Six Flags

Six Flags

Founded	1960
Headquarters	Charlotte, North Carolina, USA
Official website	http://sixflags.com
CEO	Richard Zimmerman
Amusement parks	26
Water parks	33

Six Flags Entertainment Corp. is a company which owns and manages amusement parks. The company was founded in 1960, and currently maintains 26 theme parks located throughout North America, including two in Canada and one in Mexico. They also maintain water parks and wild life parks.

History

The company was founded in Texas by Angus G. Wynne and took its name from its first property, Six Flags Over Texas, in Arlington, Texas, USA. The company and its headquarters are in Charlotte, North Carolina, USA.

After the success of Six Flags Over Texas, two more parks were built. These two parks were Six Flags Over Georgia, and Six Flags Over Mid-America (now Six Flags St. Louis).

On June 13, 2009, the corporation filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection and successfully exited the restructuring 11 months later on May 3, 2010. As a cost saving measure, many licensing agreements were terminated which led to the removal of branding from various attractions in 2011. The company retained its rights to use DC Comics, Looney Tunes, and Hanna-Barbera material.

It merged with Cedar Fair on July 1, 2024, with the resulting company retaining the Six Flags branding.

Premier Parks

Premier Parks, Inc., formerly Tierco Group, Inc. was an Oklahoma City-based company founded as a real estate business in 1971. The company entered the amusement park business in 1982 when they purchased Frontier City; intending to redevelop the site. However, an economic downturn resulted in these plans being cancelled and the company instead hired a new manager in 1984 and invested in updating the park.

The company struggled in the late 1980s and had to sell off much of its properties to emerge from bankruptcy. In December 1990, Tierco entered the water park market when they announced that they would purchase the nearby White Water from Silver Dollar City, Inc. for an undisclosed amount. In 1992, the company purchased its second theme park offering - Wild World in Maryland. The company later rebranded the park as Adventure World and improved its park offerings.

In 1995, Premier Parks began a purchasing spree of purchasing amusement parks and water parks, which continued after the rebranding as Six Flags.

• August 15, 1995 - Purchased Funtime Parks's portfolio for $60 million, consisting of theme parks Darien Lake and Geauga Lake, and water park Wyandot Lake.
• August 27, 1996 - Purchased The Great Escape & Splashwater Kingdom, with the deal closing in December.
• September 25, 1996 - Purchased Elitch Gardens.
• October 25, 1996 - Purchased FRE Inc.'s park slate, consisting of the operations of the Waterworld USA Sacramento and Paradise Island Family Park, and the ownership of Waterworld USA Concord.
• December 7, 1996 - Purchased Riverside Park from its original owners, the Carroll family.
• April 1, 1997 - Purchased the operations of Marine World Africa USA with a deal to potentionally buy the park.
• September 26, 1997 - Purchased the operations lease of Kentucky Kingdom from Paul Hart, closing on November 7.
• October 11, 1997 - Took a management partner stake for Six Flags Over Texas majority owners Texas Flags Ltd.
• October 24, 1997 - Purchased the site of the former Old Indiana Fun-n-Water Park, with intentions to repurpose it.
• December 17, 1997 - Purchased a 94 percent interest in the Walibi Group, a European theme park company with six properties across France, Belgium and the Netherlands, with the deal closing in March 1998.
• February 10, 1998 - Purchased Six Flags Theme Parks, Inc. from Time Warner Entertainment and for $1.86 billion, closing on April 1.
• May 4, 1999 - Purchased Reino Aventura for $59 million.
• May 5, 1999 Purchased White Water Atlanta and American Adventures from Silver Dollar City, Inc.
• May 17, 1999 - Purchased the SplashTown USA water park.
• October 6, 1999 - Purchased the Warner Bros. European Parks division from Time Warner, consisting of Warner Bros. Movie World Germany and a contract to operate the then-upcoming Warner Bros. Movie World Madrid. The deal also included the usage of Warner Bros. IP in parks across Europe, Latin and South America and the rights to construct additional Warner Bros. Movie World amusement parks.
• December 8, 2000 - Purchased Wild Waves & Enchanted Village from Jeff Stock for $19.3 million.
• December 14, 2000 - Purchased La Ronde from the City of Montreal.
• January 10, 2001 - Purchased SeaWorld Ohio from Anheuser-Busch for $110 Million, merging the park with Six Flags Ohio (ex Geauga Lake) to form Six Flags Worlds of Adventure.
• August 9, 2002 - Purchased the operations lease to Jazzland for $22 million.

Name

• 
  Spain
• 
  France
• 
  Mexico
• 
  Republic of Texas
• 
  Confederate States of America
• 
  United States of America

The name refers to the six flags that have flown over the state of Texas during its history: Spain, France, Mexico, the Republic of Texas, the Confederate States of America, and the United States of America.

Amusement parks

Current (26)

Park	Location	Opened	Acquired	Additional Info
California's Great America	Santa Clara, California, USA	1976	2024	Acquired within the Cedar Fair merger.
Canada's Wonderland	Vaughan, Ontario, Canada	1981	2024	Acquired within the Cedar Fair merger.
Carowinds	Charlotte, North Carolina, USA	1973	2024	Acquired within the Cedar Fair merger.
Cedar Point	Sandusky, Ohio, USA	1870	2024	Acquired within the Cedar Fair merger.
Dorney Park	Allentown, Pennsylvania, USA	1884	2024	Acquired within the Cedar Fair merger.
Frontier City	Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, USA	1958	1982 2018	Owned by EPR Properties. Originally acquired by the Tierco Group (later Premier Parks), sold in 2007 and re-acquired its operations lease in 2018.
Kings Dominion	Allentown, Pennsylvania, USA	1975	2024	Acquired within the Cedar Fair merger.
Kings Island	Mason, Ohio, USA	1972	2024	Acquired within the Cedar Fair merger.
Knott's Berry Farm	Buena Park, California, USA	1920	2024	Acquired within the Cedar Fair merger.
La Ronde	Montreal, Quebec, Canada	1920	2001	Owned and operated under a lease from the City of Montreal.
Michigan's Adventure	Muskegon, Michigan, USA	1956	2024	Acquired within the Cedar Fair merger.
Six Flags America	Largo, Maryland, USA	1974	1992	Originally acquired by the Tierco Group (later Premier Parks).
Six Flags Darien Lake	Buffalo, New York, USA	1956	1995 2018	Owned by EPR Properties. Originally acquired by Premier Parks, sold in 2007 and re-acquired its operations lease in 2018.
Six Flags Discovery Kingdom	Vallejo, California, USA	1974	1997	Initially owned by the City of Vallejo. Leased to Premier Parks in 1997, while Six Flags took on full ownership in 2007.
Six Flags Fiesta Texas	San Antonio, Texas, USA	1992	1996	Initially owned by the USAA Insurance Company; Six Flags (then under Time Warner) took on leasing operations in 1996 and acquired full ownership two years later following Premier Parks' purchase of Six Flags.
Six Flags Great Adventure	Jackson, New Jersey, USA	1974	1977	Since 2012, the park has included its Safari within park grounds; making Great Adventure the largest amusement park in the chain.
Six Flags Great America	Gurnee, Illinois, USA	1976	1984
Six Flags Great Escape	Queensbury, New York, USA	1968	1997	Originally acquired by Premier Parks.
Six Flags Magic Mountain	Valencia, California, USA	1971	1979	N/A
Six Flags Mexico	Mexico City, Mexico	1982	1999	Originally acquired by Premier Parks.
Six Flags New England	Agawam, Massachusetts, USA	1870	1997	Originally acquired by Premier Parks.
Six Flags Over Georgia	Austell, Georgia, USA	1967	N/A	Owned under a limited partnership.
Six Flags Over Texas	Arlington, Texas, USA	1961	N/A	The first Six Flags park to be constructed. Owned under a limited partnership.
Six Flags St. Louis	Eureka, Missouri, USA	1971	N/A	The last of the three parks constructed by Six Flags and the only one under full ownership.
Valleyfair	Shakopee, Minnesota, USA	1976	2024	Acquired within the Cedar Fair merger.
Worlds of Fun	Kansas City, Missouri, USA	1973	2024	Acquired within the Cedar Fair merger.

Past (15)

Park	Location	Opened	Acquired	Fate
American Adventures	Marietta, Georgia, USA	1990	1999	Originally acquired by Premier Parks. Leased to Zuma Holdings in 2008, closed in 2010; rides removed in 2017.
Bellewaerde Park	Ieper, West-Vlaanderen, Belgium	1954	1998	Originally acquired by Premier Parks. Sold alongside the rest of the Six Flags European Parks division to Palamon Capital Partners in 2004.
Six Flags AstroWorld	Houston, Texas, USA	1968	1975	Closed at the end of the 2005 season due to poor performance and parking issues with the nearby Reliant Stadium. Demolished between 2005 and 2006.
Six Flags AutoWorld	Flint, Michigan, USA	1984	N/A	Opened under a joint-venture. Six Flags revoked their operations following its second closure.
Six Flags Belgium	Wavre, Walloon Brabant, Belgium	1975	1998	Originally acquired by Premier Parks. Sold alongside the rest of the Six Flags European Parks division to Palamon Capital Partners in 2004. Rebranded as Walibi Belgium for the 2005 season.
Six Flags Elitch Gardens	Denver, Colorado, USA	1995 (Current)	1996	Originally acquired by Premier Parks. Sold alongside a select number of Six Flags parks to PARC Management in 2007, removed "Six Flags" from its name after the sale.
Six Flags Holland	Biddinghuizen, Flevoland, Netherlands	1971	1998	Originally acquired by Premier Parks. Sold alongside the rest of the Six Flags European Parks division to Palamon Capital Partners in 2004. Renamed "Walibi World" for the 2005 Season.
Six Flags Kentucky Kingdom	Louisville, Kentucky, USA	1987	1997	Lease acquired by Premier Parks. Exited out of operations in March 2010 following a long dispute with the Kentucky State Fair Board, which leased much of the park's land. The park reopened under its pre-Six Flags management in June 2014.
Six Flags New Orleans	New Orleans, Louisiana, USA	2000	2002	Lease acquired by Six Flags. Destroyed by Hurricane Katrina in August 2005. Six Flags sold back the leased land to the city in 2009.
Six Flags Worlds of Adventure	Aurora, Ohio, USA	1887	1995	Originally acquired by Premier Parks. Merged with SeaWorld Ohio in 2001. Sold to Cedar Fair before the 2004 season's start due to financial issues at Six Flags.
Walibi Aquitaine	Roquefort, Nouvelle-Aquitaine, France	1992	1998	Originally acquired by Premier Parks. Sold alongside the rest of the Six Flags European Parks division to Palamon Capital Partners in 2004.
Walibi Lorraine	Maizières-les-Metz, Grand Est, France	1989	1998	Originally acquired by Premier Parks. Sold alongside the rest of the Six Flags European Parks division to Palamon Capital Partners in 2004.
Walibi Rhône-Alpes	Les Avenières, Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes, France	1978	1998	Originally acquired by Premier Parks. Sold alongside the rest of the Six Flags European Parks division to Palamon Capital Partners in 2004.
Warner Bros. Movie World Germany	Bottrop, North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany	1996	1998	Originally acquired by Premier Parks. Sold alongside the rest of the Six Flags European Parks division to Palamon Capital Partners in 2004. Renamed Movie Park Germany for the 2005 season due to the Warner Bros. license not being included in the sale.
Warner Bros. Park Madrid	San Martín de la Vega, Madrid, Spain	2002	Opened under Six Flags	Six Flags operated the park but only held a 5% ownership stake (the rest was owned by various Spanish shareholders). Operations were terminated by the park's management in November 2004 and the minority ownership stake was given to Warner Bros.
Wild Waves & Enchanted Village	Federal Way, Washington, USA	1977	2000	Sold alongside a select number of Six Flags parks to PARC Management in 2007.
Wyandot Lake	Columbus, Ohio, USA	1984	1995	Lease originally acquired by Premier Parks. The lease was given back to the Columbus Zoo and Aquarium in 2006. The entire park was reconstructed as a standalone Water Park complex and renamed Zoombezi Bay upon reopening in May 2008. While most of the rides were sold, a small selection remained within the Zoo grounds.

Upcoming (1)

• 
  Six Flags Qiddiya - Riyadh, Saudi Arabia

Water Parks

Located within Park Grounds

Park	Location	Opened	Acquired	Additional Info
Carolina Harbor	Charlotte, North Carolina, USA	1982	2024	Acquired within the Cedar Fair merger.
Oceans of Fun	Kansas City, Missouri, USA	1982	2024	Acquired within the Cedar Fair merger.
Six Flags Hurricane Harbor (Great Escape)	Queensbury, New York, USA	1995	1997	Originally acquired by Premier Parks.
Six Flags Hurricane Harbor (Over Georgia)	Austell, Georgia, USA	2014	N/A	Owned under a limited partnership.
Six Flags Hurricane Harbor (St. Louis)	Eureka, Missouri, USA	1999	N/A	N/A
Six Flags Hurricane Harbor Darien Lake	Buffalo, New York, USA	1990	1995 2018	Owned by EPR Properties. Originally acquired by Premier Parks. Was sold in 2007 and Six Flags purchased back the lease in 2018.
Six Flags Hurricane Harbor Maryland	Largo, Maryland, USA	1982	1992	Originally acquired by the Tierco Group (later Premier Parks).
Six Flags Hurricane Harbor New England	Agawam, Massachusetts, USA	1997	1997	N/A
Soak City (Kings Dominion)	Allentown, Pennsylvania, USA	1992	2024	Acquired within the Cedar Fair merger.
Soak City (Kings Island)	Mason, Ohio, USA	1989	2024	Acquired within the Cedar Fair merger.
Soak City (Valleyfair)	Shakopee, Minnesota, USA	1983	2024	Acquired within the Cedar Fair merger.
South Bay Shores	Santa Clara, California, USA	2004	2024	Acquired within the Cedar Fair merger.
Splash Works	Vaughan, Ontario, Canada	1992	2024	Acquired within the Cedar Fair merger.
WildWater Adventure	Muskegon, Michigan, USA	1990	2024	Acquired within the Cedar Fair merger.
Wildwater Kingdom	Allentown, Pennsylvania, USA	1985	2024	Acquired within the Cedar Fair merger.
Wild West Water Works	Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, USA	2017	2018	Owned by EPR Properties. Operations acquired by Six Flags in 2018.

Standalone or Separate Admission (16)

Park	Location	Opened	Acquired	Additional Info
Cedar Point Shores	Sandusky, Ohio, USA	1988	2024	Located adjacent to Cedar Point Acquired within the Cedar Fair merger.
Knott's Soak City	Buena Park, California, USA	2000	2024	Located near Knott's Berry Farm Acquired within the Cedar Fair merger.
Schlitterbahn Galveston	Galveston, Texas	2006	2024	Located within the resort grounds Acquired within the Cedar Fair merger.
Schlitterbahn New Braunfels	New Braunfels, Texas	1979	2024	Located within the resort grounds Acquired within the Cedar Fair merger.
Six Flags Hurricane Harbor Arlington	Arlington, Texas, USA	1983	1995	Located across from Six Flags Over Texas.
Six Flags Hurricane Harbor Chicago	Gurnee, Illinois, USA	2005	N/A	Located adjacent to Six Flags Great America. It became a standalone park in 2021.
Six Flags Hurricane Harbor Concord	Concord, California, USA	1995	1996 (first) 2018 (second)	Located about 15 miles from Six Flags Discovery Kingdom. Owned by EPR Properties. Originally acquired by Premier Parks, of which Six Flags purchased back the lease in 2017.
Six Flags Hurricane Harbor Los Angeles	Valencia, California, USA	1995	N/A	Located adjacent to Six Flags Magic Mountain.
Six Flags Hurricane Harbor New Jersey	Jackson, New Jersey, USA	2000	N/A	Located adjacent to Six Flags Great Adventure.
Six Flags Hurricane Harbor Phoenix	Glendale, Arizona, USA	2009	2018	Owned by EPR Properties.
Six Flags Hurricane Harbor Oaxtepec	Oaxtepec, Mexico City, Mexico	2017	N/A	Located within an hour from Six Flags Mexico. Built on the grounds of Parque Acuático Oaxtepec.
Six Flags Hurricane Harbor Oklahoma City	Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, USA	1981	1991 (first) 2018 (second)	Located within fifteen miles from Frontier City. Owned by EPR Properties. Originally acquired by the Tierco Group (later Premier Parks), of which Six Flags re-acquired the operations lease in 2018.
Six Flags Hurricane Harbor Rockford	Cherry Valley, Illinois, USA	1984	2018	Owned by the Rockford Park District. Six Flags holds a ten-year operations lease.
Six Flags Hurricane Harbor San Antonio	San Antonio, Texas, USA	1992	1996	Located adjacent to Six Flags Fiesta Texas. It became a standalone park in 2023.
Six Flags Hurricane Harbor SplashTown	Spring, Texas, USA	1984	1999 data-sort-value="20180000" | 2018	Owned by EPR Properties. Originally acquired by Premier Parks, of which Six Flags re-acquired the operations lease in 2018.
Six Flags White Water	Marietta, Georgia, USA	1984	1999	Owned by the management of Six Flags Over Georgia. Located within fifteen miles of the park.

Indoor (2)

Park	Location	Opened	Acquired	Additional Info
Castaway Bay	Sandusky, Ohio, USA	2004	2024	Acquired within the Cedar Fair merger. Located in the Castaway Bay Hotel, About 3 Miles from Cedar Point.
White Water Bay	Queensbury, New York, USA	2006	N/A	Located within the Great Escape Lodge, opposite Six Flags Great Escape.

Former (5)

Park	Location	Opened	Acquired	Fate
Hurricane Harbor (Worlds of Adventure)	Aurora, Ohio, USA	1983	1995	Located within Six Flags Worlds of Adventure. Sold to Cedar Fair before the 2004 season's start.
Six Flags Atlantis	Marietta, Georgia, USA	1983	1983	Purchased by Six Flags before opening. Owned under a joint-venture, and sold to a development company in 1992.
Six Flags Splashwater Kingdom	Louisville, Kentucky, USA	1992	1997	Located within Six Flags Kentucky Kingdom. Lease originally acquired by Premier Parks. Exited out of operations in 2010.
Six Flags WaterWorld	Houston, Texas, USA	1983	N/A	Located adjacent to Six Flags AstroWorld. Closed and demolished with AstroWorld in 2005.
Waterworld Sacramento	Sacramento, California, USA	1980	1996	Located within the Cal Expo grounds. Lease was originally acquired by Premier Parks. Six Flags announced that they would not renew their lease with the park in March 2006.

External links

• Six Flags wiki