Funworld JULY 2007

STEP TO THE FRONT OF THE LINE

by Keith Miller

Six Flags is the latest to offer VIP treatment for guests who want more

W ith the opening of the 2007 amusement park season in the United States, guests who are willing to pony up more money than the cost of a standard one-day admission can now receive select VIP treatment from many major amusement parks.

In March, Six Flags Inc. became the latest park company to offer exclusive options to guests by proclaiming that it would premiere a VIP package for the 2007 season at its U.S. parks. In an announcement, the company said the program provides numerous concierge-level service and benefits.

Six Flags joins other large U.S.-based park companies—including The Walt Disney Company, Universal Studios, and Cedar Fair Entertainment Company—in offering high-dollar VIP experiences. “I think we’re seeing parks offer this because people are looking for alternatives to typical theme park visits,” says Dennis Speigel, president of International Theme Park Services Inc., an amusement industry management and consulting firm in Cincinnati, Ohio. “They have less time—the [average] length of stay is shrinking—so they’re willing to pay a surcharge. They come to theme parks wanting to buck the lines and maximize their [experience], and parks have become aware of that.”

Commenting on why Six Flags chose to introduce the program this season, company senior vice president of communications Wendy Goldberg explains: “In the past two years, since Mark Shapiro (Six Flags president and CEO) has been here, he’s been asked about a premium option like this for families.”

The VIP program includes park admission, private guided tours from a VIP host, front-ofline ride access, parking, meals with reserved seating at restaurants, snacks, reserved show seating, private meet-and-greet encounters with characters, souvenir photos, and games. Each guest will also receive complimentary access to one fee-added attraction. The Six Flags program features VIP hosts and hostesses specifically trained to handle all of the special arrangements. Unlike some parks that use employees in other guest relations positions to cover as hosts for guest VIP bookings, Goldberg says Six Flags is implementing staff exclusively dedicated to the VIP program, personnel who had to audition.

A guest can purchase the VIP program through an individual Six Flags park’s web site or by calling the park. Prices range from $199 to $249 per person depending on the park, and there is no maximum group size. The program is valid for the guests’ entire day at the park.

After purchase, a host will contact the guest to ascertain preferences for such things as rides, characters, and meals to customize the experience. The host then meets the guests at the park and escorts them throughout their visit.

“The program is also flexible,” says Goldberg, “so if the guests don’t decide to purchase the program until they arrive at the park, the host will sit down with them right there and customize it.”

A Growing Trend
Six Flags is just the latest park company to roll out such a program. Introduced last year as the “Millennium Package,” the equivalent at Cedar Fair’s Cedar Point costs $400 per guest for one day. It’s a full-day affair that includes admission, VIP parking, a personal host who accompanies the guests throughout their visit, front-of-line access to rides, two complimentary on-ride photos, and priority restaurant and show seating. Advance reservations are required, and discounts are available for groups of four or more, as well as multi-day bookings.

“What really drives the program is the front-of-line access,” explains Bryan Edwards, the park’s public relations manager. “That’s really what people are paying for—the ability to bypass the lines.”

Indeed, one aspect of the Cedar Point package that’s different from many other VIP programs is the park doesn’t limit the rides to which VIP guests can gain front-line access—all 69 rides in the park are included.

However, Cedar Point doesn’t allow “rerides”—riding the same attraction consecutively. “Otherwise we would have people who would just ride in the front row of ‘Millennium Force’ or ‘Top Thrill Dragster’ over and over again for hours,” notes Edwards, “and that would inconvenience our other guests. But they are allowed to leave a ride, go to another [ride], and then come right back.”

Interestingly, Edwards says the company discovered sometimes VIP guests want time to themselves away from the Cedar Point host, and the park accommodates them: “We’ll just let them go off on their own, and the escort will arrange to meet up with them later.”

The VIP program got its start from the park’s efforts over the years to accommodate celebrities. “Every year we got requests from pro athletes, movie stars, etc., who were coming with family and wanted special access, and that is where this came from,” Edwards says. “It was kind of a hodgepodge system, so we created the VIP program.”

Disney’s Different Approach
The VIP packages at Walt Disney World in Orlando and Disneyland in California—dubbed VIP Tours—also grew out of efforts to accommodate high-profile guests, but that’s where the similarity ends with the Cedar Point and Six Flags programs.

The first and most conspicuous difference is the fact that Disney’s tours don’t include front-of-line access for the guests. “That’s a heritage piece,” explains Tim Haffelt, a manager with Walt Disney World’s VIP Tour Services. “We have guests ask about it, but historically, our business is about treating guests equally. They can, however, participate in Fastpass [Disney’s free front-of-line system available to all guests], and their guide will set that up.”

Though the Disney programs don’t include front-of-line access, they do feature something most guests never see: behind-the-scenes tours of a host of different venues and operations, led by knowledgeable escorts.

The program at the Disney parks is also structured differently than other VIP programs. First, it is priced hourly. At Walt Disney World, it costs $125 per hour ($150 during peak periods) for a group of up to 10 guests, with a six-hour minimum, and park admission is not included. At Disneyland, the cost is $75 per hour with a four-hour minimum. Also, VIP guests can access multiple parks within the respective Walt Disney World and Disneyland complexes. “[WDW is a] a huge property, and it’s different from having one park,” Haffelt points out. “The biggest thing for the guests is that they want someone to take them around the parks. Guests may want to go to two or three parks in the same day, and our guides will help them do that, so it can be a very long day for the guides.”

Peak season for the tours is October to April, and since Disney uses guest relations personnel who perform a variety of functions besides hosting VIP Tours, the tours are not always available during times the staff is involved with big special events.

Universal Studios Hollywood also offers a VIP experience, and its program is a mixture of the Six Flags, Cedar Point, and Disney packages. Universal’s package is $199 per person, and like Six Flags and Cedar Point, does include park admission and front-of-line access. But like Disney, it also includes private, behind-thescenes tours of park operations, movie sets, rides, and attractions. Universal also throws in complimentary all-you-can-eat meals.

Successful Business Model
One thing these park companies have in common is that they all say their VIP programs are quite popular and get rave reviews from guests. “The feedback we’ve gotten so far is just amazing,” says Goldberg. “People are just so delighted with the experience.”

The VIP programs don’t seem nearly as prominent yet at parks in other parts of the world as they are in the United States, and though some in the industry attribute this to cultural differences regarding how high-cost park experiences are viewed in other countries, Speigel says it’s just a matter of timing: “It will catch on internationally—it always does—it will just take a little more time. The one thing that’s constant at theme parks everywhere is people don’t like to wait in line. Those who can afford to do it are going to pay to go around the lines.”