Maximizing Your use of the Entertainment Book. (Cheap Lux Level Movie Tickets & More)

I thought I would post a few ways I try to maximize my savings when it comes to the Entertainment Book. In case you don't know what the entertainment book is, its a huge book full of local coupons. Depending on when/how you get it, it usually pays for itself after a couple of uses.

The book itself, when it first comes out, cost about $35 for the Boston area. If you wait a couple of weeks (it usually first comes out around November) you can get the book even cheaper. For example as I'm writing this, you can purchase the Boston book for 35% off, just $22.75. If you want to wait another month or two its usually around $15 or so... but then of course you lose 2 or 3 months you could have been saving. The biggest way to maximize your purchase of the book itself is to use a site like Ebates, My Points, or Cashbaq in combination with the lower book price.

As far as maximizing the coupons in the book. I think one of the best deals is to use the National Amusements Showcase Cinema coupons. This coupon allows you to get a regular movie ticket anytime for $7 . Which, if you normally go to an evening show is a savings of $3.75 per ticket. But, to get the best use of these coupons, is to use them for $7 off the price of a Lux Level seat. The regular cost of a lux level seat is $21.75 which I would never pay just to see a movie, but maybe that's just me. But at $7 off you get a ticket for $14.75, what makes this worth it is, you get a $5 voucher toward concessions, essentially bringing the total cost of the ticket down to a whopping $9.75, yes that's right, a cushy, RESERVED for you, lux level seat, RESERVED parking, $5 in concessions, and a waiter for $1 less then a regular ticket. That's what makes it all worth it. That, and you can get beer/alcohol in the lux level.

One might argue that they never buy any food at the movies, so the $5 in concessions means nothing. Well in that case, your getting a comfortable reserved seat and reserved parking for $3 more then a regular ticket. Which, to me is also worth it, considering the lack of decent parking at the theatre. Plus, the fact that you don't have to arrive early, and you have plenty of room to yourself in the lux level.

Keeping in mind that, like anything else, your only really saving with these coupons if it's something you would do anyway, here's another way to maximize a coupon in this book. The book has a LOT of "Buy 1 Dinner, Get 1 Free", coupons. The best way, in my opinion, to use these coupons is for you and whomever your with, to "treat" yourselves to one of the more expensive items on the menu that you would like, but wouldn't normally get at the regular price.
This way you end up with, (hopefully) an expensive meal, for the two of you, at the same price or (in my experience) cheaper, then you would have paid if you didn't have a coupon.

Another useful tip for this book is to sell the coupons you will never use on ebay, or craigslist. The key to selling them on ebay though is to mention that "your not selling the coupon itself, your selling the time it takes you to clip and mail the coupon". Otherwise your against ebay's policies. The easiest thing to do with coupons you won't use though, is to trade them with someone, on a site like Swap Savers.