Cedar Fair Entertainment of Ohio agrees to buy Schlitterbahn water parks in New Braunfels and Galveston Texas
Cedar Fair Entertainment Co. has signed a definitive agreement to acquire Schlitterbahn Waterpark and Resort New Braunfels and Schlitterbahn Waterpark Galveston.
The Sandusky, Ohio-based company will pay $261 million for the two parks. It has also secured the right to acquire Schlitterbahn’s Kansas City, Kansas, waterpark for an additional $6 million.
“These properties represent new markets for us with attractive demographics, … and they align with our strategy to identify compelling opportunities to accelerate our growth and profitability,” Cedar Fair President and CEO Richard Zimmerman said. Zimmerman said he expects a smooth integration of the Texas parks into Cedar Fair’s portfolio.
Last year, Diamond Beach Holdings took over operation of Schlitterbahn’s Corpus Christi resort after it was sold through bankruptcy court to International Bank of Commerce for $20 million. Diamond Beach has since moved to re-brand and renovate the 100-acre development.
- The initial phase of that makeover, a more than $8 million investment so far, includes a new name — Waves Resort Corpus Christi. It also features several improvements to the resort’s 92-room hotel and the surrounding area, as well as more dining and entertainment facilities, including a new gaming lounge and eSports training center.
- And Schlitterbahn, which is now managing the water park portion of the resort for Diamond Beach, may borrow some of those ideas for its own properties. “It’s important for Schlitterbahn to be part of this kind of innovation. We are learning from this process,” Schlitterbahn Waterparks & Resorts’ Winter Prosapio said.
- One thing that has caught Schlitterbahn’s attention is the heightened level of interest in the coastal resort among groups. The company would like to attract more of that business.
Schlitterbahn’s company leaders were taking note of the changes in Corpus, including the pursuit of more group business, and working to find more ways to draw a wider audience to its other parks over a longer period of time.