Catching a flick in Kingston
The mid-sized city of Kingston lies on the southeastern edge of Canada's Ontario province. Although much smaller in size, Kingston acts a mid-way point between Toronto and Montreal and receives other visitors by sea through the city's harbor. Along with many forms of entertainment, Kingston has a number of movie theaters that cover nearly all types of film viewing preferences.
Cineplex Odeon Gardener Road Cinemas
Although Cineplex Odeon theaters can be found across North America, the company itself, Cineplex Entertainment, is based in Canada. So, not surprisingly one of Kingston's two large multiplexes is a Cineplex Odeon, located in a strip mall off Gardener Road in the southwest part of town, less than a mile from the city's airport. The theater, which shows mostly mainstream new releases, contains 10 large screens, a couple of which are 3D-ready, as well as a party room for private events. The entire facility is wheelchair-accessible. As for refreshments, the theater provides the usual movie-food fare along with on-site frozen yogurt and coffee shops.
Empire Theatres Capitol 7 Cinemas
The other of the two Kingston multiplexes is the Empire Theater Capitol 7 Cinemas located on the other side of town, just a few blocks from Lake Ontario and the city harbor where ferry service is available to and from the province's smaller islands. Although the mainstream movie selection is also similar to that of the town's Cineplex Odeon, the number of screens is only seven. The Capitol 7 theater does provide a state-of-the-art "RealD" 3D, however, as well as the ability to purchase tickets online through the Empire Theater website. The theater also offers a promotion called "Empire Party Kids" for children's birthdays that features gift bags, reserved seating and discounted snack food.
Kingston Family Funworld Park Drive-In
Opened originally in 1966, the Drive-In at Kingston Family Funworld Park is one of the town's classic movie-going experiences. The old-school drive-in theater features three large screens, while the park itself is full of other outdoor activities, such as go-kart racing and miniature golf. All cars that pull into the theater need to have a working FM car radio in order to pick up the audio of the film, which is broadcast via a particular FM frequency. Like most drive-ins, this theater offers double features as part of its attraction, and although all movies are technically "rain or shine," the drive-in does offer "rain check" movie passes for those unable to see the screen.
The Screening Room
The Screening Room, which is located down the block from the Capitol 7 Cinemas, even closer to the Kingston waterfront, is the town's non-mainstream movie theater. Visitors come to the Screening Room to watch independent films as well as art house and foreign films. Although there are only two screens in the modestly-sized theater, the Screening Room offers several cheap deals, which, as of 2011, include, in Canadian dollars, $6 movies on Tuesdays and $6 movies on Thursdays for students. As of 2011, the Screening Room only accepts cash payments.
Tags: Screening Room, Cineplex Odeon, Capitol Cinemas, city harbor, Empire Theater, Family Funworld, Family Funworld Park
