Knoebels Amusement Resort is America's largest free-admission amusement park and offers free parking, entertainment and picnic facilities. Guests can take a dip in the 900,000-gallon Crystal Pool filled with refreshing mountain stream water and enjoy an stay overnight at one of two campgrounds that include cabins and over 800 campsites for tents and campers. In addition to more than 60 rides, Knoebels boasts award-winning food, swimming, shopping, and golf at Three Ponds Golf Course next door to the park.

Knoebels offers a refreshing escape from the hustle and bustle of everyday life, but with so much happening at the park, the team struggle to keep guests informed about wait times, ride statuses, new retail options, and promotions.

"We used to mainly communicate with guests via paper marketing or our website, which wasn't always the most up-to-date. Like most attractions, things can change in an instant depending on variables like the weather and staffing schedules, and we wanted to be more responsive to that,” explains Tiff Kalejta, Digital Marketing Manager at Knoebels.

The marketing team recognised the need for a solution that could provide their guests with the real-time updates and accurate information and reached out to Attractions.io.

Instead of relying on physical maps, guests now use the app to find the quickest and most efficient route to their desired attractions.

"They can look right at the app, put in the ride they want to go to, and it takes them there and gives them the best directions and the quickest way there," says Tiff. 

For the marketing team, the app's push notification feature has been a game-changer. They can now promote retail and food items, like their famous fudge, as well as sending reminders about special offers, such as BOGO days. 

 "Having the ability to send push notifications to our guests is amazing. We promote our dining experiences and are already seeing an uptake in revenue. This year, we have over 40 new different food items all around the park. We can send a message to guests that are here on site to say: ‘Hey, we have some new Whirzle flavours. Check them out’ and then see that conversion rate increase through the app. We’re seeing up to 20% of users engage with our promotional messages." shares Tiff Kalejta. 

And the communication doesn’t cease when guests head home. Over 35% of guests opt-in for ongoing marketing, allowing the park to extend its reach and incentivise repeat visitation. 

The app has also received positive feedback from guests, with 99% of users reporting a positive experience.

"To me, that's a huge success story alone. It shows that our audience wanted the app, that they're using it, and that the content we're providing is valuable information for them.” - Mary Helwig, Head of Marketing.