How Cedar Point Covertly Doubled Their Admission Price (And How Apple Stole a Page Out of Their Playbook)

Actually his plan to stick it to Cedar Fair is quite brilliant. He bought his pass and will use it SO MANY TIMES that Cedar Fair will lose money on his pass purchase and it will totally skew their visit per pass numbers for 2019! MWAAAAA HAHAHAA!

What a crybaby. "If I don't get what I want when I want it" mentality at it's finest. You may get to have your way at all of those other parks you mentioned, but the main factor is, those other parks couldn't hold cedar fair's jock in terms of ride quality, ride quantity, park location, resorts, ect.... You won't be missed.....

Exactly, don't let the door hit you in the butt on the way out....

DRE420 said:

"If I don't get what I want when I want it" mentality at it's finest..

On some level, isn't that what what FastLane is all about? I want to ride something now and I am willing to pay for it.

^That depends on your attitude towards FastLane. Some see it as an opportunity. Others see it as a detriment.

Drbyq9 said:
^I was thinking the same thing. Of the parks I've been to Cedar Point, and Cedar Fair in general, doesn't seem like a group that neglects rides until they break down.

Just looking at what they show in winter maintenance during Chillout is very telling that the company takes maintenance seriously.

It'll also be quite interesting to see how the "I want it now mentality" holds up at a park like Kentucky Kingdom when they're only running 1 train on the roller coasters. The park was great, but a station wait for Lightning Run or Storm Chaser can quickly turn into 30 min. I think sometimes we get spoiled with Cedar Points emphasis on capacity and getting trains out of the station quickly.

Pete said:

A little holiday cheer that is pertinent to this discussion. I just walked past Santa at the Great Lakes Mall and I saw a sign that said "Fast Pass - see Santa sooner!".

Santa clearly loves rich kids more.

Seriously... Are you guys not thinking about what message this sends? You learn from a young age that kids with wealthy parents get better presents.

Now you see that those same kids get to see Santa first and cut ahead of you.

Let's also not forget that Santa knows the goodness of each child and treats them appropriately.

The message being sent to kids is that rich people are morally superior.

If you don't think children will pick up on that, you're significantly underestimating children. It was bad before, but Santa Fastpass makes the problem significantly worse.

...And god help us, I shouldn't have to say it but rich people are not morally superior. They are just as likely to be morally bankrupt as anyone else in society.

Jadams, I wonder how you would react if Cedar Point has a Winterfest AND has a Fast Lane line to see Santa?

Pete said:

Jadams, I wonder how you would react if Cedar Point has a Winterfest AND has a Fast Lane line to see Santa?

Please don't give them ideas...

In all seriousness though... This puts poor parents in a crummy position. You have to do one of three things...

1. Break the illusion of Santa and just tell kids the truth up front. This comes with the bonus of trying to explain wealth inequality and privilege to a five year old...

2. Spend money you don't have and go into debt to make sure your kids have a Christmas that is on par with the rich kids. (I'm sure the mall loves this option but it's bad on so many levels and I don't want to digress).

3. Do nothing and let society teach your kids that wealthy people are morally superior. (Easiest option and the route most will take.)

I have nothing against the wealthy, but Santa is by design a morality figure. When he shows a clear preference to the more fortunate it sends the opposite message of what Christmas is really about.

Symbols of morality: Santa, and Drones. ;)

Could we possibly sticky a thread so people can vent about how bad Fast Lane is so we don't have to see it in every single thread? ;)

jadams said:

In all seriousness though... This puts poor parents in a crummy position. You have to do one of three things..

No, parents can do one thing: be a parent.

I went to school with kids whose parents bought them a car for the 16th birthday. I had to work and save enough money to buy my own.

I went to college with kids who had everything paid for by their parents, while I racked up thousands in student loans.

I can complain endlessly about how unfair it is, and that I got screwed, maybe even hate my parents for not being super rich. I don't because my parents taught me in life that things aren't always fair, and to be thankful for what I have.

Edit: Jadams I am not directing this post at you, or your parenting skills, as I don't know you or anything about your family. I was just responding to the part of your post that had the hypothetical situation. I don't mean to offend.

From Ruby Sue:

operative_me said:

I went to school with kids whose parents bought them a car for the 16th birthday. I had to work and save enough money to buy my own.

I went to college with kids who had everything paid for by their parents, while I racked up thousands in student loans.

You were 16+ for all of those experiences. By that age you're old enough to understand concepts like wealth inequality. By the time you hit college you were actually an adult.

There's a massive difference between that and a 5 year old. I agree that parents should parent, but comparing the experiences of a 16+ year old vs a 5 year old is comparing an apple and an orange.

The solutions from the parent's perspective aren't as clear cut as we'd like. At the end of the day I don't believe it's too much to expect the mall leadership team to exhibit some corporate responsibility and consider the messages they're sending.

Christmas is a time to be thankful for what you have. It's a time to remember those who are less fortunate. Christmas is a time for showing compassion and generosity. It's a time to remember the greatest gift humanity was ever given.

Having Santa blatantly show preference to wealthier families goes against all of that.

I didn't mean for this thread to derail into a conversation about morality. That's not who I am. It's just... Somehow I'm even more angry now than when I made the initial post.

jadams said:
Seriously... Are you guys not thinking about what message this sends?

The message kids receive is the responsibility of the parents, not corporations. If you're relying on corporations to teach your kids lessons, you have utterly failed at being a parent.

According to the Santa Fastpass link I posted earlier, there are 5 malls within 75 miles of Ohio State (a Columbus zip code I remember) and 6 malls within 75 miles of Cleveland that offer Santa Fastpass. Not sure if other malls are offering SFP that are not on that site (Great Lakes Mall is included). 75 miles from Columbus includes the Dayton Mall. 75 miles from Cleveland includes Youngstown and New Philadelphia. I know there are malls in the Cleveland area with Santas not on the list. And given that Columbus is headed towards becoming one big combined shopping mall and car dealership, I am confident there are malls in the Columbus area not on the list with Santas as well.

In addition to the 3 options listed above, seems to me there is at least one more: go to a mall/other location with Santa not offering fast passes. Do that and you can skip busting the Santa myth (and the talk about income inequality and politics and sex and a whole lot of other inappropriate topics for young ears), spending more than you can afford and just doing nothing.

In terms of the wealthy-ness issue, to skip the line you are really pre-paying for photo packages. Prices range from $25-$50. Least expensive package includes one 5x7, one 3x5 and 2 wallets. With each photo package, you get a "free" personalized call from Santa. Grandma(s) will likely love any of those pics. "Wealthy" is a somewhat subjective term. Not sure how you spin it though at paying $25 for 4 pictures with Santa. There are parents who likely spend more than that at Starbucks at the mall food court before getting in line for Santa.

Am I allowed to carry a cell phone in line, or must I rent a storage locker? Or does Santa have a pouch on the back of his seat?

Santa probably installed zippered pouches on his sleigh.

Santa's only running one reindeer after Rudolf bumped into Vixen with his nose.

The best Mall Santa setup in Columbus is Easton Town Center!

- You can schedule a time either at the mall or from home, go do other stuff and come see Santa when its your turn instead of waiting in a massive line or needing a Santa Pass! (They also have Santa setup in a storefront with a neat setup and more room instead of in the middle of the mall where its loud and obnoxious.)

- Its only $5 for a 5x7 picture. (There are other photo options as well, but $5 for the one picture is a steal compared to the $20+ the others charge for one photo.)

- They also let you use your own camera or phone to take as many pictures as you want with Santa for Free! So no need to spend any money at all if that is your preference.

Eliminates all of the need for the income inequality discussion around Santa!