Visiting a theme park is an expensive vacation. The tickets alone are often enough to break the bank. But a bad economy can inspire some good deals at popular theme parks. A theme park vacation will never be cheap, no matter what kind of deal you get, but if you’ve been saving and planning to visit a theme park this summer, check out these deals before you buy your tickets. You might save yourself some cash!
Six Flags
During the month of June, if you make a purchase at Walmart on Wedesdays or Thursdays, you’ll be eligible to purchase a 4 pack of tickets to Six Flags for $99. Regular admission to Six Flags is $50 per ticket, so that’s a big savings for four people! In addition, if you visit the theme park with the tickets on a Wednesday in June, you’ll be able to get into the park an hour early! (Rise & Ride)
Here’s how it works. Make a purchase at a participating Walmart on a Wednesday or Thursday from June 2 to July 1. On your receipt will be a code. Visit www.sixflags.com/walmart to enter your confirmation code and register to receive an email from Walmart with the offer. In the email will be instructions for purchasing your tickets! Tickets are good through 12/29/10, but the Rise & Ride certificate is only available Wednesdays in June. Visit www.sixflags.com/walmart for more information.*
Disneyland
Last year we took the kids to Disneyland with a buy 3 get 2 free discount, and the offer is back this year! If you buy a 3 day parkhopper pass and 3 nights at a participating hotel, you get 2 more days at the theme parks and 2 more nights at the hotel free. It’s like paying for a 3 day vacation, but getting a 5 day vacation.
We really enjoyed our time at Disneyland last year. We stayed at the Portofino Inn, which was in walking distance of the parks, saving us parking fees. It also had an in-room refrigerator, so we went to a nearby grocery store to stock up and saved money on food, too. It’s not an inexpensive vacation, but it’s one we’ll never forget.
Sea World
Currently Sea World in Orlando is running a similar promotion to the one Disneyland is running. If you buy a 3 day pass to Sea World and 3 nights in a participating hotel, you can get two extra days and nights free.
Sea World San Diego is running a great promotion, where if you buy a one day ticket, you gain a Fun Card, which entitles you to admission to the park for the rest of the year. If you live in the San Diego area, that’s a great deal!
Finally, Sea World in San Antonio is running a couple of promotions. First, you can buy a 4-pack of tickets for $189, which will save you over $40, if you need 4 adult tickets. If you don’t need 4 tickets, they are also running a deal where adults can get in at the child price. That will save you about $10 per ticket.
One thing to remember while shopping for deals at theme parks: read the fine print. Before you hit the purchase button, be sure you know any limitations, such as dates you can use the tickets. Doing your research before you buy tickets can save you a lot of money…and headaches.
Photo by Andreia.
*I am a participant in the Walmart Moms program. Walmart has provided me with a 4 pack of Six Flags tickets in exchange for this post. Participation in this program is voluntary. All opinions expressed are my own.
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{ 7 comments… read them below or add one }
For anyone traveling to Hershey Park this summer (in Hershey, PA!) you can get discount tickets at Giant Food Store (there is one just a few miles north of the park on RT-39) and when you buy two tickets you get a free parking pass (usually $10 for parking). Pretty sweet.
You don’t have to stay at a Disney hotel to get one of the 5 for 3 deals. The offer is available on tickets purchased through their website–it’s a 5 day park hopper for the price of 3.
Seaworld is running a deal where you can get a childs ticket for $5 with the purchase of an adult ticket. It runs until the end of 2010.
http://www.seaworldcares.com/
I am not sure why you would want a five day pass to Seaworld, is that good for other parks too. One day was plenty of time at Seaworld San Diego anyway….
A couple of years ago when I lived in LA, I got a season pass to Magic Mountain for the price of regular admission. This is a great deal if you live near the park and your kids enjoy going. There are always some great deals to be found. You can make this even cheaper by not eating in the park but packing some sandwiches in a cooler for a picnic!
For anyone going to Disneyland (or Florida’s Disney World), the best $15 you can spend on your vacation will be at http://www.ridemax.com !! I grew up 45 minutes away from Disneyland so I can tell you I spent my fair share of time at the Happiest Place on Earth. Last year we took our family of 4 for the second time, and I tried RideMax for the first time. It was, hands down, absolutely the BEST trip we had EVER had to Disneyland! We were there from 9 a.m. to 9 p.m., and we rode on 27 rides, saw 3 shows, and a parade. We had to wait 20 minutes for 2 rides (new or newly remodeled), and I am NOT KIDDING that every other ride was 10 minutes or less, if not walking straight into the ride and going! Seriously! I will definitely be using RideMax for every trip we make to Disney for as long as they offer their services, I can promise that!
P.S. Our trip included visiting the Disney California Adventure in the middle of the day, too. The Disneyland itinerary they gave me had a 5 hour gap in the afternoon, so I printed a second itinerary for California Adventure and filled in the gap. It was perfect!
A couple of years ago when I lived in LA, I got a season pass to Magic Mountain for the price of regular admission. This is a great deal if you live near the park and your kids enjoy going. There are always some great deals to be found. You can make this even cheaper by not eating in the park but packing some sandwiches in a cooler for a picnic!