Six Flags corporate-mandated closures continue!
Just weeks after confirming that two of their most iconic roller coasters – – Superman: Escape from Krypton at Magic Mountain and Kingda Ka at Great Adventure – – are closing for good, Six Flags has gone a step further and announced the closure of TWO of their parks.
Earlier this month, Six Flags announced that both Flags America and Hurricane Harbor in Bowie, Maryland, will be closing after the 2025 operating season ends, with the parks’ final day being November 2nd. The 500-acre property will be marketed for redevelopment as part of Six Flags’ ongoing “portfolio optimization program”, meaning the land will be sold. The parks employ approximately 70 full-time associates, and all those eligible will receive severance and other benefits.
At the time of the announcement, Six Flags President & CEO Richard A. Zimmerman said of the closures, “As part of our comprehensive review of our park portfolio, we have determined that Six Flags America and Hurricane Harbor are not a strategic fit with the company’s long-term growth plan. After reviewing a number of options, we believe that marketing the property for redevelopment will generate the highest value and return on investment. We anticipate strong interest in the property and will continue to strategically pursue portfolio optimization opportunities as we work to unlock the full value of our portfolio.”
Zimmerman continued, “This was a difficult decision, and we recognize the impact it will have on our Six Flags America and Hurricane Harbor park associates and guests. We are grateful to our park associates who work hard to create lifelong memories for our guests, and Six Flags is committed to supporting all impacted associates through the closure process at the end of this year. Six Flags America and Hurricane Harbor have been an important part of the local community, and this final season will be an opportunity to celebrate the decades of fun that guests have enjoyed at the property.”
As part of Six Flags’ massive ongoing corporate reorganization, the company has announced the closure of two more parks, both based in Maryland. Stay tuned to AllEars for more on Six Flags ongoing changes.
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How do you feel about these Six Flags closures? Let us know in the comments below.
Six Flags America is my home park, though I didn’t go there as much as other parks in the surrounding area, but after the merger, I was legitimately excited about having access to the Six Flags parks with my Cedar Fair season pass and I was looking forward to being able to visit a few times a year. Then, it suddenly gets torn away. I do appreciate them giving us some notice, unlike what they did with the several coasters they recently removed, but this is still a big blow.
The park doesn’t have a great reputation, but they have taken steps in recent years to improve that, and I was just there this past weekend, so I can vouch for the fact that the changes have been working. Add to that the new trains that were just added to Ride of Steel, the retheming of their Western area to Steam Town just last year (including the addition of a brand new NebulaZ ride and new trains on the coaster in that area with more comfortable restraints) and the removal is a major shock.
I’m not really a water park person, but it’s also worth mentioning that Hurricane Harbor gor a major new ride last year, as well.
There are two coasters that I’m crushed that we’re going to lose. Batwing is the last remaining Vekoma Flying Dutchman flying coaster of the three that existed and Wild One is the third-oldest coaster in the country, originally opening in 1917. That one, they CAN’T destroy. They have to find some way to relocate it (fingers crossed).
So, all that to say that I regret not having visited more, but I’m going to make up for lost time this season and I’ll miss it when it’s gone.
The Maryland location is very urban, with lots of teen problems. I was there for Halloween one year, with little kids, and the staff told us that we were OK during the day, but that we should be sure to be out of the park befre dark.
I think everyone should prepare for more closures. Six Flags/Cedar Fair currently operate 42 amusement parks after the merger of the two companies. That’s likely too many to comfortably operate and maintain for one company.
As cities have expanded, many of these parks that were originally built on the outskirts of the city now our found on prime real estate. The land these multi-million dollar parks lie on is worth a lot more than the buildings and attractions on that land, and it is more profitable for Six Flags/Cedar Fair to sell the parks to a developer for other reasons that as an amusement park.
If I had to pick the next closures, I would be worried to lose the parks in New York and New England just for the worth of the land alone. Six Flags St. Louis would be another one after the Cedar Fair merger since the company also runs World of Fun in Kansas City, just 3 1/2 hour away from the St. Louis park (a park that hasn’t seen a major new ride in nearly 20 years).