Warning on Holiday World's site?

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kumba732 said:
I was there on the 17th. It was very crowded, but my time there was still very enjoyable. Three train operation and a great staff on the Voyage made for 30-45 minute wait times which was very impressive considering the amount of people there. Go and have fun on the 24th. The night rides on their three great coasters will more than make up for the crowds you will be dealing with.

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This is great. Where else can you find:

1. A brand new world-class coaster with...
2. Wait times of less than one hour on...
3. A peak, packed Saturday

At most parks you would be looking at a two or even three hour wait.

-Buckeye Brad

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Raven Maven said:

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MForce2k said:
Um, trying to steer people away from your park is never good business, imo. ;)

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Um, we've also been told it's bad business to give away soft drinks.

Somehow, we've survived. :)

Paula

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I know this is off-topic (and maybe old ground), but the free pop policy fascinates me. Obviously it is good business for HW or else it would not exist. I would love to see exactly how it all works out for them...

My guesses:
Direct financial impact
1. $$upport from Pepsi?
2. Less employees to hire and pay to serve drinks
3. Added $$ to admission or other area to offset cost?

Indirect benefits:
1. Attract more first-timers
2. Attract more return guests

Paula, could you share any insight?

Thanks,
Buckeye Brad

If you really think you don't pay for your soda and parking somehow, somewhere I think you're nuts. I think the key is HW being happy working on slimmer profit margins than the big boys.

I don't think it's that either. I bet you anything that Holiday World has a higher per capita spending rate than most parks because of the perceived value of what's "free" with admission. Combine that with a higher admission than what's typical for a park that size, and I bet you get to roughly the same place.

They aren't doing $13 million expansions on fewer than a million guests on slim margins.

How is this policy working out at Lake Compounce? This is one case where someone else decided that this (free soft drinks) could be a good idea.

Jeff- Look at it this way. If HW charges $3.00 for a cheeseburger but CP charges $6.00 for that same cheeseburger, who's working on the smaller profit margin? That's about the difference in cost of food at the two parks. I'm merely saying that while the big boys like CF and 6F squeeze every penny out of every purchase at the park, HW seems to have a lower markup on their stuff. I'm talking percentages.

If, indeed, HW has a higher per cap spending it most certanly is because of the perceived value of just about everything in the park. When people feel ripped off, they spend less. If they think "hey, that's a good deal!" they'll spend more.

At least that's how I spend...

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Jeff said:
... Holiday World has a higher per capita spending rate...

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Somewhat proved by my "cheap" cousin who proudly sported her HW shirt this weekend. I guarantee she wouldn't have picked one up at Six Flags.

Well exactly. The margin on one item doesn't indicate anything. Add up the total cost of serving one guest, and subtract that from the total amount that they spend. There's your margin.

I should have said "markup" rather than "margin."

Consider also that different parks have different expenses: different local and state taxes, the competitive pay rates vary from location to location, costs of vendors and suppliers varies as well, executive compensation and bonus packages (bet that adds a few cents to the cost of your soda at the big chains)-- to name a few.

Back on topic - sort of

Anyone know what Sundays are usually like at HW? I have always visited during the week, and have never had long waits except for PR's Midnight Ride and the Bumper Cars, both of which always have long turn around time due to the nature of the ride. (These also seem to be the only two rides in the park that always seem to be understaffed. One ride op on a spider ride makes for extreamly low rides per hour.) Wondering how Sundays compaire to M-F.

General rule about Sundays: They are unpredictable sometimes the park is dead, sometimes its allmost as crowded as Saturday.