by Todd Pheifer

Created on: April 01, 2009   Last Updated: April 22, 2009

Cutting costs

The economic downturn has caused many people to re-evaluate their purchases, expenses, and budgets. In a short period of just a couple of years, the country has gone from boom to bust, and suddenly large and seemingly stable corporations are crumbling amidst the fiscal insecurity. One would assume that trips to the amusement park might be seen as a luxury item, but that is not necessarily the case for every family. Therefore, here are a few thoughts on how the recession is impacting amusement parks.

No data?

The challenge with evaluating the true recessional impact on amusement parks is that these establishments do not typically publish their attendance numbers to the public. This is both for security and competition reasons. Granted, the companies that run amusements parks appear to be struggling from the standpoint of financial markets, but this is also a bit difficult to evaluate because many companies in all industries have had stock drops and seemingly poor performances. Disney stock has had its struggles, but that doesn't mean the park is empty (because it isn't).

What recession?

Of course, amusement parks are certainly not empty, even in an economic downturn. Some people can still afford to visit, while others may go to escape their financial troubles. In addition, there are always special occasions, and some people celebrate those with style, no matter the shape of the financial picture. For example, annual pass holders at Disneyland in California have observed crowds that seem just as large as during financial times. Granted, evaluating the size of a "crowd" in a setting like Disneyland is certainly a difficult challenge. In addition, it is hard to evaluate the people that are there. Could they be comprised of many annual pass holders who bought their passes during better financial times? Or are people simply ignoring the recession and "throwing caution to the wind?"

End of an era

There are signs that the recession may have dealt a "death blow" to certain parks. For example, the Six Flags corporation was recently "delisted" from the New York Stock Exchange due to poor performance and inability to meet Exchange criteria. Again, this may be due to long-term problems with the company itself or it may be directly impacted by the recession. In either case, Six Flags is faced with the very real possibility that they have to file for bankruptcy if they do not refinance some of their debt.

Perhaps credit is still king

Based on consumer behavior, it is

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