SeaWorld F&B Pricing Sustainable?

[Andrew25]

I know the SeaWorld fandom is a bit of a niche on here, but I'd like to know if any industry experts (and fans) believe if SeaWorld's F&B pricing structure is sustainable? I know SeaWorld's pricing model is to essentially provide cheap/free admission to the park, and profit from generating in-park food and merch revenue... but is this sustainable?

For anyone planning a trip soon, I'd avoid eating at the park entirely. A 4-person meal + drinks is $104 down the drain, absolutely ridiculous considering the quality and service have gone down hill too.

Chicken Tenders 2025
SeaWorld: $19.99 (+$6.50 | +48%)
Disney: $10.99 (+$1.00)
Universal: $12.49 (+$1.50 | $11.24 w/ AP Discount)

Chicken Tenders 2020
SeaWorld: $13.49
Disney: $9.99
Universal: $10.99 ($9.89 w/ AP Discount)

I understand SeaWorld wants to force people into buying all-day dining deals... but even that has lost its value with it being priced at $59.99 nowadays (they do offer discounts throughout the year, but haven't seen it lower than $35-40 in the past year now). The dining "deal" includes 1 Entree + 1 Drink + 1 Side/Dessert every 90 minutes. Assuming you only do 2 full meals, you're saving a whopping $6.

Other Ridicously Priced F&B Items

• Side of French Fires $9.99
• Side of Mac & Cheese $8.99
• Fountain Soda $5.99
• Personal Cheese Pizza $16.99

 

[osian]

I visited in November, as part of a WDW holiday. I had bought my tickets online about 8 months in advance, I picked a "quiet" day specifically for lower prices. It was $130 for entrance ticket with all day dining, plus taxes etc. Pretty sure the all day dining was at the lower end of your scale, $35ish, compared with the ticket without the dining. I figured on getting two QS meals that day, plus occasional snacks or drinks, I'm used to WDW prices (maybe $15-$20 for full meal) so I thought this was a good deal. In the end, I only got the two QS meals, getting a main, dessert and drink each time.

I can see that they currently have an "offer" for select dates (it was this time last year that I bought my ticket for November), so I guess this is the equivalent of what I had:

Day ticket: $100 (usually $142)
Ticket + all day dining: $140 (usually $192)

I was indeed shocked when I went to the restaurants and saw the cash prices. I even took photos, intending to show to those people are are continuously complaining about Disney prices! Disney is expensive enough, SeaWorld takes it to a new level. I've had that feeling for some time actually, about Universal too. Disney is the one people are most vocal about but actually the other parks are worse.

That meal would have cost me around $39 if my math is correct. On that basis, I got extremely good value out of the dining deal. But it's all just accounting isn't it, as you say, cheap tickets and expensive food. (But I don't think park tickets are particularly cheap to be honest, $100 plus taxes etc on offer, $142 otherwise. We have to face it that it's just everything that's gone up to silly amounts recently.)

Is it sustainable? Well, they do their own math, they clearly think it's worth it.

 

[cheezbat]

I don’t think so. Ive been a passholder on and off for the past 20 years and honestly i try not to eat at the parks as much as i can…the pricing was in line years ago with the other parks, but now its out of control. Add the surcharge to it and it’s ludicrous.

 

[marni1971]

As a tourist, no.

 

[ULPO46]

Here’s the kicker Seas pays their cooks 16 dollars an hour. Disney depending on rank goes between 22.10 to 25.10 per hour. Yet Disney keeps prices low. Also the quality of food at Disney vs Seaworld has gone down for years. Post Busch sell, the food is no longer the same quality it once was. Disney makes money elsewhere yes people still buy the dining plan but not in the numbers they once did. I enjoy these post because it does give hindsight into the other parks down the road. Seaworld does profit from food and it’s crazy how they can do it by minimal staffing of their park compared to Disney!

 

[Andrew25]

Here’s the kicker Seas pays their cooks 16 dollars an hour. Disney depending on rank goes between 22.10 to 25.10 per hour. Yet Disney keeps prices low. Also the quality of food at Disney vs Seaworld has gone down for years. Post Busch sell, the food is no longer the same quality it once was. Disney makes money elsewhere yes people still buy the dining plan but not in the numbers they once did. I enjoy these post because it does give hindsight into the other parks down the road. Seaworld does profit from food and it’s crazy how they can do it by minimal staffing of their park compared to Disney!

People don't believe me when I say that SeaWorld used to have the best park food quality and deals. Zambia Steakhouse at Busch was the best.

It wasn't long ago you could upgrade for $25 for the all-day dining deal that included unlimited food with no time restrictions, souvenir bottle refills and all the snacks you can get.

The question I still have is if SeaWorld can continue to coast on low staffing, high in-park pricing for years to come or do they get significant pushback?

 

[JoeCamel]

No one posted there is now a 9% surcharge? No SEA cannot sustain this

 

[Andrew25]

I posted about this on another forum, but yes, SeaWorld has gone out of their mind. The 9% surcharge turns a a $8.29 scoop of popcorn into $9.62 with taxes.

At Disney, a scoop is about $6 with a souvenir bucket at $12 with $2.25 refills.

Mind you, SeaWorld is charging $19.99 for Chicken Tenders and their food options overall are not as great quality wise and horrible service wise.

SeaWorld is financially healthier than before, so this is truly just a quick and easy way to make more money off the same number of guests. Can't wait for them to see a downturn in attendance.