Parques Reunidos acquires South Florida’s premier attraction, Miami Seaquarium®

MADRID (July 2nd, 2014) — Parques Reunidos, a leading global leisure park operator, announced today that it has completed the acquisition of Miami Seaquarium® in South Florida. This acquisition reinforces Parques Reunidos’ presence in the US market, where it owns and operates more than 38 parks through its subsidiary Palace Entertainment.

Miami Seaquarium® is the longest continuously operating oceanarium in the United States. The park has grown steadily over the past half century and today offers eight different marine animal shows and presentations each day and provides a fun-filled mix of exhibits, shows, attractions, food and shopping opportunities. Miami Seaquarium®, located in Virginia Key (Miami-Dade County), attracts more than 650,000 visitors each year and is recognized as South Florida’s most popular ‘gated’ attraction.

This new site completes Parques Reunidos’ portfolio of marine life parks that already includes parks with iconic brands such as Sea Life in Hawaii, Marineland in France, Selwo Marina in Spain and Oceanarium in the UK. It additionally manages the L’Oceanografic, the largest European park of its kind, located in Valencia, Spain.

According to Yann Caillère, CEO of Parques Reunidos, “this acquisition underpins our strategy to grow through acquisition and geographic diversification, as well to invest in our existing parks and continually improve the visitor experience. Marine life installations are one of our core businesses, where we have developed a world class reputation. We are the only true operator that successfully manages all different types of park with an extensive international, global reach”.

Fernando Eiroa, Palace Entertainment’s President and CEO, comments: “Palace Entertainment is excited to be adding such a premier entertainment and educational destination to our collection of family parks. We understand the commitment that Miami Seaquarium has to wildlife conservation, community involvement and their dedication to both educate and entertain guests.”

“Palace Entertainment has an incredible record of theme park success,” said Andrew Hertz, President & General Manager of Miami Seaquarium®. “We are excited to be joining our 58 years of heritage with the Palace Entertainment family of parks. This is a great fit for Palace Entertainment and Miami Seaquarium, and most importantly, a wonderful opportunity for the community to enjoy the park for many years to come.”

About Parques Reunidos

Parques Reunidos is one of the leading and fastest growing leisure park operators in the world. The Group portfolio is made up of 69 operations (theme parks, animal parks, water parks and marine life parks).

The Group has continued its expansion in recent years, both at European and international level, receiving about 26.2 million visitors every year in 12 countries in the Americas and Europe. For more information about Parques Reunidos please visit www.parquesreunidos.com

About Miami Seaquarium®

Miami Seaquarium® is a family-oriented marine-life park open to the public 365 days a year that provides visitors with a greater understanding and appreciation for marine life through shows, presentations and marine-life exhibits. Miami Seaquarium® is an accredited member of the Alliance of Marine Mammal Parks and Aquariums, an international organization committed to the care and conservation of marine mammals. Accreditation by the Alliance means this facility meets or exceeds all the standards of excellence for marine mammal care, husbandry, conservation and education.

Press Contacts:

Hill + Knowlton Strategies
(Press office of Parques Reunidos Group)

Álvaro Pérez / Alberto Vázquez
Tel. (+34) 91 435 11 22

alvaro.perez@hkstrategies.com
alberto.vazquez@hkstrategies.com