Amusement Park Chains, 2010: A Guide to Who Owns What

By Tracy Kahaner (left), president  Kahaner Research and News Editor, Blooloop.

Note 1: We believe the information in this article to have been well-researched and accurate at press time - late Oct' 2010 and apologise for any inadvertent omissions or errors. We are indebted to the owner/operators who took the time to review this information for accuracy.

Note 2: Updates: Recent developments include:

• 1/31 - Compagnie des Alpes and the private-equity fund H.I.G. Capital France, in association with Laurent Bruloy (“the H.I.G. Capital Consortium”),   sign agreements concerning the disposal of a group of seven leisure parks: Bagatelle park, the Aquarium at Saint Malo, the Mini Châteaux park and Val de Loire Aquarium, the Bouveret waterpark in Switzerland, Avonturenpark Hellendoorn in the Netherlands, and Pleasurewood Hills in the United Kingdom
• 1 / 26 Amusement Management Partners will manage Magic Springs and Crystal Falls in Hot Ssprings, Arkansas.  As noted in November 2010, Amusement Management Partners, a company chaired by former Ripley's Believe it or Not CEO Bob Masterston, had entered into an agreement to manage the following eight FEC's (Camelot Park in Bakersfield, Calif; Mountasia Family Fun Center in North Richland, Texas; Fiddlesticks Fun Center in Tempe, Arizona; Funtastics Fun Center in Tucson, Arizona, and the Zuma Fun Centers in Charlotte, North Carolina, Knoxville, Tennessee and Houston, Texas).
• 1/ 26 Frontier City and White Water Bay (both parks are located in Oklahoma City) will be managed by Premier Attractions Management LLC, a firm run by former owners Kieran Burke and Gary Story.  The contracts  for each park will begin when the parks open this spring.  Premier Attractions Management will also manage Splashtown in Houston, Texas
• 1/ 25 Former owner of Wild Waves takes over as manager.  CNL LIfestyle Properties reached an agreement with NorPoint Entertainment to manage the park located in Seattle, Washington.
• 1/ 25 CNL Lifestyle Properties, Inc., announced that Herschend Family Entertainment Corp. would assume the day-to-day management of two parks -- Darien Lake in Buffalo, New York and Elitch Gardens in Denver, Colorado -- starting immediately.
• 12/17 Village Roadshow sells Sydney Attractions to Merlin Entertainments Group
• 12/15 CDA announced plans to dispose of  the following seven leisure parks: Bagatelle park, the Aquarium at Saint Malo, the Mini Chateaux parks and Val de Loire Aquarium, the Bouveret waterpark in Switzerland, Avonturenpark Hellendoorn in the Netherlands and PleasureWood Hills in the United Kingdom. 
• 11/17 CNL Terminating 19 Leases With Its Largest Operator.
• 11/12 Hershey sells Dutch Wonderland  to Palace Entertainments, the U.S subsiciary of Parques Reuidos. 

This is the third annual study I have conducted regarding ownership of major theme parks, amusement parks and park chains. This year’s was expanded to include smaller branded attractions.

Related:  Walt Disney Co’s 2010 results – Woody and Buzz do the business  /   A look at EuroDisney's 2010 results   /  Compagnie des Alpes - poor weather and economic depression lead to a fall in sales for 2010   /  Not bad for a Boy Wizard! Universal's Magical Ride  /  EuroDisney’s Strategy to 2030: Doubling Capacity and Eco Tourism

The TEA already compiles, jointly with AECOM, an industry-wide annual study regarding attendance at the various parks (the TEA/AECOM “Theme Index”). As in previous reports, the “Top 10 Theme Park Chains” from that report was a foundation for this study.

Retail districts, overnight accommodations and residential communities, including cruise ships and campsites, are excluded from this report.

Each listed attraction is an amusement or theme park, unless otherwise noted. In several cases the descriptive term used to define an attraction can vary from one chain to the next. For example, attractions defined as a “midway site” (1)  by Merlin might be defined as a “family entertainment center” or “themed attraction” by another.

Other changes this year include the following:

Merlin Entertainments opened LEGOLAND Discovery Centre in Manchester, SEA LIFE Aquariums in Phoenix, AZ and Porto, Portugal and a Waterpark alongside LEGOLAND California. Scheduled to open in 2011 are Madame Tussauds in Vienna, Blackpool, UK and Bangkok, SEA LIFE in Jesolo, Italy and Dallas/Fort Worth and a LEGOLAND Discovery Center also in Dallas/Fort Worth. In January 2010, Merlin purchased historic Cypress Gardens in Winter Haven, Florida and will open LEGOLAND Florida on the site at the end of 2011. A second LEGOLAND Park is scheduled to open in Malaysia in 2012 as well as several other ‘midways.’

•    Since around August 2010, reports have been appearing that the owner of Parques, private equity firm Candover, was reviewing options for the park. An October 2010 report indicated Candover was about to scrap plans to sell, having received two offers below asking price.

•    Six Flags Kentucky Kingdom was omitted from this listing. During February 2010, Six Flags Entertainment Corp. decided to reject the lease with the Kentucky State Fair Board and will no longer operate the Louisville theme park.

•    Six Flags New Orleans has been excluded. This park had been closed after Hurricane Katrina in 2005; however, the property still appeared on earlier listings. During the third quarter of 2009, Six Flags mutually agreed with the City of New Orleans to terminate their lease with the City. 

•    Anheuser-Busch InBev sold Busch Entertainment Corp. to the Blackstone Group and the parks are now referred to as SeaWorld Parks and Entertainment.

•    Besides a change in order, Aspro Ocio replaces Herschend Family Entertainment on the listing of the Top 10 Chains.

•    The ownership structure of Merlin has changed. In June of this year CVC Capital Partners took approx a one third stake in the company joining Blackstone Group, KIRKBI (LEGO’s investment company) and the management team. Dubai International Capital sold its stake.

•    Universal Singapore recently opened.

•    Compagnie des Alpes (CDA) Group became leading shareholder in Futuroscope 18 Oct, 2010.

With the exception of some Merlin properties, as in previous versions of this study, only those parks with separate gates are included.  

The following three chains are included here due to the fact that they own significant properties.

•    Herschend Family Entertainment Corp.

•    PARC Management/CNL Lifestyle Properties

•    Village Roadshow

Top Ten Chains

1.    Walt Disney Parks and Resorts Worldwide

Disney’s Animal Kingdom, Lake Buena Vista, Florida

Disney’s Blizzard Beach (water park), Lake Buena Vista, Florida

Disney California Adventure, Anaheim, Calif.

Disney’s Hollywood Studios, Lake Buena Vista, Florida

Disney’s Typhoon Lagoon (water park), Lake Buena Vista, Florida

Disneyland, Anaheim, Calif.

Disneyland Paris, Marne-La-Vallée, France

Epcot, Lake Buena Vista, Florida

Hong Kong Disneyland, Lantau Island, Hong Kong

Magic Kingdom, Lake Buena Vista, Florida

Tokyo Disneyland, Urayasu, Chiba, Japan

Tokyo DisneySea, Urayasu, Chiba, Japan

Walt Disney Studios Park, Marne-La-Vallée, France

2.    Merlin Entertainments Group

Alton Towers Resort, Staffordshire UK

Chessington World of Adventures, London

The Dungeons (midway site), London, Edinburgh, York, Hamburg, Amsterdam and Warwick.

Earth Explorer (midway) Oostende, Belgium

Gardaland, Verona, Italy 

Gardaland Aquapark (midway), Milan

Heide Park, Soltau Germany

LEGOLAND Parks, Billund, Denmark; Windsor, UK; Günzburg, Germany; Carlsbad, Calif. (and Winter Haven, Florida in 2011)

LEGOLAND Discovery Centres (midway site), Berlin and Duisburg, Germany; Manchester, UK; and Chicago

Madame Tussauds (midway site), London, Berlin, Amsterdam, New York, Hollywood, Las Vegas, Washington DC, Hong Kong, and Shanghai, with Bangkok, Vienna and Blackpool to open in early 2011

The Merlin Entertainments London Eye, (midway site)

SEA LIFE Centres (midway site), Over 30 centres in more than 11 countries.

Thorpe Park, UK

Warwick Castle (attraction), Warwickshire UK

3.    Parques Reunidos

Aqualud (water park), Le Touquet, France

Aquarium of the Lakes (zoo & nature park) Cumbria, UK

Aquópolis (water park), seven centers in Spain

Benalmádena Cable Car, Andalucia, Spain

Big Kahuna’s (water park), Destin, Florida

Blackpool Zoo, Lancashire UK

Bo Sommarland (water park), Bø, Norway

Bobbejaanland, Lichtaart, Belgium

Boomers (family entertainment centers), Locations throughout California, Florida, New York, USA

Bonbon-Land, Holme-Olstrup, Denmark

Bournemouth Oceanarium, Bournemouth UK

Castle Park, Riverside, Calif.

Delfinario Costa Daurada, (zoo & nature park), Spain

Faunia (zoo & nature park), Madrid

Idlewild, East Ligonier, Pennsylvania

Kennywood, East Ligonier, Pennsylvania

L'Oceanogràfic (zoo & nature park), Valencia, Spain

Lake Compounce, Bristol, Connecticut

Madrid Cable Car, Spain

Malibu (family entertainment center), Norcross, Georgia; Redwood City, Calif.; and Houston, USA

Aquarium Mar del Plata, Argentina

Marineland, Antibes, France

Mirabilandia, Ravenna, Italy

Mountain Creek (water park), Vernon, New Jersey

Mountasia (family entertainment center) Marietta, Georgia and Dallas, USA

MoviePark, Bottrop-Kirchhellen, Germany

Parque de Atracciones, Madrid

Parque Warner, Madrid

Raging Waters (water park), Sacramento, San Jose and San Dimas, Calif.

Sandcastle (water park), West Homestead, Pennsylvania

Sea Life Park Hawaii (zoo & nature park), Oahu, Hawaii

Selwo Aventura (zoo & nature park), Estepona, Spain

Selwo Marina (zoo & nature park), Estepona, Spain

Silver Springs (zoo & nature park), Florida, USA

SpeedZone (family entertainment center), Los Angeles and Dallas

Splish Splash (water park), Riverhead, New York

Story Land, Glen, New Hampshire

TusenFryd, Vinterbro, Norway

Water Country (water park), Portsmouth, New Hampshire

Wild Waters (water park), Silver Spring, Florida

Wet ‘n Wild (water park) Greensboro, North Carolina and Orlando   

Zoo Aquarium de Madrid, Spain

4.    Six Flags Entertainment Corporation

La Ronde, Montreal

Six Flag America, Largo, Maryland

Six Flags Discovery Kingdom, Vallejo, Calif.

Six Flags Fiesta Texas, San Antonio, Texas

Six Flags Great Adventure, Jackson, New Jersey

Six Flags Great America, Gurnee, Illinois

Six Flags Hurricane Harbor (water park), Arlington, Texas

Six Flags Hurricane Harbor (water park), Jackson, New Jersey

Six Flags Hurricane Harbor, Valencia, Calif.

Six Flags Magic Mountain, Valencia, Calif.

Six Flags Mexico, Mexico City

Six Flag New England, Agawam, Massachusetts

Six Flags Over Georgia, Atlanta, Georgia

Six Flags Over Texas, Arlington, Texas

Six Flags St. Louis, Missouri

Six Flags Wild Safari (drive–through safari), Jackson, New Jersey

Six Flags Whitewater (water park), Marietta, Georgia

5.    SeaWorld Parks & Entertainment

Adventure Island (water park), Tampa

Aquatica (water park with marine animals), Orlando

Busch Gardens Tampa Bay

Busch Gardens Williamsburg, Virginia USA

SeaWorld Orlando (marine-life park)

SeaWorld San Antonio (marine-life park)

SeaWorld San Diego (marine-life park)

Discovery Cove, Orlando

Sesame Place (family oriented play), Langhorne, Pennsylvania

Water Country USA (water park), Williamsburg, Virginia

6.     Universal Studios Parks and Resorts

Islands of Adventure, Orlando

Universal Studios Florida, Orlando

Universal Studios Hollywood, Universal City, Calif.

Universal Studios Japan, Osaka

Universal Studios Singapore

Wet’n Wild (water park), Orlando

7.    Cedar Fair Entertainment Co.

California’s Great America, Santa Clara

Canada’s Wonderland, Toronto

Carowinds, Charlotte, North Carolina

Cedar Point, Sandusky, Ohio

Dorney Park & Wildwater Kingdom, Allentown, Pennsylvania

Geauga Lake’s Wildwater Kingdom, Cleveland, Ohio

Gilroy Gardens Family Theme Park, Gilroy, Calif. (management of this park)

Kings Dominion, Richmond, Virginia

Kings Island Cincinnati, Ohio

Knott’s Berry Farm, Buena Park, Calif.

Knott’s Soak City, Buena Park, Palm Springs, and San Diego, CA

Michigan’s Adventure, Muskegon, Michigan

Valleyfair!, Shakopee, Minnesota

Worlds of Fun/Oceans of Fun, Kansas City, Missouri

8.    OCT Parks

Happy Valley Beijing, China

Happy Valley Chengdu, China

Happy Valley Shanghai, China 

Happy Valley, Shenzhen, China

Happy Valley (Wuhan), China (under construction)

Splendid China/Folk Cultural Village, China

Window of the World, Shenzhen, China

OCT East (Eco-Resort)

OCT Taizhou (Eco Resort)

OCT Yunnan (Eco Resort) (under construction)

9    Compagnie des Alpes Family Recreation

Aquapark, (water park), Le Bouveret, Switzerland

Aquarium du val-de-loire, Franci

Avonturenpark Hellendoorn, Netherlands

Parc Bagatelle, Merlimont, France

Bellewaerde Park, Ypres, Belgium

Bioscope, Ungersheim, France

Dolphinarium, Harderwijk, NL

Fort Fun, North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany

France Miniature, Saint-Quentin-en-Yvelines, France

Grand Aquarium, Saint Malo cedex, France

Grevin, (wax museum) Paris

La Mer de Sable, Ermenonville, France

Mini-Chateaux, Amboise, France

Parc Asterix, Plailly, FR

Planete Sauvage (safari park), Port Saint-Pere, France

Pleasurewood Hills, Suffolk- Angleterre, UK

Walibi Aquitaine, Rocquefort, France

Walibi Belgium, Wavre

Walibi Rhone-Alpes, Les Avenieres, France

Walibi World, Pays-Bas, Netherlands

10. Aspro Group 

Alpamare (water park), Zurich

Aqualand, 14 parks throughout Europe

Aqualeon (safari & water park), Costa Dorada, Spain

Aquarium Grand Lyon, France

Blue Planet (aquarium), Cheshire, UK

Blue Reef Aquarium, Newquay, Portsmouth, Hastings, Tynemouth, Bristol, UK

Boudewijn Seapark, Brujas, Belgium

Captain Jako, Cap d’Agde, France

Deep Sea World (aquarium), Fife, Scotland

Deltapark Neeltje Jans, Vrouwenpolder, Netherlands

Jungle Park (zoo), Tenerife, Spain

L’Aquarium, Barcelona, Spain

Marineland, Mallorca, Spain

Oakwood Theme Park, Pembrokeshire, UK

Palmitos Park (zoo & botanical gardens), Gran Canaria, Spain

Puuhama, Tervakoski, Finland

Serena, Espoo, Finland

Smugglers Adventure, Hastings, UK

Tropiclandia, Vaasa, Finland

Visulahti, Mikkeli, Finland

Wasalandia, Vaasa, Finland

Western Park (water park), Mallorca, Spain

Additional Major Park Chains

Herschend Family Entertainment Corporation

Adventure Aquarium, Camden, New Jersey

Classic Cable Car Sightseeing, San Francisco (2)

Dollywood, Pigeon Forge, Tennessee (3)

Dollywood’s Splash Country (water park), Pigeon Forge, Tennessee (3)

Dolly Parton’s Dixie Stampede (dinner show), Branson, Missouri; Pigeon Forge, Tennessee; Myrtle Beach, South Carolina (3)

Newport Aquarium, Newport, Kentucky

Ride the Ducks (sightseeing tour), Branson, Missouri; Newport, Kentucky; Atlanta, Baltimore, Philadelphia and San Francisco

Showboat Branson Belle (cruise and dinner show), Branson, Missouri

Silver Dollar City, Branson, Missouri

Stone Mountain Park, Atlanta (4)

Talking Rocks Cavern, Branson, Missouri

White Water, Branson, Missouri

Wild Adventures, Valdosta, Georgia

PARC Management / CNL Lifestyle Properties

Camelot Park (family entertainment) Bakersfield, Calif.

Darien Lake, Buffalo, New York

Elitch Gardens, Denver, Colorado

Fiddlesticks Fun Center, Tempe, Arizona

Frontier City, Oklahoma City

Funtastics Fun Center, Tucson, Arizona

Magic Springs & Crystal Falls, Hot Springs, Arizona

Mountasia Family Fun Center, North Richland, Texas

Myrtle Waves Water Park, Myrtle Beach, South Carolina

NASCAR SpeedPark, St. Louis, Missouri; Sevierville, Tennessee; Concord, North Carolina; Myrtle Beach, South Carolina

Pavilion Nostalgia Park, Myrtle Beach, South Carolina

SplashTown, Houston

Waterworld, Concord, Calif.

White Water Bay, Oklahoma City

Wild Waves & Enchanted Village, Seattle, Washington

Zuma Fun City, 2 in Houston, Texas; Knoxville, Tennessee; Charlotte, North Carolina

Village Roadshow

Australian Outback Spectacular 2 ‘Heroes of the Light Horse’ (dinner show), Gold Coast, Australia

Kelly Tarlton’s Antarctic Encounter & Underwater World, Auckland, New Zealand

Oceanworld Manly (aquarium), Sydney

Paradise Country Aussie Farm Tour, Gold Coast, Australia

Sea World, Gold Coast, Australia

Sydney Aquarium, Australia

Sydney Tower Observation Deck, Skywalk and Oz Trek Ride (open air attractions)

Sydney Wildlife World (interactive attraction), Australia

Warner Bros. Movie World, Gold Coast, Australia

Wet’n Wild Water World, Gold Coast, Australia

Wet’n WIld Hawaii, Oahu (5)

Wet’n Wild Phoenix, Arizona

CHAIN OWNERSHIP

Walt Disney Parks and Resorts Worldwide

The US theme parks are owned and operated by the Walt Disney Parks and Resorts division of The Walt Disney Company. The Company manages and has 51 percent effective ownership interest in the operations of Disneyland Paris. The Company also has a 47 percent ownership interest in the operations of Hong Kong Disneyland Resort, with the Government of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region owning the majority interest. A separate Hong Kong subsidiary of the Company is responsible for managing this resort. Tokyo Disney Resort is owned and operated by an unrelated Japanese corporation, the Oriental Land Co., Ltd. of Japan. The Walt Disney Company earns royalties on revenues generated by the resort, but has no equity interest.

Merlin Entertainments Group

Merlin’s ownership structure is now: KIRKBI 36 per cent, Blackstone 34 per cent and CVC 28 per cent. The management of Merlin holds the remaining shares.

Parques Reunidos

The company is currently owned by European private equity firm Candover Investments. However, in August of this year it was reported that Candover had been reviewing options for Parques Reunidos and has received offers from various private equity firms.  Movie Park Germany was acquired in 2010.

Six Flags Entertainment Corporation

Six Flags Entertainment Corporation owns or operates most of its theme, amusement, and water parks. The Six Flag properties that are less than wholly owned currently consist of Six Flags Over Georgia, Six Flags Over Texas and Six Flags White Water Atlanta. During February 2010, Six Flags Entertainment Corporation decided to reject the lease with the Kentucky State Fair Board and no longer operates the Louisville theme park.

SeaWorld Parks & Entertainment

In December 2009, Anheuser-Busch InBev and The Blackstone Group announced closing the transaction for Blackstone Capital Partners V L.P. to purchase Busch Entertainment Corporation from Anheuser-Busch InBev for up to USD $2.7 billion. The purchase price was declared to be comprised of a cash payment of USD $2.3 billion and a right to participate in Blackstone’s return on its initial investment capped at USD $400 million. Busch Entertainment Corporation is now known as SeaWorld Parks & Entertainment.

Universal Studios Parks and Resorts

Universal Parks and Resorts is a division of NBC Universal. Before September of 2010, NBC Universal was 80 percent owned by General Electric and 20 percent owned by Vivendi. During the later part of September, Vivendi sold 7.66 percent stake to GE and is scheduled to sell the remaining 12.34 percent of its stake in NBC Universal to GE later in the year. NBC Universal wholly owns Universal Studios Hollywood and has significant interests in Universal Orlando Resort, Universal Studios Japan, Universal Studios Singapore, and their respective theme parks. Universal City Property Management and affiliates of the Blackstone Group equally own the Universal Orlando Resort. USJ Co Ltd. operates the theme park in Japan (Universal Studios Japan) under a license by Vivendi Universal Entertainment LLP and other Universal group companies regarding use of intellectual properties.

Cedar Fair Entertainment Company

Cedar Fair is a publicly traded partnership headquartered in Sandusky, Ohio. The Partnership is one of the largest regional amusement park operators in the world. All parks are owned and by Cedar Fair, LP.

OCT Group

Shenzhen Overseas Chinese Town Co. Ltd., formerly Overseas Chinese Town Enterprises Company (OCT Group), is a China based enterprise that owns a series of enterprises and brands, including Splendid China, China Folk Culture Villages, Window of the World and Happy Valley.

Compagnie des Alpes Family Recreation

Compagnie des Alpes is a public company that operates many amusement and leisure parks. During March 2009, Compaigne des Alpes adopted a single-tier management structure with a Board of Directors.

Aspro Group 

Aspro Ocio, S.A. operates leisure parks and centers in Spain, France, Finland, Portugal, Switzerland, Belgium, and the United Kingdom.

Additional Park Chains:

Herschend Family Entertainment Corporation

Herschend Family Entertainment Corporation is a family-owned company that owns, operates or partners in themed attractions in the US. It is the largest family-owned theme park corporation in America.

PARC Management /CNL Lifestyle Properties

PARC management owns and operates entertainment facilities across North America.  Its portfolio consists of theme parks, water parks, family entertainment centers and more. PARC Management is the largest attractions operator of CN Lifestyle Properties.

Village Roadshow

Village Roadshow is the largest theme park operator in Australia. Having acquired 100 percent of the theme parks in mid-2006, Village Roadshow remains Time Warner’s licensed partner for the Warner Bros. Movie World property in Australia.  In February 2008 Village Roadshow acquired Sydney Attractions Group and now owns Sydney Aquarium, the Sydney Tower and other attractions.

About the Author

Tracy Kahaner of Kahaner Research and News Editor for Blooloop conducts studies for the attractions industry. Her expertise is in providing vital information to the concept phase of a leisure time attraction, to analyse the market potential and competitive environment.

Notes:

• 1. Midway attractions are typically indoor shorter stay attractions. As stated by Merlin Entertainments, “Midway attractions are branded, “chainable, ” low capex (capital expenditure) city-centre or coastal visitor attractions that have a strong record of proven popularity and predictable growth.”
• 2. HFE operates Classic Cable Car Sightseeing.
• 3. HFE is an operating partner with Dolly Parton in the Dollywood Company, which owns the Dollywood Theme Park and Dollywood’s Splash Country. The Dollywood Company is the largest shareholder in the Dixie Stampede dinner show attractions.
• 4.HFE operates Atlanta’s Stone Mountain Park in conjunction with the State of Georgia.
• 5 Village Roadshow operates this CN Lifestyle Property.

Images from the top: 1 & 2 kind courtesy Disney 3 courtesy LEGOLAND® California  4. © 2010 Universal Orlando Resort. All Rights Reserved.

This article is also featured in print in the 2011 TEA Annual & Directory published by the Themed Entertainment Association (TEA).