Hard Rock Park died for a multitude of reasons, the details surrounding it make for a fascinating read. It was doomed before it opened, the downturn just made it quick. It seems American Dream might be facing that same fate, after only 5 months of operation. Hard Rock at least got 2 “years” technically.
Most of these other Central Florida non Disney parks aren’t in that bad of shape. SeaWorld/ Busch was in great shape prior to the shutdown, and their attendance isn’t all that bad now. Their debt levels are manageable, the liens get them bad headlines, but it’s not unusual. And even if they do go under, those are the types of parks that would be purchased by somebody else.
Legoland’s parent company isn’t doing all that great overall, but things were improving and they continue to expand now that they are owned by the “
LEGO” family. They have significant financial backing, so they can survive but it certainly isn’t guaranteed. Fun Spot is supposedly making a profit again. Holyland seems like it’s the one to be most concerned about in the area, they were barely holding on before the virus.
The parks to be most concerned about are the ones run by families and small companies. Multiple parks around the country have stated that they can survive a dead year, but if next year flops, they’ll have to close. Parks have been steadily closing for the past few years, the US actually has the fewest number of operating “amusement parks” now than in the past 120 years, although the remaining parks have been steadily growing in other metrics. This situation will absolutely kill a few more parks.
. To me, they are "soulless" amusement parks that have lost all of their original charm and theme (that they definitely had at first) ... in favor of just shoe-horning in a newer, bigger, steel coaster every few years. So there isn't much there for little kids (for the cost).
