Cedar Fair, the Ohio-based operator of 11 theme parks across North America, has reported a drop in second-quarter earnings, due primarily to lower attendance numbers.

While earnings were down 7.4 per cent to $43.9m, Cedar Fair – which owns Cedar Point and Kings Island in Ohio, along with Knott's Berry Farm in California and Canada's Wonderland near Toronto – said revenues were up slightly to $363m.

The company said quarterly revenues were bolstered by a four per cent increase in average in-park spending, which rose to $43.94 per guest.

This, however, failed to offset a two per cent decrease in park attendance to 7.7 million guests and a $3m decrease in hotel stays other ancillary revenue sources to $35m.


The drop in attendance was attributed to the closing of Cedar Point for a weekend in early June because of a water main break, partial flooding the last week of June at its Valleyfair Park near Minneapolis and prolonged school calendars throughout the Midwest and other regions following harsh winter weather earlier this year.

"We continue to see the resilience of our business model and believe the underlying demand for our products remains strong," said Matt Ouimet, Cedar Fair's president and chief executive officer.

"The positive comparable-park net revenues we have produced to date are the direct result of increased average in-park guest per capita spending across all of our parks.

"Consistent with our long-term strategy, we continue to make investments in the overall guest experience, including enhanced live entertainment, the addition of high value and on-trend product offerings, and of course, innovative new rides.

Ouimet added: "Our commitment to maintaining our premium regional brands is at the core of the value proposition we provide our guests, and is directly correlated to increased guest spending across all categories of our business."