Guest Article
www.parkworld-online.com
While
we do not see 2021 returning to historic highs for the industry, we do forecast marked improvement from 2020 as the vaccine roll-out reduces pandemic concerns nationwide.
Review of 2020 new openings and expansions
In 2020, twelve indoor waterpark additions or expansions added 625,200 square feet (58,083 sq m) of indoor waterpark space compared to 335,500 square feet (31,169 sq m) in 2019. The number of new resort rooms in 2020 showed gains over 2019 with a supply increase of 1,149. The two most significant project openings were the Kalahari Resort in Round Rock, Texas and the DreamWorks Water Park at American Dream Mall in East Rutherford, New Jersey, which opened in 2020 after delays.
Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, many waterparks that were scheduled to open in 2020 were postponed. Consequently, only three new standalone outdoor waterparks opened in 2020. The most significant new addition was Soaky Mountain Waterpark in Sevierville, Tennessee.
The only additions among resorts with outdoor waterparks were the HyTides Plunge Waterpark the Hyatt Regency in Indian Wells, California, and the RainDeer WaterWorks playground addition at Santa’s SplashDown WaterPark in Santa Claus, Indiana.
COVID-19 impact
Outdoor Waterparks: As the 2020 waterpark season kicked off, the vast majority of waterparks decided to delay opening or were mandated not to open, while some decided to remain closed for the entire 2020 season. In June 2020, one month into the waterpark
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season, 70% of outdoor waterparks remained closed with a sizable number of municipal waterparks deciding to close for all of 2020. As of mid-August, towards the end of the waterpark season, 43% of the outdoor waterparks in the United States had not opened for most or all of the 2020 season. A number of waterparks that opened in June had to close again due to government mandates.
Indoor Waterpark Resorts and standalone Indoor Waterparks: Unlike most outdoor waterparks, indoor waterpark resorts and standalone indoor waterparks are open on a year-round basis. However, due to travel restrictions and government mandates, many indoor waterparks were forced to close in March and April 2020. By the end of May, approximately 80% of the indoor waterparks in the United States remained closed. As travel restrictions started lifting, indoor waterparks (resorts and standalone) opened with limited capacity. For our analysis, we considered these properties as closed. By the end of June, as restrictions eased further, approximately 36% of the indoor waterparks (resorts and stand=alone) remained closed. Our research indicates that as of mid-August 2020, 18% of the indoor waterparks in the United States remained closed. H&LA estimates an overall impact of the COVID-19 pandemic of $3.7 billion in lost revenue and 83.9 million in lost attendance for all outdoor waterparks, resorts with outdoor waterparks, standalone indoor waterparks, and indoor waterpark resorts in the United States in 2020. standalone indoor and outdoor waterparks account for $1.4 billion in lost revenue and 61.2 million in lost attendance, while resorts with an indoor or outdoor waterparks account for $2.3 billion in lost revenue and 22.7 million in lost attendance. Attendance was down 62% from 2019 at U.S. waterparks due to the closures and mandates associated with COVID-19.
SPRING PART 2 2021
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