SeaWorld Entertainment has reported its eighth consecutive quarter of record financial results, despite a marginal drop in attendance in Q1 2023.
In the first quarter of this year, SeaWorld’s parks welcomed 3.4 million guests, a decrease of around 25,000 visitors from the first quarter of 2022.
Total revenue in Q1 2023 was a record $293.3 million, an increase of $22.7m (8.4 percent) from the first quarter of 2022.
Net loss was $16.5m in the first quarter of this year, SeaWorld’s second smallest net loss in a first quarter and an increase of $7.5m from Q1 2022.
New SeaWorld parks and attractions
Adjusted EBITDA in the first quarter of 2023 was a record $72.4m, an increase of $6.5m (9.8 percent) from the first quarter of 2022.
Marc Swanson, CEO of SeaWorld, said the company’s record financial results were “despite adverse weather across a number of our markets, particularly in our California market, and a shift in the timing of the opening of our new rides”.
“This is the eighth consecutive quarter where we have generated record financial results,” he added.
In addition to SeaWorld’s new rides and attractions at its US theme parks, Swanson said the company is excited to open the fourth SeaWorld attraction in Abu Dhabi on 23 May.
In the US, SeaWorld Orlando’s new surf coaster is opening on 27 May, while Busch Gardens Williamsburg’s DarKoaster is launching on 19 May.
These will be followed by SeaWorld San Diego’s Arctic Rescue straddle coaster, as well as the Catapult Falls flume coaster at SeaWorld San Antonio.
Swanson said: “I am very excited about the significant investments we are making and the many initiatives we have underway across our business that we expect will improve the guest experience, allow us to generate more revenue and make us a more efficient and more profitable enterprise.”
Images: SeaWorld
