Clever Campaign Fuels New Six Flags Discount

"Our President is Doing Something About Gas Prices," proclaims the bold headline for full-page ads that are running in The New York Times and USA Today. That should attract some attention. Scanning the smaller text under the headline reveals that the president of action in this case is Six Flags head honcho Mark Shapiro, and the thing that he's doing is offering a $15 admission discount to guests and up to five additional members of their parties in exchange for a gasoline receipt. That's a substantial discount and should help take some of the sting out of gassing up the car and getting to Six Flags parks this spring. The ad fails to mention that guests are likely to find higher entrance and parking fees at Six Flags parks this season. It now costs a whopping $59.99 to enter Six Flags Magic Mountain in California, for example. Shapiro, part of the park chain's new regime, is trying to tackle a $2.3-billion debt through a number of initiatives, including raising prices. The gas receipt promotion continues through May 29 at the 13 Six Flags-branded theme parks in the U.S. and cannot be combined with other discount programs.
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