After 47 years of family ownership, Adventureland in Altoona, Iowa is becoming the latest U.S. park in the portfolio of Spain-based Parques Reunidos.
The park will join Kennywood and Dutch Wonderland under the umbrella of Palace Entertainment, a subsidiary of Parques Reunidos.
“We look forward to our Palace Entertainment team combining their operational excellence with Adventureland’s family-run legacy of entertainment,” Pascal Ferracci, CEO of Parques Reunidos, said in a press release. “Parques Reunidos has a unique track record of acquiring and successfully integrating parks, with over 20 transactions completed across 11 countries since 2004. This will continue to be a growth lever for the group, keeping local brands and historical positioning of acquired parks while benefiting from state-of-the-art tools and capabilities to further develop the business.”
The press release announcing the transaction did not divulge any financial details, but did state that Adventureland will receive eight additional family rides in 2022 and then two more attractions in 2023.
The sale also brings benefits to guests at other Palace Entertainment parks. Platinum-level passholders at its existing U.S. parks will be able to visit Adventureland without any additional charge in 2022, and Adventureland passholders will get the same benefit at other Palace parks.
What won’t change is the name of the park or its hotel, the Adventureland Inn. The resort was founded in 1974 by Jack Krantz, with ownership passing on to his children after his death in 2006.
“For almost 50 years, our family has worked hard to bring good times to people of all ages who come to the park to create lifelong memories,” outgoing CEO Michael Krantz said in a statement. “Palace wants to carry these traditions forward so future generations can do the same. That would make our father incredibly happy.”
The sale comes when Adventureland is soon to get a new competitor in the state. Lost Island Theme Park is opening in summer 2022 two hours away in Waterloo, Iowa, featuring at least one coaster and a trackless, interactive dark ride called Volkanu — Quest for the Golden Idol.
It’s also the second independent U.S. park to be sold in the past year, following Kentucky Kingdom’s acquisition by Dollywood and Silver Dollar City owner Herschend Family Entertainment.