Cedar Point selling new Fast Lane pass ... for $849

SANDUSKY — Beginning this season, deep-pocketed Cedar Point guests can bypass long lines with an all-new, albeit costly, pass.Starting April 23, Cedar Point will begin selling an All-Season Fast Lane Plus add-on for 2019 season passes. The cost is $849, and entitles the guest to a Fast Lane wristband on each visit of the entire season.Sure this add-on option seems expensive, however, the price needs to be high enough to avoid a flood of people into the Fast Lane queue and not the standard queue.The argument against any Fast Lane passIf you have the benefit of a season pass, and visit Cedar Point often throughout the year, a Fast Lane may not be of interest, given you can come and go to the park at your leisure. "For example, some locals visit Cedar Point dozens of times per year."As a passholder, they often know what days of the week and times of the year to visit to enjoy minimal crowds. Sometimes passholders, for instance, don't visit Cedar Point on a Saturdays in July, when Fast Lane is in highest demand and crowds at their highest.Despite often being a point of contention for the cost and idea of allowing people to cut the line, the Fast Lane system provides a crucial means for the parks to up-charge guests. The additional income stream allows us to see a steady supply of improvements each year, while providing a benefit to the guests with a limited time to enjoy the park. Remember, the park is in the business to make money, and Cedar Point only has six operating months of the year to do so.Yes, Fast Lane adds a substantial cost to your vacation, but it also needs to be that way to balance supply and demand. If the price was too low, there would be no benefit to the system.Some context on the passGuests can pay for the privilege of bypassing the regular line with the Fast Lane system.The Fast Lane program is broken up into two categories, dependent on which rides you wish to use the benefit:• Fast Lane gets you access to Antique Cars, Blue Streak, Cadillac Cars, Corkscrew, Dodgem, Gemini, Giant Wheel, Lake Erie Eagles, Magnum XL-200, maXair, Millennium Force, Monster, Pipe Scream, Power Tower, Raptor, Rougarou, Scrambler, Skyhawk, Snake River Falls, Troika, Wave Swinger, Wicked Twister and WindSeeker.• Fast Lane Plus gets you access to all the Fast Lane rides plus GateKeeper, Maverick, Steel Vengeance, Top Thrill Dragster and Valravn.This year, guests can purchase the Fast Lane passes on the Cedar Point website for any day starting May 11 through Sept. 2 and then weekends Sept. 7 through Oct. 27.Online prices vary from $65 to $105 for Fast Lane and $85 to $155 for Fast Lane Plus, dependent on the day. Prices of the Fast Lane wristbands can vary when purchased directly at Cedar Point — and can even change price throughout the day, depending on demand.The history of the passA couple of years ago, Cedar Fair, the parent company to Cedar Point, offered up an All-Season Fast Lane pass to guests at all of the parks except its flagship property, that being Cedar Point.Every visit from a guest with a season pass and add-on Fast Lane option would get a wristband for the day. Prices from the various parks range from $109 to $549 for the privilege of unlimited rides.The caveat is the All-Season Fast Lane pass is only valid at the park of purchase. So if you wanted to visit Carowinds in Charlotte, North Carolina, and Kings Dominion in Doswell, Virginia, throughout the season, you would need to purchase both parks' Fast Lane option, $299 and $275 respectively, in 2019.But, if you wanted to visit Cedar Point and Kings Island multiple times throughout the year and utilize the All-Season Fast Lane system, it was not available at Cedar Point, until now.With Fast Lane Plus, prices ranging from $85 to $155, dependent on the day. It takes anywhere from six to 10 visits for a guest to break even on one pass. Although a little known secret is that if you have a platinum season pass, you can buy the regular Fast Lane for $65 to $105 and get a free upgrade to Fast Lane Plus, making the break even point somewhere between eight and 13 visits.Editor's note: Justin Dietz is a Register correspondent representing CPFoodBlog.com and @CPFoodBlog on Twitter.