Results for theme park attendance were recently released for 2008 by the Themed Entertainment Association (TEA). Not surprisingly, most major parks in Florida showed anywhere from a 3% loss to unchanged attendance figures from 2008 to 2007. However, it must be noted that the real economic declines were not truly felt until late last year. Company representatives from Busch Entertainment (SeaWorld, Discovery Cove, Aquatica) did refute some of the attendance numbers reported by the TEA report.
The top theme parks in Florida by attendance were:
* Magic Kingdom ® 17 million visitors
* Epcot ® 10.9 million visitors
* Hollywood Studios ® 9.6 million visitors
* Animal Kingdom ® 9.5 million visitors
* Universal Studios ® Florida 6.2 million visitors
* SeaWorld Orlando ® 5.9 million visitors
Other parks of note including top water parks:
* Typhoon Lagoon at Walt Disney World ® 2 million visitors
* Blizzard Beach ® 1.9 million visitors
* Universal Wet n’ Wild ® 1.3 million visitors
Most vacation rentals we profile and review are within a short distance to these theme parks. Condominiums near Disney and Universal provide an excellent value for consumers, families and groups, and we’ll continue to blog about the distinct benefits of vacation homes over area hotels.
