Lessons from Kings Island

We spent 3 days the end of last week at Kings Island attending Spirit Song, a Christian music festival. We had a great time, but I'm not sure I'd do 3 straight days there again. We were pooped!

Amusement parks tend to suck money right out of your pocket if you aren't very careful. From the moment you purchase tickets until you walk out the gate on your way to the car to go home, there are opportunities to spend more than you want. Here are some tips for stretching your dollars.

1. When I ordered our tickets, I made sure to order early enough to get the Early Bird pricing. It was $69.99 for a 3-day ticket. When my friend went to order single-day tickets for her kids to go with us (one went on Thursday, the other Saturday), she ended up paying over $100 for two 1-day tickets. If she had planned ahead, she could have saved more than $30 by purchasing one 2-day ticket. (I don't remember what the 2-day ticket price was, but it was cheaper than the 3-day ticket.) Spend a few minutes online researching your ticket options. Kings Island website offers a 1-day ticket for $32.99 if you order online, quite a savings over the $48.99 gate price! See if there is a festival happening the same time you want to visit the park. Even if you don't see the concerts or participate in festival activities, the ticket price may be a bargain compared to regular prices. As you can see from above, our 3-day ticket at $69.99 would have only paid for two 1-day tickets with the online special and only 1 gate-priced ticket. Also check with your employer, credit union or AAA to see if they offer ticket deals. Some stores in the local area also offer discounted tickets, so don't forget to check there, too.

2. Parking. This one irks me to pieces. Parking at Kings Island (KI) was $10 a day. That's an extra $10 on top of the ticket price, and they don't even offer shuttles to the main gate any more! Umphf! I've never understood why parking wasn't included in the ticket, but there's not much I can do about it. We did pay the extra $5 for premium parking one day, and if I'm going to be paying that much, I figure we might as well get as close as possible. Premium parking at KI allows you to park in the closest lot. It's especially nice when you have kids who are tired and grumpy at the end of a long day.

3. Food. We took a cooler full of food each day, hoping to eat our main meal at the car or the picnic tablets and then just have a light snack between concerts. That would have worked for me, but not for growing, hungry teens! We ended up having full meals between concerts, which was okay, but I hadn't budgeted for it. We did, however, share some meals because the portions were huge, so keep that in mind as an option.

4. Drinks. I'm not sure about other states, but in Ohio in the summer, any place that serves food has to serve free ice water, and boy, did we take advantage of it. DS gets migraines if he gets dehydrated, and our friends' daughter who came with us one day passes out if she doesn't get enough water. Not what I want to deal with in the middle of an amusement park! It was quite easy to ask for a cup of ice water, and I think I bought 2 drinks the whole time we were there - both Diet Cokes for me! Gotta have the caffeine. ;-) If you think you will be buying drinks, consider purchasing a souvenir cup. Usually these are higher priced at the initial purchase, but have a low-cost refill using the cup. If you are there long enough, it could save you money.

5. Souvenirs. Whenever we go somewhere new, we get a magnet for our refrigerator, and that is usually the only thing Mom buys. I expect my kids to use their allowances if they want something additional. Since we've been to KI many times, we already have a magnet, so we didn't even enter the shops. I had told the kids if they wanted a T-shirt from one of the groups, I would buy that. DS got a poster instead, and the shirt DD wanted was only available online. So I will get that ordered for her by this weekend. DS also decided he wanted a shirt after he got the poster. I told him I would do that, but it would be a Christmas gift, and he seemed fine with that.

6. Pictures. As soon as you walk through the gates of KI (or anywhere in that area), you are directed to "stand over here" to get your picture taken. A simple "no thank you" while you are walking is all it takes. I can't tell you how many times I said "no thank you" those 3 days!

7. Extreme rides. KI has 3 rides that cost extra, above and beyond your ticket price - the Slingshot, which is a huge ball attached to bungee cords that spring you up and around; Xtreme Skyflyer, a ride that simulates parasailing; and Thunder Alley, a go-cart ride. When we first got there Thursday morning, about 1/2 hour after they opened, the boys wanted to go on a ride, so DD and I sat and watched the Skyflyer. Price: $5 per person. Slingshot was also $5. By late afternoon, the prices had risen - Skyflyer to $15 a person and Slingshot to $25! If you are interested in doing one of these, check it out early in the day; you might find a huge price savings.

Well, that's all I can think of. We had a great time, and depending on the groups coming back, we may do it again in a year or two. Next time, we'll see if we can't cut back on that food budget even more!