Winterfest

I know I will get hammered on this question but here goes. Why does Cedar Point not do a Winterfest thing like Kings Island?

Sounds like you already know the answer. You just looking for a discussion?

I think they should do it. That would give the locals more opportunity to use the pedestrian/bike lane of the new causeway.

There are a few reasons:

1. Winds off the lake in the winter can be brutal.

2. Staffing. The park is not located near a major metro area and most college students at that time are taking exams.

3. Most buildings in the park are not heated.

If I recall correctly they did actually try something in the 90's called "Christmas in the Park" or something similar. I further remember Kinzel saying something like "we didn't think that one through considering the bathrooms don't have hot water."

I've been to the park in the winter many, many times. I've even driven my car down snowy midways. Cedar Point during that time of year can be one of the most miserable places ever.

Santa isn’t available to do both parks

Sawmill Creek has some potential for a holiday event with perhaps enough space for a drive-thru light display and some activities at the hotel once the renovations are completed. There might be enough people coming into town for events at the Sports Center to bring some guest traffic that time of year.

In addition to Sawmill Creek, Castaway Bay could be another good venue for Winter activities once it's back open.

I seem to remember when I lived in Sandusky Sawmill Creek doing a drive through light show.Also downtown has a pretty good walk through, even with Santa and his own little cottage.

Yeah Cedar Fair did away with the drive thru light show. And also shut down all of the local shops within Sawmill Creek this past fall. Huron tried to find a new place for the lights but couldn’t come up with a solution.

I assume because one of those things was technically “free” and didn’t turn a profit, and the other didn’t offer lucratively priced and poorly made merchandise that CF deemed both unnecessary to the business model.

I still say opening Breakers for a week around Christmas and making it a sort of North Pole feeling would be a great and memorable experience.

Coupled with some sleigh rides up and down the boardwalk and coco by the firepits, it could really be a hit! Plus you would need minimal staffing in comparison to opening the whole park and they could tie it in with local activities downtown.

Minimal staffing? That is entirely dependent on how many rooms you intend to book. But again as has been mentioned, most buildings including parts of The Breakers are not heated.

mgou58 said:

Yeah Cedar Fair did away with the drive thru light show. And also shut down all of the local shops within Sawmill Creek this past fall. Huron tried to find a new place for the lights but couldn’t come up with a solution.

I assume because one of those things was technically “free” and didn’t turn a profit, and the other didn’t offer lucratively priced and poorly made merchandise that CF deemed both unnecessary to the business model.

They haven't shut down the shops. They are still open as Cedar Fair only owns the land the shops are on, not the shops themselves. I was just there a couple weeks ago.

Winterfest can absolutely be done at Sawmill, and it would seem foolish for Cedar Fair to not continue to run what is a yearly tradition for many, many locals.

Cocoa.

SuperS0nicSam said:

mgou58 said:

Yeah Cedar Fair did away with the drive thru light show. And also shut down all of the local shops within Sawmill Creek this past fall. Huron tried to find a new place for the lights but couldn’t come up with a solution.

I assume because one of those things was technically “free” and didn’t turn a profit, and the other didn’t offer lucratively priced and poorly made merchandise that CF deemed both unnecessary to the business model.

They haven't shut down the shops. They are still open as Cedar Fair only owns the land the shops are on, not the shops themselves. I was just there a couple weeks ago.

Winterfest can absolutely be done at Sawmill, and it would seem foolish for Cedar Fair to not continue to run what is a yearly tradition for many, many locals.

Yes, they did close the shops.

https://sanduskyregister.com/news/343956/sawmill-creek-shops-forced-to-close/

Minimal staffing in comparison to staffing the whole park for a winter event.

All the rooms at this point include heating and ac units.. may not be central heating but still heating nonetheless.

CoasterHawk said:

Cocoa.

SMH

CoasterHawk said:
Cocoa.

…died in 1996, survived by Misty and Breeze.

—Dave Althoff, Jr.

If they decided to have a winterfest at Sawmill creek, what would guests do while there?