Merlin Entertainments has reported pre-tax losses of £214 million in a news release issued on Monday.
The 2023 losses included a £210 million drop in value of new Legoland parks in New York and South Korea.
£36 million was also lost due to refinancing of debt, the company added.
Merlin said that without the two “exceptional” issues, it would have made a pre-tax profit of £32 million in 2023.
That would still represent a £74 million drop on 2022 profits.
The British-headquartered company said that £2.1 billion revenues were however a record figure.
‘Premiumising’
Today’s figures also revealed that global visitor numbers remained about 5 million below pre-COVID-19 levels.
The news release said that capital funds had recently been “refined and optimised” to “premiumise” Merlin’s portfolio.
This is widely consistent with the understood delay to Alton Towers’ indoor rollercoaster, Project Horizon, which was anticipated to open in 2025.
That ride is now widely expected to be delayed to 2026, in favour of cosmetic, thematic and flat-ride additions to Alton Towers next year.
Today’s release said that Merlin’s theme parks saw a 2% growth in revenue during 2023.
That represents an income from non-Legoland theme parks of £453 million.
Merlin today said: “Continued investment in strategic initiatives, combined with wider inflationary pressures, drove an increase in operating costs in the year.”
International growth
Merlin today also announced the purchase of the Wheel at ICON Park in Orlando, returning to its original name of the Orlando Eye.
The company’s chief executive, Scott O’Neil, said that there would be further expansion of “mega-clusters” in the world’s “most important tourist cities”.
Urban attractions, previously known as ‘Midways’, are now referred to as ‘Gateway’ attractions.
RideRater understands that further expansion of Merlin attractions in London is part of the company’s strategic planning.
Merlin claims that almost one-in-four visitors to London comes to one of the company’s attractions.
A gaffe in today’s news release saw the Curse at Alton Manor dark ride referred to as ‘the Curse of Alton Towers’.
Surge pricing, or dynamic pricing, is expected to be rolled out with so-called artificial intelligence at Merlin’s largest 20 attractions by the end of 2024.
This is expected to include all of the company’s UK theme parks, which include Alton Towers, Thorpe Park, Chessington World of Adventures and Legoland Windsor.
“If [an attraction] is in the UK, it’s August peak holiday season, sunny and a Saturday, you would expect to pay more than if it was a rainy Tuesday in March,” O’Neil told the Financial Times.
Prices are already increased based on demand, but the system O’Neil refers to is expected to be automated, similar to those used for flights and hotels.