If I could leave zero stars...

I got my kids and some bonus kids all together for a festive holiday evening! Christmas has always been our favorite and what with my progression to stage 4 and the ongoing pandemic we were greatly in need of some holiday cheer. Our dreams of cozy yuletide togetherness came to a screeching halt when we were turned away at the ticket counter. Despite the website bearing no such information, apparently the number of tickets to be sold on a given evening is rather small. How, I ask you, does an outdoor event sell out? And if so what kind of business isn't forthcoming with this sort of information via their website? Thusly the only Christmas lights they permitted us to see were through the iron bars of the gates and the grubby gift shop windows. I'm sure that the ticket counter attendant was just overly tired and less than enthusiastic about having to tell family after family that their holiday outing plans had just changed. However, her forced smile and "jolly" cadence left the impression that the emotion she was experiencing was closer to Schadenfreude than regret. My smallest daughter was so heartbroken! She wept the entire drive home, her crocodile tears absolutely soaking the front of her little sweater. If I'm still here next year, we will be going to Columbus to see the zoo lights, instead.

How does an event of this manner sell out? How are they at maximum capacity if families are steadily leaving through the exit? If the Haunted Prison only sold 100 tickets and didn't allow more people to enter as people left I can't imagine that they would turn much profit. I understand that this level of math may be beyond the Kingwood staff as they are likely only used to counting on their fingers. If Kingwood Center wants to be treated like a larger metropolitan attraction, then they need to start being managed like one. Shelby Bicycle Days is run more intelligently.