Six Flags article: How they want to emulate Disney

[FourFourSeven]

8 BUCKS FOR PIZZA?..... That's insane.. You're not exaggerating at all are you? I'm sorry, but for 8 bucks I want Filet mignon and Crab on my pizza.....

Oh, didn't I tell you I got the pizza with lobster, caviar, and steak as toppings?

I'll look at the receipt when I get home (I saved it - it was so outrageous). It may have been $7.25 or something like that. I know I handed them a $20 and got back very few bills!

You're proving my point again! - all anyone wants to talk about are the prices for food/drinks/parking.

It's funny - if the prices were reasonable for that kind of stuff, I would have been telling people "no - Six Flags isn't Disney yet, but they're definitely trying, they've moving in the right direction, and it's now definitely worth taking your family there once or twice a year for a fun day."

Instead, all people want to talk about is the price of a slice of (bad) pizza!

 

[ssidiouss@mac.c]

Pricing the Pizza so high doesn't make sense to me.

What I would do is price the food LOW and admissions HIGH. And i'd cut out all the stupid coupons and get in free with a can of coke bS!

Higher admissions mean less riff raff.... the way things are now are that they are letting in riff raff with free cans of coke and then charging them 8 bucks for pizza which they arent going to buy anyway.

RAISE THE PRICE OF ADMISSION by 25-50 bucks and charge less for the food.. this way the people who pay that much to get in may actually have the money to buy more food and gifts etc.

Also.. what is the dress code? They should not let people in with wife beater shirts and baggy pants with their underwear showing.. that rule alone would elminate most of the riff raff in the NJ six flaggs.

 

[Epcot82Guy]

Pricing the Pizza so high doesn't make sense to me.

What I would do is price the food LOW and admissions HIGH. And i'd cut out all the stupid coupons and get in free with a can of coke bS!

Higher admissions mean less riff raff.... the way things are now are that they are letting in riff raff with free cans of coke and then charging them 8 bucks for pizza which they arent going to buy anyway.

RAISE THE PRICE OF ADMISSION by 25-50 bucks and charge less for the food.. this way the people who pay that much to get in may actually have the money to buy more food and gifts etc.

Also.. what is the dress code? They should not let people in with wife beater shirts and baggy pants with their underwear showing.. that rule alone would elminate most of the riff raff in the NJ six flaggs.

Unfortunately, the "riff raff" are a major market share for Six Flags. Unlike Disney, no SF park will ever be able to draw from more than a regional market if not a single city. In the summer, that means teens and school-age children are the big group. They can't afford high prices, so you have the option of smaller prices to get in and a hope that they will get hungry and bite the bullet on food OR lose those profits altogether.

Unfortunately, Six Flags went from appeasing that group to focusing on that group. However, it does sound like the focus is changing. I will be heading to SFOG in a few weeks and hopefully have a report then. I haven't been to SFGAm (my home park) in a few years but it was in BAD shape the last time I went.

Final point from me, I think people are doing Shapiro a bit of a disservice. He is not inviting a COMPARISON to Disney. He is trying to emulate the Disney brand. That takes time, a lot of money, staffing, etc. It will be years until a Disney compariosn would be proper and even then it would only work to compare it to the Disney business model, not the parks themselves. The two parks will never (and never were meant to be) the same types of places. It's an approach, not an outcome.

 

[Iakona]

Final point from me, I think people are doing Shapiro a bit of a disservice. He is not inviting a COMPARISON to Disney. He is trying to emulate the Disney brand.

I agree to an extent, but if he is going to mention Disney in these articles then the comparison is there. I will give him credit for trying, but until I start hearing some better reviews I will not waste my time or money going to SFNE.
I think the goal is admirable and smart business. I think he has an investment group that shares this vision because this is why they hired him. I do not expect SFNE to be WDW nor do I expect their parades to rival WDW's.
Instead they should probably shoot for something different. Don't ask me what, but they need a hook for the parade; some new idea so that it is not compared to Disney. The economics of rivaling WDW or Disneyland in every Six Flags park won't work. Therefore they need to be innovative in their approach.

 

[DisneyDellsDude]

I think that Six Flags problem is that they have way too many parks!!

Six Flags Magic Mountain had 4.3 million people and Disneyland had 13.something million. That's because there is only two Disney complexes in N. America. (and lets hope is stays that way! ) They will never get anywhere!

And I stopped going to Six Flags Great America for the past 5 years because I ate some cheese fries and I :hurl: .


That's my therory.:king:

 

[wishiwere@wdw]

*sigh* I know this probably won't go over too well so take it easy on me :wave:

Talk about being narrow-minded. For starters, ANYBODY who feels as though a New Yorker isn’t welcome in order to make a park better needs to get a life. I REALLY didn’t appreciate those comments. There are plenty of good people from NJ and NY that visit Six Flags and other theme parks and are no problem. I’ve been to Universal plenty of times and had encounters with unruly teens with foul mouths, etc. And yes, those New Yorkers even visit Disney! Get over it!

As you probably guessed, I like Great Adventure. I live nearby and I even run a fan site dedicated to the place. It’s my second home so of course I’m biased. But I would never be ashamed to mention (and still do) where they fall short. I can’t really speak for the other Six Flags parks but I’ve been to many of them and had a great time.

Improvements during the last 3 years at Gadv include:

AMAZING landscaping
Dedicated staff at every bathroom each and every day
ZERO trash lying around
Everything getting paint – coasters, rides, buildings, signs, etc.
New sound system – themed music playing in each area
Way more staff
Better capacity
Higher season pass prices which are staged (reduces the baby sitting problem)
A GM who is in the park and really CARES
THREE kid sections that are very well themed with great rides and play structures (the Golden Kingdom has one of the largest in the world, its not “just a playground” oh, and there are 4 rides in there along with a water play structure)
Better atmosphere with street performers everywhere, characters actually out and Justice League
Breakfast with Bugs
Improved shows including the VERY Disney-like Spirit of the Tiger
Ticket takers in the big lines to prevent line jumping
DJ’s to entertain the longer lines (ala Cedar Point)
And much much more…

Some items that still need improvement:

They are still repainting things and have a lot of neglect to cover
Rides still break down
Capacity could still be better
The parade could use some help – though at least Great Adventure has a float
LOS is still a big problem as it is at most seasonals

I have a 1 year old and a 4 year old and have a GREAT time each and every time we go. To those of you that say you will never go back because of a bad experience in the 90’s or even the early 00’s, give it another try. It really is different. Shapiro isn’t all talk. And don’t think this will be fixed overnight. Some days are worse than others and some days I’ve been there every single ride was open. As for Kingda Ka, it is obviously a unique situation. Cedar Point still had problems with Top Thrill Dragster last year after 3 years of trying to stabilize it. I think they finally got it. Kingda Ka was doing great this season once the opening weekend bugs were worked out. Then another part broke. It will in fact be reopening this weekend (hopefully along with El Toro).

I highly recommend visiting http://amusementpics.com/SFGAdv News & Notes Spring 06.htm to see some great pictures of what is going on. I sincerely mean when I say that you wouldn’t recognize this park from 3-4 years ago.

The bashing is no longer deserved. I enjoy parks outside of Disney and hope the best for ALL of them. However, if we have this same discussion 2-3 years from now and nothing has changed, bash away!

 

[Since1976]

<i>The American family goes to Disney an average of 1.2 times in their lives. You've got to buy an airline ticket, car rental, hotel, expensive food when you get there, expensive merchandise.
</i>

Wow, I wonder if that average includes families who never go at all?

 

[wishiwere@wdw]

fyi - http://jimhillmedia.com/blogs/chris_barry/archive/2006/05/23/2538.aspx

 

[Beatles_Girl]

I haven't been there

I've heard lots of bad news about accidents in six flags here in my country, so im really afraid to go there, plus, I LOVE DISNEY!!!

 

[Ashitaka]

It drove me nuts that the article made the factual error of saying the Justice League are Marvel Characters. But otherwise, I enjoyed reading it.

I remember Riverside Amusement Park from back when I was a kid in the '70s. I grew up in southern Vermont as part of a working class family of seven. No way could my father afford to fly us all down to Disney World for a vacation. But each summer we would spend a day down in Agawam, MA at Riverside. I didn't realize it then, but many of the rides were knock-offs of Disney's. They had a cheap little Jungle Cruise and a monorail. And for my older siblings, and later myself, a couple of good coasters. It was one of the special days of summer for our family (much like driving down to Boston to see a game at Fenway was).

As I no longer live in New England, I haven't been to the park since it became a Six Flags. From what I heard, what SF did once they took over was bring in a bunch of new, big thrill rides as all their other parks have. That's great, but there needs to be more to an amusement park then that.

It's good to hear that they are now looking to improve themselves as family destinations. I think the amusement park business in general has maxed itself out when it comes to thrill rides. How much Higher and Faster can we really get and still be safe for riders? And how many huge coasters does one park need? (Don't get me wrong - I love thrill rides.)

I don't think Six Flags needs to raise their ticket prices though. They are already quite high for working class families. But yes, stop with all the free entry promotions. Increase security to reduce the cursing and roughhousing of the groups of teens that do come. Make it very clear unruly behavior is not welcome and will not be allowed. Make the parks more family-friendly in activities and enviroment. The overall numbers of people visiting the park might go down at first, but profits will go back up once families realize it is a fun and safe place to visit.

From the article, it sounds like Six Flags may now have a clue.

 

[cajunCinderella]

My family had seasons passes for the Six flags in N.O. no it was in no way like Disney but around here its all they had for the kids to do. I think we paid about 160 for 4 passes (which wasnt that bad to me) and we were only a hour drive away so it seemed like a good idea. Well we got to take the kids about 3 times before Katrina blew in. But I came to realize why it was so cheap to get in the food and drink prices were ridiculous. We had never been to Disney so to the kids it was a great place. Now having been to WDW twice you mention Six flags to the kids and they laugh at you....So even if they were to reopen the one in N.O. which I doubt will ever happen they wont be making another cent off of my family.

Oh and after Hurricane Katrina, after we went without power for about two weeks and without internet access for about a month. (I know we were lucky thats all we had to endure). Once I was able to get online again and check email How nice it was to have a email from Six flags hoping we made it through the storm and letting us know our passes were still good at all Six Flags theme parks. It was nice to know after all everyone had been through they still wanted our money.. thanks but no thanks... a partial refund would have been better we could have bought a souvenir with it at WDW ..lol

 

[freediverdude]

I don't think the regional parks like the Six Flags and Cedar Point should try to be Disney. They need to focus on being a reasonably fun place to go for 1 day for all ages, with an emphasis on being clean, well maintained, and providing a little something for everyone. Really elaborate theming like the Disney or Universal parks would be too expensive for these mostly seasonal parks, so they shouldn't try to compete with that. They just need to strike a balance between a reasonable price and a reasonably fun, clean park with decent food and facilities. And I agree, there should be less of the "get in free" promotions or really cheap seasonal passes to avoid the babysitting syndrome. They can try to follow Disney's business model to some degree, but they shouldn't be trying to make themselves into parks as large and elaborate as Disney, unless they really do have the unbelievable amounts of capital it would take to completely transform the parks into something like that.

 

[wdwishes2005]

As for Kingda Ka, it is obviously a unique situation. Cedar Point still had problems with Top Thrill Dragster last year after 3 years of trying to stabilize it. I think they finally got it. Kingda Ka was doing great this season once the opening weekend bugs were worked out. Then another part broke. It will in fact be reopening this weekend (hopefully along with El Toro).

Clones tend to be better than their originals.... TTD was totally unique.

Bugs? Didn't one of the trains screw up on launch and mess up the track pretty bad? Not a simple bug IMHO.....

 

[aeillill]

I highly recommend visiting http://amusementpics.com/SFGAdv%20News%20&%20Notes%20Spring%2006.htm to see some great pictures of what is going on. I sincerely mean when I say that you wouldn’t recognize this park from 3-4 years ago.

The bashing is no longer deserved. I enjoy parks outside of Disney and hope the best for ALL of them. However, if we have this same discussion 2-3 years from now and nothing has changed, bash away!

OMG, is that the carousel outside of the old ice cream palace? If it is I am in tears over what they did to it. Just the act of taking a beautiful old carousel that needed a little love and a new paint job and turning it into that makes me so angry!!!!!!!

 

[Blizz]

No matter what they should still rename some of their parks "Six Flags Over-Priced" or "Six Flags Over-Asphault."

I work with Six Flags Theme Parks every now and then with my production company and I can tell you they are insuled when people compare them to Disney. I work with the park here in New Jersey (Great Adventure) a lot and on more then one production in their new area "The Golden Kingdom" I have mentioned to their PR manager how much it reminds me of a spoof off of Disney's Animal Kingdom and they always tell me how their creative departments come up with it all on their own.

I give them credit, they really are making an attempt to theme their parks, Great Adventure as part of a 2 stage process is turning a third of their park into a "theme park" showcasing an Asia type land that transitions into a Spanish village. Both are part of their initative to lure folks away from going to Disney and visit their park (not hard to get visitiors when you have the worlds tallest and fastest coaster at your park).

However I am not so thrilled with them now that they have upped their ticket price to more then a one-day Disney "Over-charge you our way" ticket. (i.e. - "Six Flags: Over Priced")

Gotta keep giving it up for Six Flags -- no one else makes a better parking lot coaster. (i.e. - "Six Flags: Over Asphault")

 

[coasterbill]

Six Flags America

My family went to Six Flags America this weekend. What a joke. No better then last year. Rides down the whole time we were there. Shows were good for a laugh (not planned that way) and the parade was a total joke. The big park chains have taken a turn over the past years to just reach the teens and maybe young children. Paramount is even more so this way. Next to no shows and as an adult, nothing to do unless you are into coasters. That chain before paramount stepped in was great for any age. Some parks such as Hershey park, Silver Dollar City and Dollywood still entertain everyone but this is mostly a thing of the past other then at Disney parks. Hope they do change for the better but this year at Six Flags has seen any from my vist.

 

[T-1MILLION]

My family went to Six Flags America this weekend. What a joke. No better then last year. Rides down the whole time we were there. Shows were good for a laugh (not planned that way) and the parade was a total joke. The big park chains have taken a turn over the past years to just reach the teens and maybe young children. Paramount is even more so this way. Next to no shows and as an adult, nothing to do unless you are into coasters. That chain before paramount stepped in was great for any age. Some parks such as Hershey park, Silver Dollar City and Dollywood still entertain everyone but this is mostly a thing of the past other then at Disney parks. Hope they do change for the better but this year at Six Flags has seen any from my vist.

I would not expect paramount parks to get any better now either Due to the fact that the Cedar Fair company just purchased the ownership of all paramount parks from CBS. So I guess unless Cedar Fair, steps up their image, You will be seeing even less theming and even more steel jungle and parking lot type landscape.

-Preston

 

[Miss Jennifer]

I, too, live not far from Great Adventure, but I haven't been in about four years. (The only one of my friends who likes roller coasters hasn't been available due to his work schedule. And going on a weekend is RIGHT out due to crowds.)

I've never been on Superman, though I'd love to. However, Kingda Ka might daunt even ME. If it's closed as much as they say, maybe it's a moot point.

I would, however, like to see some Disney-quality dark rides. WB owns the rights to the original Willy Wonka And The Chocolate Factory, right? So why not a Wonka boat ride?

 

[executivechef]

We went to Six Flags last year for the last time. After driving 2 hours to get there they closed the lower half of the park because of the Conn. River cresting. The lower part of the park was going under water (Superman). They (Six Flags Office) told me that during and after heavy rains the park sometimes has to be closed for safety reasons. They never posted anything on their site with regards to this either.
So after driving 2 hours I heard "Sorry, but we have no control over nature".
One hell of a bad design in my opinion. Building a park on top of a river that rises that easy isn't too bright.
We do the Disney World trip every year and get treated much better by CM's then park employees at Six Flags New England. I can't speak for all the Six Flag parks, but New Englad needs work. Maybe new people in the upper office will be the answer, but I doubt it very much.
So if anyone is planning a trip to Six Flags New England after heavy rains, bring your boots and fishing pole!
Guy

 

[BeachClubVillas]

I live about two hours from Six Flags New England, and have never been. It just doesn't seem worth it. Six Flags just doesn't cut it for me. It's too expensive to go there and be treated to subpar shows and staff just to get on a few rollercoasters.

Of course, I remember when it was Riverside, and I'm still slightly bitter that Six Flags took it over.