SeaWorld Parent United Parks Reports 4.7% Attendance Drop as Weather and Fewer Foreign Visitors Bite; SEAQuest Ride Now Slated for 2027

Orlando-based United Parks & Resorts, the parent of SeaWorld and Busch Gardens, drew 6.5 million visitors in the third quarter of 2026, down 4.7% from a year earlier. The company blamed weather, the calendar and fewer international tourists. It also confirmed that SeaWorld Orlando's next major ride, SEAQuest: Legends of the Deep, is now part of its 2027 lineup.

The company reported the results Nov. 5 in a release datelined Orlando and filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission. Total revenue for the quarter, which ended Sept. 30, fell 1.1% to $506.5 million. Net income fell 10.5% to $80.0 million, and adjusted EBITDA, the measure of operating earnings the company highlights, fell 5.1% to $205.1 million.

The numbers

The table compares the third quarter with the first nine months of 2026, as reported by the company.

Diluted earnings per share rose 8.1% to $1.74 from $1.61 a year earlier, even as net income fell. The difference comes from the share count: the weighted average number of diluted shares fell to about 46.0 million from about 55.5 million a year earlier. The release does not explain the drop. Wall Street analysts had expected more on both earnings and revenue, according to financial news reports, though published consensus figures varied.

Why attendance fell

Attendance was down about 320,000 visits from the third quarter of 2025. The company attributed the decline mainly to weather, calendar shifts and what it called "a decline in international visitation compared to the same quarter in the prior year." It also deliberately cut back on promotional admissions, a decision that cost more than 100,000 visits.

Chief Executive Officer Marc Swanson said in the release that the company was "pleased with the underlying performance of our business." He said the weather, calendar and international headwinds took away about 325,000 visits. According to the company, attendance would have risen without them.

Visitors who did come spent more. Admission pricing and in-park pricing pushed revenue per visitor up, which offset part of the attendance drop. In-park spending, on food, drinks, merchandise and extras, reached a record $37.39 per visitor in the quarter.

The split shows how much pricing carried the quarter. Admissions revenue fell 1.5% to $264.6 million, even though the average admission price per visitor rose 3.4% to $40.90. Food, merchandise and other revenue slipped just 0.6% to $241.8 million despite the smaller crowds.

Florida is central to those results. The company's filings note that "a significant portion of our revenues have historically been generated in the States of Florida, California and Virginia." Its Florida parks include SeaWorld Orlando, Aquatica Orlando, Discovery Cove, Busch Gardens Tampa Bay and Adventure Island in Tampa, making it one of the three major theme park operators in Central Florida alongside Walt Disney World and Universal Orlando Resort.

October and the fourth quarter

The weather problems did not end with the quarter. "Despite continued brutal weather in October, our projected total revenue was up for the month," Swanson said in the release. He also said the company's separately ticketed Howl-O-Scream Halloween events "saw meaningful year over year growth on non-impacted weather days."

Swanson pointed to passes as the strongest sign of demand. Total pass sales rose almost 8% in the third quarter, and the paid pass base was positive as of Oct. 31. Sales of passes specific to 2027 were up more than 15% as of the same date. Forward bookings for 2027 at Discovery Cove, the reservations-only swim-with-dolphins park in Orlando, and for group business are "running up double digit percentages," he said.

The company is about to launch its holiday events, Swanson said. He said the holiday lineup features rides, attractions and immersive exhibits. He said the company sees "a clear path to deliver significantly higher attendance, revenue" and other financial results in 2027 and beyond.

SEAQuest moves into 2027

SEAQuest: Legends of the Deep is listed among the company's new attractions for 2027. The release describes it as a submersible adventure through undersea ecosystems, guided by the SeaWorld Adventure Team.

SeaWorld Orlando first announced the ride in September 2025 as a 2026 attraction. In January, WKMG News 6 described it as a first-of-its-kind suspended dark ride launching in the spring, with guests boarding submersibles to explore glowing ocean worlds, shipwrecks and sea creatures. The company's release now lists it with its 2027 projects. Neither SeaWorld nor the release has given an opening date.

The release also named Return to Corkscrew Hill, a motion theater ride at Busch Gardens Williamsburg in Virginia. Busch Gardens Tampa Bay will announce its next attraction at the IAAPA conference, the theme park industry's annual trade show, in about two weeks, according to the company.

How investors reacted

Despite the missed estimates, United Parks shares rose about 10% in premarket trading on Nov. 5, according to financial news reports, as investors focused on management's comments about pass sales and 2027 bookings. The company did not issue formal guidance for 2027.

The company is also spending more to build new rides. Capital expenditures for the first nine months of 2026 rose 24.3% to $207.9 million from $167.2 million a year earlier. Free cash flow in the third quarter fell 38.3% to $23.5 million.

The balance sheet shows a company running lean on cash. United Parks had $26.3 million in cash as of Sept. 30, down from $99.8 million at the end of 2025. It carried $2.28 billion in long-term debt, including $40 million drawn on its revolving credit line, and a stockholders' deficit of $533 million.

What's next

Busch Gardens Tampa Bay's announcement at IAAPA later this month will be the next look at the company's 2027 lineup. The company has not yet set an opening date for SEAQuest at SeaWorld Orlando. The company's fourth-quarter results, due early next year, will show whether October's revenue gain and the strong 2027 pass sales hold through the holiday season.