When I was a kid, going to the movies was something my family got to do several times a year. We saw all the Herbie films, either in the ancient theatre in "town" or at the drive-in near my grandparent's house. At the time, movies were inexpensive entertainment, not so anymore. Try taking six folks to a new release! After forking over $60 for tickets, be prepared to pull a couple of additional twenties from your wallet for popcorn, drinks and candy. Once or twice a year, we may take the older children to a movie and might even find a single movie worth viewing without any kids. As for family trips to the theatre, those come about once a year. For the past few summers we have enjoyed a Pixar film each June. I suspected this year would be no different, so I began to plan our trip last winter. I know, this seems excessive, so let me explain.
Throughout the winter, Martin's offered General Mills Cereals for $3.29. Every four boxes yielded an additional $6 savings. Of course I had $1/2 coupons for each box. Plus, a FREE Milk Catalina popped out each time I bought four boxes. Not wanting to miss any deal, the majority of the boxes I selected included codes for a FREE movie ticket. (Two codes equaled a single ticket.) So for $7.16, I ended up with four boxes of cereal, $4.50 worth of organic milk and two FREE movie tickets. As my kids emptied the boxes, we cut the back panel off the box and stored these together. (I did not enter the codes immediately because expire within a certain number of months after being entered.)
Most folks would agree a movie is better with snacks, and theatres don't allow you to bring your own, so we've learned the following tips:
- Bring some empty disposable cups. These are great for diving up a large tub of popcorn. (Zipper type bags also work well.)
- Bring empty re-usable cups and disposable straws. (Fill these at the water fountain on your way into the theatre, or purchase a large drink and split, if you must have soda.)
- Buy the largest tub of popcorn, which will allow you to have at least one refill.
Having accumulated enough free tickets to get everyone into the theatre, I was more than willing to shell out $8 for popcorn, but given the chance to save even more...you know I took it! Last week Martin's ran a Cars 2 promo. Spend $25 on specific items, earn $7 Catalina. Several Kellogg's cereals were included. I located Corn Pops and Apple Jacks with codes redeemable for a variety of freebies, including $5 in Concession Cash. For around $15 (after Catalina and coupons), I picked up 10 boxes of cereal and two boxes of granola bars. Four codes were redeemed for Concession Cash.
A couple of days ago, I entered lots of codes from cereal boxes and printed vouchers for free tickets and concession cash. Last evening, I approached the box office with a handful of pages from my computer printer and payed absolutely nothing for six tickets. Next, I proceeded to the snack bar and ordered the largest bucket of popcorn, redeemed my $5 voucher and handed over three singles...and that my friend is how we saw a new release for only $.50 per person!
Note: these types of deals seem to repeat, so keep your eyes open, compare the offers on different boxes when you're purchasing cereal and plan your own inexpensive trip to the theatre!
