Irritated with Six Flags

[dandelion]

And they won't even let you bring in water????? That is awful. Chalk another one up for the Mouse.
Allyson

At Six Flags Great Escape (Lake George NY) you may bring in an EMPTY water bottle and they will fill it for you at any fast food place. May be different at other parks.

Our season parking pass this year was $30, my annoyance with it is that it's a sticker to put on ONE season pass per family. We chose mine, on the assumption that I would be taking the kids some weekdays. However, if some evening DH wants to take one kid to go hit some coasters - he will have to pay again. If that situation arises we WILL complain loudly. I'm hoping they relent as the season goes on.

Regarding passes, printing etc. - they mailed us our 2007 passes with an "invitation" to activate them online for 69.99 pp. Even though dh could have got voucher passes for a somewhat smaller price at work, we decided to go with the online activation. When we saw the pass processing lines the first day we went to the park, we were so glad! We later saw some friends lwho had spent one hour just waiting to get their passes processed. Crazy.

So, I'm somewhat irritated with Six Flags also, but when Orlando is so far away and your kids are ride fanatics ...

 

[teresajoy]

Does anyone know if the one in Illinois lets you bring in food or water? I haven't been in years, but we were hoping to go with passes from Mycokerewards this year.

 

[Psychodisney]

In Chicago(Gurnee), they let you bring in one "small" bottle of water per person. they say no food-but we have no trouble bringing in small snacks. Many people picnic in the parking lot.

 

[Cindy B]

At Six Flags Great Escape (Lake George NY)

Our season parking pass this year was $30, my annoyance with it is that it's a sticker to put on ONE season pass per family. We chose mine, on the assumption that I would be taking the kids some weekdays. However, if some evening DH wants to take one kid to go hit some coasters - he will have to pay again. If that situation arises we WILL complain loudly. I'm hoping they relent as the season goes on.

So, I'm somewhat irritated with Six Flags also, but when Orlando is so far away and your kids are ride fanatics ...

$30--thats a cheap parking price. My local Six flags went from $25 to $45 this year. I told Six Flags guest relations that is why we didn't renew.

But since we have two cars and one parking pass, this is what we did. We asked at guest relations about this and they said we would have to buy two separate passes (no way we were doing that).

So we just scotch taped it onto the windshield using a tape donut on whatever card we were planning on using that day.

No one ever said a word. As soon as they saw the colors of the sticker, they would just wave us all through.

 

[Gillian]

That's a good idea about taping. We keep thinking about six flags (NJ) passes but this year will stick with our pool and Sesame Place. Our kids are 4 & 6. Next year I'll see. For now none of their friends go there, so we have time before they ask.

I'll look for those Coke cans though, just in case!

 

[Joey04]

You can by a Season Pass at Six Flags ($69.99) for the price of a single day at Disney World ($67, that is a single day admission with no Park Hopper!)

This year, we renewed all of our Season Pass's last October, when they ran a special for $48 per pass, and each discounted pass also came with a $5 Home Depot Discount card.

Parking ran us $60 (came with 2 passes), the second pass is fully transferable, so we should have sold it to a friend (or on EBay) for $30. I also upgraded my season pass to a premium for $20, because last year (not this year though) the coupon book came with lots of bring a friend for free coupons.

At our local Six Flags over Texas, they are not as uptight about people bringing their own food. However, we bought our refill mug years ago ($12) and they still do the $1 refills of any drink (except lemonade which is higher.) They will fill any container with water, and hopefully you can at least smuggle in some tubes of crystal lite.

Also, they have a free picnic area outside the park next to the parking lots for anyone who wants to "cooler" it.

All that said, if you are going to go to 6 Flags several times a year, and you know what you are doing, you can get some value out of it. If you are going to only go once, it is a rip off. And even with season pass's, we still take trips to Disneyworld because its a far better experience!

 

[mum4jenn]

.

So we just scotch taped it onto the windshield using a tape donut on whatever card we were planning on using that day.

WHAT is a tape donut??????????????????????

 

[pjshaff]

Where you curl the piece of tape up so that it makes a circle and it is sticky on all sides.

 

[mum4jenn]

Thanks!!! I have never heard that terminology!!!

 

[dandelion]

$30--thats a cheap parking price. My local Six flags went from $25 to $45 this year. I told Six Flags guest relations that is why we didn't renew.

It just doesn't seem cheap to us when it was free until 2006, when they began charging $10/day or $20/season.

But since we have two cars and one parking pass, this is what we did. We asked at guest relations about this and they said we would have to buy two separate passes (no way we were doing that).

So we just scotch taped it onto the windshield using a tape donut on whatever card we were planning on using that day.

No one ever said a word. As soon as they saw the colors of the sticker, they would just wave us all through.

They're not giving passes for the car this year, it's a sticker that goes on an individual's seaon park pass. And I hear they are checking to be sure that person is in the car. That's why my dh can't go and take the kids - even if he took my pass with the sticker, I wouldn't be in the car.

 

[Youarehere]

Now we go to Lake Compounce in CT...a nice amusement park where parking is free and they give you free drinks all day.

I'm a Lake Lover too. The rides that are built into the mountainside are awesome. The free drinks thing is great- small cups, get refreshed and be done with it. They do charge $5 for parking though, unless you buy the parking pass for $25 for 10 passes.

 

[Psychodisney]

Alot of people also put the sticker on a child's pass so it won't matter if Mom or Dad is the driver.

 

[dandelion]

Alot of people also put the sticker on a child's pass so it won't matter if Mom or Dad is the driver.

Yep, that was actually the example given in our local paper. Sticker was on the 7YOs pass, 7YO was in school one day and the mom thought she could take her preschooler in for a few hours. She has the pass with the sticker with her, but the parking pass was not considered valid since the 7YO was not in the car ...

In my situation, DD10 is a coaster nut, and in years past she and dad would go up for a few hours after work. Or, while she's doing something else someday - the girl is very social - it would be somewhere both parents could take the younger brother for an outing. That's why in our situation it seemed to make the most sense to put it on a parents pass.

Not a huge deal, it was just another case of paying more to get less. We also noticed all the food prices seemed to have gone up. We were hungry but opted NOT to get the 'family combo' pizza for $40.

 

[MKCP5]

I would take a cooler to six flags NE but it it literally about 40 miniutes to get out of the park and back to your car. Then another 40 to get back in and o through all the lines, etc. It;s just too exhausting.!

 

[pamluvsdisney]

I finally got my tickets in the mail. It took the full 2 weeks for them to mail them to me for $5 mailing charge.

At least I got them. Just wanted to let you all know.

Pam

 

[Youarehere]

I would take a cooler to six flags NE but it it literally about 40 miniutes to get out of the park and back to your car. Then another 40 to get back in and o through all the lines, etc. It;s just too exhausting.!

And that is only if you get there early enough to park on the paved part. If you are back in the field, add 20 minutes to the walk.

 

[MomofCKJ]

Well thanks to whoever suggested AAA. I have been a member since 1991 but I rarely think of using it for discounted tickets and such. I just have it for roadside stuff and forget about all the other perks most of the time. I discovered that there is an AAA office near my son's dentist (about 40 minutes away, we live in the boonies) and today he had an appointment so we popped in. I got the ticket for $27 and a parking pass for $12. Doing it online would have been $34.99 for the ticket plus the ridiculous print at home surcharge. So I showed them! I just could not pay to print it at home, it was just the principle of the whole thing.

Allyson

 

[shelemm]

I believe even ticketmaster charges to print at home.

Ticketmaster is a ticket distrubution service. Of course they charge, they are providing an important service. Imagine the software/hardware and communications and personnel they have just to be able to sell a reserved seat for a concert at thousands of locations at the exact same time.

But there is no reserved seating for admission to Six Flags, and I doubt they are worried about selling out. In fact, they save money by not having to print up tickets or employ people to do all the selling, plus they get your money in advance. What a ripoff!

 

[MomofCKJ]

I'm a Lake Lover too. The rides that are built into the mountainside are awesome. The free drinks thing is great- small cups, get refreshed and be done with it. They do charge $5 for parking though, unless you buy the parking pass for $25 for 10 passes.

I just picked up a brochure on this at the AAA office today. It looks like a nice place for a day trip. How crowded does it tend to get? Long lines? I'd love any info from people who have been!

Allyson

 

[Mono~rail]

No wonder Six Flags AstroWorld in Houston closed down - if customers were being nickled and dimed like what is being described here. Geez! Why don't they just grab everyone coming in by the ankles, turn them upside down, and shake all the money out of their pockets!