How was business this season?
Don McCoy, Six Flags Discovery Kingdom, USA (pictured): We’ve had a positive year with the move to year-round operations, which was very well received.
Our business is strong as we continue to be a go-to entertainment destination in the San Francisco/Sacramento area for families, groups and locals, especially as we roll into our seasonal holiday events. We opened a new ride, Tsunami Soaker, to great public response and enjoyed the second year of our limited run show Cirque Dreams Splashtastic to much acclaim. This year, we hosted IAAPA during their west coast conference and a large ACE [American Coaster Enthusiasts] contingent, who both enjoyed our animals and attractions.
Tolga Alisoglu, Vialand, Turkey: In Turkey the theme park season lasts for nine months, and this was our first full season since opening in May of 2013. Our “360° integrated retailing” concept is unique in the sector, combining a shopping mall, a theme park and exhibition centre. An adventure park and hotel are also planned. At the theme park we use differential pricing according to the time of day/week/year in order to optimise our revenues. We see the result of this effective revenue management in our visitor statistics, and expect to finish the season with a combined total of 25 million guests (850.000 for the theme park alone). Our market is the 2 billion people who live within a 2 to 2.5 hour flight time of Istanbul and this year we had a lot of customers from Iraq, Iran and Syria, keen to escape the troubles. We also had a lot of success with our post-fast evening openings during Ramadan. Two of our mid-term goals are to increase the number of tourists coming to Istanbul by 15% and to encourage one out of every two tourists to come to Vialand.
John Frican Jnr, Storybook Land, USA: Business has been very good in 2014, our 59th year. Good weather, especially in August, was a real benefit. We have a long season – April through to December. Management has incorporated many special events into our schedule to increase attendance. Some of them include Pirate and Princess Day, Christmas In July and our birthday celebration. Various discount days have had a positive influence in bringing more families to Storybook Land for a day of fun. And they have made it more affordable for them to do so. Therefore our business has increased over other years.
Gerardo Arteaga, Fantasilandia, Chile: It has been a good year but there is still an important part of the season remaining for us. November and December are very important months for our park. We are happy to have introduced a new ride last summer and we are pleased with the public reception of the many smaller improvements that we have conducted in the park.
