Proposals for a better guest experience

Hey everybody! So I'm doing a dissertation for my major and I need your help. I am to write up an unsolicited proposal on anything my choice. Of course I chose Cedar Point.

Basically I need to present to my professors a proposal to help better guest experience and I was wondering if you guys could throw ideas my way and I will eventually make it into a survey.

So, if you guys have any ideas to better the guest experience at Cedar Point, all ideas would be welcome! I know all throughout the forums I can find many "wish lists", but a more plausible proposal would be more helpful. Thank you everybody for your help, as social media is encouraged for this project.

It's easy to list off things that would exalt the park to a status that matches my hopes and dreams, but part of why I love Cedar Point is their long-standing tradition of maintaining the park for exactly what it is and nothing else: a beach resort and amusement park. They've basically taken this small-scale concept and blown it up to large-scale proportions, and the result is an unforgettable vacation experience that is refreshed and modernized each passing year. Excellent topic.

I think Challege Park could have more interesting offerings, or at least a refresh. Many adults during peak season are eager to do more after the park closes, apart from hanging out at Friday's. Skyscraper and RipCord are fun, but it seems like the go-karts and mini golf course take up space that could be used for something else. I don't know what, exactly. Even if they leave everything, some fresh paint and foliage would be an improvement. Offering a better experience for hotel guests outside of the park would continue the experience even further, much in the same way Luminosity did for guests just ending their day.

A "waiting area" for the train at Celebration Plaza would be nice. If Frontier Town has one, I don't see why not. And speaking of Celebration Plaza, some signage to distinguish one park area from another would be kind of neat, along with inexpensive touches that add a little more character to them. The coasters are fun to look at, but as anyone who's played RCT2 knows, more scenery = higher park rating! 8)

Honestly, there's not much more I really need from them. They've consistently met my expectations and are completely worth what I pay for a stay with them. Anyone's who's read these boards long enough has got to be impressed by the list of things we've all wanted from the park for years that have made their way into the plan. Fast Lane, Floorless conversion, Hotel Breakers remodel, Gemini midway remodel, and Disaster Transport goes away for GateKeeper. I can see why Tony is excited for the years to come.

Wait times for major rides should be posted on the Cedar Point app and website.
That would be a major improvement.

For anyone who didn't already know, Kings Island tested out wait times on screens throughout their park during Haunt this year. It's been added to the loop for FUN TV as well as new interactive park maps that give directions, distances, and on the screen on the right, wait times. Since it is tied into FUN TV down there, I presume they were simply perfecting the system there before implementing it chain-wide. At least I hope so. From there, the app and website are natural extensions. I'm happy to see Cedar Fair finally embracing technology, even if there is still room for improvement. :D

FUN TV: https://twitter.com/KingsIslandPR/status/518229055091773440

Interactive park maps: https://twitter.com/KingsIslandPR/status/525738929790910464

Nochom Chypsarth said:

Many adults during peak season are eager to do more after the park closes...

...the go-karts and mini golf course take up space that could be used for something else. I don't know what, exactly.

So you want them to get rid of two attractions that are open after the park closes, becuse you think there aren't enough attractions that are open after the park closes?

The miniture golf course is really nice if you take the time to use it.

I definitely agree, though, about how nice it would be for Cedar Point to add to the "overnight vacation" experience with more things to do. We'll have to see what's in store with the Hotel Breakers rennovation. I also agree about a refresh (not removal) of the area--especially the go-karts like I've been saying for awhile.

Oh it's a nice course for sure. I've just always looked at go-karts and mini golf as roadside attractions and have had hopes for something new in that area ever since other parks in the chain have begin removing their tracks. If they're still pulling in money though, I guess there's no reason to replace them.

One thing I didn't mention in my post is food service. I think most people know this is an area that needs improvement, including park execs, but it's still important to mention. People walk around with a bad taste in their mouth for a while after going to some of the walk-up locations.

I agree, food service really needs improving. We've never had bad tasting food, just boring, repeated selections. Impoved (new)choices and simple ingredient changes would be enjoyed. The lack of training for the 'front-end' help is lacking. I've visited many times in 2014 (different days & times). Most cashiers don't know how to work the cash register, let alone know about specials / deals and how to apply codes. The 'back of the house' isn't much swifter. Better employee training is a must. The longer it takes to get an order of fries, the longer it takes for a customer to move along and spend additional money at the next stop. IMO waiting for frozen or pre-fab food isn't acceptable. With that choice, we don't spend much $$ on food inside the park. There are many great employees all around @ CP, and I can see their heart & soul in the fun they are having, (and giving to us guests). Hourly wages may hinder the productivity of some also. Consideration of wages may need reviewed. Pay the long term more, with bonuses based on productivity & reviews? Sorry-rant over..lol

Absolutely agree with you in some new choices. They used to have Italian Sausage Hogies made with sausage patties and Philly Cheese Steaks that were both really good. And Hurricain Hanna's had a Carribean spiced chicken wrap which I also really liked. All three of those items were discontinued, I wish they would bring those back.

On a somewhat related note, how about fixing the a-la-carte pricing at some of the food joints? Yes, I can get a hamburger with fries and a drink for $12 or whatever it is, and if I'm at a fast food joint, that's the kind of deal I am looking for. But Cedar Point is not a fast food joint, and it has options I can't get anywhere else. If I'm buying a burger, odds are good that I *do not want* the boring food-service fries, and I would much rather go down the midway a bit, spend a little more, and get the Friar's fries instead. And why would I get a Coke at either stand if I can get one soft-frozen elsewhere on the midway? Or even closer, I can get a Cherry-Limeade Coke from the nearest Freestyle stand.

It was one of my perennial complaints about the Silver Dollar or whatever they called it (I did not make it to Chickie & Petes): they had some nice side-order options, but every item on the menu was served with mandatory crappy French fries, and there was no discount for leaving them off. Instead, they should have offered all of the other side items as alternatives to the fries, perhaps for an upcharge. I'm far more willing to spend an extra buck or two to get the fried mushrooms *instead of* the fries than I am to spend an extra $4 to get them *with* the fries. and if I am planning to get the signature fries later, why would I want food service fries now?

And don't get me started on hamburger "topping cups". Even if they didn't charge extra for them, that's a terrible way to present a burger.

--Dave Althoff, Jr.

I didn't realize they still had the hamburger topping cups, haven't seen them personally in awhile. The burgers I purchased this year at Lakeside and at the refreshment stand next to Maverick came nicely dressed with lettuce, tomato and pickles. And the produce was usually quite fresh tasting. Agreed though that the topping cups are not a good idea.

What are topping cups? I always thought the mustard & ketchup came in the large jars with the pump.

At certain stands, the cheeseburger was a meat patty on a bun with a slice of cheese. For an additional charge you could get lettuce, tomato, onion and pickle. There is really nothing wrong with that, except that they would hand you a little plastic cup with a lid on it containing those pieces. Some assembly required.

--Dave Althoff, Jr.

Thanks Dave. I'm still laughing.

Until the meal plan came out we never ate at the park. Gee, look what we were missing--burger toppings in a cup! Now I've heard of everything, well maybe not!

Ikea burgers :D

I was going to say that IKEA Canton doesn't have burgers but then the joke finished its flyover of my head, curved around, and hit me. LOL, build your own burgers. :D

How about aesthetics? Look around the park. A ton of crap looks like junk. The 120 MPH sign at TTD that used to have the speedometer looks like crap. You can see where the speedometer used to be. Instead of either replacing or removing, they just let it sit there looking like crap. The wires that hook up all the sensors on TTD for example all look like absolute crap. Almost a rats nest. Would some cable ties really hurt? The cable trays look like someone smashed them with a sledge hammer. I'm using TTD as an example, but it applies to other rides as well.

How about the queues? You stand in the fricken sun with nothing covering you in most places. Would it really hurt to theme the queues a little more like Six Flags does? Or at least do more than pour concrete, throw up some rails and say here ya go have fun spending hours of your life here.

Technology. It sucks in the park and the hotels. Why is Cedar Fair constantly lagging behind the technology curve almost a decade? There should have been wifi rollouts and wait time signage at least 5 years ago if not more.

Come on, Disney didn't even have consistent WiFi until three years ago or so. The only reason they installed it was for the purpose of facilitating app usage. There has to be a clear ROI end game there. I know what it costs to cover a park that size. It ain't cheap.

bholcomb said:

How about the queues? You stand in the fricken sun with nothing covering you in most places. Would it really hurt to theme the queues a little more like Six Flags does? Or at least do more than pour concrete, throw up some rails and say here ya go have fun spending hours of your life here.

Given all they did with GateKeeper (the dramatic park entrance flyover, the ride's beautiful plaza, etc.), I was pretty disappointed in the lack of queue shade. What's worse, the shade is over the part of the queue they open last (in my experience), so most of the time, you're limited to the shade produced by the ride's supports. Which isn't much.

In terms of ROI, it definitely is low. But maybe investing in something that is low ROI or even negative ROI at the moment while looking towards the future is what sets apart leaders vs followers.

I've done my own industrial grade wifi rollout and you are right - it definitely isn't cheap especially when you consider the back end networking equipment and infrastructure to just run the access points, and someone to setup and maintain access points. I only covered about 6 acres in my project and spent about $60-70k. That'd cost over 4 million to cover the entire peninsula. You would think you'd recoup some of the costs by having room keys which you could spend money on and bill to the room, perhaps charging guests for wifi access a couple bucks for the day, etc.

The leaders are doing the rollouts for the purpose of making money, with a clear future and a specific endgame. "Just because" isn't leading, it's throwing away money.

And charging for WiFi in anything other than high-end hotels is an awful idea that would do more to annoy people than anything else.