to maintain... lol!

What about PKI? Been about 15 years since I was down there. Do they have anything like the picnic shelters? Sure beats walking all the way back to the car.

CPL

Well if you want to lower the price of food/drink/whatever then you would have to loose some of the 68 rides that make you come to the park in the first place. To add new major attractions every year like CP does you have to make a great profit somewhere.

Would you be happier if they just raised the ticket price to $100 per person and had average priced food, because without cutting back on the major ride intallment every couple years that would be the only way. If you want to keep the "Best Park on the Planet" with the most rides, then just think of the food prices as a donation to the improvement of the park.

I work at a movie theater, as I stated before. And I'd say about 1 out of every 10 customers I help behind the stand or in the box office complain about the prices. But they still pay for it regaurdless. Nothing is going to change unless people stop buying it, it will continue to rise.

The $3.00 Soda is in keeping with the lack of positive public relations moves for Cedar Fair though. It's the same sort of story as when GL did not take the free tickets to the park that children earned through Six Flags. Yes, at the gate, the park would have made more money by making the kids pay, but the revenue they would make on the incidentals that child purchased and potential return visits because of that person's positive experience would have made up for it. I think it's the same thing with the $3.00 soda. If a family takes an early summer trip to the Point, and then in Aug. decides to take another small vacation before the kids go back to school, IT IS things like $3 soda that will stand out in their minds and potentially result in them going to the zoo or another park instead of returning to CP.

That's just it. If that's the reason they go somewhere else for fun, they'll see the same high prices at Six Flags, a movie theatre, a ball park, a fair, etc. It may not be right, but Cedar Point is hardly the leader in beverage gouging.

For what it's worth, you can get a one liter (33.8 oz.) bottle at the Pagoda Gift Shop for $3.50 + tax.

Walt, that could be true, but really what I'm saying is, if a family has to ask "can we afford another trip to the point?" They'll remember things like the $3 pricetag on sodas.

And that's a worrisome precedent that they're setting too. Attendance keeps dropping by year in reasonably small numbers while per cap spending keeps going up. That trend can't last forever. It has to level out eventually. Then what?

The "everyone else is doing it" theory isn't rational. People do drugs and unsafe things, but that doesn't mean I should. *** Edited 6/4/2005 8:39:06 PM UTC by Jeff***

Ralph Wiggum said:
$9 for a movie is still better than we have it in Toledo. It's $9.75 here, and I've heard it'll be $10 by the middle of summer.

I'll wait until the movie is at the $1.50 theaters. That's well worth the wait. ;)

CP IS a drug, Jeff. You forgot about that part.

MrScott

Vanessa said:
Walt, that could be true, but really what I'm saying is, if a family has to ask "can we afford another trip to the point?" They'll remember things like the $3 pricetag on sodas.

That might be just it. I have a feeling demand for soda pop once guest are actualy inside the park is relatively inelastic, meaning with a change in price there is not much change in quanitity demanded. If the kids scream, “mommy/daddy I want a pop!” they will probably sigh and fork over the cash to make the kids happy. When people are sweltering in the MF queue for hours on end and see the machines, they will also likely fork over the cash. Even with the outrages food and drink prices, we always see lines everywhere. Most people probably go with the “heck I’m on vacation” philosophy and don’t care about price at that point, which is justified. It’s obvious that demand has not suffered or we would not be waiting 15 minuets for fries still. :)

While demand is probably inelastic for patron once they are in the park, demand for actually going to cedar point is prolly more elastic. The main reason why I hear family or friends did not make it out is they say it’s too expensive as a whole. $45 tickets, $9 parking, $6 burgers $3 sodas add up, and when the time comes for a family to decide where to spend there vacation, that’s where the park will take a hit. This is most likely the main reason that despite pumping in around $200 million in capital into the park since 1994, attendance is not any better than in the 70’s and 80’s.

Lastly, I don’t know about the argument that high prices are ok because they are inline with sporting events, concerts, movies, etc. A movie or a ball game will run around 2-2.5 hours (less if there is good pitching:)). Growing up whenever my family was short on cash we would go to a movie or a ball game, but there would be a no concession stand rule, which is alright since you aren’t there for a long time. A trip to Cedar Point is usually an all day affair, and food and drink are a must. I think food pricing along the lines of Kennywood’s and Holiday World’s would still provide plenty of profitability without breaking guest’s pockets.

kylepark said:

I'll wait until the movie is at the $1.50 theaters. That's well worth the wait. ;)

They've weeded out the $2 movies here too. The really crappy ones you can still see for $2, but anything worth seeing now is never cheaper than $6 (and that's with a student discount).

I do agree that the pop prices (and other high priced items) are probably something people don't think a whole lot about when they're at the park, but will prevent them from going back again. I know a lot of families that used to make it a habbit to visit two or three times a year, but have cut back to once a year just because it's gotten so expensive.