Six Flags theme park.
Over the weekend, heavy rain and flooding stranded more than 70,000 people at Burning Man in the Nevada desert. It’s the latest example of how extreme weather, exacerbated by climate change, affected major North American attractions this summer.
The largest theme park companies – Six Flags (SIX), SeaWorld and Cedar Fair, parent company of Cedar Point – have also been hit by extreme weather, including deadly flooding in the Northeast, record heat in the Southwest and California, and wildfires in Canada. Extreme heat in Florida also affected attendance at Walt Disney World and Universal Orlando this summer.
These attractions are weather dependent and climate change poses significant risks to their businesses. That’s why theme parks are building indoor attractions and changing ticketing policies to respond to brutal weather conditions.
“Weather was clearly responsible for regional theme park weakness over the period,” Macquarie Research analyst Paul Golding said in a note to clients. Golding has cut its estimates for the theme park industry due to increasing risks from extreme weather.
Cedar Fair (FUN), which also includes Canada’s Wonderland in Ontario and Knott’s Berry Farm in California, said the Canadian wildfires and extreme heat in California reduced attendance by 300,000 visitors in the last quarter.
“Attendance is dependent not only on the current weather,” but also on the weather at the time, with customers purchasing tickets months in advance, Brian Witherow, Cedar Fair’s chief financial officer, said on an earnings call last month.
Attendance at SeaWorld (SEAS) fell 2% in the most recent quarter compared to the same period last year as fewer people visited the outdoor water parks.
The decline was “primarily due to very adverse weather conditions,” including rainfall and the impact of the Canadian wildfires, SeaWorld Chief Financial Officer James Forrester said.
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