More Alcohol at Parks Please and Thanks BGT

Josh, wanna go to SFDL? ;)

Raven-Phile - you can also get beer at Macaroni's.

I don't understand how alcohol is essential to the theme/amusement park experience, but I guess everyone is different.

Other places at CP for a tasty beverage include the adults-only bar in Soak City (very pleasant---rarely crowded with good views of the lake) and the bar at Breakwater Cafe (*never* crowded, nice views of the bay.)

The prices in SC are similar to those in the park, but the prices in Breakwater are downright reasonable. I think I paid $4 for a well-poured manhattan there this season. The bartender there is also very lonely, so make his day and give him something to do.

It sounds like alcohol wasn't the real reason that the topic was started.

As has been stated, most parks do sell alcohol.

MagnumAllen said:

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Just smoke in the parking lot.

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Naw, too much security. Find some nearby deserted backroads, much safer ;o)

SFMW is a great place for beer guzzling. Beer carts and stands scattered all over the park, and quite the selection of brands to boot. Even Margaritas! (although I think they're made with wine). And even though they state you have to drink in designated areas, I always walk around anyways and never once has security or anyone else ever questioned me.

SCBB is another great place with the tall 24 ounce cans of most major brands and the big Fosters drums available at most of the major eateries!

Oh yeah I forgot about Macaroni's - I knew there was somewhere else.

You can also get 6/12-packs or bottled beer in the CP camp store out behind the Magnum parking lot. It's a lot cheaper, and if your name is Corey - you have no problem consuming 14 of them in the parking lot before a Magnum ride :):):)

-Josh

I think its HELP is on the way.

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2Hostyl said:

Yes, I would really like to sip while standing in line,

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Yes, I remember when you had the beer in hand while waiting for Great White at Sea World in Texas. It's really not that big of a deal as long as people are controlling themselves, and not dehydrating themselves either (which in Texas is pretty easy to do. I almost got sick from the Texas heat at SFT, even though my meal was really good) which can lead to people passing out or getting sick.

and if your name is Corey - you have no problem consuming 14 of them in the parking lot before a Magnum ride

LOL! I forgot about that! Good times :)

Yeah, that was pretty much the best Magnum ride ever. :)

Hey, remember that time at WoA with Howard and Scott where we got walked up X-Flight?

I'm with Jeff in the "riding rides while buzzed" club. Corey's in the "I'm an alcoholic and that's the only way I know how." club. ^________^

*** Edited 7/30/2004 7:14:03 PM UTC by Raven-Phile***

Here are the places that sell beer at CP:

Hofbrau
Game Day Grille
Macaroni's
Red Garter
Palace Theater
Last Chance

...and outside the park:
Friday's
Famous Daves
Bay Harbor
Breakwater

I'm probably forgetting one or two :)

Great thread. I can see where Malibu is coming from.

BGT has the 2 samples to get you started.

IOA has full service bars all over the park. Many on the Dis boards talk about Happy hour.

CP and PKI have beer, but it's kinda hidden. You have to know where to find it.

I hope CP has a full service bar at Castaway Bay. They'll probably run the drinks over from TGIFridays or something like that.

Now, if we can just get them to have a shuttle service to CP, we'll be all set.

Aah, lovely Europe.
Beer, wine, liquor, cocktails, etc. in almost every park.

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MagnumAllan said:
Just smoke in the parking lot.

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I thought that was why CP has on property resorts? ;)

jomo said "Naw, too much security."

That's what real cigarettes are for. No one says you actually have to inhale the tobacco smoke. Just have a lit one smoking in the ash tray, or in someone's hand. Does a good job of covering up certain scents...

I'd agree with Gonch. Hit the hotel room before the b*ong, jo*nt, or whatever you are using. Its the smart way to avoid trouble.

I had a buddy get caught, and ejected from a certain park for just such a reason. He was just lucky that they just ejected him from the park for the remainder of the day, and didn't involve the police. Its not a smart thing to try.

They have security all over, and eyes watching when you wouldn't think that they'd be. Remember a lot of park security are posing as just another amusement park patron. Whether they are in the park or in the parking lot.

Smaller parks I wouldn't worry about it as much, but it's always better to be safe then sorry. Just have to use some common sense.

Let me be the one to go out and add fuel, paper, air, etc to this fire ;)

Before I go on, I have A LOT of friends that drink, and I go out with them with they drink. Drinking doesn't bother me.

Alcohol at theme parks is what bothers me.

Alcohol should not be allowed at theme parks.

Let me explain further. And yes, I understand this is a touchy subject for most people.

It amazes me that SOOoo many people make a big thing about park safety issues, yet no one ever wants to bring up alcohol in a park. It brings up a MUCH bigger safety issue than most people think.

I can tell you A LOT more people get hurt from drinking at a park than by a camera on a coaster in a given year.

Roller Coasters are MACHINES...fun none the less, but they are machines. NO ONE, NO PARK, should be allowed to let anyone even remotely drunk on them. I don't know of any job they will knowingly let someone operate a piece of machinery drunk. I know I'm not the only one who is sitting here laughing at the logic in this. Worst yet, a few people on this board brag about riding coasters while drunk. Yet some people "Shoot, and call for a hanging of those who take pictures on coasters" On top of that, you are all still representing enthusiasts.

Someone mentioned about the money envolved for a license. Compared to what the park does, it's not the much (at least in Ohio.) The problem is the lawsuits that come up from serving alcohol. PKI can tell you about that one. And I know CP has had a HUGE share in that also. But on the parks behalf, they do plan on things like that happening. If one person leaves any park in Ohio drunk, and they get into an accident the park can be held responsible AND loose their license. MANY parks have to spend a lot of money defending this with peopel throughout the year.

I agree with most that people know how to drink responsible.

You have that theory that one person can ruin it for a lot of people. This theory is true here, only more than one person can ruin it here.

All the above aside. I've seen at least 4 serious incidents with in the last 2 years. Just two weeks ago at CP at 7pm my wife and I were on the Monster. They were loading one of the tubs and some lady was taking longer than her husband wanted. He smacker her, yelled like some horrid monster, and pulled her off by her hair. People were screaming in line, the police showed up right away, and the guy was VERY trashed. I just can't help but thinking WE DON'T NEED THIS STUFF AT ANY PARK. These parks are suppose to be places to get away from real life. FUN. FAMILY oriented (though I know some that would say this is family.)

You will be seeing A LOT more parks going smoke and alcohol free. It will happen, even if you or I don't like it. A park can only pump so much money into the lawyers...especially in today's times.

One person's opinion I would like to hear is Paula's. If she is reading this subject.

But please people don't brag about riding a machine drunk. If you want to drink, fine, just please drink responibility, and be aware of other people around you at the parks.

p.s. For those wondering, my prefered drink is Mt. Dew with a side of Pixi sticks...which I've found also does well when I'm designing. ;) *** Edited 7/31/2004 2:28:41 PM UTC by RollerCoasterGod***

Okay, I think I should add something to the discussion here, because I´m probably the typical non-typical person here :-) First of all, I definitely live in a country that is not known for being alcohol-averse, I would assume that it´s known as one of THE beer-drinking nations on this planet. Apart from the fact, that I would always prefer a good glass of red wine over beer (which would probably make me more "French" than "German", I guess), I always thought the fact, that alcohol is not that frequently served (though, as mentioned before, you get it, if you really search for it) in US parks compared with parks over here in Europe is quite a nice experience.

One special night last fall made me realize that I was right about that: I went to BGT´s Howl-O-Scream Halloween-event and thought the event itself was one hell lot of fun, the freyuency of drunk guests and their manners really annoyed me quite a bit: People got drunk too heavily (because beer was available everywhere in the park) and I got the impression that many of the (mainly teenage) guests only went there to get a nice booze. Well, and it made (as alcohol ever so often does with many people) some people very, VERY, aggressive. When we left the park we came by a pretty bad looking fight on the parking lot which seemed to get out of control. I don´t know exactly what happened there but it involved some very drunk people who crashed into each other with their cars (!!!) and subsequently had a pretty bad fight wich was finally ended by some police officers.

Another thing, I remember about this, was the fact that Europe´s Disneyland in Paris started off in their first year with not selling alcohol (at least not inside the theme park itself) but changed this policy after realzing that this very "American" tradition will kepp their (mostly European) guests from dining at those restaurants. And, that´s why I mention it here, the change in guests´ behavior wasn´t for the good a couple of years later, when they had started to sell alcohol in the park.

Of course, this doesn´t apply to all guests and I think these things are really exceptions. But still, I have the feeling that an amusement park which also attracts many families with their kids is probably not the best place to get drunk. Just imagine, many people closely together, standing in line, for example, and this might very well sort of infuse an aggressive atmosphere if there are only a few people too drunk to think straight. Don´t get me wrong, it´s not that I wouldn´t like to have a beer or a glass of wine from time to time but I think I know, where my limits are and behave accordingly. I´ve just seen different situations and especially this night at Bush Gardens really made me pretty uneasy about too many people getting drunk in a park.

Oh, and because it was mentioned in the initial thread, I am not only European but gay also and still like the idea of an alcohol-free or a t least alcohol-limited theme park. Just my thoughts on the topic...

You know what annoys me? People who think they're morally superior when it comes to alcohol consumption and try to play it off like it's something else.

Just because I've tied one on at an amusement park, doesn't make me annoying or a risk to others. If you doubt that's true, please tell me how many rider injuries in the last ten years at major amusement parks were alcohol related.

Maybe we need to lower/remove the drinking age so Americans can learn to handle their liquor better. ;)

(opens can of worms)
*** Edited 7/31/2004 4:26:38 PM UTC by ApolloAndy***