Major Chain Considering Free Parking and/or Free Drinks?

birdhombre said: Woohoo, I win the internet!

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(no, it's not a Rick-roll)

^ +1!

Post of the week? Thirded!

I'd like to believe that some non-enthusiasts are power riders too, as well as some enthusiasts are not.

Me? It depends on my mood.

I just dont see the point in buying one of those cabanas, ever. What is it about a few cheap chaise lounge chairs, under a cheap tent with a cheap side table all placed on a concrete slab is worth $200 a day?

You could probably transform your driveway into one of those cabanas for that price.

A little pent up about the cabanas, aren't we? ;)

No, its just the one theme park/water park "upgrade" that I just do not understand.

I feel like there's some kind of cultural gap or some other weirdness between me and a lot of people. I'm not really a luxury item kind of guy (if you don't count when I owned a hot tub), but generally speaking, I'm willing to pay for extra service at pretty much whatever it costs. For example, Red Delicious and I have gone to Gold Class Cinemas twice this year (so far) and it's worth every dime. We can't get out of there without spending over a hundred bucks with drinks, but so what? They wait on you with a high level of service that makes it totally worth it.

It didn't make sense to me either. I thought it would be a worthless perk that would only get in the way. Then my mother talked me into getting one with her on a day jaunt to GL's WWK with my daughter.

I was wrong. Having your own private area, with service that comes to you, shade, and above all else the ability to spread out and not have to worry about your possessions is incredible. It's like having a hotel room at the beach's edge.

Frankly, I was utterly surprised about my own reaction to it. I consider myself somewhat of an egalitarian about most things. There is, after all, a reason I'm only an ensign. But the cabana thing -- cool.

Oh, and as far as that $200 goes, I believe the cabanas at GL run something like $75, and if you have a WWK or CF platinum pass, it's half price on weekdays. So you're talking $37.50, potentially.

I would definitely do it again.

Jeff said:
I feel like there's some kind of cultural gap or some other weirdness between me and a lot of people...I'm willing to pay for extra service at pretty much whatever it costs.

Somewhere along the way the majority attitude changed to "price is all that matters" and we became a disposable society and that's a real shame.

(notice I didn't call it "The Wal-Marting of America" this time :) )

The idea of paying more for something is entirely foreign to an alarmingly high number of people.

Perhaps I'm old-skool, but I generally believe you get what you pay for.

I was about to say that you're completely full of it, that most people spend on little luxuries like this all the time. But, then it occurred to me that my circle of "real life" acquaintances is probably not representative.

I'd really like to see a broad-based cultural study about spending attitudes vis a vis perceived quality/service. Unfortunately, one other trend (that *is* well-documented) is an increasing homogenization of the neighborhoods we live in. The idea is: because we can pretty much choose to live wherever we want (within financial limits) we tend to choose places with people who think more like we do rather than less.

http://www.amazon.com/Big-Sort-Clustering-Like-Minded-American/dp/0547237723/

So, none of us has anything like the "big picture" for this sort of question.

Lord Gonchar said:

Somewhere along the way the majority attitude changed to "price is all that matters" and we became a disposable society and that's a real shame.

Sounds kind of strange, but this is why my wife and I shop almost exclusively at Target. I realize they have their share of cheap stuff, but I feel like they put a little research in to the stuff on their shelves, rather than just buying whatever comes off the boat from China.

Not to mention, my shopping experience with them has always been positive. The employees are nice, and able to actually help, and the prices, to me, are great. Several people around here (where I live/work, not this site) have made mention of how expensive TGT is vs. Wal-Mart, and there's no changing their mind because Price > Quality.

I'm the cheap guy around here, and I look for quality over price almost all of the time. Groceries, clothes, electronics...

But maybe that has something to do with my "brokeness", and why I have less "stuff" than a lot of people...

I tend to buy name brands, even though they are more expensive. I (almost) only wear Levi's, for example.

I shop at Target sometimes. I used to shop there all of the time, when I worked there (remember those days?). Disgruntled I am.

My Sister says that I have a fine wine appetite on a beer budget, or something like that

I have a fine wine appetite on a beer budget

I always heard something similar from my parents about stuff, but a lot of the 'fine wine' stuff I've purchased has lasted where as my parents have cheaped out and they're on their third for fourth version of something.

Take my new Mac. I plan on having that for as long as possible, where as my parents are on their 3rd cheap computer in just a few years (Mom finally purchased a better PC this time after I explained WHY the more expensive one was better than the cheaper one that was already knocking on death's door).

Same with clothes. I went thru a lot of suits as a teen because I was in a suit often. We always went to Value City because my parents felt since I went thru so many, they didn't feel like paying a fortune for one. Now I usually go to a nicer store and get 2 or 3 suits as opposed to 6 or 7, and I'm still wearing those suits because they've held up.

Granted, there are some things you really do pay for the brand, like sunglasses, lots of different foods, etc., but usually when you pay more for something, you're paying for better quality.

On a side food note, if you go into a store and look at the name brand of an item, and then look at the packaging for the store's 'brand', you'll often find that the store's generic brand came from the same place/plant/address as the name brand.

Now that I've thought about it a while, there have been times when I have paid a lot more for a meal to get a better experience, although it was not at a park. One of those times was when I was on vacation in Seattle and twice paid around $150.00 for a dinner for two. I don't regret it. Both dinners were special times that I will always treasure.

I bought my imac for the same reason, Tek.

We make it a point to always buy the Market Pantry and Archer Farms foods, unless the name brands are on sale. It takes a little bit of research, and convincing sometimes (depending on who you are talking to), but once you figure out that most of these foods come off the same truck as the brands they are carbon-copying, you can save a ton. It's not that I'm cheap - we just really like to support our favorite store's brands, and they come in totally awesome "generic" packaging. :)

Of course, some of the store brands aren't exactly like the brands they're comparing to, and that can be a good thing, too.

Don't get me started on the debate with generic/store brand medications. I hate it when someone says they won't take store brand ibuprofen, because they only take Advil.

Honestly, Windows 7 runs better on my Mac than Widows ever did on any of my PCs. I use OS X a lot, but I've been on Win7 for about a week due to various stuff, and I'm just convinced that the hardware is near perfect. Yeah, I could go and get a Sony, HP, or even a Dell for the same as I paid for my Mac, but even PC Magazine says the best windows PC is a mac, and I have to agree.

Same thing with my iPhone. I plan on getting a 4 once the white ones actually start to ship, but my 3G is still in good shape, so much so, that I'm giving it to my mom.

LostKause said:
I'm the cheap guy around here...

And you're easy, too! :)

DantheCoasterman said:
The average parkgoer does not spend $25 on food per day.

Isn't that the going rate for a Cedar Fair small soda?

I'd say the average park goer spends at least $25 per day on food. Heck, for 2 hours on July 4th, I got an Intimidator Dog and a drink and it was $12, for one snack. And I'm an enthusiast that doesn't eat at parks that often.