As we approach the official start of the 2024 summer season, many of this year’s major new rides and attractions have just opened or are preparing to open very soon, with a few suffering from technical issues or delays. In other words, it is business as usual.
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This is always an exciting time of year, not only because of these factors. We are also getting our first indication of how the various park chairs are expected to perform for the year, having rolled out their marketing plans and promotional strategies. Plus, most chains have released their first performance reports for the season. This can give us a peek at some possible problem areas.
With that in mind, let’s review the performance of the big theme park chains thus far in 2024.
North American theme park performance so far in 2024
Disney
Disney’s quarterly release timetable differs slightly from that of most other companies. Its financial year always starts with Q1, which occurs on 1 October of the previous year. As such, the latest earnings report from The Walt Disney Company, which came out in early May, would be the Q2 2024/6-month earnings report. This contains all the performance results up through 30 March 2024.
Since Disney is also involved with so much more than just theme park operations, it can also choose exactly how much detail and focus it wants to provide on the performance of its theme parks. The parks are also grouped with the Cruise Line under the Disney Parks & Experiences division.Â
Disney’s results for this division also report gains and losses from its international theme park properties.
International success boosts theme park performance in 2024
As such, those international numbers proved to be the bigger success story. The latest report logged an overall 10% increase in revenue for the parks division in this latest quarter. The most significant increase was due to a 29% increase in revenue from the international properties over a more modest 7% increase from the domestic parks.
Increases in guest spending on tickets, food, and merchandise drove this. Attendance also increased after the opening of the World of Frozen at Hong Kong Disneyland in November 2023. More modest gains were also seen from the Walt Disney World Resort and Disney Cruise Line, mainly attributed to increases in ticket pricing.
Performance at the Disneyland Resort, however, was not as robust. It suffered from higher operational costs driven by inflation in the area and lower-than-normal occupancy rates at the California resorts. This may have been partially because of the renovation at the Pixar Place Hotel through early 2024.
Both domestic resorts will complete the transformation of Splash Mountain into Tiana’s Bayou Adventure attractions during the next six months. So, we can expect many potential guests focused on these parks for the remainder of the year.
Universal
Like Disney, NBC/Universal’s results mix theme park performance, TV and Studio performance, and other endeavors under the Comcast umbrella.
In January, the company finished its 2023 year-end results with solid numbers from the theme park division. It claimed $2.3 billion in revenue for Q4 20 – a 12.2% increase over the previous quarter. However, in April, the company released its Q1 2024 report. This showcased the earnings from the first three months of the year, with only a 1.5% increase in revenue. Higher operating costs also worked against this increase, turning it into a slight decline rather than a gain.
Much like the House of the Mouse, Universal does not typically release attendance figures. But it did confirm that it expected 2024 to be more of an uphill journey for the domestic parks. The Hollywood park is not opening anything new. Furthermore, potential guests considering visiting the Orlando parks may hold off until 2025, when Epic Universe opens.
The Orlando parks have just opened the new DreamWorks Land and are focusing on promoting Halloween Horror Nights 2024. Meanwhile, the Japanese theme park will open a Donkey Kong-themed expansion to the popular Super Nintendo World later this year.
United Parks & Resorts
United Parks & Resorts, formerly known as SeaWorld Entertainment parks, released its own Q1 2024 earnings report earlier this month. The newly rebranded chain of theme parks, which includes SeaWorld, Busch Gardens, Sesame Place, and various water parks, reported attendance of 3.5 million for the first quarter of the year. This represents a modest 2.1% increase compared to the same quarter in 2023.
This also resulted in what was reported as a record revenue for Q1 at $297.4 million, which was an increase of 1.4% over Q1 2023. The company’s net loss for the quarter also improved by $5.3 million compared to just $11.2 million in the previous year.
With several new attractions projects in the pipeline that have either just opened (like the renovated Loch Ness Monsters roller coaster in Williamsburg or the Catapult Falls flume in Texas) or are expected to open during the summer season, the chain is hoping to continue the trend of positive growth.
Six Flags
The latest earnings report from Six Flags, released in May, represents the company’s Q1 2024 numbers. This reported some serious decreases compared to the previous year. It failed to meet the goals set by various financial analysts.
Revenue for the quarter in the chain was down 6% compared to the previous year. Net losses increased by 18%, and PerCap guest spending was also down by 8%. The one positive note, however, was that the struggling chain saw a 6% increase in attendance during Q1 2024 compared to the same time frame in 2023.
Despite it all, the stock market seemed to stand firmly behind the company. This is likely due to the positive outcome it believes will occur once the merger between Six Flags and Cedar Fair is completed over the summer. A short time after the release of the earnings report, Six Flags stockholders voted to approve the corporate merger, with over 67.3 million in favor and only 195,471 against it.
Cedar Fair
So, how are things looking in terms of theme park performance in 2024 on the other side of the coin? Cedar Fair released its Q1 2024 earning report within days of the Six Flags release. This did paint a better picture of its operations.
Cedar Fair’s report claimed a 20% revenue increase ($102 million) for the quarter compared to 2023, exceeding analyst predictions. Even more impressive is that attendance at the Cedar Fair chain of parks was up 27% for the quarter compared to 2023, along with a reported increase in season pass sales.
There was a slight planned decline in guest spending. This was due to better pricing on season passes, which was intended to increase visitation numbers for the year going forward. Cedar Fair also has several resort properties. These reported a 21% increase in revenues, including the completion of a lengthy renovation at the company’s Knott’s Hotel in California.
As with Six Flags, the market has responded favorably to this report before the planned merger.
What happens next?
There are many questions about how things may change after the merger. Once complete, the Cedar Fair name will be retired to group the company under the Six Flags banner. However, when it comes to control of the company, it sounds very much like the plan is for Cedar Fair’s management to maintain control.
This could mean changes for Six Flags theme parks, although I suspect some of the biggest may come in 2025. For now, the fate of the merger lies with the Antitrust Division of the American Department of Justice. This division will either give its blessing to move ahead or create a checklist of items it feels must be changed before the green light is given.
Regardless, the North American theme park industry’s landscape will be forever changed. There has never been one company behind so many different parks and attractions within the marketplace.
