Planning a vacation this year? If you are a theme park fan (and if you are ready this website, I assume that you are), you probably know the closest major airport to your favorite top theme parks.
But do you know the closest major theme park to the world's top airports?
To answer that question I started with the list of the world's top 25 busiest airports by passenger traffic, according to Wikipedia. Then I compared that with the latest TEA/AECOM Theme Index report, which lists the most visited theme park globally and by region around the world.
Twelve of the world's top 25 airports have theme parks from the TEA/AECOM lists in their metro area, making for a convenient visit for anyone flying into their popular airports. I have listed those cities in order of their airport's proximity to a major theme park.
London: Heathrow Airport [LHR] is located eight miles from Thorpe Park.
Orlando: Orlando International Airport [MCO] is located 12 miles from Universal Epic Universe. Okay, I am fudging a bit here, since Epic is not officially open yet and thus not on the TEA/AECOM list, but Universal Orlando's new park is one mile closer to MCO than SeaWorld Orlando is and surely will make the 2025 when it is released.
Shanghai: Shanghai Pudong International Airport [PVG] is located 15 miles from Shanghai Disneyland.
Singapore: Singapore Changi Airport [SIN] is located 15 miles from Universal Studios Singapore.
Tokyo: Tokyo Haneda Airport [HND] is located about 16 miles from Tokyo Disneyland.
Los Angeles: Los Angeles International Airport [LAX] is located 18 miles from Universal Studios Hollywood.
Seoul: Seoul Incheon International Airport [ICN] is located 20 miles from Lotte World.
Beijing: Beijing Capital International Airport [PEK] is located 23 miles from Universal Studios Beijing.
Madrid: Adolfo Suárez Madrid–Barajas Airport [MAD] is located 26 miles from Parque Warner.
Paris: Charles de Gaulle Airport [CDG] is located 28 miles from Disneyland Paris.
Chicago: O'Hare International Airport [ORD] is located 33 miles from Six Flags Great America.
Guangzhou: Guangzhou Baiyun International Airport [CAN] is located 35 miles from Chimelong Paradise.
Three U.S. airports on the top 25 list are located close to theme parks that did not make the TEA/AECOM top 25 for North America, but are very much considered noteworthy by many roller coaster fans.
Dallas–Fort Worth: Dallas Fort Worth International Airport [DFW] is located 12 miles from Six Flags Over Texas.
Charlotte: Charlotte Douglas International Airport [CLT] is located 15 miles from Carowinds.
Atlanta: Hartsfield–Jackson Atlanta International Airport [ATL] is located 17 miles from Six Flags Over Georgia.
Four other airports on the global top 25 list do not have major parks in their metro area, but are close enough to top parks that you could consider visiting if flying there.
Amsterdam: Amsterdam Airport Schiphol [AMS] is located 68 miles from Efteling.
Dubai: Dubai International Airport [DXB] is located 78 miles from Warner Bros World Abu Dhabi. On the way, you would pass Motiongate Dubai, which is just 38 miles from the Dubai airport but not listed in the TEA/AECOM report. If you want to visit Warner Bros. World, it's located just five miles from Abu Dhabi's new Zayed International Airport [AUH].
New York: John F. Kennedy International Airport [JFK] is located 80 miles from Six Flags Great Adventure in New Jersey.
Frankfurt: Frankfurt Airport [FRA] is located 144 miles from Europa-Park. However, several less busy airports are closer to the park.
That leaves travelers to the following top 25 airports out of luck for convenient visits to major theme parks:
However, there is Elitch Gardens in Denver (for now, at least) and Las Vegas is getting Universal Horror Unleashed in August. And Shenzhen is close to Hong Kong Disneyland, though you likely would need to fly into Hong Kong's airport to get there.
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@MyHandsDontScan - That's kind of the reputation Sin City has gotten over the years, but I would say that it's really just one giant bar. We were just there last week, and the theme park aspects of the city have really fallen by the wayside since the last time we were in Vegas over a decade ago. Yes, there are still some theme park-style attractions and shows, many of which we did on our recent visit. The Big Shot, which we didn't do, but did go to the top of the Strat, is still there, but X-Scream is the only other thrill ride still operating on top of the tower (wasn't running on our recent visit). Insanity is still mounted to the tower, but has been officially closed, and the High Roller (coaster) has been gone for over a decade. The Adventuredome at Circus Circus is still there (we didn't visit last week because they're charging $60 for a wristband for mostly stock rides and doesn't include the SpongeBob dark ride), but has been deteriorating for years. Big Apple Coaster (formerly Manhattan Express) is still running, and to our surprise has new Premier trains that were installed in 2021 (similar to their SkyRockets and Full Throttle with "comfort collars") and a decently smooth ride compared to the last time we rode. There's also the High Roller (giant Ferris wheel) and a "Fly Over"/Soarin'-style attraction just north of the MGM Grand that we thought was pretty good. There's also the Sphere, which is really just a concert venue/theater, but is a spectacle worthy of any major theme park.
Finally, there's Area 15, which is off the Strip and is turning into the new "it" venue for themed entertainment in Vegas. This is where Universal's year-round HHN experience is going and there is already an Omega Mart and John Wick attraction (billed as an escape room). Area 15 has a bunch of other VR attractions along with a pool hall, axe throwing, and golf simulator, so if you really want to you could spend an entire day here (though it would probably set you back well over $150 plus whatever you spend on food and drinks). Universal's presence and marketing might will likely supercharge interest in Area 15, even though I still think Universal is overpricing their experience a bit initially.
However, the overall trend in Vegas has moved back to drinking and gambling with the themed aspect of entertainment being marginalized, especially with the newer resorts that have opened/expanded recently like Resorts World, Fontainebleau, and Circa. The newer resorts do not have "gimmicks" like New York/New York, Bellagio, Venetian, Luxor, Excalibur, and the like, and are just fancy new hotels with some Vegas glitz. The under-construction Hard Rock resort, which is taking over the Mirage, is supposed to have a guitar-shaped tower to accompany the old Mirage tri-wing tower, but it doesn't look like it will be any more themed than the one in Tampa, which is just a standard luxury hotel with some music memorabilia hanging on the wall.
Since a majority of international flights to Tokyo go to the larger Narita International Airport which is three times farther from central Tokyo than the Haneda airport mentioned in the article, maybe it makes more sense to use the 37 mile figure from Narita to Tokyo Disneyland?
For 2023 Disneyland trip, we flew to LAX then Uber to Disneyland hotel. Upcoming visit will be flying to John Wayne Airport so much closer.
A few other noteworthy additions in the US (based on the large domestic hubs)...
-Newark Liberty (EWR) is the closest of the New York area airports to Six Flags Great Adventure at about 50 miles (vs. over 60 miles from the other two). Luna Park (aka Coney Island), Nickelodeon Universe, and Playland Park are also all within 50 miles of the three airports. Six Flags Great Adventure is also the closest park to Philadelphia (PHL) at about 60 miles away, slightly beating out fellow Six Flags property Dorney Park.
-San Francisco (SFO) has two Six Flags properties nearby: Six Flags Discovery Kingdom at about 35 miles away and California's Great America about 45 miles away.
-Minneapolis-Saint Paul (MSP) is only about 25 miles from Valleyfair, and the Mall of America (housing Nickelodeon Universe) is less than 10 miles away.
-Lagoon, the largest independent theme park in the United States, is located less than 20 miles from Salt Lake City (SLC).
-Six Flags America is located less than 50 miles from all three Washington, D.C. area airports: Baltimore/Washington (BWI), Dulles (IAD), and Ronald Reagan Washington (DCA).
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Isn't Las Vegas one giant theme park?