Cedar Point’s 2010 season opens on Saturday, May 15, and closes for the year on Sunday, October 31, according to an official announcement from the park.

In the early weeks, the park will be open 10 am – 10 pm on Fridays and Saturdays, and 10 am – 8 pm on Sundays through Thursdays. Starting Friday, June 4, Cedar Point will be open 10 am – 10 pm throughout the week, with the exception of longer Saturday hours (10 am – 11 pm).

As in past years, the park’s longest day of the year will be July 4, when the park is open from 10 am until 1 am.

Cedar Point’s HalloWeekends begin Friday, September 17, and run through Sunday, October 31.

Soak City and Challenge Park schedules and hours will be announced later in the year.

Although ticket prices are headed up in 2010, the Cedar Point’s new pricing schedule represents only modest increases in the cost of admission compared to 2009 rates. The park announced it’s new pricing structure in early December.

The price of an adult ticket for 2010 will be $46 — an increase of $1 over the cost of admission in 2009. Meanwhile, junior and senior ticket prices will remain at the 2009 price of $20.

Standard season passes are now $112 (a $2 increase over 2009), while platinum season passes are holding steady at last year’s price of $160.  

The 2009 adult ticket price represented a $2 increase over the previous year. However, the combination of ticket price increases and difficult economic conditions — which hit Ohio and other midwestern states particularly hard — helped drive Cedar Point’s attendance downward in 2009. By the end of July, 2009, Cedar Fair reported a 10 percent drop in attendance at all of its parks over the same period a year earlier, spurring a flurry of discounting in August and September in an effort to boost attendance.

In a $2.4 billion transaction, Cedar Fair, L.P. agreed to be acquired by an affiliate of Apollo Global Management, a leading global alternative asset manager. The merger was announced on December 16, 2009.

Under the terms of the agreement, Cedar Fair unitholders will receive $11.50 in cash for each Cedar Fair limited partnership unit that they hold, representing a 43% premium over Cedar Fair’s volume weighted average closing unit price over the past 30 days and a 28% premium over the closing unit price on December 15, 2009. The transaction is valued at approximately $2.4 billion, including the refinancing of the Company’s outstanding indebtedness. Affiliates of J.P. Morgan, B of A Merrill Lynch, Barclays Capital Inc., UBS Investment Bank and KeyBanc Capital Markets have provided an aggregate $1.95 billion financing commitment in support of the transaction.

The board of directors of Cedar Fair has unanimously approved the merger agreement and has resolved to recommend that Cedar Fair limited partnership unitholders adopt the agreement.

Cedar Fair’s chairman, president and chief executive officer, Dick Kinzel, said, “We have considered a wide range of strategic alternatives over the past several years. After considering these strategic alternatives, we have concluded that the transaction with Apollo is in the best interest of our unitholders.”

“This transaction allows Cedar Fair unitholders to realize significant value from their investment in our Company over recent trading levels,” added lead director, Michael Kwiatkowski. “Apollo has a strong track record of growing businesses, and its desire to add Cedar Fair to its portfolio serves as a testament to our solid business model and the talent of our people.”

Aaron Stone, a Senior Partner at Apollo, said, “We are extremely pleased to be acquiring this premier amusement park operator. We look forward to partnering with Cedar Fair’s management team and employees to build on the many strengths of the Company. We are firmly committed to Cedar Fair’s continued growth as an industry leading amusement park operator.”

Cedar Fair’s official press release

The creators of www.travelcedarpoint.com have enjoyed a lifelong love affair with Cedar Point, America’s greatest amusement park.

It is our goal to be the most helpful online resource possible as we offer information, opinions and suggestions for families and individuals planning a trip to Cedar Point.

As an unofficial Cedar Point site, our scope extends beyond the park itself and into the surrounding region, helping all of our visitors to find the best deals and widest range of options for lodging, dining and sightseeing in the vicinity of the park. And we’re not afraid to talk openly about issues of interest to all Cedar Point fans, providing an open forum for all opinions.

We welcome your comments and criticisms as we continue to develop this site. Please send all communications to us at info@travelcedarpoint.com.

Can you get a deal on a Cedar Point Season Pass? Yes!

First of all, let’s remember that a full-price Season Pass represents a good deal. If you visit the park at least three times in a season, the pass has already saved you money.

Explaining the Plans

•  A Cedar Fair Platinum Pass is valid for unlimited season-long admission and FREE parking at all Cedar Fair properties. The 2010 price is $160 for guests 48” and taller, and $100 for seniors and those under 48.”
•  A Cedar Fair Season Pass is valid for unlimited season-long admission to Cedar Point only. It does not include parking, admission to Soak City or any other Cedar Fair park. The 2010 price is $111.99, and $71.95 for seniors and those under 48.”

Getting Great Deals

Even though a pass is a great way to save money, there are times when you can get a Season Pass at less than full price and save even more. Let’s look at the 2010 season passes for an example.

For 2010, a Season Pass costs $112. However, Cedar Point offered nice discounts to early buyers of the 2010 passes.

•  On the weekend of September 11-13, 2009, Cedar Point offered new and renewing Season Pass holders the opportunity to purchase 2010 Season Passes for only $90. The offer was only available at the park (no online or phone sales for this deal).
•  Once that deal was over, another offer was available to early buyers. From September 14 through November 13, 2009, Cedar Point was offering a discounted price of $99.99 for 2010 Season Passes. That’s a $12 savings off the full price. This deal was available to online and in-person buyers.
•  During this same time period, similar deals were also available to Cedar Fair Platinum Pass buyers.

Keep your eyes open for such great deals, especially those end-of-season bargains that can save you money the following year.