The Themed Entertainment Association has released its 2021 Index, which evaluates attendance at themed attractions around the world. Some may be surprised to see that the latest report shows that Universal Studios Florida & Universal’s Islands of Adventure may have surpassed three Walt Disney World theme parks in annual attendance for 2021.
While the TEA Index is widely used within the industry, it’s important to note that neither Disney Parks nor Universal Parks & Resorts release attendance numbers to any outside party, so these numbers are based on estimations and other methodologies.
As you look at the chart, you’ll also see a large growth percentage for all parks from 2020 to 2021. That is due to the fact that most theme parks were closed for part or all of 2020, and this resulted in a larger-than-average year-over-year increase. Also, numbers are still much lower than they were pre-pandemic in 2019 for many parks.
In first place, with an estimated total attendance of 12,691,000 people, Magic Kingdom Park at Walt Disney World Resort was the most visited theme park in the world.
Universal’s Islands of Adventure holds the second spot for the most visited theme park in the world, surpassing every other Disney park. An estimated 9,077,000 visitors visited Islands of Adventure last year. With recent passholder benefits and without a park reservation system, the increase in guests may be due to convenience. When many guests were unable to get into a Disney park, they might have hopped over to Universal for the day.
The chart then shows that Universal Orlando Park’s Universal Studios came in third, Disney’s Hollywood Studios Orlando came in fourth, Disneyland Park came in fifth, EPCOT came in sixth, and Animal Kingdom came in seventh.
Surprised that Universal Parks attendance is bypassing most Disney Park’s estimated attendance?