AmStar Lake Mary by Santikos — Attraction in Sanford

This review is more for Santikos. However: because AmStar is a more recognized name & I came here expecting to watch a movie, I am still leaving this review to be of help to others as it's over a less-common situation that may affect someone else in the future AND because it's close enough to Orlando and Daytona Beach, both of which are heavily touristed areas. That being said: If you're itching to see a movie at AmStar and have an "Emergency Admission" ticket to use up from AmStar Cinemas (which has no expiration date on it but also has The Grand Theatre listed), don't bother coming here with it. (I'd have taken a picture of this for the review in case you're reading this and don't know what I'm talking about, but I threw it away out of frustration as I could tell where this was going...) They won't even do a 'rain check' or just ring it up like normal, accept the ticket as a form of cashless payment, and attach it to a receipt for their backend recordkeeping - since they don't take cash (based on multiple reviews I've read, both of this location and another in SC). Unbeknownst to me before this incident, Santikos bought Southern Theatres, LLC which operated all locations of both the AmStar brand and The Grand Theatre brand, so that means they bought assets of both brands - such as the money I paid for a movie ticket that then couldn't be used due to a technical difficulty on the theater's end (albeit at a different location). I am not blaming the employees -- I am sure they were just doing their job as instructed or as well as they knew. I say it that way because surprisingly, one of them seemed to have been with AmStar before the buyout, so she knew they gave out these paper tickets. But tonight, they lost out on whatever money I would have spent on an overpriced drink (because I'm one who's always drinking on something and don't smuggle stuff in) -- and for nostalgia sake, I would have gotten popcorn, but it was pre-bucketed in a heat lamp cabinet, so basically you'd burn your hands first holding the darn bucket AND have cold popcorn in the middle. I hope that's only for if you go for the last showing of the night, but even still: that's a turnoff for the already high pricing theaters are known for. Also: this location has ticket windows outside the entrance & exit as pictured, yet had 0 people working them on a Friday night, yet there was no signage except at the customer service desk inside where 2 employees had signage up between them on where to purchase a ticket. Multiple other people outside were confused, too, by the way, so we all went inside to figure it out. So: after seeing the answer to my question, I then proceeded to the concession stand (where tickets could be bought) where only 1 female was working; fortunately for her, she wasn't slammed. You read that right: you have to purchase your ticket at the concession stand, therefore tying other people up who might not want concessions and perhaps overwhelming that 1 employee needlessly in the process (at least 1 or 2 reviews mentioned a high turnover rate). Or you have to order your ticket online OR exchange cash for some kind of card if you don't have a physical debit/credit card, both of which charge fees on top. Why were 2 people getting paid to display a sign while 1, who isn't a manager, is running the whole show (no pun intended)? That girl went out of her way to try to help, even asking a second person because the whole thing didn't seem right to her, either. My first attempt ever of going to a theater in Florida where I'm in the process of moving to... I will take this as God's way of telling me that maybe there was something else I got protected from by me choosing to leave without buying a movie ticket. At least the employees themselves were decent and attentive when approached, the interior of what I did see was fine (it's a movie theater, not the Kia Center or the Ritz), and the location would be great for a "dinner and a movie" sort of date. My biggest beef was them not honoring an unexpired ticket over a buyout of 2 brands that...

Fantastic Experience at AMStar Cinemas in Lake Mary!

I recently went to AMStar Cinemas in Lake Mary to see "Inside Out 2," and it was a great experience from start to finish. We reserved our seats online beforehand and opted for the end seats since my husband was concerned about having to climb over others to get to the middle. However, as soon as we arrived, we realized that this theater has plenty of space between the reclined seats, making it easy to navigate without bothering anyone.

Even sitting on the end, the view of the screen was excellent. The theater is designed in such a way that every seat feels like a prime spot, even if you're on the side. The reclining chairs were incredibly comfortable, adding to our enjoyment of the movie.

Speaking of the movie, "Inside Out 2" was a five-star experience—super fun, relatable, with a nice blend of adult humor and content that's great for kids too.

Another perk of this theater is the rewards system. The more points you earn, the more freebies you can get, whether it's a free movie ticket or snacks. I appreciated that even after purchasing food or drinks, you can head over to customer service, and they'll adjust your points if you forgot to enter your phone number.

The theater itself is open, clean, and even has games available, which adds to the fun atmosphere. We can't wait to return for our next...

First let me say that they are card only. No cash is used whatsoever...

Went to see a movie today.. Got our tickets and you have to choose which seats your sitting in. Picked our seats at the front and went and got our snacks. Headed to our seats and someone else was sitting in them. After asking politely we noticed we shared the same tickets. They double sold our seats. There were 3 of us and 1 of us couldn't watch the movie because there was no more seating available... Spoke to the front counter and they gave us a rain check ticket for another day... How about you not keep tabs on who's sitting where alittle better or don't have assigned seats. As we were at the front counter there was a couple who had there seats sold double sold as well .

To address all the other reviews about the seats being worn and it being dirty and what not.

Temperature was decent. I had a hoodie on and was pretty comfortable. We arrived as the previews were playing so I couldn't really notice if the place was clean or not but we weren't stepping over anything and not stepping in popcorn so I imagine it was pretty clean. Couldn't tell you about the condition of the seats but I can tell you we were very comfortable with what they were. Front counter wasn't bad either. Usual popcorn on the floor but nothing terrible. For...