The year 2022 promises to be full of celebrations for amusements parks, with Disneyland Paris turning 30, Puy du Fou reaching 45 and Efteling celebrating 70 years. A sector that is reaching a certain maturity in different parts of the world, but which nevertheless continues to evolve and reinvent itself to continue to amaze young and old alike. New attractions, new equipment, new shows and new hotels are all major items of expenditure for the parks. In the meantime, the health crisis has hit the sector hard, forcing these major amusement destinations to close their doors for many months. How is the sector faring after two up-and-down years? Which parks have proved to be the most resilient and have continued despite everything to develop? What changes have been made to cope with increased competition and to meet the new expectations of visitors?
Find here the first part of this analysis as well as the second part and the third part.
The proliferation of parks around the world
Increasing turnover and attendance are the main reasons why amusement parks keep investing but staying attractive in a market that is growing every year is another important reason. The amusement park sector is a highly competitive market that is currently reaching a certain maturity due to the number of players but also due to the age of a majority of them. Nevertheless, many new parks are opening every year all over the world, making the market ever denser.
Asia is getting ready to welcome new theme parks, including the much-anticipated Parc Ghibli, a site themed around the animated films of famous director Hayao Miyazaki. The park is due to open on 1st November 2022 on a 200-hectare site in Nagakute, Aichi Prefecture. The park will not focus on thrill rides, but rather on numerous green areas and paths from the animated films. It will be made up of five worlds, the first three of which will be open to visitors from the moment the park opens and the other two will be inaugurated in 2023. Another park has already opened its doors in Japan, the Pokémon Wonders Park, which as its name suggests is themed on the Pokémon cartoon universe. It is located in the heart of a Japanese forest and covers an area of 4,500m². Visitors can catch Pokémon for real with the help of "investigation notes". In Korea, two theme parks were opened this year: Lotte World Magic Forest in Busan and Legoland Korea Resort in Chuncheon. Thrills are to be found aplenty, with many attractions in these two new destinations.
The EMEA region is not to be outdone with the opening...
United-States
This content is for subscribers only. You have 80% left to discover.
Every week, the HON team brings you an expert look at the world of hospitality.
By becoming a member, you will have access to a complete ecosystem: exclusive content, jobs, etc.
BECOME A MEMBERAlready a member ? Login
