Reasons Cedar Point is going downhill

And I don't mean that in a "let's talk trash about the park" sort of way. In response to the "Reasons Cedar Point succeeds" thread, I think some people are losing sight of things that Cedar Point lacks. Living in Orlando has opened my eyes to a whole new realm of this industry; down here the parks (except IoA) are constantly increasing in attendance, when they're charging SO much more for everything! It seems as if Cedar Point thinks that attendance is declining because of gas prices and the economy, but to me, that just seems like a way to cover up for why the park is really heading down.

Yes, CP has excellent rides. That's the claim to fame, and there's nothing wrong with that. But there is a more to a park than just rides.

Compare Cedar Point to a Disney park. They both have rides. Cedar Point has more, and they're more thrilling, with no need for theming. Disney parks have slightly fewer rides, but with a story that goes along with it, something to give the guests something to think about.

They're both very clean. They're both very safe. That's a given.

And there's one more thing: SERVICE. I've worked both for Cedar Point and for Disney, and I can tell you that I am ashamed at the way I spoke to guests or treated guests at Cedar Point, but there was nothing wrong with it. At Disney, the service is outstanding. And the best part about it, aside from training costs, it doesn't cost anything to have employees just be a little bit nicer to guests and ensure that they're having a good day.

The people who have had bad experiences at Cedar Point generally come back less often. If you look at the guests as individuals, rather just as a whole, you'll see that "gas prices" and "the economy" is not the big issue. Cedar Point targets to the midwest area, and most people may come once, maybe twice a year, but usually every few years. I've met several people at Disney that come from ENGLAND at least 3-4 times a year, and they love it. Why? Because the way they are treated.

Treat your guests well, and they will come back. Don't treat them well... well, they probably won't come back.

The economy in Ohio and Michigan has been in the crapper for years. Yes, there is plenty that CP can do in terms of improving service and such, but until the local economies start to improve, there's not a lot they can do other than wait it out. Is CP losing some visitors due to guests having a bad experience? I'm sure that they are, but that number probably pales in comparison to the people who just can't afford to come.

^ Agreed. The economy has so much to do with is. You also need to consider the location of the parks. It's a bit unfair to compare the two. There's plenty of people that prefer Disney and that's fine, but look at everything around it. There's other parks and just the semi-tropical location draws more people. Then there's advertising, Disney is a powerhouse in nearly every aspect, not just the theme park business. It's all about what you prefer. I had fun at Disney but to compare the two parks is nearly impossible. I could ride all day and never get bored and Disney doesn't offer that. I guess I've never really had issues with employees at CP either. My attitude is that you can't please everybody all the time and no matter how good the service is, somebody will always find something to complain about.

Cedar Point does have to do a lot of things better, but I wouldn't compare it to Disney for that purpose. Service is certainly at the center of areas they can improve though, that's for sure. And it's still mostly with in-park food service (and quality) that suffers the most.

I can tell you when I worked at CP we were trained to help guests no matter what. What has changed is that CP no longer "staples" guests into rides. That is the major change I have seen. We used to stand on the train and push the shoulder harness down on a guest on Raptor if we couldn't buckle the belt. They no longer can do that, the guest has to buckle their own belt.

I will never take my kids to Disney. Just can't agree with their family concepts.. I am surprised with their commercials that both parents are shown with their kids...It seems most of their movies never involve a whole living family throughout the movie.

The park in large has many more strong points than bad, but I do think that they have been slipping when it comes to theming and paying attention to detail. When I say this I am referring to ride theming and some of the attention to detail in regards to the Halloween decorations/props being cut a little over the years. And, yes, I am well aware of there only being one bonus weekend now.

I didn't notice much of anything missing in terms of Halloweekend theming other than the "Drive in" scene near Wildcat. However, the music bugged the living crap out of me this year. Nothing says Halloween like techno music and Cher songs.

Sorry to get off track. You may resume your regularly scheduled discussion now.

That didn't make sense to me either. Its like someone forgot to put in the Halloweekends CD.

WOW, a thread sayin reasons CP's going downhill, and a thread saying reasons CP's is succeding...

Well, I don't think CP is going down with attendance at all, no way! Have you seen the park this past few months?

I don't see Cedar Point going downhill per se. But, there are many things I think they could do to do better.

- Food quality (I think the price is fine - but the quality is bad)
- Remove the chain stores and install unique CP food stands
- Better upkeep of existing attractions (such as Disaster Transport)
- Cleaner hotel rooms and higher quality amenities.
- Create a more unified "resort" area in the back of the park. Less parking lot and more "people space".
- Give the "off-property" resorts a shuttle.
- Upgrade the park infrastructure. (music, POS, etc...)

None of these in themselves lead to being able to charge more. But, they're all the "details" that guests notice and are willing to pay for in the long run. This is really where I think they need to improve now. It's obvious they know how to build good rides and create a fun experience. But, to get to that "next level", I think they need to gradually improve the details.

I'll second the food complaints. I don't mind paying a premium for food, provided the quality is reasonable. And, quite obviously, that's not the case at CP.

Also, I'll second what Chris mentioned with regard to HW music, or the lack thereof. That was a bummer, however trivial it may seem.

Well, there is something out of place when I hear crappy pop music instead of Thriller during Halloweekends.

halltd said:
I don't see Cedar Point going downhill per se. But, there are many things I think they could do to do better.

- Food quality (I think the price is fine - but the quality is bad)
- Remove the chain stores and install unique CP food stands
- Better upkeep of existing attractions (such as Disaster Transport)
- Cleaner hotel rooms and higher quality amenities.
- Create a more unified "resort" area in the back of the park. Less parking lot and more "people space".
- Give the "off-property" resorts a shuttle.
- Upgrade the park infrastructure. (music, POS, etc...)

I disagree with the removal of chain stores. I really liked the addition of Panda Express and Chik Fil-A. And CP has plenty of unique food stands... they just all look the same, i.e. the TTD snack shack, the place underneath sky ride, the places by Space Spiral, and also back by SRF and CCMR. Not to mention the Saloon on Frontier trail. I think they have plenty of "unique CP" places, but the food at these places is a lot of the same, and almost none of it is good.

Service has taken a hit, and the cleaning crew needs to hire a few more peeps as seen here...

http://i243.photobucket.com/albums/ff298/hothitz2000/S6302368.jpg

There were more people in the park durring halloweekends, than I have seen on any sat durring the summer. The park needs to make the nessesary changes to handle the growing crowds.

Afew examples would be hire more staff, and maybe adding even more halloween attractions.

Using that photo as justification for more employees isn't fair, in my opinion. Those that were there know how incredibly busy the park was (even for a fully-staffed park), and seeing as how that trash can isn't exactly on the midway, who cares?

While I agree it isn't fair to use one garbage can as justification for more staff year-round, I would never say "who cares" about a situation like that. I don't think it's ever acceptable to have garbage cans overflowing - in the queue or on the midway. Guests see it regardless of location.

^ but whats the context? Is it possible the kid doing trash had loaded up his trash cart before he got to that one, went to go unload and this picture was snapped before he got back?

More telling than an overflowing trashcan would be how long it was sitting there. If it was only minutes, then there really isn't an issue.

*Note - I haven't seen the picture yet. Can't access it here. *

I get that. What I'm saying is that you can't look at that in a vacuum, and say it's a sign of anything other than a crazy busy day. It would be unrealistic to staff for that type of crowd at any time of the year.

John, there's no way that situation arose in a matter of minutes. The can is so full, there's a pile on the ground too. That obviously happened over time. I've seen this before in early August in MF's queue as well. It wasn't just one can, it was like five. They were the ones closest to the RR tracks. ie: not very accessible to the emptier I'm assuming.

Maybe it's not a matter of staffing numbers, but more efficient staff?

What I'm getting at was that his cart was full (even though this one is over flowing, but its next, or maybe 2 down the line from where he is) he has to go empty it and in that time, even though he'll be there soon, this picture is taken.

I don't think it is necessarily indicative of needing more staff, but could just be a one off situation.

I will agree with you on the MF queue. There is no good way to get back there, so I don't think its about needing more or more efficient staff but rather just poorly placed (at least to the emptier) garbage cans.