Hey Thrill Seekers,
We discussed recently the rumour that SeaWorld were looking to bring in outside financial advisors to help with either a sale or a reorganisation of its assets.
Well one such asset which might be available is Busch Gardens. Busch Gardens Tampa situated approx. an hour away from the thrills of Orlando is extremely popular with UK visitors and blends a mixture of animal attractions plus massive thrill rides. Its also one of our personal favourite parks.
If the park was to be made available for purchase one of the first companies to be interest would be Merlin, owners of LEGOLAND Florida.
First reported on the excellent Skift travel news website and speaking after the company’s first-half results, Merlin chief financial officer Anne-Francoise Nesmes said;
It takes two parties to do a deal so we do not know what SeaWorld’s intentions are but we do believe that those assets [Busch Gardens] are interesting and we could certainly do a lot with them particularly around accommodation, so to us it’s about having the right discussion with a willing partner and making sure we have the right financial return
Obviously this is purely speculation and of course Merlin would be interested in picking up Busch Gardens, I’m sure they wont be the only ones. SeaWorld Parks & Entertainment are due to release their second quarter results next week and they could perhaps hold the key to what the future holds for Busch Gardens. At the moment we hear they’re interested in opening an on-site hotel and altering an existing ride into an indoors dark ride.
We’ll keep you updated.
Smiles included…
Jamie