Not everyone is worried about gasoline prices climbing to $3 a gallon, or even higher, this summer.
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| Cariño Casas / The Business Press |
| Saburo Koba, 14, and his brother Ken, 2, at the wave pool at Knott's Soak City water park in Palm Springs. |
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Officials with several Inland Empire amusement parks say high gasoline prices could help them this summer, even if prices reach $3.44 a gallon, as some oil industry officials have predicted.
Unlike Disneyland or Universal Studios, both of which draw patrons from hundreds or even thousands of miles away, parks like Pharaoh's Lost Kingdom in Redlands or Scandia Amusement Park in Ontario draw mainly from residents of Riverside and San Bernardino counties.
With sky-high gas prices, locals are less likely to drive to Anaheim or Universal City, but they're more likely to spend their money closer to home.
"People are always looking for entertainment, and the bottom line is they aren't going to deny their kids during the summer," said Ken Kowalski, spokesman for Pharaoh's Lost Kingdom. "People are going to make choices about how they spend their money, and we're more affordable. So we think we're going to be attractive to families."
Under new management, Pharaoh's has undergone a multimillion-dollar renovation and will hold a "grand reopening" May 13. The park, which will not add an attraction this year, will add 300 to 350 employees to accommodate crowds from Memorial Day to Labor Day.
The park normally has about 30 full-time employees, Kowalski said.
Pharaoh's will conduct a broadcast, print and billboard marketing campaign to promote the park's renovation.
Officials at Knott's Soak City Palm Springs are more concerned about the weather than the price of gasoline, said Mariah Fritzges, spokesman for the 21-acre park at 1500 S. Gene Autry Trail.
"When we have great weather, then we do well," Fritzges said. "But if it rains, like it has been lately, that kind of hurts us. But as for the price of gas, we aren't really concerned about it because most of our patrons are local, so we don't think it's going to affect us."
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| Cariño Casas / The Business Press |
| Families meander in Knott's Soak City water park in Palm Springs. |
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The water park, which Knott's Berry Farm bought in 2001, will conduct a radio and television advertising campaign this summer, and park management has flooded the Coachella Valley with discount coupons.
"If our attendance is down, we won't cut our prices," Fritzges said. "We'll just advertise our discount coupons more. But as of now, we aren't going to market more this year than we usually do."
Scandia Amusement Park in Ontario will add about 30 people to its work force of about 120, Marketing Director Connie Rojas said.
"We're hoping for a good summer," she said. "We've had a lot of rain this spring, and that has hurt our business. This summer -- and some of our special events this fall -- are going to have to pick up the slack."
Local attractions can benefit from higher gasoline prices, but they must market themselves effectively when people are likely to cut back on spending, said Jack Kyser, chief economist with the nonprofit Los Angeles County Economic Development Corp.
"These parks still have a huge population base to draw from, but they have to work that much harder to keep themselves out in front of the public," Kyser said. "But when the smaller parks say higher gas prices can help them, I think that's believable. I think the same thing can happen with the Native American casinos this summer. They could draw business away from Las Vegas, because it will cost more to drive there and Las Vegas is getting pricey anyway."
If gas prices continue to climb this summer, larger attractions like Disneyland and Universal Studios might advertise that they can be reached by public transportation, including Metrolink. Smaller parks might consider slashing their admission price.
"There are a lot of wild cards in every one of these situations," Kyser said.
Nationally, the amusement park industry expects to have a strong summer, said Beth Robertson, spokeswoman for the International Association of Amusement Parks and Attractions, a nonprofit trade association in Alexandria, Va.
Families cope with higher fuel prices by planning their vacations more carefully, Robertson said.
"Higher gas prices definitely impact our industry, but we've faced this issue before and we will face it again this year," she said.
"The economy is still solid, and unemployment is low. People still have disposable income to spend, and they always want to have fun."
