MARKET REPORT: EUROPE Jumanji - The Adventure at Gardaland
In the Netherlands, Efteling celebrated
its 70th anniversary with the temporary opening of pop-up fairytale Efteling Wonderland located on the Speelweide playing field in the heart of the park, where visitors played an active part in the mad birthday tea party with the Mad Hatter and the March Hare. In Spain, Madrid’s Parque Warner
Beach - operated by Parques Reunidos - saw the arrival of two new water slides, Aquaman and Black Manta, created by water ride designer and manufacturer ProSlide Technology. Black Manta is a 120-metre-long, 14-metre-high TornadoWAVE 60 slide, while Aquaman is a FlyingSAUCER 45. Together, these highly themed new rides form a ride tower that serves as a new anchor attraction for the water park, as well as being the first TornadoWAVE 60 and FlyingSAUCER 45 complex in Europe.
Looking to the future The European attractions industry is entering 2023 with plenty of positivity. Excitement was certainly in the air at
IAAPA Expo Europe in London in September last year as manufacturers and suppliers and operators alike all anticipated a very real return to ‘normal’. It is not without intention that many new rides and attractions have been planned to open over the course of this year to take advantage of a more stable attractions landscape. Indeed, the industry has been just as keen to resume business as usual as customers, who have shown a huge desire to enjoy and make the most of opportunities for fun and memorable experiences with family and friends in the wake of COVID-19. That having been said, the current
economic downturn and climbing inflation rates has customers feeling price conscious. This is something that must be taken into account when considering the outlook for 2023. While leisure tourism, including visits to theme parks and attractions, has become a priority for many people as Europe has reopened, it seems likely that the evolving economic situation could impact the industry over the year ahead.
Regarding the financial situation in the
UK specifically, the UK Consumer Confidence Barometer has shown the public outlook for the year ahead to be at the lowest it has been throughout the past 15 years. Given the real risk of global recession in 2023, this is an outlook that is shared across Europe and, indeed, the world. Moreover, there is a chance that summer holiday destination-type theme parks and water parks in particular might see more of an impact if people are less inclined to travel. The emerging situation has been
explored by attraction management platform innovator Convious and tourism research consultancy Decision House, unveiling research findings about the potential impact on the leisure and attractions industries. The results of a survey reflected the current consumer outlook, finding that almost half (47%) felt worse off financially in September of 2022 than they did at the same time the year before. These results are particularly significant
where families are concerned - a major demographic when it comes to theme
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PARK WORLD Handbook & Buyer’s Guide 2022/23
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