United Parks & Resorts experienced a drop in theme-park attendance and revenue in the third quarter of 2025, but SeaWorld Orlando numbers are up for the year so far, according to executives reacting to the company’s earnings report.
Overall attractions attendance was 6.8 million for the July-September period, a decrease of 3.4% from a year earlier. Total revenue was $511.9 million, a decrease of 6.2% from 2024.
“We’re obviously not happy with the results we delivered in the quarter,” United CEO Mark Swanson said in a conference call Thursday. “Performance during the quarter was negatively impacted by an unfavorable calendar shift, poor weather during peak holiday periods, a decline in international visitation and less than optimal execution.”
Positives in the report, he said, was a 1.1% increase in per-capital spending inside the theme parks and that attendance at SeaWorld Orlando is up for the first nine months of 2025. The per-cap level has grown in 20 of the past 22 quarters, he said.
Also, “we saw meaningful year-over-year growth from our separately ticketed Howl-O-Scream events, including record attendance in Orlando and San Diego for these events,” Swanson said.
It’s difficult to pinpoint the effects of economic insecurities of consumers and immigration news on the over international figures, which was down by 90,000 visitors for the company, which is based in Orlando, he said.
“I’m sure there is some impact to certain guests across our portfolio,” he said.
“If you do look at our [annual] pass base, we know that’s been down, and I’m sure when some of the peak selling seasons for our passes were around when the tariff noise was happening,” Swanson said. “It’s hard to know if that had an impact on us. I’m sure it didn’t help us.”
More holiday to-dos at SeaWorld, Legoland, Disney Jollywood Nights
And yet, Discovery Cove, the Orlando day resort with the most expensive ticket in the company, is on pace for record attendance and revenue for the year “and looking solid for next year as well,” Swanson said.
“There’s also consumers who are ‘We’re fine,’ right? … So, kind of the mixed bag there,” he said.
Investments in the theme parks will continue, he said.
“One of the key things you need for a strong pass program is to have reasons to visit,” Swanson said. “We have another exciting lineup of new things coming to our parks next year.”
Upcoming projects include SEAQuest: Legends of the Deep, a submersible-themed attraction set to open in 2026 at SeaWorld Orlando, and Lion & Hyena Ridge, a new animal habitat at Busch Gardens Tampa Bay. SeaWorld San Antonio will introduce Barracuda Strike, an inverted family roller coaster, next year.
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