Compositions for the young and old.

[slappy mcguire]

Hitting 34, I worry about my still growing love of theme parks, when I notice many of you around me are in your late teens, and early twenties. At the same age I was massively into themeparks, but the internet was but a dewy eyed dream to come, and my love of themeparks largely fizzled out.

I only really got back into them after visiting Flamingoland in the year that Velocity was installed, and over the next couple of years, sites such as this, and Valley Mania pulled me massively back in.

I worry for the years ahead though; will I like theme parks as I become forty, fifty, and then incontinent? Or am I just simply older at the change of technology? With that in mind, what age do YOU think theme parks are aimed at...?

 

[Jake]

This is a bit of a silly question, because there are parks aimed at all those groups...

Thrill parks like Thorpe, SFGadv etc etc, are aimed at thrill seekers and young adults.

Family parks like Disney and Chessington are aimed at Families.

Kiddie parks like Gullivers and Legoland lean slightly towards families with smaller children...


The only answer I can give you is the group which MOST parks are aimed at, which I'd say were Families, with Disney obviously leading, and setting the 'example' for any true Theme Park.

 

[Ormerod]

I don't think theme parks are aimed directly at an age, but they more or less try and fit in something for everybody.

 

[theRock-steel]

Cedar Fair, Six Flags, and Universal parks outnumber Disney, Legoland, and Sesame parks. Even the Busch parks, Dollywood, HersheyPark, and Holiday World have many rides for older and taller kids. I would say that only the shows and the kiddie areas are not set-up for some kind of thrill seekers. Even the water parks that seem to be growing like crazy have rides that are not for the faint of heart.

 

[LiveForTheLaunch]

Families.. Because most families will have a diverse range of ages and people and since parks have a diverse range of attractions ranged at different ages and interests, they're aimed at everyone.

 

[gavin]

Cedar Fair, Six Flags, and Universal parks outnumber Disney, Legoland, and Sesame parks. Even the Busch parks, Dollywood, HersheyPark, and Holiday World have many rides for older and taller kids. I would say that only the shows and the kiddie areas are not set-up for some kind of thrill seekers. Even the water parks that seem to be growing like crazy have rides that are not for the faint of heart.

This, since it answers the question so succinctly.

Most are aimed at families; it's where the money's at.

 

[andrus]

Most are aimed at families; it's where the money's at.

Why do you think theme parks make more money on families? Do they buy more candy at the stalls?

I, who consider myself a thrill seeker, buy entry ticket and fast track wherever it is possible, that's 100 euros only at the gates. Then I'm pretty certain that I eat a lot more than the average kid..

Different parks are obviously aimed at different target audiences. But in general I think they are aimed for thrill seekers. Just look at a random park like alton. Which attractions have the longest ques? Nemesis, Rita and air, all considered to be really thrilling atttractions!

I believe major thrill rides attract the majority of the audience. They may not buy as much candy as kids do, but they do sell entry tickets. Then again, thrill seekers can be tennagers who are visiting the park with their families.. Thrill seekers can be anyone above 1.4 m, meaning people from 10-70+ years old.

 

[Rush]

Most are aimed at families; it's where the money's at.

Why do you think theme parks make more money on families? Do they buy more candy at the stalls?

That's a rather ignorant thing to say. Family groups have a much wider range than any other group who would go to a theme park.

They can consist of thrill seekers who'll go on everything, the ones who are too small for the big rides, those who don't want to go on big rides etc. So building a huge variety of attractions brings in the huge variety of people which equals more money.

Different parks are obviously aimed at different target audiences. But in general I think they are aimed for thrill seekers. Just look at a random park like alton. Which attractions have the longest ques? Nemesis, Rita and air, all considered to be really thrilling atttractions!

Yes but how many "thrill seeker attractions" are there at Alton? Nemesis, Air, Rita, Oblivion and I'd say Ripsaw. 5. Then you have everything like Duel, The Flume, Spinball, Hex etc. There are far more attractions which aren't catered for thrill seekers alone. Even at Thorpe, the number of family attractions sort of outweigh the thrill-seeker ones. (Including the ****ty Octopus land.)

Then again, thrill seekers can be tennagers who are visiting the park with their families.. Thrill seekers can be anyone above 1.4 m, meaning people from 10-70+ years old.

Not necessarily, rides such as Speed, Top Thrill Dragster and El Toro all have lower than 1.4m height restrictions. (Actually if you were to be pedantic, all the US coaster have a 54" (1.37m) height restriction on their rides so you're point is again proven incorrect! ) In the same way you can get more people who don't like thrill rides aged 10 - 70 as well.

 

[gavin]

Why do you think theme parks make more money on families? Do they buy more candy at the stalls?

I, who consider myself a thrill seeker, buy entry ticket and fast track wherever it is possible, that's 100 euros only at the gates. Then I'm pretty certain that I eat a lot more than the average kid.

Your personal spending habits are irrelevant to the conversation. I'm a thrillseeker, but I spend very little beyond the price of the entry ticket, and that's usually from some discounted offer. Irrelevant.

You might spend 100 Euro. How much would a family of 4 spend? For the average family, their park trip is likely to be the only one of the year, so they're expecting to, and will, spend a lot of money on tickets, food, snacks and souvenirs.

Different parks are obviously aimed at different target audiences. But in general I think they are aimed for thrill seekers. Just look at a random park like alton. Which attractions have the longest ques? Nemesis, Rita and air, all considered to be really thrilling atttractions!

Who says a family can't consist of thrill seekers? "Family" doesn't mean Mum, Dad and two toddlers. A lot of kids in amusement parks can, and do, ride the big coasters. Even the strictest height restrictions allow for most kids over the age of 10 to ride.