A Peek At Sea World Parks & Entertainment's Future

The Orlando Sentinel has an interesting article that takes a look at Sea World Parks and Entertainment's first year under the Blackstone Group - and they're calling it pretty forgettable.  Attendance, sales, and worse of all, public opinion was down in 2010 significantly.

Sunny days are here again though, as the Sea World Parks will spend almost $200 million next year on new attractions, which is really a pretty astronomical number these days.  That will result in eight of the group's ten parks receiving a significant attraction next year.

New killer whale shows will open at the Sea World Parks among other attractions, Busch Gardens Tampa will spend almost $40 million on the Cheetah Hunt project, and Busch Gardens Williamsburgs' two year expansion seems to be included as well.  Sesame Place will debut an all new parade, Discovery Cove recently announced a large expansion, and Water Country USA is adding some slides, too.  The money spent on the parks in 2011 will be four to five times the amount that InBev allowed during their year of ownership.

The future could still see the addition of a foreign park to the company's portfolio as well.  They've got their eyes on possible locations in China and Southeast Asia.