# Theme parks...are they really worth it? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [May 15, 2002, 12:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/theme-parks-are-they-really-worth-it/109185 "2002-05-15T12:47:07Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 5\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Dangerosa](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/22d042/32.png) [@Dangerosa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dangerosa)\ **Post date:** [May 17, 2002, 7:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/theme-parks-are-they-really-worth-it/109185/21 "2002-05-17T19:08:55Z")
Well, A movie is $7.50 and gets you 90 minutes (maybe two hours) of entertainment. Go to a traveling Broadway show? Expect to lay down $45 for bad seats. Basketball game, anyone? Rent JetSkis? Go downhill skiing? Golf? (Disney may be $50 a day - but 18 holes on their golf course set me back $135 - the theme parks suddenly look like a bargain!) Theme parks are priced right for the entertainment value provided. Sure there are lots of entertainment that can be had for free (frisbee in the park with friends, a hike), but most entertainment that you pay for is really very expensive. (But the best entertainment value for your dollar is still a good book) ---
**Author:** ![doreen](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/858c86/32.png) [@doreen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/doreen)\ **Post date:** [May 17, 2002, 9:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/theme-parks-are-they-really-worth-it/109185/22 "2002-05-17T21:29:38Z")
> [@](#): > > Re: Major holidays are the best days to go > > > [@](#): > > > > * * * > > > > …Best days to really get your money’s worth are major holidays, especially Labor Day. It’s a ghost town… > > Yeah, 'cause everyone is down here at the theme parks during major holidays!! > (4.5 hour wait for TestTrack at Epcot during Easter Week, and forget going between Christmas and New Years Day.) The specific holidays that are the best days to go ( to the non-Florida parks, anyway) are Memorial Day and Labor Day. Just the actual day of the the holiday, not the whole weekend. Apparently, a fair amount of people travel some distance,stay a night or two and leave for home on the holiday itself. The Sat and Sun of those 3 day weekends are crowded. I can easily believe long lines in Florida during Easter week and between Christmas and New Years, but are the lines long on Easter or Christmas itself? ---
**Author:** ![LateComer](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/b5ac83/32.png) [@LateComer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LateComer)\ **Post date:** [May 17, 2002, 9:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/theme-parks-are-they-really-worth-it/109185/23 "2002-05-17T21:39:26Z")
> [@](#): > > **Dangerosa wrote:** > Theme parks are priced right for the entertainment value provided. Bah. $40+ to stand in line for 2 hours at a time to ride a 2 minute coaster? What value? I don’t think so. There are still bargains out there. Come to Kennywood near Pittsburgh! One world class steel coaster and 3 world class wooden coasters and tons of traditional rides. Granted, it’s more of a traditional amusement park than a “theme park” but it’s a bargain at less than $20 on weekdays. They also have general admission still where you buy tickets for rides. ---
**Author:** ![screech-owl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/82dd89/32.png) [@screech-owl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/screech-owl)\ **Post date:** [May 20, 2002, 12:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/theme-parks-are-they-really-worth-it/109185/24 "2002-05-20T00:54:28Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by doreen \* > \*\*…I can easily believe long lines in Florida during Easter week and between Christmas and New Years, but are the lines long on Easter or Christmas itself? \*\* Yup. Very much so. Magic Kingdom and Epcot shut their parking lots ar about 11 am, and shut the parks completely (no new entries) at about 1 pm. ---
**Author:** ![zzt](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/f6c823/32.png) [@zzt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/zzt)\ **Post date:** [May 20, 2002, 1:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/theme-parks-are-they-really-worth-it/109185/25 "2002-05-20T01:12:16Z")
Sure, I think they’re worth it. People complain about long lines, but those can be avoided by going during the “off-season” (not summer, not holidays), on light rain days, and during the week. I LOVE roller coasters, and work them in to every vacation I go on. Sure, it’s only a 2-3 minute ride after a 15-120 minute wait, but it’s a really thrilling 2-3 minute ride. “Floating” down the drops weightless, being flipped upside down 100 feet in the air… that doesn’t happen at a movie theater. And there are good reasons for the seem-to-be-high prices. Those coasters don’t come cheap - $10 million will get you a small one. Plus parks need to pay for all the workers, advertising, maintenance, etc. And on top of that they need to make a profit. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/theme-parks-are-they-really-worth-it/109185.md?page=1)