RICHMOND, Va. — The home of Mickey Mouse, Cinderella and “Frozen’s” Elsa and Anna, it’s the happiest place on Earth. And it’s the most popular. The Magic Kingdom at Walt Disney World in Florida welcomed more than 19 million visitors in 2014, an increase of 4 percent over 2013, according to a report released Wednesday.
Amusement park attendance is on the rise around the world.
There were 223 million visits to the top 25 theme and amusement parks worldwide, up 4.1 percent from 2013, according to the Themed Entertainment Association and AECOM global attractions attendance report. The index ranks the 25 most-visited amusement and theme parks around the world, based on attendance figures compiled by AECOM.
Disney dominated the list.
Disney parks in the United States, Europe and Asia made up nine of the top 10 parks and held 11 of the top 25 spots. Universal Studios’ theme parks came in second place, with one park in the top 10 list and four in the top 25 list. SeaWorld held one spot in the top 25.
Busch Gardens Williamsburg was listed as the 20th most visited U.S. theme park. Nearly 2.7 million people visited the park in 2014, slightly fewer than in 2013 according to the report.
Visits to North American and Asian parks keep increasing, and not just at the top 25 parks: There were 135 million visits to the top 20 North American theme/amusement parks last year, up 2.7 percent from 2012. There were 117 million visits to the top 20 Asian theme/amusement parks last year, up 7.5 percent from 2012.
Water Country USA was listed as the country’s 6th most visited water park. More than 700,000 people visited the Williamsburg water park. Water Country USA’s attendance was flat when compared to 2013’s numbers, according to the report.
