Busch Gardens Wmsbg. opens more passholder offers, while Disney dries theirs up for 2014

[prberk]

Just got an e-mail from Busch Gardens Williamsburg (where the renewal annual pass costs $99 and comes with free parking and 10% all merchandise and food and most tours, etc.). They open on March 16, but will have a special passholder-only preview day on March 15. The e-mail, though, was touting their spring specials for passholders, with more discounts than ever before for the season. See the picture below.

The interesting thing to me was that, while Disney is cutting back the discounts offered to passholders, and charging more for it, Busch Gardens Williamsburg (itself a beautiful park with many more trees than Disney, and beautiful theming) is offering MORE discounts this year for their passholders.

Wish Disney would remember how to treat their passholders! Yes, things like this are meant to bring you back in the door; but they also bring more revenue to the company in the long run by encouraging loyalty and actually bringing you back (to spend more money on the discounted food and tours than if you had not come back as many times...).

 

[Californian Elitist]

I wouldn't say Disney in general, because DLR annual passholders are treated well, with discounts and special offerings/events. WDW on the other hand...that's another story.

 

[prberk]

I wouldn't say Disney in general, because DLR annual passholders are treated well, with discounts and special offerings/events. WDW on the other hand...that's another story.

Good point, Raven. And I don't want to say that the hotel discount that WDW passholders get has not be very generous in the past, but even that has slowed down and been more than compensated for by the huge increase in base rates.

I am just noticing that WDW passholders' perks are getting thinner and thinner, such as with the loss of the 20% discount for premium passholders and the less restaurants that can take the Tables in Wonderland card (after you paid the $75 to get it on top of your pass). In the meantime, Busch still offers meaningful discounts to begin with, and now adds considerably to them for promotion. Going in the right direction they are!