Category: Season Pass

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FOUR levels of season passes for 2021.

Recently, Adventureland announced a new multi-tier season pass offering for 2021. Four different passes will be available at different price points with different benefits. The complete details are found on the official website.

Here is a breakdown of the new tiers:

Bronze – $110

This new pass is $30 lower than last year’s $140 pass, but only includes:

  • Admission Monday-Thursday

No discounts, no parking, no Oktoberfest admission, no arcade game card, etc. This is the “babysitter pass” for parents to drop their kids off at the park. Since a pass that includes parking is only $30 more, and with parking costing $10 in 2020, anyone driving to the park and paying for parking more than three times is better off upgrading to the next level.

Silver – $140

The silver level, matching the price of last year’s full pass, is a step down from previous season passes as it does not include food/merchandise discounts, Oktoberfest admission, etc. It adds the following:

  • Free general parking.
  • $5 off a guest ticket.
  • Season Pass Holder Only Days admission.
  • Sunset on the Boulevard Concert Series admission.

Notice “general parking.” 2021 will now bring an upcharge for “priority parking.” Also new is the concert series and Season Pass Holder Only Days.

Gold – $175

The gold pass is the new equivalent to last year’s $140 season pass. This means the price jumped $35 this year, but some new benefits have been added. It includes everything from bronze and silver, then adds:

  • $10 off guest ticket.
  • 1 free guest ticket on each Season Pass Holder Only Days.
  • Circo de Luz Admission
  • 10% retail discount.
  • $5 arcade card.
  • Full refund on Adventure Bay tubes.
  • $20 off Adventure Bay cabana.
  • 2021 souvenir cup with one soft drink or ICEE refill.
  • 2021 souvenir bucket with one popcorn or cookie refill.
  • Oktoberfest admission (21+).
  • $20 off Labor Day Party admission (21+).
  • 10% discount at Spectators Bar & Grill.
  • $10 RV campground discount.
  • $15 Adventureland Inn room discount.

Also note the new Circo de Luz and Labor Day Party events.

Platinum – $290

And, much like the special VIP packages offered at Oktoberfest the past few years, there is a new mega season pass which includes everything above, but adds:

  • Early Adventure Bay check in at 10:30. (Is this admission, or just check in to get in?)
  • $50 off Adventure Bay cabana.
  • PLATINUM CUP with free soda and ICEE refills.
  • Labor Day Party admission.
  • Park Hospitality Suite Admission.
  • $15 RV campground discount.
  • $20-30 Adventureland Inn room discount.
  • Free one night stay at Adventureland Inn.
  • Adventureland Inn Splash Pass.

I could not find any details on some of these offerings, so right now it’s a leap of faith on upgrading to a higher pass level for events or benefits that have not been announced. However, compared to regular single day admission to the park plus parking, an individual going to the park ($50 ticket + $10 parking) just five times is a break even for the $290 platinum level.

Obviously, using ticket discounts would require going more than that to benefit.

The new “babysitter pass” is likely to be very useful to families who can visit Monday through Thursday. A parent can get a gold pass that covers parking, and the rest of the family can get the basic bronze pass and save a bunch of money after just a few visits.

I, personally, would go for gold or platinum since I used my passes for numerous 1-2 hour visits to the park over the season. Depending on what the special events are, the upgrade from the $175 pass to $290 ($115) depends on if you planned to use the hotel room and the cost of the special parties. For someone who gets one or two sodas each visit, just having free soda refills might make it worthwhile.

These are some fantastic options. Let’s hope we are allowed to go to amusements parks in 2021.

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2017 Season Pass / Adventure Card notes

A few updates sent in by Katie…

  1. The current season pass price is $125 through May 31, 2017. You can go to the park this week (April 24-28, 2017 from 3:30pm-7pm) to buy one and get your pass made. After May 31, the price will increase. But now, and save money, plus get an extra visit in May to make the cost-per-visit even less.
  2. Adventureland Season Passes can be loaded with money to use in the park “almost” anywhere they accept credit cards. (The brochure says it works anywhere, but we found a number of locations last year that couldn’t handle the season pass via their credit card machine.) If you don’t have a Season Pass, you can get the Adventure Card and do the same thing. If you load the pass at the ticket booth, for each $50 you put on they add a free $5 bonus. It’s a great way to get 10% back. Also, last year, we found that the Pass/Adventure Card also earned 2% cash back. Every time you spend money using it, you get a 2% cash credit. Thus, if you just loaded $50, you’d be getting basically a “12% discount” ($50 + $5 bonus + $1 cash back).
    NOTE: You only get the $5 bonus if you load at the ticket booths, and the bonus is only available through June 11. After that, you just get the cash back (if it’s like 2016) and you can load it online any time you want. 

The Season Pass is a great value if you can make a few visits to the park during the year. There are food and merchandise discounts.  and, apparently, even a discount at Spectators at the Adventureland Inn. When we visited, we were told is was a 10% discount there.

I know some folks that go to Spectators regularly and run up quite the tab on a meal and some drinks. I bet they could save money with a season pass just for that discount over the course of the season 😉

5/18 Update: Spectators has informed us that there will be no Season Pass discount there this year.

If you have any tips to share, please post them in my Facebook group or e-mail me. I’ll have a contact form added soon.

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Adventureland season passes

Adventureland started offering season passes in 2002. Back then, they were $55. In the first year (maybe more?), they did not include parking. Parking was only $3 or so back then, though, so it still made for cheap visits to the park.

Over the years, the price has steadily increased. When the 2017 season passes were made available at the end of 2016, they were at the special “before Christmas” price of $110. On January 1st, they increased by $15 to $125. After May 31, the price will go up again. Last year, the regular price was $135, and we don’t know yet what the 2017 price will be.

You can buy a pass right now at:

https://www.adventurelandpark.com/buy-tickets/

With full price adult admission being $42 this year, if you visit three times during 2017 ($126), getting a season pass at the current discount is cheaper.

Thus, three visits to the park is the current break-even for a season pass. After May 31, when the price increases, it will take four visits.

However, since the season pass also includes parking ($10 in 2016), if you are driving and parking, that means the break even would still be three visits ($156 to buy a ticket and pay parking three times).

It’s really a great value.

Add in the 15% food and drink discount at Iowa Cafe, plus various other merchandise and game discounts, and it’s a great way to save some money if you think you might go more than three times in a season.

More to come…