Holiday World Ends Record Season With Attendance Up 8%

Santa Claus, IN -- Holiday World completed its 56th season Sunday with its highest seasonal attendance ever.

"I'm thrilled to report that we bucked a national trend and showed an attendance gain of more than eight percent for 2001," says Holiday World & Splashin' Safari president Will Koch.

With a final count of 627,448 this is the first year Holiday World & Splashin' Safari have ended the season with attendance figures topping the 600,000 mark. Koch credits the popularity of The Legend roller coaster, which debuted in 2000, in part for the attendance surge.

"A lot of the credit goes to the incredible service and hospitality provided day-in and day-out by our outstanding Hosts and Hostesses," he says. "It really doesn't matter how great your rides are if the employees are rude and the bathrooms are filthy. We are very grateful to our hard-working staff."

In July, Holiday World & Splashin' Safari were awarded three coveted "Golden Ticket Awards" from Amusement Today magazine. The publication's readers, who are well-traveled park enthusiasts from around the world, voted the southern Indiana parks the world's #1 Friendliest and #1 Cleanest again this year. In the roller coaster category, Holiday World's The Raven was again voted the world's #1 Wooden Coaster and The Legend rose to the #5 Wooden Coaster. In addition, Splashin' Safari was voted the World's #3 Water Park.

Koch says the growth pattern should continue next year with the addition of ZOOMbabwe, the world's largest water slide. The $1.7 million project, announced this week, is expected to increase attendance by another 10 percent and create an additional 50 seasonal jobs.

Holiday World, the world's first theme park, will open its 57th season on May 4, 2002. For more information about the parks and discounts for 2002 Season Passes, visit the parks' website at www.holidayworld.com.

Related Stories
Holiday World to Build World's Largest Enclosed Waterslide October 5, 2001