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[sdcforever]

Looks like the flooding and high gas prices have hit SDC hard so far this year.  Here's an excerpt from a June 22 article on KMBC-TV (Kansas City)'s website:

"Attendance at Silver Dollar City, an amusement park [sic-a theme park] in Branson, is down by 73,000 this year, or 11 percent, said spokeswoman Lisa Rau. She said the biggest drop is among visitors traveling more than 300 miles, reflecting the impact of $4-per-gallon gasoline.

Rain only exacerbates the problem, she said. "The weather has felt so dangerous to people that if the forecast is not good, they don't want to venture out," Rau said. "That's all America's heartland feeling that way."

But tourism officials are also looking to regain some lost ground as the summer wears on and saw some bright spots in the sluggish spring.

Rau said Silver Dollar City is actually attracting more people so far this month than in June 2007 and is advertising online packages to attract bargain shoppers."

Hopefully they can catch up a little bit as the summer season swings into high gear, but I wouldn't be surprised if attendance numbers are a little below expectations once the year is over.

Here's a link to the full article, which is a good read: http://www.kmbc.com/news/16679545/detail.html

[Coaster]

Wow 73,000? That seems like an awful lot! The good part is is that the reason people aren't coming isn't because of the park. It's because of cost and weather.

[sdcforever]

You know, I just realized this news may paint Moonlight Madness in a different light...

Is it a coincidence that they introduce this promotion at a time when their attendance is down a significant number?  $20 a pop for extended hours over three days seems like an easy way to inflate your attendance numbers.  Just a thought.

[Coaster]

^You beat me to the punch sdcforever. I was just about to post this. Moonlight Madness is probably just an attempt to improve attendance numbers. It is a great idea.

[Swoosh]

Well it could also be the fact that SDC did not open a brand new "land" this year.  Look at the past 3 years.  You have the PowderKeg area, Grand Expo, and Wilson's Farm.  I pointed this out to some of the R&D peeps last year at TGS Media Day, and they too were a little concerned that they had been setting up the GP to EXPECT a new land every year.