Six Flags theme parks have had a turbulent summer season this year.
Usually at this point in the summer, Six Flags theme parks, including Six Flags Great Adventure in Jackson, N.J., reach their peak volume.
However, one recent visitor to Six Flags Great Adventure posted to TikTok on Tuesday that the park was virtually empty.
“I believe only Primos was open in the area of the video,” parkgoer Cisco Mendez told NJ Advance Media. “On the ‘Boardwalk’ area, only Rita’s was open.”
Here’s why Six Flags has seen declining attendance at Great Adventure in New Jersey and at Six Flags theme parks nationwide.
Why do Six Flags theme parks seem empty?
When Kingda Ka closed and was demolished earlier this year at Great Adventure, the New Jersey-theme park lost one of its biggest attractions.
Six Flags’ corporate also announced the closing of two of its theme parks — one in Bowie, Md. and the other in Santa Clara, Calif.
But the reason for closing theme parks and attractions isn’t just the seasonal difficulties of bad weather and excessive heat, according to Six Flags.
New rides have been delayed, Six Flags has been seeing an increase from its competition, people say the quality of the parks is in decline, and people are rethinking where to spend their money when it comes to entertainment, according to The Wall Street Journal.
The company’s financial health does not show a rosy picture for Six Flags either.
Park attendance was down 9% from the previous year, and it showed in the company’s financial results.
“Our financial results through the first six months of the year reflect a significant decline in attendance,” Six Flags CEO Richard Zimmerman told analysts in an August earnings call. “Our job is to manage through short-term disruptions and focus on the things we can control.”
To add fuel to the fire, the company announced Zimmerman would step down as CEO by the end of the year and a $100 million net loss.
To make matters worse, Six Flags is now embroiled in legal trouble.
The company is in the middle of a fraud investigation brought on by Six Flags investors.
The law firm representing the investors claims that it is investigating whether Six Flags issued false statements or failed to disclose information that would be important to shareholders.
The current iteration of Six Flags has also had to weather a $2 billion Six Flags-Cedar Fair merger that closed last July.
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