Gardaland, the country’s most visited park (Mirabilandia is number two) with over 3 million guests a year, joins a portfolio of 37 properties at UK-based, private equity-backed Merlin that now includes the Legoland, Sea Life, Dungeon and Earth Explorer brands.

This acquisition, which includes the 247-room Gardaland Resort Hotel, represents a significant strategic expansion for Merlin, propelling it into the number one visitor attraction slot in Europe; and No 6 globally; with more than 16m visitors across its sites.

Located at the foot of Lake Garda, the park instantly delivers critical mass for Merlin in southern Europe, representing a good balance against the company’s current predominantly Northern European portfolio. The company has already announced plans to introduce a Sea Life Centre and Legoland Discovery Centre as additional gates to Gardaland.

Now Parques Reunidos, which operates parks, aquariums and waterparks in six countries including Spain, Belgium and Argentina, has apparently decided to review options for the business and may consider a sale of the whole group.

The company has been owned by private equity group Advent International since December 2003, but according to The Times has asked investment bank UBS to work on the review. Merlin, meanwhile, plans to continue with its “aggressive expansion.”

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