The Most Popular Theme Parks Where Your Cash Will Be Useless

In the 2020s, it's become increasingly common for theme parks to go cashless. Major names like SeaWorld, Busch Gardens, Hersheypark, Six Flags, Cedar Point, and Knott's Berry Farm have all now adopted systems where they only accept credit cards, prepaid debit cards, or payments from digital wallets. While Disney and Universal exceed these parks in annual visitors, they also promote their own cashless payment options.

During the pandemic, Disney World encouraged cash-free transactions— including gift card use — to reduce contact. Even before that, guests were accustomed to using MagicBands, which enable you to purchase food and souvenirs using the credit card linked with your Disney hotel room. These waterproof wristbands double as your room key and scannable theme park ticket. Universal Orlando Resort employs a similar tool called TapuTapu at Volcano Bay, the water park many visitors agree has some of the best rides and food in Florida. At its theme parks, the resort allows visitors to make contactless purchases through its official app with Universal Pay.

The difference with Disney and Universal is that cash is still an alternative there, whereas some of these other popular parks have pivoted away from it entirely. If you show up with cash, you could be told, "Your money's no good here." It's a trend that's also emerged in certain national parks across the U.S., such as Rocky Mountain National Park. Here, we'll take a quick look at how you can navigate the most prominent theme parks that no longer accept cash.

In 2023, SeaWorld and the animal park Busch Gardens made headlines for their decision to do away with cash transactions altogether. This applies to SeaWorld in Orlando, San Antonio, and San Diego. It also applies to Busch Gardens in Tampa Bay and Williamsburg. All these parks are owned by one company, United Parks & Resorts, and they use the same cashless system, which they explain with a standardized FAQ on their websites.

At SeaWorld and Busch Gardens, you can pay with Visa, MasterCard, American Express, Discover, most debit cards, Apple Pay, and Google Pay. If a smartphone-enabled virtual wallet isn't your style, cash-to-card kiosks are stationed around the parks where you can convert your money into a prepaid Visa debit card. There's no fee for it and no minimum amount to get started, but you can only load each card once. Your balance is viewable at the kiosks or at rcbalance.com. Any leftover money can be used outside the parks wherever Visa is accepted. You'll want to use it within 92 days since they charge you $3.95 per month after that.

One of the more unique U.S. theme parks is the chocolate-themed wonderland of Hersheypark. This Pennsylvania park is an outlier here in that it's not owned by either of the two big companies behind the other parks. Yet, Hersheypark has cash-to-card kiosks, too, and it accepts all major credit cards and other payment forms listed above, along with gift cards and Samsung Pay.

Six Flags operates 27 regional parks across North America, with the original being Six Flags Over Texas. Its three most-visited parks are Magic Mountain, Great America, and Great Adventure in California, Illinois, and New Jersey, respectively. Magic Mountain, in particular, has a reputation as the best amusement park for roller coasters. It and all the other Six Flags are now cashless. Again, Visa, MasterCard, American Express, Discover, and most debit cards are accepted.

If none of those options works for you, Six Flags has the same kind of cash-to-card kiosks as SeaWorld and Busch Gardens. You can find ReadyStations scattered across its parks in select indoor locations. Put money on your ReadyCard (there's a $5 minimum and $500 maximum), and it functions as a non-reloadable Visa debit card that's valid outside the park. The benefit for the parks in all this is that they can process card transactions faster and more accurately than cash purchases while dispensing with the need for things like armored cars.

In 2024, Six Flags merged with the Cedar Fair Entertainment Company to become America's biggest amusement park operator. The Cedar Fair brand spans 11 amusement parks and four water parks, with its oldest park and flagship location being Ohio's Cedar Point, open since 1870. In addition to sharing the same owner now, Cedar Point shares the same cashless system as Six Flags. Ditto for other popular Cedar Fair parks like Knotts Berry Farm in California.