Screaming Coasters said:
I reckon that once Paramounts is built, Merlin are gonna sell off their theme parks and just keep their midway attractions as they make more money.
The amount of midways Merlin are building now, kinda leads me to believe that they are preparing.
I'd say you're right that Merlin's midway expansion is without a doubt their most sound long term plan, but I don't think any of those singular attractions currently make more money than, I would have thought,
any of their parks. The reason I think that is simply down to attendance. A busy day at one of the London attractions is less than half a busy day at even their least popular parks. Even with their year round opening, I can't see it evening out.
That said - what makes Merlin's midways special is that they dominate the tourist market with their combo ticket offerings. So you end up with a family visiting 3 or more of their attractions in one day. I suspect the cost of running Dungeons is really high, but the others are probably less costly to run than the parks?
So maybe you're right, I dunno. But I don't think Merlin will sell off their parks, because Paramount will be a completely different market. And if they play their cards right, they could set themselves up now to offering what Paramount won't in other ways.
They could start by becoming a real resort in the South by offering park hoppers and a free shuttle bus for hotel guests and park hopper ticket users between their southern attractions. I don't know why they haven't already done this as it's very similar to the Midway expansion in London, or any major city. Perhaps because there's no current park competition?
I think they'd do well do build a stand alone indoor leisure centre/waterpark in Surrey..........