Wednesday, July 16, 2008

The Busch Park Debate


That debate, of course, is what is going to happen to the Busch Entertainment theme parks now that the InBev takeover of Anheuser Busch looks certain.

The foreign brewer upped their takeover price to a point where AB's board can't really say no, but everyone is speculating that the new owner will try to sell the theme park division.

With that sentiment pretty solid, the new question is who's going to buy them? Six Flags and Cedar Fair are both in trouble financially, so take them out. After that, everyone from Disney to foreign park operators are being rumored.

Kevin Yee over at MiceAge.com has a great article about these very possibilities that's worth checking out. Personally, I would love to see the theme park division spun off on their own, purchased by an investment group that would allow them to operate as they currently are. This way, these highly regarded parks could stay as they are now, well, maybe sans the beer - and act as a cash cow for whoever buys them.

Whatever will happen, it will probably happen fast - so we might not have to wait long to find out the fate of these parks.


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