The simplistic answer to why people visit theme parks is "to go on rides," but that's hardly the only thing bringing hundreds of millions of fans to resorts such as Walt Disney World, Disneyland, Tokyo Disney, and Universal Orlando every year. In my Orange County Register column this week, I write about some of the many other reasons that people visit theme parks, which might be the most multi-functional public spaces in the world today.
Yeah, many of us love the rides. But what about the shows? Or the increasing emphasis on role-playing in interactive attractions such as the wand play in Universal's Wizarding World of Harry Potter or Knott's Berry Farm's Ghost Town Alive?
When was the last time you visited a park simply to eat and drink? Or to buy souvenirs (whether for yourself or to flip on eBay?) For many fans, visiting theme parks is primarily a social experience — to spend the day with friends or family... or maybe to take pictures and video to post to social media such as Instagram or Snapchat.
By the way, this is where I send a thankful shout-out to the folks at the official Disney Parks Blog. On the day that I drop a newspaper column pegged to so many people using Disneyland as an Instagram background, they put up a blog post with even more suggestions for social media photo ops at the Disney theme parks. Thanks for the synergy there, guys! Much appreciated.
Anyway... let's get to the discussion. What got you into visiting theme parks? What keeps you coming back? And what could parks do (other than lowering prices) that would get you into the parks even more often?
Read Robert's column:
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I'd love to see a broad expansion of virtual queue systems. I don't mind waiting, I just don't like the standing in queues.
Then there's the appeal. Theme parks appeal to the entire family, and while not everything in every theme park appeals to every member of the family, most successful parks have something for everyone. Not many singular tourist attractions like museums, national/state parks, beaches, etc... can claim the breadth of appeal that theme parks have.
People are going to go on vacation, and the goal of most vacations is to get away, so whether you're bumming out on a beach or waving a wand in front of a window, you're still getting away from you day to day routine. Theme parks are one of many options, but have become popular because they're easy to visit, are a relatively decent value typically because they're east to get to, and they have something for just about everyone.
I think the question should be, “Why do you keep going back to the same theme parks?” Most people will try any theme park one time. And people will give a theme park a second chance after a while. But I keep going back to Disney
I go back because of the changes that are being made. I don’t always like the changes, so I have to stop and think about why they made some of the changes.
You asked when was the last time I went to a theme park to simply eat or drink. Or to buy souvenirs? I don’t. Yes, I go for the social experience. Standing in a line is not my idea of fun, but I do enjoy meeting people, finding out where they are from, and hearing about their experiences.
What keeps me coming back? As I said, it’s the guest relations. But I have to admit that the rides are very special. The Disney Rides are state-or-the-art technology. Changes keep me coming back. But this past time, I saw too many changes going on. Hollywood Studios was basically, “under construction”. The guests are fantastic as well.
Take for instance a general flat ride. Here is some large industrial machine that normally would be found in some factory bending metal or assembling some product but slap some seats on it and it becomes "a ride". Yes I know that's kind of far fetched, as there's much more to ride design than that. But I LOVE seeing machinery created for fun.
Parks are examples of science and engineering around every turn. And while science has improved our lives, cured diseases and countless other revelations, it also has made us giggle, laugh and scream. When you disembark and say "OMG!! That was COOL!" you know the efforts of many has paid off. And watching people's reactions can be just as entertaining as riding yourself.
Absolutely Sarah. Every time I ride on Forbidden Journey, I think about where the ride system came from - assembly line robotic arms used to paint and put together cars. The ingenuity in theme parks never ceases to amaze.
It's cheap when compared to other alternatives and the level of entertainment provided. While admission to places like the Grand Canyon or Yellowstone National Parks is far less than a day at WDW, the cost to get to these remote areas can often be far more expensive than getting to a major theme park. As far as crowds, there are crowds EVERYWHERE. Theme parks are not immune to population increases, and crowds at theme parks are no different than other major tourist destinations. Certainly there are some out of the way places you can find that are far away from crowds, but again, you're going to pay a lot more to travel to those places, and you may not get the same diversity of entertainment in those locations. Also the statement was about theme parks in general, not just Disney parks. There are a number of great theme parks around the country that aren't nearly as crowded as the Disney parks, and even if you do choose to visit a Disney park, there are ways to avoid the crowds and get even better value from your admission.
No, the Murdoch's are keeping the property, it is a large money maker, the FOX Sports networks use the facility, and in fact Disney will be paying rent to the "new" FOX for the upcoming future. The LA Times had an Article about it today.
http://www.latimes.com/business/la-fi-disney-fox-lot-20171216-story.html
Disney had three good opportunities in the Southland lately, and didn't go after any of them. The old Military bases in Tustin and Irvine, plus a chance to revisit Long Beach and Disney Seas. Plus there was some San Diego properties that were in play when the Chargers were looking for a new Stadium, done went through, but it showed that there is enough land available if they wanted to build a third park.
I think Disney's best option in the US now is to buy a competitor, SeaWorld is at a depressed price and small enough to convert, plus they could reunite the Sesame Street Characters with the Muppets.
It would give Disney two more properties in SoCal, a property in Texas, A park in Virginia which could be converted to the Disney America idea. and three more parks in Florida. And there are a lot of ties to Disney Animal Kingdom to allow more of a separate franchise.
Plus, since my dad was worked for an International Organization, he played Tour Guide to a lot of visitors, some who stayed in our home for a couple of weeks. And we are talking about Russians, Asians, and many other places, and they wanted to visit Disneyland, Knott's, and Universal, and I got to tag along. I ended up with so many Disney and Knott's tickets (The visitors leftovers) I could basically ride anything I wanted (Dad was a Magic Kingdom Club member, plus the equivalent at Knott's and Universal. Then when Magic Mountain opened, due to SeaWorld operating it, went in year one, and kept coming back.
So I truly grew up on the parks as my main source of entertainment, and got to know some of the staff, one in particular was Bud Hurlbut, who would let me visit him at his barn next to Knott's when I was in town, which allowed me to meet others who loved the business.
Also became a fan of County Fairs due to being able to use public transit to get to the Del Mar Fair. I got to know Don Diego, and one of my first girlfriends was a daughter of one of the Traveling Carnival companies. She worked the rolling bowling ball game, where I learned many tricks of the games played. And it was a nice 3 week yearly boy/girlfriend thing for a few summers, especially when I got my first car at 15. (I had a part time job which allowed me to get my drivers license a year early.)
So while I went on to my adult life and learned many skills and loved the ability to multi-task multiple jobs to keep my attention going plus a decent income. And due to all the people I met, ended up with some interesting ones, including getting a radio station gig on the weekends, working on a local TV show, a chain of saloons, a full time job as an Tax Accountant and even a sport referee/official in multiple sports. One of my roommates also invented the first board that allowed an Apple computer to accept multiple phone lines, creating BBS's. So ran a few of those. (I built my first computer in 1978, a Heathkit, which is on display in a San Diego Museum currently).
Ironically met my first serious girlfriend at a wedding on the Ides of March in Orange County. I was living in San Diego, and she lived in Tustin, so did a lot of commuting, and luckily we both loved Theme Parks, fairs, and soccer, so spent a lot of time at those in the 1980's.
The Disney Seas project in Long Beach got my attention and started to follow it and the Anaheim connection. But not just from the parks end, but the political end, due to my real job. I also liked to take photos, started in Junior High with a class, and kept with it. So ended up taking photos of construction projects, including the Disneyland conversion to a Resort (DCA 1.00). Well, that got the attention of Websites which were just starting to come into popularity in the early 2000's, so ended up providing content to some of them, and got to know many folks in the industry. In fact, Robert Niles suggested me for a Cable show that was working on a Jurassic Park at USH episode.
Well, I also got involved in the social circles, in which I met my current wife at Disneyland at a "Noon Meet at the Hub". Well, I announced my engagement at another Noon Meet (I actually proposed the night before). We ended up getting married at the Church of Reflections at Knott's Berry Farm in January, and planned our Honeymoon that summer to match up with all the Coaster events in Ohio, Pennsylvania and other states in June. Started at Cedar Point, rented a car for a month, went to Memphis to meet my Mother-in-Law, who couldn't fly to SoCal due to medical issues, ended up with over 3,000 miles of driving, riding over 80 different rollercoasters, and had a great time. (I am a long time member of American Coaster Enthusiasts (ACE) and been to multiple regional events in the area before).
Ironically, my wife lived less than a block away from my first main girlfriend from the 1980's in Tustin. Ended up buying a house in West Anaheim, basically in-between Disneyland and Knott's.
Currently, still involved in ACE, planning for the main 2018 event to be held at SFMM and Knott's. Following the Disney political angle with the city council, which I have dealings with for other reasons. We decided to give up our Disney AP's, it was getting too crowded and didn't have a good time. But we still go to Knott's on a regular basis, love the park, and I am enjoying watching Hangtime being built. We also still have Six Flags, Universal and Sea World passes.
(At one time (2006), when we set the World's Record of riding 11 different Roller Coasters in 11 different parks and fairs in less than 11 hours (SFMM to Belmont Park), we had passes to Six Flags, Universal, Cedar Fair, Disneyland, LEGOLAND and SeaWorld.
The one thing we love about ACE are the ERT (Exclusive Ride Time) events, when they open the park early and/or stay open late just for the group. So no crowds, no strollers, and very little screaming on the rides.
I love the AYCE options Six Flags and Cedar Fair offer, it is quite varied now, and many items are available.
I just posted this on our local Nextdoor section...
>>A Year's worth of fun, food and drink for less than $20 per month, per person.
If you are looking for gifts, especially kids who live in the area, here is one heck of a deal.
For a total of $239, you can buy a Knott's Gold Pass, which is admission to both Knott's Berry Farm and Knott's Soak City every day except Christmas in 2018. (No Blockout Days, but does not include the special Halloween Haunt evening events), plus an All You Can Drink pass (either a refillable bottle, or just get a small cup each time, your choice). Also the All You Can Eat pass, which is an entrée and side (see link below) each visit, stay more than 4 hours, and you can get a second meal.. And the meal list is pretty intensive and varied. (You can use the food pass at both parks if you get the Gold Pass).
https://d3knbu6191stae.cloudfront.net/binaries/content/assets/kb-en-us/general-information/tickets/kbf-2018-dining-plan-and-locations.pdf
If I lived anywhere near the park (The OCTA Route 29 bus runs up and down Beach Blvd frequently from the Huntington Beach Pier, or the LA Metro Route 460 from between Downtown LA and Disneyland, including Anaheim and many LA county cities just north of Knott's) and trusted my child enough to be left in a fairly safe area, that is one heck of a deal.
Heck, adults can also get the same deal.
What is not included is parking, but if one parent plans to go with the kids, a parking pass can be added to One pass. the rule is the passholder has to be in the vehicle when you park, so some families opt for one of the kids passes, and then either parent can take the child by themselves.
So even going only twice a month, that is $10 per visit for admission, at least one meal, plus drinks.
www.knotts.com
And as a bonus, one visit in 2017 (admission only).
Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays to all.<<
My parents would have loved this, and if I had kids, I would buy them the package in a heartbeat.
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