The Annual TEA Global Experience Index™ Tracks a Changing Global Attractions Landscape, With Water Parks and Museums Outpacing Theme Parks in 2025
Theme park attendance remained essentially flat, while water parks and museums grew, reflecting regional shifts and an expanding experience economy
Burbank, Calif. (27 October 2026) - The 2025 TEA Global Experience Index™ documents a global attractions landscape that features mixed results, with attendance at the world’s leading theme parks remaining essentially flat while water parks and museums recorded stronger growth. The top 25 theme parks welcomed a combined 245.4 million visits, compared with 245.9 million for the same parks in 2024, a decrease of 0.2%. Beneath that overall stability, regional results varied: Europe’s four parks in the top 25 added more than 1.1 million visits, while extreme summer weather contributed to declines at leading parks in South Korea. The opening of Universal Epic Universe boosted overall attendance for Universal Orlando Resort and helped generate an overall 4.3% increase in combined attendance for Central Florida’s leading theme parks.
Water parks recorded stronger results. The global top 20 welcomed 36.3 million visits in 2025, up 3.0% from 35.2 million for the same parks in 2024. Siam Park in Spain grew 26.0% to 1.6 million visits, while two Brazilian parks, Hot Beach and Beach Park, also posted double-digit gains, extending Latin America’s strong showing in the rankings.
Museums also posted strong growth. The top 20 museums globally welcomed 161.4 million visits in 2025, up 5.4% from 153.2 million for the same institutions in 2024. The rankings reflect an expanded definition that includes historic palaces and sites with curated collections, such as the Summer Palace and the Palace of Versailles. Sixteen of the top 20 institutions grew, led by Beijing’s Palace Museum, which reached 19.0 million visits. The Musée du Louvre remained the most visited museum outside China, with 9.0 million visits, while the Metropolitan Museum of Art was the only North American museum in the top 20.
“Now in its 20th annual edition, the Index is a leading resource for attendance information on the world’s most-visited theme parks, water parks and museums,” said Matt Barton, CEO, CurtainUp Ltd. and International Board President, TEA. “This year’s analysis points to an experience economy that increasingly connects anchor attractions with hotels, dining, retail, special events, immersive entertainment and cruise experiences. These broader destination strategies are creating new opportunities in emerging markets while helping established operators refresh mature destinations.”
Details of these trends and more can be found in the 2025 TEA Global Experience Index™, presented in partnership with Storyland Studios. Now in its 20th annual edition, the Index is a leading resource for attendance information on the world’s most-visited theme parks, water parks and museums. The study is produced by the Themed Entertainment Association (TEA) with research partners Entertainment + Culture Advisors (ECA) and The Park Database (TPDB), with Storyland Studios as presenting partner, Moongate Design Studio as design partner, and InPark Magazine as editorial partner.
“The Global Experience Index continues to offer an important view of how audiences engage with attractions and cultural destinations around the world,” said Melissa Ruminot, CEO, TEA. “This year’s findings show both the resilience of established markets and the growing importance of destinations that bring together a range of experiences. TEA is grateful to ECA, TPDB, Storyland Studios, Moongate Design Studio and InPark Magazine for their collaboration on this resource.”
The 2025 TEA Global Experience Index examines the sector by region – the Americas, Asia-Pacific (APAC), Europe, Middle East & Africa (EMEA) – as well as the global market as a whole. The 2025 edition also includes a special section on the cruise industry.
TEA has produced and published the report as a free resource since 2006. The TEA website is the official source to view and download the latest full version of the 2025 TEA Global Experience Index, as well as past reports, free of charge. To download this year’s reports visit here.
ABOUT TEA
The Themed Entertainment Association (TEA) brings together the creators and makers of experiences worldwide – from the creative storytellers to the technical builders, from operators to investors, from idea to operation - and provides them with tools, education, advocacy, community, and connection to help grow their businesses and careers. The international non-profit association’s members focus on creating for and serving the leisure and travel sectors. Their work can be seen in entertaining and educational projects found in theme parks, water parks, museums, zoos, corporate visitor centers, casinos, restaurants, branded experiences, multimedia spectaculars, retail spaces, resorts and hospitality, destination attractions and more. TEA encompasses a dynamic community of more than 1,600 member companies in over 40 countries.
teaconnect.org
ABOUT ECA
Entertainment + Culture Advisors (ECA) is a leading international advisory firm focused on attraction strategy, market analysis, business planning and feasibility for entertainment attractions and destination development projects. ECA works with the global industry’s leading investors, institutions, developers, designers, licensors and operators to support core business planning across multiple stages of a project’s development, from program definition and global benchmarking to market prioritization and site-specific feasibility. Since 2010, ECA has worked in more than 30 countries on projects ranging from theme park destinations to indoor branded attractions, cultural attractions, immersive experiences, and live event venues. With offices in Los Angeles and Hong Kong, ECA has a highly experienced team focused on providing tailored, strategic advice for the global entertainment development industry.
entertainmentandculture.com
ABOUT THE PARK DATABASE
The Park Database is the attractions industry’s knowledge engine, offering a world-renowned public database, widely disseminated white papers and research publications, and data products.
theparkdb.com
ABOUT STORYLAND STUDIOS
Storyland Studios is a full-service strategy and design firm on a mission to imagine, design, and create immersive experiences and environments that lift the spirit. With offices in California, Atlanta, Orlando, and London, its team of professionals has significant experience designing projects such as theme parks, museums, resorts, and more, around the world. Storyland helps clients arrive at a story-driven big idea and then shape it into narratives that resonate with guests and users across the globe. The firm’s collaborative process launches a journey through strategic storytelling to master planning and production design while aligning creative efforts with client business goals and providing memorable guest experiences.
storylandstudios.com
ABOUT MOONGATE DESIGN STUDIO
Moongate is an experience design, production and marketing company working with entertainment companies, IP holders, theme parks, hospitality groups and real estate developers. Founded in 2022, the company works across the US, Japan and Korea, with a focus on developing destinations and experiences throughout the Asia Pacific region. Its services span strategy, concept development, production management and marketing, connecting creative direction with project delivery and audience ngagement. In Korea, Moongate owns and operates Moon Art Grounds, named one of Korea’s top five private museums. This direct experience informs the company’s approach to guest experience, programming and marketing. From initial planning through launch and beyond, Moongate helps clients translate brands and stories into physical environments that engage audiences and support long term business goals.
moongate-design.com
ABOUT INPARK MAGAZINE
InPark Magazine was founded in 2004 by Martin Palicki as a professional trade publication covering the themed entertainment industry, with a particular focus on theme parks, waterparks, museums and world’s fairs. The magazine is known for in-depth articles that highlight many of the components that go into creating the world’s best themed entertainment projects, including AV technology, storytelling, branding/IP, creative design and more. InPark publishes print and digital issues along with a website constantly updated with the latest news and stories. Subscribe for free online. inparkmagazine.com