Extended Closure

Too bad you didn't have your Great Aunt Jaime with you. She has great hearing range!

Just gonna leave this here, but net revenue and attendance at "legacy Cedar Fair" set new records in Q2.

Imagine what the new $89 passes are gonna do for next year!!

FastLane Plus numbers finna be lit!!

Speaking of fast lanes, Cedar Point is either close to or at the point of needing to adjust the Fast Lane. There’s been a few times this season where fast lane lines have rivaled stand-by lines and I can only guess it has to do with the price point of the all season fast lane. Allowing anyone who buys that option access the remainder of this season and all of next season is not a good sign for next year.

Considering 2 of the marquee rides, MF and Steel Vengeance have a baseline minimum wait of 30 minutes for fast lane CP has one of the worst valued fast lanes in the chain. A simply re-design of both ques could fix that but as it stands Steel Vengeance has the worst designed and most frustrating que I have ever seen at any park in any country.

In a late attempt to keep this on topic Guest Services said as of now there are no plans to change the TT2 access for next year. Daily fast lane plus = 1 ride, season fast lane = unlimited.

The thing about all season Fastlane is if the park ever wanted to make a change, they would have to make that change prior to selling the passes, which means they'd have to announce changes that would take effect in 2025 right now. I always see comments on social media that they should restrict usage, but that would be a major issue if they tried to do that after selling them at the current price point with the current unlimited restrictions.

Millennium Force and Steel Vengeance will always have long Fastlane lines even if there is nobody else in the Fastlane line because the merge point is so early in the line. Maverick, which merges in the station, takes about 25-30 minutes in the Fastlane line if it backs up all the way to the Fastlane entrance turnstile, which typically only happens on Saturdays and other busy days. Whereas that's the Fastlane norm on MF or Steel Vengeance even on the slower days.

I fully understand the ship already sailed for next season and I expect worse fast lane lines than this season. I lost count of how many times I’ve been there this season but I can guarantee the Maverick fast lane line has been outside of the check in point many many times on days other than Saturday. A few of those times the stand-by line was not even out of the covered area of the old WWL station. Both SV and MF should have FL lines that end at the station, that would eliminate the baseline 30 minute wait for those with fast lane.

The all season fast lane should not have restrictions but most likely the price point for the all season all park fast lane needs to be increased. Do that and fix the MF and SV fast lane lines and the value is back. Since I have the all season fast lane for our family it is not a huge issue for me but for those buying a one day fast lane? I’d be pretty upset with the waits especially when compared to the fast lane set up at Knotts, Kings Island and Dominion, Carowinds etc…

Personally I don't think the all-season Fastlane is the problem. For one, they limit how many they'll sell. I'm sure it's still quite a few, but I don't think that many pass holders are shelling out an extra $1K. Of course there are exceptions, like myself or super fans on here, but ultimately I think the impact is negligible.

The real issue is the daily pass being grossly underpriced. This has been an issue for years. For example, tomorrow it's $165 and Saturday it's only $199. This is still peak season. They should be charging over $200 for both days, possibly even $300 for Saturday. $225 Friday and $275 Saturday would be a good if they're "scared" to charge $300.

Yes, they'll sell less overall of course. But I'm sure their revenue target would still be made due to the higher price. And it would make the experience better for both those who buy and those who don't.

I totally agree about SV and MF but definitely SV. I miss the days when the Fastlane went right to the station. They totally butchered that with the system now. I get the lockers and all that but it's really ridiculous. They should have Fastlane enter at the lockers and go into the old Fastlane line into the station.

You bring up several good points, I guess I was just assuming it was mostly due to the all season Fast Lane since throughout this season we have met tons of folks that have the all season Fast Lane. On my part It’s anecdotal evidence at its best!

I was able to get my plane tickets extended to throughout 2025. So relieved. Hoping for the best and that you guys get to ride it sometime in September-October. Real world runs with real guests would make me feel good. 👍🏻

^ I've been tracking the daily rates and the impact of the Fastlane queues for a few years now. Granted, my evidence is anecdotal as well but I feel like I've become pretty good at predicting how it will shake out based on the daily rates. For example, I remember early May this year (I think it was the third weekend) I came with my family and we brought someone else that doesn't have it on his pass so I bought him one. It was a Saturday and it was only $140. I immediately knew the Fastlane queues were going to be rough.

I normally don't visit CP on a Saturday but it was early season and I figured it wouldn't be as bad as a Saturday in the summer. I was correct, from an overall attendance standpoint it wasn't. But the Fastlane queues were all terrible. Maverick's was out the gate and down along the fence practically to the staging queues before the bridge into the WWL queue house. MF's was nearly all the way to Fastlane entrance, well before the merge point.

I remember in 2021 (or maybe 2022) it seemed like they got wise and started charging $249 on any Saturday. I happened to be there for one and it made worlds of difference. It was a busy day and there were still plenty using it, but it wasn't ridiculous like I described above. From a sheer numbers standpoint I would think they still made the same in terms of revenue. Because even though there were certainly less overall users, they got $110 more per user so it offset.

But perhaps it wasn't as good I thought for them because they seemed to have rolled back the daily price this season (and last). If that's the case, I wish though that they'd be willing to accept a slightly lower revenue amount for the day to provide a better experience for both users.

JUnderhill:

for those buying a one day fast lane? I’d be pretty upset with the waits especially when compared to the fast lane set up at Knotts, Kings Island and Dominion, Carowinds etc…

I bought two FL+ passes last Saturday (and 2 single us FLs for Maverick), bought another 2 FL+ passes earlier in the season and expect to buy another two FL+ passes on Sunday. And I wasn't upset at all. I wasn't expecting 5 mins waits for everything. Particularly not the most popular rides in the park. I was expecting reduced waits and that is what I got.

Though seeing you say this:

as it stands Steel Vengeance has the worst designed and most frustrating que I have ever seen at any park in any country.

I am sure I get less upset about a lot of things than you do.

Perhaps they just value things differently than you.

^GoBucks, perhaps, but I have to agree with him that the SV queue is a hot mess. The layout, lockers, set up, Fastlane, and ridiculous airport security that doesn't even work. As for the Fastlane, I agree with your point and am not expecting 5 minutes either. But simply "reduced" they way they do it isn't enough for me, and definitely wouldn't be if I was paying the daily rate.

I don't know if you visit other parks (in any chain, including other "legacy" CF parks) or not, but CP is by far the worst in this area. It shouldn't be situation where the regular line is 1 hour and the Fastlane is 30 minutes. To me, that's not how it's designed. I say this based on comparisons at every other park I've ever visited. And I visit several on a yearly basis. I believe the only way to fix the problem is charge more, so less buy.

Jeff, you hit the nail on the head. If I was paying the daily rate, I'd happily pay more if it meant an 80% reduction in wait time vs standby compared to a 50% reduction. Which is basically how it is now. Even at their reduced price point, a 50% wait reduction is unacceptable.

GoBucks89:

I am sure I get less upset about a lot of things than you do.

If you had noticed I was comparing the Cedar Point Fast Lane against other parks in the Cedar Fair chain and quite frankly Cedar Point leaves a lot to be desired in that area. I will give credit where credit is due but I will also call out areas where improvement can be made to make the guest experience better for everyone.

The que at Steel Vengeance is poorly designed for a number of reasons but mainly how short the left side is after the lockers compared to the right side. It can be better or worse depending upon how they are managing the crowd at the check point prior to the metal detectors. I have seen situations where everyone that does not need a locker is forced to go on the right side. They have had people stand to the side while they go back farther into the line looking for someone that needs a locker for their keys and/or cell phone. Those people from far behind you in the line are then allowed to go to the lockers and then the left side of the que which is approximately 2-3 trains shorter of a wait than the right side. Once again, this is something that can be managed much better and improved upon.

After personally using and experiencing the Fast Lane at Cedar Point and nearly all of the remaining Cedar Fair parks I think CP can and should do a lot better. As I said in a post above this year has been pretty bad on several days and I think next year the issue will be worse with fast lane waits approaching stand-by waits on a more regular and routine basis. I have been to the park so much this year that these things become more noticeable than they were when I went a few times a year, if you want to shrug off my observations because you think I am pissed off at the world then so be it.

My statement about the SV queue had more to do with the drama of the statement.

But simply "reduced" they way they do it isn't enough for me, and definitely wouldn't be if I was paying the daily rate.

But what if it is enough for others? Do you think your expectations are higher or lower than the average FL+ buyer in terms of wait times to make it worth it? How about the expectations of posters on this site compared to average park visitors?

I don't visit other parks (in chain or otherwise). At least very infrequently. Which is true of large numbers of visitors to Cedar Point.

It shouldn't be situation where the regular line is 1 hour and the Fastlane is 30 minutes. To me, that's not how it's designed. I say this based on comparisons at every other park I've ever visited. And I visit several on a yearly basis. I believe the only way to fix the problem is charge more, so less buy.

But could it be the case that others are fine with a line that is 1 hour and FL is 30 minutes? Are they wrong for viewing it that way? Are they wrong for finding value there? Apparently they still have a large number of buyers with those wait times. And we are talking about wait times for 3 rides on FL (which also happen to be all in the top 12 on CB). FL waits (at least from what I can see) are much shorter at all other FL rides.

If I was paying the daily rate, I'd happily pay more if it meant an 80% reduction in wait time vs standby compared to a 50% reduction. Which is basically how it is now. Even at their reduced price point, a 50% wait reduction is unacceptable.

The point of my post was that different people value different things differently. You wouldn't find value there. JUnderhill doesn't either. Doesn't mean others view it the same way. And as you note, doesn't mean that the current pricing isn't profit maximizing even if you and certain others would be willing to pay more.

The FL+ Rides are the ones that have the issues with them, mainly the design of the merge points at Millenium Force and Steel Vengeance. Get those merge points at the station like the vast majority of other rides and I think the value is back on par with other parks reduced wait passes. Maverick is an aberration as sometimes the FL line is out of the que and 2 hours later you walk right to station gate. Valravn is the last remaining FL+ ride and I think they have done a good job managing the lines there.

It's great that you see value in the FL+ however, since I have been to many other parks I can tell you CP can and should do better in this area. As others have said by managing these situations better it will help the guest experience of everyone.

Finally, I stand by my statement the SV has the worst que design of any ride at any park in any country that I have been to. I cannot recall a coaster, especially a world class coaster that has that bad of a line design. There might be one out there but I have not been on it. You might call it drama but to me it is a matter of fact.

IMHO, they need to raise the price on fast lane to whatever amount reduces the demand to the point where fast lane waits don't exceed 10 minutes, 15 absolute tops.

^I agree that obviously people find value in it or it wouldn't sell. You're an example of that. But I'm sure there's also many others who bought it and felt, "never again." In fact I know as much just based on Facebook chatter. Despite running my own CP Facebook group (which is about drinks and bartenders and not park ops), I don't visit the others at all like CP nation, CP uncensored, etc. My wife is a member of them though and she shows me posts those people make nearly daily showing the ridiculous FL+ lines. Some of those groups have 80K+ members and people are complaining, a lot.

Now I'm sure those could certainly be skewed samples but it is pretty consistent. But as you said, there's definitely that many others who are OK with it. I just wish park management wasn't. The whole "best day ever" and all that. You'd think they are at least aware of the industry outside their bubble and would think, "Gee, we're the only park in the industry whose 'skip the line' product has regular 40 minute waits, perhaps we should fix it." DA20 said it best, price it like that.

Then again, I've already renewed my family's 2025 passes with all season Fastlane so I guess I'm part of the problem for not voting with my wallet. It's easier to swallow though since it's only "costing" me <$50 per visit as opposed to $165 and up.

JUnderhill, I never thought of it until you said it but you're absolutely correct. SV definitely has the worst queue design out of any ride I've rode, anywhere.

I think you'd be hard-pressed to find a worse queue. There are exceptionally long queues that are painful to walk through to get to an attraction, but I can't think of a single ride that has anything close to the locker/metal detector menagerie that is employed at SV.