The headquarters for Harkins Theatres is in Scottsdale, Arizona. They have a total of 26 movie theatres in the U.S. Southwest, including Arizona, California, Colorado, Oklahoma and Texas. Their theatres are state-of-the-art, clean, and they have the best popcorn around! Since the cost of going to the movies can be expensive for families, they offer discounts. But do the discounts really mean a savings for your family? Let’s do the math and see.
Harkins Movie Theatres Discount Offers
Let’s use the example of a family of four going to the movies who usually buy the X-large popcorn with the free refill and large soft drinks for everyone.
Harkins discounts for movie treats:
Harkins offers two “loyalty” deals: A soft drink cup for $4.25 that gets you $1.00 refills for a year. Soft drink comes with the cup purchase the first time. They also have a loyalty T-shirt for $20.00 that entitles you to free medium popcorn for a year. Investment for a family of four: $97.00
According to Wikipedia “A percentage of the profits go to the Big Brothers Big Sisters program.
Harkins ticket discounts:
Getting to the theatre in time for the matinee is a guaranteed money saver. Tickets at the window without any special discount cost: $5.50 Child, $6.50 Senior, $7.00 Matinee, $9.50 Adult. Check their website for which of the theatres offer matinee discounts.
Harkins does not offer a frequent movie watcher program, but they offer VIP discount ticket packages. The cost is $300.00 for 50 tickets (special engagement movies after 6 PM not included). Or, if you want to include the special engagements after 6 PM, the price is $375.00 for 50 tickets. This brings the ticket cost down to $6.00 and $7.50 respectively.
By comparing the regular priced tickets and the VIP discount tickets, adults will save money by taking advantage of the VIP ticket discounts. To maximize it, they should plan on passing on the special engagements after 6 PM and buy the $300 package which brings down each ticket to $6.00. Since a child’s ticket is only $5.50 at the ticket window, their tickets should be purchased at the window. The $300.00 VIP package buys 25 movie nights for two adults and the tickets have no expiration date.
Harkins Theatre Movie Night Comparison
Savings: Night #2 saves $26.25 over Night #1
Are the Harkins Movie Discounts Real Savings?
The VIP package make sense if the couple plan on seeing at least 25 movies in their lifetime as there is no expiration date.
The second movie night provides a significant savings, but remember that upfront investment? The family paid $97.00 for both loyalty offers, so let’s figure out how that purchase affects their true savings.
First of all, they would have paid $4.25 for a large soft drink anyway, so we can see the loyalty cup is an obvious deal, since all future drinks will now be $1.00. That equals a savings of $13.00 for four drinks each movie. But what about the T-shirts that cost $80.00 for a family of four? While it’s true that purchase will eliminate the $6.25 cost of the X-large popcorn each movie, it will take 12.8 movies for that option to pay off! ($80.00 divided by the X-large popcorn price.). That’s a little more than one movie every month. However, I suppose one could look at the T-shirts as an addition to their wardrobe if they don’t mind being a walking advertisement. That makes the popcorn free from day one!
The Best Harkins Movie Night Plan
Less than 12 movies a year: The no-brainer plan for this family is to buy the VIP tickets for the adults and the loyalty cups. They will save the family $15.00 every movie.
More than 13 movies a year: The family will save the $15.00 every movie plus save $6.25 on the popcorn when they reach this thirteenth movie. Total savings each movie $21.25.
Harkins Discount Drawbacks
You can save money using their discount offers. If you are not a slave to fashion and don’t mind being a walking advertisement; if you can remember to bring the cup to the movies and not forget it in the cup holder after the movie; and if you can afford the upfront VIP ticket package cost. If you can do these things, then maybe you are a perfect Harkins Discount Movie Watcher!
Resources:
Wikipedia: Harkins Theatres
Harkins Theatres Website
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