Summer deal: KidsPack movie ticket, popcorn, fruit snack, drink for $4

It’s a deal that many parents may find too good to pass up this summer — a ticket to an animated movie, popcorn, a FrootiTooti fruit snack and a soft drink for a mere $4, plus tax.

It’s called the AMC KidsPack and will be available to children in the Columbus area each Monday and Wednesday at 10 a.m., starting June 5 and running for nine weeks. AMC, which purchased Carmike Cinemas last December, calls it the AMC Classic Summer Movie Camp. The company said a portion of proceeds goes to its AMC Cares charity.

“The AMC KidsPack is available to all guests who attend the AMC Classic Summer Movie Camp, there is no age limit,” Kimberly Sanden, AMC’s corporation communications coordinator, said in an email Tuesday.

(AMC retiring Carmike: What you should know as customer, rewards member)

The catch is that the AMC Classic Peachtree 8 theater, adjacent to Peachtree Mall on Manchester Expressway, is the only movie house in the city that will be participating in the promotion that includes nine popular animated features from recent years. The AMC Classic LaGrange 10 in nearby LaGrange, Ga., is taking part in the offer. Companywide, there are several dozen theaters participating.

The summer camp lineup includes “The Lorax,” “Trolls,” “The Secret Life of Pets,” “How to Train Your Dragon,” “Pup Star,” “Sing,” “Home,” “Despicable Me” and “The Peanuts Movie.”

To those on the fence about the deal, four bucks isn’t much to entertain a youngster for an hour or two. Some parents might even consider it a bargain. And, in Columbus, mom and dad could alternate between that morning outing at the Peachtree 8 with a visit to the Hollywood Connection on Whittlesey Road.

Hollywood Connection is an entertainment complex that includes roller skating, miniature golf, laser tag, arcade and Lieutenant’s Diner. It also is a full-run theater, the Ritz 13, offering the latest movies. The facility also has an annual supervised summer camp from 7:30 a.m. to 6 p.m. for a much larger fee and with a signed waiver from parents.

Asked recently if there will be any changes to Hollywood Connection following AMC’s buyout of Carmike Cinemas, Ryan Noonan, AMC’s director of corporate communications, responded via email: “We’re still evaluating and it’s likely we’ll be updating the menu, but at this time, we have no other planned changes to that location.”

Aside from the AMC Ritz 13 and AMC Classic Peachtree 8, the Leawood, Kan.-based motion picture exhibitor also operates the AMC Columbus Park 15 and AMC Classic Fort Benning 10 locally, as well as the AMC Classic Auburn 14 and AMC Tiger 13 in nearly Auburn-Opelika, Ala.

This story was originally published May 22, 2017 at 11:39 AM with the headline "Summer deal: KidsPack movie ticket, popcorn, fruit snack, drink for $4."