Snyder & Co. raised prices at SFOT

A sign of things to come?

Parking and admission were both raised right in the middle of SFOT's Holiday in the Park event.

Before Christmas:
Admission $31.99
Parking: $9.00 (preferred $12.00)

After Christmas:
Admission $35.99
Parking: $10.00 (preferred $15.00)

Park hours shifted from evening to daytime but the park was open for pretty much the same amount of time (6 hours). There was less to do after Christmas however as there were no shows.

*** Edited 1/6/2006 5:12:33 PM UTC by Jeffrey Seifert***

That should be expected as SF parks prices have to be the lowest of all the majors. What other parks offer season passes for 54.99 even my Lake Compounce pass cost over 60 bucks. I think the Season passes will go up to over 80$ next season which IMO will still be worth it.

I never expected gate prices to jump up right at the tail end of the season. I'll agree that SF season passes are quite a bargain, but the regular gate prices have always been pretty much in line with everyone else.

For comparison Cedar Point's daily admission is going to be $39.95 for the 2006 season. That's only $3.96 higher that our HITP admission, and keep in mind only half the rides were open and all the shows were cancelled.

SFOT's daily admission for the summer is going to be $42.99

They should have made admission $39.99 and parking $5.

I hope we do see an increase in pricing AND season passes, just not on in-park items.

Well considering SFMW is $45.99 and SFMM is something like $48.99, and parking is $10 at those parks, SFOT is a steal. Obviously it doesn't stop SFMW from doing well, as they did very well this last season and are possibly going to be open year round after next season.

I'm not surprised. Unfortunately, most parks charge an arm and a leg for parking, and some like Hersheypark don't care if it's two hours before close. You're still paying $8 to find a space by yourself, since the lot attendants have gone home. I mean fine, if you want to still charge for parking, charge me a reduced rate like $4-$6 after a certain hour. I like what we found in 2002 at PKI. We arrived about an hour before close so we could ride the Beast at night and lo and behold, there was no one to charge for parking! *** Edited 1/7/2006 2:20:19 AM UTC by Intamin Fan***

Thats why I love the BGW; have a season pass and parking is free :).

Waaaaah!!!!

SDC was charging $46.21 for their Old Time Christmas Festival. AND WE'RE IN BRANSON!

Same goes for Gadv.

Season Passes go up to 89.99 this Monday (from 74.99)

Season Pass parking goes from 25.00 to 30.00.

A day pass goes from 48.99 to 59.99 (though still $21 cheaper if you buy online before going there)

Somehow, I have a feeling that people will end up paying full gate price just because they didn't know.

^ Reading posts like this really makes me glad I already have my 2006 SFGAm season pass and my parking pass voucher.

$59.99 for one day at SFGAdv!?!? I'm still in shock

Add on the $10 parking and the $40+ for a lunch and you have an expensive day at the park. Maybe Dorney Park and Hersheypark will have record years because of the highway robbery there in that area.

The thing is, people will usually pay more, especially in higher income areas. Parks know this, and they push the prices to see what they can get aways with to max their profit. People who live around cities that are use to paying for parking, $10 doesn't seem like a lot for parking. *** Edited 1/7/2006 7:18:03 PM UTC by GoliathKills***

It still seems like a lot, but I just don't see the point in complaining about it unless you are doing so to Guest Relations.

Then again I don't pay to park either.

Sure I wish, like everyone else, that parking would be $5, but with the ballpark right next door (which charges $10 for parking farther away than our parking lot) that is wishful thinking. We would end up giving up 1/4 of our parking lot to game goers.

Still don't know why these parks haven't figured out the "stick 3 or 4 bucks on admission and make parking free" thing. Kennywood has been quite successful at this - so much so that people tend to praise the park for offering free parking.

Perceived Value - it's your friend. :)

The *perceived value* at SFoT was incredible...among smaller parks, sometimes you feel like your $20-some admission is too low. SFoT, among larger parks, was a place I felt like I got a lot of value (well, would have, had I paid "daily admission", LOL). Gadv, GAm, that's the pricing structure I'd expect to see at SFoT, but they charge along the lines of SFMM.

A few words about that "value" thing. It's not how much you're CHARGED, it's what you GET for what you pay!

If Snyder and Co. can make things so that SF *provides* an excellent level of customer service, then increases in prices will be WORTH it... ;)

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A few words about that "value" thing. It's not how much you're CHARGED, it's what you GET for what you pay!

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And on the subject of "Perceived Value" - it's not what you get for your money, but what you think you get for your money. (see parks that offer 'free' drinks or 'free' parking)

I-fan, back in 03-04, I got into HP several times 2 or 2-1/2 hours before closing and never had to pay for parking. They must know you're coming and quick send an attendant out to the booth. :)

Hasn't it been the opinion of a lot of people on Coasterbuzz that one of the problems at Six Flags is that they've been giving away the gate?

GADV now has a price of $25 after 5pm. I don't think they ever had night time pricing before.

RGB, I'm sure that had to be it. As I'm frantically racing around Hershey trying to locate the Giant foodmarket for a reduced-admission ticket, they decided to throw one more obstacle in my way:)

Anyway The Lorax, I think when people talk about Six Flags giving away the gate, the emphasis is usually on the dirt-cheap season passes (not that discounting hasn't been discussed also, but most parks do that as well). The logic is that if you're barely charging above the normal admission price for a season pass, that too many people take advantage of the "pays for itself in one visit" slogan.

If you were to charge a higher rate--like double the current rate or higher of the season pass--you'd have a lot less people willing to buy a season pass, which sounds bad. But the hope would be that those people will have had such a great time that they'll come back another time and pay the gate minus any discounts.