Posted on: Tuesday, December 14, 2004
It's all smiles at U.S theme parks
| • | Top 10 parks for visitors in 2004 |
By Mike Schneider
Associated Press
ORLANDO, Fla. — Attendance at North America's 50 most popular theme and amusement parks jumped almost 4 percent in 2004, the first overall annual increase since the 2001 terrorist attacks discouraged travel.
Peter Cosgrove • Associated Press The increase was helped by a jump in international visitors at the best-known parks, spurred by a weaker U.S. dollar and a rebound in U.S. travel and tourism, industry observers say.
The "destination parks" owned by the Walt Disney Co., NBC Universal and Anheuser-Busch in Florida and California had suffered more than regional parks after the terrorist attacks.
Overall figures for 2004 still fell short of the pre-Sept. 11 attendance of 175 million visitors in 2000.
Attendance at the top 50 parks around the world increased by 2.2 percent to 252.4 million visitors in 2004, according to the trade publication Amusement Business and the research firm Economics Research Associates.
The most-attended park in the world in 2004 was the Magic Kingdom at Orlando's Walt Disney World with 15.1 million visitors. The Florida park was followed by Disneyland in Anaheim, Calif., with 13.3 million visitors and Tokyo Disneyland with 13.2 million visitors.
An estimated 169.1 million visitors rode thrill rides and romped with costumed characters at the parks, according to an annual survey released yesterday by a trade publication and a research firm.
Visitors drawn by thrill rides and storybook characters flocked to Magic Kingdom in Walt Disney World in Florida this year. Attendance is up almost 4 percent at North America's 50 most popular theme parks.
| Top 10 parks for visitors in 2004
Here is a list of the top 10 best-attended North American amusement parks in 2004, their attendance and the percentage change from last year. 1. Magic Kingdom at Walt Disney World in Orlando, 15.1 million, 8 percent increase 2. Disneyland in Anaheim, Calif., 13.3 million, 5 percent increase 3. Epcot at Walt Disney World in Orlando, 9.4 million, 9 percent increase 4. Disney MGM Studios at Walt Disney World in Orlando, 8.2 million, 5 percent increase 5. Animal Kingdom at Walt Disney World in Orlando, 7.8 million, 7 percent increase 6. Universal Studios in Orlando, 6.7 million, 14 percent increase 7. Islands of Adventures in Orlando, 6.3 million, 13 percent increase 8. Disney's California Adventure, 5.6 million, 6 percent increase 9. SeaWorld Orlando, 5.6 million, 4 percent increase 10. Universal Studios Hollywood, 5 million, 8 percent increase Source: Amusement Business and Economics Research Associates |
