Free Admission for Kids 3-5 Years Old

[Nicole]

RE: FREE Admission for Kids 3 - 5 Years Old

I don't believe it is all or nothing. I agree that there needs to be attractions targeted at all-ages. That doesn't mean that park should over-emphasize small children to the detriment of older guests.

More generally, yes, I do believe it is reasonable for adults to do things without their kids.

 

[Thomas]

RE: FREE Admission for Kids 3 - 5 Years Old

More generally, yes, I do believe it is reasonable for adults to do things without their kids.

Preposterous. They should be glued to their parasitic fuck-spawn forever.

 

[Merboy]

RE: FREE Admission for Kids 3 - 5 Years Old

It's not easy explaining to a toddler that you're going to go do something fun and they can't go.

I disagree, my dad did it to me all the time and I grew up without any probl- hold on, I need to refill my drink.

But in all for-real-you-guys-ness, you're right and I know your priorities as a parent are different than my own. I fell in love with the ole Busch when I was a wee mer-thing too but I never procreated for various personal and legal reasons. That said, striking the balance between making kids happy, parents happy, and childless spinsters happy is very difficult. And even though I love children (I was a pre-k teacher for four years, yay!) I will freely admit that I will avoid the areas designated for them. Everyone sort of has to do their own private part to keep the peace, I guess. But if we look at these three groups (kids, parents, nonbreeders) as competing to be the park's main target audience then I do feel that perhaps the nonbreeders get looked over. But as we've discussed there's a multitude of reasons for that. And again, I want to emphasize I don't hate your human larvae or those of other parents. I just don't feel right walking through Howl-o-Scream at night tripping over kids while trying to keep an eye out for monsters and whatnot.

Also, while I'm here, per the convo about hotel accommodations I do have to say that Williamsburg can really stand to step up its game. I know there's a new hotel taking over the... oh what was it... the one next to Courtyard off McClaws?... Was it a Holiday Inn? Anyways, I think there could be more of those mid-to-upper range hotels because it seems that availability is constantly an issue these days. And I'll admit that I'm willing to put up with a lot because I have respect for surly front desk clerks at 1 in the morning and particularly salty waitresses at cracker barrel but even I have my standards.

I need another drink, brb.

 

[Zimmy]

RE: FREE Admission for Kids 3 - 5 Years Old

Rule one: your spawn must be in the damn stroller or wear it on its back.
Rule two: your stroller must have only as many seats as you have spawn that fit
Rule three: you many not displace your child from the stroller to use it as a shopping cart.
Rule four: Your spawn and its stroller have no business inside the park after dark during HOS.

 

[acrossdapark]

RE: FREE Admission for Kids 3 - 5 Years Old

Also, while I'm here, per the convo about hotel accommodations I do have to say that Williamsburg can really stand to step up its game. I know there's a new hotel taking over the... oh what was it... the one next to Courtyard off McClaws?... Was it a Holiday Inn? Anyways, I think there could be more of those mid-to-upper range hotels because it seems that availability is constantly an issue these days. And I'll admit that I'm willing to put up with a lot because I have respect for surly front desk clerks at 1 in the morning and particularly salty waitresses at cracker barrel but even I have my standards.

I need another drink, brb.

HI Express now used to be a Quality Inn or something. Was supposed to open last summer but didn't open until near the end of CT sometime in Dec.

 

[halfabee]

RE: FREE Admission for Kids 3 - 5 Years Old

Really great conversation in here... as a onetime kid, then as a no-kids ride warrior, and now as a parent with two younger kids, reading through all of this really reminds me of the reasons why Busch Gardens has been a special place to visit through the years.  The park has had a great offering for me (and now my family) throughout that time, spanning from the mid-1980s through the present day.

The one gap I have been hoping to see the park address over the past 4-5 years has been between Grover and Verbolten/Loch Ness.  It's a gap in thrill intensity but also in height restriction, spanning a not-insignificant amount of time in a kid's young life.  It can affect enjoyability/perceptions during a family's entire trip (and therefore the odds that the family visits/returns) when one or more kids are too old for the kiddie ride but haven't aged into any other roller coasters just yet.  IMO that gap, into which my kiddos fell for about 2-3 years, is now filled by InvadR -- at least on the thrill front (the height restriction is still almost 4').  Until now I would have considered it "fair" in a sense to have a slightly discounted -- not necessarily free -- admission for any age group whose 90th percentile height is below 48".  That's roughly 6 years old for both girls and boys.  From an attraction standpoint it might have made more sense to have the free admission for 5 and under until something like InvadR arrived.  

But again, the park has the numbers that matter on hand -- and I don't.

To my mind, one outstanding question is where the park goes from here on the big-rides front.  Is the recent focus on relatively smaller-scale coasters a matter of ongoing budget realities, primarily?  Or would the park have opted for a compact thriller and a kid-compatible small wood coaster even under more permissive budget circumstances, to fill in a couple of perceived gaps in the offering slate for little ones? Does a focus on bringing in families via the 3-5-year-olds' free admission offer end up kneecapping the odds of unleashing a bigger ride by the end of the decade?

I am hoping there is the budget, will, and demographics support for a large, noteworthy roller coaster within the next 3-5 years. Piecing together my meager scraps of circumstantial info, I don't get the feeling that the pieces are necessarily there for that.  But in my old-school opinion it is time to give the ride warriors, kids-at-heart, and just generally kid-unconstrained visitors something big to chew on and talk about for a long while. It also gives the little kids another big attraction to watch and look forward to.  I'd like to write that on a survey at some point...

 

[phareous]

RE: FREE Admission for Kids 3 - 5 Years Old

this is a good deal with one exception.  If you plan to eventually switch your kids to an annual pass, you may as well buy it now on the EZ pay system and lock in your rate for a while.  I used the preschool pass first and then upgraded my kids later.  In that time, the EZ pay option increased 3 dollars a month.  Eventually, that $3 per month will cost me more than the amount I saved by using the free passes.

What are the benefits of switching them to a pass? I guess one thing is them being able to come after September 10?

 

[jpcommons]

RE: FREE Admission for Kids 3 - 5 Years Old

As far as I know, the passes are the same other than expiration dates. The benefit to going with an annual pass on the ezapay system is locking in the current monthly rate. If I had it to do over, I would have purchased platinum passes for all of us using the ezpay option instead of purchasing two platinum passes and then 2 preeschool passes for my kids. For me, prices went up $3/month for each kid while they were using the free passes.

 

[Imaginique]

RE: FREE Admission for Kids 3 - 5 Years Old

Haven't read this whole thread, but...

I did enjoy taking advantage of the preschool program the last three years. My kid loves going to BGW but isn't a thrill-seeker, and so until last year she only rode a few rides. But she'd be disappointed if we went without her. (we did leave her with a grandparent a few times). This is our first year that she is too old for the pass. In my eyes I've created another theme park uberfan, and her early love of the park means we are continuing to purchase a season pass for me and fun cards for the rest of the family. I will be truthful and say that before my child-raising years, I would have been opposed to such a free program. But now I embrace it. Yes I am a hypocrite.

My only beef was having to wait in the front checkout to have it validated the first time, which could take an hour. I love having the kiosks to print out tickets, so I'm happy to skip that line when I first arrive this spring.

 

[Unagi]

RE: FREE Admission for Kids 3 - 5 Years Old

The one gap I have been hoping to see the park address over the past 4-5 years has been between Grover and Verbolten/Loch Ness.  It's a gap in thrill intensity but also in height restriction, spanning a not-insignificant amount of time in a kid's young life.  It can affect enjoyability/perceptions during a family's entire trip (and therefore the odds that the family visits/returns) when one or more kids are too old for the kiddie ride but haven't aged into any other roller coasters just yet.  IMO that gap, into which my kiddos fell for about 2-3 years, is now filled by InvadR -- at least on the thrill front (the height restriction is still almost 4').   

The removal of BBW and its minimum height requirement of 42 inches caused a serious thrill ride gap between the Grover and Nessie/Verbolten group. And this has been going on for seven years now. Invadr will help it a little bit with a 46 inch height requirement but the park still needs something for that Grover-Invadr gap.

 

[halfabee]

RE: FREE Admission for Kids 3 - 5 Years Old

Agreed -- as noted, Invadr fills the thrill gap (presumably) but not the height requirement gap. BBW was a great fit for both.

I was really hoping to see a lower min height for Invadr.

 

[MAZ]

RE: FREE Admission for Kids 3 - 5 Years Old

46 inches is pretty low for a full sized wooden coaster. Most are 48 inches.

 

[Unagi]

RE: FREE Admission for Kids 3 - 5 Years Old

46 inches is pretty low for a full sized wooden coaster. Most are 48 inches.

I wouldn't consider Invadr full-sized by GCI standards. Most of their coasters average around 3,000-ft in length. Invadr doesn't come close to that and will be the second shortest GCI when it opens.

Their Joris en de Draak coaster at Efteling is comparable in size to Invadr (72-foot drop, and slightly longer at 2585-feet) and has a smaller height requirement (43 inches) if the child is accompanied by an adult.

 

[MAZ]

RE: FREE Admission for Kids 3 - 5 Years Old

Ok, it seems low for a medium sized coaster then. Either way, a coaster with an 80 foot drop shouldn't have an 80th percentile 4 year old on it. So in MY opinion, 46 seems low enough.

 

[Unagi]

RE: FREE Admission for Kids 3 - 5 Years Old

Either way, a coaster with an 80 foot drop shouldn't have an 80th percentile 4 year old on it.

Why not? BBW had a taller drop at 99 feet and many 4 year olds got to ride it sans probléme.

 

[MAZ]

RE: FREE Admission for Kids 3 - 5 Years Old

Well, let's just say it's really scary to watch your child moving around in a restraint that was designed for larger people but only deemed 'acceptable' for very small children. BBW had a OTSR that pinned small riders down. I am not debating that type of restraint here. The woodie is my concern. i am not going to convince you to be concerned. It is MY concern that I decided to share.

 

[The Hessian]

RE: FREE Admission for Kids 3 - 5 Years Old

Not to mention the feelings of the child involved. When I was seven I was forced to ride Apollo's Chariot as my first coaster and had nightmares for two weeks after that not to mention developing a fear of heights. Though I'm better now.

 

[Merboy]

RE: FREE Admission for Kids 3 - 5 Years Old

I concur. I was on a ride similar to the Trade Wind at the NC state fair when I was quite young and absolutely would have been thrown out if my older sister hadn't been next to me in the car to hold me down. Granted it was the state fair but still... I wouldn't put a child through that.

 

[deacfan31]

RE: FREE Admission for Kids 3 - 5 Years Old

I concur. I was on a ride similar to the Trade Wind at the NC state fair when I was quite young and absolutely would have been thrown out if my older sister hadn't been next to me in the car to hold me down. Granted it was the state fair but still... I wouldn't put a child through that.

I like the program to get kids in to help out us parents who will spend money. As stated before the park can't fully focus on a certain age and forget kids. I remember my first big coaster alone, Scooby-Doo at Carowinds. It was scary and awesome at the same time. I hope this helps other kids become future BG coaster junkies.

 

[DJTLG]

We have a preschool pass for our four year old daughter. We're planning a trip to the park this weekend along with another family. However, we just realized that the preschool pass expired last weekend and the fall bring a friend free tickets don't start until next weekend. Since mid-September typically has low attendance, it doesn't make much sense to have the preschool pass expire earlier and leave a gap for passholders before the fall bring a friend offer begins.

There is literally one weekend from March through mid-October where we'd have to pay for our daughter's ticket, and that just so happens to be the weekend that we can work it out to go. Hopefully the park rethinks this next season. They are missing out on an easy way of increasing attendance on a slow weekend.