The cost of seeing a movie at many overseas U.S. military installations is going up Friday.
Adults will have to pay 50 cents more to see a film at Reel Time Army and Air Force Exchange Service theaters, while children 6 to 11 will have to pay an extra quarter.
“I know we haven’t raised the prices since 1994,” said Debra L. Byerly, an AAFES spokeswoman. “However, prices remain significantly lower than stateside and off-post movie theaters.”
The ticket increase is a result of a rise in business expenses, Jack Morris, AAFES Europe senior vice president, said in a press release.
Among the expenses is the decline of the dollar compared to the euro, according to Maj. David Accetta, AAFES spokesman. The cost of doing business overseas, as well as paying local nationals in euros, has made expenses higher for AAFES Europe.
Beginning Friday, new prices will be:
First-run movies — $4 for adults, $2 for children;Regular releases — $3.50 for adults, $1.50 for children;Repeat showings — $3 for adults, and $1.50 for children.The prices are 33 percent below the 2003 average stateside prices posted on the National Association of Theater Owners Web site, according to AAFES officials. The average ticket price in the States is more than $6, with many theaters charging significantly more for first-run movies.
“When it comes right down to it, the price is going up 50 cents, but that’s still about half of what you would pay for a first-run movie in a large cinema complex in the United States,” Accetta said.
The price increase does not affect the free facilities at AAFES theaters on Army installations in South Korea or deployed sites in the Balkans and Southwest Asia, Accetta said. Those facilities have special memorandums of agreement and cost is picked up by morale, welfare and recreation detachments.
