Are there any benefits to a season ticket at CWP similar to the Marwell Zoo one, i.e., discounts off food and gifts? Thanks, Ashley
I visited CWP the other day and found out its only for entrance and there are no other discounts which is a shame Ashley
Currently an annual pass is £72.50 and an e ticket is £14, so you need to go more than 5 times in the year to be ahead. Seems good value to me, provided you live near enough. I have a Dudley zoo pass and its great to pop for a couple of hours frequently rather than spend all day there once or twice a year.
£72.50 is expensive. At Yorkshire Wildlife Park, I pay £55 for the first year annual membership, which drops to £52 for single Adult when you renew. You get free entry anytime and also free entry to any events.
I'd agree that it is on the expensive side, but, in many ways, this is an unfair comparison: Doncaster and South Yorkshire are a great deal less prosperous than Burford and the Cotswolds; I'd guess that the average income of visitors to the CWP is significantly higher than that of visitors to the YWP.
I would suggest £70 for a single zoo that you have to visit 5 times to break even is terrible value for money unless you live locally! Within 20 miles maybe! My Colchester pass cost less than £50 but gets me in at least 10 other zoos!
Just to clarify, I believe the Aspinall foundation, zsea and ZSL all offer 2 zoos for similar or less than £72!
I see what you are saying, if the market is willing to pay £72 then that's fine. The zoos themselves create their own market and they have to consider the price levels - set it too low and you might create more demand than you can supply, risking causing overcrowding and spoiling the experience for a large number of visitors who will not return again and your market dwindles as you get bad review after bad review. However, if you set the price at what is perceived to be too high, then you limit the size of your market and risk never having enough revenue to be able to sustain your zoo in the long term. At the end of the day, it is the visitors who decide what is a fair entry price. Why the two zoos differ in pricing I do not know, but I know that Yorkshire Wildlife Park's pricing makes me feel comfortable. If they charged an extra £10 a year I would still renew my membership, But reducing the renewal price by £3 almost seems crazy. I think the solution which YWP has hit upon is to make customers feel comfortable. So, there is an Entry Level price for everyone with appropriate discounts. Then, there is the Next Level pricing for having a closer experience, ranging from £30 to £150., from a short time with the Baboons to a ranger day experience. There are appeals made to people to help certain conservation charities around the world and since my annual membership is favourable, I feel comfortable donating small but regular amounts when called upon.
I am a member of around 7 Zoo's but for me the best value is South Lakes. For £40 a year you get; Unlimited entry Free big cat experience Invitation to member events (around 8/9 a year where you get to meet new animals and everything) 10% off any VIP experiences 10% off guests you bring 10% off feed bags when you visit 10% off food and drink 10% off in gift shop Given a big cat feed costs £35, and the member events (mornings at the zoo with the keepers, behind the scenes meetings, even helping out clean the zoo and that on muck in mornings) it's exceptional value for money.
The surprisingly eye-watering annual pass I came across was Shepreth. £12 adult ticket entry on the door, adult annual pass £75, and it is not a big place! I assume this says a lot about the wealth of the people who live nearby?
I've always thought this is the worst value annual pass I've come across! You can't even get in on bank holidays ( or couldn't when I last looked)! Though this year you can get into around 10 other zoos in the East for half price . But Linton, has the same deal & charges only £35 per year!
Would you want to (go on a bank holiday)? I wouldn't. At the end of the day, you pay your money and make your choice. If Cotswold was on my doorstep I could probably swallow the fee for regular access over a year.
Whoops, my bad and a fair point by yourself -I can't imagine wanting to visit Shepreth seven times in a year which you'd need to do to make membership worthwhile, ignoring the half price reciprocals (which as you say can be achieved much more cheaply in any case)
Indeed, 15 minutes down the road you can get an annual pass for Linton Zoo (with the same half price reciprocals) for a meagre £35.
