Legoland California had its best money-making year in 2004. While no figures were reported for the privately held company, John Jakobsen, the park’s president and general manager, said revenue was up more than 11 percent compared with 2003. Last year’s results were the highest in the park’s six-year history.
He also announced that attendance of 1.42 million was up nearly 10 percent from 2003.
According to Tennessee-based
Amusement Business Magazine,
the average rate of attendance growth within the industry during 2004 was 4 percent.
The Billund, Denmark-based toy maker, which owns the 128-acre Carlsbad amusement park, invested $5 million , the largest amount spent since the park opened , to add new exhibits and attractions in 2004.
Plans are to spend an estimated $6 million this year to add a new ride, Knight’s Tournament, and a miniature golf course and renovate Miniland New York to include a Lego replica of the Freedom Tower, a monument planned to be erected as a memorial to the World Trade Center, which was devastated in the terrorist attacks of Sept. 11, 2001.
Late last year, Lego announced that Legoland California and its other three amusement parks in Billund, London and Gunzburg, Germany, are for sale. The reason given was to raise cash to pump up the flagging toy enterprise.
Connie Lewis
