How does a theme park make its numbers when it has to limit its daily capacity due to the ongoing pandemic?
Well, if you can extend the number of days that your park is open, that's a start. More days = more people, and that might be the only way to boost attendance so long as this pandemic continues.
SeaWorld San Antonio announced today that it will switch to year-round operation for 2021, doing away with the short off season that it has had in January and February for the past decade.
"After SeaWorld’s Christmas Celebration this winter and the turn of the New Year, guests now have the additional months of January and February to enjoy all the unique sites and experiences that SeaWorld has to offer in a safe outdoor environment with limited capacity," the park said in its press release.
The park will be open select days during its additional weeks, so it's not going to full, 365-days-a-year operation. But the additional weeks and days on the calendar will provide annual passholders and visitors more opportunities to visit as the park operates at reduced capacity.
Indeed, the San Antonio park is looking to push more annual pass sales with this announcement. The park also today debuted its new $79.99 2021 Season Pass, which will include admission for the rest of 2020, free parking, plus free admission to the Aquatica water park through 2021. The passes are available on SeaWorld's website.
San Antonio was the one park in the SeaWorld/Busch Gardens chain that debuted its planned 2020 coaster before the pandemic shut down parks around the world. Texas Stingray — now the tallest, longest and fastest wooden coaster in the state — opened in February, just before the park closed, meaning that it likely will be a new experience for many visitors this year or next.
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For those considering a vacation visit to the park, our travel partner has discounted single- and multi-day tickets to the park, as well as packages deals, on its SeaWorld San Antonio tickets page.
I dunno about this. Last time I was in San Antonio at that time of year, it was so cold that I could understand why SeaWorld and Fiesta Texas were closed. But hey, if you’re made of heartier stuff than me, have fun.
IDK if SWSA does this, but most all seasonal parks fire their employees at the end of the season and goes about the process of hiring and training all of them at the beginning of the season. This is a huge expense and a huge pain in the a**, for parks in San Antonio it seems like a no brainier to be open year round to me. It also allows them to take advantage of nice weather days when the park would otherwise be crowded but instead was closed.
I'm not a big Texas weather buff, but comparing the temperature averages in the winter months in San Antonio side by side with Anaheim and there wasn't much of a difference.
January
Anaheim 69-47
San Antonio 64-40
February
Anaheim 69-48
San Antonio 67-43
With Six Flags Fiesta Texas going year-round last year, I figured it wouldn't be too long before SeaWorld San Antonio followed suit. San Antonio is a lot cooler than Orlando and a little cooler than San Diego in the winter, but typical highs are still in the low 60s, so I'd say the climate is park friendly year round. It will be interesting to see how this plays out, but I think it's a good move for the park.
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Sea World San Antonio is the closest theme park to where I live. Nice to know january and february are fair game now too for a weekend getaway to this fun park.