Kennedy Space Center tickets

[Sadie22]

A family unit of space buffs will be visiting soon and will be spending two days for sure. The senior citizen in the group has been there before, but the younger men will want to do everything and might like the option of a third day. Are the tickets on the KSC site the best deal, or is there somewhere else they should look for advance tickets? Or should they wait and buy tickets when they arrive?

 

[cfeasby]

We’ve purchased on undercover tourist in advance.

 

[Sadie22]

Thank you. They will have a car. The tickets I see on Undercover Tourist seem to include transportation to and from Orlando which they do not need. I'd like to save them some money or at least a wait in a ticket line when they get there.

 

[Woodview]

Do0 they really need 2 days & then a 3rd ?

Be there for opening time & I am sure by closing time they will have had enough ....... unless they spend a couple

of hours eating .

 

[writerguyfl]

I don't think there are any deep discounts available for Kennedy Space Center. If you're a AAA member, you might check to see if they have discounts.

I'm a big fan of the place. I was an annual passholder for several years. Honestly, I think two days is sufficient...even for huge space buffs. Here are two of the less obvious things I'd recommend:

• The Atlantis Building is a don't miss. After going through the pre-show, you'll enter the area where the Shuttle is located. In that area, there should be a least one docent. On each of my visits, these docents have been retired NASA personal and/or contractors that worked on various aspects of the space program. I've had several fascinating conversations with these people during my various visits. You can hear some great behind-the-scenes stories and learn facts you won't hear otherwise.
• If anyone is interested about the start of the space program, the Cape Canaveral Early Space Tour is great. It costs extra ($25), but I think it's worth every penny. You get to enter the Air Force Station and see the facilities used to launch the first rockets. You also visit Launch Complex 34, which is where the Apollo 1 tragedy occurred. (That was really moving, for me.) Because it's a specialty tour, they tend to be run by the most senior tour guides. My guide had worked for NASA for decades and told many stories about many of the astronauts that he knew personally. This tour would be perfect to do on a second day.

 

[Sadie22]

Thank you!

They will read every sign and have personal conversations with every tour guide they possibly can. Two days may not be enough. One and a half were not enough when I went with the old guy. He may have forgotten half of what he saw then, and now there's more.

 

[1911]

there is a website called "best of orlando" that sells discounted tickets.I have never used them so can't speak to whether they are legit or not.

 

[Sadie22]

Thank you! I'll take a look at that.

 

[got4boys]

You can buy an annual pass less expensive through AAA and get the free parking too. It is $85.99 for the AAA annual pass - good for 13 months.

 

[Sadie22]

Thank you!

 

[Bethany10]

If you have access to Tickets At Work (through your employer) those are the cheapest per day prices I've found, but it sounds like an AP may be a better value for as often as you're looking to do.

 

[muffyn]

do they still have the offer where you can get free tix from your congressperson?

 

[writerguyfl]

This is from 3 years ago, but someone reported that the free tickets via Congress is no more.

https://www.disboards.com/threads/any-discounts-on-kennedy-space-center.3453467/

I'm not sure how it worked in the past, but Kennedy Space Center is currently operated by a contractor: The Delaware North Companies. The complex is entirely funded by visitors (meaning they don't get any tax dollars). Given that funding arrangement, I would guess that Delaware North wouldn't be keen on anyone giving away free tickets.

That said, I haven't seen proof (beyond what people have reported here) that free tickets via Congress don't exist. It might be worth asking.

 

[AgentMama]

Not sure what the age range of your "younger men" are, but this summer they were running a promotion for grade school students in the 4th or 5th grade (can't remember which) to get in for free. I think you had to show proof of grade level and not sure if it is still being offered.

 

[fla4fun]

If you want to do any of the specialized tours, you may need the three days. I bought the cheapest annual pass, and did a couple of the specialized tours as well as the normal touring and I still haven’t seen everything after four visits. If they are planning on talking to everyone they can, they may not tour as fast as the average visitor either. You can see most of the basic stuff in one day, but the tours take a lot of time and you really can’t schedule more than one the same day due to timing (at least we couldn’t, and we tried).

 

[Sadie22]

My men had a great time in the two full days they had available. They got annual passes so another trip within the year may be in the cards.