Reasons Why Drive-In Movie Theaters Are Here To Stay

Back in the 1970s and ’80s, drive-in theaters were common, but they soon fell out of style with the subsequent generations. With social distancing measures imposed due to the pandemic, cinema business is bust, and movie enthusiasts are choosing outdoor drive-in theaters as alternatives to closed-door cinemas. 

As you sit watching the movie through the windshield of your own car, you are free to laugh as loudly as you can, make predictions about the fate of the different characters, and have a home-cooked meal that you brought along with you while you watch, and no one can stop you.

This article will look at some of the reasons we believe the drive-in theaters are here to stay, and why that’s a good thing. 

A New Type of Movie Experience For the New Normal

We are still going through the pandemic, one which has claimed millions of lives around the world. Therefore, measures like social distancing and wearing masks have become the new normal that will, at least, be with us for some time to come. 

But, the show must go on, as they say, and it’s unrealistic to assume that life has to come to a stand still indefinitely. People will always find ways to get their fill of entertainment and luxury, despite the pandemic measures, but now the only difference is they have to do it safely. 

Drive-ins constitute one of those safe options that people can use to have a movie-going experience in the new normal. Seated inside your own car, you cannot be more protected from any viral transmissions. The only issue that movie-goers can experience while in a drive-in theater is the lack of restrooms for when they have to answer nature’s call. The management of the drive-ins can easily rent portable restrooms so that movie-goers can rest assured that they don’t have to make for the woods each time they have to go. 

It’s cozier and more intimate

One of the biggest drawbacks of traditional movie cinema is that you cannot talk to the person sitting next to you. Whether you utter a few comments or even a word, you are instantly shushed into silence. 

Back in the ’70s and 80’s the drive-ins were considered date-central in little suburban towns. Young high-schoolers and university students would flock to the drive-ins to catch the latest attractions along with their dates from the comfort of their cars. 

It’s arguably much cozier to sit inside your own car rather than on a seat among a row of seats with children, families, and other cinemagoers around you. Drive-ins provide that unmatched sense of privacy combined with the experience of watching your favorite flicks on a big screen. 

It’s cheaper

All factors considered, drive-in cinemas are much, much cheaper than the traditional, in-door cinemas because, with no seating and overhead costs for running a drive-in cinema, the ticket will cost you way less. Apart from ticket pricing, you save a fortune by bringing your own food to the drive-in. In the traditional cinemas, the snack bar almost always provided you with snacks at jacked-up prices, sometimes even as high as three times their actual value. 

Not being able to snack on your favorite foods while you watch a movie or paying through your nose for the snacks that are available at a cinema are only a couple of reasons behind the unpopularity of traditional cinema theaters. 

Aesthetically much more appealing 

We live in a time where style, design, taste, and aesthetics are extremely important. The experience of watching a big screen play out your favorite movies against a dark sky background is one of the quintessential outdoors-meets-indoors kind of an experience. Besides, drive-in cinema theaters are the most Instagram-able places you can find. 

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There’s never a shortage of space

One of the worst things about traditional cinemas is that there are a limited number of seats. People clamoring to watch the movie, book their seat days in advance. With big movies premiering fairly often, it’s hard to get and keep a seat because of all the advance bookings. 

Drive-ins don’t have a seating issue, although there is a parking issue. The parking lot might fill up unexpectedly, forcing you to park your car somewhere far off or at an angle that won’t provide for a fun viewing experience. Instead of coming in individual cars of your own, you and your friends could carpool and enjoy the movie seated together in a single car. 

Conclusion

Traditional cinema business cannot sustain itself with all the pressures put on it by the pandemic. It is coming undone, and it is sinking with each new wave of the pandemic. Drive-in theaters provide an alternative movie-going experience, one which is less elitist, cheaper, comfortable, and above all, safer.