Cinema Savings for the Whole Family

Cinema has been a favorite pastime of family and friends for many years.  However, with the steady increase in both ticket prices and cinema kiosk food prices a family trip to the cinema can feel less like entertainment and more like an encounter with a ring of professional pickpockets. Fortunately however, family treats can still be attained by borrowing some extra funds, but always check that you are getting the best possible rates available. There are ways for you to enjoy a great deal of films within a sensible family budget.  Taking the time to plan family cinema outings can not only make visits to the cinema enjoyable once again, but can also save a family a substantial amount of money.  Many tips about saving money at the cinema focus on what times of the day or week a film is playing. However, how a family chooses to watch a film can have an even bigger impact on the amount of money that can be saved.

Skip the Blockbusters

Depending on the age of your children they may or may not care about the latest and greatest film.  Even if the little ones do desperately want to see the latest Disney or DreamWorks offering, make a decision as a family as to which one you really want to see.  Also, consider seeing a film at a cut-rate second-run cinema and save your wallet from the premium purchases prices of the film tickets during the initial marketing blitz and rollout.

Take Off Those 3D Glasses

3D glasses have become a become a permanent fixture in the cinema going experience. Unquestionably, if 3D effects are used skillfully, they can add a significant amount of visual depth and excitement to a film. On the other hand, a great number of 3D movies being rolled out to cinemas are simply using the element of 3D to draw more people in at higher ticket prices.  If you are not sure whether a film warrants the extra expense of 3D Glasses, check with friends and colleagues who have already seen the film to get their opinion of the entertainment value of seeing the film in 3D. In addition, check the online forums and discussion boards to see if people feel the 3D glasses make a big enough difference to justify the additional cost. Most film critics today will discuss whether or not a film is paying extra money in order to view it in 3D.

Skip the Cinema Altogether

Certainly there will be some movies that a family will want to see on the cinema screen.  They may prefer going to the cinema for a visually spectacular action film or the latest Sci-Fi flick. However, films that do not rely on big budget visual effects are often just as enjoyable to watch on DVD. Even certain animated movies are perfectly fine to relegate to DVD viewing.

In fact, watching a film on DVD can often be a much more enjoyable experience than watching it at the cinema.  Parents do not have to miss sections of the movie while taking their children to the loo. The ability to pause the DVD player can come in quite handy in such situations.  If your family enjoys chatting during a film, there’s no need to worry about bothering the people around you.

Skip the DVDs

For the real bargain hunters,  there are plenty of good movies to see on many of the legitimate free film sites. Hulu and Crackle are the best known providers of free films.  Recently, YouTube also has made its foray into streaming both paid and free films. The biggest downside to these free options is that often all of them will show the same free movies at the same time. However, they can still be a good option to add into the mix of family film viewing experiences.