Gus Antorcha took over at SeaWorld in February 2019
It’s been almost plain sailing for Seaworld’s new head honcho. The former Carnival Cruise Lines COO, Gus Antorcha has helped the company climb out of murky waters, with what once looked like a sinking ship now starting to turn around several years of financial decline.
Appointed in February 2019, Antorcha has been SeaWorld CEO for just over half-a-year. While he admits there’s still “plenty of work to do” on a number of fronts, he’s confident in the direction the company is heading: “We’ve got an exceptional business model and we’re focused on improving our execution with enhanced marketing and communications initiatives, more effective pricing strategies and the introduction of new compelling rides, attractions and events in every one of our parks every year.”
A key investment area for SeaWorld is Orlando. Major developments in the area include Universal’s Epic Worlds (see p44) and Disney’s new Star Wars lands, both of which are expected to boost visitor numbers to the area significantly in the coming years. Antorcha believes these developments will be of great benefit to SeaWorld, with its offering helping the operator to stand out in a busy market.
“I’m encouraged by investment in Orlando and I think it will drive visitation into the market.” he says. “The amount of capital investment – including what we’re building and what the others are building in Orlando – is going to make the city an even bigger destination for tourism and vacations than it is today.
“We’re a unique value proposition. We have our rollercoasters, our lands such as Sesame Street and our animals. Together, we provide a very compelling differentiated experience for families to come in and spend part of their vacation with us.”
SeaWorld recently reported strong growth in visitor numbers and operating income, reversing a multi-year decline stemming from controversy over captive cetaceans in its parks.
Visitor numbers for the first six months of 2019 were 9.8 million visitors – a 1.7 per cent rise year on year. Company earnings were US$166.1m – a 34 per cent increase over the previous year. The company has set a target of delivering US$475m to US$500m of annual adjusted earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation by the end next year.
“We’ll continue to push on the cost lever and it’s very much becoming a way we think about an approach to business,” says Antorcha. “I came from one of the lowest cost operators in the cruise industry. Working with the team here, we’re going to continue to find ways to become more efficient without impacting the guest experience. I’ll be working closely with our in-house teams to make sure that we continue that focus and continue to drive cost out of our business.”
“Sometimes you push a little bit and you make mistake and you pull it back. A lot of what this company has been doing and what I’ve focused on is testing and learning as we go.”
Read more from this issue of Attractions Management magazine
View contents of Attractions Management 2019 issue 3
People profile: Tom Hennes
Tom Hennes discusses how he has transformed the Empire State Building's visitor experience
People profile: Dimitrios Pandermalis
The Acropolis Museum has just celebrated its 10-year anniversary. Its president, Dimitrios Pandermalis, talks about his plans to take the museum forward in the next decade and beyond
People profile: Gus Antorcha
SeaWorld's new CEO Gus Antorcha on the company's new direction as it starts to recover following several years of turmoil
Museums: A museum in motion
The Australian Centre for the Moving Image
is undergoing a AUS$40m renewal. CEO
Katrina Sedgwick talks about the plans
Tourism: The dark side
With locations like Chernobyl increasing
in popularity, Kath Hudson looks at the
dark side of the global tourism sector
Promotional feature: Whitewater
WhiteWater thinks outside the box to create memorable,
immersive experiences that go beyond the thrill
Rides: Monsters, myths and motorbikes
We take a look at some of the biggest ride
openings for visitor attractions worldwide,
including Universal’s new Hagrid coaster
Promotional feature: OurPeople
Home to the world-revered peppa pig world and welcoming more than one
million visitors every year, paultons park was voted Tripadvisor’s number
one UK amusement park for the fourth year running in 2019
An opportunity to reimagine one of the UK’s most recognisable towers has been formally
opened by Rivington Hark, as St Johns Beacon invites operators and partners to shape its
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Gus Antorcha took over at SeaWorld in February 2019
It’s been almost plain sailing for Seaworld’s new head honcho. The former Carnival Cruise Lines COO, Gus Antorcha has helped the company climb out of murky waters, with what once looked like a sinking ship now starting to turn around several years of financial decline.
Appointed in February 2019, Antorcha has been SeaWorld CEO for just over half-a-year. While he admits there’s still “plenty of work to do” on a number of fronts, he’s confident in the direction the company is heading: “We’ve got an exceptional business model and we’re focused on improving our execution with enhanced marketing and communications initiatives, more effective pricing strategies and the introduction of new compelling rides, attractions and events in every one of our parks every year.”
A key investment area for SeaWorld is Orlando. Major developments in the area include Universal’s Epic Worlds (see p44) and Disney’s new Star Wars lands, both of which are expected to boost visitor numbers to the area significantly in the coming years. Antorcha believes these developments will be of great benefit to SeaWorld, with its offering helping the operator to stand out in a busy market.
“I’m encouraged by investment in Orlando and I think it will drive visitation into the market.” he says. “The amount of capital investment – including what we’re building and what the others are building in Orlando – is going to make the city an even bigger destination for tourism and vacations than it is today.
“We’re a unique value proposition. We have our rollercoasters, our lands such as Sesame Street and our animals. Together, we provide a very compelling differentiated experience for families to come in and spend part of their vacation with us.”
SeaWorld recently reported strong growth in visitor numbers and operating income, reversing a multi-year decline stemming from controversy over captive cetaceans in its parks.
Visitor numbers for the first six months of 2019 were 9.8 million visitors – a 1.7 per cent rise year on year. Company earnings were US$166.1m – a 34 per cent increase over the previous year. The company has set a target of delivering US$475m to US$500m of annual adjusted earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation by the end next year.
“We’ll continue to push on the cost lever and it’s very much becoming a way we think about an approach to business,” says Antorcha. “I came from one of the lowest cost operators in the cruise industry. Working with the team here, we’re going to continue to find ways to become more efficient without impacting the guest experience. I’ll be working closely with our in-house teams to make sure that we continue that focus and continue to drive cost out of our business.”
“Sometimes you push a little bit and you make mistake and you pull it back. A lot of what this company has been doing and what I’ve focused on is testing and learning as we go.”
Read more from this issue of Attractions Management magazine
View contents of Attractions Management 2019 issue 3
People profile: Tom Hennes
Tom Hennes discusses how he has transformed the Empire State Building's visitor experience
People profile: Dimitrios Pandermalis
The Acropolis Museum has just celebrated its 10-year anniversary. Its president, Dimitrios Pandermalis, talks about his plans to take the museum forward in the next decade and beyond
People profile: Gus Antorcha
SeaWorld's new CEO Gus Antorcha on the company's new direction as it starts to recover following several years of turmoil
Museums: A museum in motion
The Australian Centre for the Moving Image
is undergoing a AUS$40m renewal. CEO
Katrina Sedgwick talks about the plans
Tourism: The dark side
With locations like Chernobyl increasing
in popularity, Kath Hudson looks at the
dark side of the global tourism sector
Promotional feature: Whitewater
WhiteWater thinks outside the box to create memorable,
immersive experiences that go beyond the thrill
Rides: Monsters, myths and motorbikes
We take a look at some of the biggest ride
openings for visitor attractions worldwide,
including Universal’s new Hagrid coaster
Promotional feature: OurPeople
Home to the world-revered peppa pig world and welcoming more than one
million visitors every year, paultons park was voted Tripadvisor’s number
one UK amusement park for the fourth year running in 2019
The Toverland theme park in the Netherlands has announced a €98m expansion programme
that will add a resort, new attractions and staff facilities as it pursues plans to become a multi-
day destination.
Hotel de France, located on the British Isle of Jersey, has created a wellness retreat package
that includes a hot yoga session that will take place in Jersey Zoo’s butterfly sanctuary.
A new immersive attraction designed to transport visitors into the final hours of ancient Pompeii
is preparing to open near the world-famous archaeological site in southern Italy.
Experience design company, BRC Imagination Arts, has completed a transition that sees founder
Bob Rogers pass ownership of the business to four long-serving senior executives, while
remaining actively involved with the company.
Movie Park Germany has opened a new Paramount Pictures-themed attraction as part of its 30th
anniversary celebrations, using immersive storytelling and adaptive reuse to reinforce the park’s
longstanding “Hollywood in Germany” positioning.
Therme Manchester’s 28-acre development, which will include interconnected glass pavilions
that measure 65,000sq m, will be the largest bathing and wellbeing attraction in the world once
complete, according to prof David Russell, CEO of Therme UK.
Efteling has opened Hooghmoed, a new family drop tower designed to broaden the appeal of its
recently launched Sirene Island themed area and introduce younger visitors to thrill attractions.
A proposed Puy du Fou development near Bicester and Universal Destinations and Experiences’
planned resort in Bedford are emerging as part of a wider transformation of the Oxford–
Cambridge Growth Corridor into a major centre for UK leisure and tourism inv
Shedd Aquarium has opened the Immersion Theater developed in partnership with SimEx-
Iwerks, as part of a wider strategy to enhance the guest experience and create additional
revenue opportunities.
The UK government has announced a temporary reduction in VAT on visitor attractions and
children’s meals as part of a summer cost-of-living support package designed to stimulate the
visitor economy and encourage family days out.
As designer Yinka Ilori prepares for his first solo gallery show in London, he speaks exclusively
to CLADmag about his mission to spread joy, the power of play, and his bold approach to using
colour (including the colours you won’t see in his work).
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