10 Basic Principles of Theme

Park Planning

As for their cities, he that knoweth one of them, knoweth them all: they
be all so like one to another, as farforth as the nature of the place permitteth.
I will describe therefore to you one or other of them, for it skilleth not
greatly which.
(Thomas More, 1516)
The construction of a theme park implies mobilizing a large amount of
resources. Because of this, in addition to having founded expectations on
their capacity to attract visitors, prior to their development precise viabil-
ity analyses must be carried out to establish the size of the investment to
be made, including the necessary profitability forecasts, which determine
the operations to be done and which translate the resulting parameters to
a layout. The Themed Entertainment Association (TEA) has drafted a
guide for the development of thematic projects, which is made up of four
phases and 11 stages, as summarized in Table 10.1 (TEA, 2000). The pro-
ject begins with an idea or vision and several feasibility studies. Based on
these, a team of professionals works up a general concept and the master
plan document is created during Phase I. The elements included in the
plan are developed during Phase II of the design process. Phase III concerns
the material construction of the park, including the installation and check-
ing of the attractions. Lastly in the process of the creation of a theme park is
Phase IV, getting ready for the opening of the park. This includes the train-
ing of operations and maintenance teams, the installation of furnishings
and fixtures, the inventory, the provision of operations and maintenance
manuals and the resolution of all outstanding issues between the owner
and team members, among other things.
The initial planning of a theme park is normally done within a
5-year time period. Parks must ensure a variety of activities so that the
visitors will wish to stay in them and, yet more importantly, return to them.

©S. Anton Clave 2007. The Global Theme Park Industry (S. Anton Clave) 343
 344 Chapter 10

Table 10.1. The four phases and 11 stages in the design and construction
of a theme park according to the Themed Entertainment Association
(from TEA, 2000).

Phases Stages

I. The project programme 1. Project initiation

2. Project development planning
3. Master plan and concept design
II. The design process 4. Schematic design
5. Design development
6. Construction/fabrication documents
III. The implementation process 7. Construction/production/fabrication
8. Show and ride installation
IV. Opening 9. Pre-opening
10. Grand opening
11. Project completion

As Wanhill (2005b) states, there are degrees of investment that 'guarantee'

penetration into the markets and, especially, repeat visits. At the best
parks, repetition rates can be as high as 80% and, in any case, should be
no lower than 40% in order to ensure the product is maintained. Accord-
ing to Rector (1997), a theme park project is won or lost precisely at the
programming and design stage: hence his insistence on regarding what
has come to be known as the 20/80 rule, that is to say, giving over 20% of
the cost of a park to its planning as a guarantee of the final success of the
remaining 80% of the investment. For this, specific studies must be per-
formed and, finally, a global master plan steering the development of the
product must be drawn up. The master plan of a theme park is the basic
planning instrument. Together with other complementary, derived docu-
ments, its purpose is to establish a strategy which sets out the objectives,
the scope, the nature, size, calendar, potential demand, financial parameters
and the necessary investment for its development. In this sense, it should
be considered that the investment to be made includes both that made in
fixed assets (land, buildings and facilities) and that made in working capi-
tal, investments in intangibles (studies and projects, works management,
start-up, launching) and the necessary investments in replacements and
renovation.

10.1. Project Development

The decision to develop a theme park involves drafting a programmatic
instrument - the master plan - which sets the targets and steers the devel-
opment process. Also, in parallel, a project management process must be

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 Basic Principles of Planning 345

set up which, on occasions, may be led by the future park operators them-
selves but which, especially in the case of large-sized parks, is usually
contracted out to project managers, who will leave the attraction once it
opens.

10.1.1. The design of the master plan

The master plan is a basic instrument for the development, construction

and start-up of the park. It is a detailed plan that steers its design, imple-
mentation and opening, whose content - together with other specific
complementary documents - is the basis of the tasks to be carried out dur-
ing the phases of programming, design, construction and opening of the
park. Consequently, the master plan of a theme park includes the pro-
gramme of contents determining the concept and theme to be developed,
the size, capacity and cost of the different attractions and equipment,
development plans for the form and structure of the park (including func-
tional diagrams and outlines of the installation on the terrain) and an
architectural programme with illustrational drawings and sketches of the
attractions and equipment being developed.
The master plan of a theme park must deal with the provisions made
by legislation concerning its location with regard to urbanism, the
environment, security and safety, health and employment. Its drafting
demands constant revisions. Aspects such as the park's size, the invest-
ment to be made and its financial viability once up and running are to
be defined in this document, at least in preliminary form, and specific
studies and ad hoc market research are needed to allow the setting of
parameters. For this, the master plan must also include the results of
the park operating plan, that is to say, its basic commercial parameters,
measures of operation and the marketing variables which allow the
adjustment of the investment to be made to the park's future operation
possibilities.
In greater detail, Table 10.2 compiles the points that the master plan
of a theme park must consider in different fields of action and in accord-
ance with the objectives to be established, the figures to be analysed, the
concepts to be put to the test and the needs to be determined. In any
case, it should be stressed that, to the extent that frequentation is directly
conditioned by the size of the investment, the correctness of the mar-
ket studies and the plan of operations, it becomes a fundamental issue
for the scaling of the park and therefore a critical element of the master
plan.
The operating plan is based on the determination of the park's 'design
day' as a fundamental measure. Its drafting requires establishing the scale
as regards the number of visitors a day for whom the park is designed. To
this end, parameters are resorted to such as the rate of penetration and the
rate of recurrence (number of days of visits by visitors). The plan includes
estimates as to annual attendance, mean visitor expenditure by item and

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Table 10.2. Points for consideration in a master plan for the development of a theme park (from Hsu, 1997).
Areas

Physical Functional Social Legal Economic

Location Areas Perception Real-estate law Real-estate economics

Surroundings Proximity Psychological Regulations Markets
Ecology Utilities Historical Zoning Financing
Landform Services Symbolic Jurisdictions
Catchment
Circulation
Goals: set Physical Building area Effects Ownership Profit
Physical impact Utilities Impact Political associations Equity
Surroundings Services Zoning limits Market limits
Location Proximity Political strategies Rent
User Sales
Funding
Budget
Impact
Facts: Roads Area parameters Statistics Surveys Interest
organize Slopes Pedestrian Social structure Codes Capitalization
and analyse Views Catchment Behaviour Zoning Taxes
Vegetation Statistics Perception Deed Land cost
Geology Vehicles History Easements Rent/sales
Soil Jurisdictions Transportation
Climate Economics
Ecology Financing
Utilities

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Concepts: Ecological stability Connectivity Lifestyle Cooperatives Economic return
test Microclimate Catchment Behaviour setting Condominiums Leverage
Ecological analysis Land use Air rights Best use
Advocacy Cost sensitivity
Leasehold Absorption rate
Joint venture
Eminent domain
Needs: Buildable area Area requirements Sociological Market analysis
determine Limitations Traffic capacity Psychological Population projection
Ecological analysis Parking Perceptual Economic impact
Catchment Traffic projections
Utility/service Cash flow
Capacity
Access

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 348 Chapter 10

the elasticity of the demand to the price, as well as forecasts of the need
for staff, supplies and maintenance. It is in accordance with these vari-
ables that the theme park may be broken down into tangible elements
such as thematic areas, attractions, trajectories, spectacles, animations,
services, food points and sales points. The master plan must establish
commercial capacities and parameters, architectural characteristics, vol-
umes and surface areas for each tangible element.
Finally, the master plan should consider aspects concerning the fund-
ing of the project and, in particular, establish its basic profitability
measures. Normally, the viability of the project is measured in terms of its
financial results, the return on investment and the depreciation period. In
the USA, according to Hsu (1997), the development of a theme park may
be justified by a minimum rate of return of some 7 years. The case of Dis-
neyland in Anaheim, where the return period was just 4 years, is, at pres-
ent, very difficult to match in any geographical and economic context. It
is important to point out that a project with positive financial results in
the short term, less than 7 years, does not necessarily mean it will be a
long-term success. In fact, the inexistence of long-term planning can lead
to inertias that hinder the park's adaptation to market changes. Hence the
master plan should be understood to be modifiable or adjustable at later
stages in accordance with the expansion and growth dynamics of the
market.
The master plan must also deal with the need for future reinvestment,
as regards both the acquisition of new attractions and the renovation of
existing ones. In the USA, these needs have been set at between 4% and
5% of the gross annual income every 3 years and it has even been esti-
mated that a reinvestment deficit according to these parameters of magni-
tude and time may bring about a fall in attendance of 3.5% per year.
Numerous parks reinvest the amount equivalent to their yearly deprecia-
tion. On the other hand, carrying out improvements to the park's recre-
ational content usually has highly positive effects on attendance. Thus,
Six Flags, for example, claims that a new, big attraction generates on aver-
age a 6% increase in attendance (Kaak, 1992). Finally, to involve the pub-
lic sector in the project, in addition to its direct profitability, the master
plan should estimate the economic effects that the development of the
park could generate indirectly.

10.1.2. The management of the development process

Managing a theme park's construction project is a complex activity as it

involves, as Swarbrooke (2002) observes, managing resources, time and
quality in an intricate interrelationship. Two kinds of resources must be
managed: people and materials. A variety of types of people are involved
in the development process of a park and there are a variety of needs, ranging
from architects to decorators through marketing specialists, local authori-
ties and specialized craftsmen. Coordinating them on site is fundamental,

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 Basic Principles of Planning 349

given that otherwise delays may be incurred, leading, as Disney found out
with its Paris project, to high extra costs. Also, from a resources point of
view, materials are managed, that is to say, all necessary elements for the
physical construction of the facility. As in the case of the staff, the deficient
management of materials may lead to delays and therefore, again, extra
costs. Secondly, project management involves setting a work schedule,
whose target is the opening of the park on a predetermined day, which is
usually widely publicized in advance. Delayed or incomplete opening
usually mean a loss of consumer confidence in the park: hence the impor-
tance of appropriate management of time and, in particular, a series of
tasks in the appropriate order and manner. Finally, the theme park project
management team must ensure that its construction takes place with the
suitable standards of quality both from the point of view of the resources
and time and from the perspective of the demand segments it aims to
attract. Good estimation of budgetary needs is essential in this respect.
For this, control systems must be laid down.
On the basis of these premises, experience and judgement are usually
important for the management of the construction of a theme park. How-
ever, useful, well-known project management techniques exist, particu-
larly those like critical path analysis (CPA), 'a time-based technique for
managing projects which recognizes and plans the need for interaction
between the various players involved in the development process'
Swarbrooke (2002), and the programme evaluation and review technique
(PERT), a technique that disaggregates the theme park project into a number
of tasks and jobs on the basis that the duration of a project does not
necessarily coincide with the sum of the times of the activities as a whole
that are to be developed between the start time and the end. Obviously it is
possible to apply mathematical techniques of linear programming that facili-
tate the planning of a more effective use of resources during the development
process.
In summary, the management of the development of a theme park
should take into account some critical points, which, if they have been
properly handled, ensure the viability of the project:

1. The adaptation of investment to the real needs of the project. As dem-

onstrated during the appearance of theme parks in France at the end of the
1980s, underestimating investment needs usually has highly negative
results for the viability of the park. One of the most notorious examples is
the case of Zygofolis, in which the real investment made was finally dou-
ble the foreseen (from 150 million francs to 300 million) and led to a
financial crisis, which, in conjunction with other design and management
factors, brought about the closure of the park. The causes of the lack of
foresight concerning the investment are usually a consequence of the
non-compliance with planned execution schedules, the need for supple-
mentary work, mistaken valuation of infrastructure costs, the need to cre-
ate annexed facilities that had not been borne in mind initially or changes
to the project itself.

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 350 Chapter 10

2. Fulfilling the construction schedule and expenditure forecasts during

this phase of the project. In other words, the material construction phase
of the park is fundamental from the point of view of its economic viabil-
ity. There are many parks where delays in the process of construction
have had important financial consequences that have left them in serious
difficulties. As Rector (1997) remarks, it is critical, in this respect, to
define on real bases the schedule for the development, the budget to be
used and the operations to be performed so as to reasonably fulfil
expectations.
3. The conception of contingency plans that allow dealing with the
diverse problems that may affect the development process, from those
arising due to adverse weather to those that are a consequence of delays in
the delivery of materials, as well as other common occurrences, like the
non-compliance with commitments to complete certain phases of the pro-
ject, labour-related problems, increases in labour costs or the price of
materials, currency fluctuations, the requirements of inspections or regu-
lations and changes to the project itself, which may be put forward once
the construction work is under way.
4. The appropriate scale of the organizational, operations and marketing
needs at the time of the start-up of the park. Braun (1993) notes that a mul-
titude of examples exist of parks that have failed as a result of the defi-
cient planning of operations and marketing during the phases leading up
to their opening. This is why the formation of a human team trained in
general and specialized subjects, according to their role, is a factor that
needs careful planning. Also, prior to opening, the relevant park public
relations, communications and commercialization programmes should
have been activated. Other critical areas that require meticulous planning
before opening are general management, operations and the development
of shows and entertainment.
5. The necessary training of teams with the right, high level of professional
experience, thoroughly committed to the product and visitor satisfaction. It
is well known that the running of a theme park generally depends on a large
seasonal workforce, presenting high turnover rates. Nevertheless, the per-
sonnel are fundamental as regards the operation of the park: hence the
need for parks to set out precisely each employee's functions and to have
very strict control systems. In this respect, in the mid-1990s, Disney had
over 1100 specific job descriptions at its parks. Hence also the importance
theme parks give to matters like staff selection and training and the enter-
tainment of the operators at their work posts.
6. The creation of efficient attraction operations and maintenance pro-
grammes as a basis for visitor safety and satisfaction. This is one of the most
important aspects to be borne in mind, especially as regards the mechani-
cal attractions. It must not be forgotten that the public's behaviour may
alter an attraction's operability and give rise to problems. Hence the need
for well set-out protocols for the use and upkeep of each one. Though each
park has its own operations manual with specific indications for every

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 Basic Principles of Planning 351

contingency the International Association of Amusement Parks and

Attractions has drafted complete manuals to give guidance on this matter
for less experienced operators (see IAAPA, 1993).

10.2. Project Feasibility

In order to determine the operative contents, dimensions and needs of
a theme park, specific analyses must be performed so that the viability
of the idea may be assessed and to allow the design of the basic strategies
of the park, with regard to both the product targeted for offer and its busi-
ness expectations. Such analyses, which are included as key elements for
decision making in the actual master plan, usually include studies on two
fundamental matters:
The planning of services and operations.
The forecasting of operating measures.
The principal objective of such studies is, basically, to evaluate the
potential for success of the project being developed. They are, therefore,
systematic analyses of some of the key variables that may come into play
in their evolution. Normally, they are rational, logical studies, though
sometimes they may also tend to support decisions taken previously on
the basis of the strategic options of the agents participating in the process.
This is the case, for example, of parks that are developed on the basis of
public initiatives, which condition their development on a specific site.
Viability studies may be performed either by the promoting corporations
themselves or by consultants. It is common practice to produce an initial
in-house briefing to allow the clear establishment of the promoter's objec-
tives and expectations and later to contract an external consultant. This,
despite usually being distinctly expensive, means that greater objectivity,
experience and speed may be gained.
It must not be forgotten that the different development studies
required for the start-up of a park are highly complex and challenging.
This is due to the fact that constant changes arise in the market, both from
the point of view of potential visitors' motivation and behaviour and from
the perspective of the formats and characteristics of the attractions. On the
other hand, viability studies are usually carried out quite some time before
the parks are actually started up, and, in the case of medium and large
parks, this may be several years. Also, the related political and economic
circumstances, as well as legislation concerning specific matters, may
vary during the development process. For instance a particular amenity
may be affected by changes made by the authorities governing school
holiday periods or by new environmental requirements affecting its
development. In spite of the experience gained by the existence of similar
parks as regards contents, format and scale, what is true is that each facility
is unique and one can hardly be compared with another and, hence, the

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 352 Chapter 10

existence of points of reference of success can never be a guarantee of the

success of a new project.

10.2.1. The planning of services and operations

A theme park is a complex facility in which multiple processes are car-

ried out with the purpose of ensuring visitor satisfaction. These processes
mean that it is possible to offer different types of services once the visitor
has entered the park. In the case of the attractions and shows - in addition
to the general services - visitors get a service which they have paid for
when purchasing the entrance ticket. In the case of food and beverages
and the shops, visitors must pay once they are in the park. The attractions
are a standardized service of a continuous nature, whose operational
objective is to minimize waiting time. The shows generally take place at
previously announced time intervals. Their format is also standardized,
though in the production process it is organized as a project. A production
process is continuous when production is organized online and idle time
is eliminated, always performing the same tasks with the same compo-
nents obtaining the same product. It is, therefore, a kind of process, typi-
cal of the attractions of a park, homogeneous and repetitive. Production
by project is useful to elaborate singular products or services (or with
unique characteristics) of a certain complexity. In this kind of production,
characteristic in filming, there is a sequence of operations at a fixed point
to which the people and equipment needed for it have moved. Catering
services use a job-shop production system in the case of table service with
a menu. In this case, small product units are handled, which vary substan-
tially as regards their form, raw materials and processes. In batch produc-
tion processes, the same facilities are usually used to elaborate different
products. Online production is used when large batches are made with lit-
tle variety of products, apparently different but technically homogeneous:
that is, they require the same type of operations and, therefore, the same
facilities can be used - as in the case of the self-service units. The service
offered by the shops is more difficult to define on the basis of a theoretical
model, given that, in general, the client merely chooses an article from
among what is on show and pays for it.
The design of processes has a determining influence on the general
layout of the park and that of each facility. The layout serves to determine
the best physical arrangement of the different components that make up
the park. The processes therefore condition issues such as the location of
each facility, its capacity, the size of the waiting areas and its internal
structure. So the decisions that are taken as regards the design of the prod-
uct and its position on ground level are directly governed by the actual
design of the park's operations. In this respect, matters should be borne in
mind such as the circulation of materials and supplies within the park
(linear or zigzag, for example); the quantity and size of the equipment and
machinery to be used and the ancillary spaces required around them; the

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 Basic Principles of Planning 353

aspects related to the environmental conditions of workers and visitors

(security/safety, lighting and ventilation, among other things), the charac-
teristics required for each facility as regards layout, heights and other fac-
tors. A good layout of processes should allow the smooth circulation of
materials, people, products and information. It should ensure customer
comfort, the integration of the activity and other aspects, such as the suit-
ability of the aesthetics and landscaping of the thematic environment
designed.
Theme parks present a customer-oriented layout, which, in general
terms, includes the parking area, the admissions zone (both ticket sales and
ticket validation), customer services, the common services areas (cloak-
room, the hire of wheelchairs and a shopping pickup point, among other
services), the entrance to the park with shops, restaurants and access to
internal transport systems and the animation area (which is in turn usu-
ally divided into different thematic areas and concentrates a mixture of all
kinds of services available to the customer). At the attractions, it is most
important to keep waiting time to a minimum and to have waiting areas
that can absorb peak attendance. Also, each attraction must have a suit-
able operating area in accordance with its load characteristics. In this
regard, it must not be forgotten that minimizing visitor waiting time in
queues (Castan, 2004) means that visitor satisfaction will be enhanced
(since the existence of queues has a negative influence on the visitor's
perception of the park), revenue will be maximized (since queuing means
that visitors cannot consume other available services at the park) and the
large investment involved in the building of a queuing system will be
reduced. With regard to the places where shows are put on, a pre-loading
area must also be designed where there are guarantees that everyone
admitted will have a seat and that waiting will take place in the best pos-
sible fashion. In addition to the production areas, the catering facilities
must include waiting areas and appropriately sized dining rooms and, for
self-service outlets, efficient waiting facilities both in their route (which
should be as short as possible) and in the provision of cash registers
(shortage of which often leads to unnecessary waiting). As well as the actual
shop display space and the cash registers, storage space should be taken
into account for shops.
Also, planners of a theme park must consider a series of logistic ser-
vices - invisible to the customer - which must be incorporated in their
design and, therefore, in their layout. Such logistic services involve the
human resources (recruitment, candidate selection, contracting and
specific training), maintenance (which may be predictive, preventive or
corrective and contributes not just to visitor satisfaction but also to
safety), the gardening and buildings (whose appearance is fundamental
from the perspective of the theming of the park itself), the electrical and
electronic installations, the distribution of gas and water, climatization,
mechanics, sound and image and information systems, the production of
the shows (which, in addition to specialized personnel, involves sceno-
graphy and furnishings, special effects, sound and image, wardrobe and,

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 354 Chapter 10

quite often, pyrotechnics), the logistics of catering (with common facili-

ties and specific installations at each food and beverage outlet) and the
logistics of the shops. Logistics services, in addition to the facilities
needed for administration, management and new projects, as well as road-
ways and technical areas, ensure the running of the park in real time and
require, more specifically, concrete spaces, such as general storage facili-
ties, warehouses for goods to be sent out to the shops and play areas, food
stores, wardrobe stores, specific storage for shows, maintenance work-
shops, greenhouses and fuel pumps, among other fundamental facilities.
Similarly, parks must consider waste management as something of funda-
mental importance: take as an example the fact that 50,000 visitors to a
large park can generate in I day around 30 tonnes of waste, which takes
up a huge space.
As can be gleaned from the considerations covered so far, the design
of a rational layout that distinguishes the animation areas from the
logistics zones, where, for the purposes of illustration, the rear of all cus-
tomer-oriented facilities is inaccessible, with clear differences between
customer access and access for employees and materials and which, espe-
cially, suggests an ordered, sequential visit, is an instrument of competi-
tiveness for the company in terms of cost and visitor satisfaction, as they
do not see behind the scenes of the business and are not disturbed by
its processes. Good layout design ensures the best possible use of the
resources that are required in the development process of a park and dur-
ing its operation, allows turning an idea into a tangible form with the
capacity to attract visitors and facilitates the chances of adhesion to the
project both by the public sector and by private initiatives. In short, layout
stems from the need to render services in accordance with the conceptual
nature and the strategy of the park and should be submitted to lengthy,
in-depth study and assessment, with the purpose of defining and estab-
lishing needs in such a way as to minimize costs and maximize revenue.
Also, it means that visitor safety and security standards can be maximized
and the generation and handling of waste and the consumption of energy
and water can be kept to a minimum and hence be considered environ-
mentally friendly.
It is important, on the other hand, for the layout to take into account
the needs of flexibility in the planning of the services and the operations
that derive from the continuous changes in the motivation and behaviour
of the demand. Thus, the developers of a park ought to bear in mind mat-
ters like the incorporation of new attractions and buildings, the ability to
operate just one part of the park, or even, as has happened at Futuroscope,
for example, the possibility for one pavilion to change its contents in
accordance with the evolution of the demand. To this end, it is also
important for facilities to attract visitors at any time of the year and under
a wide range of meteorological conditions. This is a fundamental measure
to combat facilities' seasonality. Finally, it should not be forgotten, from
the point of view of generating business, that, generally speaking, the most
successful attractions are those that, first, have aesthetic appeal for visitors,

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 Basic Principles of Planning 355

which can be based on size, form, colour, appearance or their materials

and, secondly, have been designed to be user-friendly because of the sign-
posting, access, information displayed, good-quality support services or
design adapted to peak crowds and congestion, among other things. A
particular point is the park's necessary sensitivity towards visitors with
special needs. In fact, any visitor may have special needs, from a customer
who does not understand the language to people with some form of physi-
cal disability.
The planning of services and operations is, in summary, a fundamen-
tal aspect from the point of view of a park's viability, to the extent that it
influences their magnitude, characteristics, functioning and aesthetic value
and, therefore, directly governs the investment needed for their develop-
ment. In particular, according to Swarbrooke (2002), it must be taken into
account that, from this standpoint, investment includes:
the acquisition of the site and any restoration or preparatory work on it that
is required; construction work to create the buildings and structures that
house the attraction; the setting out of the attraction . . . the costs associated
with the launch, which are incurred before the attraction starts to earn
income, such as staffing and marketing; and any other costs incurred before
the attraction opens, such as franchises that have to be purchased or licenses
and planning permissions that must be obtained.
In greater detail, it can be said that, in terms of finance, the service life of
the different theme park facilities is as follows: between 25 and 40 years
for the attractions, 40 years for the buildings and logistic facilities and for
furnishings and equipment between 2 and 10 years.
In any case, the result is conditioned by the budget available for the
development of the project, the experience and corporate culture of the
operator that manages it, the actual conditions of the place itself, espe-
cially the physical ones, legal and regulatory conditions, the scale of the
project and its size compared with the possibilities and characteristics of
the place where it is located, security and safety requirements imposed
by the operators themselves, the objectives concerning the beauty of the
landscape designed and the perception that the project is, as a whole,
coherent with the founding idea of the recreational facility. In short, the
planning of services and operations is the basis of the development pro-
cess of a park since it is directly related: (i) to the internal objectives of the
promotional organization of the project; (ii) to the legal restrictions that
affect the activity and the location; and (iii) to the expectations of the
potential demand.

10.2.2. The forecasting of operating measures

The financial viability of a theme park is established to the extent that its
development allows adequate return on the capital invested and the
achievement of operating profits. In the case of parks, since some years

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 356 Chapter 10

may be needed before reaching predicted visitor numbers, it is important

to estimate income and expenditure in the medium term. Studies carried
out prior to the development of the park should clearly set out the capital
costs incurred with the park's development as well as, especially, the
forecast operating balance in terms of revenue and costs. Given that these
are fundamental for the purposes of sizing the park, forecasts that are not
within operating measures could lead to its failure and even, to its closure
after some time. It is not uncommon for there to be theme parks in a criti-
cal situation as a direct consequence of aspects such as an overestimation
of frequentation due to the erroneous definition of the market areas and
the park's penetration rate and, as a consequence, a mistaken forecast of
income. It is therefore necessary to obtain precise estimates as to the
results the future running of the park may give. To this end, break-even
analysis becomes fundamental. It is also one of the key instruments of the
control of results in the management of a park during its operating stage.
In general terms, this type of analysis involves calculating the volume of
sales of the product needed so as to cover costs, neither generating profit
nor incurring losses. As will be seen below, for the case of theme parks
this is directly related, on the one hand, to the volume of visitors and the
per capita expenditure made by the visitors to the facility and, on the
other hand, to the operating costs plus the depreciation that the operators
must defray.
Parks generate income in two ways. First, they generate income due to
their actual thematic nature by offering meanings to their consumers and,
through these meanings, generating 'distinction' among their visitors. The
latter are willing to acquire this distinction 'symbolically' through the
payment of an entrance ticket (MacCannell, 1976). Thus, visitors to a park
pay, since Six Flags introduced it in the 1960s, a single entrance fee to
enjoy all of the attractions. The consequence of the 'pay-one-price' con-
cept, that is to say, the payment of a single entrance fee to get access to the
park's recreational offer, is the perception of unique meaning as regards
what the park represents, ceasing to be a spontaneously consumed attrac-
tion and becoming the focus of a planned family excursion. Secondly,
theme parks generate income through their truly commercial establish-
ments and facilities. In fact, it is these establishments and facilities that
generate a fundamental part of company profit. To this end, Desgue (2005)
uses the example of the fact that Pare Asterix, in Paris, directly exploits 17
shops in the park, selling some 7000 different articles and generating close
to 25% of the income.
The viability of a theme park is basically conditioned by the number
of visitors to it and the per capita expenditure made. In this respect, it
cannot be forgotten that attendance is generally seasonal and is highly
unstable and that, as can be seen in Table 10.3, important variations exist
between parks. Matters such as unusual temperatures, an accident, the
appearance of other leisure alternatives or the decrease in the price of air
travel, an economy in recession or the holding of world events like the
Olympic Games or a universal exposition may have considerable effects,

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 Basic Principles of Planning 357

Table 10.3. Per capita spending at Cedar Fair parks ($) (from Conder and Krecher, 2006).
1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005

Cedar Point 40.28 41.75 44.50 45.61 46.07 48.37 49.34 49.34
ValleyFair 29.10 30.00 32.00 32.80 32.80 33.62 33.96 35.65
Dorney Park 28.24 29.25 30.25 31.76 31.76 32.40 33.23 35.53
Worlds of Fun 25.76 27.00 27.75 28.58 28.58 29.15 30.17 31.08
Knott's Berry 31.99 33.25 34.50 35.54 35.18 36.59 38.42 40.72
Farm
Michigan 31.99 33.25 34.50 34.50 39.68 43.64 45.17 45.62
Adventure

in addition to the general circumstantial changes that occur in the pub-

lic's spending habits, on the results of a park in a fiscal year. Also, cultural
differences lead to variations in results. Thus, for example, per capita rev-
enue at Disney in Tokyo for 2004 was $87.49 compared with $63.48 at
Disneyland Paris and $63.17 at Walt Disney World in Florida. Moreover,
in the Tokyo park, income generated by food, beverage and merchandise
represents 54.12% whereas in the European park the figure drops to
47.21% and at Walt Disney World in Florida it falls as low as 39.79%.
Depending on the risk incurred with the investment, a better or a poorer
result during the early years of operation can prove crucial for a park's
financial health and the continuity of the project. In this regard, park
management becomes a fundamental factor.
Besides matters concerning a park's scale and penetration capacity
into the different market areas and the marketing strategies to be imple-
mented so as to improve visitor numbers, there are two points for consid-
eration as regards the attendance of a park: pricing and opening periods.
The price factor must be borne in mind as of the early stages of a park's
viability analysis (Guyomard, 2005). Going to a park involves a cost to
families. Table 10.4 is a summary of the cost of a visit to a selection of
theme parks in the USA in 2002 for a family of four and it shows a break-
down of the prices of the main cost elements. Variation between parks can
clearly be seen. This is due to the different financial effort which each of
them must make in accordance with their investment levels, annual
operating costs depending on their size, thematic characteristics and lev-
els of the provision of services and their market positioning strategy. On
an international level, price variations also indicate the different purchas-
ing power of the visitors-users of the park for each country. The
pay-one-price admission system is generally regarded as the most advan-
tageous for parks and also for customers. Parks try to achieve secondary
income equivalent to the revenue gained by admissions, which includes
catering, merchandising and other categories, such as sponsorship, corpo-
rate hospitality and the rental of facilities. This latter category is difficult
to predict.

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 358 Chapter 10

Table 10.4. Prices ($) of some spending components in a selection of theme parks
in the USA and an estimation of the per-family-unit visit cost, 2002 (from
Amusement Business).
Cost per family
Adult Child (2 adults + 2
Park fee fee Parking Burger Beverage T-shirt children)

Busch Gardens, 50 41 7 3.5 1.5 15 231

Tampa
Cedar Point 42 20 8 3.5 2.25 13 170
Disneyland, 45 35 7 4.5 2.25 13 227
Anaheim
Dollywood 34 25 5 4 1.75 13 175.5
Frontier City 26 18 6 3.5 2.5 10 144
Paramount's 44 34 10 3 2.5 10 220
Great America
Six Flags 36 22 7 4.25 2.5 12 181
Fiesta Texas
Universal Studios 50 41 8 4 1.75 16 252
Florida
Wyandot Lake 25 19 3 3 2 14 147

Establishing the entrance fees and the prices of consumer products

inside parks is fundamental from the perspective of a theme park's viabil-
ity. Despite the fact that according to classic economic theory demand for
parks should have a high price elasticity, data from Amusement Business
concerning the expenditure made by a family in a North American theme
park would indicate the contrary. Indeed, it increased by some 40%
between 1993 and 2001. Similarly, between 1987 and 2004 the mean
one-day adult entrance fee at Walt Disney World rose from $28.00 to
$58.04 and at Disneyland in Anaheim it jumped from $21.50 to $49.75.
Key in interpreting this phenomenon is the perception the visitor has of
the joint recreational value offered by parks in terms of entertainment
and the effort they make to incorporate new attractions and services every
so often. On the other hand, concerning prices, it can be seen that one com-
pany can have clearly different strategies for its different parks.
In addition to price, for the purposes of estimating a park's attendance
numbers and viability another fundamental factor is the operating period.
It has already been mentioned that many of the world's theme parks are
seasonal. This means that the investment has to be amortized by concen-
trated visitor attendance at certain times of the year. Operating periods are
governed by the behaviour of the market segments that are the subject of
the park's commercial strategy, by the magnitude of its market areas in
comparison with its size, by its uniqueness and capacity to attract and, as
would be logical, by the climatic factors of the area where it is located.

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 Basic Principles of Planning 359

Also, in addition to the annual length of the opening period of a park or

the possibility of only opening at weekends at the beginning and end of
the season, as is practised by numerous parks, variations exist as to the
number of daily opening hours, which may range from the 15 h of open-
ing a day in summer in Gardaland and the 8 h of Efteling in spring and
autumn. Such variations are normally accompanied, furthermore, by spe-
cific prices for each season of the year. In any case, lengthening the daily
stay period in the park is fundamental. There is known to be a non-linear
relationship between spending at a park and the duration of the visitor's
stay, especially when a stay of 4 h is surpassed, which is when spending
soars.
The second key point is that of per capita income. This varies greatly
according to each park's magnitude and characteristics. So, for example,
Universal in Florida generates per capita income of $48.41 versus the
$63.17 generated by Walt Disney World, also in Orlando. What happens,
however, is that Disney is able to generate more merchandize and food
and beverage revenue per visitor than Universal: $25.14 per visitor for
Disney as against $14.79 for Universal. It is understood that, on average,
per capita income at a destination park at least doubles that of a regional
or urban park. Without a doubt, the length of stay at the park is a critical
factor, which would explain such circumstances. The existence of more
than one gate at a thematic resort, as well as the availability of on-site
hotels, increases per capita spending. In this regard, Table 10.5 shows an
improvement in the results at Disneyland in California between 1998 and
2005, according to estimates by Smith Barney. In any case, what is impor-
tant is that per capita income is in line with the amount foreseen as being
necessary to bear the investment made and the operating costs. From the
point of view of the management of a park, some of their managers' main
objectives are, precisely, to increase per visitor expenditure, as well as the
logical target of increasing visitor numbers. To do so, it is common to use
mathematical forecasting techniques, such as linear programming or

Table 10.5. Sources of income at Disneyland California, 1998-2005 ($) (from Krutik and
Han, 2004).
1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005

Number of gates 1 1 1 2 2 2 2 2
Average effective 21.41 22.27 23.16 23.16 25.05 26.05 26.73 27.40
ticket price
Food and 10.02 10.26 10.51 10.76 11.02 11.91 12.15 12.40
beverage per capita
Merchandise 10.96 11.25 11.54 11.84 12.15 12.51 12.76 13.02
per capita
Total per capita 42.40 43.78 45.21 45.76 48.22 50.48 51.65 52.81
spend

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 360 Chapter 10

systems for the analysis and programming of queues, which aim to

improve the park's efficiency as a production area (through consumption).
Although it is not possible to establish a general statistical model,
given that there are a variety of geographical zones, visitor behaviour,
meteorological characteristics, opening periods, investment size and
needs at each park, it can be said that between 50 and 60% of a park's
income is generated through entrance fees, whereas the remainder comes
mainly through consumption by visitors inside. In the case provided here
of the Six Flags parks for 2004, these proportions were exactly 53.6% cor-
responding to admissions and 46.4% to consumption inside the park
(including the games), sponsorship and other income, such as that gener-
ated by the parking facilities. At Disneyland in Anaheim, another signifi-
cant example, the results were 51.8% coming from entrance fees and the
remaining 48.2% from consumption inside the park. In greater detail, this
latter proportion can be broken down as follows: 23.5% from the sale of
food and beverage products and 24.7% from the sale of other goods, fun-
damentally souvenirs. In addition, parks that have them can manage to
generate between 5 and 10% of their income through games.
In addition to sales to their visitors, parks have other sources of
income, such as sponsorship and rents. Thus, for example, at the time
of opening, JCB Co., Nippon Suisan Kaisha Ltd, House Foods Corp.
and Yamazaki Baking Co. purchased the rights to use the Tokyo
DisneySea logo in their television advertisements and promotion. In
the year 2000, income not coming from visitor consumption at Walt Dis-
ney World in Orlando reached $783 million, 22.7% of its total revenue.
Parks also let their facilities to other corporations for a variety of activities
and, in some cases, to use their scenic image, again for promotional
purposes.
Given the great effect that consumption inside the park has on total
expenditure made by each visitor, operators are well capacitated to estab-
lish entrance discount systems, as the enhance fee becomes less relevant,
thus stimulating visits to the park. There are a multitude of types of dis-
count (senior citizens, infants, groups - which may represent over 35% of
park admissions - season tickets, working days, evenings, tourist pack-
ages, product promotions, among others). In general, they are truly aggres-
sive pricing policies, which translate into highly relevant visitor volumes
and, therefore, income. On the other hand, generalized reductions in
admission fees have been made up for in recent years by the increase in
parking fees. For this, as regards conception, operators conceive the car
park as part of the visit to the park and a place of transition from the out-
side world to the world of thematic recreation. As the profitability thresh-
old is neared, each additional ticket sold produces a high marginal profit.
However, one should not overlook the fact that, inasmuch as a park is a
facility that is planned to receive an optimal number of visitors, as satura-
tion occurs the marginal profit curve decreases. Material and labour costs
increase above what has been foreseen and the actual volume of visitors to
the park reduces opportunities to consume (fundamentally due to long

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 Basic Principles of Planning 361

queues, dissatisfaction and decreased impulse buying associated with

such situations). It may therefore be stated that a park's operating margins
are highly sensitive to two key variables: visitors per day and per capita
expenditure (Vogel, 2001). In any case, as can be seen in Table 10.6, a
notable difference may exist between parks. The figures show the diver-
sity of theme parks' operating margins and results.
Theme parks' operating expenses usually represent up to 80% of total
sales. According to Kan (2005, 8):
the theme park industry is characterized by high operating leverage, with
75% of costs fixed and 25% variable. Labour is the largest portion of total
costs (operating expenses plus Selling General & Administrative expenses)
at 40% with advertising and marketing costs the second largest at approxi-
mately 16% of costs.
In the case of Cedar Fair, for example, in 2004, direct operating expenses
accounted for 65% of revenue whereas services and general administra-
tion represented 19% and cost of goods sold 16%. Part-time employees'
salaries, maintenance, utilities such as electricity and water and insur-
ance are not altered by fluctuations in visitor numbers. Variable costs are
provisions (food and beverages, goods and games), marketing and sea-
sonal employment. For the purposes of illustration, see, in Table 10.7, the
costs and expenses structure of a sample of 35 parks in North America and
Europe according to a survey concerning this performed by the Inter-
national Association of Amusement Parks and Attractions (IAAPA).
According to IAAPA estimates for different years (see Marketdata Enter-
prises, 1999), salaries represent by far the greatest cost for all parks (they may
reach 50% of costs). The fact that parks are labour-intensive facilities -
though basically seasonal and sporadic - leads to this. In this regard, it has
been estimated that a theme park employee has an average of 75 personal
contacts per day with visitors to the park (Kaak, 1992). This figure signifies
the importance of the personnel for the park's success. In the end, the
employees are the principal factor contributing to visitor satisfaction.

Table 10.6. Operating margin and EBITDA in a sample of theme

park operators (from Ceronkosky and Keller, 2004).

2001 (%) 2002 (%) 2003 (%)

Operating margin
Cedar Fair 23.1 24.1 24.5
Six Flags 16.8 19.6 15.1
Anheuser Busch 21.3 21.1 21.5
EBITDA
Cedar Fair 32.0 33.8 34.4
Six Flags 34.8 33.5 30.2
Anheuser Busch 32.3 31.0 31.0

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 362 Chapter 10

Table 10.7. Expenses and operating margin for a

sample of theme parks (from IAAPA, 2000).
Total (%)
(n = 35)

Personnel 36.0
Maintenance 8.5
Supplies 3.2
Special events 2.2
Promotion 7.0
Public services 3.5
Insurance 1.7
General administration 4.5
Rent 3.9
Taxes 3.1
Interest 4.8
Other 10.6
Operating margin 21.3

According to IAAPA (2000) data, the average number of full-time employ-

ees at parks is 160 and the number of employees during the month of
greatest attendance is 736.
Unlike personnel costs, maintenance and repair costs remain steady
regardless of visitor numbers. The park must be permanently in perfect
condition so as not to ruin the expectations of finding a clean, safe, magic
atmosphere. Expenditure on marketing is, however, fundamental in order
to increase visitor numbers. Timely, significant increases to marketing
expenditure are usually associated with novelties in the park. At the big-
ger parks, whose demand is not so concentrated in the immediate market
areas, figures for promotion and commercialization increase. However,
once again, significant variations may exist according to the park in ques-
tion. To illustrate this see, for example, the differences in costs structure
between the different Disney parks for 2004 in Table 10.8.
Remaining costs, among which are the provision of products for sale
(including food and beverages) and the park's general and administration
services, normally represent between 20 and 30%. Of these, insurance
and the safety of the attractions may be singled out. These are an essential
expenditure due to the risks deriving from the use of attractions and due
to the fact that a visitor could suffer a minor accident during their stay at
the park, whether while walking through it or while on soft attractions,
such as a merry-go-round. As Kaak (1992) reports, the probability of hav-
ing a minor incident on a roller coaster is 1 : 100,000 (to give an example,
the likelihood of having the same incident when riding a bicycle is
253 : 100,000). However, given the repercussions in the media and effect
on demand that any incident has, parks tend not just to adopt extreme

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 Basic Principles of Planning 363

Table 10.8. Costs structure of Disney parks in 2004 (% over total income)
(from Bilotti and Ksenofontova, 2005).
General Fixed
Labour services Marketing overheads

Disneyland 49 29 7 14
Walt Disney World 49 32 13 6
Disneyland Paris 31 27 14 28
Disney Tokyo 22 35 7 36
Hong Kong Disneyland3 35 30 12 23
a. Estimate.

safety measures but also to take out insurance against any possible law-
suits and claims.
Be that as it may, in general terms, the fact that parks usually have
high fixed costs makes them financially vulnerable to downturns in the
market. As a consequence, providing capital for the development of parks
is often difficult. As Wanhill (2005b) states, banks will not usually lend
more than 40% of the required sum and so the rest has to be found from
equity investors. Sponsorship of attractions also helps.

Case 17. Access for the Disabled at Disneyland Paris

There is a large disabled population and there is a growing number of peo-
ple suffering some disability (it is estimated that almost 10% of the popula-
tion has some type of disability, even in Europe). The specific needs of the
disabled vary according to the nature of the disability (physical, sensorial
or mental) and its degree. On the other hand, different regional and local
cultures are at play as regards how these specific needs are responded to. In
this context, furthermore, different national regulations exist that increase
the complexity of the situation that tour operators and leisure facilities
must deal with. In respect of this, Disneyland Paris receives some 40,000
disabled visitors each year. With such a large number of visits it is the num-
ber one European destination among the population with special needs and
as a result it has received a variety of distinctions, such as the Label
Tourisme et Handicap in 2004 among others. However, it has taken 7 years
to get 46 accessible attractions (Dequidt, 2005).
From the park's standpoint, Dequidt (2005) admits that lack of knowl-
edge, blinkered vision and individuals' fear of being different make the dis-
abled population normally tolerated rather than welcomed. In any case, it is
not usually a priority demand segment as far as marketing is concerned.
There are different reasons, according to this author, who is responsible for
disability-related matters at Disneyland Paris, that would explain such a lack
of enthusiasm. In the first place, there is the necessary obsession with safety
held by those in charge of park operations. There are certain attractions that

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 364 Chapter 10

may be considered dangerous for certain groups of people. Moreover, in the

event of an emergency, disabled people are often looked upon as being a hin-
drance, a brake or a reason to boost the degree of anxiety among other users.
However, as demonstrated by parks that practise access-for-all policies, it
does not have to be so. A second reason comes from the interpretation that
visitors with disabilities slow down the park's productivity in that uncon-
ventional attraction operation procedures must be implemented, thus decel-
erating processes. In order to deal with this matter, it is necessary to perform
material adaptations to attractions, train the employees suitably and inform
visitors. A third reason is to do with customers' potential dissatisfaction if
they perceive or feel that the disabled are making the most of classic advan-
tages such as having priority at access points - which is quite common in the
traditional conception of dealing with the disabled. This feeling by the visi-
tors to the park can be particularly unsatisfactory if the disability is not all
that apparent. At Disneyland Paris, the fast pass system, which is used to get
access to the attractions without having to wait, means that the capacitated
and the disabled can be treated on equal terms. Finally, the fourth reason is
the fear of being different and, therefore, the fear that a large number of dis-
abled visitors may lead to dissatisfaction among non-disabled visitors. Only
education and educational policies can help defeat such objections.
The integration of disabled people into a theme park involves applying
the principle of non-discrimination, having foreseen specific needs in the
design of the park and its attractions and conceiving the special needs as a
useful argument, and therefore one that does not demand an additional cost
but offers advantages also for other categories of visitor or the employees
themselves. The principle of non-discrimination implies that the only
causes to prohibit access to an attraction must derive from criteria that
exclude a disability (for example, minimum height). This implies, on the
other hand, the provision of good information about the attraction, allowing
the disabled person to decide whether or not to try out an attraction. The pro-
vision for specific needs in the design of the park and its attractions should
tackle the different types of disability, which may be physical, sensorial -
sight and hearing - or mental. Finally, it should be considered that facili-
tating accessibility does not imply having to renounce greater profit as a
result of a drop in the productivity of the attractions. At Walt Disney Stu-
dios Paris, for example, disabled visitors can get wheelchair access to one
of Aladdin's flying carpets. Dequidt (2005) proposes the following criteria
in order to facilitate access for the disabled to a theme park:

Think about accessibility prior to building the park.

Simplify access to and use of attractions as far as possible.
Previously adequately inform people prior to the visit through leaf-
lets, guidebooks and the Internet (for example, Disneyland Paris has a
Guide for Disabled Visitors at the disposal of its customers).
Recommend itineraries, attractions and activities adapted to the dif-
ferent types of disabilities and identify them via specific pictograms.
Do not overlook allergies.

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